The court order won’t solve Richmond’s long-term financial problems. Between 1987 and 1990, former superintendent Walter Marks racked up $60 million in debt as he turned the city’s failing schools around. “If we made one grave error,” Marks says now, “it was the amount of the salary increase we gave the employees.” The teachers demanded an 18 percent raise last year even as the district was asking the state for a $9 million loan to remain open for the school year. The raise took the teachers from being the second lowest paid in California to the top 10.
The state is appealing the ruling. Meanwhile, state superintendent of public instruction Bill Honig has patched together a bailout loan. He’s also backing legislation that would give the state complete control of a local district in future bailout situations. “It’s like a company that goes under,” says Honig. “You don’t let bad management keep running the thing.”
