PETITION FOR THE SCHOOL BOARD TO SCHEDULE A PUBLIC SUMMIT MEETING TO DISCUSS THE BUDGET FOR NEXT YEAR BACKGROUND: Many of us in the community feel frustrated getting accurate and complete information related to the impending budget reduction. Further, we lack confidence that our opinions are being fully heard and considered. Getting complete answers to our questions can be a long or impossible task. Although at times the administration has spent a fair amount of time on the phone and in person with individuals, oftentimes the information is incomplete, and the follow-up necessary to get the complete information can be daunting or even effectively impossible. The principles and assumptions that the administration is using to guide their decisions are largely unknown to us. We would like true two-way dialogue between the district administration and us. The same remarks also apply to the school board. The school board rarely substantively replies to any remarks made by community members. The small timeframe allocated to the open forum probably is not sufficient for the dialogue needed. All though final approval of the budget by the board wont be for several weeks, we feel urgency that these matters be discussed completely, openly, and with complete and accurate information in the very near future. Staffing decisions need to be made now. Other important planning decisions for next year also need to be made and changing them later could prove to be problematic. RESOLUTION We, the undersigned, request that district administration make more forthright efforts to provide transparent and complete information. We implore school board members to diligently study the data available to arrive at an independent assessment of the district's finances and to what extent cuts are truly warranted, and to listen to the public with an open mind about what cuts parents, your customers, request. We, the undersigned, also request that a public summit be scheduled with all due diligence that would include the school board, district administration, key district staff members, and community members. The meeting should meet all the requirements for a public meeting, so that all the participants are free to engage in two-way discussions. The meeting should last several hours so that all questions can be addressed, and all opinions heard and discussed.