November 17: 2008: State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell announced emergency assistance is available to students, schools, and the communities affected by the wildfires in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties. Assistance for Schools Affected by Wildfires - Year 2008
What's New (Modified 18-Nov-2008)
- FEMA: President Declares Emergency Federal Aid for California [http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=46823] (Outside Source).
- FEMA: Federal Aid Programs For California Disaster Recovery [http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=46824] (Outside Source).
- S-15-08 - Executive Order by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger [http://gov.ca.gov/executive-order/11088/] (Outside Source).
- FEMA: California Wildfire Update [http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=46804] (Outside Source).
Orange County (Modified 24-Nov-2008)
- Triangle Complex Fire [http://www.fire.ca.gov/index_incidents_Freeway.php] (Outside Source): Also known as the Freeway Complex Fire. Contained 100 percent. No further threat.
- Communities Affected: Corona, Chino Hills, Yorba Linda, Brea, Anaheim.
- Schools Affected:
- Brea Olinda Unified School District [http://www.bousd.k12.ca.us/] (Outside Source): All schools are open. Reconstruction of Brea Canyon High School will likely continue through the end of the school year. Please check the district Web site for additional updates. BOUSD has 6,033 students enrolled, and 313 staff members. No reports of school-related deaths or injuries.
- Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District [http://www.pylusd.org/home.asp] (Outside Source): The school district is announcing a fund-raising effort to help victims of the wildfires. Please visit its Web site for more information on how to help. PYLUSD has 26,243 students enrolled, and 1,326 staff. Some district staff and their families may have suffered personal property damage as a result of the fires. However, there were no reports of school-related deaths or injuries. No reports of damage to schools.
San Bernardino County (Modified 20-Nov-2008)
- Triangle Complex Fire [http://www.fire.ca.gov/index_incidents_Freeway.php] (Outside Source): Also known as the Freeway Complex Fire. Contained 100 percent. No further threat.
- Communities Affected: Chino.
- Schools Affected:
- Chino Valley Unified School District [http://www.chino.k12.ca.us/] (Outside Source): All Chino Valley schools have resumed their normal schedules. CVUSD has 33,047 students enrolled, and 1,713 staff members. No reports of school-related deaths or injuries. No reports of damage to schools.
Los Angeles County (Modified 20-Nov-2008)
- Sayre Fire [http://lafd.blogspot.com/2008/11/lafd-sayre-fire.html] (Outside Source). Contained 100 percent.
- Communities Affected: Los Angeles
- Schools Affected:
- Walnut Valley Unified School District [http://www.wvusd.k12.ca.us/] (Outside Source): All schools have resumed their normal schedule. WVUSD has 15,316 students enrolled and 764 staff members. No reports of school-related deaths or injuries. No reports of damage to schools.
Santa Barbara County (Modified 20-Nov-2008)
- Tea Fire [http://www.fire.ca.gov/index_incidents_Tea.php] (Outside Source).
- Communities Affected: Santa Barbara, Montecito. Contained 100 percent.
- Schools Affected:
- Santa Barbara Elementary School District and Santa Barbara High School District [http://www.sbsdk12.org/] (Outside Source): Thirty-two students and 15 staff were displaced because their homes were damaged or destroyed. This represents about 20 percent of destroyed residences. Both school districts have a combined student enrollment of more than 16,000 students and 2,700 staff members. No reports of school-related deaths or injuries. No reports of damage to schools. All schools are opened.
Riverside County (Modified 20-Nov-2008)
- Triangle Complex Fire [http://www.fire.ca.gov/index_incidents_Freeway.php] (Outside Source): Also known as the Freeway Complex Fire. Contained 100 percent. No further threat.
- Schools Affected: None
Shelter and Other Assistance (Posted 17-Nov-2008)
- State: CAL FIRE Home [http://www.fire.ca.gov/index.php] (Outside Source).
- Federal: Federal Emergency Management Agency [http://www.fema.gov/] (Outside Source).
- Other: American Red Cross [http://www.redcross.org/] (Outside Source).
- Disaster Resources - Department Information
Assistance for Schools (Posted 17-Nov-2008)
Average Daily Attendance
School facilities will not lose Average Daily Attendance (ADA) funding if they are used as community shelters or forced to close because of the wildfires. The California Education Code allows the State Superintendent to authorize ADA credit for the days that schools are closed. Districts may also receive ADA credit for all purposes and instructional time credit for the days and minutes lost due to an emergency closure. ADA credit and approval of school closures may be obtained by submitting three copies of Form J-13A. To download the form, please visit Form J-13A (DOC; 46KB; 6pp.).
Class Size Reduction
Due to the wildfires in 2007, Assembly Bill 1893 was passed to provide fiscal relief to school districts and charter schools in the counties impacted by the fires. Education Code Section 52124.1 allows school districts and charter schools to claim kindergarten through grade 3 Class Size Reduction (CSR) program funding based on enrollment counts before the October 2007 fires if the school district or charter school submits: (1) a Request for Allowance of Attendance Because of Emergency Conditions (Form J-13A) pursuant to EC Section 46392 and due to the October 2007 fires, and (2) certification that it suffered a loss of enrollment in K-3 CSR classes due to the October 2007 fires which resulted in a decrease in K-3 CSR funding.
Subdivision (b) of EC Section 52124.1 allows school districts and charter schools to claim K-3 CSR program funding for classes that exceeded 20 (20.44) pupils or were housed with another class if the school district or charter school submits: (1) certification that pupil enrollment increased as a direct result of the October2007 fires and this growth increased the number of pupils enrolled in K-3 CSR classes, and (2) certification that it lacked sufficient classroom space or credentialed teachers to accommodate the enrollment increase due to the October 2007 fires.
School Nutrition
Since 1990, the California Education Code allowed school districts that participated in the National School Lunch Program the ability to obtain reimbursement for losses sustained during a state or federally proclaimed disaster. This recognizes that schools have fixed costs even when forced to close in the event of a disaster. Schools may serve meals at no charge to students rendered homeless, and can be designated as community feeding sites. For more information on school meal disaster relief policies, please visit Disaster Relief Guidelines - School Nutrition.
