TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

The Bakersfield City School District is proposing to cut the equivalent of 120 full-time positions as it tries to close a $5.5 million cut from next year's budget.

The school board will vote on the resolution in a special meeting tonight night following the regularly scheduled meeting at 6:30 p.m.

The proposal includes the following cuts to positions and services, according to a district report. The figures are full-time equivalent positions.

• One principal

• Six vice principals

• Eight library media specialists

• 22 counselors

• 10 from controlled open enrollment program

• 46 kindergarten- through third-grade teachers

• 10 fourth- through sixth-grade teachers

• 15 seventh- and eighth-grade teachers

• One art teacher

• One physical education teacher

The district decided earlier this month to stop using money from its general fund to pay for positions including counselors, librarians and vice principals. School site councils, however, can save some positions using special school-specific funds.

Teaching position cuts would make class sizes larger by an average of one extra student per class, according to the district.

The meeting will be held at the district office, 1300 Baker St.

The Fruitvale School District will hold a budget work session Tuesday as it considers laying off teachers and staff, among other things, to deal with budget cuts.

The district has discussed layoffs, putting vice principals in the classroom and increasing class sizes.

If the governor's proposal stays as is and the district makes no cuts, Fruitvale's budget would have an ending balance of negative $600,000 next year and a more than $2 million deficit the year after, according to district figures. Reserves after next year would be nearly tapped out.

The district is encouraging feedback. The work session begins at 4:30 p.m. at the district office, 7311 Rosedale Highway.

Standard School District is looking for someone to fill a school board seat served by family members for nearly 60 years.

A retiring Doug Wattenbarger is leaving the school board after serving for 25 years. His father, Lloyd Wattenbarger, began on the school board in 1952 and his uncle Ralph Wattenbarger replaced him before Doug took Ralph's seat in 1985.

"The community has been good to our family," said Doug Wattenbarger, adding no family members plan to take his place. "There are some good people in the district. The district's in good hands."

The district will interview candidates for the seat starting next week. The newcomer will join the district at a time it proposes to lay off 10 teachers at its next board meeting in March to meet budget demands, said Kevin Silberberg, Standard superintendent.

Doug Wattenbarger said budget issues are not the reason he's retiring.

"Budget times are tough, but I've been through them before," Wattenbarger said. "They're not pleasant, but we survived. Hopefully we'll carry through."

Candidates must be 18 years old and live in the district. The seat's term expires in November.

For more information, contact the district at 392-2110.

-- Staff writer Jorge Barrientos

For more education news, go to The Californian's education blog, The Grade, at www.bakersfield.com/blogs, or follow The Grade's Twitter at twitter.com/TBCTheGrade.