BUDGET-CUT WORK STARTS IN LAUSD INCREASED CLASS SIZE ON TABLE.

Byline: Sonia Giordani Staff Writer

Faced with a projected $428.5 million shortfall for next fiscal year, Los Angeles school board members took their first look Thursday at ways to cut spending and make ends meet in the coming budget.

Recommendations include deferring funds for art and after-school programs, reducing the number of one-on-one aides for special-education students, increasing class sizes and cutting the number of school nurses, psychologists and counselors in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

At the same time, Superintendent Roy Romer said the district must protect successful programs for literacy, math, professional development and school construction.

``We want to keep very focused on our core instructional program, bringing student scores up and improving academic performance,'' Romer told members of the Business, Finance, Audit and Technology Committee at a meeting Thursday morning.

The full board will meet at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at 450 N. Grand Ave. in downtown Los Angeles to hear from Romer, his staff and the public to plan the new budget. The board must adopt the final budget by August.

Board president Caprice Young said she was concerned about the effect of the cuts on special education.

``One of the items would reduce funds for special-education one-to-one aides. Is that actually legal?'' she asked.

Others said they were concerned about the impact that increasing class size would have on student achievement. Board member Marlene Canter asked how the district will ensure the academic success of the poorest schools. And board member David Tokofsky urged district officials to take a closer look at curbing unnecessary overtime expenditures.

Teachers union president Day Higuchi, who also attended Thursday's meeting, warned that the district is proceeding with a ``lesson plan for second-rate education'' unless it preserves classroom expenditures and sets money aside for a modest teacher pay hike to prevent instructors from fleeing to higher-paying school districts.

He said nonteaching pay has grown too fast at the expense of classroom teacher salaries. ``The game of education is won or lost in the classroom, not at headquarters.''

Chief Financial Officer Joseph Zeronian said LAUSD's problems largely stem from the bleak financial forecast facing California. Projected overall growth in state revenue is one-tenth of 1 percent and personal income tax revenue is down about 17 percent from original forecasts, he said.

He said LAUSD is expecting $68 million in additional revenue this year - less than half of the increase the district received last year and significantly less than the $530 million in income growth reported in the 1999-2000 school year.

``You can't operate this kind of budget with only $68 million in additional annual income,'' Zeronian said.