Responses of Councilmember
Ken Genser

Signed CEPS "Excellent Public School Pledge"

1. What is the significance for our community of ensuring adequate funding for our school district, its programs, early childhood education and after school programs? Please elaborate.
   
   As a community, we share an obligation to educate our children. An education is essential to function in modern society, and a modern society cannot function without an educated population. The funding of education – including early childhood education and after school programs – is truly an investment in our future.
   
   
2. What priority would you attach to ensuring adequate funding for our schools, after-school programs, and early childhood development in the city budget?
   
   Financial assistance to our public schools is – and should be – a high priority for our city. Until the state provides adequate funding (which is not likely to be soon) the city should annually budget funds for the school district as it budgets for other “core” services.
   
   
3. Are you familiar with and do you fully support the agreement negotiated for the City to provide funding to the School District?
   
   Yes, I was part of the team that negotiated the agreement, and I fully support it.
   
   
4. Do you fully support providing the maximum level of funding for our schools under City-School District agreement? Under what circumstances would you not be willing to do so?
   
   Yes, I support funding to the maximum level of the agreement. The circumstances under which I would not be willing to provide maximum funding are difficult to contemplate and seem very remote; it would require a situation in which the city had to significantly and unexpectedly cut funding to its core services.
   
   
5. If the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District faced a budget crisis brought on by circumstances outside the District's control, such as by funding cuts from the State of California, would you be willing to support crisis funding to the District even beyond the City-School District funding agreement?
   
   Yes, I have always been willing to provide additional financial assistance to the district when it encountered unexpected funding gaps.
   
   
6. Please provide specific examples of how you have supported the district and the education of our youth? How have you shown leadership to ensure adequate city funding for our schools? As a council member, what kind of leadership will you show to address school funding?
   
   As a council member, I have consistently championed city funding for the school district, childcare and early childhood education, and after school programs. My support on the council began with the first major unrestricted grant to the district and has continued to the recent agreement between the city and the district. If reelected to the council, I will continue to advocate funding for education, and work to find additional funding sources.