In front of an audience of nearly 100 teachers, principals and parents, the Simi Valley school board voted Tuesday to approve more than $4.1 million in cuts for the 2009-10 school year.

School board president Eric Lundstrom—whose wife is a teacher and whose two young children attend public schools—offered his sympathy to the teachers following the vote.

"It's horrible," he said. "We don't want to be in this position. . . . Our hands are tied by the state."

District staff estimates Simi Valley Unified must make $10 million in cuts next year and $27 million over the next three years if funding from the state remains unchanged.

Simi Unified will save $1.27 million by increasing kindergarten through third grade class sizes from 20 students per teacher to 24. The district had briefly considered increasing the ratio to 29-1.

Lowell Schultze, associate superintendent of business and facilities, said the classroom size reduction cuts will affect 55 teaching positions. This year, K-3 teachers number 305; next year there will likely be about 250, barring additional changes, he said.

SVUSD will also increase class sizes in the middle schools and high schools by one student per class. The average class in middle and high schools currently has 35 students, with a maximum of 36. Those numbers will increase to 36 and 37 in 200910. The cost savings of this cut is $1.33 million and could affect11 teaching positions.

The district will save $288,000 by eliminating ninth-grade English class size reduction caps, going from 20 students per class to 36 or 37 per class.

Twelve elementary science teaching positions will be cut next year as well, at a savings of $840,000.

The district will also eliminate home-to-school transportation for elementary and middle school students, not including special education students.

The district currently offers transportation to 432 special education students, a service that will remain intact through next year.

The 883 other students who take advantage of the bus service will need to find new rides in 2009-10.

Schultze said the district has no plans to sell its unused transportation vehicles, but he doesn't know what it will do with them. Eliminating hometoschool transportation will save the school district $387,700.

The associate superintendent said that the district is preparing to make cuts at its April 28 meeting that will affect classified staff.

"We're hoping this is a worstcase scenario," Schultze said. "Sometimes, we look at the (budget-reduction items list), and it looks like the best-case scenario."

The validity of the recently adopted state budget hinges on the passage of five propositions in the May 19 special elections, school officials have said in recent weeks. If the propositions don't pass, the school district, they've said, will likely make more cuts.

Scott Romanowski, director of information technology, said the district should consider salary reduction before eliminating jobs.

Nicole Barr, an English teacher at Royal High, was on the verge of tears as she spoke before the board.

"Kids can't write today," Barr said. "I'm teaching seniors who are still not growing. To increase classes to 37 students, you are almost doubling the class size. . . . We're not going to be able to compete with other districts around us, the rest of the country and the world."

"We do feel your pain," said clerk of the board Jeanne Davis, who taught in Simi Valley for 33 years. "I feel your pain."