LAUSD feeling state budget pinch

Kindergarten classes could grow to nearly 40 children. Some 45 million meals for poor students might not be served. Art classes will likely be history. And hundreds of teachers could lose their jobs.George B. Sanchez in the Daily News.

That's the bleak outlook for the Los Angeles Unified School District in 2009 as officials face $400 million in cuts next month and further reductions in state funding. The $400 million comes on top of a series of other cuts, taking the total to nearly $1 billion this school year.

While districts across the state have managed to avoid a large number of layoffs so far, LAUSD officials say job losses are almost inevitable because salaries and benefits account for more than 80 percent of the district's $12billion budget. And most educators expect bad news to continue coming from Sacramento well into the new year.