The Conejo Valley Unified School district board held a budget study session Wednesday night where they decided to eliminate several positions and cut spending to help meet a $4.5 million budget shortfall for the 2008-2009 school year.

No action was taken Wednesday night, but the board could approve cuts at their next regular board meeting on June 3.

The board made further reductions that would be implemented in 2009-2010, leaving the possibility to keep Meadows and University schools open. The board will consider the second list of cuts at their June 17 meeting.

According to revised numbers, the district can save $2.57 million by transferring workers' compensation funds, eliminating deferred maintenance contributions and cutting 15 teaching positions.

In their first round of cuts, the board on Wednesday decided to eliminate $912,000 in special education funding, which included several special education teaching positions in the middle and high schools, para-professional positions, a coordinator position and an orientation and mobility position.

District officials expect a decline in the number of students who would need special education services.

The board also decided to cut three custodial positions, which would save the district and additional $168,000.

The board also decided to eliminate positions that were already vacant, including a full time accounting technician and a media center clerk position.

The board decided to maintain the elementary counseling school program, which would have cut $414,000 from the budget.

In their secondary cuts, which would take effect in the 2009-2010 fiscal year, the board decided to eliminate several positions, including two custodial positions in the elementary schools, a construction supervisor, an audio/visual technician, a sign language interpreter and three groundskeepers.

The board also cut $150,000 in coach stipends for high school freshmen sports programs.

The board also considered increasing the the current teacher staffing ratio from 30 to 1 to 30.5 to 1 in grades six to 12, which could provide an additional $400,000 in savings.

District staff will meet with United Association of Conejo Teachers representatives in the next few days to discuss possible changes in class sizes, Deputy Superintendent Jeffrey Baarstad said.

"I've had 38 kids in a class," said Board President Dorothy Beaubien, a former teacher in the district. "It wasn't ideal, but in this instance, it maybe something we can do with the stipulation that when we had more money, we can go back (to smaller class sizes)."

If the board decides to maintain the $1.4 million in secondary cuts, they could rescind the vote they made back in March to close Meadows and University schools by fall 2009. The board will reconsider that decision at their regular meeting on June 17.