FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SACRAMENTO – More than 300 teachers from across California went door to door in the Capitol on Jan. 28 to urge legislators to support the proposed state budget package that protects base funding for students and classrooms.
"Teachers recognize the fiscal crisis facing lawmakers and are committed to working with legislators to keep cuts away from the classroom," said Barbara E. Kerr, president of the 335,000-member California Teachers Association. "We support the education budget proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger because it would protect our students and schools from painful mid-year cuts and fully fund vital student programs."
Kerr pointed out that public school funding has been cut by more than $4 billion over the past two years, and that California continues to rank well below the national average in per-pupil funding.
Teachers urged lawmakers today to adopt a 2004-05 budget that prevents devastating mid-year budget cuts; protects base revenue limit funding; provides cost-of-living adjustments and growth funding increases for all categorical programs, and that protects the integrity of the minimum education funding levels guaranteed by Proposition 98.
Teachers like Marlene Mattoon from San Jose Unified told legislators of the many hardships that their districts are facing. "We're already looking at having to close three desperately needed elementary schools to reduce costs," said Mattoon, president of the San Jose Teachers Association.
Past funding cuts already eliminated smaller class sizes for kindergarten in Tom Conry's Vista Unified District in San Diego County. "Students are suffering as it is," Conry said. "More deep cuts at the state level will impact local schools and families for years to come."