CTA chapter leaders urge their legislators to spare public education from budget ax

CTA presidents descended upon the state Capitol en masse Jan. 15 to try to convince legislators that huge cutbacks in classroom spending today will spell disaster for California's students tomorrow.

The more than 330 presidents and other chapter leaders from throughout California who attended the CTA Lobby Day presented a strong show of force in their quest to protect public schools from Gov. Gray Davis' plan to impose $6.7 billion in budget cuts to K-14 education this year.

Teachers first gathered at a local hotel. "You are the leaders in your local school districts and, if you can't make it happen, no one can make it happen," said CTA President Wayne Johnson.

"Lobby your hearts out," encouraged Vice President Barbara E. Kerr. "If you do, hopefully, legislators will see the light. And, remember, nobody is more of an expert on education than you are."

Armed with facts, figures and grim determination, the teachers set out in buses for the Capitol, ready to do battle. Some dropped in on legislators unannounced while others were lucky enough to schedule appointments ahead of time.

Benicia Teachers Association President Susan Gibbs waited patiently in the hallway for her 3 o'clock appointment with Assembly Member Lois Wolk (D-8). She had driven to the state Capitol from her town in Solano County that morning.

"Yes, I'm nervous," she admitted. "But this is important to me. I'm here because I really love my students. They deserve the best education they can get. They need to be prepared for the 21st century. I am appalled at the direction our state is going in. I think this budget will be a big step backward for schools."

Benicia was already facing a budget crisis before the state's own shortfall was announced, said Gibbs. Administrators miscalculated the amount of income the district would receive and, as a result, there is no money to be set aside for reserves.

"We have laid off classified staff, reduced custodial staff and cut library and computer programs," she said. "It is really frightening."

Wolk, a newly elected legislator, ushered Gibbs and other teachers into her office and asked them to state their concerns.

"We understand that some cuts will have to be made to schools, but we would like to see these cuts kept as far from the classroom as possible," said Sylvia Aquino, a member of the Vacaville Teachers Association bargaining team. "You have to be very careful, because when you touch education, you could be jeopardizing the future of our children. What the governor has proposed is extremely detrimental to education and children."

Monica Brown, a member of the Fairfield-Suisun Unified Teachers Association, asked that class size reduction be spared. She said that she has seen the benefits firsthand: Having a 20 to 1 ratio of students to teachers has increased the learning capacity of students, she said.

"If it hadn't been for class size reduction, I don't think Seth would have learned to read," she said of one student. "Now he's reading Harry Potter . It is very important that class size reduction remain in our schools."

Gibbs suggested that if cuts need to be made, the number of administrators could be reduced with minimal impact on students. "Does every school district really need a curriculum director?" she asked. "Maybe each county should have one. There is way too much duplication of services by administrators."

At the conclusion of the meeting, Wolk thanked the teachers for coming, and asked them to send her as much information as they could about the schools in her district and the impact cuts would have on students. She promised to consider their concerns when it came time to act on the governor's proposal.

In the office of Assembly Member Ronald Calderon (D-58), teacher leaders from Southern California made the case for keeping cuts as far away from the classroom as possible - especially when it comes to the schools of greatest need.

"We've worked very hard to bring up our API scores," said Odilia Granado, vice president of the Whittier Elementary Teachers Association. "Every school except two in the district has met its target. If these cuts happen, they will especially impact children in the schools of greatest need. All of the special programs we have to support them are threatened, including training for teachers, before and after-school care and intervention programs such as tutoring and summer school. We must do all we can to continue to help children who attend the schools of greatest need."

Protecting the base revenue limit is also of highest importance, said the teacher lobbyists. Base revenue limit funds provide core classroom funding for all schools and community colleges and pay for the increasing costs of providing student services.

Lee Hagerty, a member of the Community College Association Board of Directors, said that basic aid districts feel especially threatened by the governor's budget proposals. Basic aid districts receive only a small amount of money from the state, but are allowed to keep property tax monies in excess of the minimum level of funding the state guarantees.

"Basic aid districts can expect to see a reduction in services, larger classes, fewer resources and a more stressful classroom environment under the current plan," said Hagerty. "At the college level, you will see an increase in tuition and also an increase in the dropout rate. Higher tuition will definitely be prohibitive for some students."

Hacienda-La Puente Teachers Association President Sergio Martinez asked that special education programs be protected from across-the-board cuts. He noted that special education programs serve more than 650,000 special-needs students across the state, and that the federal government has never adequately funded special ed programs, despite its promise to do so.

"We have to continue to fund special education, or the money will come out of the general fund," said Martinez. "It will result in a trickle-down effect that will be felt not only by special education students, but children in general education classrooms."

The proposal to cut billions from K-14 funding over the next two years is galling, especially in light of the governor's plan to increase funding for prisons and build a new death row, said Martinez.

"It's criminal," he fumed. "Gov. Davis said education was his first, second and third priority. Now it seems that prison is."

"Perhaps young people can avoid going to prison by receiving a quality education," said Bonnie Garcia, president of the Association of Rowland Educators. "Spending money on prisons instead of classrooms is the wrong priority."

CTA's Lobby Day resulted in widespread coverage in print and broadcast media around the state.

"People are finally getting the message about how serious the budget deficit is," said CTA Board member Dan Vaughn, who traveled from Downey for Lobby Day. "Members are very concerned - and our members should be proud to know that CTA is doing its job to make the public and legislators aware of their concerns. That's what today is really all about."