Flanked by concerned parents, members of the Hawthorne Elementary Teachers Association showed up in force at an April 28 school board meeting to protest district plans to increase elementary classes in grades 1-3 from their current maximum of 20 to a new cap of 30.
The board was planning to take advantage of a loophole in state law that allows school districts to exceed the 20-student maximum allowed under the state class size reduction program as long as an additional teacher is assigned to the classroom on a part-time basis.
"It's unfair to put young children into this kind of overcrowded learning situation," says HETA President Janice Steffen. "We know the 20-1 ratio of students to teachers works. Many of our students are economically disadvantaged and benefit greatly from the individual attention they get in smaller classes."
HETA is urging the district to maintain current class sizes and come up with the facilities necessary to give all Hawthorne students a quality education.
"It's a question of priorities," says Steffen. "Instead of wasting money outside of the classroom on questionable expenditures that don't help kids, the board needs to work with us to find ways to get these students the facilities and smaller classes they deserve."
Frank Wells