Santa Barbara teachers rally before school board meeting
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -Teachers who work for the Santa Barbara Unified School District said Tuesday they don't plan to strike but they do plan to keep on rallying.
Teachers rallied on almost every corner before the Santa Barbara Unified School Board meeting.
They said the rally just happened to coincide with National Teaches Day and Teacher Appreciation Month.
Santa Barbara Teachers Association President Joyce Adriansen plans to speak during public comments.
"We are rallying again because they are still refusing to open salary [negotiations] we're feeling that our district is really in crisis right now," said Adriansen."
Educators say teachers are moving away to higher paying districts because they can't afford to live here.
Adriansen said that is not good for students.
"Students are missing out on experienced teachers, teachers are leaving, they stay 2 years and they go."
Teachers believe there is money in the budget to increase salaries.
"We have looked at the budget and there is money in the budget, you know, the unrestricted funding balance has gone up for the past 4 years, and you know, the tax revenue grew by 9.8 [percent] in 2019-20, it grew 14.4 percent in 2021 and next year it is estimated to grow by 8.37 percent, "said Adriansen, "and they are giving us 2 percent."
Teachers are not following strikes in other lines of work but they are watching teacher who went on strike in Los Angeles get results.
They said neighboring districts get paid more and often pay less for housing.
Adriansen said they can not legally strike over their salary this year because they already have a settlement.
Their rally flyer calls for smaller class sizes, caps on special education caseloads and permanent steps to retrain educators.
Derek Drew who chairs the Santa Barbara Teachers Association Bargaining Committee said the cost of living has soared in and around Santa Barbara since the pandemic. He said it takes more than a 2 percent raise to pay the rent or a mortgage.
He said many teachers have to borrow from family to make ends meet.
Bryan Stevens comes from a long line of teachers and said this is his first year.
He didn't realize how hard it would be to live on a teacher's salary.
During public commments teacher Liz Bandi announced her resignation at the end of the school year.
She said she plans to move to San Luis Obispo where she and her husband can afford to buy a house and live.
The SBUSD issued the following statement prior to the board meeting:
"The district values the voices of our teachers, staff, students, and community members while making sure we maintain our fiduciary duties. We thank those who spoke at the Board meeting tonight. We look forward to finding solutions with our unions during labor negotiations. The latest on our bargaining sessions can be found at sbunified.org. "
The districts motto is "Every child, every chance, every day."
Your News Channel will have more on the teachers rally tonight on the news.
