Drastic Layoffs at Live Oak
I’m a Live Oak schools parent, and I would like to see LOSD sell the Live Oak senior center property and recover the $2.4M. Even if those funds couldn’t be used for teaching positions, our district could surely use the money as both a much needed buffer against insolvency, and to start making the repairs needed for our schools–for which the District is now asking taxpayers to fund in the form of Measure H.
What angers me is that the District is holding onto this property for workforce housing, which is something that voters have yet to approve. I strongly oppose workforce housing, because it adds yet another layer of administrative bloat to our district expenses. Do I want to see my tax dollars go to support all that goes along with managing an apartment building? Absolutely not.
Given that there are only 180 days of instruction in the school year, I would argue that teachers are more underemployed than underpaid. We as a society need to revisit this idea that it’s ok to offer education to our children for so few days a year.
Housing in Santa Cruz County is ridiculously expensive for everyone, not just the education workforce. We desperately need more housing. There is no ‘us and them’ here, we are all in this together.
—Claudia Burgin
Teachers Work Hard
Underemployed??? If you think I am underemployed you clearly have not experienced teaching before. I suggest you consider taking a year and investing it in our students as a teacher before you bother offering your two cents!
—KC O’Brien
No Pay for Summer Work
Just FYI, most teachers spend the summer doing professional development. During my “summers” I have
a) done a six-week internship at Applied Biosystems;
b) written an entire Genetics curriculum;
c) participated in Math academies, Earth Science Academies, NGSS academies, writing academies, etc.;
d) taken college classes to get re-certified and to earn more teaching certifications (I have more than 10);
e) lesson plan;
f) batch planning for scope & sequence;
g) clean and restock (WITH MY OWN MONEY!) my classroom (which takes days).
You should also be aware that we are paid for 186 days per year, not the summer.
—Susan B. Toohey
