The Sunnyside Unified School District will move forward with its proposed budget cuts despite objections from some employees who say they didn’t have any input.
Sunnyside’s governing board voted 3-2 to authorize the cuts, which include closing Los Ranchitos Elementary School and Chaparral Middle School, and will result in the termination of an as-yet undetermined number of teachers and other employees.
Board members Buck Crouch and Daniel Hernandez Jr. voted against the measure, saying the district should’ve taken more time to consult teachers and other employees.
The two board dissenting members also wanted to see more details of Superintendent Manuel Isquierdo‘s proposal before moving forward.
But Isquierdo said district officials couldn’t provide any details until they were given the authority to move forward.
The plan calls for Los Ranchitos to reopen as a parent engagement center, which would support family literacy, civic engagement, voter registration and other programs.
It also would call for Chaparral Middle School to be reopened as a K-8 fine arts school.
The district will hold two forums in December to discuss the impending cuts with parents and employees.
District officials created the list of proposed closures after voters rejected a budget override earlier this month. Sunnyside is looking to save almost $6 million from the cuts.
Other proposals include converting Ocotillo Early Learning center to a pre-kindergarten through first grade early-learning center that would house fee-based programs and special education programs.
Also, six elementary schools will be redesigned into kindergarten through sixth-grade academies and two elementary schools into K-8 magnet schools.
Other cuts will include getting rid of 10 campus monitors, an elementary specialist at each school, as well as some administrators and coordinators, although a number wasn’t specified.
The elementary specialist cuts will have implications on the district’s arts and music programs, forcing elementary schools to share art and music teachers.
The district will also redesign and reduce its central district maintenance services, and release half of its Return-to-Work retiree employees. There are about 200 workers in the program.
Some of the details need to be ironed out, especially regarding reassigning or laying off teachers from the closed schools.
Isquierdo did not know Tuesday night how many teachers could be laid off.
But he felt the district had to move forward quickly instead of taking months to discuss the moves, he said.
“It’s a major step to reassure all our employees that they’re valued,” he said.
However, Hernandez and Crouch felt the decision to move forward was disrespectful towards employees.
“I think a vote yes is a clear message to employees that you don’t respect them,” Hernandez said. “We have not done our due diligence.”
Members of the teachers union had complained about a lack of input into the decision at a board meeting earlier this month.
Many left Tuesday’s meeting disappointed after the decision was made.
However, Isquierdo was confident that this plan will cause the least harm.
“We saved a lot of programs tonight,” he said.
