Santa Ana School Board Considers Laying Off 280 Teachers, Other Staff

Santa Ana Unified schoolhouse committee members could laic disconnected astir 300 teachers, counselors, coaches and societal workers astatine the extremity of the schoolhouse twelvemonth arsenic territory officials wrestle with a astir $180 cardinal fund deficit.

The imaginable layoffs successful 1 of Orange County’s largest schoolhouse districts comes arsenic nationalist acquisition leaders conflict with dwindling national COVID bailout funds and declining enrollment astatine nationalist schools crossed OC and the country.

Now, schoolhouse committee members are expected to clasp a peculiar gathering connected Friday Jan. 31 astatine 5 p.m. to review implicit 500 certificated unit positions and perchance determination guardant with a program to layoff an estimated 280 teachers, counselors and different staff.

It comes contempt pushback from teachers, parents, students, unit and national representatives who showed up to Tuesday’s committee gathering to protestation the cuts. 

Karen Pineda Sanchez, a counsellor astatine Segerstrom High School, said unit cuts could adhd other strains connected counselors which successful crook could hinder their quality to springiness students capable support. 

“Some of the things that volition beryllium impacted close present for Santa Ana Unified–we bash person a 250-1 ratio, truthful 250 students to 1 counselor,” Sanchez said successful an interview. “If the cuts happen, we are expanding that ratio, which limits services, which limits clip to spell spot counselors.”

In a Jan. 21 missive posted connected the district’s website, Superintendent Jerry Almendariz said the territory has been preparing for years for the fiscal challenges they present face.

“Santa Ana Unified is not unsocial successful facing these challenges. Across California, schoolhouse districts are grappling with the expiration of COVID-relief grants, forcing hard but indispensable decisions,” helium wrote.

“Declining enrollment and expanding operational costs necessitate america to right-size staffing and reallocate resources to guarantee our district’s semipermanent sustainability.”

While schoolhouse committee members were expected to sermon the cuts Tuesday, they kicked the point to a peculiar gathering due to the fact that their Tuesday gathering ran long.

Board members did not respond to requests for comments Wednesday morning.

A demonstrator holds a motion during a Santa Ana Educator’s Association rally earlier the Santa Ana Unified School District gathering connected Jan. 28, 2025. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC

Will More OC School Districts Face Mass Layoffs?

Santa Ana Unified schoolhouse committee members are not the lone elected officials successful caller years to see wide layoffs arsenic they conflict to quell fiscal woes.

In May, Anaheim Union territory officials decided to not determination guardant with a program to layoff implicit 100 instructors to prevention costs amid a alteration successful pupil enrollment successful caller years.

[Read: Anaheim Union High School District Scraps Dozens of Scheduled Teacher Layoffs]

The determination successful Anaheim came aft the territory mislaid implicit 3,500 students since the 2017-18 schoolhouse year.

Meanwhile, Santa Ana’s enrollment has dropped from implicit 63,000 students successful the 2002-2003 schoolhouse twelvemonth to astir 38,000 students successful the 2023-2024 schoolhouse year, according to the district.

School districts person backing based connected enrollment and attendance numbers.

Almendariz said astatine Tuesday’s gathering it was lone a substance of clip earlier different districts started publically looking astatine layoffs too.

“In the adjacent mates of months, you’re going to spot immoderate different districts’ names floating successful the news,” helium said.

Kevin Gordon, president of Capital Advisors Group – an concern advisement organization, told committee members Tuesday that districts crossed the authorities are facing this problem.

“Districts similar Santa Ana are not alone. It’s 2 thirds of California nationalist schoolhouse districts are cutting their budgets. They’re doing layoffs. They’re doing each kinds of ugliness,” helium said. “We request a batch of assistance successful nationalist education, and we request concern successful bid to curb immoderate of these problems.”

The Santa Ana Unified School District gathering connected Jan. 28, 2025. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC

Layoffs are not the lone mode committee members are looking to prevention money.

At Tuesday’s meeting, committee members voted to reopen a process for eligible employees facing layoffs to use for what’s called a “supplemental aboriginal status incentive” successful an effort to prevention wealth and lessen the magnitude of radical they would perchance layoff.

According to territory officials, the inducement is 80% of the employee’s existent wage enactment into annuity for 5 oregon 10 years if they retire.

In a substance connection Tuesday, territory spokesperson Fermin Leal said astir 150 employees took the “golden handshake deal” – the inducement – earlier the process was reopened yesterday.

School Employees Sound Off connected Potential Layoffs

A motion held by a demonstrator astatine a Santa Ana Educator’s Association (SAEA) rally earlier the Santa Ana Unified School District gathering connected Jan. 28, 2025. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC

Educators and counselors reason the unit cuts would negatively interaction the students they teach. 

Their concerns see accrued people sizes and a simplification of counseling – including enactment for undocumented students and students with undocumented household members who are disquieted astir President Donald Trump’s national migration directives.

[Read: How is Orange County Going to Handle Trump’s Immigration Crackdown?]

Noemi Ruelas, a counsellor successful the district, said that portion territory officials proclaimed they basal successful solidarity with migrant families, they are cutting the employees who are expected to enactment those families’ kids.

“When students are needing enactment due to the fact that they are frightened of deportation, who bash you deliberation they spell to first?” she said. “Who are the ones providing affectional enactment and referring them to antithetic resources? If you thought schoolhouse counselors – you are right.”

The expected teacher and counsellor cuts besides travel aft a region study released astatine the extremity of past twelvemonth recovered an summation successful the hospitalization complaint for substance maltreatment and superior intelligence unwellness successful kids and teens.

[Read: Thousands of OC Kids Struggle With Homelessness, Hunger and Mental Health Issues]

In effect to the emergence successful intelligence wellness issues, the OC Health Care Agency recommended schoolhouse districts prioritize the hiring of schoolhouse counselors.

Demonstrators clasp signs during a Santa Ana Educator’s Association rally earlier the Santa Ana Unified School District gathering connected Jan. 28, 2025. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC

Some unit members lambasted committee members for making what they called irresponsible decisions astir the district’s finances and questioned wherefore lone certified employees were facing layoffs, not different unit similar territory managers and directors.

Many who spoke wore Santa Ana Educators’ Association national shirts and immoderate carried signs that work “Our Students Deserve More, Not Less” and “351+ Layoffs Is The Unimaginable.”

District unit astatine the extremity of past twelvemonth initially estimated astir 350 unit members could look layoffs.

Sonta Garner-Marcelo, president of the Santa Ana Educators’ Association, said that committee members are considering wide layoffs without regards to the communities they serve.

“Teachers and educators are the assemblage leaders. Taking distant assemblage leaders threatens the full community. The ripple effects of this unnecessary determination are huge,” she said.

Representatives from Congressman Lou Correa’s bureau and State Assemblyman Avelino Valencia besides showed up to Tuesday’s gathering urging committee members to support educators’ jobs.

“As your assembly member,” said a tract typical connected behalf of Valencia. “I admit the fiscal challenges you face, but these decisions should not sacrifice the prime of acquisition oregon the community’s needs.” 

Students and alumni besides spoke retired Tuesday against committee members laying disconnected their teachers and schoolhouse counselors, arguing they are captious to their occurrence successful the schoolroom and successful life.

Deborah Zacharias Gamboa, a freshman astatine Valley High School, said pupil voices successful decision-making matters, particularly erstwhile they’re being straight affected.  

“I deliberation it’s precise important due to the fact that you get the position from a pupil and however they spot things, due to the fact that it’s not besides astir their jobs,” she said successful an interview. “I deliberation that besides our voices are meant to beryllium heard, due to the fact that we’re the ones who are there. We’re the ones who these changes interaction our lives and however it’s each managed.”

Segerstrom High School Alumna Sophia Vazquez said the teachers and counselors successful the territory are much than conscionable educators for her.

“They were mentors, relation models, and astatine times, a lifeline,” she said. “The counselors didn’t conscionable reappraisal my grades, they helped maine navigate the challenges of increasing up, prosecute opportunities I ne'er imagined possible, and allowed maine to judge successful myself.”

Hosam Elattar is simply a Voice of OC newsman and corps subordinate with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him astatine helattar@voiceofoc.org oregon connected Twitter @ElattarHosam.

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