Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1541528
" E V E N T H O U G H T H E Y S A I D closing schools was going to save us money, it didn't," says CTAB President Hermann. " The talking points of the school closures saving the district money, really didn't happen." The school district in North San Jose heated up last school year with a consoli- dation process that saw the school board approve closing three schools, upending their community and putting students at risk. Hermann says the staffing in Special Education environments and the facilities themselves are inadequate and unsafe, causing ongoing concerns for eloping students with special needs. Meanwhile, class sizes are increasing and demands on educators are growing, yet Hermann says 60% of his members can't afford a one-bedroom apartment in Silicon Valley. The situation is causing ongoing educator churn, where annual turnover has more than tripled since 2020. The district's approach at the table during their current bargain isn't helping matters, with admin failing to provide the neces- sary resources to recruit and retain educators. "Right now, everything they 're saying at the table is 'no.' No to health care, no to safe class- rooms, no to fair wage increases — everything is no," Hermann says. "We want to be innovative and be able to attract students and families to our schools. That's going to be tougher and tougher to do with less resources." If Prop. 55 were to expire, Berryessa Union School District would lose $2.1 million in funding, which Hermann says would directly impact the quality of education for all Berryessa students. "It's going to be tough to keep those lower class sizes and keep caseloads low, which means that our members are going to have to do even more work than they already have on their plates," Hermann says. " To be the BERRYESSA: Fighting Back Against a Culture of 'No' "We need to tax the rich equitably so that we can fully fund our schools — not have to go to voters every few years to ask for more." —CTA-Berryessa President Joe Hermann Participating in the We Can't Wait campaign. CTA-Berryessa members are building structures to communicate and mobilize. Below, President Joe Hermann speaks to the school board about their bargaining goals. 22 cta.org Feature