The layoffs will affect 44 certified employees including special education teachers, counselors, social workers, teachers across a range of subjects including English and math, as well as some associate principals. Up to 41 classified employees are also losing their jobs, including clerk typists, custodians, community liaisons and parent and community involvement specialists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jack Hammer, president of the East Side Teachers Association, is frustrated with the loss of teachers<\/a>, social workers, counselors and advisors.<\/p>\n \u201cSocial workers deal with the mental health and wellness of our students. Counselors deal with the academic support and the well-being of our students and advisors \u2026 make sure that our campuses are safe,\u201d he told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201c(These are) people that work with kids on a daily basis.\u201d<\/p>\n Hammer said low-income English learners, homeless<\/a> and foster youth depend on people in these positions for their success. He said almost 70% of district students fall into this category.<\/p>\n \u201cTo take away those positions that support our kids is catastrophic,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen you have that many kids in your district that are that vulnerable, you must maintain those services.\u201d<\/p>\n Julio Pardo, president of the East Foothills chapter of the California School Employees Association, said union leaders met with the district a few weeks ago to try to save some classified positions.\u00a0Most concerning are the loss of parent and community involvement specialists and community liaisons, he said, who are indispensable to immigrant and non-English speaking families.<\/p>\n \u201cThose are the ones that make connections with the families to inform them what resources are available \u2026 and connect them with social workers and other social agencies,\u201d Pardo told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cThey also work with the students \u2014 sometimes these students have issues that they just can\u2019t discuss with other people, but they feel more comfortable talking with our parent community specialists.\u201d<\/p>\n Vander Zee said the district understands these services are valuable and will try to bring back some of the workers and deploy them across the district.<\/p>\n He said East Side Union High School District is funded almost 40% less than other more affluent high school districts in Santa Clara County \u2014 such as Mountain View-Los Altos Union, Fremont Union and Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union \u2014 due to property taxes.\u00a0<\/p>\n School funding<\/a> derived from property taxes and state dollars based on attendance has disadvantaged marginalized communities<\/a> with low attendance and property taxes. Vander Zee said while ESUHSD spends $14,000 per student a year, Palo Alto Unified School District spends $26,000<\/a> per student. He said the lack of funding has impacted hiring math specialists and reduced the number of courses offered.<\/p>\n Vander Zee\u00a0said these cuts could have been avoided without this disparity, allowing students to receive the services they need.<\/p>\n \u201cThe state currently underinvests in East Side students,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are at a greater risk \u2026 because of the structural inequity that\u2019s built into the California school funding system.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"In-line](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/interactive-321838904008.png\")
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