FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) \u2014 Tensions are rising in Fresno Unified as teachers and staff speak out against proposed budget cuts, arguing the district is choosing to reduce critical positions despite having available funds.<\/p>\n
Educators and union leaders gathered to voice their concerns, saying the proposed layoffs would impact essential services across campuses, including nurses, custodians, early learning teachers, bus drivers, and school resource officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis isn\u2019t about what\u2019s possible. It\u2019s about priorities,\u201d said Fresno Teachers Association President Manuel Bonilla.<\/p>\n
Staff members warn the cuts would put additional strain on already stretched schools.<\/p>\n
\u201cEliminating positions does not eliminate the need, it just shifts the burden,\u201d said Arianne Perez, a member of SEIU Local 521. \u201cThat means fewer supports for students, increased workloads for workers, and declining conditions across the district.\u201d<\/p>\n
Union leaders also questioned the district\u2019s financial decisions, pointing to what they say is roughly $315 million in total funds, including about $175 million in unrestricted money.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow can you justify layoffs that harm our students while sitting on that level of discretionary money?\u201d Bonilla said. \u201cYou can\u2019t say there\u2019s no money while choosing not to use it.\u201d<\/p>\n
District officials, however, say the situation is more complex.<\/p>\n
Tensions are rising in Fresno Unified as teachers and staff speak out against proposed budget cuts. (FOX26 Photojournalist Byron Solorio)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really not that simple,\u201d said Fresno Unified Chief Financial Officer Patrick Jensen, noting that nearly 90 percent of the district\u2019s general fund is allocated to employee salaries.<\/p>\n
Jensen also pushed back on how union leaders are calculating available funds, saying some of the money being referenced was previously allocated during negotiations for student-focused initiatives.<\/p>\n
As for staffing, the district says no filled SEIU positions are being cut, and reductions are limited to retirements and currently vacant roles. <\/p>\n
Officials also point to declining student enrollment as a reason they cannot expand staffing levels.<\/p>\n
The district also addressed criticism over a recent pay increase for Board of Trustees members, saying the decision reflects the workload and responsibilities of the position.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the truth, school board members work hard,\u201d said Board President Elizabeth Islas. \u201cThere is a lot of work we put into these positions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jensen acknowledged the impact of the proposed changes, calling it a difficult time, but said the district is committed to placing affected employees into other benefit-eligible roles when possible.<\/p>\n
He also denied claims that the district is holding back money for potential legal issues, saying those situations are covered through insurance.<\/p>\n
The proposed cuts remain under discussion, as both district leaders and educators continue to debate how best to balance the budget while supporting students.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) \u2014 Tensions are rising in Fresno Unified as teachers and staff speak out against proposed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":237089,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":{"0":"post-237088","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fresno","8":"tag-fresno","9":"tag-fresno-headlines","10":"tag-fresno-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=237088"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237088\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=237088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=237088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=237088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}