Sixth-graders in Fresno Unified might have to figure out a way to pay for an annual science camp field trip after what at least one parent described as the district leaving schools \u201chigh and dry.\u201d<\/p>\n
As part of Fresno Unified\u2019s budget cuts, field trips for transitional kindergarten through sixth grade students were eliminated for the 2026-27 school year, leaving it to schools and families to figure out how to fund trips many students look forward to.<\/p>\n
The cuts last year were made to address the district\u2019s then $55 million projected budget deficit. As a result, FUSD cut over $2 million designated for school field trips across its elementary schools.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs part of our budget cuts, the district eliminated centrally funded TK-6 enrichment trips, equaling $2.2 million dollars,\u201d said AJ Kato, FUSD\u2019s communications manager, adding, \u201cschool sites still have site budgets they can use for those expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n
At Mayfair Elementary, Principal Faviola Perez says that this means that her students will not be able to go on field trips unless she and her staff find the funds from elsewhere.<\/p>\n
It also means that the sixth grade class at Mayfair, along with all other sixth graders in the district, will have to find a different way to fund an annual science camp field trip that students look forward to each year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know for a fact that I cannot fund sixth grade camp, and because we were told so late, I need some time to plan;\u00a0 do I start working with my fifth graders for next year?\u201d Perez said, adding, \u201cthis is going to be the first year, and these parents are not happy, but I don’t think that most of my parents can pay $300 a kid.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Perez, Mayfair usually takes its camping trip late in October, while other schools choose to take it earlier or later in the school year. Perez estimated that she would need to raise roughly $50,000 in order to cover the costs of the trip for her sixth graders within two months. She also added that her school does not have extra funds for field trips and has never funded them before.<\/p>\n
Perez also noted that she has had conversations with her staff since finding out about the cut, saying that they may consider cutting student performance incentives and funding for Mayfair teachers that are used to provide students with school supplies.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince I was in school, we’ve been going to sixth grade camp, and so the sixth grade camp kids have already told me \u2018Dr. Perez, are we really not going to sixth grade camp?\u2019 and it just puts me in a bind because we were told this and I just wish that we would have more communication,\u201d Perez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Annie Masutsubo, a parent of a sixth grade student in the district, said she first heard of the cuts through ParentSquare and from other parents who worried that the district would cut field trips, as they are \u201cnot considered necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Masutsubo was told that the camping trip could cost $360 per child, on top of additional charges for parent chaperones.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really sounded like the district had kind of left the schools high and dry, and the schools were, from what I understood, kind of scrambling to look for money within their own budgets,\u201d Masutsubo explained, noting that school officials at her site seemed unsure when delivering the news during their \u201cBack to School\u201d night.<\/p>\n
For now, families at Masutsubo\u2019s school site have until April to find a way to fundraise for their camping trip. She also said that her son had been looking forward to the trip and is not planning on opening a lemonade stand to try and raise funds.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI chose this district specifically because I wanted my child to have these opportunities, to have this kind of inclusion and equity, and when the district makes these choices, it’s eroding the very thing that I chose the district for,\u201d Masutsubo said.<\/p>\n
Manuel Bonilla, president of the Fresno Teachers Association, shared the same sentiments about the cuts to student trips, saying that schools and teachers were left to deliver the news to students and families.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are talking about educational experiences that directly benefit students, while the central office spent approximately $1.5 million on travel last year and continues to spend public dollars on leadership consultants and costly litigation,\u201d Bonilla said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Bonilla also said that FTA is planning a virtual meeting to try and figure out possible solutions to the cuts with community members. No specific time for this meeting was shared.<\/p>\n
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