Editorial: San Jose school districts struggle to stay afloat

The flight of families due to the high cost of living in Santa Clara County has caused school enrollment numbers to crash in East and North San Jose — and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change in the coming years.

Alum Rock and Berryessa union school districts are predicting enrollment declines of 27% and 22%, respectively. Franklin-McKinley School District is also predicting a 22% drop. Lump in the end of millions in federal COVID funding and the loss of state dollars due to a plunge in student attendance, and districts have found themselves in dire financial straits.

This decline in enrollment didn’t happen overnight. From 2010 to 2022 Franklin-McKinley’s enrollment declined by 38%. The district was able to pass a parcel tax this year that will generate about $3.3 million for the next nine years, but it won’t be enough to cover the loss of state and federal funding as it tackles a $20 million shortfall.

Alum Rock is confronting the same problem. In the last nine years the district has lost more than 2,700 students. It has been so poorly managed, the Santa Clara County Office of Education has been involved in overseeing the administration. But with a $20 million deficit and enrollment dropping, seven schools may close.

None of these districts want to disrupt the lives of families, it’s a superintendent’s worst nightmare. But districts can’t keep schools half full afloat with the same overhead costs. The money just isn’t there.

Bond measures passed for capital needs such as building repairs and upgrades won’t get districts out of the hole either. Funding for curriculum and teacher salaries don’t come out of these bonds.

There are only so many cuts a district can make before there is nothing left but to close or merge schools. Even the Berryessa Union School District in North San Jose needs to cut its operating budget by $6 million, and closing schools may be the only option.

It’s hard to envision these school districts gaining students in the coming years to restore funding, when minimum wage earners living in East San Jose need to work more than one job to pay rent and the cost of gas and food remains high. The inability to maintain a good quality of life in Silicon Valley is pushing families out and preventing others from arriving. Low birth rates are another factor.

Yet what’s happening today is not a one-off situation. In the early 1980s a slew of elementary and high schools closed throughout the county and state in the aftermath of Proposition 13. The proposition, which capped a property tax rate to 1% of assessed value, changed the financial landscape in education. Property taxes were no longer flowing into school budgets and districts began closing campuses or cutting budgets. Decades later the financial loss to schools still stings, especially those in marginalized communities where property taxes are lower.

But the circumstances today have worsened beyond the plight of school districts. Silicon Valley is confronted by a schism between the haves and have nots that has widened exponentially over the years, causing families to leave Santa Clara County for places more economically manageable. School districts have become collateral damage.

What is the same as the 1980s is family angst and disruption, and yet, in the process the money saved could be applied toward enhancing curriculum or restoring programs. Cash-strapped districts could lease closed schools to day care providers, private schools or businesses and use the revenue to improve existing schools. Maybe it’s a new arts or music class or the ability to add a new sports program or wellness center with a counselor.

At this juncture the strongest course of action for families, school boards and administrators is to work together to ensure the best outcomes are achieved for the children in the schools that remain open.

Moryt Milo is an editor at San José Spotlight. Contact Moryt at [email protected] or follow her at @morytmilo on X, formerly known as Twitter. Catch up on her monthly editorials here.