As students across the South Bay begin returning to the classroom, lawmakers and education leaders are pushing legislation to make classrooms safer, more supportive and equitable. The Santa Clara County Office of Education recently introduced its legislative package, which includes bills to increase mental health care access, guarantee additional funding for early childcare and incentivize...
San Jose school district avoids laying off nearly 40 teachers and staff
Mere weeks after nearly 40 San Jose teachers and staff were given pink slips, administrators reversed the decision in a rare turn of events. Early retirement and state and federal funding came to the rescue. A total of 38 Evergreen School District teachers and tenured staff received notices in early March saying they wouldn’t be...
San Jose school district denies improper lobbying charges
Officials with San Jose’s biggest school district denied charges they improperly hired lobbying firms to push a teacher housing proposal—saying that at least one of the firms never lobbied for them at all, despite meeting with officials who would approve the plans. The allegations stem from a Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury report released...
Developmentally disabled kids in San Jose left behind amid COVID-19
Access to a COVID-19 vaccine may be the first step to getting students back on campus, but youth are in the back of the line for vaccines in California. That’s especially tough for students with special needs and developmental disabilities for whom distance learning is not conducive. For these students, online education halts months of...
South Bay education leaders: Teachers need vaccines faster
Santa Clara County education leaders are advocating for teachers to get vaccinated before they step foot inside a classroom — but not all teachers should get first dibs. A group of county educators Thursday said that vaccine priority should be given to teachers who are already working with students in person, followed by employees of...
San Jose mayor celebrates school reopenings as critics fight back
Mayor Sam Liccardo claimed a political victory when the San Jose Unified School District announced recently it would reopen for indoor instruction April 21. But advocates say the mayor and his new advocacy group had nothing to do with the decision. In a mass email from Liccardo’s recently-formed organization Solutions San Jose, he praised the district’s decision...
COVID-19 pushes Santa Clara County dropout rate up
Distance learning has led to an increase in students dropping out of high school in Santa Clara County. The 2021 Silicon Valley Index, released by nonprofit Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s Institute for Regional Studies, showed this was especially true for homeless youth, English-language learners, Hispanic and low-income students. Rachel Massaro, vice president and director of...
Nearly 20 Silicon Valley education leaders tell Liccardo to stop politicizing reopening schools
Nearly 20 school board trustees from across the South Bay are demanding San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo stop politicizing school re-openings. The trustees penned a letter, signed by leaders across nine school districts, criticizing Liccardo’s new advocacy group, Solutions San Jose, which launched a campaign with a petition to quickly reopen schools in the 19 districts across...
San Jose school district to monetize land to fund educational programs
After years of struggling to stay afloat financially, the Cambrian School District will now be able to monetize its excess land to bring in cash for education. Instead of selling the land outright, the Cambrian School District — long strapped for cash and hampered by budget cuts — opted to exchange 2.7 acres of its vacant...