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New report cards on Santa Clara County’s public schools during COVID -19 show most high school seniors graduated, suspensions disproportionately hurt students of color and some teachers are being priced out of the region. These are the findings of San José Spotlight’s analysis of the latest school accountability report cards, despite those reports omitting data about student test scores and absenteeism...
Lack of hybrid learning leaves some San Jose students behind
Before the COVID-19 pandemic forced school districts to move to remote learning, Polly Ferguson said her fifth grade grandson could not read or grasp basic math concepts. That changed after 15 months of one-on-one tutoring and online school. But as school districts phase out online learning in favor of returning to in-person instruction, Ferguson worries all...
Teachers can’t afford to live in San Jose
Affordable housing remains elusive for young teachers in San Jose, leaving them with long commutes or forcing them to look for jobs elsewhere. The high cost of living in the Bay Area is challenging for new teachers and other employees, including cafeteria workers and groundskeepers, said San Jose Unified School District spokesperson Jennifer Maddox. “It’s...
One man’s fight against recidivism in Santa Clara County
For Johnny Lee Clarke, preventing former inmates from returning to jail is personal. Clarke, 59, spent six years in federal prison for hacking into bank accounts and writing $22,000 in bad checks when he was 24. He turned his life around and endeavors to do the same for others. Through his company CityLab Professional, Clarke teaches technical training...
San Jose, school districts push for digital equity
Students are resuming in-person instruction this school year, but some will be returning with significantly different experiences from their months of virtual learning. Erendia Diaz, who has sons in the Alum Rock Union School District and East Side Union School District, experienced this gap firsthand. When her sons switched to virtual learning last year due...
San Jose’s low-income schools see large share of police calls
In the last five years, police logged at least 9,200 calls for service to schools in San Jose. A disproportionate amount came from high schools with high populations of minority students or students living in poverty, a data analysis by San José Spotlight found. Seven of the 10 schools with the most police service calls to...
Library vital to San Jose State University students remains closed
The San Jose Public Library welcomed back eager patrons at 23 branches earlier this week. But Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, a critical resource to the local community, will remain closed a little longer. The library is scheduled to open Aug. 2. The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library is a significant resource to...
Downtown San Jose businesses eager for return of students
Students are coming back to campus at San Jose State University this fall, and they may bring the city’s economic recovery with them. A recent study shows the university, prior to the pandemic, generated $776 million in economic output annually for San Jose and $2.4 billion for the Bay Area. That disappeared with the onset of the...
San Jose Unified School District denies certification to charter schools
San Jose’s largest public school district has denied certification to two charter schools, which parents say puts student services at risk. The San Jose Unified School District chose not to certify Downtown College Prep (DCP) in good standing in October, which disqualifies the public charter school from receiving state funding through the Charter School Facility...
Largest San Jose school district kicks cops from campuses
After nearly a yearlong debate, San Jose education leaders are booting police officers from San Jose Unified School District campuses—at least for the next school year. The school board Thursday considered a contract between the district and the San Jose Police Department, along with a resolution to limit police officers’ involvement in student discipline and...