Sacramento High School Students Hold Walk-Out in Protest of School’s Recent Changes
SACRAMENTO -- Students at Sacramento High School in Oak Park are in open revolt; refusing to return to class until their demands are met by the school’s administration.
At issue is the dismissal of several faculty and staff over the summer and new rules for student’s uniforms and dismissal after class.
“Who’s school? Our school,” students chanted in exclamation.
Between a hundred to two hundred Sacramento High students refused to go to class today. Costing the school state money for every period they miss.
“We have been fighting for years for them to listen and support us as black and Latino kids that is the majority of our population,” stated senior Kiarah Young.
Young says students are furious they came back from summer break to find many teachers and support staff had been let go.
“We barely have any teachers of color this year, over the summer they had fired or let go a majority of them,” Young said.
Juanda Starks says after 16 years working at Sac High as a staff member, her job was cut a week after school let out for summer.
“They told us to reapply, for the positions that they had supposedly consolidated, and when we did, we were off boarded,” said Starks.
But Young says there were also other changes.
Students are now not allowed to stay on campus once school lets out.
“They lock all the doors even before we’re out of school, so nobody can even go back inside. So, we don’t get help from our teachers. And you’re pushed outside of these gates into the streets so many people can’t get picked up till a lot later,” expressed Young.
And Young says the school’s uniform dress code is unacceptable.
“We have to wear pants and it’s a hundred-degree weather,” bemoaned Young.
FOX40 attempted to reach school administrators however, calls and messages sent to St. Hopes. the non-profit which runs the charter school, were not returned.
Students continued to chant, “you can’t stop the revolution,” outside of the school and Stark said she’s proud these students are standing up for what they believe in.
“This is what we taught them, this is what we wanted them to have, self-worth,” said Stark.
Students say they also staged a walk out Monday and Wednesday.
They plan to continue full day walk-outs until school administrators negotiate with them.
