The end of the school year should be a happy time. Students, teachers and parents have survived another year, and maybe even learned something along the way. But due to the state’s budget collapse, many local teachers are cleaning out their classrooms for the summer, and for good.
We’ve heard plenty from the politicians and pundits about the education crisis. But SN&R thought we should hear directly from the teachers who worked hard all year and got laid off as a reward. As this story was going to print, teachers in the Sacramento City Unified School District were preparing to vote on a deal to save some jobs. (Four of the teachers profiled here work in this district; we’ve updated their status as best known at press time.) Still, around the region, teachers say this was the worst year they’ve ever seen. Think of this as a sort of yearbook for the pink slipped class of 2010.
Erika Martin
PHOTO BY DON BUTTON |
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At American Lakes Elementary School in South Natomas, low-income students get the shaft. SN&R, 03.25.10.
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Erika Martin started teaching in 2004. The 34-year-old second-grade teacher at North Country Elementary School in Antelope received a permanent pink slip in May.
What kind of challenges do you face in the classroom?
The parents, their lives are pretty fragmented. Parents are working several different jobs, there’s day care and the challenge is providing the most stable environment possible [for the children] during the day. For a lot of them, I’m the most consistent part of the day.
What’s a day in the classroom like?
A lot of your day is spent on—well, they’re little kids, they cry, they get upset, they have a lot of stuff going on in [their] lives; they don’t know how to handle that.
Has anything good come of this?
In the future, you’re going to see parents taking a more active role because all these things have [been] sucked out from under them. It’s not that people took teachers for granted before, but I’ve had several people write letters to the superintendent because [the layoffs] have motivated them. They would not have been motivated had we not faced the crisis.
What’s your biggest concern for the future of education?
I feel so bad for the kids. It’s not their fault, and their education is just going to be totally compromised.
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Yvonne Scarbrough
PHOTO BY DON BUTTON |
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Yvonne Scarbrough, 40, worked as counselor at American Lakes Elementary for five years before getting her final pink slip.
What does your job layoff mean for the students?
I don’t know. I have a lot of regular students who come to me as a place to vent, to focus on issues. I’m an extra support for them to get through the day. In the whole district there are only five counselors, but at this point, there are none at the elementary level.
Are there misconceptions about your job?
There are several. A lot of times I’ve been asked what
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