Teachers, union and parents urge MVLA board to place revised social‑studies sequence on Jan. 26 agenda
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Summary
Teachers, the district teachers association and multiple public commenters told the Mountain View–Los Altos board that a December 18 course request to split world history into two semester-long courses (paired with ethnic studies) met the submission deadline and should be considered on Jan. 26; teachers warned the board that prior curriculum changes have put jobs at risk.
At the Mountain View–Los Altos Union High School District board meeting on Jan. 12, teachers, union leaders and parents pressed trustees to place a teachers’ social‑studies course proposal on the Jan. 26 agenda, saying the proposal was submitted on Dec. 18 and that excluding it now would leave incoming students and families with an incomplete view of course options.
Dave Campbell of the District Teachers Association told the board the MVLA social‑studies teachers prepared a formal course request and submitted it “on December 18 at 11:45 a.m.” After submitting the packet, Campbell said he was told the plan was to have the proposal considered at the Jan. 12 meeting but that, despite that assurance, it did not appear on the published agenda. “When I reached out via email, I was told that, quote, cabinet could not discuss the proposal until after agenda submissions for this meeting were due,” he said, characterizing the omission as a timing and communication problem that has left teachers and families confused.
Several public commenters and teachers described the substance of the proposal. Kevin Hinkley said the plan would divide the existing world‑history course into two one‑semester classes — world history 1 in ninth grade paired with ethnic studies and world history 2 as a sophomore course — and that the sequence aligns with the California History–Social Science Framework and A–G requirements. “Unit 1 would cover approximately 1800 to 1914,” Hinkley said, while other speakers outlined units covering World War I, authoritarian movements, the Holocaust, decolonization and Cold‑War era developments.
Mountain View social‑studies department coordinator Nate Bowen and teacher Dr. Julie Yick urged trustees to deliberate on the proposal. Yick told the board that a prior 3–2 vote to eliminate a semester of ethnic studies created staffing instability and fewer instructional opportunities. “This proposal will provide a full year of heterogeneous social‑studies instruction for all ninth graders … and protect hardworking teachers’ jobs,” she said.
Teachers and the DTA asked the board to place the proposal on the Jan. 26 agenda so that incoming freshmen and their families — who will attend an eighth‑grade open house on Jan. 22 — have an accurate set of course options during scheduling. DTA representatives said they welcome a full review, discussion and feedback from the board and district leadership.
Board members acknowledged the procedural tension. Several trustees said they want elective concepts that comply with the board’s policy and asked staff to review options. The superintendent and board members also asked administration to explore mitigations to staffing impacts tied to the district’s recent changes in graduation/course requirements.
Next steps: board members requested that the social‑studies teachers and district staff work together to bring course concepts that comply with board policy and that administration study options to reduce the risk of layoffs; the board set its next meeting for Jan. 26, when the item could be reconsidered.
