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Counselors and parents ask board to reinstate work experience program and fill teacher vacancies
Summary
Counselors from Edison and Stagg high schools and multiple parents urged the board to reinstate the Work Experience program, saying its elimination reduces credit and work-readiness opportunities and that decentralized permitting weakens oversight.
Counselors and parents told the board that eliminating the district’s Work Experience program removed an established pathway for students to earn extra credits and gain supervised workplace experience.
Barbara Greenwood, a longtime counselor at Edison High School, presented participation figures for Edison (81 in 2019–20, 27 in 2020, 44 in 2021–22 and 40 in 2022–23) and said the program’s removal forces site staff to handle sensitive work permits in a fragmented way across counselors and administrators. "Without this program, our students can no longer leave school early to work, unlike those in neighboring districts," Greenwood said, and she urged the board to reinstate the program to support graduation and career readiness.
Brandon Alvarez, head counselor at Stagg High School, echoed the concerns about lost supervision and the potential safety and oversight gaps for students working outside school hours and asked trustees to reconsider the program’s suspension.
Separately, parents from Primary Years Academy reported the site will start the year without a permanent Spanish teacher, raising concerns about classroom space and reliance on uncertified short-term substitutes.
What’s next: Counselors requested that the board and district administration meet with school staff to develop a plan to restore work-experience oversight and to ensure students across the district have equitable access to the program.
