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Teachers, parents and unions plead with Antioch board to spare reading teachers and wellness staff amid cuts
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Summary
Students, teachers and union leaders urged the board to protect classroom positions, reading intervention teachers and wellness rooms as the district narrows options to address a multi‑million dollar deficit. Speakers warned cuts will harm vulnerable students and urged transparency and alternatives.
Dozens of teachers, paraeducators, parents and union leaders told the Antioch Unified School District board that proposed staffing reductions will damage services students rely on, particularly reading intervention teachers, wellness rooms and paraeducators.
Rob Carson, president of the Antioch Education Association, urged the board to keep cuts “as far away from our students and our schools as possible,” saying members see classroom jobs as ‘‘not hard cuts’’ and decrying the prioritization of position eliminations at recent budget workshops. CSEA speakers thanked staff and asked whether any expedited revenue options carry fees or penalties.
Multiple classroom teachers and program specialists described the practical effects at school sites: one wellness para reported serving more than 1,300 student visits in eight months and warned that losing wellness rooms would remove critical supports for children with anxiety. Reading teachers said the district’s UFLI phonics program and tiered reading supports depend on dedicated intervention staff and that cutting those positions would undermine early interventions that prevent special‑education placements.
Parents and community members recounted similar concerns. One parent who experienced school closures and cuts in another district urged transparency and warned that hasty closures and staffing cuts fracture community trust. Student speakers described losing music, marching band and other extracurriculars that contribute to attendance and belonging.
Union and community speakers pressed trustees to prioritize nonpersonnel savings, scrutinize consultant and legal expenditures and to be transparent about the paths being considered. Trustees acknowledged the public comments and said they will continue to seek alternatives, while also noting that the district still must implement reductions to address the structural deficit.
