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Teachers and union leaders urge Santa Clara Unified to clarify rightsizing plan as layoffs and cuts unsettle staff
Summary
Union leaders, teachers and staff used the April 9 board meeting to criticize the district's rightsizing and $30 million in cuts, cite process errors and request collaborative planning, bigger communication efforts, and use of practicum partnerships to sustain services.
Union leaders and dozens of staff addressed the Santa Clara Unified Board of Trustees on April 9, urging clearer planning and partnership as the district pursues what speakers described as a rightsizing process tied to roughly $30 million in budget reductions.
UTSC leader Ms. Wysocki told the board that educators have faced "a very grueling six weeks" while navigating $30 million in cuts and that morale is "at a historic low;" she called for transparent communication and inclusion of union partners in planning. Ian Jackson (UTSC) asked the board "what's next" and requested concrete plans for onboarding displaced staff and evaluating program impacts.
Several classroom teachers and specialists described operational errors and poor communication that they said exacerbated the impact of layoffs. Katie Bernard, an RSP teacher at Ponderosa, said the process "was messy and unacceptable," listing examples including TOSAs told about job status the night before trainings and EDJOIN postings that were closed then reposted. Tammy Schultz, a Central Park first‑grade teacher, said staff were shocked by an HR training example and asked when follow‑up would occur; Superintendent Dr. Damon Wright said the district scheduled a follow‑up session for April 29 (4–6 p.m.) and that district communication would be sent.
Katie Peterson, a school psychologist, said the district planned to cut two school psychologists and urged the board to approve a memorandum of understanding with Fresno Pacific University's School Psychology Graduate Program to bring practicum students and interns into district work to maintain capacity. Dr. Wright and other staff said the MOU is in negotiation and may appear on a future agenda.
Marlena Lawbook, a psychologist on the preschool assessment team, and Shana Siegel, a special education teacher, described audits and short timelines that strained special education staff. Speakers repeatedly framed the issue as capacity loss: "doing more with less" was a phrase multiple commenters said they had been given by district managers, and they warned that exceeding staff capacity will reduce services to students.
Trustees repeatedly acknowledged limits on responding to non‑agendized items but asked staff to follow up on specific requests. Dr. Wright said rightsizing conversations and rescindment of notices remain in process ahead of state timelines and that more communication would follow.
