Protesters in T.O. demand adequate state funding for public schools

NOT A FAIR-WEATHER PROTESTOR- Holding his plastic-covered sign high, Weathersfield Elementary School teacher Rick Wells of Moorpark ignores the pouring rain to protest education cuts and the total absence of a state budget. Dozens of other teachers, local officials and education advocates demonstrated last Thursday outside the office of state Sen. Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks). IRIS SMOOT Acorn Newspapersqas Standing in the pouring rain, about 50 local education advocates braved the cold to rally on Thousand Oaks Boulevard last Thursday to protest deep cuts in the state education budget.

The protesters, most from the 12th district ParentTeacher Association, rallied in front of the office of state Sen. Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks).

Peggy Buckles, the PTA's legislation chair and a Conejo Valley Unified School District board member, said that, rain or shine, the group had a mission.

"We feel it's too important to not go on with this," Buckles said shortly before the protest started "We need to let these people know that education is an investment."

The school district was forced to cut $1.9 million in funding last fall, Buckles said, and dealing with another round of midyear cuts is going to be nearly impossible.

"Contracts have been signed; the teachers are there," she said. "We know it's going to affect the kids. We'll probably have to raise class sizes, and that's never a good thing. We already have the largest class size in the nation."

Buckles said the district expects to lose more teachers and counselors to the budget cuts.

Buckles and Coleen BrinerSchmidt, president of the Unified Association of Conejo Teachers, went up to Strickland's office. His receptionist told them Strickland was out of town, Buckles said.

"She told us that he shares our concerns," she said. "This was not really a protest against Tony. We are just sending a message that education is an investment."

Because the budget hasn't been cemented, planning is difficult, Buckles said. "We need to know where we stand. All we know is that we're going to have to make cuts. And education hasn't been wellfunded in California. To cut from the most vulnerable—that's not what we want to do."

She said it didn't look like education funding was going to improve anytime soon. "You can put things on hold for a while, maybe not train teachers for a year or not repair buildings, but eventually you have to—things need to be fixed. We're very concerned."