One hundred fifty-one teachers and staff at the Pasadena Unified School District sit in limbo as the school board prepares to vote on layoffs Thursday night.
The proposed layoffs are one part of a proposed district budget cut coming right after the Eaton fire.
Jonathan Gardner, the union president of United Teachers of Pasadena, said about a dozen staff in the proposed layoff lost their home in the Eaton Fire.
“Even just as we were contemplating the possibility, our members couldn’t, I mean, they, we were on a call and they just teared up,” said Gardner. “I mean, they were, they couldn’t imagine the possibility. It was just really devastating to them.”
The district says the budget decisions were made prior to the Eaton Fire and that, despite the devastation, they are unable to change course.
The primary reason for the cuts?
District leadership points to steadily dropping enrollment. It blames the drop on declining birth rates and families being priced out of California, specifically in the San Gabriel Valley east of Los Angeles, creating a $37 million shortfall.
In an exclusive interview with NBC4, Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco said some of the employees facing these cuts will be able to be reassigned to different roles, and seniority will play a big role in that.
“Nobody wants to do this,” Blanco said. “It’s a very challenging situation for all of us. These are real people, and we’re going to do everything we can to help them land on their feet, you know, with neighboring districts and resume writing and any kinds of support that we can give them.”
Public comments will start at 5:45 p.m. Thursday night.
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