In the latest protest against the Santa Barbara Unified School District, about 800 San Marcos High School students walked off campus on Monday to show their support for their teachers.
“If you want your students to stay in class, give your teachers what they ask,” senior Kavya Suresh said through a megaphone Monday at Tucker’s Grove Park.
The large group of students crossed Turnpike Road and walked over the Highway 101 bridge en masse, waving signs and demanding higher teacher pay. The students left after first period and walked about 1.5 miles to the park.
Suresh told Noozhawk that the situation is “complicated,” but that when you have hundreds of students saying “my trusted adult is gone” and “I don’t have a favorite teacher anymore,” that it is time to take a stand.
The district underpaid teachers as a whole by $6.7 million in the 2022-23 school year.
The Santa Barbara Teachers Association is in negotiations with the district, seeking a 20% raise next year, citing the high cost of living.
The district has offered $8 million next year. It says that the amount paid in salaries last year dipped below minimum levels because COVID-19 money tweaked the funding ratios.
Teachers at the three high school have stopped hosting clubs at lunchtime, writing letters of recommendation, and participating in after-school events, in what is known as a “soft strike.”
Suresh, a former student member on the district board of trustees, said the district has the money.
“I know that we can do it,” Suresh said. “I know there is room, and I know there are a lot of people with very important jobs, but arguably the most important job is in the classroom, at the grassroots level, doing the work to uplift students.”
Student Zoe Javanbakht carried a sign that said “F-” to show her views on teacher pay.
“I had to get my letters of rec in before the soft strike,” Javanbakht said. “A lot of things aren’t happening. Teachers are not offering extra help outside of class because they are closing off classes. A lot of my friends’ grades are suffering because of that. A lot of things are stopped because teachers aren’t getting paid.”
Santa Barbara High School students plan a walkout on Tuesday.
