Teachers and supporters rally against potential layoffs at Pajaro Valley Unified School District in February. (Fidel M. Soto — Santa Cruz Local file)

After the Pajaro Valley school board partially rejected a proposal to cut 100 full-time equivalent positions, administrators in March sent layoff notices to 30 teachers. But due to retirements and resignations, at most three permanent teachers are expected to lose their jobs this spring, said Brandon Diniz, president of Pajaro Valley Federation of Teachers.

Without cuts this school year, the district is expected to spend around $325 million next year. That’s nearly $20 million more than it takes in, and the difference will come from reserves. About 95% of its unrestricted General Fund dollars will go to salaries and benefits, more than other nearby school districts. 

Bobby Pelz, who teaches ethnic literature and studies at Watsonville High School, said staving off most of this year’s layoffs was a small victory. “But I think we’re all preparing that we’re just going to fight again next year,” Pelz said. “I don’t think we’ve actually solved anything.”

Pajaro Valley Federation of Teachers represents more than 1,000 school employees. A new contract is being negotiated amid talks of budget cuts, Pelz said.

“It feels to me like the district isn’t going to back down on the cuts,” Pelz said. “They believe the cuts have to happen.”

Declining enrollment, federal funding changes

PVUSD, the largest school district in Santa Cruz County, has 35 schools and more than 17,000 students. Like many school districts in the county and in California, PVUSD enrollment has fallen in recent years. 

• PVUSD had 15,418 students in the 2023-24 school year, a 15.7% drop from the 18,300 students it had in 2016-17. These figures exclude charter school students in the district because per-student state funding generally goes directly to a charter school, not to the district. 
• PVUSD enrollment is projected to fall to around 14,400 students in the 2025-26 school year, excluding charter school students. 

Some causes of declining enrollment include lower birth rates and families leaving Santa Cruz County because of the high cost of living.

Because state funding is tied to average daily attendance, enrollment declines generally mean reduced school revenues. Better attendance rates could help offset that. Contreras said attendance at PVUSD rose by more than 2% this year and might have risen even further if not for immigration fears surrounding President Trump’s election. She said graduation rates were also on the upswing. 

Nonetheless, PVUSD leaders said in March that they expected $16 million less in state money in the coming school year compared with the 2023-24 school year. 

In addition, one-time Covid funding, used in part to pay for new teachers, expired last year. “We still have those positions, but we don’t have the funding for those positions,” Contreras said.

The state’s own budget woes, and President Trump’s attempted dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, could affect local districts’ finances as well. PVUSD could see delays in federal funding, Contreras said. “We’re going to have to be very cautious as we move forward,” she said.

Proposed layoffs

In January, PVUSD’s Sustainable Budget Team recommended to the board of trustees that at least $5 million be slashed from the budget, and the board subsequently voted to reduce the budget by around that amount. 

“That was designed to be the first recommendation over a three-year period of reductions,” Contreras said. “It was never, ‘That’s it, and we’re done.’ We were trying to do a thoughtful and measured approach to the reductions so it wasn’t one big shock to the system.”

But on Feb. 12, after objections from the teachers’ union, the school board voted down measures to eliminate 100 full-time equivalent teachers and staff. Pelz said teachers felt blindsided by the proposed layoffs and were disappointed with the level of communication from the administration. He also said he didn’t think the administration was taking an equal share of the cuts.

“The way this whole thing was handled I think created a lot of distrust between the teachers and the district,” Pelz said. “The bottom line is, people are losing their livelihoods, they’re losing the ability to provide for their families. You can’t do that at the last minute. You’ve got to really take your time with that.”

At a special board meeting Feb. 25, the board voted to eliminate 46.3 teacher positions, 10.25 instructional assistant positions and four administrative positions. At the same time, it rejected measures to eliminate around 40 other positions, including assistant principals, mental health clinicians, counselors and elementary intervention teachers. 

Ultimately, at most three permanent teachers are expected to be laid off this spring. Some temporary employees likewise won’t be invited back.

Pelz said the teachers need to feel that they’re cared about and not just numbers to the administration. “I don’t feel like the teacher position is ‘no, no, no, no’ cuts’,” Pelz said. “I do think teachers understand the environment we’re in. And I think if the district does a better job of working with teachers, then they’ll find we’re more amenable to some of the proposals they make.”

Contreras started as PVUSD superintendent in May 2024. She said the district was doing its “very best to have a collaborative process with our labor partners.”

PVUSD Superintendent Heather Contreras said attendance and graduation rates were up in the district this school year. Renaissance High School is a continuation school for students to make up missing credits and graduate. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local file)

New bond measure money

One of the few ways that a school district can supplement its revenue is through local bond measures. 

In November, voters adopted Measure M. Property owners in the school district will pay about $60 per $100,000 of assessed property value annually for roughly 30 years. It is expected to bring in $315 million for school repairs and upgrades. The money can’t be used on teacher or staff salaries. Contreras said the first installment of Measure M would be issued next month. 

“We’re excited to have projects coming over the summer,” Contreras said. 

Pajaro Valley Unified schools are in need of $1.25 billion in maintenance, including replacement of some portable classrooms installed about 50 years ago, district officials said. There are more than 400 portable classrooms throughout the district.

The bond money could help pay for:

• New and refurbished student centers, libraries, gyms, restrooms, playgrounds and classrooms.
• Repairs and replacement of old windows, roofs, leaky pipes, heating and air conditioning systems and electrical wiring.
• Upgrades to fences, lights, fire alarms and security systems.

Contreras said the district would also apply to the state for money from Proposition 2, a $10 billion bond measure to fix California school facilities adopted by voters in November. 

Aptos High School

Peter Levy, chair of the School Site Council at Aptos High School, expressed sympathy with the district’s predicament. “There are some hard realities that the board and administration have to address,” he said. “If there were obvious, easy answers they would go do that.”

He worried that certain popular teachers would be forced out. He also said many Aptos High parents were upset about the departure of Principal Alison Hanks-Sloan. Some parents “feel like their principal was taken away from them with no clear explanation as to why,” Levy said.

A petition to keep Hanks-Sloan as principal gathered 837 signatures as of May 19. 

Contreras said she could not comment on “personnel issues.” Lisa Lansdale has been hired to replace Hanks-Sloan.

The PVUSD trustees also battled over an ethnic studies contract that was renewed in April.

They argued whether to censure board member Gabriel Medina after he referred to a group of Jewish audience members who opposed the contract as “you people” during an April 16 board meeting. Medina was also accused of telling a fellow board member to “shut the [expletive] up” and addressing her as “Barbie” during closed session.

Last week, Medina threatened a lawsuit over the failed censure vote, the Pajaronian reported.

“It’s suboptimal when the board draws so much attention to its own dysfunction and isn’t singularly focused on the success of our kids,” Levy said. 

Pajaro Valley Unified School District trustees and area boundaries. (Pajaro Valley Unified School District)

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