Today we are bringing you a very upsetting look into how teachers and students within the Twin Rivers Unified School District are being treated.
Please support Twin Rivers Unified Educators in their efforts to provide the necessary supports and funding for both educators and students!
Their website is linked here.
A snapshot of the systemic abuses can be found in the graphic below.
*doc above provided by the Twin Rivers Unified Educators (TRUE)
First, let's start with the fact that the TRUSD Superintendent, Steven Martinez, is pulling in a $450k/year salary + benefits package, making him one of the highest paid public employees in the state of California.
This is a class issue, where our students are severely lacking the representation they need
TRUE is trying to address this lack of representation by fighting for social workers and mental health supports on campus, as well as for the salary + benefit incentives needed to keep teachers in the district.
There has been a massive turnover in teachers within the district--and that is expected to continue next year. Because of the lack of school structure, many teachers are considering leaving mid-year. There are currently a large number of unfilled positions, meaning students are either not receiving instruction or are being given a computer program so they can still get credits. This shortage is a nationwide issue, though TRUSD is district feeling it more than surrounding districts.
Some breakdowns on inadequate staffing investment can be found below.
*images above provided by the Twin Rivers Unified Educators (TRUE)
Aaaaaaand now a visual for the unacceptable amount of money educators are having to send spend on their own healthcare.
*images above provided by the Twin Rivers Unified Educators (TRUE)
Another note: in 2022 there's been an increase in the emphasis on test results and teachers administering tests--nevermind the validity of the data.
FURTHER: Many classrooms (~10 at one school site) did not have a/c in the September 2022 heat wave. Some classes reached above 100°F. Facility issues are common within TRUSD.
FURTHER STILL: there was lead found in the water at Grant Union High School, and though the problem has ostensibly been fixed, there haven't been any steps taken to show that the water is drinkable. Many students and staff remain understandably hesitant to drink it.
Lack of language support: there are a huge number of English learners within TRUSD who are unsupported. Many Afghan refugees are dumped into regular track classes--biology, math, sometimes regular ELA/English--with no supports. Teachers are told to use Google Translate. Some students, however, cannot read or write in their native language, so this is useless. Around 6 months ago (from this publication date), TRUSD signed a contract with a non-profit to address this, but (as far as we know), there are only a small number of translators for the district that go to different schools to assist in different capacities. They are not in the classrooms.
And one last thing: TRUSD created its own SELPA (Spec. Ed program), and there are safety and support concerns with the huge influx of high need students whose IEPs cannot be accommodated with the resources available to educators.