BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — The Bakersfield City School District announced to teachers in December of 2018 that it would end summer school for the 2019 school year.
“Anytime we have to make decisions that impact student services, it’s very difficult to do that," said Mark Luque, Assistant Superintendent of Education Services for BCSD.
Officials said the cut was rooted from anticipated budget cuts and a decrease in interest from students.
“This past summer we started the summer school program with 53 hundred students enrolled and on the first day of summer school only 31 hundred kids came to school that day," said Luque.
But, many parents, locals and even Dolores Huerta said those reasons were false at Tuesday night's board meeting.
Huerta says she as well as many other have worked hard to pass Proposition 30 in 2012 and 55 in 2016. Both statewide sales tax measures that aimed to fund education and healthcare. Which Huerta says should have increased more money for local schools.
“We have been working really hard to bring revenue to the school system. When you eliminate summer school, that means you are punishing the children," said Huerta.
“I don’t understand what’s going on with the budget cuts. This is really affecting my family because my son is an A-plus, straight-A student and it’s necessary for him to attend summer school, to keep his interest in school,” said one local parent.
While many more parents echoed those same pleads, the district reminded them that this was not permanent.
“The district will continue to reflect and evaluate all of our program services and reevaluate as we move into the 2019-20 school year and what the summer learning will look like in 2020 and beyond," said Luque.
