Sacramento City Unified will head back to school early with $40 million for new staff
Children of the Sacramento City Unified School District will head back to school early this year. The district’s 41,000 students will return to classrooms Aug. 19 as a result of an agreement with the California Department of Education.
District officials announced the new start date Wednesday upon the approval of a fee waiver request to the California Board of Education. Eight instructional days will be added to both the beginning of this school year and the 2025-26 school year to make up for eight lost instructional days during the 2022 teachers union strike. Sacramento City Unified failed to make up the days that year, and the Department of Education levied a $39.8 million fine against the district.
With the fee forgiven, the district now has $39.8 million at its disposal. But what does that mean? Where did the money come from, and where has it been?
Where was the $40 million?
The $39.8 million was set aside from the Sacramento City Unified’s general fund to hold in the case the district was mandated to pay the state. Sacramento City Unified Chief Communications Officer Brian Heap likened it to keeping money aside in a checking account for a trip you plan to take later.
“We have had the money the entire time but we have been proceeding as though we knew that money would be spent on the fine,” Heap said.
The money will be reinvested to fund around 100 new staff positions for student support at school sites over the next five years, Sacramento City Teachers Association President Nikki Milevsky said. These positions will all be oriented toward student support, including special ed teachers, psychologists, nurses, counselors and intervention teachers.
“This is a win, win, win,” Milevsky said. “As a result of SCUSD’s constructive engagement with us and the approval of this waiver by the State Board of Education, students will have new opportunities to learn with more resources, supported by dedicated staff to ensure the best quality education.”
After years of strife between Sacramento City Unified and its union, the two entities share a unifying moment in this achievement for the students and families of the district. Both agencies credit one another for their collaborative efforts to make this deal with the state.
Is this a good thing for local students and families?
While some parents may groan at the thought of less time with their children this summer, local educators say that more school time is a win all around.
“We do recognize that there is a level of inconvenience to some of our families and that’s not lost on us, but we do feel as though the ability to add eight school days to our calendar is not going to be a bad thing for students,” Heap said. “We believe students are going to benefit from these additional days not just in regards to educational achievement, but their social and emotional wellbeing.”
Heap said that for many families in the district, attending school is the only way they can gain access to essential care. On days without school, many families can struggle to find day care for their children or to feed them multiple meals a day.
Milevsky emphasized the importance of these extra days in helping teachers to hit all of the curriculum standards and ensure students are meeting grade level standards.
“Schedule changes can be hard, but we’re going to get through it together and make the best use of these days,” she said. “With the additional support (that the reinvestment will provide), we think we can have a really strong program for students.”
