Over 600 hundred Saddleback Valley Educators Association (SVEA) teachers rallied at Los Alisos Intermediate School and packed the school board beyond capacity on Thursday May 12 to protect local schools as the California Teacher Shortage worsens.

Saddleback Valley Unified School District (SVUSD) is among the last Orange County school districts to come to a negotiated settlement with their teachers. The District’s current offer of 1.65% is inadequate and will make SVUSD less competitive and attractive in a time of increasing teacher need.

SVEA President Barbara Schulman explained, “The way to value our hard-working, caring, and dedicated staff is to continue to hire top talent.  One of the ways is to offer a competitive salary. It is a disservice to the students, community and SVUSD that their teachers don’t feel valued.”

CTA President Eric Heins joined Saddleback educators at the Rally and spoke to support a fair negotiated settlement. “Educators and parents across California sponsored Proposition 30’s passage to help local schools recover after the Great Recession. It’s time for the Saddleback District to invest those dollars in their schools.” 

SVUSD has about 54 million dollars in reserve, seven times the amount required by the State of California for economic uncertainties.