AUHSD to lay off 119 teachers following unanimous Board of Trustees vote

District responds to declining enrollment with Reduction in Force

Sydnee Cho, Staff Artist • March 15, 2024

AUHSD Superintendent Michael Matsuda speaks at the the Board of Trustees meeting in the district office on March 7. (Photo by Danny Banuelos Chavez)

The Anaheim Union High School District Board of Trustees unanimously voted to lay off 119 permanent teachers per Reduction in Force (RIF) plans at the March 7 Board of Trustees meeting.

The AUHSD Human Resources department confirmed with the union of Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association (ASTA), the local chapter of the California Teachers Association (CTA), that 119 permanent and probationary teachers would be laid off, with 253 teachers in the district receiving a layoff notice.

The layoff notices, known generally as Reduction in Force (RIF) notices or “pink slips,” target only teachers in the district who teach math, English, social science, PE/health, and science, amidst the consistent downward trend of student enrollment within the district.

Only teachers were selected to be laid off. Administrative staff, counselors, and other classified staff were not sent RIF notices.

From March 11 until May 7, teachers who have been sent a RIF notice could have their notice rescinded and be able to keep their job. Depending on the district’s needs, teachers may be told that they will stay in their current positions or be moved around to different sites to fill in vacancies.

The 253 teachers notified of a RIF will be laid off according to their seniority in the district, with some teachers having taught within the district for up to 25 years.

The 253 teachers notified of a RIF will be laid off according to their seniority in the district, with some teachers having taught within the district for up to 25 years receiving a RIF notice. In the official notice sent to teachers, the AUHSD cited that tiebreaker criteria would be utilized to break ties amongst noticed teachers in the same subject area who share the same seniority. “Skipping” will be used as a metric to decide who ultimately is laid off alongside seniority.

ASTA has had multiple meetings with the district asking to make the skipping criteria transparent and explicit. Potential criteria for being skipped over and not being laid off could include credentials such as being an IB teacher, an AVID coordinator, or having been trained in ethnic studies. Those that are skipped will not be laid off, regardless of their seniority.

Average daily attendance (ADA) is what California uses to allocate funding for most public schools, calculated by the total days of student attendance divided by the total days of instruction. AUHSD has been aware of falling student enrollment for many years. In addition to dwindling enrollment overall from factors such as families moving out of the state or area, average daily attendance dropped from 95% to 90% in the 2023-24 school year. With the school funded from enrollment numbers and attendance, the district’s decision to issue mass RIF notices are intended to budget for the dwindling student population, which is projected to lose about 4300 students in the next four years.

“To give you an example of the district’s position on valuing teachers, currently we have 1,233 teachers and our enrollment is at 27,195. If you look back at 2017-18, we had 30,729 students with 1,231 teachers,” AUHSD superintendent Michael Matsuda said in an exclusive interview with The Gamut. “With about 3,500 fewer students, we currently have the same amount of teachers that we had in 2018. We have been trying to keep as many teachers as we can. Due to declining enrollment and one-time COVID monies from the federal and state governments mostly expiring in September is the main reason why we’re faced with doing this.”

During the 2023-24 school year, the AUHSD received 422 million USD granted by the state of California per the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). The district is projected to receive 410 million USD for the 2024-25 school year, reflecting declining enrollment and attendance trends.

“When push comes to shove, you protect [teachers],” ASTA office CTA representative and former AUHSD teacher Lisa Eck said. “The district has decided that programs, materials, [and] training is more important than the actual investment in people to deliver to students.”

The district will make the final decision on which teachers will be laid off on May 7, before the state’s legally mandated deadline of May 15.

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About the Contributors

Sydnee Cho, Staff Artist

Sydnee Cho, a junior on the Gamut, is serving her third year as an illustrator and writer. Despite her intimidating nature (so she thinks), she adores the color pink (hence her phone case), Monster High, The Devil Wears Prada, and talking to others. Sydnee claims that she is a fashionable person, which is obvious with her mindblowing total of 11 piercings and shining silver jewelry. Alongside, she has a dangerous addiction to making money and spending it on online shopping, working as a waiter in LA county. Not so surprisingly, her favorite thing in the world is money. She usually spends her time listening to 80s and 90s music, as well as Lana Del Rey, or playing Royal Match (she is currently on level 3945!). To the freshmen who are nervous about their new adventures in high school, Sydnee gives the advice, “Calm down and chill, life ain’t that deep.”

Danny Banuelos Chavez, Staff Artist

Danny Banuelos Chavez, a current sophomore at Oxford Academy, is entering their first year at the Gamut as a photographer and illustrator. As a person who has always been keenly observant of others, they took an interest in photography and taking action shots of others. Chavez is an obsessive enjoyer of “Garfield” and is easily able to recant their days of scribbling the lasagna-loving cat in their notebook. They describe themself as wacky because they love to change things up all the time, such as their room and wallpaper. Chavez also indulges in thought-provoking and most esteemed comedies such as “Parks and Recreation” and “Arrested Development”. They partake in all forms of music ranging from metal to country, some of their favorite bands being Mitski, Hozier, and the Cure. Aside from their cultured interests, they consider their culinary taste to be a “bit basic”, since their favorite foods are avocado toast and wings. Chavez looks forward to putting their photography skills to work this upcoming year.