Teachers, students and parents are planning to meet at Roosevelt Middle School in Balboa Park on Saturday to rally against funding cuts to public education.
Community members plan to demand that funding for their schools in San Diego and across California is protected from federal cuts.
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WATCH HERE“It’s about time we take a stand and demand what our kids and our communities and our families really need,” Kiki Ochoa said.
Ochoa is a ninth-grade teacher at Lincoln High School. He’s planning to join the rally against possible federal funding cuts to public education.
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SIGN UP “We’re frustrated, we’re tired of constantly having to use our own money when we’re not even getting paid enough to supplement the needs of our students, whether it’d be snacks, whether it’d be you know, food, whether it’d be teaching materials, content, whether it’d be professional development,” Ochoa said.
In California, federal dollars are used to support K-12 education, particularly with disadvantaged students, students with disabilities and English learners.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration unveiled a budget plan that would cut billions of dollars in federal funding for many K-12 and higher education programs.
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“The most needy kids would be affected — larger classrooms, less counseling, less school psychologists, less support services,” Ochoa said.
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon has said the goal in making the cuts is to shift some resources to the states, but Ochoa worries the cuts will be at the expense of the students’ educational experience.
“Tomorrow will be a beautiful day for education," Ochoa said. "We’re going to take a stand, we’re going to be loud and proud, and we’re going to let the state of California and the current administration [to keep] ICE out of schools, fully funded education, support special ed."
