26 Apr Students, Staff Have Different Views on WCCUSD Needs

West Contra Costa student trustees Lola Abdugapparov and Camillie Paucar, bottom left and right, found that their fellow students and school leaders have different ideas on what students need to learn. (Screenshot captured by Samantha Kennedy / The CC Pulse)

By Samantha Kennedy

Student trustees Lola Abdugapparov and Camillie Paucar are just like other students in the district — they see the quality of education suffer due to budgetary constraints. But student funding priorities aren’t exactly aligned with district staff’s decisions, leading some to wonder if they’re being heard at all. 

As part of their report to the board Wednesday, Abdugapparov and Paucar surveyed students and principals on what they think the district’s funding priorities should be to get a better sense of how students’ educational needs can be met despite staffing shortages and inadequate funding. 

Principals surveyed overwhelmingly said staffing lacked funding at their sites, with some reiterating ongoing concerns about being unable to run certain programs. Student concerns, however, were more focused on activities and the campus. 

>>>Read: Teacher and Her Students Agree: Layoffs Not the Answer to WCCUSD Budget Woes

About 80% of surveyed principals listed staffing, which includes teachers and other campus employees, as the main need for funding. Only 18% of students surveyed listed staffing as their first funding priority. Even when asked to list their second priority, staffing still received only 16.6% of the votes, with campus improvements, sports and supplies being listed more often. 

This isn’t the only disconnect between students and district staff, according to Abdugapparov and Paucar. 

The two say they’ve heard praise from teachers about the Promethean interactive panels that are being implemented in schools but said many students dislike the boards. In previous board meetings, teacher testimony says the interactive panels have increased student engagement. 

The student trustees say more communication and transparency with the community, especially students, is needed.

During the meeting where hundreds turned out to stop the reassignment of Pinole Valley High School principal Kibby Kleiman, Abdugapparov said a friend posed a question to her that gave her pause. 

“ ‘Does anything that we say actually change their mind? ’” she recalled her friend asking. “I thought about it. I’m sure that you take so many things into consideration, but sometimes because we don’t see the behind-the-scenes, we don’t see these words carry any weight.” 

“It’s kind of disheartening to see so many people take their time to come up here and — sometimes with tears in their eyes — really say what they want to see from the board,” she said. “And then, sometimes, just feel like that doesn’t go anywhere.” 

The request to increase communication and transparency with students and the community would include getting them involved in the budget process to “mitigate misconceptions about available resources,” according to the report.  

Student trustees also suggested addressing attendance, which directly impacts funding, by allowing sick students to attend school via Zoom; publicizing the finance committee and making use of grants and fundraisers. 

Board members were receptive to suggestions given by the student trustees, with Board President Jamela Smith-Folds looking toward next steps. 

Read their full report here.