The Parent Movement Recap of March 22 Castro Valley School Board Meeting

Inspired by the love and admiration we have for our educators at , I got together with four other parents over coffee to talk about saving our 25:1 class size ratio.

In response to the to increase K-3 class size ratio to 28:1, we formed . 

Our mission is gather information, inform ourselves, inform as many parents as we can of what we learn, and to respectfully pressure our board to keep our class size ratio at 25:1.

Our first meeting was . With a shout out and event posting on Castro Valley Patch, parents from schools all over Castro Valley showed up to and were ready to stand up.

It was exciting to see and feel the emotion and determination in that room.

We were joined by a Castro Valley Teachers Association (CVTA) union representative and the CVTA president. After listening to everyone introduce themselves and give their reasons for being there, we discussed our next steps. I was SO excited about the enthusiasm of those in attendance. I LOVE this community.

Last night was the board meeting. The budget and class size ratio were not on
the agenda so we had to reserve our comments for the Public Comments Session at the end of the Open Session or 9:30 p.m., whichever came first. 

Parents from our Movement came with their young children. We got to see the presentation and the awards gave to its . These two presentations made me love our community even more.  

With our young children, we sat respectfully through the board’s long discussion on the Municipal Advisory Council, reports from conferences, carpooling issues, books that they thought were worth reading and discussing in the future, and scheduling meetings. 

Finally after 9 p.m., after some parents had to leave because of the late hour, the Public Comments session opened. John Green, the CVTA union president spoke
first.

His first comments urged the board to move the Public Comment Session earlier in the meeting so that parents of small children, who are a big part of whom this board serves, could be heard and go home without having to sit through so much other board business. Thank you, John.

Six parents were moved enough to speak to the board on class-size ratio. We did so with respect, eloquence, and a lot of heart. I was sitting in the front of the room so I didn’t know who remained in the room behind me at this late hour but when I turned to leave, I was encouraged to see that the room was not empty. 

The room was filled with 20 to 30 parents and teachers that stayed to the end to applaud in support of the parents who spoke. These parents and teachers stayed to the end to support The Parent Movement, to support our mission of persuading our board to keep our class size ratio at 25:1. Did I mention, I love this community?

The Parent Movement will meet again before the next board meeting.  I’ll definitely let you all know when and where it will be and what we’re going to discuss. I can’t wait to meet more of you from this wonderful community as we
fight to preserve our quality education here in Castro Valley.