"Be There and Be Angry!"

200 Stockton Teachers Laid Off

STOCKTON - In the fifth week of Stockton Unified's elongated budget-cutting process, the hammer came down Tuesday night.

Stockton Unified trustees voted 6-0, with an ailing Bill Ross absent, to send layoff notices to 200 teachers by the March 15 state deadline.

The layoffs would save the district in the neighborhood of $8 million. The district is looking to slash at least $28.5 million from its 2010-11 budget.

Some layoffs could be reversed if other teachers retire and if the district and teachers union can agree on furlough days or other measures that would reduce Stockton Unified's payroll costs.

Teachers did score one victory at the meeting. They convinced the board to remove a proposal by the administration that would have allowed the district to use some criteria other than seniority to determine who will retain their jobs and who will not.

In a strongly worded letter to members Monday, Stockton Teachers Association President Anne McCaughey asked them to come to the meeting and to "BE THERE and BE ANGRY."

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