Every empty chair where a paraeducator, counselor, or campus supervisor used to sit is a reminder that our district is choosing cuts over kids. As Ventura’s cost of living rises and student needs grow more complex, VUSD is capping workers' health care, cutting essential positions such as paraeducators and psychologists, and placing even more pressure on already overburdened teachers. These decisions directly undermine the stability, safety, and learning environment students depend on every day. When the adults who support them are underpaid and stretched thin, students will bear the brunt of the consequences. 

Declining Enrollment and Structural Deficit

 

Over the past 10 years, enrollment in VUSD has been on a steady decline, further increased by the 2017-2018 Thomas Fires and COVID-19. Enrollment peaked in the 2003-2004 school year at 17,794 students, and decreased to 15,874 students in the 2021-2022 school year. Causes of declining enrollment include reduced birth rates due to higher living costs, families moving away from the Ventura area, and post-pandemic trends. The chart below shows such trends from 1996-1997 to 2021-2022.

 

 

 

 

 

Declining enrollment has been the district’s justification for budget cuts and the lack of raises for teachers, and it is undoubtedly a significant issue. The district currently has a $12.3 million deficit for the 2025-2026 year, which poses a significant problem for everyone. However, despite the district's reasoning, it approved salary increases for the top 4 administrative positions. This was amidst the declining enrollment crisis, and was approved on the 13th of February, 2024. 

Administrator Salaries

 

 

 

 

 

These 4 positions received not only a 2% salary increase effective January 1st, 2024, a month before it was approved, but a 4% increase retroactive to July 1st, 2023, the start of the fiscal year. This means that while teachers and support staff were told there was “no money” for raises, the highest-paid administrators were granted salary increases dating back seven months and boosting their pay before the public even knew the proposal existed. In addition, administrative salaries have been taking up an increasing share of General Fund expenditures since 2018.

 

 

Since 2018, total certificated (teachers, counselors, psychologists, etc.) salaries have increased only 116.25%, while certificated administrative salaries have increased by 156.01%, a huge difference in their growing share of the General Fund. This highlights a significant fiscal management issue: our district is directing funds to the wrong places, which will harm students' well-being. Compared to the three other districts, Conejo Valley, Simi Valley, and Santa Barbara, Ventura Unified spends significantly less on certificated staff and much more on administrative salaries.  This 2023 data compares VUSD’s superintendent salary with those of superintendents in 20 surrounding districts, showing significant differences in some districts.

 

 

 

 

Our superintendent, Dr. Antonio Castro, is the second-highest-paid at a staggering $377,344 (outdated) among these twenty districts, with the Hueneme Elementary School District superintendent ranking first. There is no issue with the amount Dr. Castro is paid; however, there is an issue with him being paid such a significant amount when our teachers and support staff receive barely enough pay to live in Ventura. In addition, these raises occurred during a year when VUSD’s reserves remained significantly above the state minimum.

District Reserve Funds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The state minimum for school district reserve funds is 3%; however, it stands at a 10.25% reserve for economic uncertainty, more than triple what is required. This amount represents a portion of the district’s entire General Fund that is being held back from supporting students and staff. Reserves this high, especially amidst declining enrollment, allow the district to seem fiscally responsible. Most California school districts maintain a 3-5% in reserves in normal years, and a 6-8% in reserves during uncertain years. Our district’s reserve far exceeds both norms.

Their choices to maintain reserves this high keep millions of dollars out of classrooms, student services, and the staff who support students every day. Despite the declining enrollment, there is no justification for such a high reserve being kept, especially when much of this money could be allocated to areas that would benefit students and staff. 

Trustee Peterson's Outburst

Over the past few years and even more so now, our board members have made decisions that conflict with the interests of students and teachers and instead prioritize administrative comfort. In one incident, board member Calvin Peterson had an emotional outburst at the beginning of a district board meeting on February 24, 2026, raising questions about the board’s accountability and reliability.

“So when you come up here, if you really want to make a difference and you really want to help the people that you’re saying that you’re trying to help, give us the facts, because this is a board meeting in public. It’s not a public meeting for people to come up and just spill out emotions or try to convince us that we don't care or that we’re not doing our job…So, if you really want that 20% insight, stop coming up and trying to evoke emotion because emotion is not what's going to make me make a decision. Only the facts are what's gonna make me decision [sic]” (Calvin Peterson, Trustee Area 5).

Our board members are assigned to their positions as public representatives, not employees of the district. Their role is to make decisions that keep in mind the interests of the public, which includes parents, staff, and students. The board’s collaborative power is enormous, which is why accountability and professionalism matter greatly in a position like this. However, Mr. Peterson’s actions are contradictory to this, as he tries to censor the people’s emotions during a hard time in our school district. 

Humankind cannot exist without emotion; otherwise, we would not be human, and as emotional creatures, there is no reliable way to just rely on data and statistics. Mr. Peterson clearly demonstrates unprofessional behavior and a lack of empathy in his outburst, giving the people insight into our elected officials. 

Ventura Unified Job Cuts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another problematic thing the board approved is cuts on various VUSD jobs that are essential to student welfare and the education of children. Many of the listed jobs, including but not limited to adult educators, psychologists, campus supervisors, custodians, and paraeducators, uphold many of the supports that students receive. These jobs are vital to many children’s welfare; however, the district still decided to cut these positions by 56 full-time employees who manage many important tasks. Even though the sizes of these cuts may seem minimal, the burden on the remaining employees will increase. When they cannot take any more, it will fall on the teachers to support these students, who should be receiving support from someone qualified to address their specific needs. 

Cutting these low-paid, high-impact jobs will result in:

• Reduced campus safety.
• Worse mental health outcomes.
• Lower academic performance.
• Possible negative impacts on student programs.
• More pressure on teachers and support staff.
• Higher burnout rate among staff

 

Lemon Grove Cuts

One huge issue highlighted in the data above is the cuts to Lemon Grove Middle School teachers. The Lemon Grove Middle School program was built to support students in a smaller, community-focused environment. Many children who rely on certain conditions and individuality thrive in this sort of environment; the district’s proposal to cut this program directly undermines this. Cuts on two out of the three middle school teachers would overwhelm the remaining teacher, and specialized support for students, as well as essential programs and curriculum, would be severely compromised. 

Currently, any final decisions on Lemon Grove cuts have been delayed by the board. However, the topic is still up for discussion and may occur in the future. On the other hand, other schools in Ventura are at risk of being closed entirely. 

School Closures

Ventura Unified School District has begun a formal evaluation of potential school closures, with the School Closures Advisory Committee appointed in January 2026. This committee has been tasked with determining which schools may be considered for closure as early as the 2027-2028 school year. The only schools that are not being considered for closure are Ventura High School and Buena High School. The district aims to save money by closing three out of its 27 schools.

The closures will have significant impacts on students, teachers, and support staff. Students will lose their safe, familiar environments, along with their relationships with staff and possibly separating with friends. Furthermore, students at other schools may also be affected if an influx of students from the closed schools leads to overcrowding, which could disrupt programs that require specific classroom space.

Teachers and support staff will face increased challenges due to the larger campus sizes, issues related to relocation, and the potential loss of their established connections with students. If the district does not follow through with its promises, there may also be an increase in already oversized classrooms, further overwhelming educators.

Schools like Foothill Technology High School, which is highly regarded and has a strong community, are at risk of closure. The closure of Foothill could jeopardize the friendships and livelihoods of many. Additionally, Juanamaria Elementary serves a significant number of vulnerable students who would be adversely affected by these closures. Aside from Ventura High School and Buena High School, no other school is safe from closure, meaning that many families could be impacted if action is not taken against these decisions. 

While such closures may be seen as necessary due to the financial deficit the district has incurred, these actions could have been avoided if the district had taken precautionary measures to manage its funds more wisely.

Demands

Our district’s decisions have directly harmed the welfare of students and staff and damaged the foundation of our community's education system. Their decisions to raise administrators' salaries, withhold raises from teacher salaries, cut low-paid, high-impact jobs, and put many students at risk by considering the closure of schools have proven that the district's money issue is not just caused by declining enrollment, but mismanagement and poor leadership. 

We, the people of Ventura, call upon the Ventura Unified School District to:

 

• Have full financial responsibility and public disclosure.
• Re-evaluate district administrator salaries.
• Direct no cuts to teachers and support staff, including salaries and benefits.
• Redirect excess reserve funds to support students' future.
• Hold district administrators and board members accountable for providing students with safe, well-supported, and fully resourced learning environments.
• Support students, teachers, and staff with the difficulties of school closures.

 

Conclusion

Not everything is about just the facts: It’s about the principles. In the United States of America, education is a privilege that every person has the right to. When decisions are made that harm a student's ability to learn in a safe environment, it harms the principles that this country was built on. When the people who care about education and the students, our teachers and support staff, receive only cuts, barely survivable salaries, and a pat on the back for their tremendous work, it harms the students, who rely on the utmost care and sincerity of their adults. The district’s excuse has constantly been “Kids are resilient” or “Teachers are superheroes”, but in reality, we are human, we have emotions, and we get traumatized. Change must be brought, not just for our community today, but “for the future of every student”. 

This petition is student-run, for students, for teachers, for staff, and for education.