12,000 Rally in O.C. to Protest Education Cuts

In a show of support for schools that surprised even the organizers, nearly 12,000 people swarmed into the stadium at Orange Coast College on Thursday night to protest Gov. Pete Wilson’s proposed $2-billion cut in education, which has already forced hundreds of teacher layoffs in Orange County.

“This is beautiful,” said Santa Ana schools Supt. Rudy M. Castruita as he surveyed the crowd, which filled the bleachers and spilled onto the field. “‘This shows that people really do care about their children’s education.”

The timing of the “Save Orange County Kids” rally was pivotal. On the same day, the Placentia Unified School District board voted to eliminate physical education and music programs from its elementary schools and to give layoff notices to 158 teachers. And on Wednesday, Saddleback Valley Unified School District laid off 82 teachers in a move that is expected to jeopardize its elementary science and music programs. Students at the district also will have no counselors. They have all been reassigned or laid off.

Emotion ran high at the rally. Students from Mission Viejo High School wore black armbands to protest dismantled music programs, and a sign from La Tierra Elementary School in Mission Viejo read “La Tierra Is Crying.” The school also faces the loss of its music education program.

“I feel like I’ve been slapped,” said 16-year-old Michelle Velez, who plays the flute at Mission Viejo High. “All this time, I’ve been practicing and trying hard to play well. Now the music programs are being cut everywhere. Does that mean they don’t think too much about music?”

Orange County Supt. of Schools John Dean told the crowd that the state was hurting children.

“When we overcrowd classrooms beyond all reason, when we close libraries and turn off showers in the gym, when we eliminate music and art programs, we are victimizing our children,” Dean said. “But there is an even more devastating message being sent to our children. That schools and literature and art, and music and clean bodies are not really very important.”

Parents and school officials said they began organizing the rally several months ago when the governor announced that he wanted to cut $2 billion from education funds and suspend Proposition 98, which guarantees that schools receive 40% of the state general-purpose tax revenue, to help cover a $12.6-billion deficit. The organizers had expected 10,000 people at most, and were surprised by the massive turnout.

Guests included state school Supt. Bill Honig, Assembly members Doris Allen (R-Anaheim) and Tom Umberg (D-Garden Grove), and state senators Marion Bergeson (R-Newport Beach) and Cecil N. Green (D-Norwalk).

“We want our governor and legislators to know the Orange County community feels that adequate funding for our children’s quality education is imperative,” PTA President Katherine Nielson told the crowd. “We will not accept less for our children.”

Honig said the rally’s message was, “Look, governor, you’re taking the schools down too far and the whole state will pay the price.”

Honig added that Wilson, who proposed to raise $7 billion in tax revenue for other social programs in the state, should distribute some of the money to education.

“The public is saying schools should be first and not last,” Honig said. “It is not a wise choice to leave schools out.”

Nearly all of the 28 school districts in Orange County sent representatives. As the rally opened, students whooped and wildly waved their hands when their school districts were announced.

“I’m frustrated that we have to take action on the layoffs,” Castruita said. “But we hope to bring back as many people as possible. There are still a lot of battles to be fought and we need as much flexibility for our schools.”

Trabuco Hills High School freshman Veronica Ramos, 15, said she worried that she wouldn’t get as much guidance as she needed.

“I probably won’t get into a good college,” Ramos said.

And Jerry Langner, 13, an eighth-grader at Los Alisos Junior High, said he doesn’t know what to expect when he goes to high school next year.

“It will affect my next four years because I won’t have as many (classes) to choose from,” the eighth-grader said. “I like sports and I’m afraid they may cut them.”

Parent Ken Combs, who has two children in elementary school, said he doesn’t know what else the schools can cut.

“There’s just nothing left,” Combs said. “I’m here for my children, for the other children, and the ones coming to school in five and 10 years. They’re either going to be in schools or else they’re going to be in prisons.”

Parents who organized the rally say they are aiming for a repeat of what happened in 1983 when thousands gathered in Orange County--also at Orange Coast College--to support a controversial bill that eventually was passed and provided $800 million for education.

Parent Wei Ling Louie of La Habra said she proudly watched her three children attend public school. Her youngest is still attending Sonora High School and will graduate soon.

“Now that my children are almost out of public schools, I’m worried about other students who will be attending in the future,” Louie said. “California used to be No. 1 in education. Now, it seems like we are going further and further down every year. There are no priorities given to education.”

Times staff writer Lily Dizon contributed to this report.

NEW LOSSES: The Placentia school district votes to lay off 158 teachers. B7