The Woodburn School District and Woodburn Education Association are currently amid a contract dispute that has lasted over a year. One issue that has been highly contested in the community is codifying rights and protections around Immigration and Customs enforcement activity on school campuses in the district, where 87% of the student population is Latino.
The Woodburn School Board has had heavy turnover the past year, since the prior board sparked community backlash after their management of last year’s “Safe and Welcoming Schools resolution,” — causing many to lose their seats. District policies were already in place to protect students against ICE enforcement, but supporters of the resolution maintained it was an important step by school leaders to reaffirm and publicly support these protections in the largely immigrant-led community.
We’ll hear from Jason Levin, a union representative with the Woodburn Education Association and a Career and Technical Education teacher at Woodburn High School, as well as Woodburn School District Superintendent Juan Larios, and Debbie Ballweber, chair of the Woodburn School Board.
Note: The following transcript was transcribed digitally and validated for accuracy, readability and formatting by an OPB volunteer.
Dave Miller: This is Think Out Loud on OPB. I’m Dave Miller. We start today with the Woodburn School District. The district and the teachers union are more than a year into negotiations for a new contract. But the two sides have agreed to what’s been called a first in Oregon, the codification in the contract of rights and protections around immigration enforcement. That follows a contentious set of school board votes last year that sparked community backlash.
In a few minutes, we’ll hear from the Woodburn superintendent and the new chair of the school board. But first I’m joined by Jason Levin. He is a career and technical education teacher at Woodburn High School, and a union representative with the Woodburn Education Association. Jason, welcome to the show.
Jason Levin: Thank you for having me.
Miller: Can you give us a sense, first, just for what this school year has been like for your students, of whom district-wide about 87% are Latino?
Levin: It’s been scary. One of my very good friends who’s also a union representative here started a rapid response team, so that we could at least try and stay on top of ICE action in the community and at least be informed, because hearsay and rumor is dangerous. We have partnered with some community organizations like PCUN and just tried to maintain a sense of normalcy for our students, because a threat of going home and not knowing if your parents are going to be there is something that no high school student or any student should have to deal with.
Miller: What has this meant for academic performance?
Levin: It’s less about academic performance and more about attendance. If you are not in school, you cannot learn and you cannot achieve. Many families, understandably so, chose to keep their kids home.
Miller: What has this year been like for teachers?
Levin: Many of the teachers that I work with are concerned for friends and family members, for spouses. As you mentioned, the community is overwhelmingly Latino. So it’s been rough.
Miller: There was a lot of drama last year over a school board resolution about ICE agents. That was taken up; it was voted down. Then there was a big public outcry, and about a month later, it was taken up again and it did pass. Can you describe the Safe and Welcoming Schools resolution?
Levin: The idea is that we understand that there are limitations to the power that we have when dealing with something like the federal government. However, there needs to be a checklist, if you will, of how we proceed if and when those agents attempted to enter one of our schools. So that is the majority of that resolution. [It] sort of speaks to what would the order of operations be, how would people get notified, that sort of thing.
Miller: What lessons did you take from that episode? The no vote, the outcry and the yes vote.
Levin: It has been an incredibly frustrating experience to negotiate with the district. We have dragged them kicking and screaming into this particular resolution, and they have been beyond obstinate when it comes to the language that we’re trying to add to our contract. When I signed on for this as a part of the negotiating committee, I was – I would say – optimistic, possibly to the point of naivete. I realized that it was going to be a negotiation and possibly an uphill battle, but this has been running into a brick wall over and over and over again.
Miller: To be clear, I had been talking there about the school board vote. But I understand tensions are high enough that in your answer there, you were going into the current contract negotiations. I should say that we can’t get into the deep details of these current contract negotiations in the middle of a radio show. But I will note that they’ve been going on for more than a year and some major provisions are still on the table. It’s worth noting it’s been reported that the union has announced that about 80% of members have signed strike pledges – not to vote for a strike, but a sign of willingness on the part of teachers to strike.
Just keeping this sort of at the broad level, how far apart would you say the two sides are right now?
Levin: We had to wait until April 24 to receive the audit for last school year. We were told, leading up to this point, that the district had $5 million in ending fund balance. And the audit revealed that they have $15 million in the ending fund balance. So we’re asking for a 7% raise the first year, a 6% raise for the second, and a 5% raise, which the superintendent recently wrote in a memorandum ... It would cost roughly $2.9 million the first year, $2.5 [million] and $2.1 [million], for a total of $7.5 million.
Now they can easily afford that with $15 million in the ending fund balance and that was just the one year. As we know, Woodburn is the third fastest growing community in Oregon in cities with a population of 10,000 or more. The governor herself just signed a package of housing bills right here in Oregon on the 22nd to expand housing for working families. So we know that even if 1 in 4 people who is moving into one of these new housing units has a kid, our population is going to increase, and we get paid based on average daily attendance. We’re 30 minutes south of Portland and about 30 minutes north of Salem, so we need to incentivize people to come here. The district is offering us a series of raises that do not meet inflation. Especially not headline inflation, which includes fuel and food prices. Many of us commute to get here and the so-called “raise” that they’re offering us wouldn’t even pay for our gas. So we have asked over and over again.
We’ve basically created three different types of articles: one with strong language that would cost the district nothing; one that would save the district money, things like retirement incentives; and one that would compensate teachers. The districts say they want enrichment, clubs, but they’re not willing to pay us, not for an hour of our time to run these clubs. So we are so far apart, because at every turn, we have offered thoughtful language that includes caveats that aid the district, and at every turn, they have crossed out our language without counter proposal. They have simply said no, no, no. And you can’t negotiate that way. That’s not good faith negotiating.
Miller: Jason Levin, thanks very much for your time, I appreciate it.
Levin: My pleasure. Thank you and have a great day.
Miller: Jason Levin is a CTE business teacher at Woodburn High School and a union representative with the Woodburn Education Association.
For more perspectives on what’s happening right now at Woodburn schools, I’m joined by Superintendent Juan Larios and Board Chair Debbie Ballweber. It’s great to have both of you on the show.
Debbie Ballweber: Thank you for having us.
Juan Larios: Thanks for having us.
Miller: I wanna start with you, Juan. I did note there that the intent of this conversation was not to get into the details of contract negotiations. It’s hard to do that back and forth in radio interviews. It’s not the way labor negotiations go. But given what you just heard from Jason, I do want to give you a chance to respond to any of that if you want. If not, we can move on with other questions.
Larios: Thank you for the opportunity. I just maybe [will] touch a little bit upon what we just heard. I understand where the frustration is coming from. This has been an ongoing bargain; it started last April. People are really passionate about it because it impacts their livelihood. It’s very personal. It’s very understandable where that’s coming from. We find ourselves in a spot where we’re trying to find a balance. We are very passionate about the programs and what we offer in the Woodburn School District. What’s available for our students, the amazing staff that we have. I have a lot of respect for our teachers. I was a teacher in the Woodburn School District for eight years...
Miller: An elementary school teacher?
Larios: An elementary school teacher. I worked alongside many of the current educators that we have. My wife is a teacher at the high school and I have my own boys in our schools. I have a lot of respect and passion for what we provide.
So we’re trying to find a space where we’re providing a fair and reasonable compensation package for our educators, but also being thoughtful of our stewardship of our resources, where we’re heading and what’s available for us. The $15 million in the audit, it’s important to note that that was last year’s audit that concluded in June of last year. Throughout this year, we have been deficit spending, spending down that ending fund balance, just to maintain the programs and operations that we currently have.
Costs are rising for individual staff members, and I hear that and I’m concerned for that. It also rises for us as a school district. We have to be really thoughtful about [what] we’re able to afford, now and into the future. We don’t want today’s agreement to become tomorrow’s layoffs or program cuts. We want to continue to maintain what we have and only build it up.
Miller: Just to ask you the same question that I asked Jason there: How close do you think the two sides are? The language, obviously – which is not unusual for contract negotiations at this point – is very heated. That doesn’t necessarily mean that an agreement isn’t close. It’s hard to know from the outside. How close do you think an agreement is right now?
Larios: Well, we remain committed to trying to reach that agreement, and we have hope and faith that we’re going to get there. We’re coming to the table. We are bargaining in good faith, and we believe that cooler heads will prevail, and that we will be able to reach an agreement that sustains our programs and sustains what’s available for kids. Because at the end of the day, we really have our students in mind. Our students come first, but our staff need to come right alongside of that because they are the backbone of what we’re providing for our students.
Miller: As I mentioned, Debbie Ballweber is here as well; a new member and the chair of the Woodburn school board. Why did you run for school board?
Ballweber: I worked for the Woodburn School District for 41 years. I raised my three sons there. I’ve always had a passion for education and I love the Woodburn School District. I love what it offers the students. The staff is amazing. It was just my goal, once I retired, to continue working alongside people to continue to make it better.
I think the community was ready for some renewed energy there, so a different focus. I think the group that ran wanted to bring a positivity and a vision, and to be more visible to people. We go and visit schools, we see what the kids are doing, we see the amazing work that teachers are doing. We participate in community activities. We’re very positive in our meetings, to let people know we appreciate the knowledge they bring. And the recognitions that we do there; we love to recognize people for the great things that they’re doing.
I just think that that will make a difference in how the board is perceived and that people will know that we’re there for the right reason. We really do have everyone’s best interest at heart. I know for myself and for the board as well, students are our number one priority and what’s best for those students. And like Juan said, right alongside the staff, we really care about them as well and sustaining what we’ve worked so hard to build.
Miller: What lessons did you take from the backlash last year after the vote against and then eventually for the Safe and Welcoming Schools resolution?
Ballweber: I actually was at the meeting. I wasn’t at the first meeting. I did watch it and then I did go to the second meeting where it was so amazing to see the community come out, and share their feelings of support for that and how much they really cared. And the teachers, how much they really cared about the safety of our kids. What I took from that is that [it] was something that was really, really important – as it should be. So important that when our board was elected, one of the first things that we did was we went ahead and made some changes to that and reaffirmed that resolution, because we believe so much in the safety of our students and our staff.
Miller: We did ask folks on Facebook what role school districts should play in protecting students and families from immigration enforcement activity.
Athena Contreras said: “No immigration agents should set foot near a school.”
Kevin Seeber wrote: “School districts should have nothing to do with immigration enforcement, neither cooperation nor reporting obligations.”
Kristen Gustafson wrote: “They should not even have to think about it. Our government should ensure that schools are safe places for our kids. This includes protecting them from trauma. No one believes that it’s good for kids to see people dragged off at school. That kind of activity should not be happening at schools if student safety and well-being is our priority.”
And finally, Arnold Cohen wrote: “Schools should educate kids on immigration: the process over the last 200 years, who came over when and when immigration was reduced, all the way to today’s actions. Same thing that schools generally do, teach facts.”
Juan, I want to turn to the tentative agreement about immigration enforcement that I mentioned briefly with Jason Levin. Let’s say that it does end up in the final contract. How would it be enforced if ICE agents show up at a Woodburn middle school without a judicial warrant? I mean, this contract language says you can’t come in. But are teachers going to bar them from entering a school?
Larios: First, I just want to share that I think that Article 32, the contract that was tentatively agreed to, represents a shared value that we have in our community – the district and the teachers association – to put our kids first, and to prioritize their safety and the well-being of students and staff. As you said, nobody deserves to come to school feeling anxious or worried about these outside factors in their life.
Miller: Right, that was one of our comments from Facebook.
Larios: And we agree with that. I think it’s something that’s important for us and that we represent as a value. But we are limited within what we can do, within the context of what’s the law, what the federal government will impose and what’s available here in our state with the sanctuary laws.
So we’ll continue to do what we can within the parameters of the law to keep everybody safe, to provide resources, to be there for our students and for our families. When there is an impact that happens in our community, we’re quick to respond – going out to the home, connecting with families, trying to understand what their needs are, providing for those resources, connecting with our local community resources as well to get families connected and plugged into what we may not necessarily be able to provide as a school; but helping them find those resources in the community.
Miller: This gets to the first question I asked Jason Levin. I’m just curious, Juan, what you’ve been hearing from students and parents this year? When they’ve reached out to you in particular, what have they been saying?
Larios: Yeah, we’ve been hearing that concern. I know firsthand. I grew up in an undocumented household, and I saw and witnessed the raids. And I, as a student, knew the impact it had on me personally and going to school, and what that meant for my learning.
Miller: What did that mean for you personally and your learning?
Larios: It created a lot of fear and anxiety. It created fear and anxiety when I didn’t know what was going to happen when I went to school. Oftentimes, we didn’t go to school. We stayed home out of fear that there were agents in the community. So I recognize that’s what many of our families are experiencing and feeling right now as well. So again, we come back to, how are we going to be there and show up for our kids?
I know, individually, there have been students that have been impacted in their attendance. I think, due in large part to the outstanding work of our educators, of our every staff member to create Safe and Welcoming School spaces, we haven’t seen a district-wide impact on attendance. But we know those stories are there personally, on individual families and individual students. But again, I credit our outstanding staff and the work that they’re doing to create those safe, welcoming spaces in schools that are making students and families still participate in activities and still come and attend school.
Miller: I noted that it’s been reported that this kind of provision … And again, it’s a tentative agreement that hasn’t been agreed upon yet, but it seems likely that it would. The two sides have agreed to it, and when everything else is settled, it seems like this will be in a contract. It’s been reported that this is the first time that provisions like this have been in a labor contract. Have you heard from other districts, since you came to this agreement, about people saying, “hey, we’d like to do this too?”
Larios: No, I haven’t personally heard from other districts who are inquiring or asking about it. I think time will tell if we do, but up until now, we haven’t.
Miller: Debbie, what are your desires in terms of student performance at this point? I mean, we’ve been talking about student safety, about emotional safety, about fears. Schools are also obviously … The purpose is education. What are your goals as board chair in terms of student achievement?
Ballweber: Well, as Jason said too, with attendance, if kids aren’t in school, they can’t learn. So one of our goals as [a] board is focused on attendance and what we can continue to do to get our kids to come to school, and the importance of being there every day and in your chair learning.
Our other goal is, of course, on literacy. Reading and writing are so important as kids move on through life and beyond. We’re really watching the professional development, and the district is providing some excellent professional development surrounding literacy. We’ve been able to visit those professional developments and see how that is put into action with the students in various different levels. It’s really amazing to see the hard work that the teachers are doing, and then we visit classrooms [to] see how that is put into play and what is happening.
Our goal is to continue to focus on literacy and probably, eventually, we’ll be going for math as well, because that’s another very important skill. But right now, along with safety of kids, that would be our two main focuses.
Miller: Debbie Ballweber and Juan Larios, thanks very much.
Ballweber: Thank you so much for having us.
Larios: Thank you.
Miller: Debbie Ballweber is chair of the Woodburn School Board. Juan Larios is superintendent of the Woodburn School District.
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