SMALL ELECTRIC CANDLES COVERED THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES’ TABLE AFTER THE EVENT. GAZETTE PHOTO BY JILL BALLINGER Before the Dec. 17 Mariposa County Unified School District Board of Trustees meeting, about 40 members of the district staff, parents, children and community members joined in a candlelight vigil outside the board room. The group was there to let the board know it was concerned about education in Mariposa County.

A number of people spoke to the crowd outside. Pam Van Paul, a district employee with two children who attended local schools, urged everyone to stay united. “Let’s keep us a family,” she said.

Others in the group expressed concern about large class sizes having an impact on students. “We need to stand strong and try to support quality education in Mariposa,” another speaker said.

Yet others said the district must stop “wasteful spending” and the fiscal management of the district. Linda Dougherty-Kelly said unity within the district is key to dealing with the current fiscal crisis. “Instead of quibbly, let’s send our message loud and clear that we are united,” she said.

Once inside the meeting, each participant placed a tiny, flickering electric candle on the school board’s table. The procession wound its way out the back door.

Only a few speakers addressed the board directly. Classified School Employees Association (CSEA) President Ken Price told the board that there had been a number of key decision that were “dismal at best.” He said last year’s financial crisis took months, while real people waited and worried whether they’d have a job or health care.

Price said cutting people is not the way to go. “People make education work,” Price told the board. “All else is secondary.” He had a final suggestion for the board. “The people who make this district work should be the consultants from here on out.”

Brooke Dobson, who is an MCUSD graduate, parent and teacher, said she and her colleagues are working to buffer the impact of of larger class sizes on their students.

But student Phillip Kudela said it is a struggle. “There are so many kids, it’s hard to pay attention,” he said of some of his classes at Mariposa Middle School. “It’s getting pretty crowded. I’m getting tired of it.”

Mariposa County Teachers’ Association (MCTA) President Georgia Gallagher echoed those concerns in her report to the board. She said there needs to be another teacher at Mariposa Elementary School and Woodland Elementary. She said the elective courses at MMS currently have between 42 and 50 students. “It feels so sad that we’re sitting with those overcrowded classes at elementary schools,” she said, noting the hardship at MMS, as well “How do we run? We need some help out there.”

Gallagher said teachers have become “totally dependent” on parents and the community for support. She asked the board to make a pledge in the new year. She asked that board members call MCTA and CSEA officials to have open communication.

She issued a final invitation. “Come out and stand in our classrooms,” Gallagher said to the board. “See where we can put a little bit back.”