Frustrated with Kent teachers strike, kids organize their own rally

Schools on Kent remained closed on Wednesday, but on what was scheduled to be the second first day of school this year a group of students at Sunrise Elementary got up and went to school anyway.

Led by Libby Basler, a precocious fifth-grader at the school, the students all decided to stage their own rally out in front of their building to ask teachers to lay down their signs and return to their classrooms.

“I just think it was unfair to us kids,” she said Wednesday. “We didn’t get to learn.”

Basler, 10, along with several friends and family members began their day making their own picket signs with slogans like “I want to go back to school” and “Judge says teach now” and then spent their morning holding their own student rally opposite the teachers, who were also there for a short time Wednesday morning.

“It’s just something we’ve got to do,” Basler said. “I know that they have a right to speak, but when the judge told them to go back to teaching, they should obey that.”

Corah Davidson, 8, will be starting third grade this year and said she was very excited to meet her new teacher and learn some new skills, but sad that she has to continue to wait.

“I’m protesting to go back to school,” she said. “I think it’s important they come back so they can teach us kids.

“I feel like I’m missing out learning cursive,” she added. “I like my summer, but then I want to go back to school.”

Teachers in Kent have been on strike since Aug. 26. The union and district appear to be stuck in a stalemate over the teachers’ contract. On Sept. 3, King County Superior Court Judge Andrea Darvas ruled that the strike was illegal and teachers must return to their classrooms Sept. 8 with classes to begin Sept. 9.

On Monday, the 1,700-member teachers’ union voted to defy the order and continue its strike.

Basler’s mother, Lori, said Libby came to her with questions about the strike, including one about how teachers could disobey the judge.

“I didn’t have an answer for her,” Lori Basler said.

Lori Basler said said the real problems in this instance probably extend from the state level, which is where the funding issues need to be dealt with and said she is thrilled with the education Libby has been provided thus far in Kent.

“I want her to get back to that because they are great teachers,” she said.

Tyler Hislop, 14, also joined the pint-sized picketers, urging his teachers back to work at kentwood, where is he looking forward to starting his freshman year.

Hislop said not only is he looking forward to seeing friends he hasn’t seen in a few months, he is also getting bored with the time off.

“I’m just sitting around watching TV,” he said.

Hislop said that teachers have made their point, but now “They’ve kind of taken it too far.”

“They’re just kind of hurting everyone from this,” he said.

Fellow incoming Kentwood freshman Lucas Shumaker, 14, minced no words.

“I don’t think it sends a good message,” he said. “I think it send a bad message to the kids that they can do anything they want and disobey the judge.”

Kent Education Association President Lisa Brackin Johnson said Thursday that she would tell youngsters that teachers felt that strongly about what they were doing.

“The teachers felt it was important to stand up for students to make sure they would get the best education they can in smaller classes,” she said. “They felt strong enough that they had to disagree with the judge.”

Parents on hand with their kids said they understand what the teachers are fighting for and would also like to see smaller class sizes, but were more worried about the kind of message Shumaker was talking about.

“I’m all for smaller class sizes, but when it comes to breaking the law, I have a problem with that,” said Maggie Shumaker, who was out with her kids. “We teach our children to obey the law.”

Shumaker, whose other son is a special needs child in the district, said she wanted to be clear that “we’re not against the teachers, we love our teachers” but was concerned that the message they were sending out was bad for students and that while civil disobedience has its place, this was not the best time or way to make their point.

“This is your job, take it or leave it,” she said. “If you don’t like it, go to another district.”

But while the specifics of the contract eluded the youngsters, the basic message from the students at Sunrise was simple: Come back to work.

“When they take off more time that takes off more learning,” Libby Basler said, noting that two months off in the summer affects her math knowledge. “And that’s not going to help us.”