Your Stories

"My 13 yr old daughter has an IEP she already struggles and was just getting to a point of being able to start high school in one or two less IEP classes. Now she is again struggling and for the first time in her life struggles with depression. I work 2 full time jobs and am a single parent. She has had to spend all her time home alone. She misses sports and school. She loved going. I’m afraid with her struggles she may give up. But she has definitely become depressed. I put her in counseling and pay over $400 a month for that. The other night I came home from work to her crying telling me she thinks she needs to be on medication for depression!! I’m at the end of my rope. Open the damn school up!! I’ve been working two jobs this whole time and have had to go. These teachers need to do their jobs. If they want to strike it out we need to hire teachers that want to work!!"


-Chico Parent

"Our 1st grader at Sierra View has deeply suffered due to missing over a year of school now. He is a kid that deeply needs interactions with kids his age and the structure that the school environment provides.. Now that it’s a known fact that the schools are safe to open full time it needs to be done."


-Chico Parent

"My sister, Grace took her life last November. I believe that the incompetence and abuse (in the form of inaction) of the school board, CHS counselors and principal directly influenced her decision to end her life. She went to her counselor for help and when contacted by both her and my mother, Jennifer Scheele, the counselor made no effort and gave the most mundane excuses as to why she could not help; Let alone meet with Grace in person to make any sort of changes happen. I am sickened to hear of yet another suicide at CHS and I want these “people” who sit on the school board (including the current CHS principal) out of their positions ASAP. These bastards need to go.

I do understand the risks of COVID but I don’t see why there can’t be vaccination clinics set up specifically for students to at least start getting ball rolling for students to come back. If grocery stores and malls can be open with thousands of customers in and out daily, the school board should be able to figure out how to make in class learning work."


-Former CHS student and brother

"THANK YOU to Mr. Tennis for being the only person to listen to parents, make decisions in the best interest of the children and staff! Thankfully he attempted to put into practice, what he stated in the voter pamphlet! Thank you for recognizing that most children need the social interaction that they receive at school! My neighbor’s daughter has come to me and shared her thoughts of wanting to end her life! Please put an end to this insanity.... Schools are ESSENTIAL!!!!!

I work for the district as a substitute health assistant and parent aide. I would also volunteer in class weekly and assisted kids who were below grade level, in addition to working in small groups with the rest of the class. I have had to stop working (no longer allowed to volunteer in the class either) altogether to get all the kids to and from their 2 (elementary) or 3 (jr. high) hour days, speech and tutoring sessions.

I have 4 foster children, and one adopted child and one biological child in the home. Of the 6 kids, 5 of them have a significant history of trauma and neglect. Each one of them is behind, in all aspects of life... Their education, as it was before the school closures, and shortened days, was a challenge. I have seen firsthand how this has slowed their growth and I work tirelessly to keep them moving forward. This time at school, is not just supporting their educational needs, it helps improve their social and emotional needs as well! These kids have had extremely difficult beginnings and struggle with impulse control, time management and routine. Some key points practiced at school help them listen to adults, learn how to be polite, take turns and how to be a friend!

Two of the 5 kids I mentioned, have an IEP, and I am not able to get them the additional support they need. I have reached out to their teachers as one of the kiddos won’t complete her online assignments... They said, feel free to join the zoom class for support... Not even close to a good fit for her! Her attention span is too limited, she doesn’t want to ask questions because she doesn’t like to draw attention to herself... The lack of in-person accountability provided by teaching staff and the “new way” of teaching children, is quite different than when I went to school! I can only do so much.

My youngest child is bright and has had the hardest time adjusting to hours of online learning, where some students are limited in their initial grasp to understand new topics. When these ideas are explained over and over, he was near tears as he was ready to move on, and a handful of students still need additional support. The teacher was definitely doing a great job of educating her students, mine just happened to be ready to move on faster than some of the other kids. He would become bored and check out... Months and months of this, with no end in sight, forced us to move him to independent study. He misses his friends, he misses recess and he misses his teacher. It is so sad to see his love of school, completely disappear, in this last year."


-Chico Parent

"Given the information we have today, there is no reason our children should not be learning in person. This shut down is about politics and money, not the safety of our children or school staff."


-Chico Parent

"I've spent many hours and many dollars just to find ways to keep my son preoccupied during those times when he should be getting a quality education, spending time with REAL PEOPLE, just being a kid. WHY ARE WE EVEN HAVING THIS DEBATE ANYMORE, look at the pain this is causing our children and us parents! Enough is enough, OPEN THE SCHOOLS FULLTIME, our current board members need to go ASAP!!


-Chico Parent