The Los Lomitas Education Association and the district reached an agreement on Oct. 26 for a 16% raise over the next three years. For more information, click here.
UPDATED Oct. 24, 10:36 a.m. Teachers continued to strike today with multiple picket lines outside both campuses.
Last night, the Las Lomitas Education Association released a statement, suggesting that the district and the union were closer to forming a deal. “We presented a reasonable offer, one that Dr. Polito and the district’s attorney initially responded to with optimism. However, shortly after, we were told that the board was done for the night—they didn’t want to stay late to finalize a deal,” they posted on Facebook.
However, this morning, LLEA posted another statement that expressed more frustration, potentially indicating that there is still major tension between the union and the board. “Teachers want to go back and are extremely heartbroken that the district would rather spend over $100,000 on a magician, subs, security and an attorney rather than invest in our children’s education. While students are in the schools watching movies like Coco and magic shows, we want our students to have a quality education with their teachers,” they wrote.
UPDATED Oct. 23, 10:34 a.m. Teachers in the district officially began striking today at 8:20 a.m. as students were being dropped off at La Entrada and Las Lomitas. Numerous parents and staff members picketed on the sidewalk outside both campuses. In solidarity with their teachers, many students joined them in the picket lines or cheered as they picketed.
Students, staff and parents picket and hold signs outside La Entrada. 
Poster supporting a raise on a parked car. 
Instructions to students posted outside an entry to La Entrada. 
Students, staff and parents picket and hold signs outside La Entrada. 
Students, staff, and parents strike outside La Entrada. 
Staff holds a sign that reads “We ride 2-gether, we strike 2-gether.”
UPDATED Oct. 23, 12:27 a.m. The District announced at 12:16 a.m. that they were unable to come to an agreement with LLEA. They stated that their offer from yesterday evening included a 7% raise, paid retroactively, starting in 2023-24, and a 3% raise for the ongoing salary in 2024-25. LLEA countered with an 8% raise for 2023-24 and an 8% raise for 2024-25.
Oct. 22, 11:44 p.m. Teachers in the Las Lomitas Elementary School District will be striking tomorrow, Oct. 23, after the district refused to negotiate a 10% pay increase for educators part of the Las Lomitas Education Association.
Both Las Lomitas and La Entrada will remain open, as the district has worked with the Association of California School Administrators to hire substitute teachers and paraeducators to provide instruction to students.
LLESD teachers are almost three years behind on a contract and have been operating without a new salary schedule since the end of the 2022-23 school year.
The negotiations for the 2023-24 pay schedule have lasted throughout last year and extended into this year.
In a video posted on Facebook and Instagram, La Entrada eighth grade English teacher Tanya Rianda announced that district negotiators, including Superintendent Dr. Beth Polito, walked out of negotiations after requesting a caucus at 8:40 p.m.
“The management team, in the middle of negotiations, during their caucus, left us. We did not know, they never informed us,” Rianda said in the video.
“The district and LLEA met to bargain this evening at Las Lomitas at 7:30 p,m. Around 10:30 p.m., once the LLEA began negotiating via text directly with our board representative, we asked our administrative team to go home in preparation for an early day (given the impending strike). The bargaining team offered to continue negotiations by text and Zoom up until the midnight deadline. The board and bargaining team are still at it now,” LLESD board member Laura Moon wrote in a Facebook comment.
Six minutes after posting the video, LLEA posted again on Facebook and Instagram, announcing that teachers will be striking tomorrow.
During public comment at a board meeting last Thursday, LLEA co-Presidents Daniella Lefer and Jennifer Montalvo announced that LLEA, along with their sister union for classified staff, the California School Employees Association, would be striking on Wednesday, Oct. 23, if the district and LLEA were unable to come to an agreement by midnight today.
At 7 p.m. this evening, Polito announced via district communications that a new offer was on the table. “Early this evening, the district bargaining team and board of trustees provided a new offer to the LLEA. We sincerely hope the district and teachers association can come to an agreement before midnight,” she wrote.
Earlier this week, Las Lomitas Elementary School and La Entrada Middle School administrators sent emails to parents with information about strike schedules and school day operations. The District also emailed out a family guide with more information.
“Throughout the day, students can expect lessons that focus on social-emotional (SEL) development, visual arts, physical activity and wellness, literacy, digital art and literacy, community building, mathematics, and special guests (magician, high school presentations, athletic director, and more!)” La Entrada and Las Lomitas principals Bjorn Wickstrom and Alain Camou wrote.
The district sent no further communication to parents after LLEA announced the strike.
