> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # School in session: Class size on the rise - URL: https://www.smdp.com/school-in-session-class-size-on-the-rise/ - Published: 2004-09-08T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T05:01:19.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Education, Malibu, #archive-import *Students head back to the classroom today* *By GENEVA WHITMARSH Daily Press Staff Writer* Budget constraints will cause class sizes at many Santa Monica secondary schools to swell this year, despite that there are fewer students enrolled. An estimated 12,714 Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District students are expected to start school today, down 99 students from last year. But at some schools, such as Santa Monica High School, class sizes have ballooned. That’s because budget shortfalls don’t support participation in the state’s program aimed at reducing class sizes. “We were paying three-quarters of a million (dollars), and the state would give us ‘X’ amount of money so we could keep the class size down,” said schools superintendent John Deasy. “But we don’t have the money in our budget to keep it going.” At Samohi, teacher retirements, coupled with funding cuts, have meant the loss of 11 teachers and 55 classes despite a slight increase in enrollment. The redistribution of students means ninth grade English and math classes that were capped at 21 students last year will now have enrollment in the high 20s and lower 30s, while some upperclassmen classes will increase to the mid and high 30s. One world history class is currently at 44 students, while a physical education class has a roster of 65, said Al Trundle, student support advisor. “If you think of it in terms that classes are increasing about eight students and then multiply that by five, that’s about 40 more students added to a teacher’s case-load,” Trundle said. “Just how well are the teachers going to get to know these students?” Samohi principal Ilene Straus was one of several staff members on the Samohi campus Tuesday in an effort to prepare for the students’ arrival today. At schools across the district, officials readied for the start of the school year. “People expect the schools to do better and better,” Straus said. “The public expects performance — and that’s what we’re giving them —but you take away 55 classes, and that makes it difficult. “All the middle and high schools are having to deal with large class size,” she said. “It’s horrible.” Harry Keiley, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers’ Association, said statewide K-12 funding has either been cut or deferred at upwards of $9 billion in the last 30 months. This year alone, he said, K-12 schools will receive $2 billion less than they were entitled to under Proposition 98, which was passed in 1988 and ensures that schools enjoy a large share of any increase in state revenue. Locally, state and federal cuts in the last two years are near the $9 million mark. “The district had been running smaller class sizes in the areas of math in grades 9 and 10, and we were being reimbursed by the state of California,” Keiley said. “Over the last couple years, that funding has been cut, so the cost of running that program is approximately $1 million. The state is reimbursing the district at the rate of approximately $200,000 for a $1 million program. That’s a perfect example of the state underfunding our schools.” Keiley said the slight drop in full-time teachers this year will put the district at the same level it was at in 2001-02. “And that’s pretty remarkable given the cuts we have seen,” he said. Meanwhile, Trundle said, the effect on teachers and staff is inevitable. “They all know they’re there for the kids, so they’ll suck it up, but when there’s more students to handle and less pay, the morale’s not going to be so great,” he said. District officials say they are trying to do all they can to make sure teachers and staff feel appreciated. At several campuses across the district Tuesday, teachers were treated to an on-campus lunch, and last Friday, nearly 1,400 teachers, administrators and staff gathered at Samohi’s Greek Theater for a welcome back breakfast. They were addressed by members of the School Employees International Union, Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teacher’s Association, and the Santa Monica-Malibu Association of School Administrators. Deasy told the teachers that overall student test scores have improved significantly and stressed the significance of such an accomplishment in a time of economic distress. On Tuesday, Deasy said he was expecting a smooth start to the school year. The class size reduction program was in effect for five years, he said, and teachers who have been with the district since before that time are accustomed to larger class sizes. “We’ll watch the state budget as it develops because it still has a huge operational hole,” he said. “But I still think this will be a very good year.” ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/090804-02_01.jpg) Santa Monica teachers were welcomed back to work on Tuesday with a luncheon at Santa Monica High School. (Photo: Geneva Whitmarsh/Daily Press) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 8, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/090804.pdf?ref=smdp.com)