A sea of students

You can barely go up and down the stairs at South Gate HS during passing.
Photo by Ana Marin, 17, South Gate HS

Crowded hallways, full classes and scheduling problems—many L.A. Youth staff writers report their public schools are overcrowded this year.

Beverly Hills HS, Beverly Hills Unified School District
"In my Advanced Placement (AP) Bio class sophomore year, there were about 40 people. And this year in my AP Studio Art class, there are not enough desks for everyone who enrolled. I also had major issues with scheduling because all the classes I wanted were full."
—Suzanne Berkovitz, 17

Diamond Bar HS, Walnut Valley Unified School District
"My largest class is math and there are about 35 to 37 students in it. Many of my friends in foreign language have also complained of overcrowding in their classrooms. I have no classes where there have not been enough books. I heard that some people in my friend’s class do not have books, however."
—Joo Yoon, 15

El Camino Real HS, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD)
"We now have about 200 to 300 more students than last year. Because of that, we are experiencing some scheduling problems. My friends and I constantly comment about how overcrowded it is. My counselor put me in a regular English class. Naturally I was outraged. I told her I’m the editor of the newspaper and I have to be in AP English classes. I went to Mrs. Gregorio—she teaches British Lit—and she said she had room. My counselor agreed to the change, but if I hadn’t found out for myself, my life would have been ruined."
—Sage Chung, 18

Bell HS, LAUSD

Crowded halls at Bell HS
Photo by Ashley Zartner, 15, Bell HS

"At lunch, there’s nowhere to sit or put your tray. You can barely get through the halls at passing time. Each Spanish class has 40 to 50 kids. It’s hard for the teacher to teach. We have three kids to a locker."
—Ashley Zartner, 15

Foshay Learning Center, LAUSD
"We don’t have enough classrooms. At first, my math class was on the lawn, now we sit on the floor in the gym. Sometimes they pull out the bleachers for us to sit on."
—César Delgado, 17

Hamilton HS, LAUSD
"In the halls it’s worse than LAX. Kids are late to class because it’s hard to get around. There are 48 kids in my drama class, while there were 15 to 20 before. I don’t know where they’re coming from."
—Danna Friedberg, 16

North Hollywood HS, LAUSD
"My math class is in the teachers’ lounge. We have to wheel in a chalkboard. Sometimes when we arrive for class, it’s locked and we have to wait for someone to open the door."
—Seth Shamban, 17

Eagle Rock HS, LAUSD
"We have six minutes to pass, and we’re still late to class. There are 23 kids in my honors English class, 38 in honors algebra. People get put in honors because there’s nowhere else to put them."
—Nadine Levyfield, 13

South Pasadena HS, South Pasadena Unified School District
"In two of my classes I had no desk when school started (Since my last name starts with an X, I’m usually the last one to be assigned a desk). Ten students in my math analysis class have no books. My AP chem class had 40 students. My friend Veronica, who has a 4.0 GPA and had been attending the school on a permit for two years, was told she couldn’t come, so she ended up at Marshall High in Pasadena."
—Sharine Xuan, 16

South Gate HS, LAUSD
"My school is overcrowded. As I was walking to my second period on Friday, there was no room to get through. That’s what makes kids be late to class and others get mad at each other."
—Isaac Conde, 17

South Gate High science teacher, Pamela Higgins, told Isaac Conde:
"It’s not very peaceful because students have to fight to get through the hallways. Students don’t pay attention and they ram you."

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