Merced County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Steve Tietjen delivered his tenth and final annual education report last week, highlighting bright spots in the county’s education system.
Tietjen is not pursuing re-election this year.
During his presentation at the MCOE Downtown Center, Tietjen focused on educational programs and partnerships, including career training courses and arts implementation in special education classrooms.
The event included performances by students and videos of positive stories from throughout the county.
“Public schools are places where we want kids to come together from diverse backgrounds, different religious backgrounds, different languages and learn how to work together,” Tietjen said. “We’re lucky to be here in Merced County, quite frankly, because we have teachers that do that.”
Merced County’s high school graduation rate rose by a smidge last year to 93.9 percent, a few percentage points higher than California’s statewide average, the report showed. Delhi Unified secured the top spot for county graduation rates at 97 percent, closely followed by Los Banos Unified, Hilmar Unified, Dos Palos-Oro Loma Joint Unified and Merced Union High School District.
Funding for school districts throughout the county continued its downward trend since the COVID-19 pandemic, dipping back below $1 billion countywide. The last time districts received under $1 billion was the 2021-22 school year. On the flip side, Merced County Office of Education’s funding was slightly up this year, at around $223,636,000, according to the report. Tietjen noted in the report that districts are responding to “federal budgetary whiplash,” referring to instances the federal government has withheld funding at the last minute.
