School Consolidation Committee reports and recommends to the Board of Trustees
At their final meeting Tuesday, October 15, after 3-½ hours, the School Consolidation Committee of the Sonoma Valley Unified School District unanimously made no recommendation to the Board of Trustees. Below is the text of what they approved.
The Recommendation, with a Report, will be sent to the Trustees, who will hold a Study Session on them on October 29 at the District office.
PREFACE
Committee members expressed that they would have preferred additional time to study consolidation options, impacts, and opportunities before making these recommendations to the Board.
MIDDLE SCHOOL
If the Board elects to close a middle school, Altimira is the middle school that would handle the combined capacity. The committee recommends that the programs at each school be kept intact and enhanced in the event of consolidation. The committee further recommends that seismic upgrades be undertaken at Altimira as soon as feasible, and that to minimize disruption, this work be completed before consolidating the middle schools. If the Board decides to close more than one school in a phased approach, the committee recommends that the middle school close in the second phase. There are concerns about the logistics and impacts of combining two middle schools by the Fall of 2025.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
If the Board elects to close an elementary school, the committee recommends that the Board consider the data presented to, and generated by, the committee, including the criteria reviewed by the committee. The committee notes that it did not weight the criteria that it reviewed. The committee believes that the Board is best suited to elect which elementary school would close, as each has unique characteristics, qualities and programs. Additionally, the committee recommends that impacts on community and supplementary educational programs located at each school be considered in the event of closure.
ALTERNATE GRADE CONFIGURATIONS
The committee only minimally reviewed and did not receive data on alternative grade configurations such as TK-8, TK-6, TK-3 + 4 -5, etc.. The committee recommends that the Board take grade configurations into account.
By Anna Pier
