An Open Letter to SVUSD Trustees Regarding the Proposed Relocation of Flowery School

By Justina Montano

Before I offer my thoughts about the potential relocation of Flowery School, I want to share the background behind my viewpoint.

In 1999, I worked for Creative Publications traveling up and down the west coast providing math professional development to elementary teachers.  On my days off, I substitute taught in Sonoma to help me decide where to send my 4 year old son to kindergarten. I worked at all the schools. Although the dual immersion program was very new there, Flowery was the school that stood out. There were 2 dual immersion kindergarten classes and 2 first grades and a strong feeling of community. As a parent educator, I felt compelled to get more information about the program and talked with multiple people including Principal Michael Babb, Title VII Coordinator Kathleen Hawing, teachers, and parents of dual immersion students. Ultimately, I enrolled my son followed by my daughter two years later. My institutional knowledge of Flowery started with that initial research, followed by my experience as a parent volunteer, serving on Site Council, co-founding the Dual Immersion Advocates parent group, working as a district Math Consultant beginning in 2002, co-writing the FLAP grant with Principal Joyce Schipper in 2006, and working as Dual Immersion Coordinator in 2007 till taking on my present role as Flowery Academic Specialist.

To provide effective leadership of Flowery, you need to know how the dual immersion program started. Sonoma Charter School opened in 1993. In the subsequent years, Flowery School was impacted by what some referred to as “white flight” due to families switching to Charter. Flowery personnel knew they had two critical elements in their favor for launching a dual immersion program. They had a population of Spanish language role models who would greatly benefit from dual immersion as well as the perfect location to serve those families. They applied for a Title VII grant, and before long, Flowery was awarded $1,000,000. 

The decision to launch dual immersion at Flowery in the late 1990s may have been the best strategic move ever made in SVUSD. As you probably know, Flowery is the only school not experiencing declining enrollment. Additionally, the program has produced multiple bilingual educators including eight who currently work for the District.

Now, instead of celebrating the success of Flowery, you’re proposing to spend money that doesn’t need to be spent to fix something that’s not broken. You want to move a school away from the people who need it most. Many families, especially low income families, rely on walking to Flowery.

• How much will it cost to bus Springs students to a school in town?
• Will the District transport parents to Back to School Night, parent conferences and Open House?
• Will it provide transportation for parents who want to volunteer in their students’ classes?
• How much money will it cost to clean out the closed school and move the entire contents of Flowery? 
• Is the District equipped to provide a smooth transition for students of the closed school simultaneously with relocating 365 Flowery students?
• How much money do you expect to save by moving Flowery?
• Will you allow a neighborhood student of the closed school to enroll at Flowery (in its new location) even if that student has no Spanish literacy skills?
• Have you considered the impact to the organizations and businesses that are aligned with Flowery?
• What do you expect to gain by relocating Flowery?  
• What are you prepared to sacrifice by moving Flowery?

You’ve already chosen to increase the load on elementary Principals by eliminating their Academic Specialists. Who’s going to lead the recruitment efforts to attract native Spanish speaking students to replace those lost due to moving Flowery? Obviously it won’t be me since my job was cut and I’ll most likely be placed at another school. Will this task be given to Flowery’s Principal? I anticipate many Springs families will make the difficult decision to withdraw from dual immersion and look into enrolling at more geographically convenient schools such as El Verano or Sonoma Charter. Ironically, district mismanagement of Flowery could be the best thing that ever happens to Sonoma Charter School.

Let’s consider the stakeholders. Have you gone to Flowery to gather feedback from parents and staff members regarding the potential relocation? Flowery has long valued its proximity to ArtEscape, the Teen Center, Larson Park and local businesses that donate to school events. Have you provided a way for them to share their opinions and concerns?

I plan to attend the May 8th board meeting either in person or virtually. I look forward to hearing whether or not you can justify relocating Flowery.  I urge you to resist depriving Springs families of their school.