By Anna Pier
NOTE: After this article was published, the Board reversed its decision and decided NOT to close Flowery School. They are going to revisit the issue of school closures, and will make a determination in the future.
The Agenda for the June 17 Regular Meeting of Sonoma Valley Unified School District (SVUSD) Board includes a resolution to rescind the Board’s previous resolution, approved by a 4-1 vote on May 8, to close the Flowery campus, and relocate that school’s highly successful schoolwide Dual Immersion program to another elementary site, either Sassarini or El Verano.
This decision has met with widespread disapproval not only in the Springs community which is home to Flowery, but throughout the Sonoma Valley community.
The new resolution, if approved on June 17, would rescind the choice of Flowery, and reopen study of which of the four elementary sites to close in June 2026. By this new Resolution, the Trustees would have until the end of 2025 to make their revised decision.
Explaining how the new information came to be brought to the Trustees, Board President Catarina Landry referred to the resolution that the Board had approved at the May 8 meeting. That resolution called for revision of the elementary school attendance boundaries and other information to be presented to the Board for approval. Landry said, “Since the Board had narrowed the scope by naming Flowery, we were able to work with the consultant to draw up several different boundaries using the criteria stated in the resolution.”
Acting Superintendent Rena Seifts, who began her work in this role on June 9, immediately prepared this attendance boundary information and she brought it to the five Board members. It is also included in the board packet for the June 17th regular meeting and is publicly available on the SVUSD website (sonomaschools.org) for community access.
That packet include four “Plans,” scenarios of different site closure configurations based on redrawn attendance boundaries. Each includes data on enrollment, site capacity and bussing. President Landry told the Sun she had asked for a fifth Plan, which the district staff has prepared as well.
Asked why she had voted for the closure of Flowery, Landry replied, “At the time … my decision was grounded in data and guided by the California Attorney General’s recommendations for school closure.” She pointed out that the Board’s vote was contingent upon three critical areas of information: the CEQA report, comprehensive transition plan and proposed adjustments to school boundary maps, and added, “I also stated publicly during the May 8 regular board meeting that I remained open to reconsidering my position. If the information from these three areas presented a more viable alternative for our District, I would absolutely be willing to explore it.”
Replying to whether she thought her fellow trustees would approve the new resolution, the Board President replied, “This is a very difficult decision and not one we take lightly. The Board remains committed to making the best possible decision for the students and the families we serve. To fulfill that responsibility, we must consider all available data. In light of the most recent information presented to us, I believe it is imperative to provide my fellow trustees the opportunity to engage in further discussion, and, if it is the will of the Board, to consider potential adjustments to the resolution.”
Since December 2022 the District has been attempting to address the budget crisis brought on by severely declining enrollment. The trustees voted in December 2024 to close Adele Harrison Middle School at the end of the 2024-25 school year, and consolidate all students grades 6-8 at Altimira Middle School for 2025-26. This transition is under the direction of Superintendent Jeanette Rodriguez-Chien, who resigned on May 6 effective June 30.
The meeting will take place Tuesday, June 17 at the Sonoma City Chambers, 177 First Street West. Closed session will begin at 3:30 pm and open session will begin at/around 6 pm.
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