Committee suggests merging two schools

Transferring Crestmoor Elementary School students to either Rollingwood or Portola elementary schools would be the "least disruptive” option should San Bruno education officials decide to close a school, according to an advisory report by the committee charged with making a recommendation to the Board of Trustees.

The San Bruno Park Elementary School District is considering a school closure because of a recent shift in sixth-grade elementary students to middle school and declining enrollment overall.

The District Development Ad Hoc Committee, which has met since February, spent more than an hour Tuesday evening wordsmithing a six-page report which calls for the district to merge two schools. Closing a school and sending the community to one campus, rather than spreading students throughout the district, would be the least disruptive option to the community as a whole, according to the report which will be presented to the Board of Trustees April 18. The committee, which wasn’t allowed to consider keeping all schools open, suggested the decision go into effect for the 2013-14 school year rather than this fall.

"This committee was able to achieve one thing, to build animosity between each of the elementary school communities. While the process helped to galvanize the individual school communities, it did nothing to strengthen the overall school district,” according to the report, a statement that generated applause from a few in the audience when read by committee Chair Megan Connery.

Members of the public criticized the process thus far, expressing a lack of public participation. In addition, a couple people noted a lack of respect for those who spoke or had questions at committee meetings. Others asked if alternatives to closing a school could be considered. Keeping all schools open, however, was not an option for the committee, said Connery.

While the board will first hear the report in two weeks, Trustee Skip Henderson estimated the board would not make a decision until May. The committee has recommended making a decision by the Friday, May 18 meeting if the closure is to take effect in the 2012-13 school year.

Previously, the committee decided upon the most important criteria to consider. Each school was then ranked compared to that information. Schools were ranked at the March 27 meeting, from most likely to close to least likely to close, as Crestmoor, Rollingwood, Portola, John Muir, El Crystal, Allen/Hesselgren and Belle Air.

Crestmoor representative John Marinos asked the committee to consider revising the rankings. Previously, the committee was broken into two groups to score the school options. Marinos felt Crestmoor was unfairly ranked. His motion was not supported.

Both Rollingwood and Portola have adequate classroom and playground space to accommodate Crestmoor students, according to the report. In addition, the committee suggested that a move could be smoother for students if the teachers were also moved, offering familiar faces on a new campus.

Waiting a year could allow the two schools time to have common field trips, discuss merging PTA efforts and teacher planning time. However, the committee noted the gap year could cause a drop in morale for teachers. And parents may avoid enrolling children in a school that is slated to close. The committee suggested the district hire a mentor to facilitate the consolidation regardless of when the school closure was to go into effect.

A number of factors led to San Bruno considering closing a school. Starting this fall, San Bruno students will attend elementary school through fifth grade and start at Parkside Intermediate School in sixth grade. Changing which school serves sixth grade will shift about 280 students from the elementary schools. In addition, the district has seen an overall drop in enrollment in the last five years.

Closing a school would not, however, save the district much money, the committee reported, noting the number of students and staff required wouldn’t change drastically.

Should the district close a school, it could lease the space or consider selling the land. Revenue from leasing property could go into the district’s general fund, which would support the day-to-day costs. Selling the land, on the other hand, would result in money that can only be used for facility upgrades unless the district gets special permission from the state to do otherwise.

Consultant Tom Shannon of Enshallah, Inc. previously estimated for the committee that the district could get $1 million per acre for selling land or $1 per square foot a month if leasing property. Crestmoor sits on 10 acres and offers 24,000 square feet of property. If sold, the committee wrote it would more than likely be used for single-home houses to match the surrounding area.

As a district, San Bruno has previously tackled the possibility of closing a school in recent history.

Between 2000 and 2005, the district experienced a loss of 350 students resulting in conversations about closing a school in the 2008-09 school year. Those talks were dropped in late 2007 when enrollment unexpectedly went up by 99 students.

Declining enrollment forced the closure of two schools in the 1970s. Carl Sandburg Elementary was closed in 1978 and was sold for $30.5 million in 2006. The district leases 20 acres for a driving range on what was once Engvall Middle School at Interstate 280 and Sneath Lane to VB Golf Inc.

Heather Murtagh can be reached by email: heather@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 105.