Facing its largest decline in student enrollment seen in 40 years, the Ocean View School District is looking at consolidating campuses, with up to four affected by initial recommendations from the district’s leadership.
Meetings will be held this week and next for families at the four schools to outline the issues facing the district and arguments why combing some schools would allow for more programs and opportunities for students, but officials said they also want to hear suggestions from the community at those meetings and that input will be part of the decision making.
“We are really in the preliminary conversation with the community; we want to listen to the community,” said Patricia Singer, the school board’s president, adding no decisions have been made yet. “We want this to be transparent.”
Superintendent Michael Conroy and his executive staff last week gave the school board their recommendation to consider repurposing Spring View Middle School as an elementary school, with its students moved to other campuses, and that Circle View, Village View and Golden View elementary schools be closed and their students relocated.
“As a school district, what is our core mission? It is student learning and achievement,” Conroy said. “The basic question is the number and location of school sites the Ocean View School District should have for optimum student learning achievement now and in the next five to 10 years.”
The district has 6,809 students enrolled this school year, which is down by about 2,600 students from just 10 years ago, and school officials said they don’t see that trend turning around in the next decade. The district has 10 elementary schools and four middle schools; it does not serve high school students. It has one campus in Fountain Valley and one in Westminster, the rest are in Huntington Beach.
Birth rates are down nationwide, officials said, and that trend is reflected in the communities served by the Ocean View district….
Read the full article here
