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The Pleasanton Unified School District’s Board of Trustees is set for a fourth public hearing on options for new map boundaries aimed at adjusting for population changes reflected in the most recent census data, and to facilitate a required shift from “at-large” to “by trustee area” elections in the next cycle.
Following three prior hearings on the matter at their regular meetings, and several community workshops, trustees and members of the public will have a fourth map to weigh in on at tomorrow’s meeting, in addition to the three maps that have been considered at past hearings and workshops.
Changes in population in the district between 2010 and 2020 mean that a total population of 81,016 in the most recent count should be divided as equally as possible, with little variance from the target population of 16,203 for each of the five trustee areas. Additional criteria noted by Davis Demographics include that trustee areas must be “contiguous and compact,” and should “do best to follow man-made and natural boundaries” such as highways and rivers.
During pre-map hearings, additional criteria were added by trustees, including that secondary and elementary schools should be distributed “in a manner that maximizes election area overlap,” with planned future growth being taken into account in selecting area boundaries, and that new boundaries should, “to the extent possible, minimize limiting voters’ choice.”
The fourth map scenario prepared for review at tomorrow’s meeting sees populations increase by 22 in Area 1, 294 in Area 3, and 311 in Area 4, while Area 2 sees a decrease of 213 and Area 5 sees a decrease of 413. The maximum population variance for the fourth map is 4.47%, which is lower than the first and third draft maps, but slightly higher than the 3.31% variance in the second draft map.
Under the fourth map, Area 1 would represent Donlon, Hearst, Lydiksen, Walnut Grove and Valley View elementary schools, Hart, Harvest Park and Pleasanton middle schools. Area 2 would represent Donlon, Fairlands, and Mohr elementary schools and Hart Middle School, with Area 3 representing Alisal, Donlon, Fairlands, Walnut Grove and Valley View elementary schools and Hart, Harvest Park, and Pleasanton middle schools. Area 4 would represent Alisal, Mohr, Valley View and Vintage Hills elementary schools, and Harvest Park and Pleasanton middle schools. Area 5 would represent Hearst, Valley View and Vintage Hills elementary schools, along with Pleasanton Middle School.
All trustee areas would represent both Amador Valley and Foothill high schools if the fourth map is adopted. The three previous versions had some areas representing only Amador High School or only Foothill.
Currently, Mary Jo Carreon is the trustee for Area 1, with no one on the board representing Area 2; both Kelly Mokashi and Joan Laursen represent Area 3; Steve Maher represents Area 4; and Mark Miller represents Area 5.
Under the proposed election transition, Carreon, Mokashi and Maher would be replaced with trustees elected from their respective areas at the end of their terms in 2024. Trustees would be elected to fill the vacancy for Area 2 and to replace Miller, who is not planning to run for re-election in November. Laursen has also said she does not plan to run for re-election in November when her term is up, which would leave Area 3 with one representative.
The upcoming public hearing marks the second to last one scheduled for a regular board meeting. The final opportunity for community input is set to be at a community mapping workshop on March 8, ahead of the fifth and final public hearing on March 24, in which the board is set to approve a map.
In other business
* Demographers are set to present a report on enrollment forecasts between 2022 and 2028, in an effort to shed light on current drops in enrollment and their long-term impact.
The report incorporates most recent student data from last fall, analysis of relevant demographic data, and provides seven-year projections of trends in the district’s student body. Projections are informed by predictions of where students will be living in the coming years, as well as ongoing and predicted population trends, and are aimed at informing district officials on where facilities might be consolidated or expanded.
* The Citizens Bond Oversight Committee plans to present their annual report, with findings from 2020-2021. According to the report, projects have been progressing on schedule for the most part in recent years, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. HVAC and roofing projects were found to be approximately $1.5 million under budget, and portable replacement projects could be $1.5 to $2 million under budget according to estimations. The committee also noted that a rebuilding and modernization project at Lydiksen Elementary School “remains under close watch,” with 70% of the project completed and 54% of its budget used.
* Trustees and administrators will hold a board governance workshop focused on Board communications, in which they will review excerpts from the Board Governance Handbook, several bylaws and other documents.
*The Board is set to approve the retirement of Pam VandeKamp, director of assessment and accountability, as part of a routine personnel document on the consent agenda. VandeKamp’s retirement would be effective July 30.
My kids are done after this year, but under the current map they would have gone to school in 3 different districts, and our house located in a 4th.
We live in the proposed Foothill district (district 1), the kids attended Valley View (district 4), PMS (district 5), and Amador (district 3). Basically we would not have any representation at any point of their schooling