His term will run through December 2022. Both seats are four-year terms (2021-2024). Gravenstein Union School District Superintendent Dave Rose said he wasnt surprised by the high school districts move. WEST SONOMA COUNTY UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT Board Meeting A Public Hearing will be held for the Proposed LCAP and Budget Wednesday, June 15, 2022 at 5:. That perspective, though, is a breaking point for some residents who still aim to restore El Molino in the future. Learning is a transformative experience. All timelines considered, its likely that the election would be held sometime in February. Elementary districts "feed" into high school or unified districts. As a Press Democrat reporter covering education, its my goal to give others a voice to share these stories. Still, she backed the idea of fact-finding and expressed hope the study would examine the question of consolidation from a variety of perspectives, including whether merging would benefit the smaller districts. The cost to the district for that election could range from $90,000 to $162,500. Sonoma County has the third-highest rate of declining enrollment in the state behind only Alpine and Los Angeles counties. Live Feed See All Posts West Sonoma County Union High School District latest videos WSCUHSD Regular Board Meeting WSCUHSD Regular Board Meeting June 23, 2021 WSCUHSD Regular Board Meeting WSCUHSD Regular Board Meeting June 9, 2021 Im not here to weigh in on what I think is better or best. The West Sonoma County Union High School District Board of Trustees recently voted to study consolidation of the district with some or all of its 10 feeder districts. Further controversy arose in September when the board appointed Sebastopol resident Patrick Nagle to fill the vacancy. The departures of Analy Principal Shauna Ferdinandson and vice principals Erin Elliott and Rachel Lasek come after they led the school through the controversial consolidation with El Molino High, a failed attempt at rebranding, a teachers strike, multiple fires and the pandemic. I personally love the tradition of names and longevity and I honor that. I had hopes the board was going to honor its commitment to a new school, a fresh start for a newly consolidated school. You can reach Staff Writer Kaylee Tornay at 707-521-5250 or kaylee.tornay@pressdemocrat.com. My name is Josh, and Im out here collecting signatures for the recall against the board members who voted to close our high school.. A recall effort targeting Board President Kellie Noe and Vice President Jeanne Fernandes, who both supported the merger, failed in August after organizers did not collect enough signatures for a ballot initiative. Copyright 2023 West Sonoma County Union High School District. Unified districts provide K-12 education. I have solid background in the classroom. There is really no risk other than we are going to have information.. The West Sonoma County Union High School District (WSCUHSD) will have two seats open in November. I looked at it saying we might be able to get through the 2021-22 school year without consolidating, but it might do more damage to go that route than if we just went ahead and consolidated, Nagle said. Recall supporters had 120 days to collect signatures equal to 20% of registered voters in the school district, a total of 7,187 signatures. The school board recall success rate was 0.42%. [1], Gillian Hayes, another recall supporter, said the recall effort was one of several strategies they were using to keep El Molino High School. When Kellie Noe was a fresh-faced 28-year-old who had just been elected to the West Sonoma County Union High School District Board of Trustees in 2006, she had no children of her own and she and her husband Dennis Rosatti lived in Camp Meeker, part of the El Molino attendance area. With your help, I'll be tackling the questions that vex us: (the funny, the mundane,andthe irritating.). Three longtime Analy High School administrators to leave district Analy's principal, Shauna Ferdinandson, and vice principals Erin Elliott and Rachel Lasek have accepted positions at. Only 36,035 people, about 12% of the countys more than 300,000 registered voters, are eligible to weigh in on the recall question against the West Sonoma County Union High School District school board members, said Deva Proto, Sonoma County registrar of voters. Nagle said he was disappointed to hear talk of recalling him within hours of his appointment. They needed at least 7,187 valid signatures from registered voters in the school district but had only collected 3,084 signatures for a recall, Sonoma County Clerk and Registrar of Voters Deva Proto said in August. Many of them are over issues related to the pandemic, such as school closures and reopenings. Discussions between board members and the public about that idea and other possibilities to cut costs or increase revenue were from the outset full of passion, fear and anger. So were not going to stop.. This would be the first local consolidation study undertaken since the state in 2013 adopted its Local Control Funding Formula model of doling out funds to schools. OConnor said he wanted committees of board members, parents, teachers and administrators to research independently but still have as much transparency to the public as possible. Trustees were on the receiving end of criticism about their approach to rebranding, with several critics arguing it shouldve been pursued after and not before surveys were conducted to gauge the public and students positions. No off-topic remarks. When the board doesnt listen, thats our only recourse.. But another motivation exists, Ame Nultemeier said: to let the school board members know the community is dissatisfied with their decisions, and that the voters are willing to do something about it. We will remove any comments or commenters that do not follow this commenting policy. The interim Superintendent of the West Sonoma County Union High School District has resigned. Its not new to Sonoma County and not a surprise, given that in a county of our size we have 40 different school districts, he said. Translate . She assisted with communicable disease follow-ups then, and now has concerns about the quality of distance education and containing COVID-19 transmission when schools reopen, her paid candidate statement said. Where that really comes into play is you have 20 different bargaining agreements. The quicker we can get them out of their seats, the better.. I thought that was probably a good place for me to contribute.. The three leaders have accepted positions at neighboring school districts, confirmed Julie Aiello, board president of West Sonoma County Union High School District. Around 40 members of the public commented during the meeting. Fadave, who was elected to the school board only last November but taught at Analy for 17 years, said she understands where people are coming from in their desire to regain some sense of control by recalling her and the others. They will hold a . | On Friday, an email to parents by Cloverdale Unified School Districts new superintendent, Steve Jorgensen, announced Ferdinandson will be the next principal at Washington Middle School. As a classroom nurse, she worked with schools and families on education plans for students. I always have a line item in my budget for this because you never know when its going to come, he said. [3] The effort against Noe and Fernandes did not collect enough signatures. School officials proposed consolidation last fall as a potential solution to a $1.2 million annual structural budget deficit. www.wscuhsd.org/o/analy, Laguna High School (9-12, Continuation) Troy Flint, public information officer for the California School Boards Association, said his organization is aware of an unprecedented number of recall efforts unfolding against school board members across the state. I was inspired to run while I was thinking about ways to give back to the community, said Noe, who now lives in Sebastopol. Or will it help students? Sign In. The recall organizers need to gather a minimum of 7,187 valid signatures to get the issue to a ballot, Proto said. Therefore, talk of cost-cutting or cost-saving moves likely goes straight to staffing. No profanity, hate speech or personal attacks. Both of the tax measures failed when they did not reach the required two-thirds majority approval from voters. This article was produced by Sonoma West Times & News, the hometown newspaper of Sebastopol and west county since 1889. But what may not be apparent in the study, those same officials said, are loyalties and connections forged over generations in some of the smaller districts. Sonoma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area.Sonoma is one of the principal cities of California's Wine Country and the center of the Sonoma Valley AVA.Sonoma's population was 10,739 as of the 2020 census, while the Sonoma urban area had a population of 32,679. Regardless of whether the recall is successful in west Sonoma County, the school district board is due for a shake-up with the November election. CLOSE OUT 51/75432-00-001 . Sonoma County Union High School District Board of Trustees has placed on the ballot the question of whether the District should levy an education . She taught at Analy High School for 17 years. You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8531 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. Her candidate statement reads that she supervised staff, worked with managers to carry out budgets and planned future staffing needs. (707) 824-2300 | Fax: (707) 827-7936 But my hope is that this will subside and that we will have our kids back to school and that we will be able to have forums with teachers, parents, students, to be able to help make some decisions, she said, looking forward to connecting with students in person once schools could reopen. Sonoma County voters are already set to vote Sept. 14 on two recalls that have qualified for the ballot: Gov. Being in the classrooms, being there, being a former Analy student, actually working at Analy was a really unique position to be in, Gleeson said. I do think its not a bad thing to ask the question: Is there a better way to deliver education? said Sebastopol Union Superintendent Linda Irving. Any consolidation, even between just two districts, would call for reorganizing budgets; staff salaries, seniority and benefits; and board representation. 25, Idaho, Idaho Falls School District 91, Idaho (Elizabeth Cogliati), Idaho Falls School District 91 recall, Idaho (Lara Hill), Mequon-Thiensville School District, Wisconsin, Antioch Unified School District, California, Belchertown Public Schools, Massachusetts, Cave Creek Unified School District, Arizona, Corona-Norco Unified School District, California, Cupertino Union School District, California, Desert Sands Unified School District, California, Litchfield Elementary School District, Arizona (A. Jeremy Hoenack), Mount Pleasant City School District, Michigan, San Francisco Unified School District, California, Tustin Unified School District, California, Virginia Beach City Public Schools, Virginia, Benicia Unified School District, California, Central Valley School District, Washington, Chico Unified School District, California, Chualar Union School District, California, Elk Grove Unified School District, California, Fairfax Elementary School District, California, Fallbrook Union High School District, California, Fremont Union High School District, California, Gadsden Elementary School District, Arizona, Kenosha Unified School District, Wisconsin, La Mesa-Spring Valley School District, California, Liberty Elementary School District, Arizona, Litchfield Elementary School District, Arizona (Kimberly Moran and Melissa Zuidema), Los Alamitos Unified School District, California, Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District, California, Lucia Mar Unified School District, California, Maine School Administrative District 51, Maine, Mount Diablo Unified School District, California, Pajaro Valley Unified School District, California, Papillion-La Vista Public Schools, Nebraska, Paradise Valley Unified School District, Arizona, Ridgefield Park Public Schools, New Jersey, Rochester Community School District, Michigan, Rosendale-Brandon School District, Wisconsin, San Dieguito Union High School District, California (Michael Allman), San Dieguito Union High School District, California (Kristin Gibson), San Juan Unified School District, California, San Ramon Valley Unified School District, California, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, California, Scottsdale Unified School District, Arizona, Shepherd Public School District, Michigan, Stevens Point Area Public School District, Vista Unified School District, California, Waunakee Community School District, Wisconsin, Weld County School District RE-4, Colorado, Wisconsin Rapids School District, Wisconsin, https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=West_Sonoma_County_Union_High_School_District_recall,_California_(2021)&oldid=8530690, Pages using DynamicPageList3 dplreplace parser function, Conflicts in school board elections, 2021-2022, Special Congressional elections (2023-2024), 2022 Congressional Competitiveness Report, State Executive Competitiveness Report, 2022, State Legislative Competitiveness Report, 2022, Partisanship in 2022 United States local elections. Ballotpedia tracked 92 school board recall efforts against 237 board members in 2021. West County trustee Angie Lewis on Wednesday acknowledged the tension that accompanies any discussion of consolidation. If you are interested or know of someone who would like to work as an Administrative Assistant, please apply online: . A study asking the same question in 2006 found that combining the 11 districts would save at least $200,000 a year, but those findings are moot now in part because the structure of school funding was radically shifted in 2013, calling into question the financial benefit for some to merge. Analy, which is about 113 years old, was the larger of the two campuses and expected to have a student body of about 1,000 going into this school year. The Sonoma County Clerk and Registrar tells the Press Democrat the recall groups failed to get enough signatures to have a recall election of Board President Kellie Noe and Vice President. But we also look to local schools to do much more than teach children; they are tasked with feeding them, socializing them and offering skills in leadership and civics. West Sonoma County School Board Meeting 8-25-21 (Screenshot from livestream). I question the savings if you do that.. 462 Johnson Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472. In addition, she wants to promote a drive to increase enrollment with the three schools diverse programming as a draw for youth looking for an alternative education. Board member Angie Lewis dissented following a discussion that lasted nearly two hours and reflected the tumultuous year of protests, lawsuits and recall efforts in response to the consolidation. This school district is outside of that coverage scope and does not receive . I had the good fortune to work with and learn from some very skilled administrators and take part in professional development opportunities which will allow me to serve the community well on the high school board now. But representation for the more remote regions of the district, by a current resident, continues to be a sticking point. The school district is in financial distress as enrollment continues to falter and funds run dry, to the point that the board is examining feasibility studies on the possibility of consolidating Analy and El Molino High Schools into one campus or consolidating numerous west county school districts. My job is to help you make sense of K-12 education in Sonoma County and beyond. Debbie Ramirez for School Board 2022 FPPC#: 1452253, Powered by CampaignPartner.com - Political. Candidates for the board of the West Sonoma County Union High School District include (clockwise from top left) Julie Aiello, Kyle O'Connor, Lynn Schallebaum Gleeson and Laurie Ann Fadave. He said he views enrollment as more periodic and up-and-down than static or permanent since the board only knows the current situation and near-future projections. Fernandes and Noe called the expense wasteful, in light of their plans to leave the board less than a year after any recall election would be held. A group of vocal El Molino parents responded in April by filing a lawsuit in Sonoma County Superior Court challenging the validity of the consolidation process under the states bedrock environmental law; the court date for that case is set for Sept. 22. We appreciate their leadership implementing the positive improvements that are happening at our high schools, Aiello said. READ MORE > 15th Annual Sonoma County Transition Fair READ MORE > Community Advisory Commtiee My job is to help you make sense of K-12 education in Sonoma County and beyond. She also chastised her fellow trustees for falling back after so much progress had been made after the consolidation. She taught at Sebastopol Elementary School for 31 years and is the parent of an Analy High School graduate. 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