Save Silverado Elementary School

Redistricting Update

2010-08-05T07:57:00.000-07:00

Although this blog has been dormant for a few months, the community has been moving forward. Thanks to all the folks who have done so much.

from the August 5, 2010 edition of the OC Register:

excerpt:

Residents of rural Silverado Canyon and surrounding areas could be asked to decide at the ballot box whether their community should secede from its assigned school district and be annexed to the neighboring one, under a proposal brought forward Wednesday by a group of locals furious over the closure of beloved but tiny Silverado Elementary School.

At a nearly two-hour public hearing Wednesday at Chapman Hills Elementary School in Orange, the group implored county education officials to let voters decide whether sparsely populated Silverado, Black Star, Ladd, Williams and Modjeska canyons should be annexed to the Saddleback Valley Unified School District...

...The public hearing was presided over by the Orange County Committee on School District Organization, an 11-member governing body housed at the county Department of Education. The group will decide in the coming months whether Silverado residents will get to vote on the secession issue.

An environmental impact report on the proposed annexation is expected to be ready in October.

"We won't make a decision until the fall," committee President Shirley Carey told the approximately 35 people in attendance...

To read the rest, click here.

*

Parent Testifies about Redistricting

2009-11-23T10:09:00.001-08:00

Silverado Canyon resident and parent Jeff Wilson delivered the following remarks at the last OUSD board meeting:

I’d like to talk tonight about the move of my two children, a kindergarten and a second grader, to Trabuco Elementary. My family chose to be one of many who wanted to stay in a small, rural school similar to our own Silverado Elementary that was, of course, closed by a slim majority of board members. So we requested an interdistrict transfer and are pleased with our new school within the Saddleback Valley District. We would much prefer to have kept our local Silverado Elementary open with the opportunity to work to improve it, but that was not an option.

The main thing we notice about Trabuco Elementary is the difference it makes when the school district actually supports a school. Trabuco was refurbished a few years back, the buildings and facilities are top notch. The teachers are confident of job security, knowing their position will continue, and they plan accordingly with continuing academic projects and continuing curriculum from year to year.

The contrast with the last few years at Silverado Elementary under your leadership is striking. It is absolutely clear to me that the majority of the Orange Unified School Board intentionally starved Silverado Elementary for years. Starved! With no funding, with rumors of impending closure from year to year, with no interest in the programs, with leaving Silverado Elementary out as a listed option for open enrollment, it appears to me that the majority of you board members purposefully engaged in a campaign to reduce silverado elementary to a shadow of the distinguished school it once was, to the point where families began moving their children to other schools, fleeing the neglect by certain members of this school board. When you finally used the excuse of reduced state funding to close it, there really was very little left at Silverado Elementary. The majority of the board who voted to close the school had no interest in our work nor our plans to make Silverado flourish.

Even the board member whose jurisdiction included Silverado wanted it closed, and crowed gleefully that the vote to close the school was a “done deal” even before the vote took place.

Notice that I use the term “board member”, rather than the more official “Trustee”.

Wikipedia describes “trustee” as follows:

Trustees have certain duties - These include the duty of impartiality, the duty to account for their actions, the duty of loyalty, the duty not to profit, the duty not to be in a conflict of interest position, and the duty to administer in the best interest of the beneficiaries. Etc.

We who live within the boundaries Orange Unified District are the ones who entrusted you, the board members and superintendent, to protect the interests of our children. The majority of this board voted to close our school, and laws may have been violated in the process. In my opinion those individuals have not lived up to the elected responsibilities that come with the term Trustee.

Life is good in Saddleback Valley Unified School District. It was a good move for us.

Meeting Tonight!

2009-11-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

7 pm - at district headquarters.

1401 N. Handy Street

Be there.

Redistricting is on the agenda! The time to act is now.

2009-11-03T09:06:00.000-08:00

The OUSD Board will meet on Thursday November 12 at 7 PM. At this meeting, the OUSD staff is scheduled to make their recommendations about redistricting the canyon community to Saddleback Valley Unified School District.

We are urgently looking for community members to speak to this issue at that meeting.

The two people who have been most stalwart in their public support, Dr. Deborah Johnson and Chay Petersen, cannot attend the November 12 meeting. We must have a presence at this very important school board meeting.

At the last meeting, the board members declared that they do not believe that the majority of the canyon residents support redistricting. So we agreed to circulate a petition to show them that the majority actually do support it. Debbie has written a petition that is currently being circulated. Some of you may have signed it at the community celebrations on Halloween. Volunteers are needed to circulate the petition in their neighborhoods.

Please talk to your friends and neighbors. We need people to not only sign the petition, but to write letters and emails in advance of the meeting and to attend the November 12 meeting. We need people to speak - very briefly - to this issue at the meeting.

We need to act to ensure that the needs of the canyon children will be met today - and in the future.

Below is Debbie Johnson's eloquent appeal which details the history and the rationale of this proposal. Read it and be inspired to write a letter of your own to the OUSD Board and Superintendent Drier. Check the sidebar for easy email links and mailing addresses.

September 24, 2009

Members of the school board, Superintendent Drier and members of the community:

In December 2008, we began a journey together. Motivated by the prospect of a new administration at Orange Unified and hopeful of reversing the declining enrollment at our community’s only school, a group of us met with OUSD administrators and outlined a vision for the future. Living in one of the most beautiful spots in southern California, a land where the mountain lions roam freely, chirping birds greet the sun and coyotes cross the roads, we sought to preserve the best of our land by passing on appreciation for it to our children and others.

At the time, our hope was to create The Silverado Environmental Science and Technology School, operated either as a charter or a magnet school within OUSD. Unfortunately, OUSD administrators never responded to our proposal. Instead the budget crisis intensified and discussions began about closing our school. You all know the ups and downs over the next few months. During that time, it became clear that the community didn’t have the funds, resources or skills to launch a charter. Hiring consultants would have cost thousands of dollars and we are not a wealthy community. We managed to raise about $20,000, but that wasn’t enough. Although several schools were initially proposed for closure, the only one actually shuttered was Silverado Elementary.

Closing the school created a tremendous hardship on our community. Established in 1903 when Joseph Holtz sold one acre to the Orange School District for $50, the school served as the site of community fairs, election voting, large-scale meetings and gatherings of local service clubs. Miles from the cities of Orange and (later) Lake Forest, the school provided a central meeting point for children, parents and community members. I used to buy my Christmas trees at the school every year and we all loved the regular fairs. School was where children throughout the far-flung canyons met and made friends.

With the nearest school miles away, families last month struggled with complicated logistics. They wrestled with questions such as: How can I get my son and daughter to school in time? Can my young child handle an hour-long bus ride? What will I do about child care? How early will we have to get up?

As the trucks hauled away the desks, chairs and other supplies…as our teachers moved to new schools or retired…our community began dividing. Students from outside the canyon area who had been attending Silverado went back to their home schools. A number of families organized a carpool and sent their children to Trabuco Elementary in the Saddleback district. Other families began rising hours earlier to get their children ready for a 6:30 a.m. bus pick-up.

Over the past months, the community had gingerly discussed the possibility of re-districting to Saddleback Unified. It was closer—Modjeska Grade Road was already in Saddleback. One community representative contacted Saddleback to ask if they would be interested in taking over the canyon area and how they felt about an environmentally-focused school. The reply was swift—Saddleback was very interested in environmental education (they were already doing it at Trabuco) and they had a vision for opening a K-8 school that served Silverado, Modjeska and Trabuco canyons. With Trabuco facing similar issues to Silverado’s declining enrollment, a school serving all three canyons could solve multiple problems.

I am here today on behalf of the canyon community, which includes Silverado, Modjeska, Williams, Harding, Ladd and Black Star canyons, to respectfully request that the Orange Unified School District transfer the canyon attendance area to the Saddleback Valley Unified School District. Here are our reasons:

1. Geographical Proximity
Schools within Saddleback are significantly closer to almost all canyon homes than those in Orange Unified. From a home near the entrance of Modjeska Canyon, Saddleback’s Portola Hills Elementary School is only 2.76 miles away. The nearest Orange Unified school, Chapman Hills, is 11.58 miles away. Nine miles represents a significant difference. Distances to the nearest Saddleback and Orange Unified elementary schools from various points in the canyons are in the table below:

Canyon Address Saddleback: Portola Hills
Distance/Time Saddleback: Trabuco Elem
Distance/Time Orange: Chapman Hills
Distance/Time
Modjeska Entrance 28331 Modjeska Cyn 2.76 (6 mins) 6.05 (13 mins) 11.58 (16 mins)
Mid-Modjeska 28422 Modjeska Cyn 2.85 (6 mins) 6.75 (13 mins) 11.67 (16 mins)
Harding Cyn 17251 Harding Cyn 3.42 (8 mins) 7.31 (15 mins) 12.24 (17 mins)
Williams Canyon 28510 Williams Cyn 4.94 (9 mins) 8.83 (15 mins) 10.5 (15 mins)
Silverado end 31326 Silv Cyn Road 11.61 (22 mins) 15.5 (29 mins) 13.39 (24 mins)
Mid-Silverado 29772 Silv Cyn Road 9.93 (18 mins) 13.82 (24 mins) 11.7 (20 mins)
Black Star Cyn 27912 Baker Cyn Rd 6.92 (11 mins) 10.81 (18 mins) 8.72 (13 mins)

The table demonstrates that the nearest Saddleback elementary school, Portola Hills, is closer than the nearest Orange Unified school, Chapman Hills, to all points in the canyon except the very end of Silverado. From there, the difference between Saddleback and Orange is relatively insignificant—just 1.8 miles or two minutes’ driving time. Please note that times in the above table represent driving directly from one point to another---school bus routes take much longer.

As a result of the canyons’ distance from Orange Unified schools, many students, even those in kindergarten, are now boarding school buses as early as 6:30 a.m.

2. Unacceptably long bus rides for our young children
Educational studies set the maximum recommended busing time for elementary students at 30 minutes. Today canyon children are riding up to 1.5 hours each way, or three hours a day, going to and from school. Once the bad weather begins, these trips will take even longer. Many mornings, it is still dark when the children leave their homes. They wait outside with nothing to protect them against rain, sleet, hail and wind.

The long bus rides raise a number of significant issues:
• Safety is a primary consideration. There are no adults other than the drivers on the buses. Our young children have virtually no supervision.
• Canyon roads are winding and unsafe. Drivers regularly exceed the speed limit. In the early morning, especially January through March, heavy fog often reduces visibility on Santiago Canyon Road to zero.
• Food and drink are not allowed on buses. Many children leave home without breakfast and are hungry all morning.
• The buses have no toilets.
• The buses have no seat belts or car seats.

Because of the early bus pick-up, our children are losing an hour or more of sleep each night. Research has found that daytime sleepiness in children significantly correlates with lower academic achievement, higher absenteeism and reduced motivation in school.

3. Shared Community CharacteristicsRecognizing that the canyons’ rural environment and lifestyle represents a unique asset, as long ago as 1974, Orange County developed the Foothill Corridor Policy Plan and community development plans for Silverado-Modjeska and Trabuco. All emphasized retaining the rural character and preserving its uniqueness. In 2001, The Irvine Company made a historic gift of 50,000 acres of public and private lands, much of which adjoins the canyons, for permanent open space. Currently the Irvine Company and the county of Orange are negotiating to transfer more than 20,000 acres near the canyons for a public park. The county also is taking title to the 3,500 acre Limestone Canyon Park across from the school.

Surrounded by open space, the canyon communities exist on a fragile wildlife/urban interface. Since the devastating Santiago Fire in 2007 (which jumped Santiago Canyon Road right near the school), the canyons have drawn together to work for our common good. Right now, the Inter-Canyon League is administering a $250,000 grant to remove hazardous trees and vegetation from private homes in Silverado, Modjeska, Williams and Trabuco canyons. Last weekend we participated in All Canyons Clean-Up, an annual event that brings together hundreds of canyon residents. In a few weeks, for the first time, the canyon directory will include Trabuco residents. Canyon leaders have begun discussing joint community governance; three years ago, residents paid for an initial fiscal analysis exploring the possibility of incorporating Silverado, Modjeska and Trabuco into a single entity called the Saddleback Canyon.

4. Philosophical Compatibility
Our dream was to transform Silverado into a cutting edge, innovative Environmental Science School offering a high quality education to students throughout Orange County. The school would provide a fresh, hands-on learning experience tied to nature and student-driven discovery.

Saddleback is already committed to environmental education. Students from throughout the district regularly visit Trabuco Elementary, where a Field Study Program offers science and nature study experiences aligned to grade-level science standards. The program involves guided trail studies and hands-on activities that increase learning of basic science concepts. To support the program, Trabuco houses a variety of animals and uses trails leading into O’Neill Regional Park.

An environmentally-focused curriculum is tremendously attractive to canyon residents. The community is also deeply committed to the concept of a K-8 school specifically for the canyons.

5. Limited Financial Impact on Orange UnifiedOrange Unified’s own demographic experts predict a significant decline over the next seven years in the number of elementary-age students living in the canyons:

K-6 Resident Students
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
69 65.2 56.8 45.9 45.1 41.9 28.2 27.8

Last year the canyons had about 40 students in Orange Unified middle and high schools. Re-districting now would involve a total of about 100 elementary, middle and high school students. Within a few years, the total will decrease to fewer than 50 students.

6. Strong Community Support
In July 2009, 834 canyon residents received an email asking whether they supported re-districting from Orange to Saddleback. Sixty-five residents replied; the overwhelming majority supported the move. On July 15, the Inter-Canyon League organized a community meeting to discuss re-districting. Forty residents attended; all voted in favor of the transfer. Last week we received one letter opposed to the transfer. There is little doubt that re-districting has widespread support.

A few more points:
1. The proposed area to be re-districted does not include the planned development around Irvine Lake.
2. While we hope that our elementary school can re-open, we have received no promises. We are not making this request to get our school back—we are making it because we truly believe that re-districting is in the best interests of our children and our community.
3. While our dream is for an environmental school that attracts children from throughout Orange County, we have received no promises. The community supports the transfer even without the environmental concept.

We have met with the Orange County Superintendent of Education to discuss the transfer process. If the majority of both the Orange and Saddleback Unified governing boards agree, it can be accomplished relatively quickly. If one board does not agree, the request will be submitted to the county superintendent of schools in the form of a petition signed by 25% of the registered voters in the canyon area. The County Committee on School District Organization then will hold a public hearing in each of the affected school districts and an initial study, possibly including an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), would be required. If the County Committee approves the transfer and one of the governing Boards does not agree, an election will be called and voters in an area determined by the Committee will decide.

In summary, I want to tell you a story. A few years ago, I was managing a large program in Nairobi, Kenya. On the property, I had an elementary school; an orphanage for 70 abandoned, neglected and AIDS-affected babies, and a residential center for 100 children with severe disabilities. I ran everything from the U.S., flying over every three to four months.

During the four years that I ran the Center, I had three directors handling daily operations. Each one started the same way—absolutely committed to caring for the children. It wasn’t hard to love these kids. They were so needy. But within a month, sometimes two, the same thing happened. I began hearing less and less about the kids and more and more about the staff. The staff needed this; the staff needed that. Why did this happen, I wondered?

It wasn’t hard to figure out. All day long, staff members were at the director’s door. They told the director about their troubles. They asked for help. They complained about the salaries and about each other. It wasn’t long before each director was worn out by their problems. And where were the kids? Not hanging out at the director’s door. Far from it. They were in their beds or their classrooms. Pretty much doing as they were told. Especially the babies.

Why am I telling you this? Because all day long, you’re surrounded by teachers, administrators, and other professionals. They give you information; they define your options; they prepare your agendas and they write your briefing papers. I know that each of you cares about the kids. But I also know that your caring is channeled within a structure that has its own demands.

We in the canyon are not really a voice at your table. We’re outsiders—literally and figuratively. But we care about our kids just as much as you care about your’s. And we have been doing everything in our power to try to make sure that they’re safe and protected. But their future—and our community’s—lie in your hands.

There is little doubt that canyon residents will vote to support the transfer. You can put that to the test and set in motion the petitions, hearing and special election that will be required if you oppose it. Or you can approve re-districting now and save considerable taxpayer expense and community heartache.

We appreciate Orange Unified’s generosity in approving inter-district transfers this year. It is our hope that your generosity of spirit will continue and that you will approve our re-districting. By doing so, you will give our children a much-needed sense of stability. They have been through a lot this past year.

Thank you.

Deborah Johnson, Ph.D.
President, The Inter-Canyon League
Member, Save Our School Committee

(The photograph featured above is from the county archives. Silverado School, 1903. Left to right: C. Edinger, A. Hughes, Willie Shaw, Rob Shaw, Naomi Ann Alsbach-15years, Ruth Clara Alsbach-13yrs, Mary Elizabeth Alsbach (Liz)-12yrs, Ruby Lola Alsbach-7yrs. Teacher not identified. Donated in 1988 by Mr. Harvey Shaw, Santa Ana.)
*

OC Register Coverage and Letters!

2009-09-23T14:58:00.000-07:00

In today's OC Register, Fermin Leal writes about the redistricting proposal that OUSD will consider at Thursday night's meeting.

excerpt:

"There is almost unanimous support from this community to move into Saddleback," said Deborah Johnson, a parent of the former Silverado school.

Johnson says the proximity of schools in Saddleback Valley compared to Orange Unified, and other factors make sense for transferring the Silverado area. Ultimately, the goal is to have one kindergarten through eighth-grade campus that serves all the canyon communities in eastern Orange County, Johnson said.

To read the rest, click here.

Please consider joining concerned community members at the September 24 Thursday night meeting! 7 PM at 1401 N. Handy Street.

On a related note: Last week, the Register published a link to a datebase of the pensions given to local education administrators who earn six-figure penisons. The top recipient in the OUSD was the former super Thomas Godley who gets a monthy payment of $17,517.65 which works out to an annual payout of $210,211.80.

excerpt:

"Another member of the "100,000-plus" club, former Orange Unified School District Superintendent Thomas Godley collects $210,211 a year. He was the budget chief for Newport-Mesa Unified when a finance worker siphoned $3.7 million to buy such things as full-length fur coats in 1992.

Godley was one of several officials who received a vote of no confidence from Newport-Mesa teachers, although board members did not hold him responsible for the theft. Godley later became superintendent of Grossmont High School District in 1997, where he received another vote of no confidence from teachers at war with the school board."

For more details, click here.

MEANWHILE, PEOPLE WRITE LETTERS.

In the wake of last week's road closure, concerned Silverado resident Laurel Ward sent this one to the OC Register:

Over the objections of local residents, the Orange Unified School District closed Silverado Elementary that serves the remote canyon communities of Orange County. As we argued, one of the main tragedies of this action is the long, winding bus ride on these narrow roads that our kids would be forced to endure. The bus route can take over an hour one way, and goes past the toll road intersection with Santiago Canyon, which is troubled by frequent closures. Last week the bus was observed driving poorly on Santiago Canyon road: weaving into the bike lane, driving at inconsistent speeds, trailed by a huge train of commuters and not getting to the right in the only passing zone. In a residential section of Silverado Canyon, the driver waved following cars around him (illegally) on a blind curve where there was oncoming traffic. Lastly, today, due to a vehicle fire, Santiago Canyon Road was closed to traffic in both directions, and the students stuck on that bus languished there for an extra 45 minutes. The OUSD has failed our children and betrayed the tax paying parents of this community by closing a school that has served this area for over a hundred years. Re-open Silverado Elementary!

And this letter was sent to OUSD officials:

9/20/09

To: Superintendent and School Board Members, Orange Unified School District

It seems probable that there have been multiple violations of the Brown Act on the part of Orange Unified Board Members and the Superintendent.

Over the past six months, Board Members have refused to meet with canyon residents on numerous occasions citing the Brown Act. But have they actually read it? The Brown Act forbids elected officials to meet and share information about public concerns outside of the public eye. However, it explicitly does not restrict elected officials from meeting with their constituents. The citations below are from the Attorney General’s office:

"Individual contacts or communications between a member of a legislative body and any other person are specifically exempt from the definition of a meeting. (§ 54952.2(c)(1).) The purpose of this exception appears to be to protect the constitutional rights of individuals to contact their government representatives regarding issues which concern them…

Accordingly, if a member of the public requests a conversation with an individual member of the board, who then acts independently of the board and its other members in deciding whether to talk with the member of the public, no meeting will have occurred even if the member of the public ultimately meets with a quorum of the body."
Given these clear guidelines, why have board members refused to meet with us under the guise of a possible violation of the Brown Act? We were told the Superintendent instructed them in this misguided denial of our civil rights. This action does appear to be a violation of the Brown Act.

In an earlier instance, prior to the vote to close Silverado Elementary School, a Board Member voiced publicly that the closure of the school was a "done deal". How would this Board Member know the vote was a "done deal" if she had not discussed the matter with other Board Members, in obvious violation of the Brown Act?
Communication from the Orange County District Attorney's office indicates there is reasonable cause to suspect Brown Act violations in these, and other instances. Interestingly, if an action by an elected body is accompanied by a proven violation of the Brown Act, the action is automatically nullified. That would be an intriguing turn of events.

Is this a relationship worth continuing? The situation has deteriorated to the point that Board Members will not meet with us, in mockery of their elected responsibilities. In response some are looking carefully at the potential illegality of the Board's actions. None of us in the Canyon Communities relish spending considerable time and energy on these matters, but we will if necessary. This is a sorry state of affairs, not productive for any of us.

The solution is to support the proposed redistricting of the Canyon Communities to Saddleback Valley Unified. Think of this as similar to a request for a divorce. There is no future for our community with Orange Unified. Why not just let us go our own way? Staying in a conflicted relationship is of no benefit to either party, nor to the children. Remember the children? The Canyon Communities' School children especially are being harmed the way things are.

Sincerely,
Jeffrey Wilson and Marta Abello
Parents of two children now attending school in Saddleback Valley Unified School District

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back to School Update: Bus Rides and Car Fires

2009-09-15T10:04:00.000-07:00

Now that so many of us are back at school - whether Chapman, Portola Hills, Trabuco Elementary - or the school that is homeschool - it's time to revive the blog with the latest news.

When we last left off, Silverado Elementary had been closed, its students scattered to the four directions, many opting for the long bus ride to Chapman Hills Elementary in Orange. Silverado Elementary School remains closed, its once green grass field turning brown.

In Modjeska Canyon, where my family lives, the school bus picks up students at 6:30 am.

I see the school bus leaving the canyon in the afternoons, around 4:15-4:30. That's a ten hour day, some three hours spent in transit.

This morning that commute was extended an estimated 45 minutes when the inevitable happened - a closure on that two lane rural road. (UPDATE: the bus that carries the elementary school children was not delayed - apparently only the high school bus was.)

A car fire near Irvine Lake closed Santiago Canyon Road in both directions. As you may know, parents and concerned community members warned the Orange County Board of trustees that the bus would often face significant road closures, resulting in extended commutes, missed classtime and other problems.

Serena Marie Daniels and Bruce Chambers writing in the Orange County Register report:

"Firefighters worked to knock out a vehicle fire at Santiago Canyon Road next to Irvine Lake this morning, causing morning traffic to backup in both directions, police said...California Highway Patrol officer Alvin Yamaguchi said when he arrived, the smoke was thick and he thought the canyon was on fire but it never got the vegetation."

To read the rest, click here.

(photos by Bruce Chambers, from the OC Register)

Please consider writing letters to the OC Register about these issues - as well as letter to the OUSD trustees.

Send your letters to: letters@ocregister.com

To contact OUSD trustees, see the sidebar to contact info.

*****
Mark Your Calendar:

The OUSD board has agendized the proposal to redistrict the community affected by the school closure to the nearby Saddleback Valley Unified School District.

Please plan to attend the Thursday, Sept. 24 AT 7 P.M.

Consider writing to the OUSD trustees with your views.

More information soon.

*

Foothills Sentry Coverage Continues

2009-07-16T10:55:00.000-07:00

In the July issue of the Foothills Sentry's Canyon Beat column, Linda May celebrates the new Santiago Canyon bridge - and Lisa Alvarez and Andrew Tonkovich write about Silverado Elementary School.

excerpt:

Meanwhile, down the road from the new bridge, a sad example perhaps of what happens when the community is disenfranchised and ignored, offers itself in the now-abandoned and empty historic elementary school. Silverado Elementary, which served the children of the canyon for over a century, held its final class session on Thursday June 11 and was formally shuttered the following week on Friday June 19, this the result of the OUSD board vote two months ago.

Reports indicate that about half the canyon's K-6 children will be enrolled in the fall at Chapman Hills Elementary, their parents opting for the long bus ride or providing their own transportation. Understandably, residents continue to express concern about the duration of the bus ride and its impact on their kids' education and health. A 6:30 am pick-up is scheduled for the children of Modjeska Canyon. Parents point out that this requires a 5-5:30 AM wake-up call for the youngest of them – and a school day (including transportation) that approaches 9 hours. Many children have been enrolled at Trabuco Elementary School in nearby Saddleback Valley Unified District while others have embraced other options, including homeschooling and private schools.

But in the wake of the vote, efforts to challenge the vote, the school's closure and transfer of students, many parents express disappointment at the failure of district representatives, including board members, to bother to show up on the last day of classes or to otherwise acknowledge the tragedy of closing the campus, arguably the heart of the canyon community. Further, the apparent failure of district managers to develop a plan for the closing struck many as problematic, especially in light of the seemingly disorganized or unsupervised closing process.

Sure, the joyful end of the normal school year is always tinged with sadness but the sight of classrooms packed up and cleared out for good was chilling. The staff and heroic soon to be former teachers of the small school could be seen working beyond the call of duty but community members wondered indeed where the on-the-ground physical services support from the district was. The task of dismantling a school is enormous and district services and support staff didn't seem in evidence. One of the perhaps best, if easiest

The best evidence of their absence was what was found in the overflowing single recycling dumpster and the two trash dumpsters: books. A picture tells a thousand words, but in this case the single word seemed to be "waste."

So, diving in where the district would not, some concerned parents and children spent a recent morning in the school parking lot "dumpster diving," rescuing furniture, art supplies, bulletin boards, workbooks and, yes, hundreds of books --- hardbacks, textbooks, art books, readers and paperbacks --- sorting through and arranging them in boxes. The salvaged treasure was driven to Santa Ana where volunteers in a tutoring program were grateful to receive it.

A blog post at http://savesilveradoelementary.blogspot.com meant to call attention to the failure of administrative planning at the district level seems to have brought unwarranted scrutiny on school staff, with still no acknowledgement of the problem or any effort to address it.

Activist parents and community members say they are grieved by the sight of the empty school, whose community garden is abloom in sunflowers. They say they are still working on creating a future for the school within OUSD or without it.

Consider writing letters to the Sentry to keep this issue before the public.

email:foothillssentry@socal.rr.com

To read the Canyon Beat column in its entirety, pick up a copy or visit their website: http://foothillssentry.com/
*

On the Road

2009-07-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

My family will be heading out of town so posting will be intermittent for the next month or so...

Still, there's lots going on.

Most important is this upcoming meeting:
On Wednesday, July 15 at 7 p.m., you are invited to a community meeting at the Silverado Community Center. The purpose is to discuss the proposed school re-districting for the canyon area. IT IS VITALLY IMPORTANT THAT EVERYONE PROVIDE THEIR OPINION ON THIS ISSUE. PLEASE ATTEND THE MEETING.

Currently the canyons are in the Orange Unified School District (OUSD). As many of you know, OUSD has closed Silverado Elementary School and starting in September, will bus students to Chapman Elementary in Orange. This means that kindergarten students in Modjeska will be picked up by school buses as early as 6:30 a.m. for an 8:00 a.m. class.

A group of concerned residents has been making inquiries about transferring to the Saddleback Valley Unified School District. Headquartered in Mission Viejo, SVUSD is Orange County’s fourth largest school district. SVUSD has twenty-six Elementary Schools, four Intermediate Schools, four High Schools, one Continuation High School, one Independent Study High School, and one Special Education School. It serves 35,000 students.

Our vision is to create a K-8 school to serve the canyons. SVUSD is willing to establish a committee that includes community representatives to work on fulfilling this vision.

The two questions before you now are:

1) Do you want the canyons to remain in OUSD?

2) Would you prefer for the canyons to join SVUSD?

THIS IS A CRITICALLY IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY—NOT ONLY THOSE WITH CHILDREN. IT WILL AFFECT THE NATURE OF OUR COMMUNITY IN MANY WAYS.

Please attend the meeting or share your opinion. You can also send your thoughts to: The Inter-Canyon League, P.O. Box 301, Silverado, CA 92676.

*******

The new edition of The Sentry should have an update - check out the Canyon Beat column.

********

As soon as I get more information, I'll post an interesting tale about fossils (on site at the school) that were given away on the day that some locals are already calling The Day of Looting. There's a happy ending here because the person who received the fossils recognized that they should probably stay in the canyon and handed them over to another educational institute. Whew.

*********

Have a good summer - stay safe!

Sublime Tomatoes!

2009-07-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

CSA Meets SCC: Order Tanaka Farms Produce and Benefit the Silverado Children’s Center, Too!

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) will save the world. It’s a cooperative economic arrangement between local, organic, thoughtful produce growers and the rest of us. It removes the need to shop at dreadful superdupermarkets, saves energy and builds community. CSA keeps outfits as Orange County’s terrific Tanaka Farms in business and gets hearty, wholesome, fresh, in-season organic produce into your fridge. And now it’s part of canyon life because Silverado Children’s Center, always in need of your support, is now part of Tanaka’s “Fundraising for Schools” program. Do consider signing up to receive a bounteous carton of fruits and vegetables, delivered to the Center every other Thursday.

The Tanaka Farms folks currently deliver nearly two dozen of these cartons to subscribers, with different contents each time. The $25 cost includes $5 that goes to the Center.

For more information on the Tanaka Farms program, go to http://www.tanakafarms.com/CSA.html

To sign up right away, contact the wonderful and innovative Ms. Aimee Bryer, Director of the SCC at (714) 649-2214 or SilveradoChildren@sbcglobal.net.

Tell Aimee you’d like to help out the best day care center around AND support organic local agriculture, not to mention enjoy those righteous berries, beans, onions, lettuces, peppers and tomatoes you can’t find unless you go to farmers’ markets or pay twice as much at your local retailer.

Bon appétit!

In Case You Missed It:

2009-07-03T15:12:00.000-07:00

from the June 23 OC Register and also reprinted in Canyon Life:

Protest continues over Silverado school closure

Two residents bring signs of protest to Santiago Canyon Bridge ribbon cutting.

By RASHI KESARWANI

SILVERADO CANYON – Canyon residents Lisa Alvarez and Andrew Tonka [sic] carried signs protesting the closure of Silverado Elementary School during Friday's Santiago Canyon Bridge ribbon cutting ceremony.

Residents continue to update the blog, Save Silverado Elementary School, documenting the closure of the century-old school. The latest blog post features pictures of the empty school.

*

For more (including photos), click here.

*

Inside the OUSD Budget - highlights

2009-06-29T05:48:00.000-07:00

Someone over at the Greater Orange News Service does a lot of work.

Check it out.

There's much more on their site if you scroll around or do a search for Orange Unified.

Attorneys fees are generally appalling, but seem especially so in this year of cutbacks. The money the OUSD spends on lawyers - or consultants - could fund a small rural school.

Via the Greater Orange News Service:

excerpts:

OUSD TRUSTEES VOTE AGAINST OWN PAY CUT

A week after voters defeated six ballot propositions in the May 19th Special Election sending the state into financial chaos, the Orange Unified Trustees at their May 28 Board Meeting defeated a move to cut their $750 monthly stipend by 10% (to $675 a month) due to the current budget crisis. They also defeated a Board Bylaw change that would require the OUSD Trustees to pay the entire cost for their health care if they opted to use the school district’s health plan. The annual savings to the district taxpayers if the 10% reduction in pay were approved would have been $6,300 per year ($18,900 through July 2012) while the health care change would reportedly have saved $100,000 a year.

INSIDE the OUSD Budget

INSIDE’s EDUCATIONAL TAX DOLLARS WATCH 2009:
Total $1,041,000

2009 Attorney Fee Tally:
11/13/08 Parker & Covert (for 1/09 -6/09) $ 200,000
3/12/09 Atkinson, Andelson, Loya (Sp. Ed) $ 50,000
3/12/09 Parker & Covert (Special Ed) $ 98,000
6/18/09 Parker & Covert (09-10) $ 400,000
6/18/09 Parker & Covert (Special Ed) $ 200,000
6/18/09 Parker & Covert (property) $ 55,000
6/18/09 Atkinson, Andelson, Loya (property)$ 35,000
Total $1,038,000

2009 Consultant/ Speaker Fee Tally:
01/24/09 Leadership Associates Consultants $ 3,000
2009 TOTAL $1,041,000

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2008: $901,200
2008 Attorney Fee Tally:
6/19/08 Parker & Covert $ 60,000
6/05/08 Miller, Brown & Dannis $ 40,000
6/05/08 Parker & Covert $150,000
6/05/08 Parker & Covert $200,000
2/07/08 Parker & Covert $100,000
11/15/07 Parker & Covert (for 1/08 to 6/08) $200,000
$750,000
2008 Consultant/ Speaker Fee Tally:
11/13/08 Subs for SDCDE (Reading First) $24,000
11/13/08 SDCDE (Reading First) $30,000
10/30/08 Dr. Willard Daggett (ICLE) $ 4,500
10/16/08 Dr. Parker 40 pt Consultant $ 4,200
9/25/08 Visual Ink for Sadler Consultant <$ 6,600> CANCELED in 2009
9/25/08 Bob Sadler Consultant Fee $ 8,500
9/25/08 Candace Simpson-Sadler Helper $ 5,500
7/24/08 Dr. Parker 40 pt Consultant $ 10,000
4/17/08 Dr. Kenneth Stichter Speaker Fee $ 6,500
3/7/08 Dr. Kathleen Weigel Speaker Fee $ 8,000
Consultant Total $ 101, 200
2008 TOTAL $ 901,200

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2007: $704,090.00**

2007 Administrative Conference/Travel: hidden since 6/8/06**

**JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to APPROVE Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2006: $849,717.00*
2006 Consultant Fee Tally: Total $176,400
2006 Attorney Fee Tally: Total Approved $655,000
2006 Administrative Conference/Travel: Total $ 18,317 *

* JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to
APPROVE OUSD Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2005: $978,300.00:
Total 2005 Conference Administrator/Board Fees: $ 7,500.00
2005 Attorney Fee Tally: $730,600.00
Total Watched 2005 OUSD Consultant spending: $ 270,200.00

Meanwhile, in a neighboring school district...

2009-06-27T13:05:00.000-07:00

Kids want books!

via the OC Register:
Saddleback schools' $20 million in cuts include buses, sports

(Click on title to read the entire article.)

While in the OUSD...

Alternatives

2009-06-25T08:54:00.000-07:00

Trabuco Elementary. Small K-6 school in canyon setting. Well- maintained and thoughtfully designed campus with charming facilities and new playground. It's obvious that the district has invested money in this campus. 20 minutes from Modjeska.

I was told my son would be in a class with 18 other students.

I liked the campus, the friendly, welcoming folks, the small scale, how much the setting reminded me of Silverado.

So we signed the papers yesterday and have begun planning a carpool schedule. We can work it out. Let us know if you're interested.

I encourage other to check out Trabuco. Drive on down and see what it's like. Observe the 35 MPH speed limit and see how long it takes you to get there. Walk the campus. They have a summer program teaching kids to ride and groom horses. It's sweet.

Last week, at the bridge christening, I spoke with another longtime canyon resident. Her son rode that school bus into Orange during middle school and high school. She confessed that her marriage almost didn't survive that first year of getting him on the bus at 6:30 am. Her husband worked nights and she had to be at work at 7 - and her son had to be on that bus at 6:30, no matter what. And when he missed the bus or was late, well.

Think about it.

*

If You're Not Outraged, You're Not Paying Attention

2009-06-23T11:19:00.000-07:00

Granted, there is a lot of waste in any institution but the recent closure of Silverado Elementary reveals a level of waste that goes beyond, say, the normal end-of- school year cleanout.

The pictures tell the story better than can I.

But to be told that the district doesn't have enough money to keep your child's school open - and then to open the dumpster and see the equivalent of a small library discarded makes one wonder about management policies, oversight and, frankly, competence.

The books in the dumpsters added, say, insult to injury.

There is, one parent quipped, just one short step between throwing away usable books and burning them. Ouch.

I am often pleased to point out irony. The difference in usage, for instance, between the words oversight and oversight. One means accountablity and the other means error. But we here in the canyons have had enough irony, nearly losing our whole canyon and then our school. So, no, irony is not helpful today, not on a day spent rescuing books from god help us, a school! It's not so comforting or even helpful, not when it can't seem to find a place to mean anything. Sigh. Back to sorting. At least these lovely volumes will find new homes. They're destined for an after-school tutoring program in Santa Ana.

Now where is that copy of Fahrenheit 451?

*

More soon....how to close a school...

2009-06-21T21:53:00.000-07:00

Pledging Allegiance

2009-06-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking of the point made by author Lynda Barry in her essay, "The Sanctuary of School," when she asks, - and I'm paraphrasing here:

America makes its school children say the Pledge of Allegiance every day at school, but when will the country turn around and say the pledge back to its children - and mean it?

Janet Wilson's article about the school closure appears in the June 9 edition of the Foothills Sentry. (Wilson, as some know, is a Modjeska Canyon resident who wrote for the LA Times from 1996-2008. She is now a Senior fellow of the Institute for Justice and Journalism at USC's Annenberg school for Communication.)

The Sentry is available online but its format can be difficult to read online (PDF file - Wilson's article on page 9), so you'll try to find your own copy to read Wilson's article in its entirety with ease. (Please note, I have bolded certain phrases.)

THROW THEM ON THE BUS by Janet Wilson

When Charles Chapman learned that his seven-year-old daughter would need to take an 85 minute bus ride to reach elementary school next fall, much of it with rowdy high schoolers, he was shocked. The native of Orange County's rural Modjeska Canyon still recalls the boredom, lack of bathrooms and almost daily fights that broke out on his nearly identical interminable ride to high school.

"I took that bus ride my freshman and sophomore year, and it was terrible, said Chapman. "At least I was 14 or 15. My daughter, she is only seven. I don't know what kind of effect that's going to have on such a young child."

He and his wife are among scores of parents in Orange County's last undeveloped outposts who are already coping with the decision by Orange County Unified School District to close their children's historic neighborhood elementary school to save money. Despite vows to share the fiscal pain, district board members and top administrators have not cut their pay or benefits. Parents are now being told that up to three hours of daily commuting will be required to reach the new school by bus, even though it is barely 11 miles away.

Long and winding road

Retiring Silverado Elementary School co-principal Patricia Evans outlined the complicated new busing arrangements in an interview, and said parents would be formally notified in take-home packets. Modjeska Canyon pupils would be picked up at 6:30 a.m. and taken to the centrally located parking lot of their padlocked former school. Middle school and high school students would board another bus and head into town, while elementary school pupils would wind through lengthy Silverado Canyon to pick up more young students, finally arriving at Chapman Hills Elementary just before 8 a.m.

That leaves working parents like the Chapmans grappling with tough choices, and will put canyon children on board with some disturbing national trends. While research is limited, studies funded by the U.S. dept. of Education and other have shown that such long school bus rides – three times the average commute for an adult working in Los Angeles – could affect academic performance, family relationships and even community cohesion…

…A sharply divided board voted 4-3 in March for the closure, following findings by top staff that busing students to Chapman Hills Elementary School would shave $263,000 off a 30 million budget shortfall.

Since then, despite earlier vocal pledges by the board and the superintendent to shoulder some of the district's economic pain too, board members have decided to leave in place their own health benefits, and annual stipends totaling $8,100 each. Supt. Renae Dreier continues to earn $250,000 per year, with no salary cuts for her or other top administrators. Negotiations are underway to cut teachers' salaries by nearly four percent. Dreier and another administrator who handles transportation did not return requests for comment. Dreier's assistant said that the board might revisit stipend and salary issues next month.

Canyon residents have battled the closing of Silverado for months, saying the facility could be converted into a revenue generating environmental academy. The closure could backfire, with many parents now considering pulling their children from the district. If they leave, OUSD could lose federal and state matching funds, critics said. They are holding out hope that board members will reconsider the decision at their June 18th meeting. Only one would need to switch his or her vote, although none indicated that they would…

Yes, the next board meeting is tomorrow, Thursday June 18. I hear that some people are planning to go and continue to make our case that our children deserve access to a public education that doesn't come at the expense of their safety, their ability to learn - or at the expense of our community. The meeting begins at 7 PM at 1401 N. Handy Street in Orange.

Others are continuing to write letters to the board members, the superintendent and local elected officials. (Our sidebar still has all the relevant information.)

Do consider writing letters to the Sentry about Janet Wilson's article. You can email them at: FoothillsSentry@socal.rr.com

Or mail your letters via US Post to:

Letters to the Editor
Foothills Sentry
10642 Morada Drive
Orange, CA 92869

Do what others have failed to do: pledge allegiance to our children.

*

June 11, 2009

2009-06-11T15:31:00.000-07:00

Some scenes from today, courtesy of a Trabuco Canyon local.

Please note that if you click on the pictures, they get bigger.

More to follow.

Room 3:

Room 2:

The Library:

From a distance:

A few of us spoke with OC Register reporter Rashi Kesarwani this morning.

Here's an excerpt:

The big yellow school bus pulled into the parking lot of Silverado Elementary School for the final time today.

The school, which serves 75 students from Silverado and Modjeska Canyon, will be shuttered by June 19, according to co-principal Pat Evans, due to budget cuts facing the Orange Unified School District.

Today is the school's last day, with kindergarteners and sixth-graders celebrating their promotion for a final time in the school's century-old history...

To read the rest of her article, including quotes from canyon residents, teachers and Yours Truly sounding off about the legacy of Prop 13 and corporate property owners, click here.

*

Upcoming Events: School's Out for Summer!

2009-06-10T08:53:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow, June 11, marks the last school of school for this session. We hope that members of the community will join us at Silverado Elementary School for the assembly that begins at 8:30 AM. If your schedule permits, please consider dropping by to show your support for the school that has served this community for 103 years.

Meanwhile, concerned parents are exploring options other than the bus commute offered by OUSD. Many are interested in transferring to the other nearby school which serves a canyon community: Trabuco Elementary.

Trabuco's principal Suzanne Westmoreland has graciously extended an invitation to interested Silverado Elementary students and their parents to visit the school at these dates and times:

Friday June June 12 at 8:15 AM and Monday June 15th at 9:00 AM.

School will be session so there will be an opportunity to meet the teachers and see the students in action.

Trabuco Elementary is located at 31052 Trabuco Canyon Road (Just keep driving past Cook's Corner. It's on the right - about 20 minutes from Modejska.) Their telephone number is 949-858-0343.

People are also exploring the option of setting up a homeschooling co-op - information can be had via good folks at the Silverado Children's Center.

Finally, just a reminder: it's not over when they take down the flag and lock the gate tomorrow.

The next day we'll still be here doing the work that needs to be done to make sure the educational needs of the children of this community, in the present and in the future, are fulfilled.
*

Is Silverado Elementary a "necessary small school"?

2009-06-06T22:44:00.000-07:00

You learn something new everyday - or so my teachers always told me. They were right. It's certainly been true for us as we fight to defend our school, slated for closure at the end of next week. These last few weeks have taught us much.

What's today's lesson? Get this:

Since 1998, the state of California, recognizing the need to support small rural schools, has provided extra funding to sustain those which are deemed to be "necessary small schools." These are schools that need to have small populations, usually because they are in sparsely populated areas or serve special populations. Such schools receive extra funding because they cannot realize economies of scale.

Is our Silverado Elementary School one such "necessary small school"?

Could it be that OUSD has overlooked this program as a solution to the crisis facing Silverado Elementary School?

One would hope that the elected public officials and the district leadership would have exhausted all options before voting to close the school which has served this community for 103 years.

You decide.

Peruse the relevant section of Ed Code below.

California Education Code Section 42283
(a) For the purposes of Section 42282, a "necessary small school" is an elementary school with an average daily attendance of less than 101, exclusive of pupils attending the seventh and eighth grades of a junior high school, maintained by a school district which maintains two or more schools and to which school any of the following conditions apply:

(1) If as many as five pupils residing in the district and attending kindergarten and grades 1 to 8, inclusive, exclusive of pupils attending the seventh and eighth grades of a junior high school in the elementary school with an average daily attendance of less than 101 would be required to travel more than 10 miles one way from a point on a well-traveled road nearest their home to the nearest other public elementary school.

(2) If as many as 15 pupils residing in the district and attending kindergarten and grades 1 to 8, inclusive, exclusive of pupils attending the seventh and eighth grades of a junior high school in the elementary school with an average daily attendance of less than 101 would be required to travel more than five miles one way from a point on a well-traveled road nearest their home to the nearest other public elementary school.

(3) If topographical or other conditions exist in a district which would impose unusual hardships if the number of miles specified in paragraph (1) or (2) were required to be traveled, or if during the fiscal year the roads which would be traveled have been impassable for more than an average of two weeks per year for the preceding five years, the governing board of the district may, on or before April 1, request the Superintendent of Public Instruction, in writing, for an exemption from these requirements or for a reduction in the miles required. The request shall be accompanied by a statement of the conditions upon which the request is based, giving the information in a form required by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall cause an investigation to be made, and shall either grant the request to the extent he or she deems necessary, or deny the request.

(b) For the 1998-99 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, a "necessary small school," as defined in subdivision (a), shall be an elementary school with an average daily attendance of less than 101 reduced by the statewide average rate of excused absence reported for elementary school districts for the 1996-97 fiscal year pursuant to Section 42238.7, rounded to the nearest integer.

And how about these figures:

Necessary Small Schools: The Allowance for Necessary Small Schools is based on the combination of ADA and the number of full-time teachers (for elementary schools) or the number of certificated employees (for high schools), whichever provides the lesser amount. The allowance amounts, shown in the following tables, reflect the 5.66 percent COLA for 2008-09:

For a school of Silverado's size:
Number of Teachers: 4
Average daily Attendance: 73-96
Amount to be Computed: $531,500

We'll be meeting on Monday June 8 at 8 AM at Silverado to discuss these matters and others. Hope to see some of you there!

Please note: at the last board meeting Silverado Elementary School was singled out for praise. Check out a pic of the slide shown to the audience in the "Points of Pride" slideshow.

*

Grievances

2009-06-03T10:15:00.000-07:00

griev·ance
Pronunciation: \ˈgrē-vən(t)s\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1: obsolete : SUFFERING, DISTRESS
2: a cause of distress (as an unsatisfactory working condition) felt to afford reason for complaint or resistance
3: the formal expression of a grievance : COMPLAINT

synonyms see INJUSTICE

*

The following letter was read aloud at the OUSD Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday May 28. Each board member received a copy.

May 28, 2009

I have a number of grievances I wish to bring to the Board:

#1: The board voted to close Silverado Elementary due to budget cuts. However, the actual savings by closing the school are about zero, with the loss of around 40 students to other districts or home schooling. In other words, the district has just thrown away about 200k by treating Silverado children poorly, and their actions have not saved one penny, but instead have tremendously displace scores of children and tremendously inconvenienced families in the canyon community.

#2: Our pronouncements about children as young as kindergarten being asked to ride the bus for 1 1/2 to 2 hours to get to Chapman Hills were scoffed at by some on the board. However, the district’s recently released bus schedule will have children in Modjeska canyon board the bus at 6:30 am in order to get to Chapman hills by 8 am, a 1 ½ hour ride. A staff person in the superintendent’s office remarked they are shocked (or some similar term) at such a long ride.

#3: Furthermore, part of that 1 ½ hour ride will combine high schoolers and elementary schoolers on the same bus, a situation usually avoided due to the potential exposure of elementary schoolers to the more offensive talk and behavior of high schoolers.

#4: A board member told us that, following their vote to close Silverado they suddenly realized that the elementary kids would be on the bus for long rides, on dangerous roads, potentially exposing them to significant danger, and that was a big concern - alas too late to do anything about it. It appears that concern is expressed only when nothing is going to be done about it.

#5: As a group, a number of parents have for months been working hard to find a good solution to reducing the costs of operating Silverado, including cutting costs, and setting up a Charter Environmental Science School to relieve Orange district from financial responsibility for the school. However the majority of the board have not worked with us, and several in fact will not respond to our requests to meet or discuss options. May I remind you that the school board is an elected body put in place to carry out the education of the community’s children. The majority of the board’s lack of willingness to work with us is, frankly, far beneath the dignity of your positions.

#6: The canyon community are the only children in OUSD now being asked to travel as much as 19 miles to get to the nearest school, Chapman Hills. Orange Unified is willing to include us in their tax base, and is willing to take our state money for each student in their district, but the majority of the board is unwilling to provide a school within a reasonable distance from our homes. No other child in the district – NOT ONE - has a school more than a mile or two from their home.

#7: Property values in our canyon community will be negatively affected by having no school within reasonable proximity. No other community in the Orange district will be left without a school close by. Families with children will not want to move into our canyons because of this.

And it goes on and on…

Therefore, I am formally requesting a response to each of the above complaints about the failure of the board to responsibly carry out their elected duties. I wish to know how those who voted to close Silverado elementary can justify the above actions and consider yourselves to be in compliance with your elected duties as board members. I will e-mail a copy of this letter to each on the board who voted for closure, including the superintendent, and I respectfully request not to be ignored – rather, I expect the issues to be “researched and responded to” by each of you, as stated by President Ledesma.

Sincerely,

Jeffrey Wilson, father of two children from Silverado elementary

WANTED: Angry Parent with Law Degree

2009-06-02T12:07:00.000-07:00

A friend asked me how the fight to save the school was going.

Well, I replied, the more we learn about the fate the OUSD board has chosen for our children, the angrier we get.

What you need, he advised, is an angry parent with a law degree.

What angers me today?

A concerned parent shared the following information with me:

The district’s recently released bus schedule will have children in Modjeska Canyon board the school bus at 6:30 am in order to get to Chapman Hills Elementary by 8 am, a 1 ½ hour, 19 mile ride. The children face the same length of time for the return trip in the afternoon.

Furthermore, a portion of that 1 ½ hour ride will combine high school and junior high students with the elementary school students on the same bus. This is a situation that is usually avoided due to the potential exposure of elementary school students to the talk and behavior of the older students.

In addition one of the groups - perhaps the younger students - will be pulled off the bus at a certain point and transferred to yet another bus.

This plan does not serve the interests of our children or our community - nor the stated mission of the OUSD: "...being committed to continual improvement, [OUSD] will offer a learning environment of excellence,with high expectations, to provide each student with the opportunity to be able to compete in the global economy."

Instead of educational opportunities, the children of the canyons are being offered three hours of daily bus travel, which, in some seasons will begin on chilly mornings before dawn.

The failure of the elected board members and the superintendent to face this issue is shameful.
*

Scenes from Silverado's 103rd Open House

2009-05-20T08:05:00.000-07:00

The parents gathered, teachers were introduced, pizza was sold by Girl Scouts, proud students shared their work, classrooms were visited and admired - all was well except for the looming closure.

One wonders why the board of trustees and the superintendent didn't take the time to visit the little school in the canyon on this warm spring evening.

Surely if they believe so much in their decision they should stand behind it publicly, facing the very children and people it affects the most.

Their silence is deafening.

*

OUSD to Receive over $7 Million in Federal Stimulus Money

2009-05-14T11:27:00.000-07:00

The Monday May 11 edition of the OC Register carried Fermin Leal's story on the federal stimulus money headed toward OC school districts.

The county's school districts will receive a combined total of $125.6 million.

What's our share?

Orange Unified School District is slated to receive $7,533,299.

Leal writes:

The money will go toward districts' general funds, meaning districts will have flexibility over where to spend. Much of the funding will go to help reduce the number of layoffs, state and local officials have said.

To read the rest of the article, click here.
*

Superintendent Dreier Writes a Letter

2009-05-08T08:54:00.001-07:00

Parent and Silverado school supporter Jeff Wilson received the following letter yesterday:

Good Morning, Dr. Wilson:

On behalf of Dr. Dreier, the following letter is being forwarded to you:

May 7, 2009

Dr. Wilson:

With regard to your request to place an action item on the May 12th agenda regarding the closure of Silverado Elementary School, please be advised that this subject is governed by the provisions of Government Code 54954.3

“The agenda need not provide an opportunity for members of the public to address the legislative body on any item that has already been considered by a committee, composed exclusively of members of the legislative body, at a public meeting wherein all interested members of the public were afforded the opportunity to address the committee on the item, before or during the committee's consideration of the item…”

The Board of Education took formal action to close Silverado School at the March 12th meeting due to the impact of budgetary pressures on the District. After consultation with the Board President, it has been determined that your item request to reconsider the closure of Silverado Elementary School will not be placed on the May 12th agenda.

Sincerely,
Renae Dreier

Concerned parents and community members will be meeting Monday May 11 at 8 AM at Silverado Elementary School to discuss this and other matters. Please join us.
*

Traffic Report and Analysis

2009-05-01T09:01:00.000-07:00

With the assistance of the county transportation department and the Office of Supervisor Bill Campbell and the dedicated work of the usual suspects, the following report was complied and distributed this week to the OUSD Board of Trustees and Superintendent Drier. I've had to adapt it for blog posting as my limited computer skills don't allow me to post the tables of statistics.

Silverado Elementary School is located at 7531 Santiago Canyon Road, about a half-mile from the entrance to Silverado Canyon and about two miles from the entrance of Modjeska Canyon. Buses travel through Silverado, Williams and Modjeska canyons to pick up and drop off students each morning and afternoon. Roads in the canyons are narrow and winding, with low tree branches and other obstacles. Live Oak Canyon Road and Trabuco Road are included in this report because if Silverado Elementary closes, a number of families will use those roads to drive their children to Trabuco Elementary, a school with a similar teaching and administrative philosophy and similar in size to Silverado.

Orange County provided traffic counts for the years 2006, 2007, 2008 and January through March 2009. The figures indicate that Santiago Canyon is heavily traveled, carrying an average of 6,000 vehicles a day. In an average year, Santiago experiences 19 traffic accidents, with an average of 12 injuries and one fatality.

While Live Oak carries about half the number of vehicles per day as Santiago, it has almost twice as many accidents. The annual average is 38 accidents, with 21 injuries and three fatalities.

Silverado Canyon Road averages 6.7 accidents a year and the two Modjeska Roads (Modjeska Canyon and Modjeska Grade) average 1.3 accidents a year.

Buses will likely pick up children from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., then bring the kindergarten students home between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. Other students will travel home from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. From 2006 through 2008, Santiago Canyon Road experienced 27 accidents during these hours. Live Oak Canyon Road had 31; Silverado had 8 and the two Modjeska Roads, three.

The statistics reveal that the canyon roads are dangerous to travel and the risk of collision increases with mileage gained on Santiago Canyon Road toward the city of Orange or Live Oak Road toward Trabuco Elementary School.

When road closures occur, as they often do along Santiago Canyon Road, at Jamboree or the 241, it creates a significant hardship for our parents who need to transport the children to and from downtown schools. When the road is closed parents and/or buses must go all the way south to Lake Forest to get on the 5 freeway or 241 toll road, then travel to Orange to deliver or pick up children. This commute takes an additional hour (and the tolls are expensive). It is a distance of approximately 25-30 miles each way. As many of the elementary school children also attend the Silverado Children's Center (25 ages K-6), they are currently safeguarded from this problem. Since they are in nurtured professional care until 6 pm, their parents delayed by emergencies as this one can arrive to pick them up safely regardless. They are not sitting at a city school awaiting someone to get them….whenever they get there.

We feel that the singular solution to these safety and welfare issues is to keep Silverado Elementary School open in its current location on Santiago Canyon Road, where it is more safely and easily accessed by those going to and from school from both Modjeska and Silverado Canyon directions.

In conclusion, we respectfully but urgently offer that this traffic report and analysis, combined with the negative community economic impact report we provided OUSD at the last meeting --- in addition to the ongoing effort to create an Environmental Science Education Curriculum plan for our school --- warrants not only your renewed attention but your support of Silverado Elementary, a California Distinguished School and an important and essential facility among OUSD schools.

Please consider writing additional letters to the OUSD board and the superintendent citing this critical information.

The next OUSD board meeting is Tuesday May 12.

Thanks!
*

Keep Those Cards and Letters Coming!

2009-04-30T07:51:00.000-07:00

Writing letters in order to communicate our needs and concerns as constituents - and to further inform our elected representatives and public education employees about critical issues - is an essential part of a vibrant democratic process.

We hope that you continue to be part of our efforts to defend the interests of our community and its children.

Our ongoing review of the county transportation department statistics has revealed that the OUSD-sanctioned option of busing students 1.5-2 hours daily into Orange puts them at risk. In addition, when road closures occur, as they often do along Santiago Canyon Road, at Jamboree or the 241, bussed students or parents who choose to transport their own children to school, will be forced to detour through Lake Forest, another additional commuting hour. We will publish our full report on this issue soon.
Please write another letter or email today.

Here's one that was sent yesterday to all the trustees and the superintendent:

Dear OUSD Board President, Members and Superintendent:

I am a parent of a first grader at Silverado, and have addressed the Board a few times in recent months. I am writing once again to ask you to please, please consider a revote on the closure of our school. We are working hard to do our part as engaged parents and community members, but need your support. Please do agendize our request for the next Board meeting. We are confident that another discussion --- this one surrounding the profoundly harmful impact on our community, problems of transportation safety, and the possibilities of our Environmental Science model --- will suggest another way of solving the problem, and of keeping open this singularly historic and vital community resource.

Respectfully,

Andrew Tonkovich
Parent, Silverado Elementary School

The next OUSD board meeting is Tuesday May 12.
*

Community Mobilizes to Make O'Neill Elementary a Charter School

2009-04-27T21:48:00.000-07:00

O'Neill Elementary School is slated for closure and concerned community members are beginning to get organized.

From the OC Register:

A group of parents seeking to prevent the permanent closure of O'Neill Elementary School this June is making one last effort to keep the beloved, 41-year-old campus open – imploring school officials to turn it into a charter school.

Saddleback Valley Unified School District trustees listened to nearly an hour of testimony Tuesday from parents and community members who urged the school board to reopen the Mission Viejo campus as an independent educational facility, free from many of the rules and funding constraints that limit traditional public schools.

"I know these are tough economic times, but brain power has to be kicked in," said Mission Viejo parent Bill Brennan, whose two kids went through O'Neill. "Do something good with this school. It's a great asset for the school district."

To read the rest, click here.

The Safety of Canyon Roads

2009-04-24T21:49:00.000-07:00

The OUSD Board's decision to close of Silverado Elementary School will result in some students being bussed daily into Chapman Hills Elementary School in Orange (estimated 1.5-2 hours round trip) and other students traveling along Santiago Canyon Road and Live Oak Canyon to reach the closer school, Trabuco Elementary.

Both options present danger to the students.

There have been two fatal accidents on Live Oak Canyon Road in the last two weeks. According to a January 2009 OC Register article, since 2005, there have been 206 collisions with 164 injuries and seven fatalities along the same stretch of road - but of course, that was before the recent tragedies.

More information regarding the daily commute to Orange soon.

(Photo above from the Orange County Register.)

Silverado Children's Center in Peril

2009-04-20T09:29:00.000-07:00

The April 16 Board Meeting

2009-04-17T10:08:00.000-07:00

Last night, five community members spoke to the OUSD Board of Trustees on behalf of Silverado Elementary School and our community.

Silverado resident Jeff Wilson, parent of a first grader at the school, presented the following request:

Please consider this our formal request to add the following action item to the May 12 board meeting agenda: the reconsideration of the closure of Silverado Elementary School. Accompanying this request are several documents that contain both updated and new information regarding our school. We believe that this information sheds new light as regards the decision to close Silverado Elementary, and justifies revisiting the issue.

It has come to our attention that we may not have clarified certain elements of our proposal to set up an environmental Science and Technology Charter School on the Silverado Elementary campus. Specifically we did not clarify the negative economic impact that closing the school would have on the Canyon Community. Furthermore, several budget issues have changed for the better for next year. Plus, we have secured potential pledges for funds to assist the process of setting up the charter, dependant on the school remaining open. It has also come to our attention that state funding may be available for Necessary Small Schools, which perhaps has not been investigated by the District. Finally, it is important to realize that closing Silverado Elementary would result in the Canyon Community being the only community within the Orange Unified District that will not have an elementary school a few minutes away from students' homes. (See map provided.)

One more extremely important point must be mentioned. It is expected that anywhere from 25 to 50 students will either transfer to another district or receive home schooling if Silverado Elementary closes. Even the most conservative estimate of 25 students will result in a loss of ADA revenue of more than $137,000 for Orange Unified District. The projected amount saved by the district if Silverado is closed is approximately $199,000 for the year 2009/2010. However, this figure does not include the interdistrict transfers and home schooling losses. In fact, the true “savings” figure for the district if Silverado closes is somewhere between $62,000 and an actual loss of over $100,00. This alone makes the closure a poor decision.

Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to review these documents.

*
Thanks to all the folks who took time to attend the meeting. Please keep keep communicating to the board and local elected officials. Educate them on the impact this closure will have on our community. Use the information on the sidebar to help you direct your letters and emails.
*

OUSD Board of Trustee meeting Thursday April 16th

2009-04-14T17:09:00.000-07:00

The OUSD board of trustees will meet again on this Thursday April 16.

We will once again ask them to reconsider the closure. We will remind them that this decision is devastating to our community and sets a bad precedent in terms of budget decisions.

We will submit cards to speak, and expect to be allowed our 3 minutes per person, 20 minutes total for topic after either item 11 or item 15. Note that the Board will not respond to us because we are not an agendized item. These are the two public comment opportunities.

Those planning to speak should write out comments and stick to time limit, be polite if firm.

You can also simply attend the meeting without speaking. Your presence also sends a message - and boosts those who do speak!

OUSD headquarters is at 1401 N. Handy St.in Orange.

The meeting begins at 7 PM.

See you there!

How Saddleback Valley Does it

2009-04-13T07:46:00.001-07:00

How are other districts handling the economic crisis?

We know that nearby Saddleback Valley Unified opted to close McNeill and La Tierra. Their "rural" school, Trabuco Elementary, remains open, operating as an elementary school and also as destination for district field trips.

How did SVUSD come to this decision? SVUSD "found it vital to develop measurable, objective criteria. Any other method would produce potentially biased and invalid results."

Their criteria included: distances traveled; distances between schools; path of travel to schools; student residences and school locations; contiguous and non-contiguous school locations; transportation needs and neighborhood schools and schools of attendance - as well as enrollment, special programs and support space.

I was particularly impressed with the committee's work in terms of their evaluation of the projected impact on other schools, safe path of travel, distance traveled and busing costs.

Their decision-making appears to be one that is thoughtful and thorough and takes into consideration that the mission of the district is to meet the educational needs of all the children who live within the district. And their staff seems so confident in the process that they are willing to share it with the public. Impressive.

SVUSD has posted all this material and more online. To review it, click here.

Continue to communciate to the OUSD board. Ask them what criteria they used to determine the closure of Silverado Elementary.

*

Thanks for all support this weekend at the holiday pancake breakfasts!

*

Round-Up

2009-04-09T05:48:00.000-07:00

Chris Jepsen, who works at the Orange County Archives and maintains the blog, O.C. History Round-Up, has taken note of our struggles to defend Silverado Elementary School.

There's an ongoing dicussion on his blog about the oldest school in OC which continues to operate. Silverado is right up there though outpaced by the likes of Loara Elementary School in Anaheim (1888) and St. Catherine's Military Academy in Anaheim, next to St. Boniface Church, (1889.)

You can check out his coverage by clicking here.

It's nice to be noticed.

Across the state, districts are making tough choices in these hard times. Closure of schools seem to be a step most want to avoid.

What is often the first? Summer school.

You'll recall that the OUSD board voted to shutter Silverado on the same evening they opted to keep summer school open.

Meanwhile, I've just noticed that there's a move afoot up north where the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to consider using money from their Rainy Day Fund to avert teacher layoffs.

Makes a girl think.

*

Letters to distribute at festivities this weekend can be picked up today and tomorrow at the Children's Center.

*

Enjoy the holidays. Posting will be light until next week.

"The power of a simple story in the paper, I think, can still matter."

2009-04-08T06:47:00.000-07:00

Over at LA Observed, Kevin Roderick blogs about Daily News sports columnist Tom Hoffarth.

On his blog, Farther off the Wall, Hoffarth had written about the plight of the old Wrigley Field in South Los Angeles where the Wrigley Little League still plays where left field used to be.

That post led to a story in the Daily News which in turn led to donations.

Hoffarth writes:

The intent of the story wasn't to try to drum up donations for this obviously hurting Little League, but that's the interesting residue of stories like this sometimes. You find the goodness of people who see a need and then act upon it...

...The power of a simple story in the paper, I think, can still matter.

For the rest of the story click here and here.

I too believe that a simple story can still matter. I've had a couple queries lately about what more the press can do - well, they can do what they do best - write, report, investigate.

After all, as we discovered this weekend, many people were unaware of the school closure. This sad fact points to the danger of the diminishing press presence and the special vulnerability of small communities like ours at this time. Can you have a functioning democracy without a vibrant press? The public officials who make poor decisions benefit when those decision are known by few -and the people suffer.

If a school closes in the woods and no one is there to report on it - does anyone hear? Does anyone care?

I do know that these are tough times for journalism. I have friends who have lost their jobs and are now faced with devastating professional and personal consequences - but I still pin my hopes on the newspaper I used to deliver and the one I still read everyday to do what it's always done - show people the world, inform them, make them care.

*

Epistolary in Modjeska

2009-04-05T20:35:00.000-07:00

Letter writers who visited our table at the Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary were eager on Saturday, chatty and encouraging.

Volunteers from our ad hoc band of parents and community activists had set up a table under the mighty oaks adjacent the Tucker’s recently refurbished interpretive center, all of this remarkable and thoughtful improvement coordinated by the amazing Marcella. We were stationed next to a nifty outfit called Wild Birds Unlimited, displaying all manner of bird watching accoutrements. They run a store in Mission Viejo and are the smartest fellas you want to meet when it comes to attracting songbirds to your property.

And, attracted like birds to suet and sunflower seeds to the lovely schoolhouse model on display, visitors to this First Annual Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary Spring Bird Fair and Art Show flocked around our little table. Impressive indeed was how eager they seemed to do their modest part toward saving our school. More remarkable was how many people, even locals from Modjeska and Silverado, did not even know that the OUSD school board had voted to close the school, voting on its shuttering as a line item a few weeks ago.

This is, of course, why we were here in beautiful Modjeska Canyon on a sunny and clear spring morning: to do the work which local media might have, were there any left. Alas, the Register has reported on our situation intermittently and only online. And the LA Times, teetering it seems on the edge of closure (how can the paper get any smaller?) hasn’t even mentioned us. Where's Dana Parsons when you need him? The Sentry, god bless ‘em, is a monthly paper. So, indeed, how is anybody gonna even know what the OUSD Board of Trustees does - or any board for that matter?

This is, as we remind our son, a lesson in democracy. The letters, the organizing, Thursday evenings spent in meetings rather than at home. Democracy is noisy and time-consuming and requires us to pay attention and to engage.

We would love it if the weekly KPCC (89.3 FM, public radio) Orange County roundtable reporters who meet to talk about our county would mention the closure, but understand that there are a lot of journalistic fish to fry. But the failure of a board to keep open a vital and historic school seems to us here at Save Silverado the kind of story you’d want to talk about.

Anyway, when we briefed the birdwatchers, birdlovers, canyon visitors and ecophiles visiting the displays, artist booths and listening to live music of what was up with our kids call "the down school,” you couldn’t keep these good citizens from signing their names to the pre-printed letters we offered and including their addresses. And, even though we offered to pay the postage ourselves, these good folks left us $28.75 in the donations jar.

So, yes, people in and out of the canyons, parents and non-parents and grandparents and people who had parents care about the closure of Silverado Elementary and want to share their support for our efforts and do their bit to ask the board to reconsider.

We need folks who are willing to circulate letters at upcoming events this weekend - let us know and we'll give you a few.

*

Saturday April 4: Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary

2009-04-02T08:16:00.000-07:00

Join us this this Saturday April 4 as we table at the Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary Spring Bird Fair and Art Walk. We'll be providing sample letters for folks to sign and distributing information about Silverado Elementary School. The Silverado Children's Center will also be raising funds by selling baked goods.

The Tucker, as locals commonly refer to it, is operated by Cal State Fullerton and located at the far end of Modjeska Canyon. It should be a beautiful spring day in the canyon, so come join us and see what's new at the Tucker. If you haven't visited in awhile, you will be surprised at all the changes.

This event will feature entertainment and activities for the whole family and an opportunity for local artists and crafters to display their products.

There will be live music, crafts for children, an art walk, and craft demonstrations.

This event is free to the public.

9 AM - 5 PM
Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary
29322 Modjeska Canyon Rd

"find the political courage"

2009-04-01T07:06:00.000-07:00

Modjeska Canyon resident and longtime Irvine high school teacher Jim Mamer sent the following letter to OUSD Superintendent Dreier on Tuesday March 31.

Superintendent Renae Dreier:

Andrew Tonkovich’s statement at the board meeting of March 26th is probably better than anything I might write. And I’m pretty sure that you remember it, but I’d like to add a couple of comments.

I live in these canyons with my wife, three cats, and dozens of friends, but I teach in Irvine at Northwood High and I often share my experience of living in this very old and very beautiful canyon with my students. Amazingly, almost none of them even know that these homes are here. They don’t know about the riparian streams or the variety of birds. They don’t know what California really looks like. So I talk. I talk about the two old oak trees in front of my home. I talk about the meetings we have at the volunteer fire station. I talk about stars that are still visible in a canyon without streetlights. I talk about the sounds of cicadas in the oak trees of summer, and the frogs, and the nuisance of the small black flies that come every August. I talk about the winds that sweep through the canyons – sometimes cold and sometimes hot. I talk about what it is like to share a bottle of wine with neighbors while watching the sun set on hills that are older than the country we live in. I talk about listening to an owl call out from the dark. I talk about the sense of community we all experienced when the fires surrounded us.

As you may or may not know we have a lot to be thankful for in these hills, but of course, as you certainly know, we’ve been through a lot recently with the fires and the smoke and the ashes. After listening, my students always respond with questions: How far away is Modjeska? How many HOURS does it take to get to work? It sounds like a different planet. How old is your house? Do you really know your neighbors? Can you really see the stars?

I’m sure that you understand my point. I’m sure you understand that Andrew was right when he noted that ours is a singular community; small, unique, remote, and politically vulnerable. Of course, I also understand that you have the power to close the school, but I doubt you understand that, as Andrew said, the school is one thread that weaves our families together. Did you take him seriously when he charged that you are helping to dismantle this community? Did you really believe that?

Personally, I find it absurd that we cannot, as one of the richest countries on earth, find the political courage to tax each other sufficiently to pay our bills in good times. And I find it equally absurd that we cannot, in bad times, find the political courage to maintain what is unique. You still have an opportunity to take advantage of that uniqueness. You still have an opportunity to build an environmental science program to which kids in the suburbs of Orange might elect to attend – if you let them.

I like to imagine what it would be like, if some of these potential students ever hear someone from these canyons talk about the sounds of oak cicadas and frogs, the nuisance of the small insects, and the winds crying through the canyons, I imagine how different it might be if a few more students in Orange don’t have to ask: How far away is Modjeska? because they would know from personal experience that this is what California is really like – was really like – and could be like again. I imagine what it might be like if a few more students learn the difference between native plants and transplanted, water hungry lawns.

In the end you will do what you will, but I’m afraid that Andrew was wrong about one thing - closing the last remote elementary school in Orange will not be your failure and your loss. It will be our loss, our county’s loss, and our state’s loss. It may well mark an end to what we offer and the beginning of a time when all of this will disappear into traffic, condominiums, starless skies, and graffiti. But it doesn't have to.

Jim Mamer

*

Keep writing those letters. Check the sidebar on the right for more information.

The Santiago Fire vs. Silverado Elementary School

2009-03-31T08:27:00.000-07:00

"The closing of a school should be seen by any measure as a profound failure"

2009-03-30T06:09:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, March 26th, Andrew Tonkovich, Modjeska Canyon resident and father of six-year-old Louis, addressed the OUSD board:

This board made a very poor decision two weeks ago, and we are back tonight to ask you to please reconsider. The closing of a school should be seen by any measure as a profound failure, in this case your failure. It is the absolute worst decision any board can make, notwithstanding one member’s assurance that the campus might somehow be reopened at a future time. The standard for judging your success as a group of elected decision makers is not in your ability, finally, to transport students on a bus or to sacrifice one one community toward presumably preserving another.

(Louis Tonkovich on March 5, 2009)

Our little elementary school is, we know, a singular campus in a singular community. We are indeed small and unique and remote and politically vulnerable. It seems that we are also the test-run decision for a worst-case scenario, perhaps as a way to see what the rest of the district will put up with by way of closing other schools. But so far we have been the singular worst case.

I know that your decision was for you individually a difficult one to make, but it was, finally, also just too easy. Close the smallest school, regardless of the actual savings, regardless of the effect on pedagogy, regardless of the impact on kids. Isolate and abandon and use as an object lesson the school with the fewest children.

(Silverado Elementary students, circa 1918)

I’m still not sure you understand the likely effect on our community, even though we have explained that the school is the thread that weaves our families and citizens together. In giving up on our school you are now helping to dismantle our community.

And that is also your failure, and your loss. Because you have in our Silverado group activist parents, community members, educators, environmental ed managers and administrators, potential donors and grant writers and business folk who asked you only to please, please give us a chance to work on something with you, to propose a way out --- who offered you a chance to not close a school.

(Silverado Elementary Students, circa 1930)

Our plan was --- is --- viable and real, a program for an environmental sciences education campus that could positively address not just the short-term difficult decision but build for a brighter future --- not only for the canyons but for the district.

We are still here, and still asking. We have not given up, and we have not given up on you. Please. We need your imprimatur, your sponsorship, we need one year to help all of us in the district --- not just Silverado Elementary --- be creative, risky, imaginative and brave. Closing a school is, finally, just not acceptable. I am confident that you know that too, and I hope that some among you will be brave enough to see that you have a chance, still, to revisit a mistake, to address a mistake, and to try harder. We pledge to do our part and you can know that the faith you will have won from not just our community but the entire district will be profound and long-lived.

(Silverado Elementary School, circa 1930)

*

Write those letters and emails! See the sidebar on the right for more information.

*

"They need to cut the money at the top"

2009-03-29T10:49:00.000-07:00

In the March 25th edition of the OC Register, Kimberly Edds reports on the funding crisis facing the Orange County Fire Authority.

Edds interviews Modjeska Canyon resident Janice Beasley whose home was lost in the October 2007 Santiago fire.

excerpt:

"The help needs to go to our fire department," she said. "We didn't have enough help to begin with, and now this?"

The Santiago fire destroyed 15 homes in the canyon communities of Modjeska and Trabuco. ..For more than a year, the Beasleys have been living out of a trailer. They lost most of their possessions and relied on friends and neighbors for handouts.

Budget crisis or not, Beasley's anger at the cutbacks spilled out to include the announced closing of nearby Silverado Elementary School and other things she sees as community necessities.

"They need to cut the money at the top, from the salaries of the senators and the other politicians who continue to get raises," Beasley said. "My husband took a pay cut because of the poor economy – why not these people?"

To read the article in its entirety, click here.

Janice Beasley makes an excellent point about the need to chop from the top, one that you might want to echo in your letters to local elected officals.

Please see the recently updated sidebar to the right for information on how you can communciate our concerns to those who can make a difference.

*

A Father Speaks: Do no harm

2009-03-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

A number of people spoke at the Thursday March 26 OUSD board meeting. Here's an excerpt from one statement.

Tim Thompson was accompanied to the podium by his seven-year-old son Cole who was dressed in a fireman's outfit. Thompson had this to say:

"Saddleback Unified School District got it right too. They got it right about utilizing a small school as an asset rather than as a “liability of inefficiency," "a “burden,” as Silverado has been portrayed by some, Saddleback Unified not only saved Trabuco Elementary [their district's so-called small, rural school] , they turned it in to a money making, revenue generating school. And not just for the small surrounding Trabuco community, but they developed it into a resource for all of the citizens and students throughout their district. They bring in a 100 students a day on buses from around their district at $15.00 per student. That's $1,500.00 per day, $4,500 per week, $18,000 per month. Trabuco is still a small school of 75 students, but unlike all the other schools, it’s paying its way and then some.

(At left, Tim Thompson and his son Cole at the March 12 OUSD meeting.OC Register photo)

The OUSD has been given a proposal by the canyon community that has been 2 years in its genesis. The plan is to create a similar self-sustaining charter/magnet school for Silverado. We need time, a short amount of time, one year. We urge the four trustees revisit this decision for a reconsideration based on these factors:

1. The new financial changes to the – (negative) side of the revenue issue, following the latest offer from Ms. Pat Evans.

2. The polling results since the board’s vote on March 12, which shows that as of today 50% of existing Silverado students will transfer out of OUSD at a cost of approximately $200,000 in lost ADA revenue. These transfers are not to be construed as a threat. Rather, these are the very real actions of a determined community to see that their children/students grow and prosper in the environment in which they live and are intimately a part of - a rural habitat not a city setting.

3. The millions of dollars of economic stimulus money that is slated to begin coming into California schools.

Is OUSD able to provide a school for environmental programs & green technology? Absolutely. What school in OUSD could possibly offer anything remotely close to what Silverado is surrounded by, the Irvine Co’s 360 degree open space preserve of wilderness lands and trails?

We ask that you follow the lead of your fellow three trustees that see these possibilities. They got it right! Join them. Look beyond this rhetoric of so called inefficiencies. Don’t hide behind them.

Do no harm to a canyon community that is the last living reminder of the previous 100 years that has all but vanished from the Orange County of today.

(Tim Thompson and his son Cole march to OUSD headquarters on March 5, 2009)

My son Cole, standing here in his fireman’s outfit, is wanting to remind the four trustees who voted for Silverado’s closure that the volunteer firefighters of Modjeska and Silverado who placed themselves in harm’s way and risked their lives in October 2007 to save the school.

You four trustees who voted for Silverado’s closure, dwell deeply on this:

Did these community volunteer fireman take on such a risk for the sake of preventing the school buildings from being lost? Or rather did they risk life and limb to save what they knew deep in their hearts was one of the most valued assets of the entire canyon community? Silverado - this small school with six rooms and a little library, that their own children have attended for over a 100 years and is truly a cornerstone of their rural community.

Follow your fellow three Trustees. Revisit this decision. Reconsider it. Get it right!

Thank you."

How the LAUSD Does It

2009-03-27T08:09:00.000-07:00

Celeste Fremon, who teaches in the Literary Journalism program at UC Irvine and blogs at Witness LA, has written a post about how the Los Angeles Unified School District is cutting $718 million out of its budget. Ouch.

Now I know that the LAUSD is a big beast of a school district but Fremon's post and the LA Times article she cites have lessons for our own OUSD situation.

For example, the LAUSD has pinkslipped some 4700 teachers but as the Times and Fremon point out, an internal audit reveals some interesting expenditures. Case in point, some $17 million spent on unqualified, unecessary consultants.

To check it out, click here.

And then, somebody, let's start looking at OUSD expenditures.

As Fremon writes, "Perhaps this is the sort of thing that some nice, smart group of investigative journalism students ought to be looking at a little more closely. Hint, hint."

*****

(Stay tuned for an update on last night's meeting. Thanks to all who turned out. Needless to say, the struggle continues. Keep those cards and letters and emails coming, folks.)
*

The March 26th Meeting

2009-03-25T14:25:00.000-07:00

This morning while we were having breakfast and preparing for the day ahead, my family was listening to the radio. Our typical morning soundtrack is National Public Radio’s Morning Edition. As one story ended and another began, my son spoke up. “Why,” he asked, “aren’t they talking about how they’re going to close Silverado?”

“Good question,” his father answered and then began to explain the sad facts of information and power, the challenge of making our story matter, - or at least as much as you can explain to a six-year-old. “And that’s why we’re going to the meeting tomorrow night,” he said to him.

Indeed, tomorrow, on Thursday March 26th, the OUSD board of trustees will meet for the first time since their decision to shutter Silverado Elementary school. We will be there. Join us.

The meeting is an opportunity to do two things. First, we will remind the Board that we are still here, that we have a viable proposal for an environmental sciences charter school, and that all we need is one year to organize, propose, fund.

Second, we will update them on the fluid, ever-changing fiscal realities and correct the bad math that seems to have informed their decision. We will reframe the cost effectiveness argument to our advantage. We will offer the example of Principal Evans as one more change in the budget reality.

We plan to ask them to reconsider the closure, and to do that before May 18. We would like them to please revisit this decision, which is devastating to our community and sets a bad precedent in terms of budget decisions.

We will submit cards to speak, and expect to be allowed our 3 minutes per person, 20 minutes total for topic after either item 11 or item 15. Note that the Board will not respond to us because we are not an agendized item. These are the two public comment opportunities.

Those planning to speak should write out comments and stick to time limit, be polite if firm.

Please note that previous plans to gather in the morning and late afternoon have been canceled. Please join us for the meeting which begins at 7 PM. We'll be holding signs just before the meeting begins to greet the arrivals. You can attend the meeting to show support even if you do not choose to speak. The district headquarters is located at 1401 N. Handy Street

If you can’t attend the meeting, and you haven’t sent letters yet, please write them now. Mention the points cited above. And don’t worry – there will be more to do in the future.
Like my son, the children who attend Silverado Elementary are aware of our efforts and aware of the threat that faces their school. As we act in their defense, they are learning an important lesson. You fight for what matters. You do what you can with what you have. You work together to protect each other.

*

Silverado's Principal is Willing to Sacrifice

2009-03-24T08:44:00.000-07:00

In this challenging time of economic downturn and public outcry over the financial scandals, especially the AIG bailout and "bonuses," we are proud to have a role model at Silverado Elementary School, someone willing to make personal sacrifices in order to ensure that the education and safety of our children are not compromised.

In an unprecedented gesture from a civil servant, longtime Silverado Elementary School principal Ms. Pat Evans has volunteered to essentially forgo part of her compensation for administrating the school, (a portion of her salary as Evans is a split appointment employee) for the 2009-2010 school year in order to preserve the century-old school.

In addition to making her own sacrifice as a gesture of support for the school, Principal Evans has helpfully pointed out that a certain percentage of the school's secretarial and custodial services can be paid out of the Kindergarten Readiness Program.

Instead of ignoring her offer, the OUSD board should recognize for what it is: a selfless act that puts children first.

The board has in Ms. Evans an employee who more than fulfills her job description.

In Pat Evans, they have the beginnings of a solution to the crisis facing the district.

While not every administrator is in the position to make the kind of sacrifice Pat Evans is willing to make, the district leadership should be looking at what can be chopped from the top in order to serve the students.

The OUSD budget approved at the last board meeting totaled $244,597,788.00.

We believe that the budget can be and should be reconfigured to address Silverado Elementary's estimated negative impact of $151,000.

The proposal of Principal Pat Evans should be part of that plan.

We can make this work.

The Fire This Time

2009-03-23T09:56:00.000-07:00

A year and half ago our community was on fire. The Santiago firestorm was the first in a series that transfixed the nation. For weeks it seemed all Southern California was ablaze, from the Mexican border to the Central Coast. Eight days into the evacuation, our family was escorted back home by a sheriff. Miles of blackened devastation silenced all in the vehicle. Once-majestic oaks smoldered. But soon we came around a familiar bend on our rural canyon road and saw it: the long, squat school building, ringed by ashen fields, stood untouched. A silver ore mining cart, a relic of canyon history, stood proudly at the entrance. The raging fire jumped the road but our firefighters had defended the school. Not a miracle, no. Hard work and sacrifice by those who understood what a school means to a small community, as ours.

"Look," I pointed out to our son from the backseat of the sheriff's van, "There's your school. It survived."

Silverado Elementary School had been defended by our canyon’s volunteer fire forces who risked their lives to preserve the place that gives our community so much. Some of them are proud alumni of the little canyon school. Some of them sent their children to the school.

We’ll be asking those same firefighters to join us this Thursday as we ask the OUSD board to reconsider their mistake and re-open Silverado Elementary School.

Reach Out: Write Letters to State and National Representatives

2009-03-19T10:34:00.000-07:00

Help us reach out by writing letters to those to represent us on the state and national levels.

Assemblyman Jeff Miller
Room 3147, State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

To email Assemblyman Miller, click here.

State Senator Mimi Walters
Room 3082 , State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 94248-0001

To email Sen. Walters, click here.

Congressman Gary Miller
2349 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington D.C 20515

To email Congressman Miller, click here, then scroll down.

Sample Letter (cut and paste, or adapt and personalize as desired):

Esteemed _______________________,

As you may know, the Orange Unified School Board of Trustees voted to close Silverado Elementary at their last meeting on March 12, 2009, despite protests from children and families along with numerous letters, emails and verbal testimonies asking the board for one year to create the charter school.

Please join OC Supervisor Bill Campbell, Cal State Fullerton's Tucker Sanctuary, the O.C. Dept. of Education's "Inside the Outdoors" as well as many others in support of our school, especially the plan to transform Silverado Elementary School into a charter school with an environmental science and technology focus. We know that the plan for a charter school will not only sustain our community but will provide a long term solution to the crisis the district faces today as well as ready our children to face the challenges of tomorrow.

We hope to persuade OUSD trustees to reconsider the mistake to close the school at the upcoming April meetings. They will decide if we will be on the list of cuts on May 15, 2009. We also hope that OUSD will be known throughout the state as the district which was able to put children above all and the one that was able ride out this tough year without having to close a single school.

We hope you clearly see the same potential for our school as we do and understand the vital role a local school plays in a community, especially one like ours. A year and a half ago, when our community was threatened by wildfire, we appreciated the support we received from elected officials like you. We now face a similar threat. The school that survived that fire may not survive this one. We need your leadership on this critical issue.

Please communicate your support to the trustees of the OUSD and Superintendent Dreier.

Sincerely,

(your name here)

Do post your own letters in the comments section for others to read and make sure to get the word out to friends, neighbors and family.

There will be a meeting in Room 4 at Silverado Elementary School on Monday March 23, beginning just after 8 AM. Please join us if you can. We'll be making plans for that thursday's OUSD's board meeting - and beyond.

Thanks for all you do!

Write Letters to Supervisor Campbell!

2009-03-18T07:05:00.000-07:00

Supervisor Bill Campbell has lent his support to develop Silverado into a charter school with an environmental science focus. He has pledged to raise $100,000 toward that effort.

Please contact his office and let him know that we need his leadership now more than ever.

In your letters, thank him for his support and ask him to stand with us on March 26th as we ask the OUSD board to reconsider their mistake and re-open Silverado Elementary School.

email: Bill.Campbell@ocgov.com

U.S. Post: Office of Supervisor Bill Campbell
Orange County Board of Supervisors
10 Civic Center Plaza
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Letters can be simple and direct. Please feel free to cut and paste or otherwise adapt this sample letter:

Dear Supervisor Campbell,

Thank you for your continued support of canyon issues, especially your commitment to help transform Silverado Elementary into a charter school with an environmental focus. Clearly you see the same potential for our school as we do and understand the vital role a local school plays in a community, especially one like ours.

As you know, the OUSD Board of Trustees voted to close Silverado at their March 12, 2009 last meeting.

We hope to persuade them to reconsider their mistake at the upcoming meetings. We hope that OUSD will be known throughout the state as the district which was able to put children above all and the one that was able ride out this tough year without having to close a single school.

We know and you know that our plan for a charter school will not only sustain our community but will provide a long term solution to the crisis the district faces.

Please communicate your support to the trustees of the OUSD and Superintendent Dreier.

Sincerely,

*****
Remember to write your letters to OUSD board members (see sidebar on the right). Get your neighbors, friends and family members to do the same.

All Hands on Deck: Thursday March 26

2009-03-16T12:05:00.000-07:00

The OUSD board of trustees will meet again on Thursday March 26 and we'll be there to greet employees in the morning and meeting attendees in the evening with our message:

RECONSIDER YOUR MISTAKE
RE-OPEN SILVERADO

PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED PICKETS HAVE BEEN CANCELED. SEE MOST CURRENT POST FOR DETAILS.

OUSD headquarters is at 1401 N. Handy St.in Orange.

BEFORE the meeting, write letters to the Superintendent and the Board of Trustees. See the sidebar to the right for more information and guidance. See the comments section to read letters others have sent -and do post your own!

Remember to bookmark this site and visit daily. Send a link and pass the word to neighbors, friends and family.

Don't forget to vote in the poll on the sidebar!

OUSD March 12 Board Meeting

2009-03-15T16:05:00.000-07:00

From the Orange County Register:

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Silverado Elementary to shut its doors
Orange Unified trustees OK plan to boost class sizes, kill middle school sports and reduce high school counselors.
By FERMIN LEAL

ORANGE Orange Unified trustees voted 4-3 today to close Silverado Elementary as part of an effort to trim $33.1 million from the district budget...

...About 150 parents, teachers and others attended the meeting to hear about the proposals. Several of the Silverado parents attended to plead with board members.

...Silverado parents and residents had been working for weeks to save their small school. The group tried to persuade district officials to convert the campus into a magnet or charter focused on environmental sciences and technology. Community members said they've been raising money through grants so the school could remain open for at least one more year.

To read in its entirety, click here.