The committee studying which public schools in Ventura to close will hold its final two meetings in the coming weeks before it hands its recommendations over for a decision by the school board.
The Ventura Unified School District is considering closing one or more schools at the end of the current school year due to low enrollment and has appointed a committee of 23 parents, teachers, students and other volunteers to help it decide the schools best to close. The committee has been meeting since March, and its last two meetings will be Oct. 1 and Oct. 8, according to an email sent to all Ventura Unified parents on Sept. 28.
The Oct. 1 meeting will be at Portola Elementary School at 5:30 p.m. The district has not announced a location for the Oct. 8
meeting.
In its email to parents, the district stated that the choice of Portola as a venue does not mean that school is likely to be recommended for closure. The committee has not held any of its previous meetings at school sites, but the crowds at the final two meetings are expected to be large, and the cafeteria at Portola has enough space and air conditioning.
After the advisory committee finishes its work, the matter will go to Ventura Unified's elected Board of Trustees, which will make the final decision.
The district has not announced yet when the board will vote, but on Oct. 15 the board will hold a special meeting. It will be structured as a "town hall," focused on giving the public the opportunity to speak to the board before the trustees begin their discussion.
The Oct. 15 board meeting will be at 6 p.m. in the auditorium at Buena High School.
The advisory committee meetings also have time set aside for public comment, but it is limited. At the last meeting, held Sept. 17, about 150 people attended to demonstrate support for keeping their schools open. A few dozen spoke to the committee, and they were limited to one minute each of speaking time.
So far, the advisory committee has eliminated four elementary schools from consideration, meaning they won't be recommended for closing. Those schools are Montalvo, Sunset, Citrus Glen and Loma Vista elementary schools.
The district also announced at the outset of the process that it will not consider closing either of its two large high schools, Ventura and Buena high schools.
That leaves 13 remaining elementary schools, two high schools and four middle schools that the committee is considering recommending for closure. By its final meeting on Oct. 8, it plans to put those schools in ranked order, as a recommendation to the Board of Trustees.
Tony Biasotti is an investigative and watchdog reporter for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tbiasotti@vcstar.com. This story was made possible by a grant from the Ventura County Community Foundation's Fund to Support Local Journalism. The foundation plays no role in story selection. The Star retains full editorial control.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Final meetings set for Ventura school closure committee
