New Board Members Delay Approval of Middle School

Beverly Hills will have to wait another year for a middle school. Newly elected school board members last week changed the schedule for the venture.

The five-member board, four of whom took their seats in December, was to have given the go-ahead in January so that the school could open in the fall, said Dana Tomarken, president of the board and the only holdover from the previous panel.

Tomarken said the new board members decided to gather more information before launching the plan to convert Beverly Vista Elementary School into a 1,000-student middle school.

Until late April, board members and consultants will study a range of issues involving the middle school, including the following:

* What the impact would be on Beverly Vista students and teachers who would be reassigned to other campuses.

* The start-up costs.

* What staffing changes would be needed at the new middle school and at the three elementary schools receiving added students.

* Whether Beverly Vista is a suitable site for a middle school.

* What effect the project would have on traffic and the environment.

Tomarken said opening the school this year is “out of the question.” But if the board approves the project in May, kindergartners scheduled to start school at Beverly Vista in the fall would be routed to other schools, so they wouldn’t be reassigned after one year, she said.