SIMI VALLEY : Board to Vote on Middle School Plan
One of the most divisive issues in Simi Valley education could be resolved tonight when school board members vote again on whether to create middle schools.
The school board voted 3 to 2 last December to adopt a plan that would reconfigure the Simi Valley Unified School District beginning next fall. However, with the election of a new school board member who opposes reconfiguration and the retirement of a board member who favors it, support for the change is waning.
Under the plan, elementary schools would include kindergarten through fifth grade, middle schools would accommodate grades six through eight and high schools would house nine through 12.
District administrators did not make a recommendation in the informational packet pertaining to the meeting.
“In December, 1991, I made a recommendation that it be implemented in August, 1993. I haven’t made any other recommendations,” Supt. Robert W. Purvis said Monday. “I’ve tried to stay out of the politics. My job is to implement their decisions.”
Board members decided two weeks ago to reconsider the issue shortly after board member-elect Debbie Sandland, who opposes reconfiguration, is sworn in tonight. The district would spend about $550,000 for one-time facility costs and about $426,000 annually to implement middle schools, officials said at the board meeting earlier this month.
The school board will meet at 7 p.m. tonight at Simi Valley City Hall, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road.
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