ORANGE : Board Drops 6th Grade at West Orange School

Orange Unified School District trustees have decided to cease offering sixth-grade classes at West Orange Elementary School to cope with severe overcrowding.

The 85 sixth-graders from the school instead will attend Portola Middle School this fall.

The decision by the school board came this week after months of study by an advisory council and two public hearings on how to alleviate overcrowding on the east and west sides of the district.

Imperial Elementary School also was slated to drop its sixth grade, but subcommittees studying the issue determined that natural attrition will solve the problem until a new school is built. Imperial is now closed to new enrollment.

Attrition at West Orange Elementary is too variable for a similar plan, officials said. And nearby elementary schools are too full to handle the projected overload.

Parents at Wednesday’s meeting objected to having their sixth-graders mingle with older students.

“We feel the sixth-grade students are not ready, mentally, to go on to Portola,” parent Gladys Alvardo said.

Supt. Robert L. French pointed out that sixth-graders will have more educational opportunities at Portola because they can take elective courses.

A small group of sixth-graders already attend Portola Middle School, and Principal Susan Belenardo said they have had no problems.

Board members also assured parents that they can send their children to another elementary school through the district’s open-enrollment program.