Movable Classrooms to Be Used to Trim Class Sizes

Grappling with how to meet the state’s popular class-size reduction program, Irvine Unified School District trustees this week approved placing portable classrooms at all the district’s elementary schools by fall.

The additional classrooms mean the district can implement reduced class size for kindergarten through second grade.

Some parents and residents had been wary that portable classrooms would cause density problems, diminish athletic field space and create eyesores that could lower property values.

Most of the movable classrooms, which will be installed during the summer, are box-like structures, usually of a dull color.

After a series of public hearings, trustees managed to satisfy most residents’ concerns.

For instance, at Santiago Hills, the district’s most crowded school--largely because of its small size--trustees promised landscaping and ensured that the portables would be removed by next year.

Santiago Hills also will benefit from the district’s plan for an “instant school” by fall 1998, where portable structures will house 300 students until permanent buildings are erected.

Meanwhile, the district continues to seek ways to fund the program, Supt. Dennis M. Smith said.

While state money for school districts that shave class sizes to 20 or fewer students may increase from $650 to $666 per pupil next year, school officials want to see funding raised to as much as $900 per child to meet the district’s full costs.

The district is spending $400,000 in operating costs for full-day class-size reduction, Smith said. Another $2 million has been spent on building modifications.

Under the state incentive program, school districts are partially reimbursed for paring their first- and second-grade classes and either kindergarten or third-grade classes. The governor has proposed expanding the program to include another grade next year.

“We knew this was coming,” Smith said. “It’s a dilemma we are in. People want class-size reduction, but we have competing demands where we have to weigh the program with the impact on the neighborhood.”