Parents to get say in school changes

Families in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District may have just one more chance to comment on the configuration of Costa Mesa elementary schools, as the district plans to hold a study session on Tuesday before the school board makes a ruling.

In March, a group of parents in the Costa Mesa zone — which covers the central part of the city and includes five elementary schools and a combined middle school and high school — asked that all the elementary schools in the neighborhood be expanded to serve upper grades. Of the five schools, only Killybrooke Elementary offers kindergarten through the sixth grade. Sonora, Paularino and College Park elementary schools serve students up to third grade, and Davis Elementary has fourth through sixth grade classes.

At 3 p.m. Tuesday, before its first meeting of the year, the school board plans to hold a public study session to hear parents’ opinions on the grade configurations. The board expects to rule on the matter by the end of February.

“We’ve notified everyone by mail, so we hope we have everyone who’s interested attend,” said Assistnt Supt. of Elementary Education Susan Astarita.

Parents in favor of expanding the schools have argued that students will benefit from having a consistent campus through elementary school years. At present, students at the three smallest schools shift to Davis for three years before spending all six secondary years at Costa Mesa High School.

In a study report recently posted on the district’s website, administrators outlined three possible scenarios for change. In the first two scenarios, Davis becomes a middle school while the elementary schools extend to either the fifth grade or the sixth grade. In the third, Davis becomes a separate kindergarten-through-eighth-grade campus that students from any part of the zone could attend.

For parents who believe that a single elementary school would be less jarring for their children, any change would be welcome.

“As a parent, a councilwoman and a homeowner in the Costa Mesa zone, I think it’s imperative that they look at this,” said Sonora parent and City Councilwoman Katrina Foley, one of the leaders of the campaign.

Most of the 219 parents who answered a recent survey preferred extending the elementary schools through the sixth grade and making Davis a middle school. According to the district, that would be the most expensive solution — an estimated $4.3 million.

“How the parents feel is very important to us,” school board member David Brooks said. “That has a whole lot to do with it, but that has to be balanced with what’s best for all our students.”