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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 06272000 - C126 C.126 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Adopted this Order on June 27, 2000, by the following vote: AYES: SUPERVISORS GIOIA, UILKEMA, DeSAULNIER, CANCIAMILLA and GERBER NOES: NONE ABSENT: NONE ABSTAIN: NONE Re: Grand Jury Report No. 0011 On this date, the Board of Supervisors considered the consent item, Grand Jury Report No. 0011, "Mt. Diablo Unified School District". Supervisor Uilkema moved to accept the consent items on the agenda, and Supervisor Gioia seconded the motion. IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that Item 0.126 is ACCEPTED, and REFERRED to the County Administrator. I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. Attested:June 27,2000 Phil Batchelor,Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and Co Administrator By' "Depul C c.c. CAO �R RECEIVED JUN 16 2000 A REPORT BY CLERK BOARD OF SUPERVISORS CONTRA COSTA CO. THE 1999-00 CONTRA COSTA COUNTY GRAND JURY 725 Court Street Martinez, California 94553 c , Report No. 0011 MT. DIABLO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT APPROVED BY THE GRAND JURY: Date: 61 CAROL THEWS GRAND JURY FOREMAN ACCEPTED FOR FILING: Date: a)aik3 . WALTER D. ROGERS JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT CONTRA COSTA COUNTY GRAND JURY REPORT NO. 0011 Mt. Diablo Unified School District BACKGROUND In 1975, Pacifica I-figh School, located in West Pittsburg(now named Bay Point)was closed by the Mt. Diablo Unified School District (MDUSD). Local residents from the Bay Point area have maintained that MDUSD had promised free bussing for their students attending Mt. Diablo High School in Concord, the nearest high school within the District. Further, some residents claim that their families cannot afford to pay for bussing, and that the eight miles to Concord precludes Bay Point students from participation in extra-curricular activities. The distance and the cost of bussing have been reported by some residents to be major contributors to an estimated 50% dropout rate for Bay Point students. The residents now seek a new high school to be located in Bay Point and/or free bussing. FINDINGS 1. No evidence can be found in the record of the 1975 MDUSD Board of Education minutes that free bussing was offered to Bay Point students. Further, no evidence can be found in newspaper articles covering the Pacifica High School closing that free bussing was offered or promised. 2. According to MDUSD, 1,131 high school students live in Bay Point. Of these students, 59% attend Mt. Diablo High School. Only 29%use the bus service provided by MDUSD to get to Mt. Diablo High School. The remaining students utilize other means of transportation to get to school. Free bussing is offered to families who meet specific low-income criteria. Some Bay Point students attend different high schools in the area. A very small number attend private schools. 3. Based on current schedules and costs, public transportation from Bay Point to Mt. Diablo High School is available, but time consuming and costly. 4. Cost of bussing varies with the number of family members using the District service. The fees charged by the District vary with the number of students in a family from an annual payment of$2501 for one student up to $675 in a family with five high school students. 5. District transportation for students participating in school related after-hour activities are not available. The District Athletic Department provided bussing for students participating in athletic activities but discontinued the program due to poor ridership. No effort has been made by the District to survey students regarding the need for after-hours school related activities transportation. b. District officials presented detailed statistics to the Grand Jury that indicated the District's current dropout rate was under the 2.9% statewide average. These statistics on student attendance and dropout rates refutes the community contention that approximately 50% of the Bay Point High School students dropped out of high school before graduating. Of the 1,131 high school students in MDUSD, only 33 were classified as dropouts. 7. The population of the Bay Paint area within the District is increasing rapidly. The District has no plan for a future high school in Bay Point even though the District's awn statistics indicate that Bay Point students make up approximately half of the enrollment at Mt. Diablo High School. 8. Communication between District officials and the Bay Point community was apparently non-existent until the District's new Superintendent recently visited the Bay Point Municipal Advisory Council. CONCLUSIONS I. If Bay Point now provides over 50% of the student population at Mt. Diablo High School and the population continues to grow at the present rate, the District will need to reassess future high school needs in Bay Paint. 2. A significant lack of communication between the District and the residents has created an adversarial relationship and is the basis for local conclusions being developed on the strength of incorrect information. Communications have recently improved with the appointment of a new superintendent. 3. The community has a perception that the dropout rate among high school students is exceptionally high. However, the District's statistics showed the rate to be below the statewide average. 4. After-hours bussing for school related activities from Mt. Diablo High School is not available. This could prevent students from participating in extra curricular activities at the school. RECOMMENDATIONS The 1999-2000 Contra Costa County Grand Jury recommends that the Mt. Diablo Unified School District: 1. Initiate a program of discussions with the Bay Point community groups on a regular basis to keep them fully informed of the status of educational issues of concern to the community. 2. Conduct a study of the Bay Point area future high school needs because of that community's rapidly expanding population. 2 3. Continue discussions with the community to determine what actions the District might take to improve the bussing situation for both regular school hours and extra curricular activities. c 3