Finance committee says school district should 'market' itself
Volunteer group wants board to be open about possible future campus closures
By Michelle Knight knight@theacorn.com

Members of a finance advisory committee told the school board last week that to draw families back into the district they must regain the community's trust and "market" schools as a business would.

Enrollment in the Pleasant Valley School District and elsewhere is in decline. Pleasant Valley had about 6,970 students enrolled in 2006-07, compared to about 6,520 this school year. In addition, Camarillo is home to several private and charter schools.

At an informal meeting on Feb. 7, the committee told board members that when they closed schools last year they lost the trust of parents and they must work hard to earn it back.

"Building trust will reap dollars in the future," David Carlson said.

Trustee Ron Speakman said publicizing the committee's work is one way the district can rebuild trust in the community.

"You're a key link," board President Jennifer Miller said.

The nine-member volunteer committee organized in June when the school board closed Los Altos Middle School and Los Senderos Open School and talked about closing Camarillo Heights Elementary this year.

The group is looking for ways the district can increase the bottom line and avoid further school closures.

Mark Pachowicz told trustees they should be open about the fate of Camarillo Heights to prevent parents from taking their children out of the district and putting them into a private or charter school.

"Fear of the unknown is going to drive people away," Pachowicz said.

The committee gave trustees a list of 35 "talking points" that did not qualify as formal recommendations because the group needs more time and information, such as cost projections. One of the points is a common dismissal time for all schools in the district.

The committee said they plan to refine the items- which cover enrollment, facilities, programs, services, organization and trust- in the coming weeks and present them to the board.

The group said the schools that were closed by the district were popular with parents for the unique programs they offered, which puts the district at a disadvantage because private and charter schools are now filling the void. They offer services and advantages to their students that Pleasant Valley doesn't, such as smaller class sizes, sports programs and chess clubs.

Parents, unhappy that Los Senderos closed, opened a charter school last fall, the Camarillo Academy of Progressive Education, whose enrollment has grown from 327 to 359 in four months.

"They're getting choice from private schools," Jeanette Laster told trustees. "School choice has changed everything. You don't have to go to your neighborhood school anymore."

The group said Pleasant Valley has to compete with private schools and "market" its schools in brochures or through other advertising methods to draw families back into the district.

Superintendent Luis Villegas, who meets with the committee semimonthly, said another way the district can add to its bottom line is by improving the 96 percent student attendance rate. The state pays school districts a daily amount for each student in school, but when students don't come to school, the state does not pay.

Committee members said a steady campaign informing parents of the amount the district loses whenever their child is absent may help.

"Whatever we do, communication is one of the primary things," Rick Christensen said.

Committee members said their work is longterm; they plan to continue meeting and would welcome the public, especially teachers, to join them.

For more information about the finance advisory committee, call the Pleasant Valley School District at (805) 445-8600.