A Community Comes Together For Its Schools - Opinion - Marin IJ By George Stratigos

A Community Comes Together For Its Schools
By George Stratigos

Anyone who has followed the turbulent history of the Sausalito Marin City School District can appreciate the changes that are finally taking hold here: changes that will have a positive impact on the district, its families and children for many years to come.

Measure I, appearing on the ballot of voters in Sausalito, Marin City and the Houseboats, will authorize construction bonds that will greatly enhance facilities that are in desperate need of improvement.

On Tuesday, October 19, all five members of the Sausalito City Council voted to support the measure, and joined other community leaders and a united district board in endorsing this plan of action. As a Sausalito native, as a former member of the city council, and as the current president of the school district’s board of trustees, I am delighted beyond words to see that we are at last coming together to move our district forward.

It is no secret that, every year, Sausalito loses families to other Marin communities. These are families intent on sending their children to a neighborhood public school that they believe will better meet the needs of their children. This exodus is the principal reason why Sausalito has the highest average age of any Marin community.

The first step in turning this situation around came in the school board recall five years ago. The recall carried by a wide margin because the community recognized the need for change. Two years ago, the district’s primary school, Bayside Elementary reported that student test scores had doubled. Shortly after that, the school was recognized as one of two most improved schools in all of California.

The bond measure will help the district continue this forward momentum. It will provide funds for the construction of a kindergarten that will allow Bayside to cease the reliance on portables that have been in use for forty years. It will fund the creation of a new middle school, which is desperately needed to meet the district’s mandate to ensure that our children will be as well prepared for high school as the children of other Marin County communities. In addition, the funds will cover a myriad of needs that will make necessary safety upgrades and access improvements.

The unanimous support of the Sausalito City Council for Measure I is an important statement that this community is ready to make excellence in education a top priority. We could not make a wiser choice for our children, or for the future of our community.

George Stratigos, a former member of the Sausalito City Council, is the President of the Sausalito Marin City School District’s Board of Trustees.