South San Francisco, CA January 9, 2015 Submitted by John Horgan SSFUSD
The South San Francisco Unified School District Board of Trustees has begun consideration of a significant expansion at Martin Elementary School. The board members examined options on that campus during a special meeting Thursday evening (Jan. 8) at District headquarters. ORIGINAL INFO HERE
Martin’s student population could experience an increase when, and if, new housing development proceeds as expected in the school’s attendance area. Martin is located at 35 School St., north of downtown.
The trustees indicated a desire to proceed with caution on any improvements on the Martin campus. One reason was a lack of updated enrollment projections. Another was a lack of current information regarding fees charged to developers that would flow, in part, to the District to help pay for construction costs.
Board President Judith Bush, referencing predictions of enrollment growth that failed to materialize in the past, urged caution and stated, “Remember, haste makes waste.” Trustee Maurice Goodman indicated that an entirely new school on the Martin site could be considered if circumstances warranted. He, too, requested that the District proceed slowly to “get it right,” as he put it. Precise financial data for such a project were not available.
There were also discussions regarding other pending housing developments in the city and an ongoing effort to make sure that all students were attending schools in their proper attendance areas to balance out enrollment. Currently, the District contains about 9,200 students.
No decisions were made Thursday. Superintendent Alejandro Hogan said he and his staff will assemble relevant data for another discussion on enrollment, school site improvements and finances in the near future.
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