This Times report sounds eerily familiar… Potential voters were asked a series of questions, including whether public schools in the John Swett District have a great need, some need, little need, or no real need for more money; and how likely they were to vote for or against measure J after hearing statements like “The [...]

The West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) — or, perhaps more accurately, the Richmond School District — needs new leadership. The behemoth school district is broken, broke, and fails to provide the quality education Herculeans deserve and pay for. One newcomer in this year’s election is Jason Freeman (the three incumbents are running for [...]

A long-time board member had an interesting take… “Board member Charles Ramsey maintained that both the 5- and 7.2-cent amounts are within the margin of error for getting a two-thirds vote, and either could be a close call. ‘Since I could lose either one, I have to go for 7.2 cents,’ Ramsey said, adding that [...]

Measure D — the WCCUSD bond measure that would pay for school repair and construction (including a science lab at Hercules Middle/High) — passed last night with 62 percent of the vote (619 of 628 precincts reporting; 55 percent was needed). The property tax amounts to approximately “$48 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.” It is [...]

The WCCUSD associate superintendent says that remaining funds from a previous bond measure includes money to build Ohlone Elementary… “West Contra Costa district administrators estimate their $380 million bond Measure D could cost property owners up to $48 per $100,000 of assessed valuation for bonds to be paid off over 30 years. This is in [...]

The measure would include funds for “science facilities at Hercules Middle/High School” but it would not specifically address the need to rebuild Ohlone Elementary… “West Contra Costa voters will decide in June whether to award the school district another $380 million in bonds for school rebuilding and repairs. The school board this week unanimously approved [...]

Well-funded public schools are the best tool to teach children and young adults. I know this, so it is hard to argue with the merits behind supporting another bond measure for the schools. (I have never not voted for a school bond or tax measure.) However, it does no good to continue bailing out a [...]

This piqued my interest at a City Council meeting in April when Councilmember Don Kuehne spoke of preliminary plans for Contra Costa College to open a satellite campus in Hercules… What got me really fired up (literally) was the potential over the long-term, not just for a satellite campus for the local community college (which [...]

The following post was written by Karen VanWinkle.* On Thursday, August 20th, I will vote to strike. A not-so-funny thing happened during my summer vacation. To save money during the recession, our cash strapped school district quietly made it harder for English Language Learners, low socio-economic students and teachers in the WCCUSD to succeed. That’s [...]

The “best” and “final” offers are very seldom concurrent… “A bargaining dispute between the West Contra Costa school district and teachers could culminate in a strike in the fall if the school board decides to impose its ‘last, best and final offer,’ a union official said Monday. The document calls for hard district caps on [...]

This guest post was written by Susan Keeffe.* As a long time resident of Hercules, a former West Contra Costa USD student, parent, teacher and administrator, I have been following the recent events regarding educational finances and how it is affecting us locally with increasing concern. How did we reach a point where our teachers [...]

A quick note on the editorial direction of my comments on education, and in particular, the City’s stressful relationship with WCCUSD, comments that have been largely consistent on this blog. I am not trying to prove a positive, that is, that teachers would be necessarily better-off in a separate Hercules school district (or a combined [...]

It is a good thing the teachers union resisted an independent Hercules school district a few years back; that would have only resulted in a disaster for them…* “A West Contra Costa teachers strike is likely now that the union and school district have exhausted all methods of bargaining, the union president said Friday. [...] [...]

A potential parcel tax… “The [WCCUSD] school board this week approved a $278.7 million spending plan for the 2009-10 school year. It also appointed a committee, including board members Madeline Kronenberg and Antonio Medrano, to explore putting another parcel tax measure before voters, possibly in 2010. [...] Rising health care and retiree benefit costs and [...]

Not good… “Heated contract negotiations between the West Contra Costa school district and its teachers union could culminate in a strike, union officials said. The union’s contract with the district expired in June 2008, and what started as a general dispute over health care benefits and class sizes last year is turning into a nasty [...]

Budget cuts means bigger class sizes… “As a way to help close the school district’s budget gap, the board voted 3-2 this week to increase kindergarten class sizes from 20 to 24 children and third-grade sizes from 20 to 28. The move — subject to bargaining with the teachers union — will save the district [...]

Where is Chelsea Wetlands? Where is Parcel C exactly? A map of development projects (and schools and facilities) is located at waterfrontwatch.org/map, with links to related posts…

The critical re-build — it is not really a “rebuild” since the school was never actually built — of Ohlone Elementary School has been delayed before… School rebuilds facing obstacles in West County By Kimberly S. Wetzel Unless the West Contra Costa school district receives a waiver from the state, declining property values could put [...]

There is a lot one could say about this decision, including the thought that it is a heap of bullshit… County committee denies Hercules secession petition Acting in the capacity as the County Committee on School Organization, the Contra Costa County Board of Education Sept. 14 disapproved a petition to split off schools in Hercules [...]

Despite support from County Supervisor Gayle Uilkema and a committee-commissioned report finding that secession met six of nine state requirements (a report that was biased against the cause from the outset), the Contra Costa County Board of Education (see note following article below) would ultimately favor the political stronghold of Richmond over the sovereignty of [...]