News Summary
The Sonoma Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees has voted to close Flowery Elementary School due to declining enrollment and financial issues. The decision, passed with a 4-1 vote, marks the third school closure in the district as officials aim to address significant budget shortfalls. Community members have expressed concerns about the impact on vulnerable families and the need for more input before finalizing such decisions. The board also plans to eliminate multiple employee positions to save costs amidst ongoing financial challenges.
Sonoma, California – The Sonoma Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees has voted to close Flowery Elementary School at the conclusion of the 2025-26 academic year. The decision was reached during a regular meeting on Tuesday, where board members cast a decisive 4-1 vote in favor of the closure, with board President Catarina Landry and trustees David Bell, Anne Ching, and Jason Lehman supporting the motion, while Gerardo Guzman opposed.
The closure is a direct response to ongoing challenges facing the district, including declining enrollment and significant financial struggles. This decision marks the third school closure within the district as officials look to address budgetary shortfalls and a decreased student population exacerbated by shifting demographics.
In previous actions, the board initiated a consolidation and closure plan in 2022 as part of a strategy to combat these ongoing issues, which led to the closures of Dunbar Elementary School and Adele Harrison Middle School. The recent vote to close Flowery has met with public opposition, as community members voiced concerns about the school’s role in serving a diverse population and its importance to the Springs community.
One of the pivotal arguments against the closure includes a call for a delay until an equity assessment could be conducted by the district, considering the potentially negative repercussions for vulnerable families whose children attend Flowery. Moreover, some board members, including Guzman, raised concerns regarding the absence of meaningful community input during the decision-making process and advocated for a more comprehensive examination of the implications surrounding the closure.
Currently, Flowery Elementary School holds the highest enrollment in the district with 363 students, despite having the lowest capacity of 440 students. The school is also in need of significant physical upgrades, which further complicates its viability within the district’s educational framework. The board’s resolution not only calls for the closure but also instructs staff to explore options for relocating Flowery’s dual immersion program, as well as reorganizing grade levels among the remaining schools.
Potential relocation sites for the dual immersion program include El Verano Elementary School and Sassarini Elementary School, which could help smooth the transition for affected families. Presently, the Sonoma Valley district comprises approximately 1,254 K-5 students, with a total capacity of 1,999 students, translating to a utilization rate of just 62.7%. Post-closure projections suggest that the remaining schools will have a total capacity of 1,559 K-5 students, raising the utilization rate to 80.4%.
The district’s K-12 enrollment has seen a dramatic decline, plummeting by 39.4% from 1999 to 2025, and projections indicate the drop is likely to continue. Financial forecasts are equally troubling, with the district expecting a deficit of $2.98 million for the upcoming 2024-25 school year, followed by ongoing financial difficulties in subsequent years.
In addition to the closure of Flowery Elementary, the board has also voted to eliminate 40 classified employee positions along with 14 certificated positions, a move that aims to save approximately $2.91 million in the district’s budget. The decision regarding the closure is contingent upon the formation of a transition plan, the establishment of new school boundaries, and compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
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Additional Resources
- Press Democrat: Sonoma Valley Elementary School Closure
- Sonoma News: Flowery Elementary School Closure
- Sonoma Sun: Trustees Reevaluate School Closures
- Sonoma County Gazette: Bilingual School Closure Vote
- Sonoma News: Overview of Sonoma School Closures
- Wikipedia: School Closure
- Google Search: Sonoma Valley School Closure
- Google Scholar: Sonoma Valley School Closure
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Sonoma Valley
- Google News: Sonoma Valley School Closure
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