AUSD Notes: March ballot to include new Alameda schools parcel tax

Meeting agendas for the Alameda Unified School District’s Board of Education have been chock-full of newsworthy items over the last several weeks.

First, at its Nov. 14 meeting, the Board of Education voted unanimously to place a renewal parcel tax measure on the March 5, 2024, primary ballot. The new measure is designed to combine, replace and renew Measures B1 and A.

If the measure passes, property owners will continue to pay the same amount in taxes that they pay now, and the taxes will continue to help the AUSD maintain quality schools by:

• sustaining strong academic programs; attracting and retaining high-quality teachers by keeping salaries competitive;

• supporting teachers and counselors in keeping struggling students on the right track;

• protecting visual and performing arts as well as high school sports;

• and maintaining a thriving network of neighborhood schools.

For more details, see the link on the AUSD’s parcel tax program web page (bit.ly/47OGm04).

Also at their Nov. 14 meeting, the board’s trustees elected board member Jennifer Williams to replace their former vice president, Megan Sweet, who resigned from the board in late October. According to board policy, Williams will rotate into the position of board president at the Dec. 12 annual governance meeting.

A board vacancy remains, though, and the AUSD is still taking applications for that seat. The new board member will serve for the remainder of Sweet’s term, which will be through late November 2024. More information and the application for the position is available online at alamedaunified.org/board/board-vacancy-process.

Applications can be submitted through 5 p.m. Dec. 6. Later in the month, the board will interview applicants during a public meeting and then make an appointment.

CEQA process: In other news, the AUSD has been engaged since September in a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process — called a “Mitigated Negative Declaration” — for its modernization and construction project at the Wood Middle School campus. That CEQA process includes an environmental review, traffic study and cultural resources assessment.

The process also includes a 30-day public review period during which community members, public agencies and other organizations can review and provide comments specifically on the environmental aspects of the project. That comment period will be open through Sunday of this weekend.

The full Initial Study and Proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration,” as well as details and schematic designs for the new construction, is available at a link on the AUSD home page (alamedaunified.org).

As a reminder, the Board of Education now holds its meetings in-person and via Zoom. You can find the agendas for upcoming meetings, as well as minutes and videos of past meetings, at alamedaunified.org/board/agendas-minutes.

Reach Susan Davis, the Alameda Unified School District’s senior manager for community affairs, at 510-337-7175 or SDavis@alamedaunified.org.