Marin County

Measure P to Help Modernize SMCSD Schools

Published

3 years ago

October 21, 2020

Top: Asphalt paving adjacent to the Bayside MLK School’s Annex building is in need of repair or replacement. The Annex building should be demolished. Bottom: Examples of dry rot and failed sidings at the Willow Creek Academy (Photos by Greystone West, 2019.)

The Sausalito Marin City School District (SMCSD) provides quality education for the children of our community. To help support the unification and integration process and address outstanding facility needs, the Board of Trustees of the district voted to place Measure P on the Nov. 3, 2020, ballot.

This article is a summary of Measure P. Detailed information on the measure can be found at www.smcsd.org/domain/110.

Measure P is a General Obligation (G.O.) Bond that, if approved by voters, will authorize $41,600,000 in bonds to be sold to improve our local schools.

School facilities at both Bayside MLK School and Willow Creek Academy need improvements as SMCSD becomes unified and integrated. The district contends that a local bond measure can be effectively used to support this effort. Our local schools have given our students an excellent education for many years, and their facilities now need improvements that go beyond the district’s annual budget.

Measure P will update classrooms to 21st-century models at both the Nevada Street and Phillips Drive campuses in order to provide students with technology, wireless infrastructure, and flexible classroom furniture. Outdated portable classrooms will be replaced with modern, permanent facilities. Other safety improvements will be done for plumbing, heating, ventilation and filtration systems.

It would also fund the modernization of school support facilities and provide specialty classrooms for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Marker spaces, robotics, video and visual and performing art spaces will be provided to enhance learning opportunities, and improve classroom facilities at both campuses to provide 21st-century classrooms including the

All district projects funded by Measure P will be in compliance with all applicable state building codes and regulations including California’s Building Standards Code Title 24, that addresses the state’s green building standards.

G.O. bonds are typically repaid over 30 years.

The loan repayment comes from a levy on all taxable property located within the district’s boundaries: residential, commercial, and industrial. This funding method is widely used by school districts in Marin County and throughout the state. Currently, SMCSD maintains one of the lowest bond tax rates for facility improvements of all districts in the County at $16 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.

By law, Measure P requires a citizens oversight committee to ensure funds are spent on only the voter-approved projects, with additional safeguards to ensure that funds are being properly allocated.

If Measure P fails, the district’s capital projects would continue to go unimplemented and the district will not be able to provide the improvements necessary to modernize school facilities.

For more information, contact the SMCSD District Office at (415) 332-1024.

Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

Posts by Michelle Snider | Website

Up Next

On Your Nov. Ballot: Prop. 20 Calls for Changing Some Misdemeanors to Felonies

Don't Miss

Mayor of Stockton Michael Tubbs Offers Election Endorsements

Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

Click to comment

Art

Marin County: A Snapshot of California’s Black History Is on Display

The Marin County Office of Education, located at 1111 Las Gallinas Ave in San Rafael, will host the extraordinary exhibit, “The Legacy of Marin City: A California Black History Story (1942-1960),” from Feb. 1 to May 31, 2024. The interactive, historical, and immersive exhibit featuring memorabilia from Black shipyard workers who migrated from the South to the West Coast to work at the Marinship shipyard will provide an enriching experience for students and school staff. Community organizations will also be invited to tour the exhibit.

Published

4 days ago

April 16, 2024

Oakland Post

Early photo of Marin City in the exhibit showing the first department store, barber shop, and liquor store. (Photo by Godfrey Lee)

By Post Staff

The interactive, historical, and immersive exhibit featuring memorabilia from Black shipyard workers who migrated from the South to the West Coast to work at the Marinship shipyard will provide an enriching experience for students and school staff. Community organizations will also be invited to tour the exhibit.

All will have the opportunity to visit and be guided by its curator Felecia Gaston.

The exhibit will include photographs, articles and artifacts about the Black experience in Marin City from 1942 to 1960 from the Felecia Gaston Collection, the Anne T. Kent California Room Collection, The Ruth Marion and Pirkle Jones Collection, The Bancroft Library, and the Daniel Ruark Collection.

It also features contemporary original artwork by Chuck D of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group Public Enemy, clay sculptures by San Francisco-based artist Kaytea Petro, and art pieces made by Marin City youth in collaboration with Lynn Sondag, Associate Professor of Art at Dominican University of California.

The exhibit explores how Marin City residents endured housing inequities over the years and captures the history of plans to remove Black residents from the area after World War II. Throughout, it embodies the spirit of survival and endurance that emboldened the people who made Marin City home.

Felecia Gaston is the author of the commemorative book, ‘A Brand New Start…This is Home: The Story of World War II Marinship and the Legacy of Marin City.’ Thanks to the generous contribution of benefactors, a set of Felecia’s book will be placed in every public elementary, middle, and high school library in Marin.

In addition, educators and librarians at each school will have the opportunity to engage with Felecia in a review of best practices for utilizing the valuable primary sources within the book.

“Our goal is to provide students with the opportunity to learn from these significant and historical contributions to Marin County, California, and the United States,” said John Carroll, Marin County Superintendent of Schools.

“By engaging with Felecia’s book and then visiting the exhibit, students will be able to further connect their knowledge and gain a deeper understanding of this significant historical period,” Carroll continued.

Felecia Gaston adds, “The Marin County Office of Education’s decision to bring the Marin City Historical Traveling Exhibit and publication, ‘A Brand New Start…This is Home’ to young students is intentional and plays a substantial role in the educational world. It is imperative that our community knows the contributions of Marin City Black residents to Marin County. Our youth are best placed to lead this transformation.”

The Marin County Office of Education will host an Open House Reception of the exhibit’s debut on Feb. 1 from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m.. All school staff, educators, librarians, and community members are encouraged to attend to preview the exhibit and connect with Felecia Gaston. To contact Gaston, email MarinCityLegacy@marinschools.org

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Bay Area

New Marin County HHS Director Brings Breadth of Bay Area Experience

On Feb. 20, Dr. Lisa Warhuus, a psychologist with over 25 years of social services experience, will take over as Marin County’s new Director of Health and Human Services. She replaces Dr. Benita McLaren, who retired in December 2023.

Published

3 months ago

January 23, 2024

Oakland Post

(File Photo) On Feb. 20, Dr. Lisa Warhuus will take over as Marin County’s new Director of Health and Human Services.

By Oakland Press Staff

On Feb. 20, Dr. Lisa Warhuus, a psychologist with over 25 years of social services experience, will take over as Marin County’s new Director of Health and Human Services.

She replaces Dr. Benita McLaren, who retired in December 2023.

“We feel very fortunate to have someone with Dr. Warhuus’ skills and ability join our executive team,” said Marin County Executive Matthew Hymel.

“Throughout her career, Dr. Warhuus has demonstrated an ability to bring stakeholders together to effectively address our most complex community challenges,” Hymel continued.

With the County of Marin, Dr. Warhuus will lead a team of over 800 full-time equivalent staff positions and manage an annual budget of $258 million.

Her annual salary will be $288,433 with benefits consistent with those received by other department heads.

Most recently, Warhuus served as the Director of Health, Housing, and Community Services for the City of Berkeley. In that role, she oversaw a budget of more than $100 million and more than 200 employees across various divisions, including Public Health, Mental Health, Environmental Health, Housing and Community Services, and Aging Services.

“It is a true honor to have been selected for this important position. I cannot wait to get to know the incredible community of Marin County and to collaborate with the dedicated team within the Department of Health and Human Services,” said Warhuus.

Before working for the City of Berkeley, Warhuus served as Director of Children and Youth Initiatives at the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency. Before that, she was an Associate Director. In that role, she “managed and cultivated partnerships that helped expand mental health programs in multiple school districts. She also championed culturally responsive health and wellness services that aimed to support vulnerable populations,” according to a Marin County press release.

For Berkeley, “Warhuus was also a vital member of the Senior Executive Team providing counsel to the City Manager, Mayor, City Council, and the public on matters pertaining to health and housing,” the press release continued. “Notably, she played a key role in initiatives such as the City’s response to COVID-19, contributing to the citywide emergency efforts, and spearheading the development of a 24/7 mobile crisis response for individuals facing mental health and/or substance use crises.”

Warhuus earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from UC Berkeley and master’s and doctoral degrees from Aarhus University in Denmark.