In a meeting far more muted than the previous two, Fresno County education officials denied a petition from homeowners to leave Sierra Unified for Clovis Unified, which parents said would have made daily commutes easier and safer.

The Fresno County Committee on School District Organization held the final meeting Thursday to consider the transfer of foothill community Ventana Hills from the mountain school district.

Most committee members did not speak on the record outside of a news release.

The release stated that petitioners did not demonstrate that the transfer was out of a “compelling educational need.”

“The legislative intent behind school district organization law is to ensure that any reorganization truly serves the educational needs of the community,” said Larry Wilder, chairperson of the committee. “Approval of this petition would not only fail to meet the minimum standards but would also pose significant educational and financial risks to Sierra Unified School District.”

Negative Impact on Sierra Unified with Transfer: Staff Report

To gain approval, a petition to transfer has to meet nine criteria outlined by the California education code.

The criteria range from schools having an adequate number of students to the transfer not harming the ability to educate. The petition also cannot be based on increasing property values.

Staff from the Fresno County Office of Education in late October published a report on those criteria, saying the petition only met two criteria.

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The report said a territory transfer would financially harm the district in the long run, both because of declining enrollment and property taxes.

Two of the 10 children at Ventana Hills attend Sierra Unified. The report said despite the small number of children there presently, Ventana Hills represents the area primed for the most growth in Sierra Unified.

Staff also said petitioners could not demonstrate that the reason for leaving was not about property values. Sierra Unified officials and advisers accused Ventana Hills developer Darius Assemi throughout the hearings of driving the petition to better sell homes in the area.

Disclosure: Assemi is the publisher of GV Wire.

Lead petitioner Marc Thurston said parents’ reasons for leaving were their own. Assemi said he always supports his homeowners.

Committee Members Nearly of One Accord in Ultimate Decision

Lead petitioner Marc Thurston said he while he was disappointed with the decision, after reading the staff recommendation, he was not surprised. He said he would not appeal the vote.

Committee members voted on each criterion individually for a total of 10 times — including the petition as a whole.

Committee members abided by the staff recommendation. Sandy Bengel-Budd provided the only deviation from the board, voting against the staff finding that Ventana Hills identifies more closely with Sierra Unified.

But a petition has to meet all nine criteria.

“If it doesn’t meet one, it doesn’t meet,” said committee member Pete Filippi of the Sanger Unified school board.

Lori Grace, superintendent for Sierra Unified said she was “thrilled about the decision.”

“I think that the committee and the staff report was very comprehensive,” Grace said. “I’m just happy that the committee did their due diligence in reviewing all the information and really looking at criteria and basing their decision on that.”

Petitioners Said They Wanted School Choice

The final hearing was one far less animated than the two hearing sessions on the proposal. The two meetings, one at Foothill Elementary and other at the Clovis Unified district office, attracted dozens of educators, parents, and administrators. Combined, the meetings lasted more than five hours.

Most came out in opposition to the transfer, saying it would hurt growth and future revenue for the district.

Ventana Hills parents, however, say the problem goes beyond money. Most work in Fresno or Clovis and have to go up the mountain to drive their children to school only to go back down to work.

Thurston said throughout the hearings that the issue was about school choice.

Grace said parents still have the option for interdistrict transfers.

Office of Education Getting More Transfer Inquiries

During the meeting, committee member Daniel Babshoff said since Ventana Hills’ petition to transfer made news, the county committee has received more inquiries about the process.

In the news release, committee members warned not to waste the group’s time. They said the evaluation process is costly and time consuming.

“Every dollar and every hour spent reviewing a non-meritorious proposal divests money and attention that could otherwise be directed to students in the classroom,” the release stated.

Assemi to County Ed. Staff: Keep an Eye on Academic Performance

Voters within Sierra Unified approved for the first time a bond to upgrade facilities in the district. Nearly 66% of voters approved the $24 million bond. The bond needed 55% to pass.

The 200-acre Ventana Hills development would bring in $114,033 of that, according to Thurston’s analysis. If fully built out, the development could net $798,215, but given that only 13 lots of the 92 have gone up since 2006, Thurston doubted the area would actualize that figure in the life of the bond.

Assemi said that with bond passed and the ruling to keep Ventana Hills in the district, he wanted to see better educational outcomes.

“I hope now that they’ve got everything they got, including the bond that just passed, that the Fresno County Office of Education is going to be watching their academic performance,” Assemi said. “We need to see a turnaround in academic performance from Sierra Unified that benefits all the kids that attend that district.”

Related Story: What Is Sierra Unified’s Plan to Boost Lagging Student Achievement?

A recent Sierra Unified board workshop focused on the district’s failure to reverse student learning loss during the pandemic.

Grace said new testing assessments would enable teachers to better hone in on student needs. The district is also teaming with the Fresno County Office of Education to boost lagging student achievement.