OCEANSIDE — The boundaries of Libby and Del Rio elementary schools have been redrawn to include neighborhoods within the Reynolds Elementary boundaries, providing a destination for students once the school closes in June.
The Oceanside Unified School District board voted to close Reynolds in a 3-0-1 vote during a special meeting on March 13 following soil tests that found the campus was unsuitable for the school’s planned reconstruction.
Specifically, the school’s reconstruction plans were halted due to the presence of water underneath the surface, creating the potential for soil liquefaction, a loss of ground strength that causes soil to liquefy in the event of an earthquake.
District staff recommended the school’s closure due to the potential sinking risks associated with soil liquefaction. In a follow-up meeting held on March 23, the board determined that current Reynolds students would attend either Libby, Del Rio or Foussat elementary schools following the closure of Reynolds this June. The board voted on new boundaries that split up where students would go based on their proximity to either school.
Foussat and Nichols Elementary Schools, located nearby, will keep the exact boundaries as before.
Parents previously voiced concerns about losing their neighborhood school and forcing students to travel further away from home. Reynolds is located approximately 1.5 miles away from Del Rio and 1.2 miles away from Libby, distances that will vary depending on where students live within the new boundaries.
Parents were also concerned about the school’s two-way bilingual immersion program. The board determined the program and its students would move to nearby Foussat Elementary, which is located approximately two miles away from Reynolds.
During the most recent board meeting on April 13, the board authorized filing a notice of exemption under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the closure of Reynolds, reassigning students and other related actions.
According to district staff, the movement of students to either Libby, Del Rio or Foussat will not increase the original student capacity of those schools by more than 25% or 10 classrooms.
Some public comments accused the district of closing the school under false pretenses.
“You did not do your due diligence,” said Sandra Martinez.
Rose Segura, a regular outspoken critic of the school board, accused the current board and Superintendent Julie Vitale of “successfully closing” five schools, including Reynolds, since their time in office.
Andrea Norman, associate superintendent of business services, said the majority of the current school board had closed three schools in recent years, including Ocean Shores High School (an alternative high school closed due to declining enrollment); Garrison Elementary (closed after 2019-20 school year due to sinkholes on campus); and most recently, Reynolds Elementary due to the threat of soil liquefaction.
Trustee Raquel Alvarez, who serves as board president, noted the closure of Ocean Shores had moved its services to the former Ditmar Elementary, now the home of Surfside Educational Academy.
