Modesto school board OKs putting bond measure on ballot. Who turned out in support?
The Modesto City Schools district board on Monday night unanimously approved a resolution to place on the November ballot a roughly $198 million bond measure to make facilities improvements at all its high schools.
On the agenda, the item was called a vote to order “an Election of Modesto City High School District Classroom/Science Lab Enhancement Measure.” And its description specified “updating career training classrooms, labs/ equipment to prepare students for the workforce; update classrooms/ science labs for quality instruction in math, science, reading/ writing; and repair leaking roofs/ deteriorating plumbing. ...”
But it’s the bond measure’s inclusion of athletics program improvements that drew an audience to Monday’s meeting.
Enochs High School football players and coaches postponed Monday’s practice to attend the meeting. Head coach Tracey Traub and a couple of players addressed the board. A couple of other players read statements written by supporters including Modesto Junior College head football coach Rusty Stivers and former Stanislaus State athletic director Milton Richards, who’s now a Yosemite Community College District trustee.
Traub, who’s coached in the district for a decade, spoke to advocate for athletics facilities improvements, and specifically for a stadium at his school. “I’ve witnessed how sports are motivators for many students to stay on a path of success,” he said. “I’ve worked with athletes who’ve received little or no support at home, and football was the one thing that kept them from dropping out. I currently have a player right now who is living on somebody’s couch as he is homeless, and football is the one thing that’s keeping him motivated.”
Gavin Prutch, a class of 2024 student athlete at Enochs, told trustees that building stadiums at his school and others would mean “home games” really would be at home. That would create more school spirit and pride and would drive students to get better grades so they can continue to play football, he said.
Shelley Akiona, a professor of business administration at MJC, said she’s had many students over the years who are “athletically brilliant, and they use their physicality and their knowledge of their game to drive them academically. Many of those students, their academic grit is really what unlocks their potential as being successful and often that starts on a field or in a pool or in a gym.”
Athletics improvements stated in the bond resolution passed Monday are much broader than stadiums. They include fields, pools, courts, physical education facilities, locker rooms, updated equipment, fencing, lighting and more.
In an email to The Bee on Monday night, Associate Superintendent Tim Zearley said no specific projects have been given for any one high school. “As of today, no plans have been made for schools, as we hadn’t officially approved the ballot measure.”
If voters approve the bond measure in November, the impact will be far-reaching.
Projects to provide upgraded space for instruction and support include replacing portable buildings with permanent classrooms. They include building, upgrading, repairing or replacing science labs, career technical education spaces, libraries and visual and performing arts spaces and venues. And they would improve site accessibility for disabled students.
Other projects would improve energy efficiency to reduce utility costs and accommodate increased usage of technology. Still others would provide basic repairs and safety upgrades like repairing or replacing roofs, doors and windows, replacing outdated and inefficient heating, cooling and ventilation systems and addressing deteriorating plumbing.
Trustees expressed support for the bond measure when they heard an informational report on it at their June 6 meeting, so Monday’s unanimous vote to approve the resolution was no surprise.
They’ve also been clear they realize winning the necessary 55% voter approval will be tough, especially with a 1% city of Modesto sales tax measure and a state school facilities bond both possibly on the same ballot.
Monday night, board member Cindy Marks thanked the Enochs students for their support and urged them to help with the bond campaign by walking precincts to hand out flyers. “If you guys are as enthusiastic as you are tonight in the fall, it’ll help us get this passed.”
The next steps, Zearley told the school board Monday night, include formation of a bond campaign committee made up of community members, parents and, on their own time, teachers and staff. The district anticipates the committee will meet in July for a campaign kickoff.
For more on the high school bond measure, go to sites.google.com/monet.k12.ca.us/mcs-hs-bond-measure.
This story was originally published June 22, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
