Modesto-area schools make big decisions for 2026-27 school year. What to know

Modesto-area school districts wrap up summer break with major votes on bond measures, trustee pay and student cell phone use. Reporter Atmika Iyer has spent the last two months reporting on decisions that will shape classrooms, ballots and property tax bills heading into the 2026-27 school year.

Here are the key takeaways:

• Modesto City Schools trustees approved a $250 million bond measure that could appear on the November ballot to upgrade high school classrooms, career training facilities and aging roofs, plumbing and HVAC systems.

• The Sylvan Union School District board voted to place a $70 million bond measure on the Nov. 3 ballot, which would levy $25 per $100,000 of assessed valuation from 2027-28 through 2058-59 and requires 55% voter approval. The bond would fund modernizing classrooms, repairing deteriorating roofs and pipes, and replacing HVAC systems at schools, many of which date to the 1960s.

• The Yosemite Community College District is also weighing a bond for the November ballot, and trustees have voiced concern that multiple bond measures on the same ballot could dampen voter support for all of them.

• Modesto City Schools officially passed a full-day cellphone ban for all grade levels. It takes effect in the 2026-27 school year. The ban runs the entire instructional day, including lunch, recess and passing periods, with tiered consequences ranging from students having to pick up their phones at day’s end to parent conferences after repeated offenses.

• The Modesto City Schools board approved a 292% increase in trustees’ monthly stipend, from $765 to $3,000, phased in over two years starting July 1. After public outcry, the board dropped a plan to apply the raise retroactively. The stipend vote passed 6-1, with Trustee Cindy Marks dissenting, while it drew sharp criticism from the Modesto Teachers Association because of ongoing contract negotiations over healthcare contributions.

• Modesto City Schools Superintendent Vanessa Buitrago wrote a letter to education and policy leaders calling for statewide collaboration to address skyrocketing employee healthcare costs, which she says are financially unsustainable for individual districts to manage. She is advocating for a statewide healthcare pooling system that would allow educators across California to opt into a single large insurance pool, a solution that would require new legislation.

• In an interview with The Bee, Buitrago highlighted rising literacy rates, financial solvency, and a new teacher pipeline program with Stanislaus State University as key wins, while acknowledging ongoing labor negotiations and lagging math performance as areas still needing work.

This story was originally published July 13, 2026 at 7:00 AM.