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Voters who reside in the Menlo Park City School District will decide whether to pass a $123.6 million bond measure, Measure U, that would fund facilities improvement projects at Encinal School, Laurel Elementary School, Oak Knoll Elementary School, and Hillview Middle School.
The funds would be used to upgrade campus security systems, install new electric air conditioning and replace 65-year-old classroom buildings that meet seismic standards.
Campaign Chair Katherine Bicer said that facilities upgrades are necessary to children’s learning. “Studies show that children who are too hot in their classrooms are not able to learn as well as children who are comfortable in their classrooms,” she said.
Current HVAC units in MPCSD classrooms have systems that are outdated and in constant need of repair — parts are no longer made and have to be purchased on eBay or specifically manufactured.
“We really feel like our students could suffer from the continuing deterioration of our facilities,” Bicer said.
Opposing arguments from the Silicon Valley Taxpayer Association state that bond measures will add to the government’s increasing debt and argue that bond sales are not the answer to improving education. The SVTA also states that electric air conditioning units will be costly and inoperable during power outages.
“These bond measures that are being sold are going to be paid back with interest over 30 to 40 years. Literally, your grandkids are going to be paying for technology that’s been recycled decades before,” said Mark Hinkle, president of the SVTA.
Hinkle also argues that for the 2022-23 school year 20.5% of students scored below grade level in English and 22.1% of students scored below grade level in math, according to data from the Education Data Partnership.
Bicer refutes these claims by stating that all four MPCSD schools have been recognised as California Distinguished Schools and are in the top ten of districts between San Mateo and Santa Clara County based on test scores.
“Government bonds should not be used to pay for school buildings, because the government should not be building and running schools,” writes Hinkle in his argument. He believes that private alternatives and home schooling can be more cost effective for families and children’s education.
MPCSD serves as the main transitional kindergarten through eighth grade public school system in the Menlo Park and Atherton area. In the 2023-24 school year, the district reported an enrollment of 2,733 students.
“As a public school parent and as a taxpayer, I know that every child is welcome to enroll in our public schools,” said Bicer. “I would just say that if public schools are going to persist in America, then we have to maintain the philosophy that every child is welcome at our school, every eligible child is welcome.”
Bicer explains that if Measure U fails to pass, buildings and technologies will continue to get older and the district will not be able to fund for safety and security upgrades. Especially with a lack of air conditioning, “students, teachers, and staff who go to these buildings every day will be the ones that will suffer.”
For more information on Measure U visit safeschools4mp.org.
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