Stalled negotiations, looming layoffs and the school rumored to close next: South Bay Union struggles as it shrinks

South Bay Union board members voted to change the district’s school boundaries as declining enrollment pushes some of its campuses to the brink of extinction. 

District officials are set to close Central Elementary at the end of this school year and up to two others by mid-2030. Starting next year, students from Central will attend Bayside STEAM Academy, Emory Elementary, Mendoza Elementary or Oneonta Elementary. 

The district’s executive team is scheduled to speak with Central staff about next steps this week. Officials aim to notify staff of their new assignments within a few months. 

Layoffs are likely, district Superintendent Jose Espinoza previously told inewsource. 

At South Bay Union, student enrollment is worsening. The district has lost nearly half of the enrollment it had a decade ago and experts project another loss of about 20% by 2034.  

This year, nearly 3,500 students are enrolled — about 30 fewer than expected. That means about $160,000 in lost funding, adding to a roughly $2 million loss in revenue projected earlier this year, said Rigo Lara, assistant superintendent of business services. 

“This isn’t money that’s coming back,” he added. 

Earlier this month, district staff and outside consultants presented the board with four mapped-out possibilities after working together for months using enrollment forecasting. All proposed scenarios are mathematically viable options for the district, according to officials. 

Officials considered several factors, including building capacity, existing boundaries, long-term growth and contraction in specific areas, what would cause the least disruption and more. The options ranged in impact, but each called for shifting hundreds of students around the district’s campuses. 

Nearly 500 survey responses from district families ranked proximity to home, availability of certain programs and services and keeping siblings together as the most important factors when determining new attendance boundaries. 

About a third also expressed a need for transportation accommodations, with nearly another quarter noting that they were unsure.

Sunnyslope concerns

The new boundaries will help increase enrollment at the campuses absorbing the Central students next year, except at Oneonta where it’s projected to drop. 

Board members approved the new boundaries in a 4-1 vote, with board member Cheryl Quinones voting in opposition. 

But some community members took issue that some of the proposed maps assumed Sunnyslope Elementary would close — even though the board has yet to vote on such a decision. A few questioned whether the discussion complied with the state’s Brown Act.

Back in May, the board voted to close some campuses, specifically approving plans to shut down Central. But while closing Berry and Sunnyslope was also up for a vote that night, members decided against naming additional schools after pressure from the community.

“The map showed us the potential closure of Sunnyslope without using the word potential as if we should just expect it and accept,” said Maya Leisure, president of the local union for the district’s classified employees, adding that Sunnyslope deserves a fighting chance. 

Under the new boundaries, Sunnyslope is expected to see enrollment increase — a result of staff incorporating feedback after hearing from the frustrated community members.

The option that board members ultimately did not choose would have decreased enrollment at Sunnyslope. 

Berry, the other school initially considered for closure earlier this year, will also see enrollment increase under the newly approved map, as would Bayside, Emory and Mendoza. Along with Oneonta, Nicoloff and Pence are expected to lose students.

Board member Quinones at the meeting expressed concern that enrollment shrinks more across schools under the revised options and that minimizes the ability to provide students with services at those sites. She questioned whether they would essentially move students again later and be forced to close another school.

“We don’t have the opportunity or the grace to welcome anybody else there,” she said. “We must make the programs better, and by weakening the schools, it doesn’t help our community.”

No one is OK with declining enrollment, but there are some factors that the district can’t control, such as low birth rates, Superintendent Espinoza told Quinones. 

 “I think what we’re trying to introduce is a plan that may help us stabilize it,” he said. 

Some teachers spoke out after the revised options were presented. 

Rose Saldana, a sixth grade teacher at Imperial Beach Charter, said she appreciated that officials revisited the maps to try and help Sunnyslope avoid closure. While she said she’s against the board closing more schools, the first option doesn’t appear to be “terrible.”  

Union negotiations persist

Certificated educators in South Bay are currently working without a contract. The teachers union has been negotiating with the district on new terms since May 2024, and the contract has since expired as they’ve yet to reach a deal in some areas, including pay.

District officials have said a pay bump and additional support is not financially feasible at the moment, and that they need to be conservative with reserves to cover costs once covered by one-time funding provided during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ongoing delay has impacted teachers financially, personally, professionally — and has eroded trust, morale and stability across the district’s schools, lleana Ayub, a second grade teacher at Emory, said during Wednesday’s meeting. 

She said teachers deserve respect, fair pay and stable working conditions.

“Your unwillingness to step up as our leader and put an end to this stalling sends a troubling message that the hard work and dedication of teachers, the needs of our students and the well-being of our community are not being valued as they should be,” she said.

Now at an impasse in mediation, the district and union are heading into a process known as fact-finding. If a deal isn’t reached, nearly all members have signed a pledge to go on strike as soon as January. 

Teachers have left the district, it’s hard to attract talent and some classrooms are being covered by staff who aren’t qualified, said union president Vanessa Barrera at a board meeting in September. She said teachers are asking for safe and stable schools, competitive wages and benefits, improved staffing and working conditions. 

“All we are asking for is to be able to break even,” Barrera said, adding that staff hasn’t received a raise since 2023 despite the rising cost of living and paying more for health benefits. 

Union members are scheduled to host their own workshop this afternoon to discuss the district’s budget and the ongoing negotiations at the Imperial Beach Library.  

Next steps

The financial impact of the new school boundaries is not yet known. 

But district officials said they plan on using existing resources to fund staff and operations for transportation services. Any facility improvements needed to accommodate incoming students will be paid for through school building funds and will not affect the general fund. 

It’s also unknown exactly what will happen with Central after it closes. However, the district has been exploring several options, including offering workforce housing and leasing the property in the meantime.

As of now, the district plans on offering students pick-up and drop-off services at Central and taking those students to their new respective campus next year. Families can request a school transfer for their child but officials said it’s not a guarantee. 

Yet, even with this change, all of the district’s schools will remain well below historic peak enrollment levels, with no campus increasing its population by more than 25% of its current level. 

Officials said they’re still determining whether the district will need to close another campus. They added that they will continue to monitor enrollment and make adjustments as needed.