Save Ocean Shore – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

On January 22, 2025, the Pacifica School District (PSD) Board voted to shut down the Ocean Shore School (OSS) campus, move its K-5 students to Sunset Ridge, and shift both Ocean Shore and Vallemar 6-8 graders to Ingrid B. Lacy (IBL). Essentially, this closes two of our three K-8 schools – leaving only Cabrillo K-8 open in the southern part of town. See the presentation that was presented during the January 22, 2025 board vote and video of the meeting.

The district and board want to reconstruct the schools because of a “structural budget deficit,” meaning ongoing costs (mainly staff salaries, benefits, and facility operations) outpace revenue. The district says closing Ocean Shore and dismantling two K-8 programs is the only way to balance the budget and avoid external state oversight. Furthermore, the district aims to achieve two additional goals beyond addressing the structural deficit: enhancing educational programs and ensuring compensation for teachers in the future. The district believes that closing Ocean Shore and relocating Vallemar’s middle school are essential steps toward achieving these objectives.

Nearly all of our Pacifica elementary and middle schools will be affected:

• Ocean Shore (OSS): The campus will be closed at the beginning of the new 2025-2026 school year. K-5 students will move to Sunset Ridge as a co-located school, and grades 6-8 will be merged with Ingrid B. Lacy Middle School.
• Vallemar: The middle school (6-8 graders) will be merged with IBL at the beginning of the new school year 2025-2026. The Vallemar site will remain a K-5 school.
• Sunset Ridge (SRE): The Sunset Ridge school will operate as is, but will receive an additional 270 K-5 students from Ocean Shore on the campus.
• Ingrid B. Lacy Middle School (IBL): IBL will operate as is. Additionally, all 204 6-8 graders from Ocean Shore and Vallemar will be moved to the site and merged with IBL classes.
• Cabrillo: Will stay as is. Will remain the only K-8 program in the school district.
• Ortega: Will stay as is, a K-5 school.
• Special Day Class (SDC): The PK-5 grades will move to Ortega and Sunset Ridge; and grades 6-8 will move to IBL, resulting in a two-track program. The preschool program will be reorganized into a morning and afternoon schedule.

Schools that are not directly affected could have fewer remaining spaces for enrollment than before.

The official resolution can be viewed from the agenda on the District website. We also archived it 72 hours before January 22, 2025, at 5 p.m. for backup.

Effective August 13, 2025 – the start of the new school year – these changes will be implemented. The Pacifica School Board voted subsequently on February 12, 2025, to approve teacher and staff layoffs to begin immediately. 

We are calling for an immediate reversal of the resolutions that the Pacifica School Board passed on January 22, 2025.

The Ocean Shore PTO has retained the educational law firm YM&C to take legal action to press for this reversal. We believe there should be ample time to properly review the closure of a school, rather than only having 11 days to consider the school district’s proposal. We are calling for the Pacifica School District to allow time for due process, meaningful community input, and thorough analysis to find budget solutions that preserve our K-8 programs and maintain Pacifica’s education quality.

Additionally, we are asking for a full CEQA impact analysis, as strongly recommended by the district’s own legal advisors. Such a study would typically take at least a year or more to thoroughly examine all relevant issues, including traffic and economic impact on nearby businesses.

If you wish to support this effort, you can donate to our efforts. Please also contact the Ocean Shore Parent-Teacher Organization Presidents if you would like to offer support in other ways.

We are against the board’s decision for the following reasons:

Rushed Process: Similar closures in other areas typically involve longer timelines and robust planning. Here, the district rushed to a decision, bypassing steps that would protect educational quality, safety, and equity. We also don’t see the urgency. A state takeover is only a risk if our reserves fall below 3%, yet the budget certified on December 18, 2024, projects reserves at 4.8% for the next three years.

Unclear Budget Numbers: The District’s deficit projections fluctuate widely, casting doubt on the true severity of the shortfall and undermining community trust.

Questionable Legal Maneuvers: The District’s use of terms like “co-location” and “reconfiguration” seems designed to avoid formal closure protocols – such as equity studies or a longer public process (see Assembly Bill 1912 and California Department of Education Guidelines on School Closures).

Reliance on a Single, Flawed Study: The school closure plan relies on one report (the Demographer’s Report by King Consulting) that omits key details and does not explicitly recommend closing a school. Few, if any, other studies have been conducted, nor have solutions been seriously studied.

No Transition Plan: No one has clarified how this transition will be managed or implemented. The district told us that no plans have been made yet. Key details remain unknown, such as which classrooms the students will occupy in a co-location, how bell schedules and recess/lunch times will be managed, which staff positions will be cut, how the special education classes will transition, and what level of access Ocean Shore School students will have to resources at Sunset Ridge Elementary, given its Title I status and the legal requirements that come with it. On January 31, 2025, the district invited parents and staff to apply to join a transition plan committee. The committee meetings are scheduled to run for four hours each, from noon to the afternoon, with dates extending until May. This timing excludes many teachers, full-time working parents, and those with childcare responsibilities in the afternoon.

Drastic Reduction in K-8 Access: Pacifica families deserve equal access to K-8 education. Cutting the number of K-8 programs from three to one school slashes K-8 middle school spots from 43% to just 17%, leaving many families with fewer or no K-8 choices. The K-8 model is essential to the successful learning programs at Ocean Shore and Vallemar. Dismantling them is nothing less than a closure. Read a parent’s view on Why Losing K-8 Schools is a Step Backward for Pacifica’s Students in a letter to the editor in the Pacifica Tribune.

Minimal Community Input: The District points to the Superintendent Budget Collaborative meetings and subcommittee sessions as proof of transparency, yet these gatherings involved only a narrow group of participants behind closed doors. While the Superintendent asserts these meetings constituted community involvement in the decision to close a school, this is inaccurate. These committees did not fully evaluate various solutions or the decision to close a school with proper community engagement. In reality, no consensus emerged from these limited meetings, and the public was only informed of the closure plan on January 11, 2025, just days before the Board’s vote. District-hosted listening sessions were only conducted after the decision had already been made by the Pacifica School Board to shut down the Ocean Shore school site. Concerns aired during these sessions did not result in any reversal of the resolution question. 

Possible Benefit of State Oversight: A state takeover happens only if reserves fall below 3%. While not ideal, such oversight could bring the financial accountability and scrutiny our district needs.

The legal letter sent from the Ocean Shore School PTO details some of the concerns regarding Pacifica School District’s processes leading up to the school board vote on January 22, 2025.

The Pacifica School Board’s hasty decision, coupled with the district’s disorganized transition plan, is causing lasting harm with each passing day. Major layoffs of teachers and staff are expected on March 15, 2025. Despite community protests and calls for a pause to allow for proper analysis and planning, the district continues to press ahead. If legal action succeeds, it will immediately halt the district’s actions while the courts review the legality of the Pacifica School Board’s resolution and the steps the district has taken since.

The legal injunction aims to ensure transparency and equity in education for all students, regardless of where they live or attend school. The Pacifica Citizen’s Alliance, an independent group of taxpayers and concerned residents has joined the lawsuit to hold the Pacifica School District accountable and ensure the responsible, transparent management of taxpayer funds.

The answer to questions about the district’s financial situation depends mainly on who you ask and which version of the Pacifica School Board’s reports you reference. As of this writing, the deficit is stated at $3.4 million, but this number has fluctuated across different publications. The lack of consistency is concerning.

In December 2024, the district stated it was in a “positive” financial position for the next three years. However, by January 2025, the narrative abruptly shifted to dire financial shortfalls requiring urgent school closures. Independent analysts have raised questions about discrepancies. When financial figures keep changing without adequate explanation, it breeds confusion and erodes trust in the district’s financial management abilities.

Key concerns flagged by independent analysts include:

1. Calculation Errors: A $200,000 overstatement of the deficit for the next two years skews the reserve percentage – a critical metric used to justify the rushed vote.
2. Unexplained Budget Increases: Between the December 2024 first interim budget report (which certified the district as financially positive) and the preliminary second interim report in January 2025, projected expenses jumped by $1.2 million annually. No justification has been provided for this significant change.
3. Implementation Costs: The district’s scenario projections focus only on cost savings from reducing staff without acknowledging the additional costs associated with implementing the closures. How will all OSS and Vallemar’s 6-8 students be relocated without incurring extra expenses?
4. Potential Enrollment Loss: Due to the uncertainty surrounding these changes, there’s a significant risk of decreased enrollment. Pacifica currently attracts out-of-district students, but the proposed closures may discourage transfers. For instance, a 10% drop in enrollment across the district would result in a $1.7 million revenue loss over three years. It’s unclear whether the district has accounted for this potential shortfall.

These unanswered questions underscore the need for greater transparency and comprehensive financial analysis before making such impactful decisions.

It’s unclear and we doubt it. The district’s multi-year budget scenarios focus solely on the timing of school closures, neglecting several critical factors. The district has not provided a comprehensive analysis, including actual relocation costs, potential enrollment loss, or revenue opportunities from future housing developments. Many fear that families will leave the school district or that state funding from attendance will drop further.

Additionally, the budget does not account for the planned addition of 1,892 new housing units in Pacifica or consider the potential decrease in support for the Measure EE parcel tax among seniors who distrust the school board’s financial management. These omissions could lead to significant enrollment losses and negatively impact the district’s financial stability and the quality of education.

The King report – also known as the Demographer’s report by King Consulting, from fall 2024, is the primary study the district has been using to base its decisions. It examines recent enrollment declines and projects future decreases but does not recommend closing or relocating any schools. Instead, it advises that the school districts continue monitoring the situation. The district also uses a table listing the past five years as a baseline to determine which schools should be closed. Critics argue that the report underestimates key factors, such as the costs and capacity challenges associated with relocating Ocean Shore students, fails to account for the state-mandated expansion of the Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program, and includes only a fraction of future housing developments. Moreover, a separate report by King Consulting from the spring of 2024 included more comprehensive housing projections, which the district used to justify increasing developer fees. 

Many contend that the district should have incorporated additional studies and more complete data. Significant considerations – such as potential enrollment losses from families leaving due to the uncertainties and upheaval following the board decision and other revenue opportunities – were omitted. These deficiencies raise serious questions about whether the report truly justifies the drastic measure of closing schools.

Three days before voting to move forward with their resolution on January 22, 2025, Pacifica School District published a list of 19 scenarios considered to address the budget deficit, all of which involve school closures. However, the analysis lacks any quantifiable data, and there is no cost-benefit analysis of solutions aimed at increasing student enrollment or revenue. Although an official request for documents was filed, the district has yet to fulfill its legal obligation, raising doubts about whether the necessary calculations even exist. This raises doubts about whether the school board’s decision is based on sound financial analysis.

No. The district claims transparency by citing seven “Budget Collaborative Meetings” and two limited sub-committee sessions (with a subset of members that attended the budget collaborative meetings). While the district asserts that these meetings involved every school site, actual participation was extremely minimal. For Ocean Shore, only five pre-selected representatives including the principal, one teacher, one classified staff member, one PTO representative, and one parent attended the broader budget collaborative meetings. Importantly, this committee never reached a consensus – or even a clear recommendation – to close any school.

The Superintendent’s Budget Collaborative Meetings held by the district were all closed-door meetings. The first mention that school reorganization/closure would be looked at was on December 11, 2024. Dr. Williams, district cabinet, and their hired consultant informed the committee that this process would take 1-2 years, requiring community engagement, the formation of a 7-11 committee, impact analysis, and other studies before any options or recommendations would be made. At the December 11, 2024 meeting, no specific school was singled out for reorganization or closure – any school(s) could have been considered.

Separate closed-door meetings with the much smaller budget subcommittee were held on January 8 and 9, 2025, where Dr. Williams and her cabinet presented four scenarios, all involving the closure of Ocean Shore to the subcommittee for the first time. According to participants, they were instructed not to share any meeting details beyond the group and not given the opportunity to discuss or evaluate alternatives to closing schools. For more context, read a staff member’s open letter.

Most of the Pacifica School District community which doesn’t include other community members (such as merchants) only became aware of the proposed closure at a special meeting on January 11, 2025 – just 11 days before the January 22, 2025 Board vote.

The community still has no chance for a two-way dialogue with the Board. Following the decision, the district offered brief “Listening Sessions” for the community (sending the invite only to school parents, leaving the broader community in the dark). These sessions took place only after the resolution had already been passed, leaving little room for meaningful input, and district staff were not present in most of these meetings.

Calling the changes decided upon by the School Board a “co-location” or “reconfiguration” is a play on semantics to avoid the formal school-closure processes. A proper school closure would involve equity and facility-impact studies mandated by law. However, taking K-5 away from one campus, merging grades 6-8 with another middle school, and shutting the original building is functionally a closure.

Yes. In most cases, districts take significantly more time to close schools. They conduct thorough equity studies, traffic and capacity analyses, and meaningful community engagement. By contrast, our school district is rushing ahead, citing urgent budget issues but offering inconsistent financial data and no clear plan for this transition. Moreover, we haven’t seen a single official example of two non-charter schools co-locating in this manner.

Not yet. The district has not released any formal transition details. The Ocean Shore PTO hopes to establish a transition team composed of parents, teachers, and staff members to collaborate with Sunset Ridge and ensure seamless integration into their campus. If you would like to support this initiative, please contact the Ocean Shore School PTO Presidents.

Also, on January 31, 2025, the district emailed the school community inviting them to join a transition committee that will be working on a plan until May 2025. For more information or if you have not received this email, please reach out to the PTO.

Under the resolution, SDC programs are being reorganized into two elementary sites (Ortega and Sunset Ridge) and grades 6-8 at Ingrid B. Lacy Middle School (IBL). The district has not provided detailed plans or safety assessments, leaving many SDC families in the dark about logistics and support.

Reduced K-8 access. K-8 seats in middle school will drop from 43% to 17%, excluding many families from the K-8 model. This reduces choice for families.

Demographic imbalance. Sunset Ridge (29% Asian, source: GreatSchools) and Ocean Shore (24% Asian) have higher Asian student populations than Cabrillo (9%). State law (Assembly Bill 1912) and subsequent guidance from Attorney General Rob Bonta strongly emphasize the necessity of equity impact analyses before school closures. The district has yet to produce such an analysis.

Although we are hopeful that our wide-ranging efforts to delay the district’s planned relocation and reconfiguration for the 2025-2026 school year will be successful, our teachers and families will actively work towards a smooth transition.

If your child is currently in Kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, or 4th grade at Ocean Shore School, your child will remain enrolled at Ocean Shore School. However, your child will no longer attend class at the Ocean Shore campus (411 Oceana Boulevard). Instead, they will attend classes at 340 Inverness Drive (on the Sunset Ridge campus). Details about classroom assignments, leadership, or budget remain unclear.

If your child is currently enrolled in 5th, 6th, or 7th grades at Ocean Shore or Vallemar, your child will be placed at Ingrid B. Lacy Middle School (IBL) for the next school year. Your child won’t be part of Ocean Shore or Vallemar anymore. IBL will incorporate these students into their general school population. If your child wants to transfer to Cabrillo K-8, we anticipate the district will hold a special lottery. (Details unknown at this point.)

Beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, Cabrillo K-8 will be Pacifica’s only public middle school besides Ingrid B. Lacy (grades 6-8). When your child enters 5th grade, you can make a transfer request for Cabrillo. For the 2025-26 school year, according to the district’s transition plan, there will 65 spots each for 6th, 7th and 8th grades at Cabrillo. To transfer to Cabrillo, applications for the waitlist will be available on the district’s website on March 10, 2025 at 8am.

For more information, please contact the district office. Alternatively, you may consider enrolling your child in nearby private middle schools.

Although we are hopeful that our multi-prong efforts will be successful in pushing off any relocation and reconfiguration efforts the district has intended for the 2025-2026 school year, we are planning for a smooth transition in any case. 

Ocean Shore School (previously the Alternative School) has weathered many changes over our 50-year history. We have proven to be resilient and adaptable, always emerging stronger. Our teachers and families are forming a task force focused on making the transition to a K-5 school as smooth as possible and preserving key elements that make Ocean Shore special – our experiential learning program, award-winning Oceans 411 marine conservation program, cross-grade project POD Days, and field trips.

At the budget review meeting on February 3, 2025, and during school tours at Sunset Ridge the same week, the district indicated that to meet staffing efficiency goals, Ocean Shore and Sunset Ridge will likely need to share teachers and classrooms. A “visionary team,” made up of staff and teachers from both schools, along with a “transition planning task force” of parents assembled by the district, will work on integrating the strengths of each school’s program. The key question that remains is how each school will maintain its “unique identity” and distinct programs—something we hope to clarify soon.

In the midst of all the changes, one thing remains constant – our community. We will carry the heart and soul of Ocean Shore forward. All of us are part of this together.

The California Department of Education states that two educational institutions in the same location are considered separate schools if they have distinct administrators, separate statutory authority, different staffing structures, schedules, and physical entrances.

There is confusion regarding the actual capacity of Sunset Ridge, with numbers ranging from 539 (according to the King Report) to 733 (as stated in the January 22, 2025 Resolution). Can Ocean Shore and Sunset Ridge truly co-locate without sharing classrooms? Furthermore, if sharing classrooms and teachers is necessary to maximize staffing efficiency, as the district has suggested in its transition plan, wouldn’t this arrangement more closely resemble a merger of the two schools?

We understand the changes ahead may feel very uncertain, especially since you may still be getting to know our school communities. The unknowns around Ocean Shore School (OSS) and other schools make this a challenging time for everyone and you’re not alone. We share your concerns and are working hard to get clarity.

One thing remains constant: our community. Ocean Shore is built on strong relationships and the weeks since the January 11, 2025 proposal to close OSS have only reinforced how much we care for one another. We will welcome you with open arms, and no matter the challenges, our values and people remain at the heart of our school. 

Although we hope we can reverse the district’s resolution to close the Ocean Shore campus, our teachers and families are deeply committed to making the transition to a K-5 school (at the Sunset Ridge campus) as smooth as possible and preserving key elements that make Ocean Shore special – our experiential learning program, award-winning Oceans 411 marine conservation program, cross-grade project POD Days, and field trips. We have weathered many changes over our 50-year history, but have adapted and always emerged stronger. If this is the kind of education you want for your child, we recommend you put Ocean Shore as one of your top choices on your kindergarten lottery card.

If you have additional questions, you can email the Ocean Shore Parent-Teacher Organization Presidents.

Yes. Some Ocean Shore families and the PTO are exploring a charter school to preserve the unique 50-year-old K-8 experiential, project-based model. This would require significant effort, funding, and collaboration among teachers, staff, and families. If you wish to be part of the charter school task force investigating a potential path forward, please contact the Ocean Shore PTO Presidents.

We need families, teachers, alumni, and community members who care deeply about our educational programs here in Pacifica to get involved. We are working on several parallel tracks.

• Stay Informed: Follow Ocean Shore PTO news updates. follow school and district news on ParentSquare, and join the conversation on the OSS community group on WhatsApp (only for current families). You can also request email updates. 
• Get Involved: Join a task force – transition planning, community outreach, and charter school planning.
  Email the Ocean Shore PTO Co-Presidents and let us know how you want to participate.
• Support Legal Action: Ocean Shore PTO has filed a legal injunction to stop the school district from causing further harm. Donations help cover legal costs.
• Community Engagement: Email Pacifica School District Board members, attend School Board meetings, and keep voicing your concerns publicly.
• Call School Board Changes: Some families are calling for new School Board leadership through recall and upcoming elections. Get involved with the Pacifica Citizens Alliance. 

Thank you for supporting our Save Pacifica K-8 Schools and Save Ocean Shore efforts! By staying informed and involved, we can push for a transparent, thoughtful approach that doesn’t sacrifice the K-8 experience or our Special Day Class (SDC) programs.

If you have additional questions, you can email the Ocean Shore Parent-Teacher Organization Presidents.