The Sacramento Bee, December 7, 1988
NO CLOSURE, ENCINA HIGH BACKERS VOW
By Jim Sanders, Bee Staff Writer
   Parents, teachers and students at Encina High School are bracing for a
fight as a task force considers closing the 935-student campus because of
dwindling enrollment and district money woes. A proposal to close Encina and
transfer its students to Rio Americano and Mira Loma is one of numerous
options being considered by the San Juan Unified  School District's housing
task force.
   Administrators said Tuesday that the task force has not completed its
review and is not scheduled to make final recommendations to the school
board until June. But teachers, parents and students are stunned and angered
that the 30-year-old campus, which has graduated thousands of teenagers, is
a candidate for closure.
   The Encina faculty voted Monday to lobby to keep the school open, and
leaders of the school PTA vowed Tuesday to join the fight -- as
individuals rather than as a PTA, whose bylaws ban such campaigns.
   "We're not going to take it lying down," said Colleen Blackman,
secretary of the group.
   Added Kitty Holmes, parent of a 16-year-old Encina junior: "You'll
find me with a picket sign out front if they close it. I think it's
terrible. I just found out about it -- and I'm upset."
   Of about a dozen students sampled Tuesday at Encina, most said they
would not fit in at upscale Rio Americano and that classmates might
have trouble reaching Mira Loma without free busing.
   "Kids are totally upset about this," said Michelle Amyot, student
body president.
   "When my best friend heard about it, she started crying because most of
her brothers and sisters went here," said Melissa Smith, a
17-year-old junior.
   Irene Leafe, an Encina teacher, said some students with poor grades or
low self-esteem might balk at going elsewhere, thus increasing the
number of dropouts.
   District administrators estimate they could save $800,000 annually in
operating expenses by closing Encina, and the 45-acre school site could be
sold for at least $4 million.
   Superintendent George Jeffers said it makes sense economically to
consider closing Encina. But if the district supports such a closure,
students and staff should be given at least 18 months to adjust. "I don't
think it's something that's being considered seriously for next year,"
Jeffers said. "I would not recommend a quick decision because it's not the
best way to do things." Jeffers said many students attending Rio, Encina,
and Mira Loma went to school together at Jonas Salk Middle School, making
adjustments easier if Encina were closed. But Jeffers said he has not formed
an opinion on whether to close the
high school.
   Encina has fewer students than any other high school in the district. Of
its 935 students -- excluding participants in a county-run jobs training
program -- about 150 are from outside the San Juan district. By comparison,
Encina had 1,367 students in 1984. The downward trend is expected to
continue, with enrollment projected to hit a low of 856 in 1990 before
climbing slightly.
   The school is located on Bell Street off Arden Way on the district's
western edge, an area growing at a much slower pace than easterly portions
of the district around Orangevale and Citrus Heights.
   Closing Encina would generate money for middle schools, where
enrollment is expected to soar from 6,629 students in 1988 to 8,166
students in 1993, exceeding capacity.
   In recent years, a science and technology academy and several other
specialty programs were placed at Encina to attract students, but
enrollment patterns haven't changed, said Eleanor Brown, assistant
superintendent.
   As alternatives to closing Encina, the task force will consider
converting the school to a vocational training center, or a training
center and continuation school, or merging Encina with Arcade Middle
School.
   The task force, which began meeting in September, is considering
several dozen other facility options, including:
   Closing Arcade and making Mira Loma a grades 7-12 school. Selling
Arden Middle School and making Rio Americano a 7-12 school.
   Closing Greer Elementary School and moving its students to
Winterstein School, currently used for adult programs.
   Closing Sylvan Intermediate School and making Mesa Verde High a 7-12
school, perhaps relocating Mesa's play fields onto a floodplain to
accommodate new construction.
   Changing San Juan High to a 7-12 school. Making Fair Oaks Elementary a
year-round school. Converting La Vista Continuation School into a middle
school.