Santa Barbara Unified Cuts Ribbon on 5 New Monroe Elementary Classrooms
The ribbon was cut on five new classrooms at Monroe Elementary, a project that took 14 months to complete and was part of the Measure J bonds approved by taxpayers in 2016.
Dr. Hilda Maldonado, right, gives a fist-bump to a student that is enjoying the new classrooms at Monroe Elementary.
By the Santa Barbara Unified School District
On Friday morning, the Santa Barbara Unified School District officially unveiled five new classrooms at Monroe Elementary, a project that began in Summer 2021 and was complete prior to the start of the 2022-23 school year.
The project is a part of Measure J funding approved by voters in 2016, with this two-building project costing $3.67 million.
Measure J is a $58-million bond measure, focused on improvements for SBUSD elementary schools, and was calculated on homeowners’ assessed value. The Santa Barbara County Auditor’s Office determined the tax rate per $100,000 of assessed value.
The morning celebration was co-hosted by Superintendent Dr. Hilda Maldonado and Monroe Elementary Principal Brian Naughton.
In attendance were Virginia Alvarez, Kate Ford and Laura Capps of the Santa Barbara Unified Board of Trustees, while Elizabeth McGillivray of McGillivray Construction and Joe Wilcox of KBZ Architects spoke of their involvement in the 14-month project.
It is the first major project completed at Monroe Elementary in more than two decades, with the school opening in 1958.
“This is a moment to pause and celebrate, as one of our facilities got a major upgrade due to the commitment of not only the Monroe community, but also taxpayers with their support of the bond,” said Dr. Maldonado. “Our mission is to provide our staff and students the most optimal places to learn, so that they can innovate and push us forward. Projects such as these provide the comfort that they need to do just that, and I’m grateful to a community that continues to understand that.”
The classroom ribbon cutting comes two weeks after the district also “flipped the switch” on its massive solar panel project that will touch every district school, with completion expected by year’s end.
“It’s a great time to attend a Santa Barbara Unified school, as we are pushing our facilities forward,” Dr. Maldonado said.
7 Comments
-
-
2
-
Sep 18, 2022 06:55 PMWhy don't the workers who actually built it be involved
-
1
-
-
Sep 19, 2022 10:20 AMGETOFF - it's their job. Should employees be part of a ceremony every time they complete a task?
-
-
2
-
Sep 19, 2022 10:36 AMThey city usually is and it's apart of their job
-
1
-
-
Sep 19, 2022 11:54 AMYeah, but not every employee of the City is in attendance. Did you even read this before complaining?
"In attendance were Virginia Alvarez, Kate Ford and Laura Capps of the Santa Barbara Unified Board of Trustees, while Elizabeth McGillivray of McGillivray Construction and Joe Wilcox of KBZ Architects spoke of their involvement in the 14-month project."
The people who designed and built these, were represented.
-
2
-
-
Sep 19, 2022 11:43 AMThe new classrooms are fab AND air conditioned.
-
2
-
-
Sep 19, 2022 11:56 AMReally think air conditioning in all classrooms at all campuses should be a top priority. Right now only Roosevelt has A/C and the admin building. I have heard people ask for this for years at board meetings. With climate change it is imperative we get this done urgently. It is hard to learn anything or teach anything when it is in triple digits. Fans don't cut it. And odd that Admin has that but not teacher 's classrooms.
-
-
2
-
Sep 19, 2022 08:47 PMA lot of the local local schools are in disrepair, and need major improvements. However, throwing money at infrastructure alone won’t help student achievement much. There’s a systemic problem with how our kids in California are being taught. Don’t believe me? just look at the data. I can’t say I have much respect for Hilda, but it’s not just her of course.