Huntington Beach : Board President Seeks to Keep School Open

Calling a decision to close the Joseph R. Perry Elementary School “hastier than it should have been,” school board President Brian Garland said Wednesday that Perry was his third choice for closing but “the only one I had the option of voting on.”

At Tuesday night’s school board meeting, Garland asked that the board reconsider the school closing at its March 5 meeting. A study session for the Huntington Beach City School District elective body has been set for March 1.

Two weeks ago, Garland was one of three trustees who voted to close Perry at the end of the school year. At Tuesday’s meeting, he said that additional study is necessary before the five-member board can reach the best decision.

The decision to close Perry came without much communication between the school board members, Garland said, adding that none knew how the others would vote before ballots were cast.

The study session will consider all the possibilities, he said, including the impact on minorities and curricula and what is best financially for the district.

“Additional homework needs to be done,” Garland said.

Enrollment at Perry is down from its 1974-75 peak of 738 to just under 500 students today. The school, however, has the highest minority enrollment in the district.

Trustees Pat Cohen and Karen O’Bric voted with Garland to close the school, while Sherry Barlow and Gary Nelson were opposed. The trustees also voted to close either the Isaac L. Sowers or the Ernest H. Gisler middle schools at the end of the 1985-86 school year.