ANAHEIM : Schools Take Look at Growth

With enrollment growth projected at 1,000 students a year through the turn of the century, the Anaheim City School District is evaluating its classroom space to figure out how to make room for everyone.

In a presentation to school board trustees this week, Maria-Elena Romero, assistant superintendent of business, said of the rapidly growing number of pupils: “It’s a scary thought.”

District enrollment is nearing 19,000, officials said, and there is space for only 19,500. “We’re running out of innovative solutions,” Supt. Jack Sarnicky said.

In recent years, the district has dealt with increasing numbers of students by putting 15 of its 21 schools on year-round schedules and bringing in portable classrooms.

So far, the district has been able to juggle its limited resources while maintaining a ratio of one teacher for every 28 students. But now officials are facing tough financial choices, given that state funding for new facilities is unlikely, Romero said.

The bottom line, she said, is that the district needs at least two more schools within five years.

One option would be to construct “instant” schools using portable classrooms. That would cost $2 million for each school, not including land and equipment, officials said. The cost of building a permanent school would be $3.5 million, plus land and equipment.

Another option would be to put the schools on double sessions, with half of the students reporting to class in the early morning and the other half coming in after lunch. That would face strong opposition, however, school board President Christopher B. Whorton said.

“Realistically, I think that’s a solution the community is not going to be very comfortable with,” Whorton said Friday.