TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Hot topics in the Tucson Unified board meeting Tuesday night were about purchasing more buses and discussing a plan to engage the public in school consolidations and grade reconfigurations.
The TUSD Bond Oversight Committee recommended a new round of improvements using the $480 million bond program voters approved in 2023.
Dr. Charlotte Carter, the bond program manager for TUSD, says the next two projects would be repairing and upgrading Sabino High School's pavement and parking lots, as well as purchasing 20 gasoline buses that hold 14 passengers.
Carter said the reason for the additional buses is to right size ridership.
"So the 14 passenger buses really meet the needs of the fleet and the district at large. Also, the 14 passenger buses does not require to have the CDL license. So as it pertains to the shortage of bus drivers, we're gonna be able to recruit more easily," Carter said.
The repaving project carries a price tag of $660,000. This project was approved 5-0 by the board.
The 20 buses would cost $2.4 million, or about $121,000 per bus. Superintendent Dr. Gabriel Trujillo said the operational need is there for the buses. He said the smaller buses will be used for student activities like field trips and competitions.
Dr. Ravi Shah, the board clerk, had some concerns.
"I know we have consultants working on sustainability. Have they looked at this and seen that this is the best way to maintain our goals for long term sustainability from our climate action the board passed I think about two years ago?," Shah asked Dr. Carter.
Dr. Carter said they still have the EV bus pilot that's being kept an eye on for data and another thing her team is factoring in is the infrastructure — which is a big consideration opposed to doing electric.
The board approved this projects 4-1.
TUSD enrollment has been declining, a topic Dr. Trujillo has raised repeatedly when discussing the budget. Because of that and financial pressures, the district is looking at consolidating schools and reconfiguring grade levels.
Before those changes can happen, the district must engage the public before it can present a proposal.
Jennifer Eckstrom, board president, shared her concerns.
"Governing board wasn't even consulted on dates and times. I just feel like, you know, a 4:30, 4 o'clock on a Wednesday, that's hard for people to get to. I appreciate the Saturday meeting. I don't know, I just feel like there's some missteps here," Eckstrom said.
Dr. Trujillo said he wants these meeting to be a packed house to really involve the community.
Dr. Shah asked what the purpose of the community meetings is for.
"Is it about a closure and consolidation plan and everyone just be pissed off that like my school's being closed or happy that my school isn't being closed and that's pretty much all we're hearing like in some majority of people what school they're coming from, if their schools are affected," Dr. Shah said. "
How do we get beyond just the NIMBYism of this that is gonna be inherent when anyone's talking about school closures to a place where we're trying to get feedback on how to improve a plan and strengthen the benefits and mitigate some of the weaknesses, and negatives within a potential closure and consolidation, reconfiguration?"
The presenter, Bill De La Cruz with De La Cruz Leadership Solutions, said they won't be able to mitigate for all of that.
"What we are attempting to do with these public meetings is to give people an opportunity to look at the similar data that's gonna be shared on Saturday, to look at different scenarios, different moves as we're calling them in terms of, of repurposing schools, of consolidation of programming," De La Cruz said.
"And to have a conversation about what would be in the best interest of the district. We're not asking people to pick a school or to make a recommendation. We're asking people to think about this from a district-wide perspective, that this isn't just impacting one part of the community, it's impacting the whole district. And so really taking people through a process of understanding what this is all about."
After discussion and debate, the board approved the timeline 3-2 to hold community meetings on school consolidations, grade reconfigurations, program changes, and investments.
TUSD will post the dates and times of those community meetings.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
——
Vanessa Gongora is KGUN 9's Westside reporter.. Vanessa fell in love with storytelling by growing up in sports. She was fascinated by how sports reporters go beyond the x's & o's to tell players' stories, and how sports bring people together, inspiring Vanessa to provide the same impact as a journalist. Share your story ideas and important issues with Vanessa by emailing vanessa.gongora@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
----
STAY IN TOUCH WITH US ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
