In an effort to maintain transparency with the entire Saugus Union School District community, SUSD is announcing that the Governing Board of the Saugus Union School District will consider placing a school facility measure onto the Nov. 5, 2024 ballot.

The purpose of this measure is to ensure that all of the  schools in the Saugus Union School District provide safe, secure, accessible, and high-quality learning  environments for the changing programs and facilities requirements determined for California schools.

Over the last two years, the Governing Board has received information, including engineering reports,  architectural analysis, and soil studies, for six of its 16 school campuses in the Santa Clarita Valley.

SUSD has shared  this information with the community via public forums, Governing Board meetings, school newsletters, and school  closure proceedings. The seismic/earthquake needs for Santa Clarita Elementary were a contributing factor in the  Governing Board’s decision to close the school in June 2024. Earthquakes are always a threat in California, and  buildings without modern infrastructures (i.e., masonry only construction) do not meet the current building  expectations.

Rio Vista Elementary School, Skyblue Mesa Elementary School, Cedarcreek Elementary School,  and Rosedell Elementary School are all more than 50 years old and need to be upgraded/rebuilt for current  seismic safety. Emblem Academy also needs seismic retrofitting improvements despite modernization of the  site several years ago. While seismic/earthquake needs are the most critical to the safety of our students and  staff, we continue to need additional improvements to our school facilities to ensure they are safe in the event of  any man-made disasters, too.

A resolution ordering placement of a bond measure on the ballot will be considered at the regular governing  board meeting scheduled for Tuesday, July 30 at 6:30 pm. Members of the public are encouraged to attend  the meeting in person at 24930 Avenue Stanford, Santa Clarita, CA 91355 OR to attend via Zoom by accessing the District’s website.

The  agenda for the meeting will be posted late Friday, July 26 at the District Office and online, along with the  presentations and documents that will be presented to the Governing Board. These documents will include the  proposed ballot measure. For more information about our upcoming meeting, contact the Office of the  Superintendent at 661-294-5300 or sgibson@saugususd.org.