The Sunnyvale School District will adopt its budget for next year at the Board meeting on June 20 and plans to continue to invest in effective, well-trained teachers and staff, including social workers, nurses, custodians, and occupational therapists. In the coming year, students will benefit from smaller class sizes and greater access to teachers and support staff.
While the District is anticipating the effects of slowing property tax growth and expiring funding, in concert with increased costs for special education, health services, and social/emotional and behavioral support, it continues to enhance its service to students.
Among the ways the District is better serving students:
- We are making it easier for students and families to eat healthier.
- Next year our cafeterias will cook all meals from scratch. We are also offering taste testing and surveying students on their satisfaction and gathering their suggestions.
- We distribute groceries every other week.
- Next year we will launch Nutrislice, a program that will give parents the ability to see their child’s menus and review nutritional values and sodium levels, and find menu items that meet their dietary restrictions/allergies.
- Plans to build a public branch library at Lakewood Elementary School are moving ahead. The District has allocated more than $3 million to the effort and anticipates construction to be completed by the end of 2025.
- We are installing filtered water refill stations at each of our schools.
- We are providing more transportation for students and have incorporated two new electric buses into our fleet that we acquired at virtually no cost to the District by obtaining clean energy grants.
- We made it easier for parents to chaperone and attend field trips and volunteer in the classroom by adopting a more streamlined fingerprinting process.
- Students now have greater access to mental health services, including therapeutic sessions and meetings with social workers.
- We are constantly working to create campuses where all students and families feel welcomed and safe, including providing training in anti-racism and restorative justice.
- We continue to invest in attracting the highest quality staff to provide the best service to students, raising salaries to remain competitive in a tight labor market.
- Keeping our facilities up-to-date and well-maintained (see facilities story for the latest construction news)
In the next year the District will reassess its investments through the lens of our new Strategic Plan. While we keep an eye on the slowing economy, we will continue to look for opportunities to better serve our students.
