The first day of school for an estimated 250 Stege Elementary students was drastically different this year compared to what most generations of Eastshore neighborhood residents experienced at the 81-year-old campus near Booker T. Anderson park.
This morning, less than a month after school district officials unexpectedly closed the district’s oldest school — which originally opened in 1903 — nervous pupils boarded buses to DeJean Middle School, 1.7 miles away. The middle school will be their new home for the foreseeable future while the West Contra Costa Unified School District removes newly discovered asbestos and lead hazards and makes long-needed renovations.
Stege is one of several district schools named in a July 19 civil rights lawsuit filed on behalf of parents alleging longstanding problems of understaffing and substandard conditions. WCCUSD staff this summer found asbestos and lead in window putty that was being removed from the school’s outdated window panels, and the district shut down the school, to begin modernization and rebuild work, on July 24.
Stege families feeling ‘nervous’ and ‘shocked’ as school starts
Families got their first look at DeJean Middle School on Macdonald Avenue during an open house Friday evening. Parents and pupils filled the halls of one of the school’s buildings, partitioned off by a fence from the rest of the campus, for tours with Stege’s new Principal Claudia Velez.
Some parents told Richmondside that they’re nervous for their children amid the sudden school move. Melvin Oliver slowly ushered his son, Zacari, toward his kindergarten classroom during the open house. He said that he was still trying to adjust to the news, gesturing to his visibly nervous son.
“We’re just now finding out everything. I’m just as shocked as my wife was,” he said.
Tanya Le was also nervous for her son, Jaylan Ngo, who is entering third grade. She said, “He’s got mixed feelings.”
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This is a much nicer campus. But it’s a little further from us. It’s a little difficult managing the schedule and the buses.”
— Stege parent Tanya Le, on her son attending DeJean Middle School
However, Le also said she thought DeJean is a better school than Stege, with newer classrooms and better amenities. The campus opened in 2003 and was built on the site of the former Harry Ells High School, which closed in 1985 due to declining enrollment and asbestos.
“This is a much nicer campus,” Le said. “But it’s a little further from us. It’s a little difficult managing the schedule and the buses.”
Stege students will be transported back and forth from Booker T. Anderson Community Center.
Parent Marie Villavlcek, who lives on the same street as Stege, said that she isn’t sure if she’ll keep her child Laelia at the school.
“If we can get a rebuild at Stege, it would be so nice because we live right next door,” she said.
With her daughter entering kindergarten, Villavlcek said, “I’m feeling very anxious.”
“The principal seems lovely, I know she did such great work at Michelle Obama School, which was in a similar situation. But at this point, we’re still trying to transfer out,” she said. “We’ll definitely be here next week, but it’s a lot of instability for these kids.”
Tania Speech, a parent and outspoken critic of how WCCUSD had handled Stege’s environmental hazards and maintenance problems, told Richmondside on Friday that the tour of DeJean did not reduce her skepticism. She said that although the campus could work for a short-term solution, it cannot be a long-term fix. The superintendent told parents at a recent community meeting that repairs could take two to three years.
“These classrooms are super small and crunched up,” Speech said. “It’s not a good environment. Not to mention that they see all the amenities (where) the older kids are, and they’re too young to understand why they can’t use them.”
Speech said that the bus transportation plan is also a huge concern for her, from both a safety and a convenience standpoint. She planned to try it Monday, but was considering driving her children to school.
“I’m hoping for the best,” Speech said. “But last year was very crucial. They lost a lot of learning, a lot of support (due to understaffing). This year is like make-up.”
As families gathered around the buses Monday morning, some seemed confused at the process. Michael Booker, the district’s safety consultant, said that everyone was required to fill out emergency transportation cards before letting their child board. This led to a small delay as some parents finished signing paperwork.
Waiting for the bus to head to first grade, Laveah McClendon clutched her backpack and said she looked forward to seeing the new school.
“I feel excited, and surprised,” she said.
Her father, Antonio McClendon, was less enthusiastic.
“I don’t like this busing thing,” he said. “The walk is too far. I might just have to take her to school myself.”
Other families seemed fine with the process. As first-grader Anthony Cambra got on the bus, his aunt Megan Kelly, a DeJean alum, said she thought the bus system went well.
“We got confused because we thought we were supposed to go to Stege first,” Kelly said. “But other than that, it’s cool. I don’t see anything wrong with it.”
Principal Velez was present throughout the process, meeting parents and helping advise them on which bus their child should take. She told Richmonside that she felt positive about the first day.
“I feel like there’s a lot of excitement,” Velez said. “I was at campus all weekend and kids were showing up. Overall, I feel like people are impressed with the campus.”
She said that she has experience organizing a similar system, moving children by bus to other schools, during the renovation of Michelle Obama School in the 2018-2019 school year.
“Once we have gotten started, it will be pretty seamless,” Velez said.
Great photos.
Thanks for this story. I find it strange that parents seemed so put-off by, and suspicious of, school buses. Did thry not take buses to school as children? Perhaps it’s been more than a generation since Richmond schools had buses? Maybe a good follow-up story would be to look into when school buses stopped existing in Richmond, why, and how most students get to school today. Perhaps with some current comparisons to nearby cities where parents are comfortable letting children bike and walk to school. What can the district and city do together to free parents from the notion that door-to-door delivery in a personal vehicle is the normal way for children to get to school?