Letter to the Editor: How To End School Closures Forever

With today's shrinking enrollment and declining tax revenue from reduced property values, it will take some serious creativity to not only keep all of San Bruno’s schools open, but also to raise the performance of more academically challenged schools.

It will also take creativity to provide a greater variety of learning opportunities across the district.

Perhaps the school board will reach out to businesses and look for more public-private symbiosis.

Perhaps San Bruno’s mayor and City Council could use some of their $70 million from PG&E to fund community outreach programs that could rent vacant school rooms and provide families with extra-curricular activities.

Or maybe some of that money could get donated to organizations, like nonprofit tax-deductible Parent Teacher Organizations and Associations, that could provide schools with computers, supplies, services and playground equipment. 

When schools empty during the summer, perhaps their idle property could be rented out to businesses or farmers' markets. Or maybe bring a small fair to a large empty blacktop.

Sure, we can shoot down these ideas all day. But who among us is willing to contribute their creativity and dream up solutions nobody has yet thought of, or research successful efforts across the globe that could bring inspiration and material benefit to San Bruno?

Hopefully that next great idea will come from you because it surely hasn't yet come from me.

—Scott Curtner

Do you have a letter to the editor you want to submit about the San Bruno school closure talks? Just make sure it's not longer than 300 words and email it to Editor Martin Ricard at martin@patch.com.