Our 94965 School District History

While running for public office, you meet so many wonderful people. One question I hear repeatedly while walking the streets listening to voters is

“Why has it been so difficult for our community to come together?”

I wondered that same question years ago after coming home from a divisive school board meeting! So googled it and found myself up to the wee hours of the morning reading about 94965. We are quite a fascinating district! Since learning about our past, informs our future, I wanted to share our history with more people. To make things easier for you, I created this page simply to provide a curated timeline. I received the information from our school district (source noted at end of timeline). Many important events have occurred since the timeline ended on Sept 2018. I will add these events this week and do my best to continue to update it as

we, the people of 94965, create a new chapter in our history.

We can be that beacon on a hill, lighting the way to a bright future. The power is truly in all our hands to let our dreams fly.

• SEPTEMBER 2018

  CONSOLIDATION WITH MILL VALLEY PUT ON HOLD IN FAVOR OF COLLABORATION

  The consultants hired to study the feasibility of consolidation with Mill Valley District completes its initial findings. Having reviewed the findings, the District Structure Committee decides not to pursue consolidation at this time and instead recommends pursuing other ways to collaborate with the Mill Valley School District on programs and services.
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• JULY 2017

  SCHOOL MERGER PROPOSED

  Willow Creek Academy school leader proposes merging the district's traditional public school, Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy, and its charter school, Willow Creek Academy, to form a single public school.
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• JUNE 2017

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY REQUEST TO APPLY FOR FACILITY FUNDING DENIED

  The Sausalito Marin City school board denies Willow Creek Academy's request to apply for state funding made available to charter schools to upgrade facilities.
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• MARCH 2017

  CONSULTANTS HIRED TO EXPLORE CONSOLIDATION WITH MILL VALLEY

  Following the release of the 2016 FCMAT report, the Marin County Office of Education hires a consultant to assess the feasability of consolidating the Sausalito Marin City School District with the Mill Valley School District. The Sausalito Marin City school board votes to support the consolidation study and establishes the District Structure Committee, an ad-hoc committee, to participate in the study and explore other possible structural changes within the district.
  Read Source

• DECEMBER 2016

  MARIN COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION STEPS IN TO PROVIDE ACTIVE OVERSIGHT OF THE SAUSALITO MARIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT.

  The Marin County Office of Education announces that it will be providing oversight of the Sausalito Marin City School District.
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• NOVEMBER 2016

  PARENTS AND RESIDENTS PROTEST THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION AT BAYSIDE MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., ACADEMY

  A lack of books, a teacher resignation and concerns about the educational program as school starts, prompts parents to come together under the banner Marin City Parents Advocating for Our Children to demand improvements.
  Read Source

• OCTOBER 2016

  SAUSALITO MARIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT RESPONSE TO 2016 FCMAT REPORT

  The Sausalito Marin City School District responds to the 2016 FCMAT report, stating that the allegations of misconduct by the school district expressed or implied in the report are unfounded and based on inaccurate and incomplete information.
  Read Source

• SEPTEMBER 2016

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY RESPONSE TO 2016 FCMAT REPORT

  The Board of Directors of Willow Creek Academy responds to the 2016 FCMAT report stating that the report rests on false assumptions and statistical distortions and refuting the report's claim that the district has disproportionately diverted financial resources from the traditional public school to the public charter school.
  Read Source

• AUGUST 2016

  FCMAT 2016 MANAGEMENT REVIEW

  Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) conducts another review of the management practices of the Sausalito Marin City School District. The report finds that students at the traditional public school, Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy, continue to underperform on standardized tests as compared to the state average along with continued declining enrollment and on-going weakenesses in internal controls at the traditional public school. It asserts that the majority of the school district's governing board members are beholden to those whose primary interest is the well-being of the public charter school, Willow Creek Academy, to the detriment of students at the traditional public school.
  Read Source

• JULY 2016

  MARIN CITY RESIDENTS OBJECT TO BOND FUNDS BEING RAISED

  Marin City residents object to bond funds being raised on the grounds that the majority of the funds would be used to upgrade Willow Creek Academy, the charter school.
  Read Source

• JUNE 2016

  SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES PUTTING BOND MEASURE BEFORE VOTERS

  The Sausalito Marin City school board votes to put a $29 million bond measure before voters to upgrade both Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy and Willow Creek Academy campuses.
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• DECEMBER 2015

  CONGRESS PASSES EVERY STUDENT SUCCEEDS ACT

  The Every Student Succeeds Act, which goes into effect in the 2017-2018 school year, shifts the burden of holding schools accountable for academic progress from the federal government to the states. States can pick their own goals, both a big long-term goal, and smaller, interim goals. These goals must address: proficiency on tests, English-language proficiency, and graduation rates. Goals have to set an expectation that all groups that are furthest behind close gaps in achievement and graduation rates. States must incorporate four indicators to track academic progress.
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• 2015

  MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN SAUSALITO MARIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT AND WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY

  California became the second state in the country (after Minnesota) to enact charter school legislation. The act authorizes any person seeking to establish a charter school to petition the governing board of a school district to approve a charter that permits a school to operate independently from the existing school district structure as a method of accomplishing specified goals. *Exact date unknown.
  Read Source

• SEPTEMBER 2015

  ORGANIC NON-GMO LUNCH PROGRAM BEGINS

  The Sausalito Marin City School District lays claim to being the first in the country to provide a menu to students that offers all organic and non-GMO foods.
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• DECEMBER 2013

  BOARD ADOPTS BOARD POLICY 0210 - EQUITY

  Following a review of board policies, the Sausalito Marin City School District adopts Board Policy 0210 - Equity
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• DECEMBER 2013

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY CHARTER RENEWED

  The Sausalito Marin City School District Board of Trustees votes to renew Willow Creek Academy charter.
  Read Source

• SEPTEMBER 2013

  BAYSIDE MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. ACADEMY OPENS

  In an effort to reduce costs, the Sausalito Marin City School District consolidates the district's traditional elementary school and middle school to form a combined K-8 school, Bayside Martin Luther King Jr. Academy, moving elementary school students to the middle school campus in Marin City. The charter school, Willow Creek Academy, remains at the former Bayside campus.
  Read Source

• APRIL 2012

  FCMAT 2012 MANAGEMENT REVIEW

  Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) conducts a management review of the Sausalito Marin City School District. In addition to a number of internal control weaknesses, the report finds that the district has declining API scores in both its schools and declining enrollment. It recommends that the district consider different site or district grade level configurations in an effort to reduce the operational burden and expense of two separate campuses for a 150-student population. It raises concerns regarding funds transferred to the public charter school Willow Creek Academy in excess of the minimum required.
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• 2009

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY CHARTER RENEWED

  The Sausalito Marin City School District Board of Trustees votes to renew Willow Creek Academy charter. *Exact date unknown.

• JUNE 2008

  2007-2008 MARIN COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY: THE SAUSALITO MARIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT: THEN AND NOW

  Grand Jury looks at the Bayside, MLK, and Willow Creek schools as an update to the District status from the 1997 Grand Jury report and finds positive changes and achievement at Bayside while MLK still struggles. Also discusses the dynamics with Willow Creek and suggestions for improvement.
  Read Source

• MAY 2007

  SMCSD RESPONSE TO GRAND JURY REPORT

  Sausalito Marin City School District responds to the details of the Grand Jury Report
  Read Source

• MAY 2007

  WILLOW CREEK RESPONSE TO THE GRAND JURY REPORT

  Willow Creek Academy responds to the details of the Grand Jury Report
  Read Source

• FEBRUARY 2007

  2006-2007 MARIN COUNTY GRAND JURY: CHARTER SCHOOLS: A MATTER OF CHOICE

  The Marin County Grand Jury conducts a review of the four schools in the county chartered by local districts, including Willow Creek Academy.
  Read Source

• JUNE 2006

  MARIN IJ LOOK AT SAUSALITO MARIN SCHOOL DISTRICT WITH GEORGE STRATIGOS AS BOARD PRESIDENT

  A puzzling legacy - SMCSD struggles with high spending and low achievement
  Read Source

• MARCH 2006

  CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS PROTEST DRUG-SNIFFING DOGS ON SCHOOL CAMPUS

  ACLU speaks out against use of drug sniffing dogs at Martin Luther King Jr. Academy Middle School in Marin City, citing lack of evidence of a drug problem at the school.
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• 2004

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY CHARTER RENEWED

  The Sausalito Marin City School District Board of Trustees votes to renew Willow Creek Academy charter. *Exact date unknown.

• JANUARY 2002

  CONGRESS PASSES NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT

  Congresses passes No Child Left Behind in 2001; the act goes into effect in 2002 and significantly increases the federal role in holding schools responsible for the academic progress of all students. It puts a special focus on ensuring that states and schools boost the performance of certain groups of students, such as English-language learners, students in special education, low-income students and students of color, whose achievement, on average, trails their peers. It broadens the role of testing in tracking academic progress. Failing schools risk losing federal Title I money.
  Read Source

• SEPTEMBER 2001

  WILLOW CREEK ACADEMY OPENS

  In the spring of 2001 Willow Creek Academy Charter School Petition is approved by the Sausalito Marin City School District. The charter school opens its doors that September, sharing space with the traditional public elementary school Bayside Academy.

• AUGUST 1997

  1997 GRAND JURY REPORT

  Prompted by complaints from citizens, the Marin County Grand Jury conducts a study of the Sausalito Marin City School District and releases a report critical of the district. One of the most serious problems, according to the report, is violence. According to the report, police were called to the district's schools 50 times during the 1996-97 school year.
  Read Source

• MAY 1997

  LA TIMES LOOKS AT THE SAUSALITO MARIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

  Sausalito Schools: Money Isn't Enough A wealthy district struggles to teach some of its poorest students, creating an education enigma. Underachievement ignites a firestorm of protest from frustrated parents.
  Read Source

• MARCH 1997

  SAUSALITO AND MARIN CITY RESIDENTS ATTEMPT TO RECALL BOARD MEMBERS

  Frustrated by what they consider a lack of leadership and an increase in violence on school campus, residents attempt to recall all five school board members to force change. Enrollment declines from 387 in 1990 to 238.
  Read Source

• JANUARY 1997

  FCMAT REPORT ISSUED

  The report is referenced in a number of sources, but not readily available on the FCMAT website. We were not able to get information regarding the contents of the report.

• 1992

  CALIFORNIA STATE LEGISLATURE PASSES THE CHARTER SCHOOLS ACT OF 1992

  California became the second state in the country (after Minnesota) to enact charter school legislation. The act authorizes any person seeking to establish a charter school to petition the governing board of a school district to approve a charter that permits a school to operate independently from the existing school district structure as a method of accomplishing specific goals. *Exact date unknown.

• JUNE 1985

  FORT BAKER BASE CLOSURE

  Fort Baker turns over most of the base's property to the National Park Service effectively closing down the base.

• SEPTEMBER 1974

  FORT CRONKHITE DECOMMISSIONED

  During the Cold War Fort Cronkhite was used to house soldiers of the nearby SF-88 Nike Missile launch site. SF-88 operated throughout the 1960s and early 1970s until it was permanently closed in 1974.

• MARCH 1972

  SAUSALITO VOTERS GO TO POLLS TO VOTE ON SCHOOL TAX RATE

  District is asked to vote on a tax increase or face cuts teacher staffing and services to schools.
  Read Source

• SEPTEMBER 1971

  COURT ORDERS SCHOOL DESEGREGATION IN SAN FRANCISCO

  Court-ordered desegregation begins in San Francisco; parents boycott busing
  Read Source

• JUNE 1970

  PRESIDENT OF SCHOOL BOARD RESIGNS AMID RACIAL TURMOIL.

  After black principal Sidney Walton is fired on grounds of supporting 'militant' activities in violation of school board policies, school board members resign. The county is asked to step-in to ensure a quorum.
  Read Source

• JANUARY 1970

  MERGER BETWEEN SAUSALITO MARIN CITY AND MILL VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT DISCUSSED

  Dwindling enrollment in the Sausalito Marin City school district prompts discussion of unionionization with Mill Valley School District
  Read Source

• MAY 1967

  A STUDY OF EARLY RESULTS FROM DESEGREGATION IS PUBLISHED

  Since Segregation in Sausalito
  Read Source

• MARCH 1966

  STATE DEVELOPS PLAN TO UNIFY SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN SOUTHERN MARIN

  State Board of Education develops a plan for a unified school district in Southern Marin which if approved would go before voters. (Editorial calls for Mill Valley to pass school facility bonds in advance of possible unification.)
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• JULY 1965

  CITIZENS ADVOCATE FOR INTEGRATION AND CONSOLIDATION

  A citizen advisory committee is formed. The 18-person committee makes 10 recommendations, among them a call to consolidate the three existing schools to end racial segregation and a recommendation to consolidate with the Mill Valley School District.
  Read Source

• APRIL 1965

  ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT PASSES

  Part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society program, the act allocates more than $1 billion a year in aid under its first statutory section, known as Title I, to districts to help cover the cost of educating disadvantaged students. The law has been reauthorized and changed more than half a dozen times since that initial legislation.
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• SEPTEMBER 1964

  DESEGREGATION BEGINS WITH AN INTERN STUDENT EXCHANGE BETWEEN MILL VALLEY AND SAUSALITO SCHOOL DISTRICTS

  Mill Valley students are bused to Sausalito to support integration
  Read Source

• MAY 1958

  MASTER PLAN TO MERGE MARIN COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS RELEASED

  Marin County Committee on School District Organization releases a master plan to merge the county's then 19 elementary school districts into five unified districts each serving a single high school. Under this proposed plan, which did not go forward, the Sausalito Marin City school district would be consolidated under the Tamalpais High School district.
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• OCTOBER 1955

  CALLS FOR SCHOOL INTEGRATION

  Leaders of the Urban League and the NAACP testify at before Sausalito Marin City school board on the need for integration and in support of hiring teachers of color ten years before desegregation occurs.
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• AUGUST 1955

  MARIN CITY PARENTS PETITION SCHOOL DISTRICT TO ADVOCATE FOR IMPROVEMENTS

  Citizen group, Marin City Citizens for Better Schools, forms to advocate for improvements in the school district. Specifically the group of 231 petition-signers demands an impartial survey to determine the extent of violence between students and teachers, parent mistrust and ill-will; integration and teacher turnover rates.
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• JULY 1952

  SCHOOL FACILITY FUNDING DIVERTED

  Facility funds intended to alleviate overcrowding transferred from 'temporary' Marin City facility to Richardson Bay school due to legal issues.
  Read Source

• MAY 1952

  SCHOOL DISTRICT CONSOLIDATION PROPOSED

  Defeated school board candidate proposes creating an independent Marin City school district or consolidating with Mill Valley school district to allow for direct representation on school board.
  Read Source

• JUNE 1951

  SURVEY OF DISTRICT CALLS FOR CHANGES

  "Leonard" report, commissioned by citizens and conducted by J. Paul Leonard, President of San Francisco College, cites administrative and curriculum 'challenges' within Marin City Sausalito School District and recommends changes.
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• MAY 1950

  MARIN CITY CITIZENS CALL FOR SCHOOL SURVEY

  Marin City parents call for a school survey to raise awareness of poor promotion levels of students attending Marin City school.
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• MARCH 1947

  TWO DISTRICT SCHOOLS, MARIN CITY SCHOOL AND CENTRAL SCHOOL, VIE FOR EQUITABLE FUNDING

  School Board questions regarding funding of two schools. School board works towards equity. Superintendent states: "I think I may speak for the board in saying that all we want to do is provide every child with the same opportunity for a good education, no matter where he lives or what school he attends. After all, that's our job. It's all one school district."
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• MARCH 1947

  SUPERINTENDENT RESPONDS TO FUNDING COMPLAINTS

  Superintendent's response to funding questions. Marin City school is overcrowded with shared classrooms and Marin City Council has questions about funding between Sausalito and Marin City schools.
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• SEPTEMBER 1943

  MARIN CITY SCHOOL OPENS

  Marin City School opens with Double sessions for K-4 due to lack of space at new school.
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• AUGUST 1943

  CALLS FOR REPRESENTATION OF NEW MARIN CITY SCHOOL ON SCHOOL BOARD

  Editorial on filling open School Board position with a Marin City resident after Board member resigns over school climate at Central School asks Marin City resident to be appointed to board. County Superintendent disagrees and appoints Sausalito.
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• AUGUST 1943

  DECISION TO START SCHOOL IN MARIN CITY

  Marin City School opening funded by Federal Government
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• DECEMBER 1941

  ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR. THE UNITED STATES ENTERS WWII

  In response, shipyards are built in the Sausalito Marinship to build ships for the war. Workers migrate to California for war-time jobs. Marin City, previously open space and pastures, is developed to house workers.
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• JANUARY 1927

  GROWING POPULATION LEADS TO THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW SCHOOLS.

  Students attend South School in New Town. With the passage of a bond, Central School is built near Caledonia Street (now Sausalito City Hall) to meet the needs of the community's growing population. Later Bayside and Martin Luther King School would be constructed in the north end of town.
  Read Source

Source: School timeline attributed to Partners in School Innovation