Several parents and teachers told the Chula Vista Elementary School District board on Aug. 13 they were concerned about student safety, the loss of art instruction and combination classes at Liberty Elementary.
Taylor Fabian, a Liberty parent, told trustees that kindergarteners are using the upper playground for lunch recess where only one noon duty staff member watches about 45 children and the space is not fenced. "This is a huge issue in my opinion and something that needs to be taken care of immediately," Fabian said, asking for an operational fix to separate kindergarten recess from the upper playground.
Parent Kara Good raised staffing and program concerns and asked the board about Prop 28 (the statewide arts and music funding). Good said Liberty employed an art teacher in 2023–24 and 2024–25 and asked, "Why were we unable to keep art this year? Where is the Prop 28 funding going?" Good also described multiple combination classes at Liberty (K‑1, 3‑4, 5‑6 in English and other dual‑language combinations) and argued the configuration leaves teachers without same‑grade colleagues and students with fewer peers at the same grade level.
Trustees and staff responded in general terms: school placement and combination class decisions are made based on enrollment counts and student needs, principals work with site teams to place students and the district conducts a regular review during the first 10 days of school to adjust combos as enrollment changes. "We break multiple combos across school districts in the first 10 days," a staff presenter said. Staff also told trustees that Prop 28 planning is underway and that principals and leadership teams have been meeting to develop site plans; the district expects a district‑level VAPA plan by November.
Trustees asked staff to follow up with school‑level operational fixes (recess supervision and fencing where possible) and to provide transparency on Prop 28 allocations and on how combination classes are formed and adjusted.