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Board adopts Orion campus growth plan to keep co‑op and Mandarin immersion together for 2025–26
Summary
The board adopted the Orion growth plan to retain both the Orion co‑op and Mandarin immersion programs at the Avenue site for 2025–26, with a configuration starting with three MI TK classes, added office and custodial support, yearly enrollment dipsticks, and plans to monitor upper‑grade attrition and campus classroom utilization.
The Redwood City School Board voted May 14 to adopt the Orion growth plan, which recommends keeping both Orion’s parent co‑op program and the Mandarin immersion program on the Avenue (Orion) campus for the 2025–26 school year while addressing enrollment, staffing and facility logistics.
Superintendent presented the plan’s history and committee process: five committee meetings between May 2024 and April 2025, demographic enrollment projections and outreach. The presentation traced Orion’s history and the Mandarin immersion program’s start, noted earlier community funding rules limiting interdistrict transfers, and summarized committee objectives to keep both programs on one campus while minimizing additional district costs.
Key elements of the board‑adopted plan include starting 2025–26 with three Mandarin immersion TK classes housed in the former technology lab behind the library, additional office assistant hours and some custodial support, and the use of annual enrollment ‘‘dipsticks’’ (January cutoffs and earlier recruitment) to decide future years’ classroom configurations. Staff and committee members acknowledged mid‑upper grade attrition in the immersion program and discussed retention strategies tied to a Kennedy pathway and potential enrichment offerings for high‑achieving students.
The plan recognizes space constraints at Orion (29 classrooms needed to sustain two full programs) and flagged that accommodating all programs cost‑effectively may require moving other programs (CDC, Odyssey, Catalyst) to sites with available classrooms; those relocations will be addressed in early fall planning with families. Board members pressed staff to provide clear check‑in calendars and enrollment thresholds that would trigger future actions. The superintendent said staff will provide enrollment snapshots and a calendar of decision cut points in coming months.
A motion to approve the Orion growth plan was made, seconded and approved by voice vote. Trustees and committee members emphasized community engagement, fiscal constraints and the need for transparent timelines so families understand potential future moves. The board directed staff to continue monitoring enrollment annually and to return with updates and any recommended changes.
