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Santa Paula reports decline in interdistrict transfer requests; district cites academies as retention tool
Summary
Associate Superintendent Dr. David Moore told trustees that interdistrict transfer requests into and out of Santa Paula have declined year-to-date and outlined common reasons families request transfers (childcare, parent employment, sibling continuity) while promising follow-up data on internal transfers and special-education counts.
Dr. David Moore, associate superintendent for Santa Paula Unified, briefed the board on interdistrict transfer guidelines, trends and retention efforts, telling trustees that the district uses its transfer policy (Board Policy 5117) and outreach to try to retain students.
Moore explained permitted transfer reasons — childcare, parent employment, sibling continuity and continuing enrollment — and said the district follows a 30-calendar-day process for handling requests and that families may appeal denials to the Ventura County Office of Education. He provided a breakdown of reasons for transfer requests so far this school year: childcare (19), parent employment (37), sibling (26) and continuing enrollment (55). Moore also said the district saw a significant reduction in transfer requests in 2023–24 and a year-to-date reduction in the current year; the precise percentage figures in the presentation were presented as district staff calculations.
Board members asked for more granular breakdowns (which grades incoming students enter, special-education status among transfers) and for historical comparisons to assess trends. Trustee questions focused on what internal outreach the district is doing to retain students. Moore pointed to academies, dual-language programs and targeted outreach — including school tours and parent calls by his administrative assistant — as active retention strategies and said he would provide comparative data and internal-transfer statistics at a future meeting.
The presentation underscored the link trustees have drawn between enrollment and district revenues; board members requested added data about which academies are most popular and whether retention efforts were yielding measurable results. Moore told trustees he could supply the requested historical comparisons and demographic breakdowns for trustees to review at a later meeting.
The board did not take action at this item; trustees asked staff to return with the additional data requested.
