Superintendent: ThoughtExchange shows roofs, water and air conditioning top facilities priorities

Superintendent Sorticio reviewed the ThoughtExchange results and the district's near- and long-term responses to widespread facilities concerns. "We had 645 participants. They shared 415 thoughts, and they rated 24,886 ratings," he said, describing strong community engagement and consistent priorities across the district.

Those priorities included plumbing and drinking-water upgrades, roof replacements, and adding air conditioning in key spaces. Sorticio said the district already has taken immediate steps: multiple drinking fountains and classroom outlets that failed new lead thresholds were turned off, and the district will replace those fountains with filtered bottle-filler stations this summer. He added that roof work at Eden Elementary and portions of the middle/high school is scheduled for summer 2026, with additional roofing work continuing into summer 2027.

Sorticio explained that the federal and state regulatory standard for lead in water outlets recently tightened and the district's testing identified affected sinks and bubblers that have been taken out of service. "The regulation was 15 parts per billion, and and less was acceptable. That changed essentially overnight down to 5 parts per billion," he said, noting the district is labeling and shutting off affected outlets while planning permanent replacements and filtration.