The New Mendocino K–8 School:
A Community Dream Realized

Story by Margi Gomez
Contributing editor, Lisa Norman

“Well when I come to school in the morning I feel like I’m walking into a wonderland full of students ready to learn. I feel so connected to everything because I have never been in a school with real halls and it’s a wonderful experience for me,” says Olivia Grinberg, a Mendocino student in teacher Ryan Olson Day’s class.

Other students agree.

“The best thing I like about the school is the playground because it has the most beautiful colors on the ground. And if you look straight at the colors you can see them blend together. It is marvelous,” Georgia Bosland shares.

“I’ve been here for five years so it’s like paradise to me. I also like how the rooms have skylights, also the playground,” Moji Brittingham continues.

“I like the skylights. They’re cool. It looks like tie dye,” Mira Achilles adds.

“The plants are really, really cool and I like it a lot. I like the way the library is and where my classroom is because it’s close to where we get on the bus,” notes Brittany Madden, from Deena Zarlin’s class.

“I think that the school is big and is cool because it has a lot of trees and flowers. I also like that it has a lot of trails that go into the woods,” Alexandra Gonzalez continues.

“I think that the new school has a great stage, kitchen, plants, playground, library and classrooms. I think the whole school is awesome. P.S.…It’s totally twenty-first century,” Sofia Seim asserts.

“I think this school is really big, a lot bigger than our other school in the portables. It’s pretty because of the plants and how many books you have in the library. I think the play structure is really cool because its rainbow color and the play structure is so cool. I mean it has monkey bars and swings. It’s so cool. Thank you for making this wonderful school,” Sequoia Martell-Tash enthuses.

Cool. Green. Big. Better. The new K–8 school.

Back in 2002, Mendocino Grammar School students had been moved out of the main building into portable structures because the school had been declared structurally deficient. The structures, which cost the district seventy-two thousand dollars in rent per year, were viewed as extremely energy inefficient and were rapidly deteriorating. In 2004, six larger portable classrooms, which had been functioning as a computer lab and band, choir, and art rooms, were also determined to be unsafe. At the same time, the school board was well aware that enrollment in the district was falling, along with the average per day revenue that is tied to that enrollment.

The school community had been aware of serious structural problems at the Mendocino Grammar School for some time, when one day in August of 2006, Nancy Gardner got a surprise call from attorney Rod Jones. Gardner, a Mendocino mom, noted jeweler, and long-time school supporter, recalls, “He told me he wanted to get together with Charlie Acker about putting a bond measure on the ballot.” The threesome met for breakfast the next day, and discussed their options. “None of us had ever done anything like this before—but we knew a lot of other people had!” Nancy smiles.” We figured that under the circumstances, we needed to give it a try!” The group, along with Alegria Inn owner Eric Hillesand, had a few follow up meetings, and the project was launched.

A letter from the State Architect had been sent to then Superintendent Jim Shock in 2006, regarding the rot and water damage that was undermining the basic structural integrity of the grammar school. “It was a wake-up call,” according to Gardner. “The administration and the board knew that change was inevitable.” Aware that the district was facing a crisis, Shock had set up a design committee two years earlier, and a number of recommendations had already been proposed.

Another report submitted by architectural firm Quattrocchi Kwok Architects was equally sobering, noting “ponding water under the buildings, termite droppings in various locations…areas of the building where the structure seemed weak…soil in contact with wood, inadequate and no foundation ventilation, old repaired roof and siding leaks, and dry rot and termite damage to the structure.”

The newly formed bond committee, with the November 7 election deadline looming, began brainstorming, determining that the first step would be to set up a timeline. “We knew we were off to a late start,” Gardner remembers. “And we knew the first step would be to raise money for a bond account. We developed a list of questions regarding what the bond revenues would address as a first step in the process,” she relates.

Additional pressing items for the district included the rehabilitation of the Mendocino Recreation Center, unmet needs at the aging high school, and an overall interest in photovoltaic and alternative energy systems. A survey was conducted, going out to property owners, parents, teachers, architects, engineers, the school board, and even custodial staff, to address priorities and gather input.

The school board at first considered working with a number of consultants from outside the area, but eventually, Gardner says, “the decision was taken to invite stakeholders to do the work themselves.”
Gardner adds, “Although demographics and statistics are arguably some of the most important considerations, we believed that the Mendocino community was a special community, and that we could in the end do a better job than any outside organization.”

With her visual arts background, Gardner realized that the campaign needed a logo that could be used for posters, buttons, postcards, and that would represent the most positive image possible for the campaign. She contacted longtime graphic artist James Sibbet, who designed the iconic “red apple” image that became ubiquitous along the Mendocino Coast. The bond committee bought a full-page ad in the Mendocino Beacon, sporting the attractive logo and photos of local families and teachers, and signed by a unanimous school board along with hundreds of community members.

Campaign for Measure AA teachers contributed much needed grassroots support to the campaign. In a related article in a local paper, over thirty of the district’s teachers framed the decision in a concise way. “We can cut back on our vision of an effective, enriched, creative educational program and continue to operate on a bare bones mentality in dilapidated portables. But we believe our community has a set of values about education that is not reflected by our current condition,” teachers urged, adding, “Let’s move forward and rebuild our campus.”

A Yes on Measure AA postcard, designed by Dale Moyer, went out to voters in the final days of the campaign which included graphic photos of the rot and structural damage that had plagued the old structure, along with drawings of a possible future building.

“I think the postcard really clinched the election for AA,” says Gardner. “It laid out the choice in a way that the community could really understand. And by good fortune, it arrived in most mailboxes on the same day as the sample ballots!” Measure AA, which needed 66.66 percent passed with 71 percent of the vote. “We made it by the skin of our teeth, but we made it,” she says.

Once the bond was assured, exhaustive meetings with community members as well as school employees gathered feedback to craft a vision for the new school. “People were thrilled to be included and their feedback was critical,” says Gardner. “The thing we heard over and over again had to do with the need for storage. Now we have whiteboards in the classrooms that can be moved to the side to reveal storage closets behind them!”

Environmental concerns loomed large in the planning process.

“Our architect Mark Quattrocchi deserves a lot of credit for his hard work. He or a representative of his firm met with the design committee for years before we had the bond,” Gardner states.

In addition to drainage issues, there was a lack of grading and foundation work at the old structure, and the flat roof design created problems in Mendocino’s seasonally rainy climate. Clearly, major mitigation would be required to create a safe, dry building on the site. “This is a wetlands area,” Gardner adds. “High school biology teacher David Gross used to bring students there to study wetlands creatures!”

Demolition began in the summer of 2007, explains current school superintendent Catherine Stone. “The old portables and the end wings of the old grammar school were demolished first,” says Stone, “and by the summer of 2008, grading, and sitework were taking place. Through the use of French drain systems and much grading and foundation work, drainage is no longer an issue.”

She adds that all the buildings were constructed with the environment in mind. “All flooring, paint, and other materials used have low or no VOC (volatile organic compound) ratings,” Stone explains. “The siding is Hardi-plank concrete, so there will be no dry rot issues. Likewise, the roofs are metal and have a long life rating. Many rooms have ‘Solatubes,’ a type of skylight that maximizes natural lighting. Solar film will be installed that will cover 65 to 85 percent of the electricity needs of the school.”

In addition, says Stone, the classrooms were also constructed for maximal acoustics. “Wherever you are in the classroom, it is easy to hear. We love the new landscaping, which consists mostly of native species; drip irrigation and drought tolerant plants will help save water.”

This past summer, the first phase of construction was completed, and part of the new K–8 campus was opened for students this past fall. Art teacher Mark Oatney is delighted with the new environs. He remembers, “At the end of the first day back to school, after the last bus left, all the teachers were smiling. It didn’t matter how exhausting that day always is to teachers—everyone felt honored to be able to teach in these new facilities.” Oatney is quick to add that the kids feel it too. “They treat the new campus with respect, and I think that respect is translating into fewer discipline issues. The kids definitely don’t take what the community has done for them for granted.”

Diane Price, who has worked in the school cafeteria for twenty years, couldn’t be happier with her new work environment. She relates, “My friend and coworker Tricia Evans and I began with the school district doing lunch for grammar school children. We would push a cart down the hill where the buses park to bring the food from the old kitchen. Then back up the hill we would push the leftovers and dirty dishes—I’m tired just talking about it!” Price says the very best part of the new kitchen is, “windows!…We no longer work in a dungeon, as I lovingly called the old kitchen!”

Longtime teacher Deena Zarlin says that she was amazed to realize that her new classroom was in the same spot as the first classroom she had when she began teaching in Mendocino in 1977. “The new school is a joy to work in,” she enthuses. “The facility plan works beautifully and it’s wonderful to have spaces designed so intentionally. The library is very popular with the students who flock to it during recess times. The staff rooms and meeting rooms work well to foster collegiality and collaboration. Of course having overhangs to keep out of the rain when walking between places is a major improvement!”

“By next summer, it will all be done,” Superintendent Stone explains. Stone says that right now, the work is centered on the former middle school, which is being renovated and remodeled. “At the end of the project, barring unforeseen circumstances, there should still be some money left over from the state matching funds.”

Stone says that intense community involvement had everything to do with the successful outcome of the project. “The community was very much involved in the design, and of course, community support, through the bond passage and their support of this project through their tax dollars, has been central. I would personally like to thank the whole community for their support in seeing that the students of Mendocino now have a safe, warm, and dry school.”

She goes on, “The first time I stood in the completed courtyard, and looked all around, I was awed by the magnificence of the environment, and so very proud of our community of providing this for our students. All students everywhere should be so fortunate to learn in such a healthy and beautiful school environment!”