Kudos to LASD for taking the important step of agreeing to build Bullis Charter School a permanent home at the San Antonio campus. The district made the right call by committing to modern, state-of-the-art facilities rather than setting BCS in temporary portables.
Locating BCS at the San Antonio campus creates a tremendous opportunity to show the rest of the country how public and charter schools can work together to serve students and families. If BCS’s TK-5 grades are housed at San Antonio, BCS middle-school students could share the Egan campus with LASD’s middle-school students, creating meaningful benefits for the entire community.
BCS Benefits:
• Long-term, permanent facilities
• Modern classrooms and learning environments for TK-5 students
• More space for middle-school students at Egan
• Two nearby campuses that make pick-up and drop-off easier for families
LASD Benefits:
• Avoids closing an LASD neighborhood school
• Enables a 6-8 middle-school model to improve student outcomes
• Frees up space at Blach and Egan
• Creates more room at LASD’s elementary schools to serve TK expansion
Community Benefits:
• New gym and field space in Mountain View
• Reduced traffic congestion around Egan and Blach
• A campus located within walking distance of the LASD’s highest-density neighborhoods in Mountain View
• A chance to finally end 25 years of BCS-LASD conflict
Over time, LASD and BCS have the chance to move from coexistence to collaboration. Together, they could combine resources to attract top-tier STEM and computer-science teachers, form joint sports teams, or collaborate in band and orchestra. Perhaps BCS could even become a school within LASD.
That future may seem distant, but every journey begins with a single step. The San Antonio campus could become the start of a new chapter. One defined by partnership rather than division.
Peruri is a Los Altos resident and former LASD board president.
