Knightsen is a smallish community of about 1200 people and about
thirty (30) square miles in northeastern Contra Costa County east of
San Francisco and south of Sacramento. We particularly appreciate
that Knightsen Elementary School District (K-8) is one of two school
districts in Contra Costa County (18 districts) that provides free
busing to its slightly less than 500 pupils. A casual reader browsing to
http://www.knightsen.k12.ca.us will find at least two items of interest
on the main page of the district's website:
1. A running tally of absences and tardies (769 and 739, respectively)
and what the cost to the district is ($108,000). For fans of statistics,
these numbers are actually somewhat better than average. An
interesting question is what exactly happens to the $108,000?
2. The following text
Old River Elementary
School is closed until
further notice due to
severe budget cuts by
the state of California
|
Old River is one of two schools
and is nearly new - it opened
in July of 2008. In 2004 the
housing bloom was in full
flower, and it looked like
several large developments
would be started to the
northwest in unincorporated
areas of nearby Brentwood.
Knightsen Elementary was
getting crowded, in part
because parents along the
borders of neighboring
districts were transferring
their children to Knightsen.
This was a slightly longer bus
ride, but Knightsen was felt to
be a superior K-8 education.
With the economic decline
other districts restricted
transfers, so Knightsen's
student population fell 10%.
No signs of new housing
loomed, so the district cut
teaching positions and
expanded class sizes.