Enrollment in the Goleta Union School District has dropped four percent in the past year, and the District has seen steady decline since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The drop has sparked discussion among the board of trustees about staffing and state funding.
Enrollment is expected to continue declining, said the school district’s assistant superintendent of human resources, David Simmons, at the board of trustees meeting on Sept. 30.
As a result, Simmons said the school district will have to reassess staffing to account for smaller class sizes.
“Our goal is always attrition,” said Simmons. “We are not looking towards any kind of layoff. We put a lot of energy into our new employees and we want to keep them because they’re really good.”
Board members talked about the high cost of living for families in Goleta as a prominent factor.
“The cost to live in Santa Barbara and Goleta is just astronomical, so it’s not families who move here,” said board member Sholeh Jahangir. “It’s professional adults and retired couples. I would expect our trend to continue to decrease. I don’t see it changing. Young people can’t afford to have families and they’re not moving here to have families.”
As a “basic aid” school district which receives a large sum of its funding from local property taxes, Goleta Union is not as impacted financially as non-basic aid districts when enrollment declines.
Ethan Bertrand, the board president, acknowledged that this declining enrollment trend is not just happening in Goleta and might hit some school districts harder.
“Even though we have our own financial challenges and reasons for why we are a basic aid district, it’s hard to imagine that there would not be political will at the state level to re-look at a situation when we financially benefit from declining enrollment as the rest of the state really struggles,” said Bertrand.
The sun could become Goleta Union’s only energy source
The Goleta Union School District is one step closer to going 100% solar.
The school district’s board of trustees expressed enthusiasm for expanding solar energy installation to the rest of its schools at its Wednesday evening meeting — joining Hollister, Mountain View and Ellwood elementary schools who’ve already made the switch.
Assistant Superintendent of Fiscal Services Jordan Goines made the case for going solar in a presentation to the board, touting how much money the district has saved from its four sites who’ve already made the switch.
“I think that this makes sense in a number of ways for the sustainability goals of the district,” said Bertrand.
According to Goines’ presentation, the district has saved nearly $50,000 in energy costs since solar energy was installed at three elementary schools in April 2026. The district office installed solar energy panels over the summer.
Goines estimated that the cost of expanding solar to its schools will range from $2.86 million to $3.7 million, but will be partially funded through government incentives.
Through the Inflation Reduction Act, Goleta Union receives direct pay from the IRS for installing solar panels, essentially functioning like a tax rebate for schools.
Goines said that the district will receive $1.1 million in direct pay from the prior solar project rebate and $1.45 million will arrive from the future solar rebate.
In addition, Goines estimated that $1.1 million will come from Measure M, the $80 million bond voters approved in 2020 to modernize Goleta Union’s classrooms.
The project’s ambitious timeline plans for installation at all six schools to be complete by November 2027.
The board plans to hold a public hearing on solar expansion at its next board meeting on Oct. 21.
Heat mitigation updates
In addition to the cost-saving benefits that solar panels provide, they also function as shade for students, Goines said.
Sweltering classrooms and the need for effective cooling measures have been a hot topic at school board meetings in Goleta and Santa Barbara recently amid a series of extreme heat waves.
Eric Bowers, a Mountain View parent and incoming school board member, said during public comment that parents shouldn’t be the ones responsible for funding shade structures at their children’s schools.
He was referencing a $65,000 fundraiser organized by the Brandon Elementary PTA for a permanent shade structure at their school after members said they were told it did not qualify for Measure M funds.
“As this [solar] plan moves forward, ensure that it includes a district-wide shade inventory, so that shade, like solar, is led by the district and not left to PTA fundraising efforts,” Bowers said. “Brandon families have done everything right, and they’ve patiently advocated and raised money themselves.”
At its last meeting, the board discussed short-term heat and long-term heat mitigation strategies, including AC at all schools and delaying the start of the school year to avoid the heat.
Since then, the school district partnered with the Goleta Education Foundation to provide two shade canopies for each of its nine schools, 50 fans for its hottest classrooms and 18 portable fans for outdoor cooling. In addition, Goines said he is working with 19six Architects to do an electrical load study on the school district’s infrastructure.
The district also sent out a survey and found that 54% of teachers support delaying the start of the school year until Sept. 1 to avoid the heat. Students traditionally return to school in mid-August,
However, some board members acknowledged that some of the school’s hottest days don’t come until after Sept. 1.
They also expressed concern about misaligning its school calendar with Santa Barbara Unified and worried about how it would impact families with children in both districts who need to find childcare or day camps.
“I’m not worried about those who can afford to pay,” said Jahangir. “I’m worried about those who cannot afford to pay.”
As a compromise, the United Teaching Professionals of Goleta proposed delaying the first day to Aug. 25, but it came after the district had already sent out the survey.
“There are still some pieces of the puzzle that we need to collect,” said board member Emily Zacarias, who was in favor of delaying the start date. “I don’t think we have enough information, but if you look at the majority and what they want, it’s going to make some people unhappy, but I think this would be a good step forward.”
El Niño preparation
Goleta Union is also gearing up for another climate event: El Niño.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 21 proclaimed a state of emergency with the incoming El Niño season forecasted to bring severe winter storms and flooding across California.
As part of the proclamation, state agencies are directed to stage emergency supplies and infrastructure such as sandbags and pumps to vulnerable areas.
According to an analysis by EdSource, all nine elementary schools in Goleta Union face a low flood risk. However, the school district has been preparing by identifying regular flooding areas at each campus and scheduling drain and gutter clean-out before rain comes.
Goines said the school district will stock sandbags at each campus in case of unexpected flooding, designate individuals to be primary responders to rain issues, and revise its stormwater runoff plan as part of a larger El Niño strategy.
