FULLERTON : Racial Mix Is Sought For Closed School
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The Board of Trustees of the Fullerton School District voted unanimously this week to explore ways to reopen Maple Elementary School with an integrated student body.
The school district closed Maple in 1972 and began busing the students to other schools to create a better racial mix. About 85% of the students at Maple were Latino and 10% were black, far higher percentages than other elementary schools in Fullerton.
Developing some type of unique educational program for Maple, which would draw students from outside the predominantly Latino neighborhood, will take at least a year, Supt. Duncan Johnson said.
When plans for a “magnet” school are complete, they will be brought to the school board for a decision on whether to reopen the school.
Board members agreed Tuesday that they would not reopen Maple if it would be racially imbalanced.
“I’d vote against anything that is not absolutely a first-class school,” board President Robert C. Fisler said.
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