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Schools

Beaumont Unified School District superintendent discusses growth, campus safety and the budget

Dr. Barry L. Kayrell speaks openly on challenges the district is facing, as well as successes

While school districts across the state are slashing their budgets, dealing with declining enrollment and laying off teachers, the Beaumont Unified School is in a distinctly different position: they’re growing, building and even hiring.

Overseeing the 8,500 students in the district is Superintendent Dr. Barry L. Kayrell, who has been at the helm for five years. In a candid interview, he shared the challenges the district is facing, how teachers and administrators are ensuring that kids are safe on campus, and what the future holds.

Q: What issues are affecting the Beaumont Unified School District?

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A: Budget constraints throughout California are affecting all districts. They are being faced with a tremendous challenge - giving quality education with restricted funds. It’s become more impactful as the state gives us less money to work with, yet expectations are to continue growth. None of that changes. We’re very unique in that we’re continuing to grow, with a three percent growth factor. We’ve got more kids instead of a declining enrollment.

Q: With all of this growth, is it hard to keep up?

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A: Traffic is an issue. As we grow, that impacts neighborhoods. We try to work closely with the city to mitigate those types of problems.

Q: What’s the biggest challenge you’re dealing with?

A: The budget. Not getting the state guaranteed match. You have to be creative and do less with more. We’ve done no furlough days, no layoffs. That’s for right now. I’m not saying it can’t happen, though. I’m worried about the budget. You have to ask, ‘How do you prioritize?’

Q: What’s the number one parent concern that you hear?

A: They want their children to have a quality education. They want the kids preparing for the future.

Q: What’s some good news coming out of the schools?

A: Sundance Elementary School qualified to apply for a National Blue Ribbon School - you can’t get any higher than that. Over the last three years, we’ve had two California Distinguished Schools - Tournament Hills Elementary School and Brookside Elementary. We’re in the top 10 of every academic category in Riverside County - high graduation rates, low expulsion. We’ve got great statistics; we work on it every day.

Q: What projects are you working on?

A: We’re very fortunate to have some exciting projects. We’re finishing the fine arts auditorium at Beaumont High School. It’s the first time in many years that Beaumont will have a wonderful theater for musicals, plays, stage productions - all the fine arts are covered. It’ll have more than 400 seats, with state-of-the-art sound. It’s going through the final tune-ups, and the goal is to have the grand opening next month. We’re very proud of that.

The old gravel pit next to the high school, the master plan is for a new athletic complex. It will be used for football, baseball, soccer. There will be team rooms, and a 5,000 capacity stadium with beautiful artificial turf. They’re also growing so much at the high school, there will be a 24 classroom new wing, which will have a career technical education emphasis - culinary arts, construction, career pathways.

We’ll also roll out to every classroom teacher a new Promethean board, new printer, new overhead projector, all the bells and whistles. It will be in phases, and we’ll have training to help teachers learn how to use it all. We’re really going into the 21st century.

[On Tuesday night] the board approved another $30 million of bonds to finish all the projects and buy new land for new schools. We’re really excited.

Q: How’s safety on campuses?

A: Having a safe class environment is a top priority for us. The campuses and classrooms are clean and neat. We want kids to feel safe at school, and work very hard to create that environment for them. There’s a relatively small gang influence - we’re very fortunate that each campus has an Adopt-a-Cop. In fact, the Sundance officer just had a pizza lunch with the kids.

We’ve put in programs at our schools to deal with anti-bullying and respecting rights, and we hold assemblies all the time. We’re involved with Capturing Kids’ Hearts [an offsite program that provides tools for teachers to build trusting and productive relationships with students] and Rachel’s Challenge [a presentation that focuses on respectfully treating peers, named after Rachel Scott, a student who was killed at Columbine High School].

The key for me is for kids to feel comfortable, so if they see something bad they feel comfortable talking to a mentor. We can prevent a lot of stuff.

Q: If I gave you $10 million, what would you do with it?

A: Try to spend it very evenly - instructional programs, lower class sizes, teacher training, new land and facilities, state-of-the-art technology.

Q: What else would you like to share about the district?

A: It’s very important to reflect the needs of the community. I’m very proud of all the planning that’s gone into projects. The theater and sports complex will be used all the time. There are lights now in the high school pool, so water polo players and swimmers can work after dark. Being responsive to the community is critical.

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