July 28, 2024—Richmondside’s city government reporter Natalie Hanson covered the recent closure of Stege Elementary School due to “environmental hazards” were discovered during summer repair work, including asbestos and HVAC system issues. The school closure news came a few days after the district was hit with a civil rights lawsuit from Public Advocates about how it has handled building and staffing problems there and at other schools districtwide.

Civil rights law firm Public Advocates filed the lawsuit July 19 accusing the district of violating students’ rights for failing to rectify issues raised in a January complaint alleging facilities and staffing problems at Stege, John F. Kennedy High School in Richmond and Helms Middle School in San Pablo.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of six educators, staff and parents, is the first in the state to be brought under the 2004 Williams vs. California settlement, which established via the state’s educational code a process allowing members of the public to use the courts to address school quality problems and hold districts accountable.

Karissa Provenza, law fellow at Public Advocates and lead attorney on the lawsuit, said in a statement: ​​“As of right now, we do not anticipate that the temporary closure of Stege will have an impact on the lawsuit. Forty-five complainants raised concerns about dangerous facility deficiencies at Stege over a year ago, which the district did not respond to. What this closure highlights is the district’s failure to provide the students and staff of Stege a safe, healthy, and stable school environment to which they are entitled.”

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