Passage of the formerly controversial $106 million bond measure had evolved into such cinch by last night’s School Board meeting at El Rincon Elementary that for the opening two hours, the host school monopolized story lines.
Before a hefty crowd of perhaps 200 parents and students, third-year principal Reggie Brunson delivered a brilliant disquisition that billboarded an impressive list of academic and social/cultural upgrades, showing what a grammar school can achieve once its leadership becomes stabilized.
In a scholarly power-point presentation that emphasized strong academic improvement, Mr. Brunson detailed El Rincon’s imaginative and modernized curricula , starting with its STEM program, science, technology, engineering and math.
[img]2496|right|Dillard Leslie. Photo, Geoff Maleman.||no_popup[/img]Opening with perhaps the tiniest El Rincon student, kindergartener Dillard Leslie, who deftly employed sign language to interpret “America the Beautiful,” as sung by a student choir, Mr. Brunson consistently managed to spotlight extraordinary individual classroom performances by both freshly motivated students and bundles of teachers inspired by his dynamic leadership.
Blushing, Mr. Brunson earned a standing ovation when he left the stage after generously spraying credit in every direction but his own.
At El Rincon, Mr. Brunson captains one of the most diversified campuses in the School District. It is 47 percent black, 23 percent Hispanic/Latino, and 19 percent white. Another seven percent of the student body claims to belong to two or more races.
Election Day
Only supportive enthusiasm was allowed in El Rincon’s cafetorium when the School Board voted 5-0 to put the costly bond measure in community history on the ballot in June.
Endorsers included third-year Board member Nancy Goldberg , who was one of three rebels to derail a bond measure last July 1 when he was favored to roar.
