Birch Bay was the center of discussion during Blaine school district’s second-to-last meeting of the 2024-25 school year on July 28, with talk on adding Birch Bay to the district name and purchasing Birch Bay land for an elementary school. The board also discussed changes to next year’s budget after voting to pause a controversial cost-saving plan to consolidate its primary and elementary school at its previous meeting.
Blaine-Birch Bay school district?
The board discussed the possibility of renaming the school district to include Birch Bay as a way to recognize the unincorporated community that many students and staff call home. Under the agenda item “Birch Bay Follow Up,” the board discussed how the district could build its relationship with Birch Bay. District 4 director Ryan Swinburnson, who represents portions of Birch Bay, said he did not support a full name change, but recognized Birch Bay residents want more recognition from the district.
“I think buried in that [name change] is some hope that there’s going to be some more recognition of Birch Bay in some capacity, reflecting that it’s a big part of our school district,” Swinburnson said. “They feel there’s not a lot of acknowledgement.”
Washington state law outlines specific ways in which a school district can change its name. The board may vote to change the district name if 10 percent of district voters file a petition and submit the proposed new name to the board, or the board can simply pass a motion to hold a hearing to change the district name. If either occurs, the board must advertise the possible name change for three weeks, during which other names may be proposed, before holding a vote. A simple 3-2 majority is needed to change the name.
“I think it’s less about the name and more about including the Birch Bay community,” District 1 director Erika Creydt said.
District mulls Birch Bay land purchase
Also part of the Birch Bay conversation, the board discussed rebooting efforts to purchase land in Birch Bay for a potential new elementary school.
The Birch Bay community has been asking for an elementary school for decades, and the district has made strides in recent years to fulfill that request. Last August, Whatcom County Council approved a land access agreement to allow the district to evaluate a section of the county’s Bay Horizon Park that could potentially be the site of a new school.
Whatcom County Parks and Recreation director Bennett Knox previously said the parcel has been earmarked as a potential school location since coming under county control in the 1980s. The two entities have had discussions over the years about using that land for a school, he said.
Interim superintendent Dan Chaplik seemed intent on fast-tracking the process of purchasing the property, and the board appeared on the same page.
“The plan is to move forward with purchasing this property,” Chaplik said. “I’m not ready to go make a purchase, but I’m ready to do that work and make sure that we do something that is responsible on behalf of the citizens and the school district.”
District 5 director Steve Galbraith said the land acquisition should be a priority this year for the district, calling it “long overdue.”
“I think all of our constituents need to be recognized as being a vital part of our school district,” Galbraith said. “Whether they’re inside the city limits of Blaine or outside, everything we do here is for the kids, or at least it should be, and it doesn’t matter where the kids live.”
According to the 2020 Census, Birch Bay has a population of 10,115, compared to just 5,884 residents in Blaine. With that comes more students commuting from Birch Bay to the Blaine campus, and more tax dollars coming from Birch Bay.
Preliminary budget to change
after consolidation pause
Chaplik updated the board on his plans to amend the draft 2025-26 district budget ahead of the board’s August vote to ratify it. The interim superintendent has needed to save the district $500,000 after the board voted during a July 14 special meeting to pause the consolidation of first and second grade classes from Blaine Primary School into Blaine Elementary School.
Chaplik said the preliminary budget will change “pretty drastically” over the next month as he works to find ways to cut expenditures without impacting educational programs. Chaplik said he expects to find roughly $400,000 in savings that “doesn’t impact what we do in the classroom.”
Chaplik mentioned declining enrollment since Covid-19, and how the district can adapt to dwindling tax revenue while also trying to return students to the district.
“It is reason to be concerned that there is declining enrollment,” Chaplik said. “We have to understand that, embrace our role in it whatever that might be, and figure out a way to make sure that students and families are feeling good about the Blaine school district, and if they’re not, understanding why.”
According to the 2025-26 draft budget, the district expects to enroll 110 kindergarteners, down from 168.66 in 2023-24. Chaplik said the district has confirmed about 90 kindergarteners and more are expected to sign up.
The school district’s 2025-26 budget will still sit “comfortably” above the school board policy requiring a general fund balance over six percent of the district’s annual budget, Chaplik said.
School board meeting schedule finalized
The board unanimously approved the 2025-26 board meeting schedule, which will keep meetings at 7 p.m. on the fourth Monday of each month in the district board room and on Zoom.
As a gesture of goodwill toward Birch Bay, the board discussed moving a meeting next school year to Birch Bay, but did not mention specific locations or dates. The board hosts one meeting per year at Point Roberts Primary School, but does not regularly hold meetings in Birch Bay.
The final board meeting for the 2024-25 school year is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, August 25.
