Council Backs Measure W School Tax as Moraga Celebrates Heritage and Youth

The Moraga Town Council turned its Sept. 9 meeting into a showcase of community investment — endorsing a parcel tax to rescue school funding, swearing in 21 young civic volunteers, and marking two heritage proclamations with personal storytelling that connected the town's past to its future. With Councilmember Steve Woehleke absent, the four remaining members voted unanimously on every action item.

• Council unanimously endorses AUHSD Measure W parcel tax after four public speakers warn of cuts to class periods, librarians and course offerings across five high schools
• Twenty-one youth appointed to the Moraga Youth Involvement Committee, including three middle schoolers — the first in nine years
• Mayor Hillis ties Hispanic Heritage Month to Moraga's founding, calling Hispanic heritage "the name on the door of our town"
• Ovarian cancer survivor delivers emotional testimony as council proclaims September awareness month
• Giant steel pear sculpture installed at Moraga Commons Park; ribbon cutting set for Sept. 26
• Town manager reports Grocery Outlet on track for spring opening and Palos Colorados grading expected early 2027

Why it matters: The Acalanes Union High School District has gone 16 years without a parcel tax increase, opening a structural deficit that threatens to shrink the school day from seven periods to six, eliminate dedicated librarians across five campuses, and swell class sizes — all at a district whose flagship, Campolindo High School, ranks in the top 5% of California public high schools.