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The Board of Education voted unanimously last week to join a group of 90 California school districts in purchasing a new property insurance package. 

Officials say the move will save the cash-strapped school district almost $300,000, reducing the district’s annual premium from an estimated $687,000 to $396,000. 

The shift in plans will also allow the district to reduce its deductible from $100,000 per incident to $25,000. The district currently faces a high deductible because of a rash of property damage in recent years, including the April 2000 burning of Berkeley High School’s “B Building.” 

The 90 school districts have pooled their resources through an organization called the Alliance of Schools for Cooperative Insurance Programs. 

ASCIP has been in existence since 1980 and allows grade schools, high schools and community colleges to pool their resources and spread risk across the group. 

“Their willingness to accept us indicates their confidence in our administration and our ability to manage risk properly,” said school board President Shirley Issel. “It’s very heartening.”