Private School moving in the Sacramento Valley: Murdock's crew at work

Education, Civic & Community

Private School Moving in Chico, Yuba City and Sacramento

A room-by-room plan set by the head of school, with admissions kept presentable, the chapel set first and the library moved in shelf order.

(530) 354-8089

Licensed & InsuredUSDOT 3421940 · MC 1416634
Locally OperatedChico + Yuba City
Sacramento ValleyChico · Yuba City · Sacramento

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Planning a Private School Move

A private school usually decides to move at the board table and then hands the job to a small staff. The head of school sets priorities, the business manager signs the agreement, and the same few people are still running summer camp, re-enrollment and admissions tours while the campus is packed up.

That shapes the plan. Admissions spaces and the front office stay presentable until the end, because families are still visiting. The chapel may be needed for a service or a summer event. The library is often small enough that the librarian wants the collection moved in shelf order rather than repacked, and donor plaques, memorial benches and named gifts need to land where the head of school decides, not wherever the truck has room.

Parents often volunteer to pack classrooms. That works as long as every room follows one labeling rule and the crew handles the heavy furniture and anything on stairs. We walk both campuses with the head of school and turn those priorities into a room-by-room sequence, with the chapel, library and admissions office each on their own line.

Who usually signs off: Head of school or business officer, with the board approving the relocation plan and campus priorities
Timing that works: Summer, between camp sessions and admissions tours, with any shared-church services and board meetings blocked out; weekend days on request.

What typically moves

Chapel chairs, lectern and freestanding altar tableWrapped and loaded as one group, then set in the chapel before other rooms in that building.
Hymnal and prayer-book cabinetsBooks boxed by shelf, or the cabinet taped shut and carried loaded if it is light enough.
Library bookcases and the collection in shelf orderMoved on book carts or in numbered cartons by range, as the librarian prefers.
Donor plaques, memorial pieces and campus photographsPicture-cartoned and marked with the wall or spot the head of school assigns.
Classroom cubbies, tables and rolling whiteboardsCounted by classroom and placed against the new room plan.
Admissions office furniture and display casesLast out of the old campus and first into the new one, so tours can continue.
Admissions and business-office computersCarried in padded cartons to their desks; the school's network and student system stay with its technology contact.

Access and scheduling

Private campuses are often compact: a church property, a set of older buildings around a courtyard, or a newer campus in Roseville or Elk Grove built around a drop-off loop. The truck usually shares the lot with camp families, so we ask for drop-off and pick-up times and load between them. A gate, a narrow drive or a courtyard with no vehicle access can mean long carries, and the crew is sized for the distance.

If the school is moving onto a church campus it will share, the church's services and events set a second calendar, and Saturday or Sunday work is planned around them on request. Board meetings and summer admissions events can be blocked out as well, with the rooms they use moved last.

Protection and handling

Chapel furnishings are handled as their own group. Movable chairs, a lectern, a freestanding altar table and the hymnal or prayer-book cabinets are wrapped and loaded together, then set in the chapel before anything else goes into that building. A piano follows our piano moving process; a pipe organ or built-in sound system stays with its technician.

Library books travel on book carts in shelf order or in numbered cartons by range, whichever the librarian chooses, and freestanding bookcases are emptied and wrapped. Donor plaques and framed campus photographs go into picture cartons marked with their new wall. Student files are boxed and closed by the registrar's office and ride with the front office. Classroom cubbies, tables and rolling whiteboards are counted by room.

Who does what

Some of this job belongs to other trades. The written plan names each one.

Pianos, organs and built-in chapel sound or lighting: Pianos follow our piano process; pipe organs and installed sound systems go with their technician or installer.
Student records and the registrar's files: The registrar's office boxes, closes and tracks them; we move the closed cartons with the front office.
Network, bell system, cameras and door access: The school's technology contractor.

Not part of our work

Removing fixed pews, built-in altar furniture or wall-mounted fixtures.
Organizing parent volunteers; the school coordinates them and sets the labeling rule.

Around Chico, Yuba City and Sacramento

Independent and faith-based schools in Chico, Yuba City and the Sacramento area often share a property with a church or occupy older buildings near downtown, while newer campuses in Roseville, Rocklin and Elk Grove are laid out around parking loops. The property type sets how close the truck gets; the school's camp and admissions calendar sets when.

The crew that shows up

Murdock’s crew carrying a pad-wrapped piece through a tiled entryway

Murdock’s crew rebuilding cubicle panels in an office, one mover on a step ladder

Murdock’s movers working the loading ramp of an open box truck

Private School Moving FAQs

Another question? Call (530) 354-8089.

Our board has approved the move. What should the head of school decide first?

The order the school needs its rooms back in. Most schools rank the front office and admissions first, then the chapel, then classrooms by grade, then the library and storage. With that ranking and a floor plan of the new campus, we can build the load order and estimate how many days the move will take.

Parents have offered to help pack. How does that work alongside your crew?

It can work well. Volunteers pack classroom supplies and books into cartons using one labeling rule the school sets, usually the new room number and the teacher's name. Our crew moves the furniture, the packed cartons and anything on stairs or ramps. We ask that volunteers finish packing a room before the crew arrives to empty it.

Can the chapel stay usable for a summer service while the rest of the campus is packed?

Yes. We leave the chapel furnishings in place until after the service, then pack them as one group. At the new campus the chapel is set first in its building, so it can be used again quickly. Give us the service dates and we plan the rest of the move around them.

How do we keep donor plaques and memorial pieces from going missing in the move?

They are listed separately during the walkthrough, packed in picture cartons or padded, and marked with the spot the head of school chooses at the new campus. We unload them with the office group rather than the general load, and the business manager can check them off against the list.

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Plan your business move

Tell us both addresses, the building rules you know about, and the dates you cannot move. We will send back a written plan and estimate.

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