[00:00:01]
[Roll Call]
GONNA START IN JUST A MOMENT AND RIGHT ON CUE.WELCOME TO THE REGULAR BOARD MEETING OF THE LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION.
UH, MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN AND BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON PRESENT.
AND STUDENT BOARD MEMBER, UH, LOPEZ.
AND MS. GALLEGO IS HERE JUST IN TIME? YES.
IT'S NOW TIME FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
ARE YOU WILLING TO DO IT, SIR? I AM WILLING TO DO IT.
PUT YOUR RIGHT, PUT YOUR RIGHT HAND OVER YOUR HEART.
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG.
AND AS WE DID AT THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, WE ARE GOING TO PUT A SLIDE UP THAT CONTAINS THE RECENTLY APPROVED AND IMPLEMENTED LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, AND IT'LL BE POPPING UP ON THE SCREEN ANY MOMENT NOW AS THEY'RE PULLING UP THE SLIDE.
UH, WE'RE GONNA DO A MOMENT OF REFLECTIVE AND SILENT READING OF THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.
UM, AND THEN WHEN WE'RE DONE, WE WILL SLOWLY COME BACK TO OURSELVES AND, AND, UH, MOVE INTO BOARD PRESIDENT'S REPORT.
SO PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO READ THE LAND LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.
IS IT TOO SMALL? I'M A SLOW READER AND I'M, I'M DONE.
[Board President’s Reports]
REPORTS.WE ARE READY FOR OUR, UM, LABOR PARTNERS.
WHAT LABOR PARTNERS DO WE HAVE IN HOUSE? COME ON DOWN PLEASE.
PRESENT YOURSELF AND THE LABOR GROUP.
OH, AND SUPERINTENDENT CARVALHO
MY NAME IS HELEN LOPEZ AND I'M THE FIRST VICE PRESIDENT FOR CSEA LA CHAPTER 500.
WE HAVE OVER 4,000 MEMBERS ACROSS L-A-U-S-D.
WE ARE OFFICE TECHNICIANS, ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYSTS, AND LIBRARY TECHNICIANS TO NAME A FEW OF THE VARIED OCC OCCUPATIONS THAT WE HOLD.
CLASSIFIED SCHOOL EMPLOYEE WEEK WAS MAY 18TH THROUGH 24TH, AND IT WAS NICE TO BE APPRECIATED HERE AT THE BERY BUILDING WITH COFFEE CAKE, AND ESPECIALLY BY SCOTT SCH SEN'S OFFICE, WHO WAS THOUGHTFUL ENOUGH TO HOST A SMALL GATHERING HONORING CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES AT THE LOCAL DISTRICT NORTH OFFICE IN LAKE BALBOA.
CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES ARE VITAL TO THE EVERYDAY OPERATIONS OF A WELL-RUN SCHOOL, YET IN MANY WAYS WE REMAIN IN THE BACKGROUND.
THE BUS DRIVER WHO PICKS UP AND TAKES A CHILD TO THEIR SCHOOL SITE.
THE CAMPUS AIDE WHO SUPERVISES THE CHILDREN AT RECESS SCHOOL, POLICE WHO PATROL AND KEEP OUR SCHOOL SAFE, THE PLANT MANAGER WHO FIXES EVERYTHING FROM A BROKEN SHELF TO A CLOGGED FAUCET.
CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES ARE THE SILENT MAJORITY WHO KEEP A SCHOOL RUNNING ON A DAILY BASIS.
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK EACH BOARD MEMBER TO CONSIDER HOSTING A LOCAL EVENT NEXT YEAR TO HONOR CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES AT THE LOCAL DISTRICT OFFICE, AT THE LOCAL DISTRICT OFFICES.
OUR GATHERING IN LAKE BALBOA WAS SMALL BUT IMPORTANT IN ACKNOWLEDGING THE EFFORTS OF SO MANY EMPLOYEES WHO
[00:05:01]
HELP OUR CHILDREN AND STUDENTS EVERY DAY.ALSO, THE LOW SCHOOL, THE LOCAL DISTRICT OFFICES PLAY A VITAL ROLE IN ALLOWING CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES TO GATHER IN A LOCATION THAT IS CONVENIENT TO THEIR WORK SITE.
AS YOU VERY WELL KNOW, L-A-U-S-D SPANS AN AREA OVER 700 SQUARE MILES.
SO ACKNOWLEDGING CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES IN THEIR LOCAL AREA WOULD GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS IMPROVING EMPLOYEE RELATIONS AND ALLOWING CLASSIFIED STAFF TO FEEL SEEN AND APPRECIATED.
THE BOWRY EVENT WAS WONDERFUL FOR THE CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES WHO WORK HERE, BUT FOR OUR MEMBERS AT SCHOOL SITES, IT'S NOT PRACTICAL FOR THEM TO MISS SEVERAL HOURS OF WORK IN ORDER TO EVENT, IN ORDER TO ATTEND A CELEBRATORY EVENT IN DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES.
SO, I HOPE YOU'LL TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION NEXT YEAR WHEN CELEBRATING CLASSIFIED SCHOOL EMPLOYEES WEEK.
AND I JUST WANNA SAY CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE BEING HONORED THURSDAY AT THE PERSONNEL COMMISSION FOR THE EVERYDAY HEROES THAT THEY ARE.
OUR NEXT LABOR PARTNER, PLEASE COME ON DOWN.
INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND TELL US WHO YOU REPRESENT.
GOOD MORNING, BOARD MEMBERS AND SUPERINTENDENT.
I'M THE ELEMENTARY VICE PRESIDENT AT UNITED TEACHER LOS ANGELES.
FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS, THE DISTRICT HAS FAILED TO COMPLY WITH THE STATE EDUCATION CODE REQUIRING 55% OF EDUCATION COSTS BE SPENT ON CLASSROOM COMPENSATION.
THE DISTRICT IS PROJECTED TO FAIL TO MEET THIS STANDARD FOR THE CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR AS WELL, SHOWING LITTLE IMPROVEMENT OVER THE LAST YEAR.
AS FIDUCIARIES, THE BOARD SHOULD CORRECT THIS BUDGETARY MISMANAGEMENT BY VOTING NO ON APPLICATION FOR EXEMPTION.
THE DISTRICT CONTINUES TO REPORT THAT THIS FAILURE IS DUE TO COVID-19 RELATED COST, BUT NO OTHER MAJOR URBAN DISTRICT IN THE STATE HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM SPENDING ON NON-ST STAFFING EDUCATION EXPENSES MORE THAN DOUBLED DURING THE SAME PERIOD, GROWING TO $1.3 BILLION IN 20 24, 20 25.
WHY HAVE THESE EXPENSES CONTINUED TO BALLOON? WHEN WILL THE DISTRICT PROVIDE TRANSPARENCY ABOUT THEM? THE RESERVES GREW BY $3.6 BILLION DURING THIS PERIOD.
YET WE BEGAN EACH YEAR, SCHOOL YEAR WITH THOUSANDS OF TEACHER VACANCIES IN OUR SCHOOLS AND HIGH LEVELS OF TURNOVER AMONG NEW TEACHERS.
THE SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM IS MORE TRANSPARENCY AND INVESTING IN THE WORKFORCE IN BARGAINING WITH OUR UNION.
LAST WEEK, THE DISTRICT HAD NO RESPONSE TO OUR SALARY PROPOSAL, A PROPOSAL THAT WOULD SIGNIFICANTLY ADDRESS RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION OF TEACHERS.
INSTEAD, THE DISTRICT PROPOSED NO IMPROVEMENTS TO CLASSROOM STAFFING LEVELS, NO PLANNING TIME FOR PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS, AND INCREASES TO CLASS SIZES FOR CERTAIN SPECIAL EDUCATION CLASSES.
THESE BARGAINING PROPOSALS TAKE US IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.
WE RECOMMEND THE BOARD VOTE NO ON THE APPLICATION TO LACO FOR AN EXEMPTION TO THE 55% RULE.
AND, UH, MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN, ARE YOU WITH US? FOR THE SAKE OF ROLL, ROLL CALL HERE.
ANY OTHER LABOR PARTNERS PRESENT WHO WISH TO SPEAK? OKAY.
PLEASE COME DOWN, TELL US WHO YOU ARE AND WHO YOU REPRESENT.
GOOD MORNING, PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBERS, SUPERINTENDENT AND COLLEAGUES, LABOR PARTNERS HERE TODAY.
HI, I AM MARIA NICHOLS, ALLAH TEAMSTER'S, LOCAL 2010 UNION PRESIDENT.
WE ARE IN THE FINAL STRETCH OF CRITICAL LCAP AND BUDGET DECISIONS.
THE PROPOSAL PROPOSED LEUC BUDGET UNDER AB 1200 IS LABELED QUALIFIED, NOT POSITIVE, SUPPORTING SOLVENCY FOR TWO YEARS, BUT THE THIRD YEAR REMAINS UNCERTAIN.
WHILE THIS IS A REALISTIC REFLECTION, IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO NOTE.
L-A-U-S-D HOLDS SUBSTANTIAL EXCESSIVE RESERVES BY ANY REASONABLE MEASURE.
WHY DOES THIS MATTER? BECAUSE THIS BUDGET DEFINES OUR DISTRICT'S PRIORITIES.
WHAT L-A-U-S-D DEEMS IMPORTANT.
AND RIGHT NOW, JUST AS UTLA SHARED, THEY'RE GOING THROUGH COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.
WE ARE ACTIVELY IN COLLECTIVE BARGAINING WITH THE DISTRICT.
[00:10:01]
WHILE WE MAY NOT ALWAYS AGREE, WE ARE FINALLY AT THE TABLE ENGAGING IN HONEST DATA-DRIVEN CONVERSATIONS, AND THAT IN ITSELF IS PROGRESS.L-A-U-S-D HAS ON MULTIPLE TIMES, COMMENDED ALL A TEAMSTERS FOR COMING TO THE TABLE WITH QUALITATIVE DATA FROM OUR SURVEYS.
AND WE ARE STEADFAST AND USING DATA TO MAKE INFORMED DATA-DRIVEN DECISIONS TO ADD LANGUAGE IN OUR CONTRACT TO IMPLEMENT FAIR AND EQUITABLE EXPECTATIONS OF PRACTICE.
SURVEY RESULTS FROM THE FIELD ARE CLEAR ON SUSTAINABLE WORKLOADS, WORKING CONDITIONS, AND A LACK OF WORK LIFE BALANCE REMAIN TOP PRIORITIES.
L-A-E-S-D HAS SAID THAT A SALARY EMPLOYEES, ADMINISTRATORS WORK UNTIL THE WORK IS DONE.
BUT WHEN 60% OF OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS REPORT WORKING 60 HOUR WEEKS AS THE NORM, WE HAVE TO ASK OUR L-A-U-S-D PARTNERS AND L-A-U-S-D COLLECTIVE BARGAINING TEAM.
WHERE IS THE LINE THOUGH? PAST BULLETINS DEFINE AN EIGHT HOUR REASONABLE WORKDAY.
THERE IS NO CLEAR ENFORCE MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING.
WE HAVE BEEN TOLD FLEX HOURS ARE AVAILABLE, BUT 55% OF OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS SAY THEY CAN'T USE THEM DUE TO THE CRUSHING WORKLOADS.
SO WHEN DO FLEX HOURS TRULY APPLY? AND WHEN DOES IT BECOME EXTRA DUTY PAY? ALL THE TEAMSTERS ARE PROPOSING CONTRACT LANGUAGE TO DEFINE BOTH FLEX HOURS AND EXTRA DUTY PAY.
THERE MUST BE CLEAR, CONSISTENT PROCEDURES ACROSS ALL REGIONS.
EMERGENCIES LIKE MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS OR DCFS INTERVENTIONS AT 10, 11 O'CLOCK AT NIGHT WHEN STUDENTS ARE PICKED UP FOR THEIR WELLBEING, GO FAR BEYOND THE FLEX HOURS COVERAGE.
THIS DESERVES EQUITABLE COMPENSATION, BUT OUR LABOR PARTNERS IN L-A-U-S-D DOES NOT SEE, DO NOT SEE IT IN THIS MANNER.
THIS AMBIGUITY LEADS TO INEQUITY WHERE A FEW DECIDE WHAT'S COMPENSATION DRIVEN.
EMERGENCIES ARE NOT SUBJECTIVE.
WE ARE ASKING, WE ARE DEMANDING TRANSPARENT, CONSISTENT CRITERIA AND INTERNAL CALIBRATION BY THE DISTRICT.
TEACHERS RECEIVE AN HOURLY RATE FOR PD ADMIN RECEIVED A REDUCED TRAINING RATE.
WE ASK HOW IS L-A-U-S-D INVESTING IN THE VERY LEADERS RESPONSIBLE FOR DRIVING INSTRUCTION, LEADING SCHOOL COMMUNITIES, AND IMPLEMENTING DISTRICT STRATEGIC GOALS? ESPECIALLY IN THE AREA OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE, TEACHERS RECEIVE AN HOURLY RATE FOR SUPERVISION OF CAP FIELD TRIPS.
ADMIN RECEIVE MAYBE 30 MINUTES BEFORE, 30 MINUTES AFTER STUDENTS ARRIVE OR FLEX HOURS.
YOU HAVE A BIG JOB AHEAD OF YOU IN REVIEWING BUDGET ALLOCATIONS IN INCLUDING SALARIES FOR SENIOR LEADERSHIP STAFF, SOME OF WHICH ARE IN THE HIGH 200, $300,000 RANGE.
OUR ADMINISTRATORS, WE HAVE BEEN TOLD OVER AND OVER AGAIN BY OUR L-A-U-S-D LABOR PARTNERS IN NEGOTIATIONS THAT THEY ARE COMPENSATED WITH THE SALARY THAT THEY ARE MAKING SIX FIGURES.
WE AGREE, WE MAKE SIX FIGURES, BUT NOT LIKE THAT.
IF WE WERE COMPENSATED AT THOSE LEVELS, EDP WOULD NOT BE AN ISSUE, BUT WE ARE NOT.
AND EDP IS THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY BASED ON 70% OF MEMBER RESPONSES IN OUR SURVEYS, WE HAVE SHARED IN A TRANSPARENT MANNER, NARRATIVE QUALITATIVE DATA THAT DEMONSTRATE THE TYPES OF EMERGENCIES
[00:15:01]
OUR PRINCIPLES ARE FACING AND THE TYPES OF WORKING CONDITIONS THAT THEY HAVE.WE HAVE BEEN TRANSPARENT, HAVE SHARED IT ALL WITH OUR L-A-U-S-D LABOR PARTNERS IN NEGOTIATIONS.
THIS IS A PRINCIPLE, A NECESSITY AND EQUITY.
WE URGE THE BOARD AND THE DISTRICT TO STOP THE DOUBLE STANDARD.
TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS ARE SALARY EMPLOYEES.
TREAT THEM AS SUCH, TREAT US EQUALLY WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT AND FAIRNESS, AND COMPENSATE US FOR THE WORK WE DO.
AN EFFECTIVE SCHOOL REQUIRES TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS TO WORK HAND IN HAND TO ENSURE BUILDING AND TRUSTING RELATIONSHIPS AT THE SCHOOL SITE TO ENSURE MONITORING SYSTEMS AND INSTRUCTIONAL PRIORITIES ARE PUT IN PLACE.
AND WE NEED ONE ANOTHER TO BUILD STRONG FOUNDATIONS FOR OUR STUDENTS.
SO I URGE YOU TO STOP THE INEQUITIES, STOP THE DOUBLE STANDARD, AND INVEST AS MUCH AS YOU DO IN OUR TEACHERS.
RIGHTFULLY SO, IN INVEST IN YOUR STAFF LEADERSHIP AS WELL.
DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER LABOR PARTNERS WHO WISH TO SPEAK? OKAY, THANK YOU.
THEN WE'LL GO ON TO COMMITTEE REPORTS.
CAN WE START WITH OUR CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION COMMITTEE? I, I, SURPRISE, SORRY.
SO ON MAY 15TH, I CHAIRED THE LAST CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION COMMITTEE OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
WE HAD A PRESENTATION ON THE TOPIC INSTRUCTION IN THE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM BY DR. JOSE SOTO, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AT LUSD.
WE FOCUS ON INCLUSION AS A RIGHTFUL PRESENCE EQUITY MODEL THAT LOOKS AS, AS STUDENTS CIVIL RIGHTS HAVE ACCESS TO GRADE LEVEL PEERS AND INSTRUCTION.
WE ALSO HEARD FROM THE SCHOOL SITES AND THEIR RESPECTIVE EXPERIENCES IMPLEMENTING AN INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM.
WE HEARD FIRSTHAND FROM THE PRINCIPAL AT STANLEY MOSQUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, WHERE 87% OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITY ARE SERVED IN THE GENERAL EDUCATION SETTING.
WE ALSO HEARD FROM STAFF AT VISTA MIDDLE SCHOOL, VENICE HIGH SCHOOL, AND THE NORTH HOLLYWOOD HIGH SCHOOL ZOO MAGNET.
SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT CAME OUT OF THE COMMITTEE INCLUDED BRINGING BACK CENTRALLY FUNDED INCLUSION LIAISONS, ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR COMMON PLANNING, AND THE NEED FOR HOW TO VIDEOS ON PLANNING A BLOCK PERIOD FOR INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS. SO WE WILL RETURN NEXT, UM, SEMESTER, AND IF ANYBODY'S INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING, THEY CAN REACH OUR OFFICE.
NEXT WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE LED BY DR. RIVAS.
UH, THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MET ON MAY 20TH, 2025.
THE MEETING INCLUDED THE FOLLOWING, KEY PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSIONS.
MS. LYDIA COSTA STEVENS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MULTILINGUAL MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT PREVIEW THE 2025 PLAN MULTILINGUAL PLAN HIGHLIGHTING ITS FOCUS ON ADVANCING LANGUAGE EQUITY AND HONORING THE CULTURAL LINGUISTIC ASSETS OF THE DISTRICT, STUDENTS AND FAMILIES.
THE PLAN IS BUILT ON EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY, COMMUNITY FEEDBACK AND AIMS TO TRANSFORM THE EXPERIENCE FOR MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS.
UH, DR. ANDREW THOMAS, DIRECTOR OF THE INDEPENDENT ANALYSIS UNIT PROVIDED A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE GOVERNOR'S MAY REVISE, DISCUSSING THE IMPACTS OF, UM, A REDUCED PROP PROPOSITION 98, FUNDING, ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY AND POTENTIAL FEDERAL CUTS.
HE OFFERED STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE BOARD TO NAVIGATE, UM, THE EVOLVING FISCAL LANDSCAPE.
THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, UH, MEETING WILL BE SCHEDULED FOR THE UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IS HIGHLY ENCOURAGED, UH, AT FUTURE MEETINGS, WHICH WILL BE AVAILABLE ONLINE AND IN PERSON.
NEXT WE WILL HAVE DR. RIVAS AGAIN WITH GREENING SCHOOLS CLIMATE COMMITTEE.
THE GREENING SCHOOLS AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE COMMITTEE CONVENED ON MAY 28TH AND COVERED THE FOLLOWING KEY PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSIONS.
HEROES FOR ZERO AWARD CEREMONY TOOK PLACE.
MR. CRYSTALS CLIO LED THE AWARD CEREMONY TO RECOGNIZE OUTSTANDING STUDENTS AND EDUCATORS FOR THEIR EFFORTS IN SUSTAINABILITY, WASTE REDUCTION, AND THE CREATION OF GREEN SPACES WITHIN THE DISTRICT,
[00:20:01]
WITHIN THEIR SCHOOL SITES.THESE CONTRIBUTIONS WERE CELEBRATED FOR THE POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY AND THE ROLE IN ADVANCING SUSTAINABILITY GOALS.
AND, UM, THE PARTNER IN, IN THE HEROES FOR ZERO AWARDS WAS L-E-D-D-W-P, WHO WERE ALSO VERY GRACIOUS, UM, AND GENEROUS IN PROVIDING SCHOLARSHIPS FOR ALL OF THE SEMI-FINALISTS AND FINALISTS.
E SUSTAINABILITY OFFICE UPDATES WERE ALSO PROVIDED BY MR. CRYSTAL CLIO AND MR. JAMIE TORRANCE, UH, PROVI, UH, WHO PROVIDED AN UPDATE ON THE ECO SUSTAINABILITY OFFICES INITIATIVES, INCLUDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BOARD'S RESOLUTION TO STRENGTHEN GREENING EFFORTS THROUGH COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS.
THE DISCUSSION FOCUSED ON THE ONGOING WORK TO EXPAND CLIMATE LITERACY, GREEN SPACES AND SUSTAINABILITY ACROSS THE DISTRICT.
THE COMMITTEE EXPRESSED DISAPPOINTMENT WITH THE LACK OF PROGRESS ON THE GREENING RESOLUTION AND THE COM, UH, COMMITMENTS MADE BY THE BOARD IN FEBRUARY.
THE COMMITTEE ALSO EMPHASIZED THE NEED FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESOLUTION AND CALLED, SORRY.
THE, UH, EMPHASIZE THE NEED FOR MEETING RESOLUTION CALLED FOR THE DRAFT REPORT TO BE PROVIDED WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY, UM, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
UH, THE 2025 GREENING FORECAST WAS PRESENTED BY MS. CHRISTINA TOS, UM, OUTLINING OVER 700 MILLION IN PLANNED GREENING INVESTMENTS, INCLUDING OUTDOOR CLASSROOMS, SHADE STRUCTURES, AND GREEN SCHOOL YARD UPGRADES.
THE PRESENTATION EMPHASIZED EQUITY IN THE ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES AND ENSURING THAT THE MOST VULNERABLE SCHOOLS RECEIVING THE SUPPORT THEY NEED TO COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS.
THE COMMITTEE WILL BE RECONVENE NEXT YEAR IN THE 20 25 26 SCHOOL YEAR.
NEXT WE HAVE MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN WITH THE SCHOOL SAFETY AND CLIMATE COMMITTEE.
WE HELD OUR LAST MEETING, UH, A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, AND I HEARD SOME FOLLOW UPS FROM THE, UH, OPERATIONS TEAM ON RECOMMENDATIONS AND, UM, SUGGESTIONS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, UM, WHICH WE WILL BE COMPILING AND SHARING WITH EVERYONE.
BUT JUST TO HIGHLIGHT, UH, SOME BIG THEMES WERE AROUND STREAMLINING AND MAKING CLEAR THE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE SURVEY QUESTIONS RELATED TO SCHOOL CULTURE AND SAFETY SO WE KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE ASKING AND WHAT WE'RE LOOKING TO IMPROVE.
UM, EXPANDING OUR SOSA LED PARENT TRAINING AND THE OUTREACH TO MAKE SURE MORE FAMILIES ARE GETTING ACCESS TO SUCH GREAT TRAININGS.
UM, BEING MORE EQUITY FOCUSED IN OUR RESOURCE ALLOCATIONS OF VARIOUS STAFFING, INCLUDING PS, WS, AND, UH, OTHER SCHOOL CLIMATE POSITIONS, WHICH WE ALSO RECOMMEND BEING FULLY STAFFED BEFORE THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
WE HEARD FROM TWO SCHOOLS AT THE LAST MEETING WHO HAD BEEN LUCKY TO HAVE FULL STAFFING IN THESE CLIMATE POSITIONS FOR THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.
AND THAT FULL TEAM EFFORT, UH, REALLY SHOWED THROUGH IN THEIR STUDENTS, UM, SAYING THEY FELT SAFE ON CAMPUS AT A GROWTH OF FIVE AND 6% AT PACOIMA AND ORCHARD.
SO THANK YOU FOR THEIR PRESENTATIONS.
UM, AND OUR RECS WILL ALSO INCLUDE UNIFYING SOME BEST PRACTICES FOR SAFE PASSAGE PARTNERS AND HAVING LOTS OF ACTIVITIES DURING NON-INSTRUCTIONAL TIMES LIKE LUNCHTIME AND AFTER SCHOOL.
UM, SO WE WILL SEND AROUND OUR RECOMMENDATIONS, THANK YOU TO THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION ALL YEAR.
UM, AND THANK YOU ESPECIALLY TO OPERATIONS AND WELLNESS WHO HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTING SOME OF THESE, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS AND WILL CONTINUE TO LEAD THE CHARGE ON THE WORK.
NEXT WE HAVE MS. EZ WITH CHILDREN AND FAMILIES IN EARLY EDUCATION COMMITTEE.
LAST WEEK WE HELD THE FINAL MEETING OF THE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES IN EARLY EDUCATION COMMITTEE FOR THIS SCHOOL YEAR.
DURING THIS MEETING, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO CELEBRATE, UH, THE WONDERFUL DR. DEAN TAG'S RETIREMENT AND RECOGNIZE HIS INVALUABLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR DISTRICT, HIS LEADERSHIP IN THE EARLY EDUCATION DIVISION, AND THE BROADER COMMUNITY, AS WELL AS OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS FOR THEIR ACTIVE ENGAGEMENT IN OUR WORK THIS SCHOOL YEAR.
UM, WE ALSO GOT SOME WORK DONE.
WE HAD A PRESENTATION ABOUT, UH, THAT WAS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE DIVISION OF ADULT AND CAREER EDUCATION AND THE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION DIVISION ON HOW THEY'RE WORKING TOGETHER TO EXPAND ACCESS TO EDUCATION FOR OUR YOUNGEST LEARNERS.
UM, OUR DUAL GENERATION PROGRAMS, INCLUDING OUR FAMILY LITERACY PROGRAM AND SUPPORTING TRAINING FOR CAREERS IN EARLY EDUCATION FOR OUR WORKFORCE.
UM, WE ALSO DISCUSSED AND FINALIZE THE COMMITTEE'S RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SCHOOL YEAR.
UM, AND THE TOPICS ARE EXPANDING TRAUMA-INFORMED AND WHOLE CHILD APPROACH, BRINGING MORE OUTDOOR LEARNING SPACES TO OUR EARLY EDUCATION PROGRAMS, CONSIDERING STRATEGIC EXPANSION OF OUR EARLY EDUCATION PROGRAMS, INCLUDING THE USE OF PREVIOUSLY SHUTTERED EARLY EDUCATION SITES, STRENGTHENING QUALITY AND MEASUREMENT ACROSS ALL EARLY LEARNING SETTINGS, SETTING STRONG FOUNDATIONS IN LITERACY AND NUMERACY, AND ENHANCING FAMILY ENGAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATION TOOLS.
UM, YOU CAN FIND THESE RECOMMENDATIONS ON OUR WEBSITE, UM, ON LSDS WEBSITE.
[00:25:01]
MEETING MATERIALS, UM, FOR THOSE AT THE DAY.THERE'S A HARD COPY FOR YOU AS WELL.
I I DIDN'T WANNA SPEND A REALLY LONG TIME SHARING ALL OF THEM, BUT ENCOURAGE YOU TO TAKE A LOOK.
UM, AND I'LL TAKE THIS TIME JUST TO APPRECIATE THE FANTASTIC STAFF, TEACHERS, PRINCIPALS, AND OTHER COMMITTEE MEMBERS WHO TOOK THEIR TIME TO SHARE INVALUABLE PERSPECTIVES, UM, THROUGHOUT THE COMMITTEE THIS SCHOOL YEAR.
I WILL ALSO THANK MY STAFF AND THE BOARD ARIAT STAFF FOR SUPPORTING OUR MEETINGS.
WE HAVE A REPORT FROM THE CHARTER SCHOOL COMMITTEE.
YES, THE CHARTER SCHOOL COMMITTEE MID ON MAY 29TH WITH KEY PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSIONS.
MS. MARLA WILMA WILMONT, AND MS. JEAN JANET BORDEN PROVIDED AN UPDATE ON THE COLOCATION PROCESS FOR THE 25 26 PROPOSITION 39 CYCLE.
THE DISCUSSION FO FOCUSED ON ENSURING TRANSPARENCY AND EQUITY IN THE COLOCATION PROCESS WITH A PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON HOW THE DISTRICT CAN IMPROVE THE CO-LOCATION EXPERIENCE FOR BOTH STUDENTS AND EDUCATORS, AND HOW REGIONAL INSIGHT SPECIFIC DYNAMICS ARE BEING ADDRESSED.
ANIMO WATTS, PRINCIPAL, UH, PRINCIPAL YLI ALUMNI, UH, KAREN SANCHEZ AND 12TH GRADE STUDENT MARI MARIANA LIDDELL SHARED THE SCHOOL'S SUCCESS STORIES INCLUDING STUDENT GROWTH IN ELA AND MATH.
THEY HIGHLIGHTED THE SCHOOL'S COMMITMENT TO AN INCLUSIVE CULTURE AND PARENT SAT SATISFACTION AS CRITICAL ELEMENTS TO THEIR SUCCESS.
THE COMMITTEE WILL RECONVENE ONCE AGAIN IN THE 25 26 SCHOOL YEAR.
AND THAT WAS MY PLEASURE TO HAVE OUR SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER REPORT FROM MS. CORTEZ LOPEZ.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR THAT INTRODUCTION.
THE LAST STUDENT ADVISORY COUNCIL MEETING TOOK PLACE ON MAY 17TH, WHERE STUDENTS CAME TOGETHER TO CONCLUDE AND FINALIZE THEIR EFFORTS IN CONTRIBUTING TO THE LOCAL CONTROL AND ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN.
OUR STUDENTS HAVE WORKED TREMENDOUSLY TO ON IMPROVING THE STATE OF OUR, OF OUR DISTRICT THROUGH VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON MEETINGS TO PROMOTE OUR STUDENT PRIORITIES.
THE STUDENT EMPOWERMENT UNIT ALSO CELEBRATED THE CLASS OF 2025 AS THEY MOVE FORWARD WITH THEIR FUTURES AND TAKE THE LESSONS FROM THEIR TIME IN OUR DISTRICT TO TRULY EMBODY THE PHRASE READY FOR THE WORLD.
AS I DELIVER MY FINAL REPORT AT STUDENT BOARD MEMBER, I'M FILLED WITH DEEP GRATITUDE AND REFLECTION.
REPRESENTING THE STUDENTS OF LUSD HAS TRULY BEEN ONE OF THE GREATEST HONORS OF MY LIFE.
AS WE MOVE FORWARD FOR THE NEXT ACADEMIC YEAR, STUDENTS HAVE EXPRESSED THAT WE MUST REMAIN VIGILANT IN OPPOSING FEDERAL EFFORTS THAT CUT TITLE ONE FUNDING TO SCHOOL SERVING LOW INCOME COMMUNITIES THAT UNDERMINE NEWCOMER ENGLISH LEARNERS AND IMMIGRANT PROTECTIONS, REDUCE MENTAL HEALTH AND PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES IN SCHOOLS, AS WELL AS REDUCING STIGMAS AROUND MINORITY POPULATIONS SUCH AS L-G-B-T-Q AND IMMIGRANTS.
THESE ISSUES ARE PERSONAL TO THE THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT, AND I DO NOT WANT THE EFFORTS STARTED HERE TO END, WE MUST CONTINUE ADVOCATING FIERCELY AND PUBLICLY AGAINST THESE ATTACKS FEDERALLY ON STUDENT DIGNITY AND OPPORTUNITY.
FINALLY, STUDENTS ON OUR VIRTUAL ACADEMIES HAVE EXPRESSED THE STATE OF THEIR SCHOOLS AND ACADEMIC EXPERIENCES STATING THAT A LARGE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS SPOKEN AND DESIRE TO SHARE THEIR CONCERNS REGARDING DISTRACTIONS, DISRUPTIVE FIRE ALARMS, INTERNET TROUBLES, AND BACKGROUND NOISE.
I ASKED THE BOARD MOVING FORWARD TO LOOK INTO THE MY VOICE SURVEY FOR VIRTUAL ACADEMIES, PLACE 'EM AS A PRIORITY TO IMPROVE THE STATE OF THE THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT WHO ARE TAKING CLASSES VIRTUALLY AND ENSURE THAT THEY ARE STILL RECEIVING THE QUALITY EDUCATION THAT TAKE PLACE IN IN-PERSON SCHOOLS.
AND AS I CONCLUDE, IT IS MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE AND WELCOME JERRY YANG, A JUNIOR AND INCOMING SENIOR FROM NORTH HOLLYWOOD HIGH SCHOOL, AND IS THE NEXT STUDENT BOARD MEMBER.
CAN WE ROUND TO APPLAUSE? JERRY BRINGS A SHARP MIND AND A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF, OF THE PROBLEMS OUR STUDENTS ARE FACING TODAY.
I HAVE FULL CONFIDENCE THAT HE WILL LEAD WITH INTEGRITY AND VISION, AND I ASK THAT THIS BOARD CONTINUE TO SUPPORT AND LISTEN TO HIM AS YOU HAVE TO ME, BECAUSE STUDENT VOICES ONLY MATTER WHEN THEY'RE ACTED UPON.
THANK YOU SO MUCH AND THANK YOU AGAIN, MS. CORTEZ LOPEZ, FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK THIS YEAR, FIGHTING FOR OUR STUDENTS AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY GET FAIR TREATMENT AND ARE HEARD.
AND I APPRECIATE THAT VERY MUCH.
ALSO, TO MY COMMITTEE CHAIRS, YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH WORK IT IS TO GO INTO A COMMITTEE AND GET IT READY AND STARTED.
SO I WANT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK.
I KNOW THE COMMITTEE WORK IS VERY, VERY HARD, BUT VERY BENEFICIAL.
[Consent Items]
ON TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR.SO THE, UM, WHAT THE BOARD DOES IS IT SETS A CONSENT CALENDAR, IT'S VOTES ON WHICH, UH, NUMBER OF ITEMS WILL BE TAKEN AT ONCE AS OPPOSED
[00:30:01]
TO VOTING ON THEM INDIVIDUALLY.IT'S A PROCEDURAL EFFICIENCY THAT BODIES LIKE THIS USE.
SO WHAT HAPPENS HERE IS I READ THROUGH THE ITEMS ON THE, ON THE AGENDA AND THEN BY, UH, VOICE FOLKS DESIGNATE WHETHER THEY NOT, THEY WANT IT TO BE ON CONSENT OR FOR DISCUSSION.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT A PARTICULAR ITEM? WE'LL BE MOVED TO DISCUSSION RATHER THAN THE CONSENT.
SO I'M GONNA READ THROUGH, UH, TAB ONE, DEFINE AND APPROVE THREE CAMPUS RECONSTRUCTION PROJECTS AND AMENDED FACILITY SERVICE DIVISION, STRATEGIC EXECUTION PLAN DISCUSSION.
UH, TAB TWO, DEFINE AND APPROVE FIVE ACCESSIBILITY ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS.
UH, TAB THREE, DEFINE AND APPROVE.
SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENTAL ENHANCEMENT DEVELOPMENT FOR SCHOOL PROJECTS.
CONSENT TAB FOUR, DEFINE AND APPROVE 27 BOARD DISTRICT PRIORITY AND REGION PRIORITY PROJECTS, CONSENT.
TAB FIVE, DEFINE AND APPROVE BIRMINGHAM COUNTY CHARTER HIGH SCHOOL AQUATIC FACILITY PLACEMENT PROJECT, REPLACEMENT PROJECT CONSENT TAB 6 20 25, 20 26.
SPECIAL EDUCATION, LOCAL PLAN AREA, LOCAL PLAN, CONSENT TAB SEVEN, APPROVAL OF THE RENAMING OF HESBY OAKS LEADERSHIP CHARTER.
UH, CONSENT TAB EIGHT, APPROVAL OF THE RENAMING OF BOYLE HEIGHTS.
HILDA SOLA, SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL.
AND THEN THAT'S, UH, MS. NEW BILL.
TAB NINE, APPROVAL OF COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
TAB 10, APPROVAL OF PROCUREMENT ACTIONS.
QUESTION THAT GOES ON DISCUSSION.
SO I HAVE A QUESTION FROM DR. RIVAS AND MR. SCHUREN AND MS. DIEGO AND EZ.
TAB 11, APPROVAL OF FACILITIES, CONTRACT ACTIONS.
OKAY, SO WE'LL, GOOD DISCUSSION FOR, UH, SEN.
UH, TAB 12, APPROVAL OF ROUTINE PERSONNEL ACTIONS SENT, UH, TAB 13, APPROVAL OF NON-ROUTINE PERSONNEL ACTIONS.
CONSENT TAB 14, UH, PROVISIONAL INTERNSHIP PERMITS CONSENT TAB 15 CANNOT BE ON CONSENT NOR CAN TABS 16 OR 17.
SO THOSE VOTES FOR THOSE IN THE AUDIENCE HAVE TO BE TAKEN, UH, INDIVIDUALLY RATHER THAN AS, AS A GROUP ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
UH, TAB 18, DONATIONS OF MONEY TO THE DISTRICT.
UH, TAB 19, REPORT OF CASH DISBURSEMENTS AND REPORT OF CORPORATE GIFT CARD, CORPORATE CREDIT CARD CHARGES.
CONSENT TAB 20, APPROVE THE PROPOSED UPDATE OF THE DEBT DEBT MANAGEMENT POLICY, CONSENT, CONSENT TAB 21, APPLICATION FOR EXEMPTION FROM THE REQUIRED EXPENDITURES FOR CLASSROOM TEACHER SALARIES.
YOU'D LIKE TO POST TABLE? YES, I THINK THAT I PROCEDURALLY, I BELIEVE, UM, WE NEED A MOTION TO WITHDRAW IT FROM, FROM THE ENTIRE BOARD.
AND LET'S GO WITH DISCUSSION THEN.
UH, TAB 22, APPROVAL OF THE CERTIFICATION OF SIGNATURES OR FISCAL YEAR 25, 26.
THESE ARE ALL, THESE ARE PUBLIC HEARINGS, BUT THEY CAN ALSO BE ON CONSENT.
APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR CASTLE BAY LANE.
CHARTER CONSENT, CONSENT TAB 24, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR DIXIE CANYON COMMUNITY CHARTER CONSENT.
CONSENT, CONSENT TAB 25, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR AN AUDIO AWAY TECHNOLOGY CENTER.
CONSENT TAB 26, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR HAYNES CHARTER FOR ENRICHED STUDIES.
CONSENT TAB 27, APPROVAL FOR THE RENEWAL.
PETITION FOR HESS B OAKS LEADERSHIP CHARTER CONSENT.
CONSENT TAB 28, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR NOEL WOOD PREPARATORY ACADEMY.
CONSENT TAB 29, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR HURST DRIVE, CHARTER ELEMENTARY CONSENT.
UH, TAB 30, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR, UH, NESTLE AVENUE CHARTER TAB 31, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR PLAINVIEW.
UH, CHARTER, ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY.
OKAY, TAB 32, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR, UH, NIA AVENUE CHARTER FOR ENRICHED STUDIES.
CONSENT TAB 33, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR VAN, UH, GO CHARTER CONSENT.
CONSENT TAB 34 IS NOT FOR ACTION.
UH, TAB 35 IS VERSION TWO, INCLUDING A, A WAIVER OF, UH, BOARD RULE 72.
AND THIS WILL BE A TIME CERTAIN, SO SOMETIMES I THINK IT'S PROCEDURALLY EASIER TO PUT THESE ON, ON DISCUSSION.
[00:35:01]
THE CLOCK HITS TWO, WE GO TO THAT EVERYBODY.SO THAT WILL BE ON DISCUSSION.
I'LL NOTE THAT IT IS A VERSION TWO.
UH, THE VERSION TWO HAS BEEN DISTRIBUTED TO THE PUBLIC, TO THE BOARD AND IS POSTED ONLINE FOR YOUR REVIEW.
UH, TAB 36 IS, UM, NOT FOR ACTION.
TABS 37, 38 AND 39 HAVE BEEN WITHDRAWN FOR ACTION AT A SUBSEQUENT JUNE MEETING.
SO THAT WILL EITHER BE, I BELIEVE ON THE 17TH OR THE 24TH.
SO THAT'S 37, 38, AND 39 ARE OFF THE AGENDA FOR TODAY.
AND THEN TAB 40 MINUTES FOR BOARD APPROVAL.
CAN I, CAN I ASK YOU TO PUT IT ON THE MIC JUST SO THAT WE GET IT ON THE RECORD? UM, ITEM SEVEN, I HAVE A QUESTION.
OKAY, SO ITEM SEVEN IS APPROVAL OF THE RENAMING OF HESBY OAKS.
SO THAT WILL GO ON TO DISCUSSION.
SO TAB SEVEN IS DISCUSSION FOR DR.
AND I'LL ASK, SORRY, I HAVE QUESTIONS ON TAB 31.
SO TAB 31 IS APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR PLAIN VIEW.
UM, I'LL MOVE THAT ON TO DISCUSSION.
AND THAT WAS, UH, BOARD MEMBER EZ.
OKAY, SO TAB THREE WILL BE MOVED FROM CONSENT TO DISCUSSION, AND THEN THAT'S A BOARD MEMBER NEW BILL.
AND I'D LIKE TO MOVE TAB SIX TO DISCUSSION.
SO THAT'S, UH, MS. GREGO TAB SIX.
I'M GONNA READ THROUGH THE WORK WE JUST DID, UH, TO MAKE SURE I DIDN'T MAKE ANY ERRORS.
AND THEN WE WILL, UM, MOVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR AND START TAKING THE PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS THAT HAVE BEEN APPROVED TO BE PLACED ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
SO ITEM NUMBER ONE IS DISCUSSION TWO IS CONSENT.
THREE IS DISCUSSION FOUR AND FIVE ARE CONSENT.
SIX, SEVEN AND EIGHT ARE DISCUSSION.
10 AND 11 ARE DISCUSSION 12, 13, AND 14 ARE CONSENT 15, 16, 17 ARE DISCUSSION 18, 19, AND 20 ARE CONSENT 21 ARE DISCUSSION 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, AND 30 ARE CONSENT.
UH, 31 IS DISCUSSION 32 AND 33 ARE CONSENT.
35 IS DISCUSSION OF VERSION 2 36, NOT FOR ACTION.
UH, 37, 38 AND 39 WILL BE PUT ON A SUBSEQUENT AGENDA.
DID ADMIT FOR, FOR TAB THREE SEEDS.
DID YOU SAY THAT WAS CONSENT OR DISCUSSION? THAT IS FOR DISCUSSION.
MS. NEW BILL HAS A QUESTION AND I CAN OKAY.
PUT YOU ON THERE TOO IF YOU LIKE.
UM, MAY I HAVE SOMEONE MOVE AND SECOND THE CONSENT CALENDAR? MOVE IT PLEASE.
MAY I BEFORE THOSE SECOND, MR. SUPERINTENDENT, IS IT, UM, I DO UNDERSTAND THERE ARE A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS AND MAYBE LINGERING CONCERNS OR CONFUSIONS REGARDING, UH, ITEM 21.
AND EVEN THOUGH, EVEN THOUGH, UM, AS, AS MOST OF YOU KNOW, I WAS NOT AVAILABLE THE PAST 72 HOURS OR SO, UM, AS I'VE REVIEWED THE DATA, IT APPEARS TWO THINGS.
NUMBER ONE, I BELIEVE THAT THIS BOARD WOULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING HOW THIS DISTRICT, FOR THE BETTER PART OF TWO DECADES HAS COMPUTED, HAS CALCULATED CLASSROOM EXPENDITURES, WHICH IN MY OPINION HAS DONE SO IN INCORRECT FASHION.
IN FACT, IT APPEARS BASED ON MY LAST REVIEW AND BASED ON LAST MINUTE CONVERSATIONS WITH STAFF, THAT OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, THE DISTRICT HAS NOT ONLY MET, HAS EXCEEDED THE 55% REQUIREMENT, HOWEVER, IT HAS REPORTED INCORRECTLY BASED ON A PRACTICE THAT GOES BACK 20 YEARS.
UM, BUT BECAUSE THIS IS LAST MINUTE INFORMATION, I THINK THE BOARD WOULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL CONTEXT, UH, AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ALSO PROVIDED TO SOME OF THE SPEAKERS THAT HAVE FOCUSED ON THIS TOPIC.
I THINK IT IS THE FAIR THING TO DO.
MUCH LIKE YOU, I WAS NOT AWARE OF, OF THE MISCALCULATION ISSUE THAT LED TO THE DISTRICT BELIEVING THAT IT NEEDED TO SUBMIT A WAIVER TO LACO.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT FOR THE 24 25 SCHOOL YEAR, UH, WE ARE AT OVER ALREADY AT OVER 58%.
AND THAT WILL ACTUALLY INCREASE LAST YEAR.
WE WERE AT 59% LAST YEAR IS THE YEAR IN QUESTION, UH, THAT WOULD NECESSITATE THE SUBMISSION OF WAIVER.
BUT ONCE RECALCULATED BASED ON, UM, ACTUAL STATE REQUIREMENTS, WE DON'T NEED TO.
SO WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT TWO THINGS.
NUMBER ONE, IS THERE A NEED TO SUBMIT A WAIVER? I BELIEVE BASED ON LATE INFORMATION THAT SINCE WE CLOSED OUT THAT YEAR AND THAT YEAR HAS ALREADY BEEN AUDITED, PROBABLY AS OPPOSED TO A RECALCULATION AND A RESUBMISSION.
BUT SIM SIMPLY SAID, JUST THINK ABOUT IT THIS WAY.
THERE ARE EXPENDITURES THAT WOULD COUNT AGAINST THE DISTRICT THAT WERE NOT DEDUCTED.
FOR EXAMPLE, TRANSPORTATION EXPENDITURES ARE MASSIVE.
[00:40:01]
THE CALCULATION, EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE TO BE EXCLUDED, AS WELL AS THE NUMBER OF OTHER POSITION THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN INCLUDED IN THE CALCULATION TO BENEFIT THE DISTRICT, LIKE TEACHER ASSISTANCE IN SPECIAL ED CLASSROOMS. AND THEY WERE NOT BASED ON OLD INFORMATION.SO, UM, I BELIEVE THAT THE BOARD WOULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THIS PRIOR TO A VOTE.
THE GOOD NEWS, THE COROLLARY IS A POSITIVE ONE.
HOW WE GET THERE, HOWEVER, I BELIEVE NEEDS A LITTLE BIT MORE BEATING UP.
OKAY, SO SIMILAR TO THE REQUEST YOU MADE EARLIER, UH, IT'S NOT AN ISSUE OF PAUSING, POSTPONING GOING TO WITHDRAW ITEM 21 AND THEN BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD IF IN FACT, UH, WE DEEM IT NECESSARY TO DO SO.
OKAY, SO FOR SAKE OF CLARITY, TAB 21 HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN.
ALL RIGHT, SO I BELIEVE THAT I HAD A MOVER WAS MS. EZ.
AND, UH, AND A SECOND FROM DR. RIVAS TO MOVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
PROCEDURALLY NOW WE HOLD CALENDARS BEFORE THE BOARD TO DISCUSS, UM, AS THEY WOULD SEE FIT.
WE'LL NOW GO THROUGH THE PUBLIC COMMENT THAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ITEMS THAT HAVE BEEN PLACED ON CONSENT.
SO WE HAVE, LET'S SEE, UNDER TAB TWO DEFINED.
OH, AND AS A REMINDER, SO FOR ITEMS THAT ARE PLACED ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, IT'S ITEMS THAT ARE FOR SPECIFIC ACTION BY THE BOARD TODAY.
UM, IF YOU HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THOSE SPECIFIC ITEMS, UH, THE BOARD RULES STATE AND WE MOST RESPECTFULLY REQUEST THAT YOU STICK TO THE TOPIC OF THE ITEM THAT YOU SIGNED UP FOR.
IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE PERFECTLY ALIGNED, UH, BUT JUST FOR THE SAKE OF, UM, MAKING PUBLIC COMMENT EQUITABLE, FOR THOSE WHO ARE HERE TO ACTUALLY SHARE, WE, UH, RESPECTFULLY REQUEST THAT, THAT YOU DO THAT.
AND YOU'LL SEE MANY EXAMPLES OF THE RIGHT WAY TO DO IT AND MAYBE EVEN ONE RIGHT NOW FROM, UH, MR. DAVID TOSKI.
ARE YOU HERE? MR. TOSKY? YOU'RE LISTED AS, UM, BEING HERE IN PERSON.
LET ME CHECK ON ZOOM TO SEE IF YOU'RE HERE.
MR. TOSKY IS, UH, NOT HERE FOR TAB TWO.
SO WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT NEXT ON TAB NINE.
[2. Board of Education Report No. 377-24/25]
HERE COMES MR. DAVID TOSKI, PLEASE COME ON UP.YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES, THANK YOU TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN, SIR, ON TAB TWO, DEFINE AND APPROVE FIVE ACCESSIBILITY ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS.
OKAY, THE TIMER'S UPSIDE DOWN.
IS THAT A CHALLENGE TO THE SPEAKERS? IT, IT'S READING UPSIDE DOWN FIRST.
I, I CAN, I CAN COME FIX THAT.
BUT WE'LL, ALRIGHT, SO IT LOOKS LIKE I HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
IT'S NOT BACKWARDS, IT'S, IT'S TRANSVERSED.
WHAT DO I HAVE NOW? 11 MINUTES, 62 SECONDS.
DOES THE TIMER CAUSE YOU ANY IMPEDIMENT TO PROCEEDING? NO.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES ONCE YOU BEGIN.
THANK YOU FOR CORRECTING THE TIMER.
BOARD MEMBERS, I'M SPEAKING IN FAVOR OF ITEM TWO.
OBVIOUSLY THE, THE GREAT IDEA THAT, UH, RAY CORT FORMER SUPERINTENDENT DESIGNATED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF MONEY TO USE FROM THE BONDS TO HELP REMEDY, UM, THE ACCESSIBILITY FOR STUDENTS AND FACULTY AND PARENTS AND COMMUNITY WITH DISABILITIES.
AND SO THIS IS AN ITEM THAT I'M SPEAKING OBVIOUSLY IN FAVOR OF.
IT'S A SMALL ITEM, BUT LATER IN THE MEETING YOU HAVE A $1 BILLION ITEM THAT YOU JUST PUT ON CONSENT.
MY FRIENDS, WHEN I USED TO BE ON THE SCHOOL BOARD, WOULD LAUGH THAT THE BOARD MEMBERS WOULD SPEAK FOR 45 MINUTES OR AN HOUR ON AN ITEM OF $45,000 AND THEN AN ITEM OF A BILLION DOLLARS.
THE, THE CLERK OF THE BOARD WOULD SAY, MOVE IT SECOND DONE.
YOU OUGHT TO DIG IN TO A BILLION DOLLARS A LITTLE BIT.
I KNOW WE HAVE A COMMITTEE THAT'S WORKING ON SPECIAL ED AND INSTRUCTION, AND OF COURSE SPECIAL ED IS BEYOND JUST THIS COMPLIANCE DOCUMENT.
[00:45:01]
DISTRICT BECAUSE WE UNDERSTAND SPECIAL ED TO MEAN BOTH, UH, THE STUDENTS WHO ARE IDENTIFIED WITH IEPS AS WELL AS THE ENTIRE SCHOOL.AND SO THAT'S THE ENTIRE BUDGET.
BUT WHAT YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU TODAY LATER IS THE SPECIAL ED BUDGET OF A BILLION DOLLARS.
IT'S SHARE OF IT FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS INADEQUATE.
BUT A $20 BILLION BUDGET IS WHATEVER YOU DECIDE TO DO WITH IT.
AND IF YOU WANNA DESIGNATE IT IN SOME WAYS FOR EITHER INTEGRATION OF CLASSROOMS OR STRONGER SERVICES, THAT'S YOUR POLICY CHOICE.
BUT TO PUT A BILLION DOLLAR ITEM ON CONSENT IS BEYOND, UH, UH, MY AWARENESS.
THAT MEANS SOMEBODY PROBABLY CAME BEFORE THE MEETING TO YOUR ROOMS AND SAID, ARE YOU OKAY WITH THAT ITEM? IS THAT DESCRIPTION OKAY? AND IF YOU COLLECTIVELY GET A CONCLUSION TO AN ITEM BEFORE YOU COME OUT IN PUBLIC, THAT IS REFERRED TO AS A SERIAL MEETING AND IS A VIOLATION OF CALIFORNIA'S BROWN ACT.
THE NEXT PUBLIC COMMENT WE HAVE IS WITH, WE HAVE PUBLIC
[9. Board of Education Report No. 376-24/25]
COMMENT ON TAB NINE, PUBLIC COMMENT ON TAB NINE.THAT IS APPROVAL OF COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP.
SO WE HAVE THREE FOLKS CALLING IN FOR TAB NINE.
UH, THESE FOLKS ARE, AT LEAST ONE OF THEM IS GOING TO SPEAK IN SPANISH.
SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR WHAT THEY'RE SAYING IN ENGLISH AS THEY'RE SPEAKING SPANISH, YOU'LL HEAR IN SPANISH OVER THE SPEAKERS.
UM, PLEASE PUT YOUR HANDS UP AND WE CAN GET YOU THESE TRANSLATION HEADSETS IF YOU DO NOT SPEAK SPANISH.
SO FOR SIMULTANEOUS TRANSLATION, WE'RE HANDING OUT THESE HEADSETS.
WHEN YOU PUT THE HEADSET ON YOUR EARS, THEY TURN ON AUTOMATICALLY AND WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY SET TO THE ENGLISH CHANNEL.
SO ONCE THOSE ARE HANDED OUT, WE'LL BEGIN, UH, THE PUBLIC COMMENT FOR TAB NINE.
UH, NORMA GONZALEZ, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN NORMA GONZALEZ COM COMMITTEE TO BE OPEN.
AND I'M ALSO AN EXAMPLE OF THAT.
THIS COMMITTEE NEVER ORIGINALLY ACCEPTED THE PARENTS LIKE MYSELF THAT CONSIDERED THEMSELVES, THEY CONSIDERED US DISRUPTIVE.
WHY? BECAUSE WE RAISE OUR VOICES, BECAUSE WE TRY TO ADVOCATE AS PARENTS FOR THE NECESSITIES OF OUR CHILDREN, FOR WANTING TO HAVE INFORMATION.
AND ALSO BECAUSE THE OFFICE WOULD ALWAYS LIMIT US.
THEY DID LIMIT US FROM PARTICIPATING.
IT WAS A SERIES OF REQUIREMENTS THAT THEY ASKED AND THEY ACCEPTED ONLY CERTAIN MEMBERS, LIKE ONLY FROM CERTAIN POINTS.
THEY SAID, WHO IS ALLOWED AND WHO ISN'T ALLOWED TO TRY TO EXPLAIN IT.
WHAT I TRIED THREE YEARS CONSECUTIVELY AND I COMPLETED ONE YEAR.
I SPENT THIS ENTIRE TIME IN THIS, IN THIS COMMITTEE, AND THEY DIDN'T ACCEPT ME.
AND I'M GRATEFUL NOW THAT THEY WERE ABLE TO ACCEPT ME.
BUT NOW, RIGHT NOW I'M A LOT MORE HAPPY THAT A LOT OF PARENTS LIKE MYSELF ARE GOING TO BE IN THIS COMMITTEE RAISING THEIR VOICES, LEARNING, LEARNING THAT US WE NEED TO BE HERE.
LATINO PARENTS LIKE MYSELF THAT DON'T KNOW THE LANGUAGE, THAT DON'T SPEAK ENGLISH, THAT WE ONLY SPEAK SPANISH, BUT THAT WE HAVE, UH, THE WILL TO BE ABLE TO KNOW AND IDENTIFY AND KNOW WHAT ARE THE SERVICES THAT THIS DISTRICT PROVIDES OUR STUDENTS.
BECAUSE THERE IS MONEY, THERE'S A LOT OF FUNDS, THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY.
SO PLEASE DON'T BE ACCOMPLICES THE BOARDS OF OF EDUCATION, PLEASE AND PARENTS KEEP FIGHTING, KEEP RAISING YOUR VOICES.
BECAUSE THIS COMMITTEE IS NOW DEMOCRATIC FOR EVERYONE, WE WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO ELECT OURSELVES WITH OUR OWN VOICES.
WE DON'T HAVE TO BE WAITING FOR SOMEBODY TO, TO SOMEBODY TO LIKE US, TO BE ABLE TO INCORPORATE US.
YOU'RE LISTED AS SPEAKING REMOTELY, BUT I DO NOT HAVE YOU SIGNED IN, IN FRONT OF ME.
ARE YOU IN THE AUDIENCE, MR. DURAN? NO.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
[00:50:02]
ITEM MINE.UM, I UNDERSTAND THERE'S SOME PEOPLE WHO WANTED TO DISCUSS CERTAIN THINGS.
I AM, UM, AGAIN, MY NAME IS TERESA GAINES.
I'M CALLING FROM BROADWAY ELEMENTARY, AND I'M CALLING IN REGARDS TO, UH, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT REGARDING BROADWAY, SPANISH LANGUAGE PROGRAM, UM, AND THAT WE HAVE A DEMAND FOR MORE TRANSPARENCY.
SO SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO, DR.
CRIER, MRS. KAMAU, L-A-U-S-D BOARD OF DIRECTORS, UM, IN OUR ADMINISTRATION.
I'M WRITING, I AM WRITING OR TALKING TO YOU AS A CONCERN AND DEEPLY INVESTED PARENT IN THE BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL COMMUNITY.
AND I URGE YOU TO PROVIDE CLEAR, TRANSPARENT ANSWERS ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM.
THE SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAM AT BROADWAY FOR TOO LONG HAS BEEN LEFT IN THE DARK AND HEARD CONFLICTING REPORTS OF ACTION WHICH MAY IMPACT OUR PROGRAM'S FUTURE.
OUR COMMUNITY DESERVES DIRECT COMMUNICATION AND HONEST DIALOGUE ABOUT WHAT LIES AHEAD, NOT ONLY FOR SPANISH IMMER IMMERSION PROGRAM, BUT FOR OUR SCHOOL AS A WHOLE.
THE TIME HAS COME FOR THE DISTRICT TO STEP FORWARD.
WE ARE FORMALLY REQUESTING AN IN-PERSON TOWN HALL MEETING LED BY THE DISTRICT AND SCHOOL SITE LEADERSHIP WHERE PARENTS, TEACHERS, AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS CAN BE HEARD DIRECTLY FROM YOU.
THIS MEETING SHOULD ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE THE IMMENSE VALUE THE SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAM PROVIDES, NOT ONLY TO BROADWAY ELEMENTARY, BUT TO THE BROADER VENICE COMMUNITY, THE NEIGHBORHOOD COMMUNITY, AND TO LAD'S VISION OF EXPANDING BI EDUCATION ACROSS THE WEST SIDE.
IT SHOULD ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT THE SUCCESS OF BROADWAY ELEMENTARY IS ROOTED IN THE DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM.
NO ONE PROGRAM STANDS ON ITS OWN.
AGAIN, NA NO ONE PROGRAM STANDS ON ITS OWN.
AND IT IS THE COMBINATION OF THE STRENGTH OF EACH OF THESE PROGRAMS THAT DERIVE THE SCHOOL SUCCESS AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY.
OUR SCHOOL IS CONSIDERED A MODEL SCHOOL IN OUR SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAM IS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAMS ON THE WEST SIDE, WHICH OTHERS HAVE BEEN MODELED AFTER.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
UH, WE WE APPRECIATE YOUR TIME.
[12. Board of Education Report No. 337-24/25 Human Resources Division (Approval of Routine Personnel Actions) Recommends approval of 2,332 routine personnel actions (including, but not limited to elections, promotions, transfers, leaves, terminations, separations, permits and contracts).]
THAT TAB.MOVING ON TO THE NEXT CONSENT ITEM IS TAB 12 APPROVAL OF ROUTINE PERSONNEL ACTIONS.
AND SO THIS IS AN ITEM THAT COULD HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH, UH, STAFFING A SCHOOL SITE, ANY ACTION THAT THE BOARD ROUTINELY TAKES WITH, UH, PERSONNEL AND, UH, THE PERSONNEL ON THE SCHOOLS.
SO WE'LL MOVE DIRECTLY INTO PUBLIC COMMENT.
LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE, UH, FULL BOAT OF FOLKS WHO ARE IN PERSON AND REMOTE, AS IS OUR NORMAL COURSE OF ACTION.
I'LL CALL ON THE PEOPLE WHO ARE LISTED AS IN PERSON FIRST AND THEN WE'LL TRANSITION TO THE FOLKS WHO ARE SPEAKING REMOTELY.
UM, AND I APOLOGIZE IF I MISPRONOUNCE SOME OF THESE NAMES.
MARRE, ARE YOU HERE? JALEN MARRE.
THEN AFTER CHALEN IS MARIE MARRE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CORRECT MY PRONUNCIATION.
AND THEN AFTER THAT IS, UH, SIMONE BAKER.
SO FIRST, UH, CHALEN AND THEN MARIE AND THEN SIMONE, PLEASE COME ON UP.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
I SEE MOVEMENT AND I HEAR HUSHED TONES.
ARE ARE ANY OF THE FOLKS COMING DOWN OR ARE YOU JUST MAKING READY? OKAY.
THEN, UH, THE MICROPHONE'S RIGHT UP HERE AND, UH, THE TWO MINUTES WILL BEGIN COUNTING DOWN WHEN YOU BEGIN.
I'M A PARENT AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND I STAND HERE BEFORE YOU WITH CONCERNS.
I HAVE BEEN AT BROADWAY FOR 10 YEARS.
I HAVE A 15-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER THAT HAS SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED BROADWAY AND MARK TWAIN THAT IS NOW AT VENICE HIGH SCHOOL.
I HAVE A THIRD GRADER AND A FIRST GRADER.
MY OLDEST DAUGHTER COMPLETED BROADWAY IN 2021, AND MY YOUNGEST IS NOW COMPLETING FIRST GRADE.
I HAVE A THIRD GRADE DAUGHTER, AND WHEN IT IS ALL SAID AND DONE, I WILL EXIT BROADWAY WITH 14 YEARS AS A VOLUNTEER AND VETTED PARENT
I CHOSE BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FOR MY FIRST DAUGHTER AFTER I HAD ENROLLED IN PRIVATE SCHOOL EDUCATION ON THE WEST SIDE OF LOS ANGELES.
IT WAS A ROUTE AT THE TIME THAT I WANTED TO TAKE FOR MY DAUGHTER, AND I THOUGHT PRIVATE SCHOOL WAS THE ROUTE THAT I WANTED TO PURSUE UNTIL I TOURED BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
MY DAUGHTER ENTERED IN 2015 AND I HAVE SINCE BEEN THERE FOR 10 YEARS.
AND WE ARE CURRENTLY UNDER THE TUTELAGE OF ROCHELLE GARMIN, OUR PRINCIPAL
[00:55:01]
AND I COME TO YOU WITH A CONCERN FOR HER LEADERSHIP.I COME TO YOU WITH A CONCERN FOR YOUR INVOLVEMENT THROUGH L-A-U-S-D.
MY DAUGHTER HAS SUCCESSFULLY MATRICULATED MY OLDEST DAUGHTER THAT I MENTIONED TO YOU WHO IS NOW IN HIGH SCHOOL.
AND AS THE CALL YOU JUST HAD BEFORE OURS, I STAND HERE WITH A CONCERN FOR THE PATHWAY.
I ASK THAT YOU TAKE OUR VOICE FROM BROADWAY FROM BOTH PROGRAMS TO LET YOU KNOW THAT WE NEED RESOURCES, WE NEED YOU TO HEAR OUR VOICE COLLECTIVELY AS A COMMUNITY, WE WANT TO WORK WITH YOU.
IF YOU JUST WANNA FINISH YOUR THOUGHT AND COULD YOU ANNOUNCE WHO, WHO YOU WERE? I DIDN'T CATCH IT AT THE, MY NAME IS SHA MARRAY.
I SHE SAID THAT SHE JUST SIGNED UP TWICE.
SO WE HAVE AN ACCIDENTAL SIGNUP.
THAT'S, THAT'S NO PROBLEM UNLESS YOU WANNA SPEAK.
WELL, I I'M ONLY ALLOWED TO GIVE EACH INDIVIDUAL SPEAKER ONE SLOT, SO GIVING ADDITIONAL TIME TO A SECOND SPEAKER VIOLATES THE RULES THAT WE HAVE SET OUT.
AND I KNOW THAT SEEMS A LITTLE ARCHAIC, BUT IT'S SO THAT WE CAN MAINTAIN EVERYONE HAVING EXACTLY THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF TIME.
IF, UM, IF MARIE WANTS TO LET MY STAFF IN THE BACK NOTE FOR SOMEONE ELSE TO HAVE A SPOT, WE CAN CALL THAT PERSON AT THE END IF THERE'S NO OTHER SIGNUPS.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
SORRY, I WROTE SOMETHING, BUT I'M NOT PUBLIC SPEAKER.
AND, UM, THIS PPP THING MAKES ME NERVOUS.
I AM, UM, FROM BROAD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
UM, I GREW UP IN BRAZIL AND I NEVER HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK CHINESE GROWING UP, SO I'M VERY THANKFUL THAT LSD SUPERINTENDENT CAR VALUE GAVE US THIS GIFT OF LANGUAGE IMMERSION SCHOOL.
AND I'M HERE TODAY REPRESENTING BROADWAY BECAUSE I KNOW THE CHALLENGES OF OFFERING A LANGUAGE IMMERSION SCHOOL IN THE SECOND BIGGEST DISTRICT IN THE UNITED STATES IS HARD ENOUGH TO OFFER QUALITY INSTRUCTION, NOT TO MENTION A SECOND LANGUAGE.
WE HAVE THE MANDARIN PROGRAM IN OUR SCHOOL SINCE 2010 BEFORE ADDING THIS SPANISH PROGRAM.
WE HAVE BOTH PROGRAMS IN OUR SCHOOL AND SINCE THEN WE'VE BEEN WORKING HARD AND STILL DON'T HAVE CURRICULUM STANDARDIZED TESTING AND TEXTBOOKS.
WE STILL WORKING WITH LOS DO LSD TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THIS, WE KNOW CHANGE DON'T HAPPEN IN A DAY.
AND I CAN ATTEST BEING A LEADER IN OUR SCHOOL VOLUNTEERING.
I FUNDRAISE, I RECRUIT, I WORK HARD WITH BOTH PROGRAMS THAT EVERY TIME THAT I COME WITH A PROJECT TO PUT PERMITTING BOARDS IN THE SCHOOL, REOPEN THE LIBRARY, WORK IN TEACHER DEVELOPMENT.
EVERY TIME I TALK WITH PRINCIPAL ROCHELLE GARMAN, THE VERY FIRST QUESTION SHE ASK ME IS, HOW IS THIS GOING TO BENEFIT OUR WHOLE SCHOOL AND ALL OUR STUDENTS? BECAUSE WE HAVE BOTH PROGRAMS HERE.
WE HAVE SPANISH AND WE HAVE CHINESE.
THAT'S HER CONCERN ALWAYS MAKING SURE THAT ALL THE STUDENTS IN THE SCHOOL ARE TAKEN CARE OF.
SO WHEN WE LEARNED LAST FRIDAY THAT HER JOB IS IN DANGER, WE'RE VERY CONCERNED BECAUSE THIS IS SOMEONE WHO CAME IN OUR TO OUR SCHOOL AS A TEACHER.
THAT LEADER CAME AS A INSTRUCTIONAL COORDINATOR AND NOW IS A PRINCIPAL AND KNOWS OUR SCHOOL.
SO WE PUT TOGETHER EVERYTHING TO BE HERE TODAY AND TO URGE BOARD MEMBERS, PRESIDENT, SUPERINTENDENT CARE VALUE, PLEASE TAKE A LOOK IN OUR SCHOOL, UNDERSTAND OUR CHALLENGES, AND UNDERSTAND THAT WE NEED, SHE'S ESSENTIAL FOR US TO KEEP THE PATHWAY AND SO MUCH EXCELLENCE, EXCELLENCE OF OUR SCHOOL.
ALRIGHT, SO THE NEXT THREE LISTED FOLKS TO SPEAK ARE MERCEDES YOUNGER, MICHELLE CHEN, AND BELINDA MA.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN, AND THEN IT'S MICHELLE AND BELINDA COMING WITH ME.
HI, MY NAME IS ME YOUNGER AND THIS IS FRED, MY HUSBAND.
WE'RE BRAND NEW KINDERGARTEN PARENTS AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY, AND WE'RE HERE SUPPORTING OUR PRINCIPAL, ROCHELLE GARMIN.
SHE IS ONE OF THE REASONS WE CHOSE BROADWAY.
[01:00:01]
A COUPLE OF THOSE ANNOYING PARENTS WHO CREATED A SPREADSHEET AND VISITED THOUSANDS OF SCHOOLS, INCLUDING PRIVATE, PUBLIC, CHARTER, AND MAGNET SCHOOLS.WE HAVE BEEN HIRED AN EDUCATIONAL ADVISOR TO GIVE US THE INSIDE SCOOP OF ALL THE L-A-U-S-D SCHOOLS.
WE ARE THAT RIDICULOUS COUPLE.
ULTIMATELY, WE MOVED FROM STUDIO CITY DOWN TO VENICE TO ATTEND BROADWAY ELEMENTARY AND PRINCIPAL GARMIN PLAYED A MASSIVE PART IN THAT DECISION.
PRINCIPAL GARMIN DELIVERED ONE OF THE MOST INSPIRING SPEECHES AT OUR RECRUITING SESSION.
SHE HAS FIGURES ALONG WITH A PLAN FOR THE FUTURE AND AN EXCITING VISION OF HOW THE SCHOOL CAN GROW.
SHE KNEW NAMES OF HER TEACHERS AND THE NECESSARY SUPPORT FOR, UH, FROM HER EDUCATIONAL SPECIALIST TO HER VICE PRINCIPAL.
SO YOU CAN REST ASSURED THAT SHE HAS HER BASES COVERED.
WE ALWAYS PRIORITIZE DIVERSITY IN ONE, IN AS OUR TOP CONSIDERATION.
WE WANTED ZEMO TO BE SURROUNDED BY A MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY THAT VALUES EDUCATION ABOVE ALL ELSE.
IN OUR RECRUITING SESSION, IT MOVED ME TO TEARS WHEN A YOUNG BLACK FATHER ASKED HER IF HIS TWO BOYS WOULD BE SAFE IN OUR SCHOOL.
SHE WAS ABLE TO REASSURE THEM AND SHARE HER PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.
YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THAT HAVING A PRINCIPAL WITH CHILDREN AT YOUR SCHOOL MEANS SHE IS INVESTED.
WE BOTH HAVE MASTER'S DEGREES IN ARTS LIKE MOST PARENTS HERE.
THE PARENTS WHO CHOSE BROADWAY ARE MOTIVATED, THEY'RE EDUCATED, AND THEY VALUE THEIR CHILDREN'S EDUCATION.
THEY COLLECTIVELY RAISE OVER HALF A MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR TO REINVEST IN THIS SCHOOL AND SUPPORT GARMIN'S VISION.
WE AS A PARENTAL BODY ARE NOT EASY OR EASILY SATISFIED.
WE HAVE CAN I JUST FINISH? IT'S, IT'S SO QUICK.
WE HAVE TWO PROUD AND EXCELLENT IMMERSION PROGRAMS AND BOTH HAVE REACHED OUT TO YOU WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS.
WE ARE A SCHOOL OF TRULY ANNOYING, PUSHY PARENTS WHO WILL DO ANYTHING TO GET TO GET WHAT OUR CHILDREN NEED AND DESERVE.
CAN YOU IMAGINE DEALING WITH THIS EVERY DAY? LOOK AT YOUR LOOK AT, LOOK AT ALL OF THEM BACK THERE.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
AND AFTER MICHELLE CHEN IS BELINDA MA.
GOOD MORNING, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO.
MY NAME IS MICHELLE CHEN AND I'M THE PARENT OF A SECOND GRADER AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
MY PARENT, MY FAMILY, CHOSE TO GO TO BROADWAY BECAUSE BETWEEN THE LEADERSHIP THERE AND THE LANGUAGE IMMERSION PROGRAMS, IT IS TRULY A UNICORN OF AN INSTITUTION.
PRINCIPAL ROCHELLE GARMAN AND HER TEACHERS AND HER STAFF ARE THE REASONS WHY I BELIEVE THAT MY CHILD WILL THRIVE AT BROADWAY.
PRINCIPAL GARMIN DOESN'T JUST LEAD THE SCHOOL.
SHE IS A ROLE MODEL FOR MY CHILD.
AS A DIRECT RESULT OF THE DISTRICT'S MANDATES IMPOSED ON PRINCIPAL GARMIN BROADWAY HAS HAD A REALLY TOUGH TWO YEARS.
AND IN THE FACE OF THAT ADVERSITY PRINCIPAL GARMIN HAS MAINTAINED HER COMPOSURE AND DIGNITY.
SHE SUPPORTS EVERY STUDENT AND EVERY CHILD, AND EVERY PARENT, EVEN WHEN THE PARENTS MAY NOT SUPPORT HER OR AGREE WITH HER DECISIONS.
PRINCIPAL GARMIN HAS HAD PERSONAL ATTACKS LAUNCHED AGAINST HER, AND I HAVE YET TO SEE HER LOSE HER OUTWARD CALM.
AND DESPITE THE OBSTACLES THAT HAVE BEEN THROWN HER WAY, SHE HAS NEVER STRAYED FROM DOING WHAT SHE BELIEVES IS THE BEST FOR THE STUDENTS.
AT BROADWAY, PRINCIPAL GARMAN IS THE EMBODIMENT OF PERSEVERANCE, HARD WORK AND DILIGENCE.
THE DISTRICT HAS DISCRETION IN EMPLOYMENT MATTERS, AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT.
BUT I IMPLORE THE DISTRICT TO PLEASE RECONSIDER ITS DECISION TO LET PRINCIPAL GARMIN GO.
BECAUSE IF YOU FIRE A COMPETENT, STRONG FEMALE LEADER, A COMMITTED EDUCATOR, WHAT OUR CHILDREN WILL HEAR IS THAT IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW DEDICATED PRINCIPAL GARMIN IS TO THEIR EDUCATION.
IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT SHE KNOWS EACH AND ONE OF THOSE STUDENTS' NAMES.
AND IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT SHE IS THE SINGLE MOST QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL TO LEAD BROADWAY.
AND WHAT WE AS PARENTS HERE IS THAT OUR CHILDREN ARE NOT PRIORITIZED.
OUR CHILDREN DON'T COME FIRST.
AND THEN AFTER BELINDA IS, UH, BRIDGET STEWART.
SO BELINDA MA, THE TWO MINUTES IS YOURS.
GOOD MORNING, ESTEEMED SUPERINTENDENT AND BOARD MEMBERS.
I AM A PASSIONATE, UH, PARENT OF A SECOND GRADER AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY.
I AM ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE PASSIONATE PARENTS WHO HAVE TO SPEAK UP WHEN I SEE TH THAT THINGS AREN'T THE WAY THEY SHOULD BE.
I'M HERE TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF OUR SCHOOL, THE UNIQUE DOUBLE
[01:05:01]
DOUBLE DUAL LANGUAGE IMMERSION PROGRAM, WHICH IS A TOP PERFORMING SCHOOL IN THE DISTRICT.AND WE, UM, I FEEL LIKE WE ARE SHINING EXAMPLE OF EXCELLENCE, WHICH IS ATTRACTING PARENTS FROM ALL OVER LA AND I AM ONE OF THOSE PARENTS.
I LIVE IN CULVER CITY AND I PETITIONED TO GET INTO THIS SCHOOL BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN THIS SCHOOL.
WE ARE A COMMUNITY OF ENERGETIC AND DEDICATED PARENTS WHO ARE FERVENT ADVOCATES FOR OUR CHILDREN.
AS WE ALL KNOW THAT FERVENT, FERVENT ADVOCACY CREATES HEALTHY DISCOURSE AND SOMETIMES A LOT OF DISCOURSE.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO APPEAL TO OUR BETTER ANGELS OF OUR NATURE AND LOOK AT THE CHALLENGES OF OUR SCHOOL HOLISTICALLY AND NOT TAKE SIMPLE SOLUTIONS THAT WILL NOT ACTUALLY SOLVE THE PROBLEMS AT OUR SCHOOL.
WE ARE ATTEMPTED TO LISTEN TO THE PESSIMISTS AND THE NAYSAYERS AND ENACT THESE SIMPLISTIC SOLUTIONS.
REPLACING OUR PRINCIPAL WILL NOT MAKE THESE PROBLEMS GO AWAY.
THESE ARE BIGGER PROBLEMS THAT NEED TO BE SOLVED WITH LEADERSHIP THAT WE ALL TRUST.
OUR PRINCIPAL IS ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT WE TRUST.
SHE'S BEEN AN EDUCATOR, UM, AND SHE'S BEEN AT OUR SCHOOL FOR ALMOST 20 YEARS.
I ENCOURAGE YOU TO LISTEN TO THE HUNDREDS OF PARENTS THAT HAVE OR IN SUPPORT OF OUR PRO OF OUR PRINCIPAL FROM BOTH PROGRAMS. WE HAVE MORE THAN 500 SIGNATURES ON A CHANGE.ORG, UM, PETITION.
UM, WE HAVE ALL THE TEACHERS AT OUR SCHOOL SUPPORT PRINCIPAL GARMIN.
THEY, THEY APPRECIATE AND VALUE HER LEADERSHIP.
THEY APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT SHE STANDS FOR.
AND I BELIEVE THAT IF YOU, IF YOU GIVE HER THE CHANCE TO LEAD OUR SCHOOL WITHOUT RESTRICTIONS, EMPOWER HER TO MAKE THE DECISIONS THAT WILL HELP OUR SCHOOL AND MOVE FORWARD AND, AND MAKE THESE PROBLEMS, UM, TURN INTO SOLUTIONS, THEN I THINK THAT SHE WILL BE, UM, THE ONE WHO WILL KEEP THE PARENTS AND THE TEACHERS FROM LEAVING THE SCHOOL THAT YOU, THAT WE ARE SEEING ACROSS THE DISTRICT.
WE DON'T WANT THAT TO CONTINUE.
UH, BRIDGET STEWART, COME ON UP BECAUSE I HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
MY NAME IS BRIDGET STEWART AND I'M A PARENT OF A SECOND GRADER AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY.
I'M HERE TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST THE DISTRICT'S DECISION TO REMOVE PRINCIPAL ROCHELLE GARMAN.
A DECISION THAT WOULD DIRECTLY HARM STUDENTS WITH IEPS LIKE MY DAUGHTER, VIOLET.
AS A PARENT OF A CHILD WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, I CANNOT OVERSTATE HOW RARE IT IS TO FIND A SCHOOL LEADER WHO TRULY GETS IT.
PRINCIPAL GARMIN DOESN'T JUST FOLLOW AN IEP.
SHE FIGHTS TO MAKE SURE IT'S MEANINGFUL UNDER HER LEADERSHIP.
SHE'S LEARNING IN A GENERAL EDUCATION CLASSROOM, FULLY INCLUDED IN THE DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM AND RECEIVING THE SERVICES AND SUPPORT SHE NEEDS TO SUCCEED.
THAT WOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT A PRINCIPAL WHO UNDERSTANDS INCLUSION, WHO LISTENS TO FAMILIES, AND WHO HOLDS THE SCHOOL ACCOUNTABLE FOR DOING WHAT'S RIGHT.
REMOVING PRINCIPAL GARMIN DOESN'T JUST JEOPARDIZE VIOLENCE'S PROGRESS.
IT SENDS A MESSAGE TO FAMILIES LIKE MINE THAT OUR CHILDREN ARE NOT A PRIORITY.
THAT THE SYSTEMS WE RELY ON FOR PROTECTION AND SUPPORT CAN BE DISRUPTED OVERNIGHT WITHOUT A NOTICE OR EXPLANATION.
THIS IS NOT JUST A STAFFING CHANGE, IT'S A DISRUPTION OF LEGALLY PROTECTED SERVICES AND EDUCATIONAL STABILITY FOR OUR MOST VULNERABLE LEARNERS.
PRINCIPAL GARMIN'S DEEP KNOWLEDGE OF THE IEP PROCESS, HER COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND HER TRUST-BASED RELATIONSHIPS WITH FAMILIES ARE IRREPLACEABLE.
I URGE THE DISTRICT TO CONSIDER THE REAL IMPACT OF THIS DECISION, NOT JUST ON POLICY, BUT ON THE ACTUAL LIVES OF CHILDREN LIKE VIOLET.
PLEASE DO NOT UNDO THE PROGRESS WE'VE FOUGHT SO HARD TO MAKE, KEEP PRINCIPAL GARMIN AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY FOR THE SAKE OF EVERY CHILD WHO DEPENDS ON HER LEADERSHIP.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
AND THEN AFTER DINA, WE WILL TRANSITION TO THE FOLKS WHO, UH, HAVE, ARE CALLING IN REMOTELY.
I DIDN'T PREPARE A SPEECH, SO I'M ACTUALLY GONNA YELL MY TIME TO JAMES BAKER, IF THAT'S OKAY.
UH, OTHER BOARD MEMBERS AND, UH, CARVAL, UH, SUPERINTENDENT CARVAL, UH, YOU'VE HEARD QUITE A BIT.
OH, FIRST I WANT TO THANK FOR THE LATITUDE THAT YOU'RE PROVIDING THE PARENTS HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT A SUBJECT THAT, UH, MAYBE TANGENTIAL TO THIS PARTICULAR AGENDA ITEM, OBVIOUS IT'S IMPORTANT TO US, UH, YOU'VE HEARD QUITE A BIT OF SUPPORT FOR PRINCIPAL GARMIN.
I'LL SPEND JUST A FEW SECONDS REITERATING THAT.
UH, SHE HELD A MEETING, A TOWN HALL MEETING YESTERDAY IN OUR AUDITORIUM.
AND, UH, COMING IN, IN THE SE END OF HER SECOND YEAR, THE LEADERSHIP AND STRENGTH AND COMPASSION AND ENGAGEMENT SHE EXHIBITED TOWARDS ALL PARENTS FROM BOTH PROGRAMS WAS EXTRAORDINARY.
THE FACT THAT NUMEROUS TEACHERS, UH, OF THE 25 AT THE SCHOOL TOOK TIME OUT
[01:10:01]
OF THEIR CLASSROOMS TO GO AND MAKE SURE THAT THE PARENTS UNDERSTOOD THAT THE TEACHERS WERE UNIFIED BEHIND HER LEADERSHIP MADE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE TO HELPING PARENTS UNDERSTAND THAT THE SCHOOL'S IN GOOD HANDS.UH, I REMEMBER PRINCIPAL WONG, WHO WAS PREVIOUSLY BROADWAY, SAID, THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR HER IS TO REMIND THE PARENTS THAT THEY DON'T DRIVE THE BUS.
AND I THINK PRINCIPAL GARMAN IS FINDING THAT TO BE ALSO A CHALLENGE, BUT SHE'S STEPPING INTO IT AND REALLY DOING AN EXCELLENT JOB.
FOR THE REST OF MY COMMENTS, I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT THE PATHWAY FOR BOTH THE MANDARIN AND SPANISH PROGRAM.
UH, THERE'S BEEN DEEP CONCERNS ABOUT WHETHER THAT PATHWAY IS INTACT AS STUDENTS LEAVE, UH, THE BILINGUAL, UH, PROGRAMS ON THE WEST SIDE AND MOVE ON TO MARK TWAIN AND THEN ONTO VENICE.
UH, THERE ARE STUDENTS ON WAIT LISTS.
UH, THERE'S DEEP CONCERN, AND I JUST, IF, IF ALL OF YOU HAD BEEN IN THE SCHOOL THIS WEEK WHEN, FOR INSTANCE, MY THIRD YEAR OLD WAS GIVEN HIS THIRD GRADE CERTIFICATE OF BILINGUAL COMPETENCY OF LITERACY, THE SMILE ON HIS FACE, A SMILE ON HIS CLASSMATES FACES THE ACHIEVEMENT THAT THEY HAVE GAINED.
UH, THIS IS MY FAVORITE TIME EACH YEAR WHEN THEY GET THE CERTIFICATE TO TELL SOMEONE AS THEY LEAVE FIFTH GRADE AND BROADWAY, THAT THEY DON'T HAVE A PATHWAY TO CONTINUE.
THAT BEYOND IS GUTTING FOR A CHILD.
AND THAT'S NOT THE MESSAGE WE WANNA SEND THEM.
SO WE HAVE PAGE CHEN, YOU'RE ONLINE WITH US, PAGE CHEN.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF, AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
PAGE CHEN, YOU'RE ONLINE WITH US.
MS. CHEN, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF, AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
I'M GONNA YIELD MY TIME TO A FELLOW PARENT, UH, CINDY.
OKAY, I THINK I SEE THE PARENT WAITING IN THE WINGS.
UM, YOUR, YOUR TIME IS TICKING.
UM, LIKE I SAID, MY NAME IS CINDY, AND I'M A PROUD PARENT OF TWO STUDENTS AT BROADWAY ELEMENTARY, MY FOURTH GRADER, WHO IS IN THE SPANISH PROGRAM, AND MY SECOND GRADER WHO IS IN THE MANDARIN PROGRAM.
UM, I WANNA TAKE A MOMENT TO EXPRESS MY APPRECIATION FOR PRINCIPAL GARMAN.
SHE HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY SUPPORTIVE AND COMMITTED, EVEN WHILE FACING A CHALLENGE DURING SITUATION.
IT'S NOT FAIR TO REPLACE OUR CURRENT PRINCIPAL, ESPECIALLY WHEN SHE HASN'T BEEN GIVEN A REAL CHANCE TO SUCCEED.
SHE STEPPED INTO A DIFFICULT ENVIRONMENT WITH PREEXISTING ISSUES, AND INSTEAD OF BLAMING HER FOR PROBLEMS SHE DIDN'T CREATE, WE SHOULD RECOGNIZE THE EFFORT SHE'S MAKING TO TURN THINGS AROUND.
CHANGE DOESN'T HAPPEN OVERNIGHT IN A SCHOOL COMMUNITY.
IT TAKES TIME TO BUILD TRUST, CREATE PROGRESS, AND FOSTER MEANINGFUL RESULTS.
AS A PARENT, MY DEEPEST GOAL IS TO HELP MY CHILDREN GROW INTO BETTER VERSIONS OF THEMSELVES OR OURSELVES, MORE PREPARED, MORE COMPASSIONATE, AND MORE CAPABLE.
THAT STARTS WITH A STABLE AND SUPPORTIVE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT LED BY SOMEONE WHO GENUINELY CARES AND IS TRYING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
PRINCIPAL GARMAN DESERVES OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW WHAT SHE CAN DO WITH THE PROPER SUPPORT, TIME AND RESOURCES.
REPLACING HER NOW WOULD ONLY RESTART THE CYCLE OF INSTABILITY.
OUR SCHOOL AND OUR KIDS NEED CONSISTENCY, NOT MORE DISRUPTION.
MY GOAL IS FOR MY KIDS TO BE BETTER.
UM, MY, UH, YOUNGEST CHILD IS IN SECOND GRADE, AND SHE IS TRILINGUAL MANDARIN, SPANISH, AND ENGLISH.
EUGENE, YE YOU'RE ON THE LINE.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF.
EUGENE Y AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO AND L-A-U-S-C BOARD OF EDUCATORS FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY.
MY NAME IS EUGENE YAY, AND I'M A PROUD PARENT OF A SECOND GRADER AND AN INCOMING KINDERGARTEN AT BROADWAY.
I'M HERE TO SHARE MY UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE ON PRINCIPAL GARMIN'S AMAZING LEADERSHIP AND THE MEANINGFUL IMPACT SHE'S HAD ON OUR SCHOOL.
EARLIER THIS YEAR, I APPROACHED PRINCIPAL GARMIN WITH THE IDEA OF LAUNCHING OUR FIRST ANNUAL ALL STUDENT SCIENCE FAIR, A PROJECT INVOLVING EVERY GRADE IN EVERY CLASSROOM.
SHE EMBRACED IT IMMEDIATELY WITH ENTHUSIASM AND CREATIVITY.
HER SUPPORT WASN'T JUST ADMINISTRATIVE, IT WAS HANDS-ON TO HELP BRING TOGETHER STAFF, FAMILIES, AND STUDENTS TO MAKE IT A TRUE SCHOOL-WIDE SUCCESS.
OVER 166 SCIENCE PROJECTS SUBMITTED.
THE SCIENCE FAIR BECAME MORE THAN EVENT.
IT BECAME A MOMENT OF UNITY, PRIDE, AND LEARNING FOR THE ENTIRE SCHOOL.
RADICAL CHANGE, LIKE REMOVING PRINCIPAL GARMIN, IS NOT A CONSTRUCTIVE SOLUTION TO THE CHALLENGES WE'RE FACING.
[01:15:01]
JUST DEEPEN THEM.INSTEAD, WE SHOULD INVEST IN SOLUTIONS THAT UNITE, NOT DIVIDE.
THE SCIENCE FOR EVENT OF BROADWAY STANDS AS PROOF PRINCIPAL GARMENT TOOK A COMPLEX IDEA AND TURNED INTO SOMETHING THAT BROUGHT OUR ENTIRE SCHOOL TOGETHER.
THAT IS THE KIND OF LEADERSHIP WE NEED.
LEADERSHIP THAT LISTENS, ADAPTS, AND INSPIRES UNITY THROUGH ACTION BY CHOOSING TO SUPPORT AND STRENGTHEN THIS KIND OF LEADERSHIP, RATHER THAN ABANDONING IT AND REMOVING IT.
WE SHOW OUR CHILDREN THAT ADVERSITY IS NOT SOMETHING TO RUN FROM, BUT SOMETHING TO RISE ABOVE.
WE TEACH OUR STUDENTS THAT PROGRESS IS BUILT THROUGH CREATIVITY, RESILIENCE, AND TEAMWORK.
AND THAT GIVING UP IS NEVER THE ANSWER.
I URGE THE DISTRICT TO SUPPORT AND WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH PRINCIP GARMENT TO KEEP HER AT BROADWAY AND ADDRESS ALL THE SYSTEMIC ISSUES THAT FACE OUR SCHOOL.
AND OUR FINAL REMOTE CALLER IS ANNIE WANG.
ANNIE H PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF, AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
H YOU WERE ONLINE A MOMENT AGO.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF, ANNIE, AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
ANNIE HI THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAKING THE TIME TO LISTEN TO ME SPEAK IN SUPPORT OF PRINCIPAL GARMIN.
I'M HONORED TO SPEAK ABOUT PRINCIPAL GARMIN.
SHE'S AN EXTRAORDINARY LEADER AND COLLEAGUE.
SHE'S A GREAT LISTENER, A THOUGHTFUL COLLABORATOR, AND A STEADY, DECISIVE LEADER.
IN CHALLENGING TIMES, I'VE WATCHED HER SUPPORT OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY WITH STRENGTH AND GRACE, ESPECIALLY DURING MOMENTS WHEN OTHERS HAVE BUCKLED UNDER PRESSURE.
HER JOURNEY THROUGH L-A-U-S-D IS A SHINING EXAMPLE OF WHAT A LIFELONG COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC EDUCATION SHOULD LOOK LIKE.
FROM TEACHER TO SPECIALIST TO PRINCIPAL, SHE HAS WALKED EVERY STEP WITH PURPOSE, AND HER LEADERSHIP REFLECTS A DEEP KNOWLEDGE GAINED FOR YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AS BOTH A STAFF MEMBER AND A PARENT, A STAFF MEMBER WHO IS INSPIRED TO BECOME A STAFF MEMBER BY PRINCIPAL GARVIN.
MY CHILDREN TRANSFERRED FROM A TOP TIER SANTA MONICA DISTRICT INTO L-A-U-S-D, AND WE COMMITTED TO MANDARIN IMMERSION.
DESPITE MY CHILD'S HEARING CHALLENGES, PRINCIPAL GARMAN MADE SURE OUR FAMILY FELT INCLUDED, EMPOWERED, AND SUPPORTED.
THAT'S WHY I WAS TRULY SHOCKED AND CONFUSED WHEN I FIRST HEARD RUMORS THAT SHE MIGHT BE LET GO OVER THE SUMMER.
SOMEONE WHO REPRESENTS THE VERY BEST OF WHAT L-A-U-S-D STANDS FOR COULD BE AT RISK OF BEING REMOVED.
PRINCIPAL GARMENT EMBODIES EQUITY, ACCESS AND EXCELLENCE.
IT IS A PRIVILEGE TO WORK WITH HER AND AN EVEN GREATER PRIVILEGE TO HAVE HER LEADING OUR SCHOOL.
THAT CONCLUDES SPEAKERS ON TAB 12.
NEXT, FOLKS WHO HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS THAT ARE ON DISCUSSION, PLEASE, UH, NOT PROVIDING FEEDBACK TO, UH, TO THE MOST RECENT SPEAKERS, BUT, UH, I KNOW THAT, UH, REGIONAL OPERATIONS, UH, BASED ON OBVIOUSLY THE CONCERNS HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED, UH, IS READY TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THE PARENTS, UH, TODAY, UH, IN THE BACK ROOM.
UH, I KNOW SOMEBODY FROM, UH, REGION WEST WILL BE IN ATTENDANCE AS WELL, SHOULD THE PARENTS WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT, UH, OPPORTUNITY.
SO THE NEXT PUBLIC COMMENT IS TO CONSENT ITEMS IT LOOKS LIKE ARE IN TABS 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, UH, 30, UH, 32 AND 33.
SO THOSE ITEMS ARE ACTUALLY A PUBLIC HEARING.
SO I'M GONNA READ A STATEMENT AND THEN WE'LL BEGIN TAKE TAKING THE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THOSE ITEMS. SO TABS 23 THROUGH 33, ACTUALLY EXCLUDING TAB 31, UH, ARE A PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE TAKE ACTION IS TAKEN ON THE FOLLOWING BOARD REPORTS A PUBLIC HEARING MUST BE HELD.
THIS CONSTITUTES A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE FOLLOWING, CASTLE BAY LANE CHARTER, DIXIE CANYON COMMUNITY CHARTER AND NADIA WAY TECHNOLOGY, CH TECHNOLOGY CHARTER, HAYNES CHARTER FOR INNOVI STUDIES.
HESBY OAKS LEADERSHIP CHARTER, NOEL WOOD PREPARATORY ACADEMY, HURST DRIVE, CHARTER ACADEMY, NESTLE AVENUE, CHARTER, PLAINVIEW ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY, NIA AVENUE CHARTER FOR ENRICHED STUDIES AND VAN GOGH CHARTER, A MAXIMUM OF 15 INDIVIDUALS WHO WISH TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD.
ON EACH OF THESE ITEMS WILL BE HEARD.
THOSE WHO WISH TO SPEAK SHOULD SIGN UP ONLINE SPEAKERS WILL BE CALLED BY NAME.
AND JUST AS A REMINDER, UH, PLAINVIEW ACADEMIC CHARTERS ON DISCUSSION AND WILL BE DISCUSSED, UM, WHEN WE GET TO THE DISCUSSION
[01:20:01]
ITEMS. ALRIGHT.I ALSO WANT TO EXPLAIN A BRIEF, UM, PROCEDURAL POINT.
WHEN IT COMES TO PUBLIC HEARINGS.
OUR BOARD RULES STATE THAT ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC CAN GIVE COMMENT TO APPEAR BEFORE THE BOARD ONE TIME.
HOWEVER, IN STATE LAW AND STATUTE, THERE IS AN EXCEPTION FOR PUBLIC HEARINGS.
THOSE ARE MATTERS THAT COME BEFORE THE BOARD.
THERE ARE DEFINED AS PUBLIC HEARINGS AND ARE GIVEN, UH, WIDER LATITUDE FOR SPEAKERS, UH, BEFORE THE BOARD.
SO IN THE INSTANCE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS, AN INDIVIDUAL CAN SIGN UP FOR EVERY SINGLE PUBLIC HEARING THAT IS BEFORE THE BOARD ON THAT PARTICULAR DAY.
SO WHEN YOU SEE AN INDIVIDUAL TODAY APPEAR MORE THAN ONCE IS SOLELY BY VIRTUE OF THE FACT THAT STATE LAW AND STATUTE REQUIRES US TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO SIGN UP MULTIPLE TIMES ON DIFFERENT DISTINCT ITEMS THAT ARE CALLED PUBLIC HEARINGS.
UM, AND IF THAT PUT YOU TO SLEEP, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS, UH, LATER IF THERE'S ANY CONFUSION ABOUT IT.
[23. Board of Education Report No. 357-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Castlebay Lane Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Castlebay Lane Charter, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 701 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term.]
WE HAVE, UH, TWO PUBLIC SPEAKERS TO SPEAK ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR CHARTER RENEWAL.UH, MR. DAVID TOSKI, I KNOW YOU'RE HERE.
AND THEN AFTER MR. TOSKI IS, UH, MARIA LUISA PALM, I SEE YOU OUT THERE.
UH, PUBLIC HEARING, UM, IS A OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY OF THIS CHARTER SCHOOL, AN AFFILIATED CHARTER SCHOOL.
THERE IS NOT THE WORD AFFILIATED IN ED CODE.
IT ONLY SAYS CHARTER SCHOOL AND CONVERSION CHARTER SCHOOL.
SO EVERY RIGHT AND PRIVILEGE THAT GIVES AUTONOMY TO INDEPENDENT CHARTERS IS ALSO A RIGHT TO A PLACE LIKE CASTLE, CASTLE BAY.
THEY SHOULD HAVE ALL THE AUTONOMY AND ALL, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE ACHIEVING WELL, AND THAT THE DEMAND TO THE SCHOOL IS HIGH TO ACHIEVE WHAT THEY WANT TO DO TO DESIGN THEIR PROGRAM.
AND THAT WOULD REQUIRE, OF COURSE, SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE FROM LOCAL SUPERINTENDENTS AS WELL AS ESSENTIAL CHARTER OFFICERS.
NEARLY 60 PEOPLE IN THE CHARTER OFFICE NOW, AND BARELY ONE OF THEM WORKS ON HELPING THESE HIGH DEMAND, AS MR. SCHUREN KNOWS SUCCESSFUL PREDOMINANTLY MIDDLE CLASS ON THE SES SCHOOLS.
AND AS YOU KNOW, UH, FOR SOME REASON, AND MAYBE THE INSPECTOR GENERAL KNOWS BETTER THAN I DO, BUT THE AGREEMENT WITH THE DEVELOPERS IN PORTER RANCH DID NOT PRODUCE ENOUGH LAND AND SCHOOL TO HANDLE THE COMMUNITY OF PORTER RANCH.
AND SO WE HAD A RECENT DUST UP THAT MR. SCHON SOLVED, UH, AT WITH THE DISTRICT STAFF.
BUT THE PROBLEM IS THAT THAT DEVELOPER DID NOT PROVIDE WHAT IS STATUTORILY REQUIRED, BECAUSE SOMEBODY IN DEMOGRAPHIC SAID, OH, WE HAVE ROOM AT CHATSWORTH, OR WE HAVE ROOM AT CLEVELAND SO WE CAN MOVE THE KIDS FROM PORTER RANCH OVER TO THESE OTHER PLACES.
THAT'S NOT WHAT THE PARENTS AND FAMILIES BOUGHT THOSE HOMES FOR, WAS TO BE IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD, NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS AND AFFILIATED SCHOOLS.
UH, MARIA LUISA PALMA, COME ON UP.
YOU'D LOVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
HELLO, MY NAME IS MARIA LUISA PALMA, AND I'M SPEAKING TODAY ON BEHALF OF ADA, A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.
WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF PARENT INVOLVEMENT IN ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE? WELL, YOU SAW A GREAT EXAMPLE HERE TODAY WITH ALL THESE PARENTS WHO CAME OUT FROM THIS BROADWAY ELEMENTARY, CASTLE BAY ELEMENTARY IN PORTER RANCH, WHICH IS ALL THE WAY AT THE VERY TIP OF PORTER RANCH NEXT TO ET PARK.
ONLY AS LOCALS KNOW SOME OF THE, THAT TERMINOLOGY.
WHY DOES IT HAVE THE GREAT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE THAT IT DOES WITH 46% OF STUDENTS AT LEVEL ONE IN THE SAC 49% AT LEVEL ONE? AND THE MATH? WHY? BECAUSE THE PARENTS ACTIVELY SEEK OUT THOSE SCHOOLS.
IT ISN'T THAT THE SCHOOL CREATES THIS, IT'S THE PARENTS, JUST LIKE YOU HEARD TODAY, I'M ONE OF THOSE PARENTS THAT SOUGHT OUT SCHOOLS.
YOU HEARD IT DIRECTLY FROM THE PARENTS HERE.
THE PARENTS MOVE INTO THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS.
THEY ALSO USE OTHER PEOPLE'S ADDRESSES.
THOSE PARENTS ARE DRIVING THEIR CHILDREN'S EDUCATION.
THEY HAVE RESOURCES, THEY HAVE EDUCATION, THEY HAVE THE TIME, THEY HAVE FINANCIAL RESOURCES, BUT MOST OF ALL, THEY HAVE INFORMATION.
AND THEREFORE, THEY ARE EMPOWERED TO DRIVE THEIR CHILDREN'S EDUCATION FORWARD, JUST LIKE THE PARENTS HERE TOLD YOU TODAY.
[01:25:01]
SELF-SELECT THEMSELVES WHEN YOU SEE THESE SCHOOLS THAT HAVE THIS TYPE OF ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.SO WHAT ABOUT THE SCHOOLS WHERE PARENTS DON'T HAVE THOSE RESOURCES, WHICH IS THE BULK OF SCHOOLS IN THIS DISTRICT? WHAT IS IT THAT THE DISTRICT CAN DO THERE? WELL, THE DISTRICT HAS TO PROVIDE A GENUINE WELCOME TO THE PARENTS, FIRST OF ALL, WHICH IS MISSING IN THE CULTURE OF THIS DISTRICT.
YOU NEED TO PROVIDE THOSE PARENTS THE INFORMATION IN A SIMPLIFIED FORM.
THAT'S HOW YOU CAN REPLICATE THOSE RESULTS.
YOU CAN BEGIN TO CREATE THAT BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE A BASE OF PARENTS THAT ARE INFORMED, THAT THEN FEEDS ON ITSELF AND YOU GET MORE IN INFORMED PARENTS AT THAT SCHOOL, MORE ACTIVE PARENTS THAT ARE WILLING TO BE THERE AT THE SCHOOL.
YOU NEED THESE KINDS OF PARENTS THAT ARE INVOLVED.
[24. Board of Education Report No. 358-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Dixie Canyon Community Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Dixie Canyon Community Charter, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 646 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term. (Part 1 of 2)]
UH, LET'S SEE.WE HAVE DAVID TOSKI FOR ITEM 24.
AND MR. TOSKI, IF I COULD ASK YOU A HUGE FAVOR, JUST FOR THE SAKE OF TRANSITIONING FROM ONE TO THE NEXT, IF YOU COULD STAY CLOSE.
I WOULD, I WOULD MOST, I WOULD MOST SINCERELY APPRECIATE IT.
MOST LEGISLATIVE BODIES HAVE A PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO SIT AND WRITE, BUT THIS ONE DOESN'T REALLY HAVE.
UM, I'M SPEAKING ON AFFILIATED CHARTER, UM, IN THIS CASE, DIXIE CANYON, ANOTHER ONE OF MR. MOLSEN WHO'S NOT HERE, UM, AT THIS POINT, UH, SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS, OR MAYBE IT'S IN SOMEBODY ELSE'S DISTRICT, I'M NOT SURE.
BUT MY POINT ABOUT AFFILIATED CHARTERS IS THAT STUDENTS FROM OTHER DISTRICTS CAN, UH, LEGALLY COME AND ATTEND OUR HIGHER PERFORMING SCHOOLS IF THEY'RE AFFILIATED.
AND SO WHY JUST THE VALLEY WEST SCHOOLS AS AFFILIATED? WHY NOT HAVE SCHOOLS, FOR EXAMPLE, LIKE EVEN TOLUCA LAKE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, WHICH IS HAVING TROUBLES IS RIGHT.
A STONES THROW AWAY FROM BURBANK UNIFIED FAMILIES ARE CLOSER TO OUR SCHOOL AT TOLUCA LAKE.
CAN YOU IMAGINE GETTING TOLUCA LAKE BACK AND INVOLVED IN LA UNIFIED, TREMENDOUS COMMUNITY OF STRENGTH AND WEALTH AND HORSES AND OTHER THINGS LIKE THAT.
WE PUT, INSTEAD, WE HAD AN A CHARTER.
YOU COULD ENROLL IN LA UNIFIED'S DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM ON A SIGN OF ALL PLACES IN PASADENA UNIFIED.
THERE WAS A BILLBOARD SAYING, JOIN LA UNIFIED'S OF ONLINE.
IT'S NOT EVEN AN AFFILIATED CHARTER SO THAT PEOPLE CAN'T EVEN LEGALLY DO IT.
I DON'T KNOW WHO, WHO PUT THE SIGN THERE.
PROBABLY THE BILLBOARD COMPANY.
NOT, NOT THE SUPERINTENDENTS TEAM.
BUT IF THAT ONLINE PROGRAM WERE AN AFFILIATED CHARTER, WE COULD BE ENROLLING PEOPLE FROM OREGON TO MEXICO.
WE COULD HAVE 40,000 MORE KIDS ONLINE INSTEAD OF SOME DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM OUT OF SOME OTHER STATE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
WE HAVE SCHOOLS IN TORRANCE, IN THE CITY OF TORRANCE, IN OTHER CITIES THAT ARE PERFORMING HIGHER THAN THE SCHOOLS OF THOSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO HAS TALKED ABOUT IN THE MARKETPLACE OF THINGS.
IF WE'VE GOT STRENGTHS LIKE BROADWAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, WHERE MY MOTHER TAUGHT FOR 22 YEARS, THAT THING TURNED FROM DECLINING ENROLLMENT UNDER 200 TO OVER ENROLLMENT.
AND THAT'S CLOSE TO SANTA MONICA, AS YOU HEARD.
CULVER CITY PARENTS, SANTA MONICA COMING OVER TO THAT SCHOOL.
ALRIGHT, MARIA, DAISY ORTIZ, YOU'RE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK IN PERSON, BUT I DO NOT SEE YOU IN THE ROOM.
AND CHECK ONLINE REVEALS THAT YOU ARE NOT HERE.
[25. Board of Education Report No. 359-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Enadia Way Technology Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Enadia Way Technology Charter, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 236 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term]
MR. DAVID TOSKI.YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK WHEN SHE BEGIN.
AND MR. TOSKI, YOU ARE THE SOLE SPEAKER ON 25, 26, 27.
ALRIGHT, I'LL TAKE IT AS, UH, AS, UH, 30.
THIS IS AN INTERESTING, UH, ANOTHER SUPPORTIVE OF THE, UH, AFFILIATED CHARTERS, UH, AS DISTRICT RUN CHARTERS THERE ARES, THEY'RE UNION, THEY'RE UNION CHARTERS FROM TOP TO BOTTOM, NOT JUST LIKE GREEN DOUBT, JUST THE TEACHER'S UNION.
AND THEN THE OTHER PIECES ARE NOT UNION.
WHY NOT CELEBRATE AND EXPAND THESE? THIS IS A PRETTY PRO-UNION BOARD, BUT WE DO NOTHING TO ATTRACT AND SEND LETTERS TO THE INDEPENDENT CHARTERS WHO ARE HAVING FINANCIAL PROBLEMS, ENROLLMENT PROBLEMS, AND SAY, HEY, COME ON OVER.
BRING YOUR 236, OR, LOOK, THIS CHARTER'S ONLY 236 KIDS.
AND IF YOU LISTEN TO MR. SCHUREN, THAT MEANS WE MIGHT HAVE TO CLOSE OR CONSOLIDATE THAT SCHOOL.
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF A SMALL SCHOOL, IT'S ACTUALLY DOING BETTER THAN AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AT 900.
AND WE DON'T TALK ABOUT SHIFTING THE ENROLLMENT OF AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL THAT'S NOT PERFORMING WELL WITH 900 KIDS, BUT WE START TALKING ABOUT LITTLE SCHOOLS IN, IN, IN, IN TANYA FRANKLIN'S AREA, OR MS. DIEGO SCHOOLS, OR MS. RIVAS, SMALLER SCHOOLS.
TAKE A LOOK AT THEIR TEST DATA BEFORE YOU START TALKING ABOUT CONSOLIDATING, CONTROLLING 'CAUSE OR, OR CLOSING.
THEY'RE EMBEDDED IN COMMUNITIES, AND THEY'RE HIGHLY DEMANDED.
THESE AFFILIATED CHARTER, THE PREVIOUS STRATEGIC OFFICER
[01:30:01]
SAID, OH, THERE'S NO MORE ROOM IN THEM.OKAY, WELL, THAT'S NOT A VERY STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND HOPEFULLY, MR. COLE GUTIERREZ EX LOBBYIST FOR THE CHARTER SCHOOL ASSOCIATION AND ALSO ADAMANT INDEPENDENT CHARTER CAN TAKE HIS WISDOM AND EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE AND DO SOMETHING TO GROW THE AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
I AM GUESSING THAT A FIVE YEAR PLAN ON GROWING AFFILIATED CHARTERS WOULD BRING 10,000 KIDS BACK INTO THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
[26. Board of Education Report No. 360-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Haynes Charter for Enriched Studies) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Haynes Charter for Enriched Studies, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 422 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term. ]
WHILE YOU'RE WITH US, MR. TOSKI, AS YOU KNOW, YOU SIGNED UP FOR 26, 27, 28, 29, AND 30.I'M IN THE CORY BOOKER SCHOOL OF, UH, FILIBUSTERING BECAUSE IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THIS ISSUE OF AFFILIATED AND DISTRICT RUN CHARTERS GOES IN ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER.
I I, I MEAN, I'M NOT ON THE VAN GOGH CHARTER YET.
THAT WOULD BE ONLY GOING IN ONE EAR AND WOULDN'T HAVE A SECOND EAR.
BUT HOPEFULLY YOU'RE PAYING ATTENTION BECAUSE YOU KEEP SAYING, WE WANNA GROW THE ENROLLMENT OF THE DISTRICT, AND YOU DON'T CELEBRATE EXCEPT FOR, YOU KNOW, CEREMONIAL CELEBRATIONS.
WHY NOT ADVERTISE THESE SUCCESSFUL PLACES? THEY'RE ALL ALL OVER THE MARGINS.
THERE ARE 80 PLUS DISTRICTS IN LA COUNTY AND LA I, I REMEMBER WHEN I REPRESENTED THE CITY OF SOUTHGATE.
SOUTHGATE GOES TO FOUR SEPARATE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
THEY GO TO DOWNEY LA UNIFIED, PARAMOUNT AND LINWOOD.
AND IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, USUALLY THE FIVE CITY COUNCIL PEOPLE IN SOUTHGATE ALL LIVE IN THE DOWNEY SCHOOL DISTRICT.
AND THEN THEY START COMPLAINING ABOUT LA UNIFIED.
BUT WHAT DO WE DO TO OFFER THESE HIGHER PERFORMING SCHOOLS IN LA UNIFIED AND SOUTHGATE TO FAMILIES THAT ARE OVERCROWDED IN LINWOOD UNIFIED OR TO PARAMOUNT? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING DUMBFOUNDED LEASE THIS BOARD AND THE TEAM THAT IT'S HIRED HAS DONE NOTHING EXCEPT FOR THE MOMENT THAT TAMAR GALLATIN TRIED TO MAKE ALL OF THESE SCHOOLS THAT ARE BEFORE YOU RIGHT NOW, INDEPENDENT CHARTERS AND SUPERINTENDENT CORTINA STEPPED IN WITH A LITTLE BUDGETARY MANIPULATION TO ATTRACT THEM BACK AS AN AFFILIATE.
BUT ARE WE LEARNING FROM THEM? ARE WE LEARNING THAT THEY STILL HAVE CHALLENGES TOO, PARTICULARLY SPECIAL ED, I THINK ON THIS ONE AT HANES HAS A FEW DATA POINTS THAT RAISE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT EVEN SUCCESSFUL MIDDLE CLASS SCHOOLS ARE STILL HAVING CHALLENGES ON SPECIAL ED, WHICH IS A BILLION DOLLAR ITEM BEFORE YOU.
[24. Board of Education Report No. 358-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Dixie Canyon Community Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Dixie Canyon Community Charter, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 646 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term. (Part 2 of 2)]
THAT WAS TAB 26, AND IT LOOKS LIKE MARIA DAISY ORTIZ HAS ARRIVED FOR TAB, UH, 24.MS. ORTIZ, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF, AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
MARIA DAISY ORTIZ, MS. ORTIZ IS GONNA SPEAK IN SPANISH.
I'M MARIA ORTIZ AND I'M HERE TO TALK TO CONFIRM THE CHARTERS.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WANNA SAY THAT I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH MY SCHOOL WAS CO-LOCATED, AND ONE OF THE THINGS WAS THE PROCESS THAT THE PARENTS OF THE SCHOOL THAT WERE BEING CO-LOCATED, THEY COULDN'T EVEN SPEAK OR GET TOGETHER.
THAT FOR ME, HONESTLY, WASN'T SOMETHING EQUITABLE.
AND I HAD TO MAKE A LOT OF IN INVESTIGATIONS BASED ON WHAT WAS HAPPENING WITH THE CHARTER SCHOOLS.
AND THAT'S WHAT I WANNA TALK TO YOU ABOUT.
THE CHARTER SCHOOLS HAVE DEVELOPED BASED ON THE INCOMPETENCY THAT THE DISTRICT HAS.
THE PARENTS GET FRUSTRATED BASED ON THE RESULTS THAT THE CHILDREN ARE HAVING.
AND BESIDES THAT OTHER CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE WORKING, BUT THEY ARE ALSO BELOW THE 50%.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU TO BRING UP TO INVESTIGATION IS HOW MANY CHARTER SCHOOLS SEND AFTER TWO YEARS, THE STUDENTS BACK TO L-A-U-S-D, AND THAT'S CALLED A PING PONG.
WHEN THEY WANNA OPEN, THEY GRAB ALL THE STUDENTS BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT OTHER THINGS THAT THESE CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE DOING, ORGAN PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS, BIG BUSINESSES, AND AND HOW MUCH INTELLIGENCE.
AND THEY ALSO MAKE EVERYONE BLEED BASED ON THE, THE LAD'S, UH, BUDGET.
AND THIS INVESTIGATION IS SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE.
HOW MANY CHARTER SCHOOLS AFTER TWO YEARS COME BACK? THE STUDENTS COME BACK.
MANY OF THE CHARTER SCHOOLS DON'T HAVE THE TEACHERS WITH APPROPRIATE CREDENTIALS.
AND ALSO PARENT INVOLVEMENT IS NOT EFFECTIVE.
I KNOW THAT THIS IS PROBABLY FOR L-A-U-S-D IS NOT A PRIORITY, BUT THIS MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE.
HONESTLY, THEY SHOULD BEGIN TO KNOW THAT CO-LOCATING
[01:35:01]
A SCHOOL IS NOT THE SOLUTION, SO THAT THE SCHOOLS CAN BE FULL.SCHOOLS WERE CREATED TO REDUCE.
THEY'RE, AND THEY'RE NOT CO-LOCATED.
[27. Board of Education Report No. 361-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Hesby Oaks Leadership Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Hesby Oaks Leadership Charter, located in Board District 4 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 510 students in grades TK-8 in each year of the charter term.]
FOR HESBY OAKS LEADERSHIP ACADEMY.THE PREVIOUS SPEAKER IS CONFUSED BETWEEN, UH, INDEPENDENT CHARTERS AND DISTRICT RUN AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
AND SO I'LL JUST REPEAT AGAIN, I SUPPORT HESBY OAKS, WHICH HAS BEEN, UH, A LITTLE CREATIVE IN IN EXPANDING WHAT TO LIKE TK EIGHT NOW.
SO THEY USE THEIR AUTONOMY TO COME UP WITH NEW IDEAS.
NOW GRANTED, AGAIN, THIS IS NOT TED ALEXANDER AFFILIATED CHARTER, WHICH IS MORE, UH, OF AN SES, UH, WITH HIGH NUMBER OF TITLE ONE, BUT AT LEAST GIVING PEOPLE THE AUTONOMY, THE THINKING POSSIBILITY IN SOME SENSE.
UM, YOU WONDER WHY LEADERSHIP JUST DOESN'T, LIKE SOME OF THE DISTRICTS UP IN OTHER COUNTIES HAVE JUST MADE THEIR WHOLE DISTRICT AN AFFILIATED CHARTER, A DISTRICT ON CHARTER.
IT GIVES THE WHOLE DISTRICT THE AUTONOMY TO DO THINGS.
OKAY? AND, AND JUDY BURTON, BEFORE SHE LEFT LA UNIFIED AND BECAME THE HEAD OF THE ALLIANCE CHARTERS, TRIED TO MAKE THE ENTIRE AREA OF MISS GOMEZ'S INTO, UM, AN AUTONOMOUS REGION.
WHICH, BECAUSE MANY OF THE ORIGINAL CHARTERS FROM VAUGHN STREET, MONTAGUE, UH, FENTON, WERE ALL IN THE FIRST 20 OR 30 CHARTERS UP THERE, PACOIMA, ALL OF US.
IT WAS, THAT'S WHERE THE REVOLUTION STARTED.
AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, A PREVIOUS SUPERINTENDENT WHO WAS KIND OF A CENTRALIST, ROY ROAMER, SAID NO, OR, OR SHE DIDN'T ASK ENOUGH.
BUT REALLY, THERE IS NO REASON WHY FOUR BOARD MEMBERS AND MR. SCH SHOULD TAKE THE LEAD BECAUSE HE'S THE, HE'S THE, THE BOARD MEMBER OF THE LARGEST CMO CHARTER MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION IN THE STATE.
IT'S NOT ALLIANCE, IT'S NOT GREEN DOT.
THE LARGEST CHARTER ORGANIZATION IN THE STATE IS LA UNIFIED.
YOU HAVE MORE CHARTERS THAT ARE AFFILIATED DISTRICT RUN CHARTERS THAN ANY OTHER ORGANIZATION.
AND SO TO TAKE THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEAD TO DO SOMETHING, AND NOT TO JUST SIT BY AND LOSE THE OPPORTUNITY TO GROW ENROLLMENT, NOT TO JUST DO ATTENDANCE CHECKS, BUT TO GROW THE FRIGGING ENROLLMENT OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
[28. Board of Education Report No. 362-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Knollwood Preparatory Academy) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Knollwood Preparatory Academy, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for five (5) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2030, to serve up to 434 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term.]
TAB 28.MR. TOSKI, BEFORE YOU GET TOO FAR, YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN, PLEASE.
I SUPPORT, UM, THE RENEWAL BASED ON THE DATA OF NOEL WOOD, UM, AFFILIATED CHARTER.
UM, THE, THESE INDEPENDENT CHARTERS, BY STATUTE, THEY'RE THE SAME THING AS INDEPENDENT, BUT WE CONSTRAIN THEM DRAMATICALLY, EVEN THOUGH THEIR RECORDS ARE QUITE GOOD.
IN FACT, WE BURDEN THEM IN SOME WAYS.
UNTIL RECENTLY, EACH ONE OF THESE AFFILIATE CHARTERS HAD TO WRITE ITS OWN LCAP, OKAY? AND SMARTLY, THE DISTRICT STEPPED IN AND SAID, WAIT A SECOND.
WE'RE THESE ARE DISTRICT RUN CHARTERS.
WE CAN MANUFACTURE AND TAKE THAT BURDEN OFF YOU AND HELP YOU BY PRODUCING, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S ONE OR TWO OR THREE EXAMPLES OF, UH, A FILL IN THE BLANK, UH, LCAP FOR THESE SCHOOLS.
SO THE DISTRICT SOMETIMES STEPS IN AND HELPS THESE, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THE NUMBER IS, 60, 70, OR 80, UH, UH, CHARTERS AND PROVIDES SERVICES AND, AND ASSISTANCE.
AND SO WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THEM? BECAUSE THEY ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY OUR MIDDLING CLASSES, WHICH ALSO SAYS SOMETHING ABOUT KIND OF LIKE WHAT'S GOING ON AT BROADWAY, WHICH IS A, WHICH IS A CLASS WARFARE AND RACE WARFARE.
KNOWING A LOT OF THAT SINCE MY MOTHER TAUGHT THERE FOR NEARLY 20 YEARS, AND I GREW UP IN THAT SCHOOL AND ACROSS THE STREET IN THE FOX TENNIS THEATER.
I KNOW THE HOUSING PROJECTS THAT ARE THERE.
AND, AND IT'S A DIFFICULT THING.
BUT WE OUGHT TO BE REPLICATING THESE PLACES.
I THINK THE VALUE I CHECKED THIS WEEK NEEDS TO BE CORRECTED, IF I'M WRONG, OF THE LAND OF LA UNIFIED IS $47 TRILLION.
$47 TRILLION, OKAY? WHICH IS, UH, ELON MUSK.
I THINK ALL HIS PROPERTIES TOGETHER ONLY COME TO HIS COMPANIES TO 1.7.
SO YOU ARE 40 TIMES MORE WEALTHY THAN ELON MUSK.
[30. Board of Education Report No. 364-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Nestle Avenue Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Nestle Avenue Charter, located in Board District 4 and Region North, for five (5) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2030, to serve up to 458 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term]
MUCH.[01:40:01]
YOU.UM, WELL, I, I, AGAIN, I SUPPORT THE INITIATIVE.
IF YOU TAKE A MAP OF THE DISTRICT, AND I KNOW MIKE ROMERO UNDERSTOOD THIS AND OTHERS THAT ALONG THE BORDERS OF LA UNIFIED OR OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS WHERE THERE ARE NO CONTINUATION SCHOOLS, FOR EXAMPLE.
THERE'S NO MCALLISTER SCHOOL IN A BUNCH OF THESE DISTRICTS.
AND IF YOU MADE MCALLISTER AN AFFILIATED CHARTER, THAT MEANS KIDS COULD COME FROM OTHER DISTRICTS TO GET THE GREAT SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE THERE.
WE, WE, WE, WE, WE DON'T INNOVATE BASED UPON OR REPLICATE.
'CAUSE THE INNOVATION HAS ALREADY HAPPENED AT MCALLISTER.
YOU REPLICATE IT AND YOU OPEN IT UP.
AND THERE'S A REASON WHY WE FIXED UP RAMONA HIGH SCHOOL TO DO THAT, BECAUSE IT'S RIGHT ON THE NEW TRAIN LINE.
SO KIDS CAN TRAVEL FROM OTHER DISTRICTS UP THE TRAIN AND ACROSS THE TRAIN AND FROM AZUA AND COME RIGHT DOWN INTO TO THAT SCHOOL.
BUT WE HAVE TO MAKE RAMONA HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS AND AFFILIATED CHARTER SO KIDS CAN GET THE GREAT SERVICES THAT WE OFFER IN LA UNIFIED TO BRAG ABOUT WHAT WE DO.
THE LETHARGY, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS, THE LACK OF INNOVATION, UH, ANEMIC AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, BUT IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY.
THESE SCHOOLS THAT ARE COMING BEFORE YOU, AND THE FILIBUSTERING I AM DOING HERE TODAY IS TO SAY THAT IF YOU DON'T MOVE ON THIS, IF YOU DON'T FIND A WAY TO MAKE IT YOURS TO CELEBRATE IT, YOU'RE HEADING INTO A TIME WHERE IT'S SORT OF THE REVERSE OF WHEN WE BUILT A HUNDRED SCHOOLS.
YOU HAVE TO GROW YOUR ENROLLMENT AND SUCCEED ON WHAT YOU'RE GOOD AT.
[32. Board of Education Report No. 366-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Serrania Avenue Charter for Enriched Studies) Recommends approval with a benchmark in the area of academics (see Attachment A) of the renewal petition for Serrania Avenue Charter for Enriched Studies, located in Board District 4 and Region North, for five (5) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2030, to serve up to 563 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term.]
31 IS FOR DISCUSSION.I THOUGHT WE WERE IN PLAIN VIEW.
OKAY, SO TAB 32, NIA, THANK YOU.
WHICH SERAN PRONOUNCE THAT RIGHT ON.
AGAIN, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT THERE IS THE OPPORTUNITY TO USE THE LABORATORIES OF DEMOCRACY, THE LABORATORIES OF THESE AFFILIATED SCHOOLS TO CHECK THINGS OUT.
FOR EXAMPLE, INSTEAD OF STICKING WITH A WELL AGENT OR WHATEVER ITS NAME IS, AND BEING BEHIND TODAY, YOU'RE GONNA ACCEPT 3 MILLION MEASLY DOLLARS FROM THE COUNTY THAT GOT $85 MILLION TO BUILD THE CHILDREN YOUTH BEHAVIORAL HEALTH INITIATIVES BY PROPORTIONALITY.
WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN GETTING $45 MILLION TO LA UNIFIED FROM THE COUNTY.
BUT WE SAID, OH, WE KNOW HOW TO DO THIS.
AND SO THEY GAVE US A MEASLY $3 MILLION AND WE DIDN'T SUE THEM FOR WHATEVER REASON.
PROBABLY 'CAUSE WE, IT WAS A SELF-INFLICTED WOUND.
BUT WHY NOT TAKE ALL OF THESE AFFILIATED CHARTERS AND START A PROGRAM OF C-Y-B-H-I IN THEM WHILE YOU WAIT FOR THE, THE TITANIC TO SUDDENLY GET TOGETHER? 'CAUSE YOU'RE NOW A YEAR BEHIND.
IN SEPTEMBER OF LAST YEAR WAS WHEN YOU COULD BEGIN TO SUBMIT TO BUY MORE NURSES, TO BUY MORE SOCIAL WORKERS, TO BUY MORE PSA COUNSELORS, TO BUY MORE COUNSELORS TO BUY MORE, UM, UH, UH, OF THE COUNSELORS THAT TANYA FRANKLIN IS ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT.
THESE THINGS COULD ALL BE BOUGHT BY REIMBURSED MONIES.
ROUGHLY $50,000 PER PERSON THAT DOES THIS KIND OF WORK.
BUT USE THE, THE CREATIVITY OR THE AUTONOMY OF THESE SCHOOLS IN A WAY THAT HELPS YOU GROW YOUR ENROLLMENT, GROW YOUR REVENUES, PRONOUNCE SOMETHING BIG THAT YOU'RE DOING.
'CAUSE I'M NOT SO SURE IF THE, THE ADVERTISING IN PASADENA OF OUR ONLINE PROGRAM WAS CELEBRATING THE BEST PROGRAM WE HAVE IN THE DISTRICT.
OKAY? BUT THERE WE WERE ADVERTISING THAT, NOT ADVERTISING THE OPPORTUNITIES OF AFFILIATED CHARTER.
[33. Board of Education Report No. 367-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Van Gogh Charter) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Van Gogh Charter, located in Board District 3 and Region North, for six (6) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2031, to serve up to 477 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term.]
WAS TAB 32.NOW WE MOVE ON TO THE FINAL, UH, PUBLIC HEARING OF THESE ITEMS IS TAB 33 FOR VAN GOGH.
WELL, APPROPRIATELY, IT'S THE LAST ONE.
AND, UM, I DON'T KNOW WHO PUT VAN GOGH AS THE LAST ONE, BUT IT'S OF MY CONCERN THAT WHILE I'M TALKING ABOUT THESE ISSUES, AND I THINK THEY'RE CATCHING SOME ATTENTION, VAN GOGH IS A BEAUTIFUL ARTIST OR VANKO.
YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO CREATE THINGS AND DO THINGS.
YOU HAVE TWO HEADS OF INSTRUCTION.
TWO HEADS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE BETTER THAN ONE.
[01:45:01]
YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO GOOD THINGS BASED UPON THE GOOD THINGS THAT EXIST IN THIS DISTRICT.VAN GOGH, HERE'S A SCHOOL AGAIN IN A HIGHLY DEMANDED SCHOOL.
AND THE MIDDLE SCHOOL IT FEEDS TO, WHICH IS PART OF THE DISTRICT THAT HAS RETAINED SOME OF THE MIDDLE CLASS, WHICH IS AN IMPORTANT INGREDIENT.
MR. MELVIN KNOWS THAT MR. SCHON KNOWS THAT MR. SUPERINTENDENT KNOWS THAT WE HAVE GOT TO SPEAK IN SOME LANGUAGE TO ALL OF THE FAMILIES OF THIS COUNTY AND THE CITIES.
AND WE HAVE EXAMPLES, EVERYTHING FROM THE CHALLENGING PLACES OF THE CARLSON MEDICAL SCHOOL AND MCALLISTER AND RAMONA TO THESE MIDDLE CLASS AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
BUT WHERE ARE WE REPLICATING THESE THINGS? AND SOME OF THESE ARE SIMULTANEOUSLY MAGNET AND AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
DON'T, DON'T, DON'T LET ME FORGET THAT POINT.
SO WE KNOW THE MAGNETS ARE UNIQUE.
WE DIDN'T END UP LIKE JOHN DAISY'S BOSTON CLUBBING EACH OTHER DURING DESEGREGATION.
WE HAD THESE OPPORTUNITIES CALLED MAGNET SCHOOLS AND WE SUCCEEDED GROWING THEM.
AND MR. SUPERINTENDENT HAS CELEBRATED THEM RECENTLY ON WINNING NATIONAL AWARDS.
WELL, WHY DON'T WE LOOK AT THE AFFILIATED MAGNETS AND WHAT DO THEY HAVE THAT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE AFFILIATED ALONE OR THE MAGNET? THESE ARE, THIS IS A SKUNK WORKS.
THIS IS A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.
THIS IS A $20 BILLION ORGANIZATION THAT HAS MORE WEALTH THAN ELON MUSK AND ALL THOSE SYCOPHANTS IN THE WHITE HOUSE.
BUT YOU HAVE TO BEHAVE AND THINK BIG.
UH, MARIA LUISA PALMER, COME ON UP.
YOU LOVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK TO ITEM 33.
UM, ANOTHER SCHOOL WITH HIGHER THAN I WOULD SAY NORMAL, UH, SBACK SCORES, 71% METER EXCEED ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS ON THE SBAC.
SO WHAT GOES ON AT THESE SCHOOLS? HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE? WELL, NOT JUST BECAUSE IT'S A CHARTER, BUT THIS PARENTS ARE VERY INVOLVED, THE PARENTS THAT SEND THEIR CHILDREN TO THESE SCHOOLS.
BUT WE NEED MORE OF THAT TYPE OF INFORMATION TO GET OUT TO ALL THE PARENTS AT THIS DISTRICT TO EXPLAIN THE IMPORTANCE OF ALL THE STANDARDIZED TESTS.
WHETHER, WHETHER THAT BE THE SBA C OR THE I-READY.
THAT'S THE WAY THAT THESE PARENTS, THE INFORMED PARENTS, LOOK AT THESE TESTS AND THE RESULTS OF THESE SCHOOLS.
WE LOOK AT IT AS THESE ARE TESTS OF THE SCHOOL.
WHEN THE SCHOOL, WHEN THE SCORES ARE LOW, WE VIEW THE SCHOOL AS DEFICIENT.
WE VIEW THE DISTRICT AS DEFICIENT, NOT THE STUDENTS.
WE DON'T THINK IT'S THE STUDENT'S FAULT.
WE VIEW IT AS THE DEFICIENCY OF THE DISTRICT.
BUT UNFORTUNATELY, WHEN WE HAVE PARENTS ON THE PARENT COMMITTEES SUCH AS THE PAC AND THE DLAC, THE PARENTS THERE ARE NOT CLEARLY INFORMED ON WHAT THEIR ROLE IS AT THOSE COMMITTEES.
THEY'RE CONSISTENTLY TOLD THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO KEEP STUDENTS OF PRIORITY, THAT ALL THE PARENTS ARE THERE TO LEARN.
NO, THAT IS NOT THE PURPOSE OF THE COMMITTEE.
THE PURPOSE OF THOSE PARENT COMMITTEES ARE TO BE CRITICAL OF THE DISTRICT PROCESSES.
IT'S NOT THERE TO BE CHEERLEADERS FOR THE DISTRICT.
THEY CONSTANTLY TELL THE PARENTS THAT WE'RE HERE FOR THE STUDENTS HERE FOR THE STUDENTS.
BUT THE CRITICAL QUESTION, THOSE COMMITTEES, THOSE PARENTS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE ASKING IS, WHAT IS IT THAT THE DISTRICT IS NOT DOING WELL? AND RECOMMEND IMPROVEMENTS ON THAT.
NOT TO TAKE HOME INFORMATION FOR THEIR OWN FAMILIES.
THEY'RE THERE TO REPRESENT BROADLY, THE PARENTS AT THIS DISTRICT.
SO HOW CAN YOU BRING THOSE INFORMED PARENTS INTO THESE COMMITTEES FROM THESE TYPES OF CHARTER SCHOOLS, AND REPLICATE THOSE RESULTS? PLEASE THINK ABOUT THE PARENT INVOLVEMENT.
YOU NEED INFORMED PARENTS AT THIS DISTRICT.
THAT CONCLUDES THE PUBLIC COMMENT AND ALL CONSENT ITEMS. IT'S NOW APPROPRIATE TO TAKE A VOTE.
WE HAVE A MOTION A SECOND ALREADY BEFORE US, AND I WILL, UH, TAKE ROLE ON THE CONSENT, UH, CALENDAR.
SOMETIMES THE VIDEO POPPING UP IS A LITTLE SLOW.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON? YES.
UM, WELL, THAT, THAT'S, UH, SIX.
SO THE CONSENT, UH, CALENDAR PASSES.
THERE ARE NOW, UH, DISCUSSION ITEMS FOR TAB 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 10, 15, 16, 17,
[01:50:03]
AND 31 AND 35 IS A TIME CERTAIN.[1. Board of Education Report No. 269-24/25 Facilities Services Division (Define and Approve Three Campus Reconstruction Projects and Amend the Facilities Services Division Strategic Execution Plan to Incorporate Therein) Recommends definition and approval of three Campus Reconstruction projects, as described in Exhibit A, and the amendment of the Facilities Services Division Strategic Execution Plan to incorporate therein, for a combined budget of $604,205,000.]
DISCUSSION.UM, THIS WAS ABOUT THE REBUILDING OF, UM, MARQUEZ ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND, UH, I BELIEVE THAT SCHOOLS NEED TO BE RESTORED TO WHAT THEY WERE BEFORE.
MY ONLY CONCERN WAS THAT I HAD READ THAT THERE WAS, UH, A DROP IN ENROLLMENT IN THE SCHOOL.
BUT I REMEMBER I SPOKE TO MS. TOKS AND SHE ASSURED ME THAT DEMOGRAPHICS SAID THAT THERE WILL BE AN INCREASE IN ENROLLMENT, AND THAT SCHOOL WOULD BE ABLE TO, UH, ALMOST BE AT CAPACITY IN TIME.
MY FEAR IS THAT I DON'T KNOW WHO'S MOVING BACK TO THE PALISADES.
I DON'T KNOW IF FAMILIES ARE MOVING BACK OR CHILDLESS PEOPLE ARE MOVING BACK.
AND THEN I JUST HEARD RECENTLY THAT IT MAY BE A SPAN SCHOOL AT THE MARQUEZ AREA, MAYBE.
AND THAT WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, DELIGHTFUL.
BECAUSE RIGHT NOW I'M NOT SURE WHERE THE KIDS GO FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL.
IS IT, UH, PAUL REVERE? PAUL REVERE.
SO IT WOULD BE NICE, UH, IF IT WERE A SPAN SCHOOL, THAT WOULD BE GREAT TOO.
SO THAT WAS MY ONLY CONCERN THAT SO MUCH MONEY WOULD BE PUT INTO THE BUILDING OF THE SCHOOL.
AND WOULD WE ACTUALLY NEED THAT SPACE WITH DECLINING ENROLLMENT ALL OVER L-A-U-S-D? THAT WAS MY QUESTION, SIR.
BOARD PRESIDENT, BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT.
JUST SPECIFIC TO YOUR COMMENT, MR. PRESIDENT, UH, ABOUT THE SPAN OPTION DURING THE EXTENSIVE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS THAT WE ENGAGED IN FOR ABOUT THREE MONTHS WITH THE MARQUEZ COMMUNITY, THE PAL ELEMENTARY COMMUNITY, AND FRANKLY, THE LARGER PALISADES COMMUNITY WRIT LARGE, ONE OF THE POINTS OF DISCUSSION THAT CAME UP WAS ABOUT CONTEMPLATING TURNING ONE OF THE CAMPUSES INTO A SPAN SCHOOL AFTER EXTENSIVE, UH, CONVERSATION.
AND ALSO A LOT OF SHARING OF DATA WITH OUR FOLKS SHOWING THAT THERE'S FRANKLY, PLENTY OF SEATS AVAILABLE AT REAR REVERE MIDDLE SCHOOL.
THAT OPTION WAS, I DON'T WANNA SAY TAKEN OFF THE TABLE, BUT AT THIS POINT, IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE'RE CONTEMPLATING.
THERE IS, THERE IS LAND, THERE IS SPACE AT THE MARQUEZ CAMPUS.
IF THERE SHOULD EVER COME A POINT IN TIME WHERE THERE'S AN ACTUAL NEED FOR ADDITIONAL MIDDLE SCHOOL SEATS, IT CERTAINLY CAN BE CONTEMPLATED.
BUT AS OF RIGHT NOW, WE'RE LOOKING AT REBUILDING THE TWO ELEMENTARY SITES.
AND I KNOW THERE'S LAND AND I KNOW THERE'S SPACE.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THERE'S PEOPLE, THAT'S THE PART THAT I'M A LITTLE UNSURE ABOUT.
AND, UH, I I LEAVE IT TO DEMOGRAPHICS.
AND I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS ARE VERY, UH, VERY, VERY GOOD AT PREDICTING, UH, FUTURE ENROLLMENT RATES.
BUT I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT BUILDING A SCHOOL THAT'LL BE EMPTY.
WELL, I CERTAINLY DON'T WANT TO TAKE CREDIT OR BLAME FOR MASTER PLAN AND DEMOGRAPHICS, BUT THEY ARE AN AMAZING TEAM.
THEY, THEY DO, UH, FORECAST OUR ENROLLMENT, UH, VERY ACCURATELY YEAR AFTER YEAR.
AND, AND IN LOOKING AT THE PATTERNS FOR THE PALISADES AREA, PARTICULARLY IN A TIME OF REBUILDING WHEN THEN THERE'S, THERE'S A GENERAL, I I WOULDN'T GO SO FAR AS TO CALL IT A CONSENSUS, BUT THERE'S A BELIEF THAT THERE ARE FAMILIES LANDOWNERS THAT ARE MOVING OUT WHO MAY NOT BE INTERESTED IN AN EXTENDED REBUILD PROCESS.
AND THIS IN TURN, MAY BRING IN YOUNGER FAMILIES WITH SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN.
THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY DATA POINTS THAT WE'RE CONTEMPLATING IN THIS REBUILD.
I THINK ONE OF THE, THE IMPORTANT ELEMENTS TO ADD AS WELL IS BOTH, UH, MARQUEZ AND PALISADES, UH, CHARTER ELEMENTARIES ARE AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE ENROLLMENT, IT'S BOTH RESIDENT AND NON-RESIDENT STUDENTS THAT WE ALLOW TO ACTUALLY ENROLL AT THE SITE.
AND SO WE KNOW THAT THERE'S FLEXIBILITY IN JUST THE ENROLLMENT PATTERNS.
THERE'S, THEY'RE HIGHLY DESIRABLE SCHOOLS.
AND SO WE BELIEVE WHETHER THERE'S RESIDENT OR NON-RESIDENT, THAT THERE WILL BE STUDENT PARTICIPATION AT THE SITE, MR. SUPERINTENDENT.
IT, IT'S BEEN STATED, BUT OBVIOUSLY WE'VE HAD MANY, MANY CONVERSATIONS AS, UM, AS MR. CH INDICATED WITH THE COMMUNITY, UH, THROUGH TOWN HALL MEETINGS, CONVERSATIONS WITH, UH, MUNICIPAL AND COUNTY LEADERSHIP.
UH, WE HAVE INFORMATION REGARDING, UH, THE PACE AT WHICH, UH, PERMITS ARE BEING ISSUED FOR THE REBUILDING OF, UM, OF FAMILY HOMES IN THE PALISADES.
AND THE GENERAL CONSENSUS IS THAT, UM, INDIVIDUALS WILL BE COMING BACK.
AND IF ANYTHING, THE TREND WILL BE ONE WHERE YOUNGER FAMILIES, UH, WILL MOVE IN, IN A MORE AGGRESSIVE PACE THAN WHAT WE'VE SEEN IN THE PALISADES BECAUSE OF LEGACY HOMES THAT HAVE BEEN, UH, PASSED
[01:55:01]
DOWN FROM, UH, GENERATION TO GENERATION.SO WE HAVE FULL CONFIDENCE THAT THIS IS AN APPROPRIATE INVESTMENT, UH, TO SATISFY THE NEEDS, UH, THAT, UH, WILL BE EVIDENT VERY, VERY SOON, UH, IN, IN THAT COMMUNITY.
UH, THE CURRENT ENROLLMENT, YOU KNOW, DO NOT BE, DO NOT BE DECEIVED BY THE TOTAL ENROLLMENT IN THE ACCOMMODATING SCHOOLS AT THIS POINT, BECAUSE IN SOME CASES, INDIVIDUALS HAD TO MOVE TO DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOODS AWAY FROM NORRIS DAIRY FOR EXAMPLE, OR FROM BRENTWOOD.
BUT THOSE SAME INDIVIDUALS SHOWED UP AT THE TOWN HALL MEETINGS AND THEY SAID, ONCE RECONSTRUCTION IS FINISHED AND WE ARE ABLE TO RETURN IT IS OUR INTENTION, UH, TO ACTUALLY GO BACK HOME AND GO BACK TO OUR SCHOOL.
WELL, I APPRECIATE THAT AND I AM, UM, SATISFIED WITH THE ANSWER AND HOPEFULLY PEOPLE WILL MOVE BACK.
CHILDREN WILL COME BACK AND WILL BE ABLE TO FILL THE SCHOOL.
THANK YOU, MR. I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION TOO.
'CAUSE THOSE ARE THE QUESTIONS OUR TEAM WAS ASKING LIKE A WEEK AFTER THE FIRES.
UM, YOU KNOW, UH, THE DEMOGRAPHIC DATA AND LOOKING AT THE HISTORY OF SCHOOLS LIKE MARQUEZ, THAT PRE PANDEMIC HAD AN ENROLLMENT THAT WITH PA ELEMENTARY ALMOST WAS CLOSE TO A THOUSAND FOR TWO ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.
AND WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE IF WE BUILD ONE AND THE MATRICULATION PATHWAYS THROUGH, THROUGH, UM, PAUL REVERE AND PALI, AND WHAT ARE THESE DEMOGRAPHICS LOOK LIKE? SO MR. CHA AND MR. STO AND, AND THE SUPERINTENDENT ALL ANSWERED IT, BUT I JUST, I APPRECIATE THAT.
AND THAT'S, AND, AND I WANT TO USE THIS OPPORTUNITY JUST TO THANK THE DISTRICT FOR THE ROBUST COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT THERE ARE ALMOST DAILY TOWN HALLS, INCLUDING I THINK THREE MAYBE THIS WEEK, UM, UH, WITH THESE COMMUNITIES AND WITH THE BROADER COMMUNITY, KNOWING THAT WE'RE BUILDING SCHOOLS, NOT JUST FOR THE CURRENT CONSTITUENTS AND FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, BUT FOR HOPEFULLY THE NEXT 50 AND GOD WILLING A HUNDRED.
UM, I ALSO THINK THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, IN, IN REPRESENTING THE PALISADES AND SPENDING A LOT OF TIME OUT THERE WITH THAT COMMUNITY, THE DISTRICT'S RESPONSE HAS BEEN ONE OF THE BRIGHT SPOTS IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS.
IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE IT'S BEEN SIX MONTHS, BUT, UM, BOTH WITH THE QUICK RELOCATION, UM, THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, THE FACT THAT THE BUNGALOWS ARE ALREADY ON THE CAMPUSES OF MARQUEZ AND PALLY HIGH, I WAS THERE, UH, JUST OVER A WEEK AGO, UM, AND THAT WE'RE ALREADY HAVING THE CONVERSATION ABOUT GETTING STUDENTS BACK INTO PERMANENT FACILITIES IN THE COMING YEARS.
I APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT OF MY COLLEAGUES ON THE BOARD, UM, IN, IN ENSURING THIS QUICK RECOVERY FOR THE COMMUNITY THAT'S BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH.
SO THANK YOU ALL, AND I THANK YOU.
WE HAVE A WORD FROM OUR, UH, SUPERINTENDENT.
YOU KNOW THAT MISS HOAK, I JUST LOVE THE WEST VALLEY LOVES BUNGALOWS.
I JUST WANNA MAKE A, A QUICK COMMENT ON, ON, YOU KNOW, IT APPEARS OBVIOUSLY THAT THERE'S A CERTAIN DEGREE OF SPEED OF EXPEDIENCY ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROJECT.
THAT IS TRUE, UH, FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS.
NUMBER ONE, UH, WE UNDERSTAND THAT AS A RESULT OF CURRENT AND THE POSSIBLE, UH, THE POSSIBILITY OF THE FUTURE TARIFFS COST ESCALATION, PARTICULARLY ASSOCIATED WITH CONCRETE STEEL LUMBER, UM, IS GOING TO BE UNAVOIDABLE.
SO THE LONGER WE WAIT, UH, THE COSTLIER, IT'LL BE TO BUILD.
SECONDLY, UM, BASED ON THE NEWS THAT WE HAVE, UH, LEARNED ABOUT FEMA REIMBURSEMENTS, UH, WHICH WE WILL DEPEND ON, UM, MAY, UH, MAY CHANGE NOT ONLY THE TYPE OF RE REIMBURSEMENT, BUT ALSO WHAT QUALIFIES FOR REIMBURSEMENT AND THE TOTAL VALUE OF THE REIMBURSEMENT.
ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING THAT IS THE LONGER WE WAIT, UH, THE HIGHER THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE REIMBURSEMENT, UH, WILL BE REDUCED.
UM, THIRDLY, UH, YOU KNOW, VERY FEW SCHOOLS IN OUR COMMUNITY HAVE GONE THROUGH WHAT THAT COMMUNITY HAS GONE THROUGH IN TERMS OF LOSING, UH, BOTH THEIR HOMES AND THEIR SCHOOLS.
SO NORMALIZING THE CONDITION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, UH, IS OBVIOUSLY A HIGH PRIORITY FOR US.
ONE LAST POINT, WHICH IS AN IMPORTANT ONE, IS WE ARE VERY, VERY HOPEFUL THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO RECOUP, UH, THE LION'S SHARE OF THE INITIAL INVESTMENT THROUGH MEASURE US AS A RESULT OF VERY AGGRESSIVE PURSUIT OF INSURANCE COVERAGE.
UM, SECONDLY, UH, THROUGH FEMA REIMBURSEMENT.
SO THIS IS AN INVESTMENT THAT IS GOING TO BE REIMBURSABLE, UM, UH, SOON ENOUGH, UH, CONSIDERING ALL THE FACTORS I JUST DESCRIBED.
SO IT'S THE RIGHT TIME AT THE RIGHT, UH, FOR THE RIGHT REASON WITH THE RIGHT FINANCING POSSIBILITY IN PLACE FOR THE FULL REPLACEMENT OR THE PARTIAL REPLACEMENT OF THESE THREE SCHOOLS.
MS. NEW BILL, I HAD A QUESTION AS YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE US FUNDS, ARE THERE EARMARKED CHARTER BOND FUNDS FOR SAID PROJECTS, AND WOULD IT COME FROM THAT BUCKET, SO TO SPEAK? GOOD MORNING.
THERE ARE, UM, FUNDS DESIGNATED IN THE FACILITY SCHOOL UPGRADE PROGRAM SPECIFICALLY FOR CHARTERS.
[02:00:01]
AND, UM, THE FUNDING FOR PALISADES HIGH SCHOOL IS ANTICIPATED TO COME OUT OF THAT FUNDING CATEGORY.THAT'S, UM, A LITTLE OVER $250 MILLION THAT WILL LEAVE APPROXIMATELY 188 MILLION, ASSUMING THAT THE BIRMINGHAM HIGH SCHOOL PROJECT, WHICH IS ALSO AT THE BOARD TODAY GETS APPROVED.
UM, THE DISTRICT'S KIND OF LONGSTANDING PRACTICE HAS TO FUND AFFILIATED CHARTERS BECAUSE, UM, THEY ARE AND DO REPORT TO THE DISTRICT OUT OF THE OTHER CATEGORIES AND TO FUND INDEPENDENT CHARTERS WITH THE CATEGORY OF, UM, FUNDING FOR CHARTERS.
FOR PALISADES HIGH SCHOOL, WE'RE USING FUNDING DESIGNATED FOR CHARTERS.
AND FOR THE TWO OTHER SCHOOLS WE'RE USING WHAT'S CALLED MAJOR MODERNIZATIONS.
SO THE OTHER TWO SCHOOLS SPECIFICALLY WILL NOT NECESSARILY COME FROM THE CHARTER BOND FUNDS, CORRECT? CORRECT.
AND I WOULD ADD THAT, UM, WE WANNA PRESERVE SOME MONEY IN THE CHARTER BOND FUNDS SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE USE BOND FUNDS TO FUND THE PROP 39 MAKE READY PROJECTS, AS WELL AS OTHER CRITICAL REPAIRS LIKE THE BIRMINGHAM PULL AT INDEPENDENT CHARTERS THAT DON'T HAVE A WAY TO PAY FOR THOSE REPAIRS.
UM, WELL, I REALLY APPRECIATE OUR LEADERSHIP ON THIS AND, AND THIS SPEED WITH WHICH WE'RE MORE MOVING FORWARD TO RESTORE THESE CAMPUSES.
UM, JUST TWO QUESTIONS BECAUSE I THINK IT'S ALLUDED TO IN THE MATERIALS, BUT NOT SPOKEN TO IN DEPTH, UM, MEASURES AROUND HEALTH AND SAFETY TO ENSURE AS THESE CAMP CAMPUSES ARE REPOPULATED, THAT OUR STUDENTS, STAFF AND FAMILIES, UM, WILL, WILL NOT BE IMPACTED, UM, BY, UM, BY THE WILDFIRE IMPACTS.
AND THEN AROUND THE FIRE RESILIENCE MOVING FORWARD, WHAT, UM, CHANGES ARE WE MAKING LOOKING AHEAD SO THAT THESE CAMPUSES CAN BE, UH, RESILIENT IN LIGHT OF THE ONGOING CLIMATE CRISIS AND THREATS FROM WILDFIRE? SURE.
I'M GOING TO SPEAK TO THE, UH, CLIMATE RESILIENCY ONE, AND THEN JENNIFER FLORES FROM THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND SAFETY WILL SPEAK TO WHAT WE'RE DOING TO ENSURE ONGOING, UH, SAFETY, UH, MONITORING AND, UH, DETERMINATIONS REGARDING STAFF AND STUDENTS REHABILITATING THOSE THREE CAMPUSES.
SO REGARDING RESILIENCY, WE ARE USING ESSENTIALLY, UM, THE HIGHEST CODE, WHICH IS KIND OF CLASS A FOR THIS AREA THAT'S IN A FIRE ZONE.
IT REQUIRES SPECIAL FIRE RATING FOR YOUR EXTERIOR MATERIALS.
UM, IN ADDITION, WE'RE GOING TO INCORPORATE OTHER, UM, UH, PROTOCOLS AND DESIGN STANDARDS ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT THE CODE REQUIRES.
UM, ALL OF THESE BE BUILDINGS WILL ESSENTIALLY BE BUILT TO A HIGHER STANDARD THAN WHAT WAS THERE BEFORE, UM, WHICH DID NOT MEET CURRENT CODE.
SO WE'RE GOING TO BE PROVIDING TO THE HIGHEST CODE.
UM, THIS INCLUDES LESSONS LEARNED, DOUBLE GLAZED WINDOWS, EMBER RESISTANT VENT SCREENS THAT WE LEARNED WAS PROBABLY THE MOST PROTECTIVE MEASURE, UM, IN THIS AREA.
AND THEN ALSO JUST HOW WE DISTRIBUTE PLANTING MATERIAL ACROSS THESE SITES AND WHAT TYPE OF PLANTING MATERIALS IS ALSO GONNA BE IMPORTANT, BUT KNOW THAT WE'RE VERY ACTIVELY, UM, ADDRESSING CLIMATE RESILIENCY IN THESE AND ALL OF OUR OTHER PROJECTS.
AND NOW I'LL HAVE JENNIFER FLORES SPEAK ABOUT THE SAFETY MEASURES.
CARLOS TORRES, DIRECTOR FOR THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND SAFETY.
UH, OBVIOUSLY WE ARE GOING TO BE TAKING A VERY PROACTIVE APPROACH WITH OUR, UM, UH, WITH ENSURING THAT ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY IS, IS, IS AT THE FOREFRONT, WANNA MAKE SURE THAT OUR STUDENTS AND OUR STAFF ARE PROTECTED AT EVERY STEP.
AND SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS FROM RIGHT NOW WE'RE CONDUCTING ENVIRONMENTAL TESTING, INDOORS, OUTDOORS, UM, AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO.
SO AS WE IDENTIFY ISSUES WHERE THEY'RE BEING ADDRESSED, UM, AS THE, AS THE BUILDINGS ARE BEING CLEARED, WE'RE WORKING WITH OUR FACILITY SERVICE DIVISION TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY DO THEIR PART AND THEN WE COME UP, UH, DURING AND AFTERWARDS TO ENSURE ALL THEIR WORK IS ONCE IT'S DONE, THAT WE CAN NOW THEN TAKE A, AN ENVIRONMENTAL AND A SAFETY, UH, MINDSET AND LOOK AT IT FROM THAT STANDPOINT.
IS IT READY FOR OUR STUDENTS? DOES IT SMELL LIKE SMOKE? ALL THOSE QUESTIONS HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE WE'LL ALLOW STUDENTS TO BE BACK THERE.
AND IT'S NOT JUST A TESTING NOW, BUT IT'S A TESTING NOW DURING, UH, AND ONGOING AND AFTERWARDS TO A CERTAIN DEGREE, DEPENDING ON WHAT WE'RE, WHAT OUR FINDINGS ARE.
MAY I JUST ADD, UH, IS CHRISTINA THERE STILL? YEAH.
UM, DRIVING BACK AND FORTH, THE BOWRY, YOU KNOW, I LISTENED TO KNX AND I HEAR THIS COMPANY THAT ALWAYS TALKS ABOUT THEIR FIREPROOF BUILDING MATERIALS,
[02:05:01]
AND I WAS JUST WONDERING IF WE ARE, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY MEAN FIREPROOF OR FIRE RESISTANT, I DON'T KNOW.BUT THEY SAY IT'LL WITHHOLD, YOU KNOW, THE COMMERCIAL GOES, IT'LL WITHHOLD EVERYTHING.
I'M JUST CURIOUS, UM, IF WE DID ANY RESEARCH INTO THAT, UH, BUILDING WITH THAT MATERIAL THAT IS MOSTLY, UH, FIREPROOF.
ARE YOU FAMILIAR AT ALL? UM, I AM VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE NON-COMBUSTIBLE MATERIALS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE USING, UM, BOTH AT THE SITES AND OTHER SITES.
SO YES, WE, UM, ARE LOOKING AT NON-COMBUSTIBLE MATERIALS THAT HAVE A VERY HIGH FIRE RATING.
UM, SO IT'S A DEGREE OF HOW LONG THEY'RE BASICALLY EXPOSED TO FIRE AND HOW LONG THEY CAN WITHSTAND FIRE AT A CERTAIN TEMPERATURE AND FOR WHAT LENGTHS OF TIME.
UM, JUST NOTE THAT WE ARE USING THE HIGHEST STANDARD ON THESE PROJECTS, AND I APPRECIATE THAT.
IF I HEAR THAT COMMERCIAL, WHEN I HEAR THAT COMMERCIAL, AGAIN, I WILL SEND YOU THE NAME JUST FOR YOUR INFORMATION.
ANYBODY ELSE ON, UH, TAB ONE? OKAY, MR. MCLEAN.
MAY I HAVE A, A MOTION TO MOVE IT? VOTE.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT MOSA? YES.
REBA AND, UH, MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN.
[3. Board of Education Report No. 383-24/25 Facilities Services Division Eco-Sustainability Office (Define and Approve Five Sustainable Environment Enhancement Developments for Schools (SEEDS) Projects and Amend the Facilities Services Division Strategic Execution Plan to Incorporate Therein) Recommends the definition and approval of five Sustainable Environment Enhancement Developments for Schools Projects, as described in Exhibit A, and the amendment of the Facilities Services Division Strategic Execution Plan, for a combined budget of $700,000.]
UH, TAB THREE TO FIND AND APPROVE FIVE SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENTAL ENHANCEMENT DEVELOPMENTS.WHY DON'T WE MOVE AND SECOND THIS RIGHT NOW, MOVE IT MOVED BY, UM, AND SET MOVE BY MR. SMLS.
I BELIEVE IT WAS MS. NEW BILL? YES.
I JUST HAD A QUESTION ON THE, IF THERE IS A LIST OF COMMUNITY, UM, PARTNERS WHO SUPPORT THE SCHOOLS WITH THE SEEDS GRANT, DO YOU KNOW IF, IS THERE A LIST? YES, THERE IS A LIST.
AND THEN HOW ARE WE PAIRED? HOW ARE THE SCHOOLS PAIRED WITH THOSE PARTNERS? SO WE HAVE A LIST OF, UM, GREETING PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE GROW AS MORE PARTNERS BECOME AVAILABLE.
UM, WE TYPICALLY PROVIDE THAT LIST TO SCHOOLS WHO INDICATE THAT THEY WOULD BE INTERESTED IN THE SEEDS PROGRAM.
UM, AND IF THEY'RE NOT ABLE OR SUCCESSFUL IN FINDING SOMEONE, WE CAN STEP IN AND ALSO HELP IF WE KNOW OF, UM, CAPACITY WITHIN THESE ORGANIZATIONS.
UM, WE HAVE NEW PARTNERS, UH, BREATHE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THAT JUST CAME UP WHO'S INTERESTED IN DOING WORK WITH THE DISTRICT.
SO IF YOU HAVE A SCHOOL THAT IS INTERESTED IN SEEDS AND THEY'RE UNABLE TO FIND A PARTNER ORGANIZATION, JUST LET US KNOW AND WE CAN SEE WHAT, HOW WE CAN HELP.
SO T TYPICALLY THE SCHOOL WOULD CHOOSE THEIR PARTNER FROM THIS LIST? YEAH, THERE'S VARIOUS WAYS.
SOMETIMES, UM, THEY'LL IDENTIFY A PARTNER.
SOMETIMES A PARTNER WORKS LOCALLY IN THAT AREA.
FOR EXAMPLE, ON THIS ONE WE HAVE AT STONER ES, THEY'RE WORKING WITH THE BOLOGNA CREEK RENAISSANCE.
SO IT'S VERY SPECIFIC TO THE AREA THAT STONER IS LOCATED IN.
AND SOMETIMES IT COULD BE A FRIENDS OF THE SCHOOL ORGANIZATION OR THE SCHOOL ITSELF THAT IS, UM, PUTTING IN, UH, FUNDS TO DO THE GREENING PLANT MATERIALS OR DOING A DAY OF GREENING.
ANYONE ELSE FOR TAB THREE? OKAY.
THE VOTE ON TAB THREE, WE HAVE, UH, MS. NEWBELL? YES, DR. RIVAS.
MR. MELVIN ALSO JUST STEPPED OUT.
FRANKLIN, UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON? YES.
AND MS. FRANKLIN, WHILE I HAVE YOU, UH, WE WILL PUT YOU ON VIDEO IN A SECOND.
IT'S NOT SHOWING ON THE MAIN SCREEN, BUT I SEE YOU ON MY SCREEN.
I'D LIKE TO COLLECT YOUR VOTE FOR THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
THAT BRINGS US TO TAB SIX, UM, 25, 26, SPECIAL EDUCATION LOCAL PLAN.
UH, WE HAVE THREE PUBLIC COMMENTERS, WHICH WE WILL TAKE BEFORE THE DISCUSSION ON THAT PARTICULAR ITEM, UH, BEGINS.
ARE YOU HERE? I'LL CHECK TO SEE IF MR. MALDONADO IS ONLINE.
UH, AND THEN WE HAVE REMOTE CALLER, ERLINDA.
ERLINDA IS GONNA SPEAK IN SPANISH, SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR WHAT SHE'S SAYING IN ENGLISH, UH, PLEASE PUT ON THESE TRANSLATION HEADSETS OR PUT YOUR HAND UP IF YOU DO NOT YET HAVE ONE.
[02:10:02]
OKAY.ERLINDA MORITA, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
IN SPECIAL EDUCATION, PARENTS ARE NOT HAVING THE NECESSARY HELP.
YOU ARE NOT HELPING TO FILL OUT THE DOCUMENTS IN THE SCHOOLS.
AND THOSE PARENTS DO NOT KNOW HOW TO READ AND WRITE.
I HAVE ASKED FOR THEM FOR ME TO FILL OUT THE ENROLLMENT PAPERWORK AND THEY DON'T HELP THEM.
IT'S BECAUSE SOMETIMES THERE'S A PARENT THAT, UH, A PARENT HAD TAKEN THE STUDENT OUT OF THE HOSPITAL DUE TO A PROBLEM.
AND I WAS SO SENTED TO SEE THE SITUATION THAT THE PARENT WAS GOING THROUGH WITH THEIR CHILD.
I TRIED TO HELP THEM AS MUCH AS I COULD AND WITH THE TIME I HAD, BUT YOU NEED TO PAY ATTENTION AND WHAT, HOW THE DISTRICT IS FAILING AND THE BOARD AND PROVIDE THE HELP AND EDUCATION THAT IS NECESSARY.
RESPECT PARENT VOICES AND THE RIGHTS OF THE STUDENTS.
OUR SCHOOLS ARE NOT BEING, ARE NOT PREPARING THE STUDENTS A HUNDRED PERCENT.
AND WE WANT RESULTS, NOT JUST WORDS IN THE SCHOOLS.
WE WANT OFFICERS FOR OUR STUDENTS AND AVOID DEATHS AND PLEASE LISTEN TO OUR, UH, COMPLAINTS.
AND WE WANT SAFETY IN THE STREETS INSIDE AS WELL AND WHEREVER FOR OUR STUDENTS SO THAT THEY ARE SO IN THE FUTURE THEY CAN BE GOOD PEOPLE FOR SOCIETY.
UP TO SPEAK REMOTELY, BUT I DO NOT SEE YOU ONLINE.
ARE YOU IN THE ROOM? NOMA GONZALEZ.
SO WE HAVE, THAT CONCLUDES THE PUBLIC COMMENT FOR TAB SIX.
AND WE HAVE, UM, BOARD MEMBER GRIEGO WITH QUESTIONS ON TAB SIX.
UM, YEAH, I WANTED TO ASK A FEW QUESTIONS JUST FOR CLARIFICATION OR MORE DETAILS ON, UM, THE REPORT.
AND I'M LOOKING AT TABLE ONE, SPECIAL ED PROJECTOR, REVENUE REPORTING ITEMS D ONE TO D THREE.
AND THERE'S A TABLE AND IT SAYS STATE MENTAL HEALTH, FEDERAL MENTAL HEALTH, UH, REVENUES.
AND IF, CAN YOU JUST EXPLAIN AND, AND DESCRIBE WHERE THIS MONEY GOES TO? SURE.
BOARD PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBERS AND SUPERINTENDENT.
UM, YES, PRIMARILY CERTIFICATED SALARIES SUCH AS PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKERS.
OUR RESOURCE, UH, SPECIALIST TEACHERS, PROGRAM SPECIALISTS.
OUR ERIC'S PROGRAM SPECIALISTS SUPPORT THE WORK WITH OUR N-P-S-M-P-A DEPARTMENT AS WELL WHO WORK UNDER PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES.
SO IS IT STILL REALLY LOUD? THAT'S RIGHT.
UM, SO THIS MONEY GOES DIRECTLY TO, DOES IT GO TO HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES OR TO THE SPECIAL ED DIVISION? TO THE DIVISION OF SPECIAL ED.
AND, UM, THERE'S ALSO, IT SAYS CERTIFICATED SALARY EXPENSES AND, UM, I KNOW THAT THEIR CERTIFICATED SALARIES INCLUDES PROGRAM SPECIALISTS AND OTHER, YOU KNOW, OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOM, NOT JUST SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS.
CAN YOU DESCRIBE WHAT IT ENTAILS? ABSOLUTELY.
SO I'LL GIVE YOU A, THIS IS NOT AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST, BUT I'LL GIVE YOU A CATEGORY.
WE HAVE SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS WOULD MAKE UP 416 MILLION.
UM, WE HAVE RELATED SERVICES PROVIDERS, APIS, UM, CENTRAL REGION AND SPED CENTER, AND MORE ADMIN SUPPORT PROGRAM SPECIALISTS.
WE HAVE, UH, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND ADDITIONAL TIME FOR IEP COVERAGE THAT IS ALSO FUNDED AND PRIVATE SCHOOL SUPPORT, WHICH TOTALS THE $616 MILLION.
AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION I HAVE IS THERE'S A SECTION ON, UH, SERVICES AND OPERATIONS AND OTHER OUTGOING FINANCES.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT GO IN THAT CATEGORY? SO THAT IS A LOT OF THE, UH, CAPITALIZED EQUIPMENT THAT WE PURCHASE FOR OUR STUDENTS, UH, THROUGH RELATED SERVICES.
THAT INCLUDES MOBILITY STANDARDS SUCH AS SUPPLYING GATE TRAINERS, SUPINE PRONE STANDARDS, GATE TRAINERS, THAT CAN INCLUDE I GAZE SYSTEMS, UH, ANYTHING THAT'S OVER $5,000 THAT WE NEED TO PURCHASE FOR OUR STUDENTS AS OUTLINED IN THE IEP.
AND THOUGH, SO THIS IS MONEY THAT COMES INTO US FOR THESE PURPOSES, RIGHT? YES, BUT WE DO, WE ALSO, UM, HAVE TO ALLOCATE FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO SUPPLEMENT SOME OF THIS.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE BREAKDOWN OF, OF THE ACTUAL BUDGET, UM, SEVEN 7.5% IS, UH, FEDERAL FUNDED FOR ABOUT 150 MILLION.
UH, 513 MILLION IS STATE FEDERAL FUND, WHICH MAKES UP ABOUT 25%.
AND THEN THE REST IS LOCALLY CONTRIBUTIONS OF 1.3 BILLION, WHICH MAKES UP ABOUT 67.4% OF THE ACTUAL BUDGET.
SO WE ARE SUPPORTING ALL STUDENTS WITH, WITH THAT FUNDING.
[02:15:03]
ANYONE ELSE FOR ITEM KELLY? MS. GOMEZ? UM, JUST WAS CURIOUS IF THE CAC IN, IN BEING PRESENTED, THE, UM, SELPA HAD ANY, UH, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK THAT WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT? SO WE DID, UH, ENGAGE OUR CAC ALTHOUGH THIS, THIS PART OF THE PROCESS EVERY YEAR DOES NOT REQUIRE CAC, UH, SIGNATURE TO SUBMIT IN AN EFFORT TO BE PARTNERS WITH THE WORK AND TRANSPARENT WITH THE CAC.WE DID PROVIDE, LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE PROGRAM, UH, DESCRIPTIONS THROUGH ME AT MEETINGS, AND THEN WE ACTUALLY PROVIDED THEM A COPY OF THE BUDGET AND WE LET THEM PROVIDE FEEDBACK.
UH, WE DID INFORM THEM THAT THERE WOULD BE MINIMAL CHANGES.
BASICALLY THE CERTIFICATION UPDATES OF, OF PEOPLE WHO REVIEWED THE PLAN.
UM, THERE WAS MINIMAL FEEDBACK FROM THEM.
BUT ANY FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVE WHERE WE, WE STORE AND WE KEEP, BECAUSE WE ARE GONNA DO THE FULL EVALUATION NEXT YEAR, AND THAT'LL HELP US NEXT YEAR AS WE START PLANNING TO REVISE THE SALPA PLAN.
UM, ANY MORE QUESTIONS ON THE ITEM? ALL RIGHT.
YOU MAY HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND FOR TAB SIX.
MS. NEWBELL, YOU GOT THAT? YOU GOT THAT SECOND? OKAY.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON? YES.
THAT'S ONE, TWO, AT LEAST FOUR.
SO I'LL COME BACK TO DR. RIVAS, MR. MELVOIN, AND MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN FOR THEIR VOTES ON TAB SIX.
THE NEXT DISCUSSION ITEM IS TAB SEVEN.
WE DON'T HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THAT.
UH, DR. RIVAS HAD SOME QUESTIONS.
UM, AND RIGHT ON CUE, DR. RIVAS IS, IS COMING OUT HAVING JUST EATEN A NICE BIT OF LUNCH, I'M SURE.
AND, UH, AS DR. RIVAS IS SETTLING IN, I'LL ASK HER IF SHE WOULD LIKE TO RECORD HER VOTE ON TAB ONE.
AND THEN, UH, TAB THREE? UH, YES, THAT IS A YES.
AND NOW WE'RE ON TAB SEVEN WITH, UH, YOUR QUESTIONS.
UM, WELL, MY, I I AM I AM VOTING YES ON THIS.
I JUST HAD, UM, SOME QUESTIONS 'CAUSE I FOUND IT INTERESTING, UM, THE RATIONALE FOR THE SCHOOL TO WANT TO CHANGE ITS NAME.
UM, ONE SECOND AS I GET TO THIS ONE.
SO IT MENTIONED THAT THE, THE PARENTS, THE FACULTY AND STUDENTS AS WELL WANTED A CHANGE BECAUSE OF, UM, YOU KNOW, FOLKS WHO DID NOT KNOW THE, ABOUT THE SCHOOL THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY IS AN L-A-U-S-D SCHOOL.
BUT BECAUSE THEY HAD THE NAME CHARTER, OH, I'M SORRY.
IS THIS THE WRONG ONE? THAT'S ITEM EIGHT.
THIS IS, UH, SOLIS ITEM SEVEN.
BUT I HAD QUESTIONS ON ITEM SEVEN.
ITS B YEAH, I HAD PULLED THAT ONE OUT.
SEVEN IS HESS B EIGHT IS BOYLE HEIGHTS.
I HAVE NO QUESTIONS FOR BOYLE HEIGHTS, BUT I HAD ONE FOR SO MUCH.
SO IN ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION, OUR UNDERSTANDING FROM THE COMMUNITY IS THAT THEY BELIEVED THAT THERE WAS A PERCEPTION FROM THE LARGER COMMUNITY THAT THIS SCHOOL WAS NOT IN FACT AFFILIATED WITH LUSD BECAUSE IT HAD CHARTER IN THE NAME.
AND SO THEREFORE, WHAT THEY WANTED TO DO WAS TO PULL CHART THE WORD CHARTER.
BECAUSE TO BE CLEAR, THERE'S ALSO AN AUTHORIZATION COMING FORWARD, A RENEWAL AUTHORIZATION COMING A FEW ITEMS, UH, DOWN THE ROAD BY MR. JOSE COLE.
SO THEY WILL CONTINUE TO BE AN AFFILIATED CHARTER, BUT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE NAME, THEY'RE GOING TO GO WITH HEADS B OAKS LEADERSHIP ACADEMY.
SO, UM, MY QUESTION, SO THE, THE REASON THEY WANTED TO CHANGE THEIR NAME WAS BECAUSE I WONDER IF WERE THEY EXPERIENCING, UM, LOW ENROLLMENT? WERE FAMILIES COMING IN? I JUST WANTED TO SEE LIKE THE BACKGROUND AS TO WHAT LED TO THE CHANGE FROM OUR UNDERSTANDING IN TALKING TO THE COMMUNITY, PARTICULARLY ADMINISTRATION, THERE WAS SOME CONFUSION FROM PROSPECTIVE PARENTS ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT IT WAS AN L-A-U-S-D SCHOOL OR NOT.
THAT SAID, THERE DIDN'T SEEM TO BE NECESSARILY AN IMPACT ON ENROLLMENT PER SE.
IT'S JUST WHAT THE EXTERNAL SORT OF THE, THE, THE OPTICS OF THE SCHOOL, AND THAT'S WHERE THEY WANTED TO CHANGE IT.
RES, UM, DO YOU KNOW OF ANY OTHER CHARTERS, AFFILIATED CHARTERS THAT ALSO MAYBE,
[02:20:02]
UM, EXPERIENCING THE SAME SORT OF, UM, WE, WE WENT BACK AND LOOKED, I THINK IT WAS A QUESTION.IT, IT MAY HAVE BEEN FROM YOU OR FROM ANOTHER BOARD MEMBER ABOUT OTHER CHARTERS THAT HAVE DONE THIS SAME PROCESS OF REMOVING THE WORD CHARTER FROM THEIR NAME.
WE FOUND ABOUT FOUR, INCLUDING, UH, ONE, UH, THAT USED TO BE CALLED MILLIKEN MIDDLE SCHOOL, WHICH WAS AN AFFILIATED CHARTERS.
NOW LOUIS ARMSTRONG, I CAN'T SPEAK TO THE WHY THERE.
UM, BUT AGAIN, THIS ONE SPECIFICALLY SAID THAT WAS THEIR KEY RATIONALE.
UM, DO YOU FORESEE ANY OF MORE CHARTER, UH, AFFILIATED CHARTERS MAY WANTING TO CHANGE THAT BECAUSE OF THE OPTICS? I JUST FOUND IT INTERESTING IN PECULIAR THAT, THAT THAT'S, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE AS YOU HEARD EARLIER, AFFILIATED CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE, YOU KNOW, UM, VERY SOUGHT AFTER AND THEY HAVE HIGH ENROLLMENT, VERY DESIRABLE.
AND FOR THIS PARTICULAR SCHOOL, THEY SORT OF FELT LIKE THAT WAS THE OPPOSITE OF IT.
THAT, YOU KNOW, UM, FOLKS, PARENTS WHO WERE INTERESTED, UM, THOUGHT THAT IT WAS AN INDEPENDENT, NON-AFFILIATED, THEN WANTED AN AFFILIATED.
SO I JUST THOUGHT THAT WAS INTERESTING.
I JUST WANTED TO GET MORE BACKGROUND ON, UM, THIS PARTICULAR EXPERIENCE.
WE'RE NOT AWARE OF ANY OTHER SCHOOLS THAT ARE CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING THAT SAME PHENOMENON, BUT CERTAINLY WE CAN LOOK INTO IT.
JUST WITH THAT SAME SCHOOL, HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN IN EXISTENCE? I, I WOULD HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK, BUT HESBY OAKS IS NOT AN, I, I LIVE IN THE GENERAL AREA.
HESBY OAKS HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE, I WANNA SAY AT LEAST THE SIXTIES OR SEVENTIES.
BUT WHEN DID IT BECOME AN AFFILIATE CHARTER? I'D HAVE TO GO BACK AND CHECK.
BUT IT'S BEEN A DISTRICT SCHOOL FOR A LONG TIME.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON TAB SEVEN? OKAY.
UH, MAY I HAVE A, UM, MOTION TO HEAR IT? ACTUALLY, TAB SEVEN, MOVE IT BY MR. SCHON, SECONDED BY DR. RIVAS.
MS. EZ, MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN FOR PRESIDENT? YES.
AND STUDENT BOARD CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
SO THAT'S FOUR, FOUR BOARD MEMBER YESES.
SO WE'LL RETURN TO MR. MELVOIN, UH, MS. EZ AND MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN FOR THEIR VOTES.
UH, AND WHAT WAS YOUR VOTE? I'M SORRY.
OKAY, WE'LL COME BACK FOR, UH, MR. MALVO AND MS. EZ.
[8. Board of Education Report No. 355-24/25]
TAB EIGHT.UM, CAN I HAVE SOMEONE MOVE AND, UH, GET A SECOND FOR THIS ONE BIT? MOVED BY MR. MOLSON SECOND, SECONDED BY MS. NEW BILL.
WE HAVE THREE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC MAKING PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM, SO I WILL GO TO THAT RIGHT NOW.
IN PERSON, IS EMMANUEL HERE? UH, LEO OR LEO? OH, AND UH, LET'S SEE.
GARCIA, ARE YOU IN THE ROOM? MS. GARCIA IS NOT ONLINE.
SO NONE OF THE PUBLIC SPEAKERS ARE HERE.
AND I BELIEVE WE HAD SOME BOARD DISCUSSION ON TAB EIGHT.
UH, HAD A QUESTION JUST IN REGARDS TO THE CURRENT CAMPUS THAT THE SCHOOL IS AT.
LIKE, WHAT'S ON THE CAMPUS? IS THERE A MIDDLE SCHOOL ON THE CAMPUS? IS THERE A CO-LOCATION ON THIS SITE? IS THIS A FIELD OF STUDENTS? YES.
NO, NO, IT'S A, THEY'RE BOTH HIGH SCHOOLS.
SO THERE WAS A BOYLE HEIGHTS STEM MAGNET THAT WAS IN BOYLE HEIGHTS, AND THEY WERE CO-LOCATED IN HOLBECK.
AND THEN THERE WAS A HILDA SISE, UH, MAGNET PILOT SCHOOL.
AND, UM, NO, IT WAS THE HILDA SISE SCHOOL.
RESIDENTIAL RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL.
AND THEN, SO WILL HEIGHTS NEEDED A HOME.
AND SO THEY MERGED, THEY CONSOLIDATED BOTH HIGH SCHOOLS.
SO THERE'S TWO DIFFERENT HIGH SCHOOLS IN THIS LEARNING COMPLEX.
THERE'S NOT A MIDDLE SCHOOL, SO TWO HIGH SCHOOLS ON THE COMPLEX WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF HOW MANY ON EACH HIGH SCHOOL.
WE HAVE THE PRINCIPAL VICE PRINCIPALS HERE IF THEY WANNA, CAN COME UP AND SPEAK.
HI, MY NAME IS JESSICA CORA, ONE OF OUR COORDINATORS ALONG WITH AN RIO, ALSO
[02:25:01]
A COORDINATOR.SO WE HAVE A MAGNET WITH ABOUT AN ENROLLMENT OF, OF ABOUT 1 30, 1 35.
AND THEN THE RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL, WHICH IS THE OTHER HALF.
SO A TOTAL OF TWO 60 STUDENTS.
SO TWO 60, SO THAT'S ONE SCHOOL OF THE TWO ON THE COMPLEX, IS THAT CORRECT? WHERE ONE HIGH SCHOOL.
SO LAST YEAR, UM, THE ELISE CAMPUS WAS CLOSED.
OUR SCHOOL MOVED INTO THIS CAMPUS AND WE, I LIKE TO SAY INHALED THE STUDENTS THAT WERE THERE.
AND SO NOW WE'RE CURRENTLY ONE HIGH SCHOOL NAMED BOYLE HEIGHTS.
AND SO THEN THE ASK IS TO CHANGE THE NAME TO EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL WOULD BE THE RESIDENTIAL, AND THEN THE MAGNET WOULD BE EAST SIDE STEM MAGNET.
SO EAST SIDE WOULD BE THE HIGH SCHOOL, AND THEN THE MAGNET WOULD BE EAST SIDE STEM MAGNET MAGNET.
JUST TRYING TO MAKE SOME CLARITY THERE.
AND JUST, YOU KNOW, WAS THINKING, WAS THERE A MIDDLE SCHOOL THERE? WAS THERE NOT A SCHOOL THERE? THIS IS ALL HIGH SCHOOL.
ALL HIGH SCHOOL WITH APPROXIMATELY ABOUT 260 STUDENTS.
SOME MAGNET, SOME RESIDENT COMMUNITY SCHOOL.
UH, WELL, SINCE, UM, I HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO JUST VOICE MY STRONG SUPPORT FOR THIS, UH, RENAMING, UH, WHICH PROPOSES RENAMING BOTH HEIGHTS, HILDA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL TO EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL AT HILDA SOLES LEARNING COMPLEX.
SO, UM, THE NAME, UH, CHANGE REFLECTS BOTH A PHYSICAL AND SYMBOLIC SHIFT WITH SCHOOL, UH, WITH THE SCHOOL'S RELOCATION TO HILDA SOLI LEARNING COMPLEX.
THE COMMUNITY HAS GAINED AN EXPANDED HOME FOR ACADEMIC GROWTH, ESPECIALLY STEM, AND A RENEWED OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE BROADER CROSS-SECTION OF EAST LOS ANGELES, EAST SIDE LOS ANGELES.
THE RENAMING PROCESS WAS THOUGHTFUL AND INCLUSIVE IN FULL ALIGNMENT WITH LAD'S POLICY ON RENA NAMING AND RENAMING SCHOOLS.
AND I WANNA THANK THE STUDENTS, THE PARENTS, THE STAFF AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN A VERY MEANINGFUL WAY.
EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL AT HILDA SALI LEARNING COMPLEX BEST HONORS, BOTH LOCAL IDENTITY OF THE EAST SIDE AND THE LEGACY OF NATIONAL LEADER SUPERVISOR HILDA SOLI.
SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
IF ANYONE ELSE HAD ANY QUESTIONS, THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
IT'S ALREADY BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED.
MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN BACK TO MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN, UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON? YES.
STUDENT BOARD MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
UH, AND MR. NICK MELVOIN FOR TAB EIGHT? TAB EIGHT, NAMING OF BOYLE HEIGHTS HILL FACILITIES? YES.
AND CAN I RECORD MY VOTES FOR A FEW OTHERS THAT I MISSED? YES.
AND THEN WE HAVE, UH, TAB SIX.
AND TAB THREE? PROBABLY YES, CORRECT.
THAT'S ALL I HAVE MISSING FOR YOU.
OKAY, SO THAT WAS FOR TAB EIGHT.
ALRIGHT, MOVING ON TO DISCUSSION FOUR, TAB 10, APPROVAL OF PROCUREMENT ACTIONS.
I THINK I HAVE A NOTE ON THIS ABOUT AN ITEM THAT HAS BEEN PULLED UP.
TAB 10, ATTACHMENT B, UH, ITEM AA, I BELIEVE.
LET ME MAKE SURE THAT I'M ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
SO TAB 10, ATTACHMENT B, ITEM AA HAS BEEN, UH, PULLED.
SO YOU WILL NOT BE VOTING ON THAT ITEM.
CAN YOU REPEAT THAT AGAIN? SO, UM, TAB 10, ATTACHMENT B, ITEM AA IS NOT UP FOR VOTE OR DISCUSSION TODAY HAS BEEN, IT HAS BEEN REMOVED, UH, FROM CONSIDERATION.
[10. Board of Education Report No. 325-24/25 Procurement Services Division (Approval of Procurement Actions) Recommends the ratification of the contract actions taken by the Procurement Services Division within delegated authority as listed in Attachment “A” to include the approval of award of Professional Service Contracts not exceeding $250,000: New Contracts; Contract Amendment; Contract Assignments; and Purchase Orders; Goods and General Services: District Card Transactions; Rental of Facilities; Travel/Conference Attendance; General Stores Distribution Center; Book Instructional Material Purchase Orders; and approval of Professional Service Contracts (exceeding $250,000): New Contracts; Goods and General Services Contracts (exceeding $250,000): New Contracts; and Piggyback Contracts as listed on Attachment “B” ; and Certification of federal micro-purchase threshold for calendar years 2024/2025 as listed on Attachment “C.”]
A LOT OF QUESTIONS ON PROCUREMENT.VOSS, MR. MOLSON, MS. REGO, AND MS. GOONA ALL HAVING QUESTIONS ON PROCUREMENT.
SO WHAT WAS THE AA ITEM NAME? I'LL LOOK, I THINK SOMETHING ABOUT ZOOM.
UM, MY QUESTION IS ON ITEM DD AMAZON WEB
[02:30:01]
SERVICES, PAGE 2 68, 20 $7 MILLION.SO I BELIEVE THAT THIS IS NOT PRECISELY ON CLOUD HOSTING SERVICES, BUT IT HAS TO DO WITH ONLINE SECURITY.
UM, AND I'D LIKE TO KNOW, MY QUESTION IS, HAS THE DISTRICT MADE ANY PROGRESS IN CONSIDERING HIRING $27 MILLION FOR ONE OR TWO CYBER SECURITY ENGINEERS PERMANENTLY AS OPPOSED TO CONTRACTING IT OUT ANNUALLY? SO THAT WOULD BE MY QUESTION.
HAS THE DISTRICT MADE ANY PROGRESS IN CONSIDERING HIRING ONE OR TWO CYBERSECURITY ENGINEERS PERMANENTLY AS OPPOSED TO CONTRACTING IT OUT ANNUALLY? GOING TO ASK OUR CIO SO COME AND SPEAK.
UM, I JUST, UH, SINCE I GOT HERE IS AWS UH, OMNIA CONTRACT.
UM, SO OMNIA CONTRACT IS TO PROVIDE HOSTING SERVICES FOR OUR SERVICES THAT WE ALREADY RUNNING ON DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENT, EITHER ON-PREM OR IN THE CLOUD.
WHO IS NEXT? YES, I'LL GO ITEM D, THE CARE SOLACE INC.
IT'S GONNA BE HERE FOR THE CARE SOLACE.
UM, I WAS JUST INTERESTED IN SORT OF THE IMPETUS FOR STARTING THIS ONE YEAR PILOT PROGRAM.
WHAT, UM, BROUGHT THIS UPON AND WHAT DO WE EXPECT TO LEARN AFTER THE ONE YEAR PILOT PROGRAM? I KNOW THAT THE, THEY'RE PRIORITIZING, UM, TO PROVIDE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR PRI PRIORITY SCHOOLS, CONTINUATION HIGH SCHOOLS, AND WHAT WAS THE OTHER ONE? THE VIRTUAL ACADEMIES.
SO I JUST WANTED TO KNOW WHAT PROMPTED PROMPTED THIS, UH, THIS ONE PILOT PROGRAM? YEAH, SO WE, WE FELT THAT THERE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TIER THREE SUPPORTS, UM, THAT TEND TO BE A LITTLE MORE INTENSIVE TO HAVE A CASE MANAGEMENT MECHANISM WHERE WHEN WE MAKE REFERRALS TO THIRD PARTIES WHO PROVIDE, YOU KNOW, IN-PERSON COUNSELING SERVICES ON ONLINE OR VIRTUAL COUNSELING SERVICES, UH, CAROLE HAS THIS EXPERIENCE AND BRINGING RESOURCES TO OUR PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKERS, OUR PUPIL SERVICES AND ATTENDANCE COUNSELORS AS THEY'RE MAKING REFERRALS FOR FAMILIES.
AND SO AS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT THE ENVELOPE OF MENTAL HEALTH, TELE MENTAL HEALTH, TELE PHYSICAL HEALTH, THIS IS THAT NEXT TIER OF SUPPORT THAT WE HOPE THAT WILL BRING SOME, I WOULD SAY MORE WELL-ROUNDED SERVICES FOR OUR FAMILIES.
AND WILL ALSO, THESE SCHOOLS ALSO HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO, UM, SEEK OR HAVE REFERRALS FOR THE OTHER EXISTING LEUC MENTAL HEALTH THAT ARE YES.
SORT OF MORE, I, YEAH, THAT THERE ARE MULTIPLE TIERS.
SO YOUR TIER ONE AND TWO, WHICH TEND TO BE MORE LOW TOUCH AND MORE INITIATED BY FAMILIES OR, OR COUNSELORS.
THIS IS A GENERALLY MORE INTENSIVE SUPPORT.
UM, BUT YEAH, SO IT'S PART OF THE, I WOULD SAY THE TOOLS THAT SCHOOLS WILL HAVE.
AND HOW WILL THE SUCCESS OF THE ONE YEAR PROGRAM BE EVALUATED TO DETERMINE ITS POTENTIAL OR SUCCESS? YEAH, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS JUST OVERALL PARTICIPATION, UM, REFERRAL CONVERSIONS.
UM, SO SOMETIMES WE REFER, WE CONNECT FAMILIES, BUT DOESN'T CONVERT INTO THERAPY SESSIONS AND SUPPORTS.
THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE WANT TO LOOK AT JUST IN TERMS OF DOES IT MEET, YOU KNOW, FAMILY DESIRES, DEMAND, AND ARE THEY ACTUALLY FOLLOWING THROUGH ON KIND OF THE PROMISE OF SERVICES? WILL YOU ALSO SURVEY THE STUDENTS THAT WERE, THAT SAW THAT WERE ABLE TO GAIN SUPPORT? OKAY.
I ALSO HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT ITEM D.
UM, SO IF I, IF I'M UNDERSTANDING IT CORRECTLY, IT'S A REFERRAL SERVICE.
SO WHO'S GONNA BE MAKING THE REFERRALS AT THE PILOT SCHOOLS, CONTINUATION SCHOOLS, AND, UM, VIRTUAL ACADEMY? WHO IS THE PERSON CHARGED WITH THAT? HI, GOOD AFTERNOON.
JOEL CISNEROS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WITH STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS SERVICES.
SO IT WILL BE PRETTY MUCH ANYONE AT THAT SCHOOL SITE OR PARENTS THEMSELVES? SO ESSENTIALLY, PRIMARILY RIGHT NOW WHAT WE'VE DONE IN OUR LAUNCHING, WE STARTED WORKING WITH OUR PSW, OUR PSAS, OUR HEALTHY START NAVIGATORS COUNSELORS, AND THEY CAN BE THE FIRST SOURCE OF REFERRAL.
AFTER THAT WE CAN HAVE, UM, ALSO PARENTS AS WELL.
AND, UM, DO THESE REFERRAL PLACES, ARE THEY, UH, EX
[02:35:01]
UH, DO STUDENTS NEED TO HAVE MEDI-CAL INSURANCE? HOW WILL WE KNOW IF IT'LL MEET, UH, THE STUDENTS NEED, IF THEY DON'T HAVE ANY OF THOSE SUPPORT? IT'S AVAILABLE FOR ALL.SO WHAT THE PARTNER WILL DO IS WORK WITH THE FAMILY TO IDENTIFY WHATEVER NEEDS THAT THEY HAVE.
SO IF THE FAMILIES HAVE MEDI-CAL, THEN THEY'LL WORK WITH THE MEDI-CAL OPTIONS.
IF THEY HAVE PRIVATE INSURANCE, THEY'LL WORK WITH THEM AND THEY'LL LOOK IN ANY OTHER, YOU KNOW, IN BETWEEN.
SO IF THEY WANT TO DO REDUCED COSTS, THEY CAN DO THAT.
BUT THEY WILL ASSESS ESSENTIALLY KIND OF THOSE, THOSE NEEDS.
CARE SOLIS IS GONNA BE DOING THIS.
AND THEN, UM, WILL, WHO WILL HELP THE FAMILIES SUBMIT PAPERWORK, FILL OUT PAPERWORK.
I KNOW THAT A LOT OF OUR PS WS DO THAT WORK RIGHT NOW WHEN THEY'RE MAKING REFERRALS.
BUT IF IT'S, IF IT'S A PARENT CALLING CARLAS, WHO WILL BE THE PERSON WHO WILL SUPPORT THEM WITH PAPERWORK IF THEY NEED IT.
SO AT THAT POINT, ESSENTIALLY WHAT THE ROLE OF OUR STAFF WILL BE TO CONNECT THEM TO CARLAS AND THEY WON'T ENGAGE IN THAT BACK AND FORTH OF COMPLETING PAPERWORK BECAUSE AT THAT POINT IT IS KIND OF A FUNCTION OF CAR SOLACE AND WORKING DIRECTLY WITH THE PARENT.
UH, SO THAT'S WHERE WE WILL SUPPORT AS MUCH AS WE CAN, BUT ESSENTIALLY IT'S A HANDOFF TO, TO THE PARTNER.
OKAY, SO IN THIS, WE'VE BEEN USING THIS, THIS SERVICE ALREADY? WE HAVE NOT.
OH, WE HAVE NOT BEEN USING IT.
AND UM, BUT IT'S NOT NECESSARILY GOING TO BE USED AT SCHOOLS WHERE THERE ARE NO PWS, IT'S NOT GONNA REPLACE A PSW.
THIS IS REALLY MEANT TO, TO SUPPLEMENT ANY, ALL OF THE WORK, UH, THAT WE HAVE AT, WE KNOW FOR ALL OF OUR, UH, STAFF, ACTUALLY, WHEN WE MET WITH STAFF PSW AND NAVIGATORS, THEY WELCOMED THIS AS A, AN ADDED RESOURCE FOR THEM AS THEY'RE TRYING TO HELP FAMILIES GET CONNECTED TO ESSENTIALLY 24 7 YEAR ROUND SUPPORT.
'CAUSE THAT, THAT, THAT'S REALLY KIND OF THE BIG, THE BIG PIECE.
ALRIGHT, WELL, UH, WHEN WILL WE KNOW HOW THIS IS WORKING FOR OUR STUDENTS? WHAT IS A TIMELINE FOR US TO HEAR BACK? WE CAN CERTAINLY COME UP WITH A KIND OF A GOOD CADENCE TO REPORT BACK OUT.
SO WE LAUNCHED ABOUT THREE OR FOUR WEEKS AGO.
WE'VE DONE A LOT OF THE TRAINING.
WE'RE BEGINNING TO START TRACKING, UH, ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES.
WE HAVE VERY STRICT METRICS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, LOOKING AT ESSENTIALLY NUMBER OF REFERRALS, HOW MANY OF THOSE REFERRALS HAVE ACTUALLY BECOME, CONNECT THOSE FAMILIES CONNECTED TO A RESOURCE.
WE'RE ALSO INSTITUTING FEEDBACK FROM OUR STAFF BECAUSE WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING INPUT FROM THEM.
UH, ARE THEY GETTING SATISFACTION SURVEYS AS WELL.
AND YOU JUST MENTIONED TRAINING.
WHO HAVE YOU TRAINED ON THIS? OUR PWS, OUR PWS, UH, PSAS, OUR HEALTHY START NAVIGATORS.
AND THE NEXT WAVE IS TO KIND OF CONTINUE WORKING WITH OUR NURSES AND ESSENTIALLY ALL OF THOSE ADDED CLASSROOM PERSONNEL.
AND WE'RE ALSO EMAILING AND CONNECTING WITH LEADERSHIP AT THOSE SITES.
OH, IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT ON THIS SIDE.
I DON'T KNOW IF YOUR QUESTION'S ON THIS ONE.
YEAH, IT'S ON, UH, OVERALL MENTAL HEALTH BECAUSE I ALSO SEE ON ITEM I, WHICH I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION ON ITEM I, BUT THERE ARE, UM, WE HAVE NN KEY HEALTH SERVICES IN THE GUARDIAN CENTER.
SO IT'D BE GOOD FOR, UM, IF YOU COULD PROVIDE LIKE A LIST OF ALL THE MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTS THAT ARE SUPPLEMENTAL BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, UM, WE, WE, YOU KNOW, GET REQUESTS FROM OUR SCHOOLS OR ALSO FROM PARENTS AND, AND STUDENTS OR EVEN ALSO TEACHERS THAT OF MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTS THAT THEY NEED ADDITIONAL.
SO IF WE HAD LIKE A LIST OF ALL OF THEM AND WHERE, UM, I KNOW FOR THIS ONE IS BEING PRIORITIZED FOR THESE, YOU KNOW, UH, TYPE OF SCHOOLS.
BUT, UM, ALL THE OTHER MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTS 'CAUSE WE'RE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT WE'RE, UM, APPROVING A LOT OF CONTRACTS AND MOUS, SO IT'D BE GOOD TO KNOW ALL, LIKE A WHOLE ENTIRE LIST OF THEM.
SO THAT'S JUST SO WE HAVE AND CAN SORT OF REFER FOLKS AS LIKE, WELL HERE IT IS.
OR ALSO REFER THEM TO YOU OF COURSE.
BUT IF WE CAN PRO, WE KNOW ALL OF THE, YOU KNOW, SORT OF THE MOUS AND CONTRACTS THAT WE HAVE.
AND THE AN IS UNDER OUR NO-COST AGREEMENT, SO WE'LL CERTAINLY, AND I THINK OUR TEAM IS WORKING ON, ON UPDATING OUR WEBSITE REGULARLY WHERE WE HAVE ALL OF OUR NO-COST PROVIDERS, BUT, BUT YES, THAT'D BE GREAT.
GO, GO AHEAD, UH, MS WITH THAT AND, UM, AS YOU UPDATE YOUR WEBSITE, IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THAT'S CONNECTED TO OUR PARENT PORTAL WHERE OUR PARENTS CAN SEE THAT OR FAMILIES CAN SEE THAT? WE CAN CERTAINLY EXPLORE THAT, THAT, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A REALLY GOOD IDEA.
AND SEE IF THERE'S A WAY I'LL WORK WITH THE ITS TEAM AND SEE IF THERE'S A WAY TO UPDATE THAT.
YEAH, JUST WANTED TO KNOW, JUST TRYING TO MAKE AS MANY AVENUES FOR OUR FAMILIES TO BE ABLE TO, BECAUSE CURRENTLY WE DO HAVE ON PARENT PORTAL ACCESS TO OUR, NO, OUR NOCO TELEMENTAL HEALTH, AND THAT'S A GOOD PATHWAY WHERE WE
[02:40:01]
ACTUALLY A LOT OF PARENTS ACCESS RESOURCES.BUT WHAT I'M HEARING YOU SAY IS MORE OF A LIST THAT LIVES IN PARENT PORTAL.
SO I'LL CIRCLE BACK WITH ITS ON THAT.
OKAY, MS. GONI, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
UM, I HAVE A QUESTION ON ITEM E AND I THINK, UM, MR. MOUNT IS HERE TO, TO HELP WITH THAT ONE.
UM, BUT IT'S A CONTRACT WITH SCHOOL SERVICES OF CALIFORNIA FOR, UH, COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE DISTRICT STAFFING PATTERNS.
AND I WAS JUST WONDERING IF YOU COULD EXPOUND UPON WHAT WE EXPECT TO, TO GLEAN WHAT INFORMATION WE EXPECT TO GLEAN THAT WE CAN'T ALREADY FIND OUT, UM, AS A RESULT OF THIS STUDY.
AND IS IT SIMPLY A COMPARISON TO STAFFING IN OTHER DISTRICTS? ARE WE LOOKING AT, UM, NORMS OR BENCHMARKS OR GUIDELINES AROUND WHAT STAFFING LEVELS ARE MOST APPROPRIATE FOR STUDENT SUCCESS? YES.
SO THIS IS ACTUALLY PER BOARD REQUEST.
SO THE, EARLIER THIS PAST YEAR, THE BOARD ASKED FOR COMPARISONS IN CALIFORNIA OF OTHER LARGE, UH, URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT HAD SIMILAR STUDENT PATTERNS OF ENROLLMENT.
UH, SO SIMILAR UPP, UH, URBAN SETTINGS, UH, THAT WERE ALSO CONSIDERED ACADEMICALLY SUCCESSFUL BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IN ITS, ITS, YOU KNOW, ADMITTEDLY, UH, LIMITED, UH, ASSESSMENT OF THOSE SITES, BUT WHAT WERE THEIR STAFFING PATTERNS? UH, AND SO, UH, IT'S TAKEN US A WHILE TO FIND SOMEBODY THAT WILL ACTUALLY DO THAT WORK.
IT TURNS OUT THAT THERE IS NO ONE OTHER THAN SSC THAT DOES THAT WORK IN CALIFORNIA.
IT REQUIRES THAT THEY DO DATA ANALYSIS AS WELL AS, UH, VISIT SCHOOL SITES.
UM, THEY'RE CHOOSING, UH, OF THE 15 LARGEST DISTRICTS, THEY'RE GONNA CHOOSE SEVEN OF THE 14 BESIDES OURSELVES.
UH, AND THEY ARE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT STAFFING PATTERNS AT SCHOOL SITES.
SO THIS EXCLUDES CENTRAL OPERATIONS BECAUSE OUR CENTRAL OPERATIONS IS UNLIKE ANYTHING ELSE THAT THEY CAN COMPARE IT TO IN THE STATE, BUT THEY CAN COMPARE HIGH SCHOOL, MIDDLE SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY STAFFING PATTERNS FOR THE BOARD.
THE OTHER REASON FOR HAVING, THERE'S ACTUALLY TWO STUDIES PENDING.
THERE'S THIS ONE, WHICH IS CALIFORNIA SPECIFIC, WHICH COMPARES A BIT MORE APPLES TO APPLES BECAUSE OF THE, THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND THE EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK OF CALIFORNIA.
UH, BUT WE ARE ALSO ENGAGED IN A CONVERSATION WITH GREAT CITY SCHOOLS IF THEY TOO WOULD BE ABLE AND WILLING TO DO THIS TYPE OF WORK FOR SOME OF THE LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICTS NATIONALLY, WHICH AREN'T QUITE AS APPLES TO APPLES, BUT THEY COMPARE MORE DIRECTLY IN SIZE.
AND WITH REGARD TO THE KIND OF EXCLUSION OF THE CENTRAL OFFICE COMPONENT, IS THAT A DECISION THAT'S ALREADY BEEN MADE? LIKE HAS THAT SCOPE BEEN FINALIZED OR IS IT POSSIBLE BECAUSE I THINK, UH, EVEN THOUGH THE SIZE IS NOT EXEC, LIKE THE PERCENTAGE MAY BE, MAY THE PERCENTAGE OF STAFF THAT ARE NOT DIRECTLY AT SCHOOL SITES MIGHT, MIGHT BE AN IMPORTANT THING THAT WE WANNA TAKE A LOOK AT IT.
IT IS, UH, THE WORK HAS BEEN DECLINED, UH, BECAUSE OF THE COMPLEXITY OF OUR, UH, CATEGORIES OF EMPLOYEES AND HOW MANY WE HAVE AND HOW DIFFERENT THEY ARE AND HOW MUCH THEY VARY, UH, FROM THE REST OF CALIFORNIA.
UH, THE WORK WAS CONSIDERED, UH, NOT ABLE TO BE PERFORMED.
WHAT WE CAN DO IS WE CAN LOOK JUST GROSSLY AT THE FOLKS THAT DO NOT WORK AT SCHOOL SITES AND OTHER DISTRICTS, BUT THEIR CATEGORIES AND THEIR, THEIR PATTERN, UH, THEY CAN'T MAKE A MATCH TO IT FOR US.
SO THE, THE WORK WAS ACTUALLY REQUESTED AND WAS DECLINED.
AND THEN CAN YOU SPEAK TO, UH, LIKE THE WRITTEN REPORT THAT EXPECT THAT IS EXPECTED TO BE PRODUCED, WILL THAT BE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE? AND HOW DO YOU EXPECT THAT THIS WILL, UM, BE INCLUDED AS PART OF OUR BUDGET DELIBERATIONS THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR? THE REPORT WAS COMMISSIONED SPECIFICALLY FOR THE BOARD, SO IT WILL BE AVAILABLE TO THE BOARD, UH, IF THE BOARD WOULD LIKE TO POST IT SOMEWHERE THAT'S REALLY AT THE DISCRETION OF THE BOARD.
UH, WE ARE LOOKING FOR A DRAFT.
I'M SEEING IF NOPE, I'M BY MYSELF.
UH, SO THE DRAFT IS DUE AT THE, UH, BEGINNING OF OCTOBER.
UH, AND WE HAVE BEEN PUSHING HARD INITIALLY THEY SAID NOT UNTIL DECEMBER, BUT I WANT IT BY THE OCTOBER FOR THE BOARD, UH, TO BEGIN OUR CONVERSATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 27 SO THAT THE BOARD HAS THAT DATA BECAUSE I HEARD YOU LOUD AND CLEAR THAT WITHOUT A COMPARISON, IT'S A REALLY, YOU'RE HAVING A CONVERSATION WITHOUT NECESSARY DATA.
SO WE'RE DOING WHAT WE CAN TO GET YOU THAT DATA IN A TIMELY FASHION.
THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS ON THAT ONE.
IT LOOKS LIKE MAYBE SOMEONE ELSE HAS QUESTIONS.
YEAH, THERE'S ONE QUESTION THAT POPPED UP FOR ME.
UM, WILL THERE BE ANY STAKEHOLDER INPUT, PARTICULARLY WHERE THE LABOR PARTNERS IN, IN THIS STUDY? UH, NO.
SO THEY ARE JUST, THEY ARE JUST LOOKING AT OUR DIFFERENT SCHOOLS AND TYPES OF SCHOOLS AND THEY'RE PROVIDING A COMPARISON, UH, TO OTHER SCHOOLS AND TYPES OF SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT THE STATE, UH, THAT THAT MATCH OUR STUDENT PROFILE AND THAT THEY'RE URBAN.
UH, SO THERE'S NO, IT, IT'S SIMPLY A DATA ANALYSIS AND THEN A LOT OF INTERVIEWING CONFIRMATION WITH DISTRICTS.
AND THE REASON SSC IS THE ONLY FOLKS, UH, THAT IS THE ONLY COMPANY THAT SEEMS TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS WORK IS, FIRST OF ALL, IT'S VERY COMPLEX.
SECONDLY, THEY HAVE ACCESS TO EVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE STATE AND A RELATIONSHIP WITH ALL OF THEM BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT THEY DO.
[02:45:01]
OF OUR STATE GOVERNMENT, UH, FROM THE 1970S.UH, AND SO THEY HAVE ACCESS AND THEY, THEY HAVE THE ANANA, THE ANALYSTS THAT ARE ABLE TO DO THAT WORK, BUT THEY ACTUALLY AREN'T ENGAGED.
UH, THEY'RE ENGAGED WITH PC AND HR AS FAR AS CLARIFYING JOB CARDS SO THAT THEY'RE MAKING SURE THEY'RE COMPARING APPLE TO APPLE.
UH, BUT THAT'S THE ONLY ACTUAL INTERACTION.
BUT EVENTUALLY ONCE WE DO RECEIVE THE REPORT, WE CAN BASED ON, YOU KNOW, UH, THE FINDINGS OR THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ARE MADE, WE CAN SEEK OTHER, UM, INPUT BASED IF, IF WE DECIDE TO TAKE ACTION OR, OR USE SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND, AND THE CONCLUSIONS BEING DRAWN WILL NOT BE ANY KIND OF OPINION, IT WILL JUST BE AN ANALYSIS.
SO IT'LL BE THE DATA FOR THE BOARD, IT'S THERE FOR THE BOARD TO DRAW THEIR OWN CONCLUSIONS AND SHARE AS THEY WOULD LIKE OR, OR NOT.
AND THIS WILL BE HELPFUL FOR WHAT SORT OF PURPOSE IN THE END TO HELP US IN WHAT WAYS IT WAS TO PROVIDE YOU, I BELIEVE FROM THE DISCUSSION THAT THE BOARD HAD THAT THEY WANTED COMPARISONS IN CALIFORNIA TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT OUR STA STAFFING PATTERNS.
I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT ONCE WE GET THIS ANALYSIS, IT'LL HELP US MAKE DECISIONS.
IN WHAT WAYS? ABOUT STAFFING FOR THE DISTRICT? STAFFING, YEAH.
SO THIS, THIS IS DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE, UH, FISCAL STABILIZATION PLAN OR STRATEGIES THAT WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD IN, IN NORMING OR LOOKING AT STAFFING? YEAH, I THINK NORMING IN PARTICULAR.
UH, SO FISCAL STABILIZATION PLAN POTENTIALLY.
I THINK IT'S, IT WAS HARD FOR THE BOARD TO SAY, WELL, HOW DO WE KNOW WHETHER THIS IS HIGH, LOW OR IN BETWEEN, OR WHAT DOES OTH WHAT DO OTHER PEOPLE DO? AND, AND IN REALITY, UH, WE DON'T KNOW.
SO THAT'S WHY WE, WE ASKED FOR THE STUDY.
IT IS THE FIRST STUDY LIKE IT BEING DONE.
UM, SO JUST FOR PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING THAT THE REASON WE ASK FOR THIS IS BECAUSE TO HELP US UNDERSTAND MAKING, MAKING DECISIONS MOVING FORWARD.
A MORE WANT, MORE INFORMED DECISION? YES.
SO WE ARE STILL ON TAB 10 AND WE HAVE SOME MORE QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU FOR PRESIDENT SCHON.
UM, WELL THIS ONE'S NOT A QUESTION, BUT ON ITEM K, JUST, UH, WHICH IS THE, UH, CONTRACT WITH AMPLIFY AROUND THE READING DIFFICULTIES SCREENER, UH, YOU KNOW, I RAISED SOME CONCERNS AT THE PREVIOUS MEETING WHERE WE TALKED ABOUT, UH, THE SCREENER, THE NEW SCREENER REQUIREMENT, AND JUST TO NOTE THAT, UM, I INTEND TO VOTE NO ON THIS IN A SIMILAR VEIN.
NOT THAT I DON'T THINK READING DIFFICULTY SCREENERS ARE REALLY IMPORTANT OR, UM, I THINK OUR DISTRICT IS AHEAD OF THE GAME WHEN IT COMES TO DYSLEXIA.
WE HAVE ROBUST, UM, ASSESSMENTS ALREADY, UM, FOR OUR YOUNGEST LEARNERS AROUND READING LEVELS AND READING PROFICIENCIES.
UM, SO I WILL JUST BE CONSISTENT AND, AND BE VOTING AGAINST THAT ONE.
AND THEN I DO HAVE A QUESTION ON ITEM T, AND I THINK I SEE DR.
OTRA, UM, OR SOMEONE BACK THERE,
UM, SO THIS IS ON THE CONTRACT WITH, UH, LA COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION.
UM, AND BECAUSE IT'S RELATED TO THE CHILDREN AND YOUTH BEHAVIORAL HEALTH INITIATIVE, WHICH I, I THINK THERE'S BEEN SOME QUESTIONS AND CONVERSATION ABOUT PUBLICLY.
I WAS JUST WONDERING IF YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO CLARIFY WHAT EXACTLY THIS, UM, REVENUE CONTRACT IS FOR AND, UM, WHAT DOES IT MEAN IN TERMS OF WHAT'S NEW OR DIFFERENT FOR, FOR THE DISTRICT AND OUR STUDENTS THROUGH THIS CONTRACT? YES, GOOD QUESTION.
AGAIN, JOEL CISNEROS, STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS SERVICES.
SO THIS IS A REVENUE CONTRACT FROM LACO, AND ESSENTIALLY WHAT IT AFFORDS US IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BUILD OUT OUR FEE SCHEDULE PROJECT UNDER C-Y-B-H-I, WHICH IS A $4.6 BILLION INVESTMENT THAT TOOK PLACE FROM THE STATE TO ESSENTIALLY HELP BUILD BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PATHWAYS ACROSS THE, UH, LEAS OR ACROSS THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
SO FOR US, WHAT THAT MEANT WAS, IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO DIRECTLY BILL TO MANAGE CARE PLANS, WHICH HISTORICALLY FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES, WHICH HISTORICALLY HAS NEVER HAPPENED IN THE HISTORY OF THE STATE.
SO FOR US, THIS, THESE DOLLARS WILL HELP US BUILD OUT THAT INFRASTRUCTURE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT, UM, DEVELOPMENT OF THAT PROJECT.
SO SPECIFICALLY WHAT WE'LL BE USING THESE DOLLARS FOR WILL BE FOR OUR ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD, UH, BUILD OUT AND PAY FOR SOME OF THOSE, UH, THE BUILD OUT OF THAT.
AND THEN ALSO TO BUILD OUT THE CAPACITY OF STAFF TRAINING, AND THEN MOST IMPORTANTLY, BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY PSW THAT CAN HELP WITH THE ROLLOUT OF THIS FEE SCHEDULE PROJECT.
WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THIS AS KIND OF A INITIAL STEP TOWARDS BUILDING THE FOUNDATION TO BE ABLE TO, UM, KIND OF EXPAND THE PROVISION OF OUR SERVICES IN THIS AREA? YES.
SO IT'S GONNA BE ABLE TO EXPAND THAT AND THEN BE ABLE TO NOW DRAW DOWN DOLLARS AND TAP INTO THAT FUNDING STREAM THAT HISTORICALLY, AGAIN, SCHOOL DISTRICTS HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO, WHICH IS REALLY EXCITING BECAUSE WE ARE PROVIDING THESE SERVICES THAT, UM, SHOULD BE BILLABLE TO, TO HEALTH HEALTH INSURERS.
SO IT, IT'S GREAT THAT WE HAVE ACCESS TO A NEW REVENUE STREAM TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THESE CRITICAL SERVICES TO OUR STUDENTS.
AND JUST TO NOTE, YOU KNOW, THE MAJORITY OF DISTRICTS THAT WERE PART OF COHORT, ONE OF WHICH WE WERE PART OF COHORT ONE, UM, STARTED
[02:50:01]
ACTUALLY SUBMITTING INITIAL REIMBURSEMENT REQUEST AND CLAIMS IN DECEMBER.WE SUBMITTED OUR FIRST IN FEBRUARY, MARCH.
UM, SO TODAY WE'RE ONE OF THE FIRST SET OF DISTRICTS ACTUALLY IS NOW STARTING TO SUBMIT BASED OFF OF THE NEW FEE SCHEDULE STARTED WITH THE PILOT GROUP.
AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO GROW AND ONBOARD MORE OF OUR PROVIDERS, OUR PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKERS, OTHER STAFF WHO CAN ACTUALLY BILL AGAINST THIS PARTICULAR PROGRAM.
BUT IT'S, IT'S A LEARNING PROCESS, BUT WE'RE ALSO LEADING THE WAY WITH SANTA CLARA AND A NUMBER OF OTHER, UH, DISTRICTS IN, IN THE STATE.
CAN I JUST ASK ON THIS SPECIFIC ONE, JUDGE NELSON? SO THE, UM, HOW IS THE 3.7 MILLION ALLOCATION, UH, DETERMINED? BECAUSE MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IT'S LIKE NORTH OF 40 MILLION COUNTYWIDE, UM, OR EVEN MORE THAN THAT.
AND WE'RE LIKE, WE HAVE 40% OF THE KIDS IN LAKE, IN THE COUNTY, SO ON THINGS LIKE THIS, I LIKE TO JUST SAY, YOU KNOW, WE, WE SHOULD BE GETTING MORE CLOSER TO 20 MILLION.
SO, SO, SO THERE WAS GENERAL ADVOCACY IN THIS SPACE, IN THAT THE COUNTY, UM, IMPLEMENTED A FORMULA THAT WEIGHTED MORE GREATLY THE PER PUPIL ALLOCATION, SO THAT YOU LOOK AT ENROLLMENT READINESS, A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT DETERMINE THE KIND OF GRANT C-Y-B-H-I GRANT ALLOCATION FROM THE COUNTY.
THEIR DETERMINATION WAS THAT ALLY UNIFIED, GIVEN OUR KIND OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND OUR CURRENT FEE SCHEDULE THAT WE HAD FOR OUR MEDICAL PROGRAMS, THAT WE WERE A LITTLE MORE ADVANCED THAN OTHER DISTRICTS.
AND SO THEY WERE, UM, THEY ACTUALLY PROVIDED A GREATER AMOUNT TO, UH, OTHER DISTRICTS IN THE COUNTY.
UM, WHAT WE ENDED UP REQUESTING WAS A COLLECTIVE AMOUNT OF ABOUT $11 MILLION, UH, TO SUPPORT, UH, STAFFING, STAFFING UP SOME OF THE TRAINING, UH, NECESSARY FOR THE PROGRAM.
WHAT THEY GRANTED US WAS 3.7 MILLION.
UM, WE, WE'VE CIRCLED BACK ON THE ADVOCACY, THEY FELT VERY STRONGLY THAT THEIR RESOURCING SCHOOLS, SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT HAVE NO INFRASTRUCTURE WE'RE PART OF COHORT ONE.
WE WERE ALREADY RECOGNIZED AS HAVING A MORE ADVANCED INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND SO THEY FELT THAT WE DIDN'T NEED AS MUCH, UH, TO EXECUTE ON THE PROGRAM.
WELL, I GUESS KUDOS TO THE TEAM FOR THE PROGRESS THAT'S BEEN MADE, BUT MAYBE IN THE FUTURE OUR APPLICATIONS WE SHOULD REFLECT GREATER NEED AND LESS ACCOMPLISHMENT, UM, JUST TO TRY TO GET, YOU KNOW, MORE.
SO CARLA, I BELIEVE YOU'RE MS. DIEGO, GO AHEAD.
OH, YEAH, I HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS AS WELL.
SO, UM, THIS IS GOING TO, WITH ALL OF THESE, UH, FILING FOR REIMBURSEMENTS, WE SHOULD BE SEEING SOME MORE MONEY COMING IN, RIGHT? MM-HMM
SO WILL THAT, WHERE IS THAT MONEY GONNA GO? IS IT GONNA GO TO, UH, SCHOOL MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, UH, THE GENERAL FUND? DO YOU KNOW WHERE THAT'S MONEY'S GONNA GO? AND IF WELL ANSWER THAT QUESTION FIRST.
YEAH, SO IT'LL GO TO THE GENERAL FUND TO SUPPORT STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS PROGRAMS. OKAY.
AND HAVE WE STARTED RECEIVING SOME OF THAT MONEY SINCE WE FILED IN OUR FIRST REIMBURSEMENT REQUEST IN FEBRUARY? HAVE WE SEEN SOME OF THAT MONEY COMING IN? YES, WE HAVE.
UH, WE'VE SEEN, UH, CLOSE TO ABOUT $4,000.
AGAIN, WE STARTED WITH THE PILOT PROGRAM BECAUSE WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT'S NOT A LOT OF MONEY, BUT ESSENTIALLY IT'S WANTED TO WORK ON THE SCALABILITY AND WORK OUT ALL OF THE VARIOUS STRUCTURES.
SO FOR US IN THE, IN AUGUST, WE WILL BE ROLLING THIS OUT ACROSS OUR ENTIRE PSW PROGRAM AND, UH, PERHAPS EVEN OUR WELLNESS PROGRAM AS WELL.
AND SO PSW HAVE BEEN TRAINED TO PILOT IT.
RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A GROUP OF ABOUT 20 PSW THAT ARE, ARE ESSENTIALLY OUR FOCUS GROUP, UH, THAT HAVE, UM, BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS.
AND I'M WONDERING IF, HAVE THEY GIVEN YOU ANY FEEDBACK IN TERMS OF THE WORKLOAD? DOES THIS TAKE, UM, A LOT MORE TIME THAN, SAY, WHEN THEY WERE DOING THE OTHER BILLINGS FOR MEDI-CAL? WHAT IS THE THE COMPARISON? THE FEEDBACK HAS WORKLOAD, THE FEEDBACK HAS BEEN VERY FAVORABLE.
AND ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE FOUND AND WHAT WE COMMITTED TO, UH, IS MAKING SURE THAT WE LOOKED AT ALL THE SERVICES THAT WERE ALREADY BEING PROVIDED AND THEN ESSENTIALLY ON THE BACK END AND ESSENTIALLY ON THE, ON THE, UH, CODING SIDE OF THE PLATFORM, WE COULD JUST DIRECT THOSE SERVICES THAT HAD ALREADY BEEN DOCUMENTED, ALREADY BEEN DELIVERED, AND NOW SEEK REIMBURSEMENT.
SO ESSENTIALLY WE WANTED TO DISRUPT THE WORKFLOW AS, AS, YOU KNOW, DISRUPT.
WE DIDN'T WANT IT TO DISRUPT IT, SO WE WANTED TO KEEP IT AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE FOR PSW.
SO THE FEEDBACK HAS BEEN FAVORABLE AT THIS POINT.
BECAUSE THAT IS A CONCERN THAT I'VE HEARD AS, YOU KNOW, OUR PWS HAVE A TON ON THEIR PLATE.
OUR MENTAL HEALTH CONSULTANTS ARE LIKE UP TO HERE.
THAT'S HOW THEY DESCRIBE THEIR WORKLOAD RIGHT NOW.
[02:55:01]
IT'S POSITIVE, AND IT'S GREAT THAT WE ARE DOING THIS BECAUSE IT WILL BRING MORE FUNDS IN AND WE KNOW THAT WE NEED MORE PSW IN OUR DISTRICT.UM, BUT I ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE, UH, EITHER PAYING EXTRA TIME IF IT DOES REQUIRE EXTRA TIME FOR PS WS TO COMPLETE THIS WORK, UM, AND THAT WE'RE NOT PULLING FROM THE WORK THAT THEY DO IN THE, IN THE, AT THE SCHOOL SITE WITH OUR STUDENTS.
I WANT THIS TO HAPPEN, BUT I WANT US TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S NOT PULLING FROM THE WORK THAT THEY DO WITH THE STUDENTS.
AND I THINK THAT FUNDAMENTALLY THAT'S ALWAYS GONNA BE OUR FOCUS.
AND AGAIN, WHAT, WHAT OUR DRIVER HAS ALWAYS BEEN, IT'S SERVICES YOU ALREADY ARE PROVIDING, YOU'RE ALREADY DOCUMENTING, AND NOW WE CAN ACTUALLY REIMBURSE FOR THAT.
SO IT'S ACTUALLY, IT'S NOT DISRUPTING ANYTHING.
AND, AND THAT'S WHAT OUR PILOT GROUP ESSENTIALLY HAS THE FEEDBACK THEY'VE GIVEN US AS WELL.
BUT WE'RE ALWAYS MONITORING FOR THAT.
AND WHAT IS THE EXPECTED AMOUNT THAT WE SHOULD, UM, SEE COMING IN FROM THESE REIMBURSEMENTS? IT'S, IT'S THE ONE THING THAT I WANT TO KIND OF SET EXPECTATIONS ON.
AND JUST TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA, UM, SINCE THE INCEPTION OF DISTRICTS STARTING TO SUBMIT CLAIMS, AS OF THE BEGINNING OF MAINE, THERE WAS A ABOUT 1800 CLAIMS SUBMITTED STATEWIDE.
THAT'S, WHICH REPRESENTED ABOUT $117,000, OF WHICH THE PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR CAROLINA HAS PAID OUT ABOUT 22,000 OF THOSE CLAIMS, $22,000 WORTH OF THOSE CLAIMS. AND SO IT, IT'S, WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE UNIVERSE OF DOLLARS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A PROGRAM THAT MAY DRAW DOWN ABOUT 800,000 TO $1.2 MILLION ANNUALLY AND UTILIZING THIS FEE SCHEDULE.
AND THAT'S JUST BASED OFF OF CURRENT KIND OF ROLLOUT.
MAY THAT CHANGE, MAY THERE BE, YOU KNOW, ADJUSTMENTS TO THE PROGRAM? YES.
BUT AS OF RIGHT NOW, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ESTIMATING IS THE TOTAL KIND OF NET DRAW DOWN THAT WE WOULD GET THROUGH THE PROGRAM.
CAN YOU REPEAT THE ESTIMATED TOTAL? IT'S ABOUT 800,000 AT 1.2 MILLION.
THIS NEW BILL, THIS IS ON O ITEM O.
SO I KNOW I'M FROM READING, WE ORIGINALLY OPENED THE CONTRACT AND IT WAS FULFILLED WITH 16, AND THEN WE EXPANDED WITH 152 MILLION.
AND THEN NOW THE REQUEST IS FOR 36.
MY QUESTION IS, WITH THE SERVICES THAT ARE BEING REFERENCED HERE OR PUT TOGETHER, WHEN IS THE TIMELINE THAT WE SEE THESE DELIVERABLES AND WHEN WE SEE HOW AND WHEN DO WE GET UPDATES OF THE PROGRESS OF THE SYSTEM UPGRADES? BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY DIFFERENT ONES AND SINCE 21 THERE'VE BEEN SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE, BUT WHEN DO WE GET THE UPDATES? SO THESE ARE FOR EXISTING WORK THAT IN PROGRESS.
UM, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, AND MOST OF IT IS OPERATIONAL.
THERE ARE SOME PROJECTS THAT'S ALSO IS BUILT INTO THIS.
UM, THE PROJECT, THE BOARD TYPICALLY GET AN UPDATE, UH, EITHER THROUGH THE BOC WHEN WE GIVE THE QUARTERLY REPORT FOR THE BOND PROGRAMS HAVE ONLY BEEN COMPLETE.
THESE ARE, UH, PROVIDING A STAFF AUGMENTATION, UM, CONTRACT FOR THOSE RESOURCES.
UM, AS FAR AS THE OPERATION PART IS COVERED UNDER MI UH, MIIS SIS APPLICATION SYSTEM, WHICH TYPICALLY WE ROUGHLY SPEND SOMETHING AROUND, UM, BETWEEN FOUR TO EIGHT, UH, MILLION DOLLARS FOR THE NEXT, UH, FOR THE REMAINING OF THE YEAR TO BE ABLE TO KEEP THE SYSTEM ACTIVE.
SO THESE ARE OPERATIONAL COSTS AND UH, THOSE OPERATION COSTS TYPICALLY IS JUST A PROBLEM, LIKE A DAY-TO-DAY ACTIVITY TO MAINTAIN THE APPLICATION AS THEY ARE.
THE CONTRACT IS JUST GONNA KEEP US FOR THE REMAINING OF THE YEAR.
WE ARE GONNA COME WITH A NEW CONTRACT, A NEW BENCH FOR THE, UH, POST JANUARY, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY THAT'S GONNA HAVE, UH, FORESEE FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS OF THE ENHANCEMENT.
AND THEN WHAT WOULD THE AVERAGE BE THERE? BECAUSE AT THIS STARTED OUT, BUT THEN THERE WAS A SUBSEQUENT INCREASE, IS THAT JUST TO CONTINUE TO MAKE IT FUNCTION? SO, UH, THE ORIGINAL ESTIMATE WAS FOR ONE YEAR, NOT FIVE YEARS OF THE CONTRACT.
THAT'S THE REASON YOU SEE THAT, UH, INCREASE FROM ONE.
UH, SO THE SECOND AMENDMENT THAT THIS CONTRACT RECEIVED, THAT WAS THE ACTUAL EXPENDITURE FOR THE CONTRACT.
SO HISTORICALLY, UH, THAT'S THE COST OF THE CONTRACT, WHICH I BELIEVE IS ABOUT, UH, I WOULD SAY ABOUT 20,
[03:00:01]
UH, 200.SO WE SHOULD SEE THAT AGAIN NOW AND, AND YOU'RE GONNA SEE LESS BECAUSE WE NOW HAVE A SECURITY BENCH CONTRACT.
WE USE THIS BENCH AS WELL TO PROVIDE A LOT OF OUR SECURITY SERVICES BEFORE SECURITY CONTRACT BENCH BEING PRODUCED.
SO THIS CONTRACT KIND OF, I WOULD SAY OVERDRAFTED OVERDRAWN BECAUSE WE WERE USING FOR SECURITY IMPLEMENTATION SINCE 2022.
NOW SINCE WE HAVE A SECURITY BENCH APPROVED BY THE BOARD, ACTUALLY ONE OF THE SECURITY BENCH ALREADY, UH, IS IN THE, IN THIS BOARD REPORT, THIS CONTRACT GONNA REDUCE THE NEW CONTRACT IS GONNA BE MUCH LESS THAN WHAT IT'S WRONG.
SO ARE WE ABLE TO SEE A REPORT AND HOW IT REDUCE BECAUSE OF WHAT WE'VE ALREADY HAD? YES.
UH, SO AT THE TIME THAT WE PREPARE, IT'S GONNA COME TO THE BOARD FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL, THE NEW CONTRACT.
AND WE ARE GONNA SHOW THE FORECAST PROJECTION ON WHAT WILL BE THE EXPENDITURE.
AND I KNOW WE HAD ASKED IN ANOTHER MEETING AS FAR AS UPDATES TO SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT ARE HERE.
AS FAR AS I KNOW, I'M SURE I'M, I'M HOPING THAT IT'S HERE, THAT WE SEE SOME OF THOSE UPGRADES WITH FIELD TRIPS AND ITEMS LIKE THAT WHERE PARENTS WERE DOING STUFF ONLINE.
WOULD THAT BE INCLUDED IN THIS OPERATION? SOME OF THE ENHANCEMENT, YES.
PARENT PORTAL ENHANCEMENT, THEY'RE ALL INCLUDED IN THIS IN INCREASE AND ALSO AS WELL AS THE NEW CONTRACT WHEN IT'S COMING, ALL OF OUR APPLICATION ENHANCEMENT, THEY ARE ALL INCLUDED.
BUT, UH, IF THE BOARD REQUIRE NEED A, A FULL BRIEFING UPDATE ABOUT A SPECIFIC PROJECT, WE CAN WORK WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT OFFICE AND PREPARE THE REPORT FOR ANY SPECIFIC PRODUCT OR PROJECT THAT YOU ARE CONSIDERING.
THE BOND, TYPICALLY IT GOES THROUGH THE BOC AND YOU RECEIVE A COPY CYBERSECURITY, WE SEND IT THROUGH THE QUARTERLY REPORT.
ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF THESE TWO WE CAN WORK ON CASE BY CASE AS I'M BRINGING THE UPDATE.
ANYTHING ELSE FOR 10? THIS WAS A LONG 10.
I THINK IT'S IN 10 ITEM N WHAT ARE YOUR QUESTIONS? OH, OH, THERE YOU ARE.
AND SO, UM, SO I KNOW YOU'VE ANSWERED SOME OF THESE, KRISTEN, BUT I WANNA PUT IT OUT FOR THE PUBLIC TO ALSO KNOW, UH, THAT I HAVE THESE QUESTIONS AND, AND THE RESPONSES.
I'M LOOKING FOR THEM RIGHT NOW.
SO, UM, SO OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS, HOW MANY TEACHERS HAS TFA BROUGHT TO THE DISTRICT? SO OVER THE LIFE OF THE CURRENT CONTRACT THAT WE ARE OPERATING UNDER, WE HAVE BROUGHT IN APPROXIMATELY 115 TEACHERS INTO THE SYSTEM THROUGH TEACH FOR AMERICA.
AND JUST TO GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT, OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS, WE HAVE HIRED 6,386 CLASSROOM TEACHERS OVER THE LAST OKAY, THANK YOU.
AND WHAT HAS BEEN THE RETENTION RATE FOR THESE TEACHERS BEYOND THE TWO YEARS THAT, UM, THAT THEY COMMIT TO? YES, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.
SO THE FIRST COHORT THAT WAS COVERED IN THE MOST RECENT CONTRACT STARTED IN THE 2122 SCHOOL YEAR.
AND THE THREE YEAR RETENTION WAS 52%.
FOUR YEAR RETENTION WAS 48 8%.
AND WE HAVE SEEN AN INCREASE WITH THE NEXT COHORT STARTING IN 22, 23 UP TO 61%.
AND SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT THE DATA WILL REFLECT AT THE START OF NEXT SCHOOL YEAR REGARDING THREE YEAR RETENTION FOR THE NEXT COHORT.
SO 61% IS THE RETENTION RATE FOR WHEN DID THESE FOLKS START IN FALL OF 2022.
SO, UM, OF THE FOLKS THAT YOU, UM, HIRED, UM, SAY FIVE YEARS AGO, HOW MANY OF THOSE FOLKS ARE STILL HERE OR BEYOND THREE YEARS? WHAT PERCENTAGE? SO, SO AGAIN, FOR THE ONE COHORT WHERE WE ARE IN THE FOURTH YEAR, THE CURRENT RETENTION, UH, PERCENTAGE OF THAT COHORT IS 48%.
AND UM, HOW MANY, I KNOW THAT THIS IS SPEAKING TO L-A-U-S-D, BUT I'M WONDERING IN TFA, HOW MANY ARE PLACED IN CHARTER SCHOOLS? DO YOU HAVE THAT? I DO NOT HAVE THAT EXACT NUMBER.
[03:05:01]
WE, WHEN THEY LEAVE, DO WE KNOW, DO WE HAVE ANY DATA ON WHETHER THEY LEAVE THE PROFESSION OR GO TO ANOTHER DISTRICT OR DO WE KNOW, DO WE FOLLOW THEM AFTER THEY LEAVE OUR DISTRICT? IF THEY LEAVE AFTER TWO, THREE YEARS, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT TFA REMAINS ENGAGED WITH THEM THROUGH THEIR ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT TEAM TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE STILL IN THE PROFESSION.AND DO WE KNOW HOW MANY REMAIN IN THE PROFESSION AND GO TO OTHER DISTRICTS OR THAT IS NOT DATA THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE FOR OUR SPECIFIC EMPLOYEES WHO HAVE LEFT.
IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE THAT INFORMATION TO TRACK WHERE, WHY DID THEY LEAVE THE DISTRICT IF THEY WENT TO ANOTHER DISTRICT OR ANOTHER, UH, ORGANIZATION THAT THEY WENT TO WORK WITH.
IT WOULD BE GOOD TO KNOW THAT INFORMATION.
I JUST WANTED TO ADD TO THAT, UM, AS WE ARE ENCOURAGING OUR TFA MEMBERS, WHAT IS THAT ENCOURAGEMENT FROM L-A-U-S-D? SO I'LL JUST SHARE THAT THE DIVISION OF HUMAN RESOURCES DOES HAVE A ROBUST HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGY WHERE WE WORK WITH OUR PRINCIPLES TO BUILD THEIR CAPACITY IN DEVELOPING RELATIONSHIPS WITH EARLY CAREER EDUCATORS TO PROMOTE RETENTION ACROSS ALL PROGRAMS AND NEW HIRES.
UM, AND SO A PART OF THAT IS TO HIGHLIGHT THE TEACHER LEADERSHIP AND SCHOOL LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THE DISTRICT IN TERMS OF A VERTICAL ARTICULATION OF A CAREER LADDER WHERE THEY CAN BECOME NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFIED, PARTICIPATE IN INDUCTION TO CLEAR THEIR CREDENTIAL AT NO CHARGE TO THE CORE MEMBER, AND THEN PURSUE THEIR ADMINISTRATIVE CREDENTIAL THROUGH OUR PROGRAMS. SO DO, ARE WE KEEPING TRACK OF THESE PARTICULAR GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS ON THAT TRACK TO SEE HOW MANY HAVE TAKEN THAT CAREER LADDER TO STAY WITHIN THE DISTRICT AND MOVE UP WITHIN THE PROFESSION? I WILL SAY THAT THE VENDOR HAS BEEN VERY RESPONSIVE IN TERMS OF HELPING US TRACK THE NUMBER OF EDUCATORS WHO REMAIN WITHIN THE SYSTEM.
AND THEY REPORT THAT WE HAVE AN EXCESS OF 150 EDUCATORS WHO ARE STILL LA UNIFIED EMPLOYEES WITHIN THE CLASSROOM.
UM, WE ARE ALSO WORKING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE RECRUITING A COHORT THAT IS MORE REFLECTIVE OF THE STUDENTS THAT WE SERVE.
AND SO WE HAVE SEEN A SHIFT IN RECRUITING FOLKS WHO ATTEND MORE OF OUR LOCAL UNIVERSITIES WHO HAVE TIES TO THE COMMUNITY.
UM, APPROXIMATELY 35 TO 45% OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE COMING IN ARE OUR OWN ALUMNI WHO GRADUATED FROM LA UNIFIED SCHOOLS.
AND ALL OF THESE THINGS WE, WE BELIEVE WILL PROMOTE RETENTION MOVING FORWARD.
'CAUSE I THINK PRIOR THEY WERE COMING FROM IVY LEAGUE SCHOOLS AND NOT NECESSARILY LOCAL.
AND IF YOU SEE THOSE FOLKS COME INTO CONTRACT THAT THOSE WILL NOT BE THE FOLKS THAT YOU ARE SEEING WHO ARE COMING TO CONTRACT FOR LUSD FOR THE MOST PART.
AND THEN IN THE RECRUITMENT OF THE PARTICULAR CANDIDATES, ARE THE PRINCIPALS SELECTING IT OR IS THE DISTRICT SELECTING THEM? YES, THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION.
SO HR WILL SCREEN ALL OF THEM FOR ELIGIBILITY TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY MEET THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE TEACHER JOB CLASS, AND THEN THEY'RE PLACED ON A LIST AND MADE AVAILABLE TO PRINCIPALS JUST AS ANY OTHER CANDIDATE WOULD FROM ANY OF OUR OTHER PARTNERS.
AND SO, AND SO PRINCIPALS HAVE, WE, WE ARE ONLY INVOICED, UH, FOR A TEACHER IN THE EVENT THAT OUR PRINCIPAL SELECTS 'EM AND THEY ONBOARD AND CONTRACT WITH THE DISTRICT.
HOW DOES THIS INVESTMENT, WHICH IS ROUGHLY 15,000 PER CANDIDATE, COMPARE IN COST AND LONG-TERM IMPACT TO OTHER DISTRICT RUNNER OR TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAMS? SO JUST TO CLARIFY, DR. RIVAS, THE COST PER CORE MEMBER WOULD BE $2,500 PER YEAR.
UM, AND SO I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD HAVE TO GO BACK AND CHECK REGARDING HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO TRAIN A, LET'S SAY A DISTRICT INTERN, BUT I WOULD SAY THAT IT WOULD BE IN EXCESS OF $5,000 FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL TEACHER THAT WE'RE TRAINING.
UM, THIS IS 2,500 FOR HOW MANY YEARS? SO IT'S $2,500 PER TEACHER, PER YEAR YEAR TEACHER PER YEAR COMMITMENT.
SO IN THEORY IT'S 5,000 IF THE YES, IF THE TEACHER ONBOARDS AND STAYS WITH US FOR THOSE TWO YEARS, WE WOULD BE CHARGED AT $5,000 FOR ANY YEAR THAT THEY REMAIN WITH US.
BUT THEN THE RETENTION IS ABOUT 48%.
APPROXIMATELY, YOU MENTIONED THAT.
UM, JUST FOR THE PUBLIC, CAN YOU SHARE MORE ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT THE DISTRICT HAS IMPLEMENTED TO SCALE UP INTERNAL PIPELINE PROGRAMS LIKE TEACHER INDUCTION PROGRAMS, UM, AND ALSO CLASSIFIED, UH, STAFF PATHWAYS OR RESIDENCY MODELS, UH, BEYOND RENEWING EXTERNAL CONTRACTS LIKE THIS? ABSOLUTELY.
UM, SO FIRST I WILL SAY THAT CURRENTLY THE DISTRICT HAS, UM, EIGHT TEACHER RESIDENCY GRANTS WITH FIVE DIFFERENT UNIVERSITY PARTNERS WHERE WE SEEK TO PROVIDE LIVING STIPENDS TO OFFSET THE COST OF ATTENDANCE AT OUR LOCAL UNIVERSITIES
[03:10:01]
WHERE FOLKS ARE ENROLLED IN CREDENTIAL PROGRAMS. WE DO HIRE MORE THAN 100 OF THESE FOLKS PER YEAR WHO COME TO US FULLY CREDENTIALED.BEYOND THAT, WE DO HAVE A CAREER LADDER PROGRAM THAT SUPPORTS MORE THAN 300 CURRENT CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE SEEKING TO BECOME CREDENTIALED TEACHERS IN HIGH NEED AREAS OR, UH, REGISTERED SCHOOL NURSES WITH US.
SO THERE ARE ADDITIONAL PIPELINES FOR TEACHERS.
SO YES, IT'S PART OF ALL PART OF PILLAR FIVE TRYING TO BUILD A DIVERSE WORKFORCE.
SO HAVING VERY DIVERSE SOURCING STRATEGIES TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING THE BEST CANDIDATES REGARDLESS OF WHERE THEY COME FROM.
AND DR. RIVAS, UH, REGARDING THE RETENTION, I KNOW IT'S 48% FOR THAT FIRST COHORT, UH, FROM 21, 22.
THEY'RE STILL WITH US NOW, BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE IMPROVEMENT IN RETENTION BASED ON THE NEW RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES AND, AND EMPLOYEES WHO ARE LA UNIFIED ALUMNI, UM, WHEREAS WE'RE TYPICALLY AROUND 93% THIS TIME OF YEAR, THIS YEAR'S COHORT, WE'RE AT A HUNDRED PERCENT FOR THE SECOND, FOR THE, THE 2324 COHORT, WHERE IN THE PAST YEARS THEY'D BE AROUND 68, 70%.
AT SECOND YEAR, THEY'RE NOW AT 87%.
AND THEN SIMILARLY, THE YEAR THREE, UM, WHERE THEY WOULD IN THE PAST BE IN THE 50, LIKE 52%, THEY'RE NOW AT, UH, 61%.
SO WE ARE SEEING A STEADY INCREASE WITH EACH COHORT, UM, IN THE LAST FEW YEARS OF WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THEM STAY.
SO, UH, WE'RE, WE'RE EXCITED TO TRY TO WELCOME MORE AND MORE OF THEM TO BECOME LONG-TERM LA UNIFIED EMPLOYEES.
SO THANK YOU FOR THE, TO THE TEAM FOR THAT GREAT WORK.
MY TURN, UM, ONE OF MY, UH, TEACH FOR AMERICA TEACHERS IS A PRINCIPAL NOW IN L-A-U-S-D.
SO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALL KIND OF THINGS HAPPENING, BUT I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND A QUESTION THAT CARLA ASKED.
DID YOU ASK HOW MANY TE TEACH FOR AMERICA ARE TRAINED AND PLACED IN A CHARTER SCHOOL? DID YOU SAY THAT, DO WE PLACE T DO WE? NOT US.
I THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, I APOLOGIZE.
I THOUGHT YOU WERE WITH TEACH FOR AMERICA.
THAT'S WHY I WAS ASKING YOU THAT QUESTION.
I JUST ASKED
BUT NO, WHAT I WAS ASKING IS, IF IN GENERAL, DO WE KNOW HOW MANY OF THE TFA TEACHERS OR, OR, OR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO GO THROUGH TFA ARE PLACED IN CHARTER SCHOOLS? AND, AND, UM, MY APOLOGIES.
I'M THERESA REGAN, CERTIFICATED EMPLOYMENT
AND, AND WHAT I'LL SAY IS MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT, YOU KNOW, LIKE THIS CONTRACT THAT IS BEING PROPOSED CALLS FOR UP TO 40 TEACHERS PER YEAR FOR LA UNIFIED.
AND SO THEN THE REMAINDER OF THE COHORT THAT THEY RECRUIT WOULD GO TO OTHER DISTRICT PARTNERS OR INDEPENDENT CHARTERS.
UM, JACOB AND, UH, THERESA, I THINK THAT THE QUESTIONS ASKED TODAY WERE SO FANTASTIC AND I HOPE THAT YOU'LL WATCH THE RECORDING OF THIS FOR NEXT TIME FOR THE STATISTICS.
'CAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT YOU REALLY DIDN'T HAVE THE STATISTICS FOR, BUT IT'S GOOD TO HAVE.
SO WATCH THE MOODY THE MEETING AGAIN.
AND WE HAVE, UH, TWO PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM THAT WE NEED TO GET TO BEFORE WE ACTUALLY TAKE THE VOTE.
AND WE HAVE A, UH, TWO O'CLOCK TIME CERTAIN THAT HAS BECOME A TIME UNCERTAIN.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE RUNNING A LITTLE BIT BEHIND.
AND I, UH, I WANNA THANK THOSE, UH, WAITING FOR THE TIME CERTAIN, UH, FOR THEIR PATIENTS.
UM, UH, DR. PETER JAMES WANTS NAME JUST 'CAUSE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS GOT TO COMMENT OH, OH BOY, ON HIS ITEM.
IS THAT OKAY? UH, I APOLOGIZE, I DIDN'T SEE YOUR HAND UP.
UM, AND JACOB, YOU MIGHT HAVE GONE AWAY ALREADY, BUT IT, IT SOUNDED TO ME LIKE THE TEACH FOR AMERICA CORPS MEMBERS REPRESENT LESS THAN, COULD WE, LIKE 1% OF THE DISTRICT, OR AM I OFF IN MY MATH THERE
SO A AGAIN, OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS, WE'VE HIRED 6,386 CLASSROOM TEACHERS AND WE, OH, THAT WAS OVER THREE YEARS.
AND THEN 115 TEACH FROM AMERICA? CORRECT.
SO A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN ONE PERSON CLOSER TO TWO.
UM, SO IT'S HELPFUL TO JUST KNOW THE LEVEL OF SCRUTINY FOR, YOU KNOW, A REALLY SMALL PROGRAM AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE MY COLLEAGUES' QUESTIONS, BUT I JUST, I'M SURE YOU KNOW, FOR THE PUBLIC, IT HELPS TO BE VERY CLEAR THAT ALUMNI GO OFF AND DO LOTS OF THINGS.
WE RECEIVE LOTS OF MESSAGES FROM PRINCIPALS AND COACHES AND TEACHERS WHO'VE BEEN IN THE DISTRICT.
SO I WANNA APPRECIATE THE FOLKS WHO REACHED OUT AND TOLD US THEIR STORIES OF HOW THEY GOT, UM, HOOKED ON EDUCATIONAL EQUITY, UH, BECAUSE OF THIS PROGRAM.
AND I JUST WANTED TO RAISE MY HAND AND SAY, I AM ONE OF THEM.
AND SO ARE A COUPLE OF MY OTHER COLLEAGUES ON THE BOARD HERE.
AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE
[03:15:01]
MISSION, UM, BRINGING PEOPLE INTO THE DISTRICT AND, UH, LOVED BEING A CORPS MEMBER BACK IN 2005 AND HAVE STAYED COMMITTED TO THE MISSION, UM, THAT ONE DAY ALL CHILDREN WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO IN EXCEL.UM, AND, UH, LOOKING FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO RENEW THIS CONTRACT AND HAVE MORE FOLKS STAY WITH US LONGER AND APPRECIATE THE, UM, ADDITIONAL FOCUS ON L-A-U-S-C ALUMNI, WHICH I'M ALSO SO, UH, APPRECIATE THE CONNECTION TO THE ROOTS OF LA UNIFIED.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS.
I KNOW IT'S, IT'S BEEN A LONG, UM, PROCESS AND THANKS FOR THE TEACH FOR AMERICA STAFF THAT I KNOW IS THERE, UM, AND PLACING IN SOME OF OUR HIGHEST NEED COMMUNITIES THAT REALLY DO NEED PEOPLE TO STAY.
SO I APPRECIATE THE CONVERSATION ON RETENTION, UM, AND I HOPE WE CAN ALL WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE SURE FOLKS DO STAY FOR OUR KIDS.
OKAY, SO WE HAVE, UH, THE TWO, TWO PUBLIC COMMENTERS, UM, DR. PETER JAMES WATTS, JR.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN, AND THEN WE HAVE ONE REMOTE CALLER.
SO, UH, THE FLOOR IS YOURS, SIR, WHEN YOU BEGIN.
UH, MY NAME IS DR. PETER WATTS, JR.
AND I'M THE CEO AND THE CO-FOUNDER OF THE WATS POWER FOUNDATION, UH, AND THE VILLAGE INITIATIVE.
AND I'M ALSO A PROUD MEMBER OF THE TEACH FOR AMERICA LOS ANGELES ADVISORY BOARD AND A FORMER LESD EDUCATOR WHERE MY JOURNEY BEGAN 28 YEARS AGO AT COMPTON AVENUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, RIGHT HERE IN THIS DISTRICT.
AND WHAT MATTERS MOST TO ME IS THIS WORK THAT ENSURES OUR STUDENTS, ESPECIALLY OUR BLACK AND BROWN STUDENTS, HAVE STRONG AND COMMITTED TEACHERS WHO REFLECT THEIR BRILLIANCE AND THEIR LIVED EXPERIENCE.
TO MULTIPLY THE 2% OF TEACHERS NATIONWIDE WHO ARE BLACK MEN, WE NEED EVERY PIPELINE WORKING TOGETHER.
AND THAT INCLUDES TEACH FOR AMERICA.
I'M A, I'M PROUD THAT, UH, TEACHER VILLAGE, TWO OF OUR CURRENT FELLOWS ARE ALSO TFA COURT MEMBERS, ONE SERVING AS A SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER AT JOHN LTE MIDDLE SCHOOL.
AND THESE TEACHERS ARE SHOWING UP EVERY DAY WITH DEEP PURPOSE AND ARE RECEIVING SUPPORT FROM BOTH OUR RESIDENCY PROGRAMS. UH, THROUGH US, THEY RECEIVE A THERAPIST, A LIFE COACH, AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND TFAS COACHING.
THEY GET COACHING AS WELL AS RESOURCES DURING THEIR FIRST TWO CRITICAL YEARS IN THE CLASSROOM.
TFAS INCOMING COHORT, INCLUDING INCLUDES A MAJORITY OF LUSD ALUMNI AND 16% OF THEM IDENTIFY AS BLACK.
THIS IS THE KIND OF INTENTIONAL RECRUITMENT OR LONG-TERM INVESTMENT OUR DISTRICT NEEDS.
I'M PROUD THAT TEACHER VILLAGE IS A PARTNER OF L-A-U-S-D, AND I BELIEVE THAT TEACH FOR AMERICA SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE ONE AS WELL.
AND I RESPECTFULLY URGE YOU TO VOTE IN SUPPORT OF THE CONTRACT RENEWAL AND CONTINUE BUILD A TRUSTING AND STRONG DIVERSE TEACHER PIPELINE TOGETHER.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR COMMITMENT TO THE FUTURE OF OUR EDUCATORS AND OUR STUDENTS.
OKAY, WE HAVE ONE, UH, REMOTE CALLER CALL CARLA MCCULLOCH.
CARLA, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
CARLA MCCULLOCH, CAN YOU ALL HEAR ME? WE CAN.
GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD MEMBERS.
CARLA MCCULLOUGH, AND I'M A PROUD TO BE A PART OF A NETWORK OF ORGANIZATIONS THAT TOGETHER FORM A POWERFUL TRIFECTA IN SERVICE OF LOS ANGELES STUDENTS.
I BEGAN MY CAREER OVER 20 YEARS AGO AS AN HBCU ALUMNA AND TEACH FOR AMERICA CORPS MEMBER AT GOMER MIDDLE SCHOOL, WHERE I WAS MENTORED AND UPLIFTED BY VETERAN L-A-U-S-D EDUCATORS WHO HELPED SHAPE THE EDUCATOR.
I WOULD BECOME CFA, GAVE ME THE FOUNDATION.
L-A-U-S-D GAVE ME THE ROOTS, AND TOGETHER THEY GAVE ME THE TOOLS TO LEAD WITH CREATIVITY, PURPOSE, AND DEEP COMMUNITY CONNECTION.
I TAUGHT SIXTH GRADE ENGLISH AND HISTORY SERVED AS DEPARTMENT CHAIR AND SUCCESSFULLY ADVOCATED FOR THEATER CLASS.
MANY OF MY STUDENTS HAD NEVER PERFORMED BEFORE, BUT BY THE END OF THE YEAR, THEY WERE SENT TO STATE IN A PRODUCTION OF WEST SIDE STORY THAT MADE THE FRONT PAGE OF THE LOS ANGELES TIMES.
SINCE THEN, I'VE SERVED AS DEAN OF DISCIPLINE, A SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR, A UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR, AND NOW I'VE COME FULL CIRCLE.
I'M BACK IN THE CLASSROOM AS AN ITINERANT THEATER TEACHER SERVING FIVE L-A-U-S-D ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.
EACH WEEK I INTRODUCE HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS TO THE POWER OF THE PERFORMING ARTS, HELPING THEM UNLOCK CONFIDENCE, CREATIVITY, AND JOY.
SOME OF MY NEW STUDENTS ARE ACTUALLY THE CHILDREN OF STUDENTS I TAUGHT YEARS AGO, TEACH FOR AMERICA AND L-A-U-S-D HAVE PARTNERED IN THE NAME OF STUDENTS FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS.
TOGETHER WE BUILT BRIDGES BETWEEN THE LOCAL AND THE NATIONAL BETWEEN FRESH PERSPECTIVE AND LIVED EXPERIENCES WITH THE URGENCY THAT THIS MOMENT DEMANDS.
[03:20:01]
WE MUST LEAN INTO COLLABORATION FOR THE SAKE OF OUR CHILDREN, AS WE PREPARE THEM TO BE THE WORLD CHANGERS.EDUCATION IS THE FORCE THAT CHANGES THE WORLD, AND I RESPECTFULLY URGE YOU TO VOTE YES ON THE RENEWAL FOR THE TEACH FOR AMERICA CONTRACT.
OUR STUDENTS DESERVE EVERY STRONG PARTNERSHIP WORKING IN THEIR CORNER, AND TOGETHER COLLABORATIVELY, WE TRULY CAN CHANGE THE WORLD.
MAY I HAVE SOMEONE MOVE? THE ITEM MOVED BY MR. MELVOIN, SECONDED BY DR. RIVAS.
FOR EVERYTHING EXCEPT ITEM N UH, MS. EZ, I'M A NO ON ITEM K AND A.
ON THE BALANCE GO IS A NO ON ITEM K AND A YES.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHROEN? YES.
STUDENT BOARD MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
WE'RE 25 MINUTES LATE FOR OUR TIME.
UM, DID YOU WANT TO TAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT AND THEN INTRODUCE IT OR, OKAY.
WELL, CAN WE INTRODUCE IT AND THEN WAIT.
YEAH, YEAH, LET'S DO THAT BECAUSE IT, WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR 25 MINUTES.
SO YOU WANNA MOVE IT OR, OH, IT'S ALREADY ON CONSENT, OR ARE WE JUST, IT'S NOT ON CONSENT.
ACTUALLY, WE CAN, WE CAN MOVE IT IN SECOND TO BRING IT TO THE TABLE RIGHT NOW.
SO ITEM, UM, SO THIS IS A RESOLUTION THAT I'M VERY HONORED TO, UH, PRESENT THE CELEBRATION OF PLAY DAY ON JUNE 28TH OF THIS YEAR, 25.
AND PROMOTION OF PLAY EQUITY, UH, PLAY IS NOT A LUXURY, IT'S A LIFELINE.
AND ON JUNE 28TH, 2025, PLAY DAY WILL UNITE COMMUNITIES WITH MOVEMENT, LAUGHTER, AND BELONGING.
THANKS TO THE LEADERSHIP OF LA 84 FOUNDATION AND THE PLAY EQUITY FUND, THIS NATIONAL CELEBRATION REMINDS US THAT EVERY CHILD, REGARDLESS OF ZIP CODE, INCOME, RACE, OR ABILITY, OBSERVES A TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF PLAY.
YET TOO MANY STILL FACE BARRIERS.
THAT'S WHY THIS RESOLUTION MATTERS.
IT REAFFIRMS OUR COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND BY ENSURING ALL STUDENTS CAN ACCESS THE LIFELONG BENEFITS OF SPORT AND MOVEMENT.
AND IT EMPOWERS OUR SCHOOLS FAMILIES AND PARTNERS TO ACTIVATE JOY THROUGH OUR SUMMER OF LEARNING.
THROUGH LOCAL PROGRAMS AND THROUGH COMMUNITY PLAY.
PLAY IS ESSENTIAL FOR YOUTH DEVELOPMENT, FOSTERING PHYSICAL HEALTH, COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE, AND EMOTIONAL GROWTH.
YET MANY CHILDREN, ESPECIALLY BLACK AND LATINO COMMUNITIES, YOUTH AND WITH DISABILITIES AND LOW INCOME FAMILIES, FACE BARRIERS TO THESE OPPORTUNITIES.
THIS RESOLUTION SEEKS TO CLOSE THAT PLAY EQUITY GAP, ENSURING THAT ALL CHILDREN CAN BENEFIT FROM SPORTS AND MOVEMENT ON JUNE 28TH, PLAY DATE WILL BE CELEBRATED WITH A BLOCK PARTY AT THE LA 84 FOUNDATION AND WEST ADAMS FEATURING MUSIC, SPORTS, ART, AND FOOD WITH A HUNDRED ADDITIONAL SATELLITE SITES ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
WE ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO JOIN US IN THIS CELEBRATION OF PLAY AND COMMUNITY CONNECTION.
AS NELSON MANDELA ONCE SAID, SPORT HAS A POWER TO CHANGE THE WORLD.
IT HAS A POWER TO INSPIRE, IT HAS A POWER TO UNITE PEOPLE IN A WAY THAT LITTLE ELSE DOES.
LET'S LET THIS RESOLUTION BE OUR CALL TO INSPIRE, TO UNITE AND TO UPLIFT EVERY CHILD THROUGH THE SIMPLE ESSENTIAL ACT OF PLAY.
I'VE ALSO ACCEPTED A FRIENDLY AMENDMENT FROM MS. GREGO TO EXPLICITLY NAME SOUTHEAST LOS ANGELES CITIES AND OTHER MUNICIPALITIES WITHIN THE DISTRICT'S BOUNDARIES TO ALSO PROMOTE THIS, UM, THIS DAY OF PLAY.
EVERYONE AT THE HORSESHOE SHOULD HAVE COPIES OF THIS SECOND, UH, AMENDED VERSION.
AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC CAN ALSO FIND COPIES IN THE FRONT.
THE RESOLUTION NOW HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF PARTNERING WITH THE, WITH ALL LOCAL JURISDICTIONS
[03:25:02]
TO PROMOTE AND EXPAND ACCESS TO PLAY OPPORTUNITIES ACROSS THE DISTRICT, AND ALSO TO JOIN US ON JUNE 28TH.NOW, LET'S CELEBRATE, LET'S COMMIT AND LET'S PLAY IT FORWARD ALL THIS TIME.
I'M, UH, AT THIS TIME I'M PLEASED TO INTRODUCE JAMES LOPEZ, MSW, DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY FOR THE LA 84 FOUNDATION AND PLAY EQUITY FUND.
AND ALSO CELESTE SOTO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR PLAY WORK SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, WHO WILL SHARE THEIR REMARKS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PLAY AND THE WORK BEING DONE TO PROMOTE, PROMOTE, PLAY EQUITY.
MY NAME IS JAMES LOPEZ, DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY FOR THE LA 84 FOUNDATION AND PLAY EQUITY FUND.
THANK YOU DR. RIVAS, FOR THE INTRODUCTION.
AND IT'S MY HONOR TO BE HERE FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR TO SPEAK IN SUPPORT OF THE 2025 PLAY DAY RESOLUTION.
UH, I WANT TO THANK THE ENTIRE BOARD FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP AND FOR SUPPORTING THE IMPORTANT ROLE OF SPORT PLAY IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR OUR DISTRICT, FOR OUR STUDENTS, AND FOR THEIR FAMILIES.
UH, WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT YOU'RE TAKING THIS ACTION TO PRO PROCLAIM PLAY DAY AND SHARE THE IMPORTANCE.
UH, AT THE LA FOUR FOUNDATION, WE BELIEVE THAT EVERY CHILD, NO MATTER WHERE THEY COME FROM OR HOW MUCH MONEY THEIR HOUSEHOLD MAKES, HAS A RIGHT TO QUALITY SPORT PLAY IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN THEIR SCHOOLS AND IN THEIR COMMUNITIES.
RESEARCH HAS CONSISTENTLY SHOWN THAT SPORTS PARTICIPATION IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEAD TO BETTER ACADEMIC OUTCOMES, UH, BETTER PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH, AND MORE RESILIENT ADOLESCENTS AND YOUNG ADULTS.
BUT DESPITE THIS FACT ACROSS CALIFORNIA, YOUTH ARE NOT MEETING CDC GUIDELINES FOR DAILY PHYSICAL ACTIVITY.
AND IN LA, 64% OF YOUTH ARE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE LESS THAN FIVE DAYS A WEEK.
THIS RESOLUTION WILL HELP US CONTINUE TO BUILD THE CONVERSATION, BUILD OUR COLLECTIVE AWARENESS OF WHAT WE CALL THE PLAY EQUITY GAP, AND ALSO PROMOTE COLLABORATION AND SOLUTIONS.
PLEASE JOIN US ON SATURDAY, JUNE 28TH IN THE WEST ADAMS NEIGHBORHOOD TO CELEBRATE THE POWER OF SPORT, PLAY AND MOVEMENT AT OUR SECOND ANNUAL PLAY DAY BLOCK PARTY.
IT'S A FREE EVENT FOR EVERYBODY, ALL AGES WHERE KIDS AND FAMILIES CAN ENJOY FOOD, MUSIC, ART, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE POWER OF PLAY.
LET'S UNITE ON PLAY DATE TO LIFT UP THE IMPORTANCE OF PLAY FOR OUR COMMUNITIES.
VISIT LA 80 FOUR.ORG TO LEARN MORE AND REGISTER FOR THE FREE EVENT.
THANK YOU DR. RIVAS, TO THE ENTIRE BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT CARVALHO FOR THIS, UH, RESOLUTION.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING TOGETHER TO CLOSE THE GAP.
I AM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR PLAYWORKS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
WE HAVE BEEN A PARTNER OF L-A-U-S-D FOR 17 YEARS, UM, AND WE ARE, UM, WONDERFUL PARTNERS WITH PLAY EQUITY FUND IN LA 84.
UM, OUR BUSINESSES PLAY AND OUR VEHICLE IS RECESS.
IF WE WANNA MAKE AN IMPACT, WE GO WHERE THE KIDS ARE AND THEY ARE ON THE PLAYGROUND.
UM, FOR US, UM, WE WANNA THANK AGAIN, DR. RIVAS AND THE BOARD MEMBERS FOR ALLOWING US TO BE IN THE DISTRICT, BUT ALSO FOR UPLIFTING PLAY IN SUCH A MEANINGFUL WAY.
UM, IT IS IMPORTANT THAT LUSD AND THE BROADER EDUCATION SYSTEM ACKNOWLEDGE AND UPLIFT THE IMPORTANCE OF SPORT, PLAY AND MOVEMENT.
NOW, MORE THAN EVER, THE PLAY EQUITY GAP CONTINUES TO GROW FOR OUR COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, AND WE MUST ACT.
PLAYWORKS IS PROUD TO ENGAGE L-A-U-S-D KIDS AND EDUCATORS IN THIS MOVEMENT THROUGH PLAY-BASED PROGRAMMING EVERY DAY ON PLAYGROUNDS.
WHEN KIDS PLAY, THEY'RE BETTER FOCUSED IN THE CLASSROOM.
THEY DEVELOP THOSE RELATIONSHIP SKILLS THAT GO BEYOND THE PLAYGROUND.
AND DATA SHOWS WHEN THEY FEEL ENGAGED AND HAVE FUN AT RECESS, THEY WANNA COME TO SCHOOL THROUGH PLAY.
WE PROMOTE JOY AND WELLNESS FOR ALL KIDS, ESPECIALLY THE HIGHEST NEED COMMUNITIES.
AND WE DO THIS THROUGH PARTNERING WITH SCHOOLS THROUGH THE BSAP PROGRAM TODAY FOR STUDENTS, THIS FEELS LIKE FUN AT RECESS, BUT FOR US, THE DATA SHOWS.
UM, WE DO AN ANNUAL SURVEY EACH YEAR.
AND THIS YEAR ALONE, 99% OF EDUCATORS ARE SAYING THE IMPORTANCE OF PLAYWORKS AND PLAY IS GETTING THEIR KIDS MORE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE.
99% OF EDUCATORS ARE SHARING THAT PLAY HELPS KIDS RELATE AND BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH PEERS.
99% OF OF EDUCATORS BELIEVE THAT, UH, PLAYWORKS CREATES A WELL WELCOMING ENVIRONMENT.
THROUGH THOSE PLAY ENVIRONMENTS, EDUCATORS ARE SAYING PLAY MATTERS AND PLAY ABSOLUTELY BRINGS OUT THE BEST IN EVERY STUDENT.
WITH THAT SAID, I INVITE ALL THE BOARD MEMBERS TO IN TO COME OUT TO A PLAYWORKS, RECESS,
UM, I'VE CREATED AND, AND SHARED OUT AT THE BACK OF THE, UM, SPACE HERE A STORY OF DEIA.
A-L-A-U-S-D STUDENT HAS GROWN HER YOUTH LEADERSHIP THROUGH SOME OF THE PROGRAMS THAT PLAYWORKS PROVIDES, AS WELL AS WHAT IS SUPPORTED THROUGH PLAY EQUITY FUND IN LA 84.
I WANNA THANK EVERYBODY FOR ENSURING THAT L-A-U-S-D STUDENTS CONTINUE TO BE, REAP THE BENEFITS OF THE POWER OF PLAY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO BEING A
[03:30:01]
PART OF THE PLAY DAY IN JUNE.THANK YOU JAMES AND CELESTE FOR YOUR INSIGHTFUL REMARKS AND CONTINUED ADVOCACY FOR PLAY EQUITY.
SO TO SUMMARIZE, PLAY DAY IS MORE THAN JUST A CELEBRATION, IS A CALL TO ACTION.
TOGETHER WE ARE WORKING TO, UH, TOWARD A FUTURE WHERE EVERY CHILD HAS ACCESS TO THE JOY AND BENEFITS OF PLAY, SPORTS AND MOVEMENT.
THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS AND TO ALL OF YOU FOR SUPPORTING THIS IMPORTANT INITIATIVE.
LET'S CONTINUE TO CHAMPION POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT ENSURE ALL CHILDREN HAVE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES TO PLAY AND THRIVE.
SO NOW I'LL MOVE TO ANYONE WHO WANTS TO MAKE A COMMENT OR YES, I WOULD.
SO SINCE I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A SECONDARY EDUCATOR AS A BOARD MEMBER, MY FAVORITE PLACE TO VISIT IS THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND EVEN MORE FAVORITE IS THE PALS AND THE UT CASE.
I WATCH THEM AND I SEE HOW MUCH THEY ADVANCE ACADEMICALLY, AND THAT HAS A LOT TO DO WITH THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY THAT THEY DO.
I BET YOU THEY DO 50% PHYSICAL AND 50% ACADEMIC BECAUSE WHEN I WATCH THEM IN THE YARD, THEY LEARN TO COOPERATE WITH EACH OTHER.
THEY LEARN TO RESPECT EACH OTHER, AND IT'S JUST A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE TO SEE OUR LITTLE KID, THEY'RE GOING, THEY'RE OUR FUTURE.
I'M TELLING YOU, THOSE KIDS ARE GOING TO BE NUMBER ONE.
AND I'M JUST SO PROUD AND I HOPE I CAN BE A CO-SPONSOR.
OH, I WAS JUST GONNA THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THIS.
I LOVE THE, UM, PLAY IT FORWARD PUN.
UM, AND I'D LOVE TO JOIN AS A CO-SPONSOR.
MSRE YOUR, UM, UH, INCLUSION OF THE LANGUAGE AROUND THE PARTNERSHIP.
I KNOW WE'VE BEEN WORKING AS A BOARD AROUND COMMUNITY SCHOOL PARKS AND REALLY OPENING IT UP.
AND AS I SAY, EVERY TIME I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, IF YOU'RE A CONSTITUENT OR A USER, A KID, A PARENT, YOU DON'T KNOW THAT THERE'S THE COUNTY, THE CITY, THE DISTRICT ARE ALL DIFFERENT ENTITIES.
YOU JUST KNOW WHY IS THIS THE ONE MAYBE GREEN SPACE IN YOUR COMMUNITY LOCKED ON THE WEEKENDS? AND SO THE MORE THAT WE CAN DO AND HAVE FINANCIAL PARTNERS TO HELP US HOPING THE GATES AND GET KIDS TO PLAY, UM, ESPECIALLY WHEN SO MUCH OF THEIR LIVES ARE STRUCTURED, UH, IT'S JUST REALLY WONDERFUL.
SO THANKS FOR BRINGING THIS, UH, AND THANKS FOR HAVING ME AS A CO-SPONSOR.
UM, DR. RIVAS FOR ACCEPTING MY FRIENDLY AMENDMENT, UM, THAT WILL MAKE THE LANGUAGE MORE INCLUSIVE OF THE SOUTHEAST LA CITIES AND ALL OTHER NON LA MUNICIPALITIES.
UM, I WAS AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER FOR 12 YEARS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION AND PE THAT I WOULD DO WITH MY STUDENTS WAS PRIMORDIAL.
I MEAN, IT WAS THE WAY THAT THE STUDENTS COULD FOCUS THE REST OF THE DAY.
UM, AND THEY DID GET ALONG BETTER WHEN WE STARTED OFF WITH PE.
SO IT, AND I'M NOT A PE TEACHER, BUT I FIGURED IT OUT
AND SO I TOTALLY AGREE WITH, UM, THE PRESENTERS THAT, UH, PLAY, UH, SUPPORTS STUDENT LEARNING AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL WELLBEING AS WELL AS, UM, BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH ONE ANOTHER.
UM, REALLY TESTING OUT CONFLICT, RIGHT? WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU SAY, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE OUT AND YOU DON'T WANNA BE OUT, AND HOW DO YOU HANDLE THAT SITUATION? AND WE COULD HAVE EDUCATORS FACILITATING THAT CONVERSATION.
SO I'M, I'M REALLY GLAD, UM, THAT THIS HAS COME THROUGH.
THE OTHER THING IS I WANNA, AGAIN, EMPHASIZE THE, THE NEED TO PARTNER WITH COUNTY OR WITH CITY TO OPEN UP OUR SCHOOLS TO PARK, UH, AS A PARK, AS A WEEKEND, UM, UM, ACTIVITY FOR KIDS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
I KNOW ONE OF MY SCHOOLS, WALNUT PARK, HAS AN MOU WITH A COUNTY, I BELIEVE, AND THEY OPEN THEIR, THEIR GATES TO THE COMMUNITY TO COME AND USE THE SCHOOL.
THEY HAVE A HUGE GREEN FIELD, AND THEN THERE'S ALSO A PARK NEXT DOOR THAT THEY ALSO USE DURING THE DAY FOR PICNICS OR READING OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
AND IT HAPPENS TO BE THE ONLY PARK IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN THAT WHOLE COMMUNITY, I SHOULD SAY.
SO, UM, THAT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE JUST KEEP THAT IN MIND.
THE OTHER THING I WANNA DO IS, I KNOW THIS IS ABOUT PLAY, BUT ALSO I WANNA UPLIFT, UH, PE TEACHERS, ESPECIALLY IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THEM.
THEY'RE NOT, UH, THEY'RE VERY FEW AND FAR AND WE NEED THEM IN, IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
IN FACT, STUDENTS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL HAVE TO MEET A CERTAIN NUMBER OF MINUTES A MONTH, WHICH I'M GLAD THAT WE HAVE THAT.
UM, BUT WE ALSO, IT COULD BE HELPFUL IF WE HAD STAFF WHO COULD DO THAT AND, UH, WHO HAS A CREDENTIAL IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS IN ALL THE MOTOR SKILLS THAT THEY NEED, UH, TO, TO, YOU KNOW, AS THEY DEVELOP AND GET OLDER.
[03:35:01]
UH, OPPORTUNITY TO BE A PART OF THIS RESOLUTION.LET ME JUST MENTION, UH, CARLA, THAT THAT IS SO TRUE ABOUT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PE TEACHERS, SCHOOLS THAT CAN AFFORD AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER WHO IS A PE TEACHER.
AS A CERTIFICATED PE TEACHER, WHEN THEY TAKE THE KIDS OUT TO THE YARD AND TEACH THEM TRUE PHYSICAL EDUCATION, THE TEACHERS THEMSELVES MEET TOGETHER AND THEY PLAN AND THEY GO OVER DATA.
SO IT'S A DOUBLE, IT'S A DOUBLE, UH, WONDERFUL THING TO HAVE PE TEACHERS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
SO THAT'S MY PLUG FOR PE TEACHERS, PE TEACHER, MISS, UH, NEW BILL
UM, APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THIS.
AND I WAS THERE LAST YEAR AND IT WAS AMAZING.
UM, JUST TO BE IN THE COMMUNITY AND HAVE EVERYONE TAKE PART IN WHAT BRINGS SO MANY OF US TOGETHER.
UM, BEING A PHYSICAL EDUCATOR, UH, IT IS IMPORTANT.
I THINK IT WAS ONE OF THE AREAS WE TOUCH THE LIVES OF EVERYONE AT A SCHOOL SITE, WHEN YOU ARE IN A SECONDARY 'CAUSE YOU GET TO SEE EVERYBODY.
AND SO WITH THIS INITIATIVE AND ADDING THE SCHOOLS, WHICH I THINK WITH THE PARKS AND THE COUNTY IS SO CRITICAL BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE JUST THE NATURAL CONNECTION, I MEAN, I WAS FORTUNATE TO WORK AT A SCHOOL THAT WAS CONNECTED TO A PARK THAT YOU CAN WALK OVER.
WE USE THOSE FACILITIES AND THEN TO HAVE OTHER SCHOOLS SIMILAR LIKE THAT, I JUST SAW SO MUCH GROWTH WITHIN THOSE STUDENTS.
AND SO AS YOU BRING THIS FORTH, I'M SO GRATEFUL.
AND IF I CAN BE A CO-SPONSOR AS WELL, UH, JUST APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT LA 84 IS DOING AS WELL.
I WANT TO AGAIN, RECIPROCATE THE JUST ADMIRATION ABOUT FOR THIS RESOLUTION, UH, DR. RIVAS AND HOW HIGHLIGHTING HOW VITAL OUR PUBLIC SPACES ARE FOR ESPECIALLY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS, WHETHER IT'S COMMUNITY RECREATIONAL LEAGUES.
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THE EXPANSION, EXPANSION OF CULTURALLY INCLUSIVE PLAY AS WELL.
I'VE RECENTLY SEEN WITH THE HIGH POPULATION OF LATINO STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT, UM, A LOT OF SCHOOLS ARE OFFERING FOLKLORICO OR SPACES WHERE THERE'S A HIGH KOREAN POPULATION, KOREAN FAN DANCING, AND A LOT OF MORE STUDENTS ARE PARTICULARLY ENGAGED WHEN THEY SEE THEMSELVES IN PLAY.
AND EXERCISING IN A WAY THAT FEELS CLOSE TO HOME IS SOMETHING I BELIEVE CAN ALSO BE ADDED TO THIS.
SO MANY OF OUR STUDENTS STRONGLY RESONATE WITH THE IDEA THAT IT IS A LIFELINE AND ANOTHER WAY FOR STUDENTS TO ENGAGE IT WITH THEIR PEERS, ESPECIALLY AFTER THE PANDEMIC.
AND I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THE EXPANSION OF THESE BLOCK PARTIES WITH LA 84 TO OTHER AREAS OUTSIDE OF WEST ADAMS TO CONTINUE ENGAGING STUDENTS WITH THEIR SUMMER OF LEARNING AND ALSO GETTING THEM PHYSICALLY ACTIVE.
ANYONE ELSE? I JUST WANTED TO ADD, HOPEFULLY WE'LL GET THAT 1% OVER ON THE OTHER SIDE.
I'M NOT SURE WHY WE HAVE 1% THAT'S NOT IN INCOMPLIANT, BUT YEAH, BEFORE WE GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT, COULD WE TAKE A QUICK PICTURE AND THEN COME BACK? IS THAT ALRIGHT? ABSOLUTELY.
JUST RIGHT HERE IN FRONT OF THE DAY.
EVERYBODY WANTS TO COME AND TAKE A PIC PIC.
OH, TANYA, I SEE YOUR HAND UP NOW.
I GUESS AS PEOPLE ARE TRANSITIONING TO PHOTO, UH, I JUST WANNA APPRECIATE DR. RIVAS ALSO FOR BRINGING THIS RESOLUTION.
WOULD LOVE TO BE ADDED AS A CO-SPONSOR.
IT'S SO IMPORTANT, I THINK, UM, FOR US TO REACH OUR ACADEMIC GOALS THAT WE PROMOTE HEALTH AND HEALTHY ACTIVITY.
UM, AND I WANTED TO ALSO APPRECIATE THE REFERENCE TO WALK TO SCHOOL DAY THIS COMING OCTOBER.
SO THANK YOU DR. RIVAS AND WOULD LOVE TO BE ADDED.
I DON'T, I DON'T I THINK THEY'RE NOT EVERY OTHER ONE.
UM, THROUGHOUT THE CALIFORNIA WORK.
WE'RE SO EXCITED TO, WITH EVERYBODY
[03:40:01]
OKAY.WE HAVE A FULL SLATE OF PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM.
I DON'T SEE THEM IN THE ROOM, BUT I'LL READ THROUGH THE LIST AND I'LL ALSO NOTE THERE ARE NO, UH, REMOTE SPEAKERS SIGNED UP FOR THIS TAB EITHER.
LAKEL WHITE, ARE YOU HERE? YES.
IAN KIRKSEY, AMIR, UH, MARIA HERNANDEZ, MACKEY DRAPER, JUAN MCG.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
I'LL CALL THE OTHER SPEAKERS WHILE HE'S ON HIS WAY DOWN.
OH, BRIAN WILL BE GOING NEXT AFTER MR. GANDHI IF HE'S HERE.
MR. MA GANDHI IS GONNA SPEAK IN SPANISH, SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR WHAT HE'S SAYING IN ENGLISH SIMULTANEOUSLY, PLEASE PUT YOUR HANDS UP AND WE'LL GET YOU THESE TRANSLATION HEADSETS.
WELL, I HAD A MEETING WITH SOME PEOPLE TODAY AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT SAFETY, RIGHT? AND I WAS REMEMBERING THAT PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND ABOUT SAFETY.
EVERYTHING IS MENTAL HEALTH, ONE THING OR THE OTHER.
BUT HONESTLY, THEY HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT IS TO CREATE SECURITY PARAMETERS SO THAT OUR CHILDREN CAN WALK IN A SAFE WAY TO SCHOOLS AND THAT THEY CAN COME BACK.
AND, AND THE THE PRINCIPAL SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT? OUR JOB IS INSIDE THE SCHOOLS OUTSIDE.
WHAT HAPPENS OUTSIDE? I DON'T CARE.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, I DON'T LIVE AROUND HERE.
THIS IS THE MOST HONEST ANSWER THAT I'VE HEARD MY WHOLE LIFE.
AND THIS WAS FULL OF EMPLOYEES TODAY.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE A CEMETERY NOW BECAUSE THEY CAME TO DO THEIR BUSINESS AND THEY LEFT.
THEREFORE, I THINK THIS IS THE BIGGEST PROBLEM.
WE NEED TO START WORKING MORE SERIOUSLY.
THESE PEOPLE HAVE, WELL, THE CHILDREN ARE BEING PRESSED, ARE BEING PRESSURED BY GANGS.
THEY'RE SELLING, SELLING THEM DRUGS.
THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO TAKE CHILDREN TO THE ADDICTION AND US.
I BELIEVE THAT THE WORDS OF THESE PRINCIPLE WAS GREAT.
WE ONLY ANSWERED TO WHAT'S HAPPENING INSIDE.
WE DON'T CARE ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING OUTSIDE, THEREFORE, AND WE ALL WANTED NOW THAT WE WERE SPEAKING ABOUT THE TREES, I WANTED TO, UH, TO DO SOMETHING AT SCHOOL.
I WANTED TO DO A PILOT PLAN WHERE IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE IN JAIL THERE.
EVERYTHING IS CONCRETE IN THAT SCHOOL.
UM, THERE WAS AN ORGANIZATION THAT WAS CALLED FOR THE FRIENDS OF TREES.
AND YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAID TO ME? THAT THEY CAN'T DO ANYTHING.
BUT THE DISTRICT HAS PROHIBITED BASED ON THE POLICIES FOR IT TO BE OPEN.
AND THERE'S, THERE AREN'T ANY PARKS THERE, THERE'S NO GREEN SPACES.
THERE ARE A LOT OF GANGS, A LOT OF VIOLENCE, AND THERE ARE A LOT OF ROBBERIES.
AND WE WERE TALKING, THERE ARE GOOD THINGS THAT CAN HAPPEN, BUT WE NEED POLITICAL BALL SUPPORT FROM YOU GUYS.
IF NOT, WE'RE WASTING OUR TIME.
ARE YOU HERE? CINDY NUNEZ AND AMEN.
SO I ALSO WANNA MENTION THAT THIS, UH, RESOLUTION IS SEEKING A, UH, WAIVER OF BOARD RULE 72.
SOMETIMES WE TAKE THESE VOTES SIMULTANEOUSLY.
IT'S, UH, A RESOLUTION THAT DOESN'T REQUIRE IMMEDIATE ACTION LIKE THE OTHER RESOLUTIONS DO.
UM, SO WE'LL JUST TAKE THAT VOTE SIMULTANEOUSLY, IF THAT'S OKAY WITH EVERYBODY.
UM, AND MS. EZ, I DON'T KNOW IF SHE WANTED TO MAKE A COMMENT.
OH, JUST APPRECIATION, UM, TO DR. RIVAS FOR BRINGING THIS RESOLUTION.
I THINK PLAY IS SUPER IMPORTANT AND I'D LOVE TO BE ADDED AS A CO-SPONSOR AND CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW WE CAN INTEGRATE, PLAY MORE IN OUR EVERYDAY INSTRUCTION BECAUSE WE, WE NEED SO MUCH MORE OF IT.
ON THE SIMULTANEOUS VOTE FOR THE BOARD RULE OF 72 WAIVER AND THE ACTUAL RESOLUTION, UH, MS. NEWBELL? YES.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SSON? YES.
AND STUDENT BOARD MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
AND, UM, MS. UM, ORTIZ FRANKLIN, CAN I, UH, CONFIRM YOUR VOTE ON TAB SIX? YES.
MAY I ALSO HAVE YOUR VOTE ON TAB EIGHT? YES.
AND MS. EZ, MAY I HAVE YOUR VOTE ON TAB EIGHT? YES.
[03:45:01]
YES.I HAVE COLLECTED ALL THE VOTES THAT I NEEDED.
UM, SO ON TO THE NEXT ITEM, NUMBER 11,
[11. Board of Education Report No. 288-24/25 Procurement Services Division - Facilities Contracts (Approval of Facilities Contract Actions) Recommends the ratification of the Procurement Services Division contract actions taken by Facilities Contracts under delegated authority as listed in Attachment “A” including award of advertised construction contracts; award of job order contract amendment; approval of change orders; completion of contracts; award of informal contracts; award of architectural and engineering contracts; award of professional services contract; extra services/amendments for architectural and engineering contracts; emergency contracts/purchase orders; award of solar photovoltaic systems contracts and approved proposed contracts listed in Attachment B including film permit management services contract; grant writing services contracts; closeout and savings audit services contract; Alternative Design-Build contract at East Los Angeles Occupational Center; Disaster Recovery Grants consulting services contract and District Headquarters elevator modernization contract.]
TAB 11, APPROVAL OF FACILITY CONTRACT ACTIONS.DR. RIVAS HAD QUESTIONS AND SO DID, UH, MR. MOLSEN.
UM, AND WHY DON'T WE TAKE THE, GET THE MOVE IN A SECOND WHILE FOLKS ARE GETTING THE NOTES TOGETHER? MOVE IT.
MOVE BY MR. SPRO, SECONDED BY MS. EZ.
SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO GO DR. REEVES.
I I'M GOING TO, UH, WITHDRAW MY, UH, QUESTION.
I HAD A QUESTION FOR ITEMS. UH, Q AND R TOS COMES DOWN.
UM, I JUST SEE THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL CONTRACTS WITH GRANT WRITING SERVICES.
THIS CONTRACT PERTAINS, UM, ITEM Q, BUT I WOULD ALSO INCLUDE ITEM T.
COULD YOU PLEASE INFORM US ON THE PENDING MONETARY GOALS FOR THESE CONSULTING SERVICES? IF WE'RE, UM, ARE SPENDING 2 MILLION AND 6 MILLION, WHAT IS THE LEAST WE ARE EXPECTED TO GAIN FROM THESE SERVICES IN TERMS OF DOLLARS, LIKE 10 MILLION OR 20 MILLION TO ENSURE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THESE CONTRACTS AND OTHERS, WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE, UM, ARE ESTABLISHING METRICS THAT WE'RE GETTING, UM, YOU KNOW, RETURN ON OUR INVESTMENT.
CHS, CHIEF FACILITIES EXECUTIVE.
SO I'LL GIVE YOU A QUICK RUNDOWN OF QR AND T.
UM, ITEM Q IS TO AUGMENT EXISTING STAFF, UM, WHEN WE HAVE SEVERAL COMPETING DEADLINES AND WE DON'T WANNA MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY FOR GRANTS RELATED TO FACILITIES CONSTRUCTION IMPROVEMENTS.
WE CAN TURN TO THIS CONTRACT, UM, TO HELP US MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE ABLE TO MAKE THOSE APPLICATIONS AND APPLY FOR SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDS.
THIS IS AN UP TO AMOUNT, SO WE'RE ONLY GOING TO USE THEM ON AN AS NEEDED BASIS.
UM, AND WE WERE, WE ARE PLANNING TO USE THEM SPECIALLY FOR ADDITIONAL, UM, GRANT APPLICATIONS FOR WATER CONTROL BOARD, EPA, STATE FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION, UM, CALIFORNIA OES, ANYTHING THAT IS KIND OF ABOVE AND BEYOND THE ROUTINE FACILITIES, APPLICATIONS WE MAKE FOR STATE BOND MEASURES.
THIS IS A REQUIREMENT OF THE STATE THAT WHENEVER WE APPLY FOR STATE BOND AUDIT, UM, I'M SORRY, STATE BONDS THAT WE HAVE TO AUDIT OUR OWN APPLICATIONS.
THE STATE USED TO CONDUCT THESE AUDITS ABOUT SEVEN YEARS AGO.
THEY PUSHED THAT ONTO, UM, SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO CONDUCT THOSE AUDITS THEMSELVES.
THERE'S A BACKLOG OF APPLICATIONS INTO THE STATES FOR THESE FUNDS.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT, UM, JEOPARDIZING OUR OPPORTUNITY TO GET THOSE.
SO WE WANNA CONTINUE TO MAKE SURE OUR, UM, APPLICATIONS ARE AUDITED AND THIS COMPANY IS GOING TO BE PRODU DOING THAT FOR US.
AND THEN ITEM T IS SPECIFIC FOR, UM, DISASTER RECOVERY THAT'S RELATED TO THE PALISADES FIRE.
UM, THIS IS A VERY SPECIALIZED APPLICATION TO MAKE APPLICATIONS BOTH FOR FEMA AND FOR INSURANCE.
THE GOOD NEWS ON THIS ONE IS THAT FEMA DOES REIMBURSE 5% OF THE TOTAL AMOUNT THAT YOU RECEIVE, UM, TO PAY FOR THESE CONSULTING SERVICES.
'CAUSE THEY RECOGNIZE IT'S SUCH A NICHE KIND OF SPECIALIZED APPLICATION.
UM, SO WE EXPECT THAT WE HAVE TO FRONT FUND WITH GENERAL FUNDS THAT WE WILL BE SEEKING FEMA REIMBURSEMENT FOR THIS CONSULTANT SERVICES.
JUST GOING BACK TO OUR, YOU MENTIONED THE, THE BACKLOG.
SO I WAS, I WAS CONCERNING, UM, THAT 523.4 MILLION TO THE STATE, UM, WE COULD LOSE THESE FUNDS.
SO JUST WANNA KNOW HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? I KNOW THERE'S, UH, YOU, YOU MENTIONED THAT IF YOU CAN JUST ELABORATE MORE.
AND IS THE DEPARTMENT RESPONSIBLE FOR OVERSEEING THIS, UM, ISSUES UNDERSTAFFED, OR IS THIS A LOT OF AUDITS THAT HAVE TO TAKE PLACE? OR JUST WHY THE BACKLOG WAS SO, WAS SO LARGE? SO, UH, JUST TO CLARIFY, THE BACKLOG IS IN OUR BACKLOG OF AUDITS NEED TO BE DONE.
IT'S THE STATE'S BACKLOG FOR REVIEWING THOSE APPLICATIONS.
SO THE STATES LETS US KNOW, HEY, WE'RE NOW GOING TO MOVE THROUGH THE APPROVAL OR REVIEW PROCESS.
PLEASE MAKE THE AUDIT HAS TO BE CONDUCTED.
AND BECAUSE THE STATE HAS THIS BACKLOG, WE'RE NOW DEALING WITH THE STATE'S
[03:50:01]
BACKLOG.SO THE BACKLOG IS COSTING US 523.4 OR NO, NO.
THESE WERE, THESE WERE PROJECTS THAT, UM, UH, THAT WE ARE LOOKING TO FUND ANY THAT WE'RE APPLYING FOR ANYWAY.
UM, WE JUST NEED, THE STATE REQUIRES THAT AN AUDIT BE DONE OF ALL APPLICATIONS.
NOW THAT THESE APPLICATIONS ARE READY TO BE AUDITED, WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO THESE AUDITS ADDRESSING THE STATE'S BACKLOG OF PROJECT APPLICATIONS.
AND THE 523, WHAT IS THAT AND PARTICULARLY CONNECTED TO? OH, THAT IS ONLY, THAT IS IF THE AUDIT ISN'T CONDUCTED.
SO EDUCATION 4 1 0 2 4 IS THE CODE THAT REQUIRED THAT NOW SCHOOL DISTRICTS DO THESE AUDITS RATHER THAN THE STATE.
AND SO, UM, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE AUDITS ARE DONE SO THAT WE ARE COLLECTING THE FIVE, TWENTY FIVE HUNDRED AND TWENTY 3 MILLION FROM THE STATE.
THAT IS, THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS FOR THIS ITEM.
I'M DOUBLE CHECKING FOR MS. ORTIZ FRANKLIN.
SO WE HAVE THE MOTION AND THE MOVE AND THE SECOND FOR THIS, UH, I'LL TAKE THE VOTE.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT MOLSEN? YES.
AND STUDENT BOARD MEMBER COR CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
UH, MR. MEIN ANNOUNCES A YES FOR TAB 11.
AND NOW WE JUST NEED MS. GRIEGO FOR TAB 11.
[15. Board of Education Report No. 369-24/25 NOT ON CONSENT Business and Finance Division (Authorization of a Resolution of the Board of Education Approving the Sale and Issuance of Not-to- Exceed $1,000,000,000 of General Obligation Bonds and the Forms of the Documents Necessary for the Issuance of such Bonds) Recommends approval for the issuance of up to $1 billion in General Obligation Bonds under the Measure Q, Measure RR, Measure US, or any combination of the foregoing to fund projects authorized under the respective measure. The bonds are expected to be sold in Fall 2025 via a negotiated method and repaid through ad valorem property taxes, not district funds. This issuance aims to enhance facilities, IT infrastructure, and equity in project funding.]
DISCUSSION, UH, IS TAB 15.I BELIEVE I HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT ON TAB 15.
MARIA LUISA PALMA, COME ON UP.
MARIA LUISA PALMA SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF THE TAXPAYERS AND ADA INC.
HOW IS IT POSSIBLE THAT I'M THE ONLY PERSON SPEAKING IN A CITY WITH MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF RESIDENTS?
INTERESTINGLY, YOU SHOULD REVIEW THAT AGENDA ITEM.
IT WAS LISTED ON THE AGENDA AS RECEIPT OF DEPTH REPORT.
IT'S NOT AN ABBREVIATION FOR DEPARTMENT, IT'S THE DEBT REPORT.
THAT'S QUITE MISLEADING, ISN'T IT? BECAUSE IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT PIECE OF INFORMATION.
THE DEBT REPORT THAT TELLS US EXACTLY HOW MANY BONDS WE HAVE OUTSTANDING ALL KINDS OF INFORMATION.
NOW ON ITEM 15, A BILLION DOLLAR BOND ISSUE.
AND WE HAVE NO FINANCE COMMITTEE AT THIS DISTRICT.
I FIND THAT UNCONSCIONABLE, BUT YET WE HAVE THESE OTHER RESOLUTIONS THAT ARE PUT FORTH BY MEMBERS OF THIS BOARD.
I FIND THAT TO BE VERY TELLING ABOUT THE BOARD MEMBERS' PRIORITIES.
SO EITHER YOU CONSIDER THAT FINANCES, BONDS, AND SO FORTH ARE LOW PRIORITY, OR THEY ARE DANGEROUS TOPICS FOR YOUR POLITICAL CAREERS.
OR YOU LACK GROUNDING IN THE SUBJECT MATTER.
OR YOU WANT TO KEEP SECRETS ON THE DISTRICT'S FINANCES BY DESIGN.
WE CONTINUE TO HAVE NO PUBLIC, NO DOCUMENTED LONG-TERM PLAN FOR FACILITIES USE FOR THE SUPPOSED 80 BILLION UN UNFUNDED FACILITIES NEEDS.
WE'VE HAD VAGUE STATEMENTS BY A NUMBER OF THE BOARD MEMBERS ABOUT POTENTIALLY HAVING TO CONSOLIDATE PROGRAMS IN SCHOOLS, CONSIDERING THE DECREASING ENROLLMENT FOR SO MANY REASONS THAT WE HAVE DECREASING ENROLLMENTS.
WE NEED TO SEE THE PROJECTIONS FOR FACILITIES NEEDS IN THE REALITY.
THE TAXPAYERS WHO PAY PROPERTY TAX, WHICH IS EVERYONE HERE, DON'T SETTLE US WITH UNNECESSARY DEBT ANY LONGER.
GIVE US THE PROJECTIONS ON ENROLLMENT BEFORE YOU, YOU CONTINUE TO SPEND MORE OF OUR PROPERTY TAX MONEY.
UM, MAY I HAVE A MOVE AND A SECOND FOR TAB 15? MOVE IT.
AND STUDENT MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
WE'LL COME BACK TO MS. GRIEGO FOR TAB 15.
[03:55:01]
BRINGS US TO TAB 16.I DO NOT HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THAT ITEM, BUT I'LL DOUBLE CHECK.
[16. Board of Education Report No. 370-24/25 NOT ON CONSENT Business and Finance Division (Authorization of a Resolution of the Board of Education Approving the Sale and Issuance of Not-to-Exceed $5,100,000,000 of General Obligation Refunding Bonds and the Forms of the Documents Necessary for the Issuance of such Refunding Bonds) Recommends approval for the issuance of up to $5.1 billion in General Obligation Refunding Bonds to the extent taxpayer savings are available and approval of the necessary documents like a Bond Purchase Agreement, Official Notice of Sale, Notice of Intention to Sell Bonds, Continuing Disclosure Certificate, Escrow Agreement, and Official Statement. The sale of the GO Refunding Bonds will be through either a negotiated or competitive method, considering market conditions, declining enrollment, and budget uncertainties.]
HAVE A MOVE AND A SECOND FOR TAB 16? MOVE IT.IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? WE HAVE NONE NOTED.
UH, BUT IT HAS TO BE ON DISCUSSION.
UM, MS. NEWBELL ON THE VOTE? YES.
AND STUDENT BOARD MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
WE DO NOT HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT.
MAY I HAVE A MOVE AND A SECOND? MOVE IT.
MOVE SECOND BY MS. EZ AND SECONDED BY FOR PRESIDENT SCHON.
UH, AND THE VOTE, UH, MS. NEWBELL? YES.
AND STUDENT BOARD MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
ALSO, COME BACK TO TAB 17 FOR MS. CREGO.
[31. Board of Education Report No. 365-24/25 PUBLIC HEARING Charter Schools Division (Approval of the Renewal Petition for Plainview Academic Charter Academy) Recommends approval of the renewal petition for Plainview Academic Charter Academy, located in Board District 6 and Region North, for five (5) years, beginning July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2030, to serve up to 309 students in grades TK-5 in each year of the charter term]
TO TAB 31, APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR PLAIN VIEW, A CARD ACADEMY CHARTER.UM, BEFORE THE MATTER IS HEARD, A PUBLIC HEARING MUST BE HELD, UH, FOR THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR PLAIN VIEW ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY.
UH, SPEAKERS WHO WISH TO SIGN UP SHOULD SIGN UP ONLINE.
UM, I'LL ALSO NOTE THAT THIS, UM, RECOMMENDS APPROVAL OF THE CHARTER WITH BENCHMARKS AS DISCUSSED IN ATTACHMENT.
SO, UM, MS, LET'S MOVE IT FIRST.
MAY I MOVE IN A SECOND FOR TAB 31? I'LL MOVE IT.
AND, UH, MS. EZ, I BELIEVE YOU HAD QUESTIONS.
SO, PLAINVIEW ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY IS A SCHOOL I REPRESENTED IN BOARD DISTRICT SIX, AND I SUPPORT IT, I BELIEVE IN ITS MISSION.
AND I'VE SEEN THE COMMITMENT OF ITS EDUCATORS.
I WAS THERE JUST A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO WITH PRINCIPAL MIKE DENO AND HIS INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP TEAM.
THEY SHARED ABOUT THE, UM, INTERVENTION PROGRAM THAT THEY HAVE, THE SUPPORT THAT THEY'RE PROVIDING TO, UM, STUDENTS WHO MAY BE STRUGGLING.
UM, I, I DO HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BENCHMARKS.
UM, SO I, I GUESS I WILL JUST NOTE THAT UNLIKE MOST OF THE AFFILIATED CHARTERS THAT WE'VE LOOKED AT TODAY, AND MOST OF THE AFFILIATED CHARTERS IN GENERAL, THIS IS A HIGH NEEDS SCHOOL.
NEARLY 90% OF ITS STUDENTS ARE CONSIDERED SOCIOECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED.
THE MAJORITY ARE EITHER CURRENT OR FORMER ENGLISH LEARNERS.
AND I'LL CONTRAST THAT WITH SOME OF THE OTHER AFFILIATED CHARTERS TODAY WHO DON'T EVEN HAVE ENOUGH ENGLISH LEARNERS TO MEET THE END SIZE REQUIREMENT OF THE STATE.
UM, SO I APPRECIATE THAT THE STAFF HOLDS ALL OF OUR CHARTERS TO THE SAME HIGH EXPECTATIONS, WHETHER THEY'RE INDEPENDENT OR AFFILIATED.
UM, I DO WANT TO ENSURE THAT THE BENCHMARKS THAT WE SET IN PLACE ARE SETTING HIGH STANDARDS, BUT ARE ALSO ACHIEVABLE, UM, FOR OUR SCHOOLS.
AND THINKING ABOUT HOW ARE WE SUPPORTING SCHOOLS TOWARDS SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT, UM, AND NOT, NOT JUST HOLDING THEM ACCOUNTABLE, UM, UTILIZING, UH, GOALS THAT MIGHT NOT BE ATTAINABLE WITHIN THEIR CHARTER TERM.
UM, SO WHAT DOES REAL ACCOUNTABILITY LOOK LIKE? AND HOW DO WE AS A DISTRICT SUPPORT AFFILIATED CHARTER SCHOOLS WHO MAY BE STRUGGLING, UM, AS THEY ARE OUR SCHOOLS IN, IN A UNIQUE WAY, AS COMPARED TO INDEPENDENT CHARTER SCHOOLS.
SO I WAS JUST WONDERING IF YOU ALL COULD SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, THE SETTING OF THE PARTICULAR BENCHMARKS THAT ARE PROPOSED FOR PLAINVIEW, UM, AND HOW DO WE ENSURE AS A DISTRICT THAT AN AFFILIATED CHARTER, LIKE THIS ONE THAT'S SERVING A HIGH NEEDS STUDENT POPULATION IS GETTING THE SUPPORT THAT IT NEEDS? UM, THOSE ARE GOOD QUESTIONS.
I'M MARLA WILMONT, INTERIM DIRECTOR OF THE CHARTER SCHOOLS DIVISION.
SO I WANNA REITERATE, AS YOU STATED, WE APPLY THE SAME CRITERIA FOR OUR INDEPENDENT CHARTERS AND OUR AFFILIATED CHARTERS AS FAR AS LOOKING AT ASSIGNING A BENCHMARK.
AND SO THAT CRITERIA IS, UM, WHAT WE ARE LOOKING AT IS IF A, THE, A SCHOOL OR A STUDENT GROUP IS, UH, BELOW THE STATE AND RED.
SO AS YOU CAN SEE FOR, UH, PLAINVIEW DATA ON PAGE, UH, 1329, THEY, UH, WERE, UH, LOWER THAN THE STATE AND RED FOR ALL STUDENTS.
AND THE THREE NUMERICALLY SIGNIFICANT STUDENT GROUPS FOR ELA, WE DID DO AN ALL STUDENTS, UH, BENCHMARK AND AN ENGLISH LEARNER BENCHMARK BECAUSE AS YOU ALREADY NOTED, THE LATINO AND STUDENT, UH, SOCIOECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED STUDENT GROUPS MAKE UP THE MAJORITY OF THAT ALL STUDENT, UM, STUDENT GROUPS.
[04:00:01]
STUDENTS MAKE INCREASES, THEN THOSE STUDENT, IT'LL BE THE STUDENT GROUPS.UM, SO THAT'S FOR THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS.
AND THEN FOR, UM, THE LP, UM, WE LOOK AT, THAT'S ON PAGE 1000 3, 3 1.
UH, WE LOOK AT, UH, IF IT'S LOWER THAN THE STATE, AND ALSO VERY LOW STATUS AND THEN RED.
UM, SO THAT'S THE CONSISTENT APPROACH.
WE'VE APPLIED, UH, FOR BOTH INDEPENDENT AND AFFILIATED CHARTER SCHOOLS.
AND REALLY, UM, AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE BENCHMARK, IT'S REALLY TO DEMONSTRATE INCREASES.
SO WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR IS THAT, UM, AND IT'S ON PAGE 1324 THAT THEY'LL INCREASE OR INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THE PRIOR YEAR IN THEIR CHANGE LEVEL ON THE DASHBOARD.
AND SO THAT'S THE ALL STUDENTS, THE, AND THEN THE ENGLISH LEARNER STUDENT GROUP, WE DID IDENTIFY AND PULL OUT, UM, AS A, UM, TO BE LOOKING FOR INCREASES.
AND THEN IN THE LP ALSO, UM, WE'RE LOOKING FOR THEM TO INCREASE OR INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY.
UM, AS TO THE SUPPORT FOR THE AFFILIATED CHARTERS, WE DO WORK, YOU KNOW, THE REGION IS AWARE AND WORKS CLOSELY WITH THE SCHOOL.
THE DIRECTOR, UM, DOES OFTEN PARTICIPATE IN OUR OVERSIGHT.
UM, AND WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS AROUND THESE ASSIGNMENTS OF THESE BENCHMARKS AND UNDERSTANDING THEIR DATA.
AND SO THEY, UM, WERE HAVE BEEN PART OF LOOKING AT THE ORIGINAL BENCHMARK THEY HAD WITH THE PLAN.
THE SUPPORT WAS THE REGION WAS BUILT IN THERE.
UM, AND SO THAT IS, THAT IS HOW THEY GET THAT SUPPORT.
DO YOU WANT ANYTHING ELSE, JOSE? I JUST HAD ONE, ONE OTHER NOTE TO YOUR BROADER POINT IN, IN ASCRIBING THE, THE BENCHMARKS, IN ADDITION TO THE CONSISTENCY, ALL SCHOOLS ARE SEEKING TO INCREASE AT THE END OF THE DAY FOR THE NEXT RENEWAL, WE'LL BE LOOKING AT WHATEVER THE APPLICABLE LAW IS AND ENSURE THAT THAT'S APPLIED.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, THIS SCHOOL, PLAINVIEW HAD PRIOR BENCHMARKS FOR THEIR PLAN, WHICH THEY MET RIGHT.
AND THEY MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN MATHEMATICS AS WE'VE TALKED TO THE REGION.
BUT THEY ALSO RECOGNIZED THEY NEEDED TO PICK UP WITH ELA.
I HAD AN UNANNOUNCED VISIT TO THE SCHOOL, AND THEY'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK WITH WRITING AS WELL.
UH, AND SEEN THOSE RUBRICS WITH THE TEACHERS.
UH, AND NOW IT'S, IT'S TRYING TO HAVE PARODY SO THAT BOTH SUBJECT AREAS, YOU KNOW, THE STUDENTS ARE DOING WELL IN BOTH SUBJECT AREAS, BUT, BUT I WANNA UNDERSCORE WE WILL FOLLOW APPLICABLE LAW.
THE BENCHMARKS ALONE WILL NOT DETERMINE IF A SCHOOL IS RENEWED OR NOT.
WE'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT THAT WHOLE PICTURE.
AND SO WHEN THEY WOULD BE UP, SHOULD THE BOARD APPROVE IT TODAY, WE WILL LOOK AT THE PROGRESS IN THE BENCHMARKS, UH, IN VIEW OF ALSO THE, THE APPLICABLE LAW.
THAT'S A HELPFUL CLARIFICATION BECAUSE THE, THE STANDARDS THAT ARE SET BY STATE LAW FOR RENEWAL ARE DIFFERENT THAN, THAN THOSE THAT WE APPLY FOR THE BENCHMARKS, FOR EXAMPLE.
AND I GUESS THE ONE THING, OBVIOUSLY IMPROVEMENT AND INCREASES IS OUR GOAL.
I, I WOULD JUST CHALLENGE THE IMPROVEMENT EVERY SINGLE YEAR AS THAT THAT MIGHT BE A CHALLENGING CONSTRUCT FOR SCHOOLS TO MEET.
WE KNOW EVERY YEAR YOU GET A NEW BATCH OF STUDENTS AND FOR WHATEVER REASON, SOMETIMES KIDDOS MAY COME IN WITH GREATER STRUGGLES OR GREATER NEEDS.
UM, SO THAT MIGHT NOT ALWAYS TRANSLATE TO AN IMPROVEMENT EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
BUT IF STUDENTS ARE MEETING THEIR GROWTH GOALS, WHICH I THINK THAT THE SCHOOL IS DEMONSTRATING THROUGH THEIR I-READY DATA, THEY'RE MEETING THAT, THAT ONE YEAR OR MORE OF GROWTH PER YEAR.
I APPRECIATE THE FOCUS ON OUR EMERGENT BILINGUAL STUDENTS.
I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT EVERY YEAR CONSTRUCT AGAIN, BECOMES CHALLENGING BECAUSE AS STUDENTS, UH, SUCCESSFULLY RECLASSIFY, THEY THEN EXIT OUR ENGLISH LEARNER, UM, STUDENT GROUP COHORT.
AND THEREFORE, YOU KNOW, YOU OFTEN SEE LIKE A STRONG YEAR AND THEN MAYBE A DROP THE SUBSEQUENT YEAR.
SO IT MIGHT JUST BE SOMETHING FOR US TO STUDY AND THINK ABOUT, UM, WHETHER, WHAT ARE THE, WHAT ARE THE RIGHT TYPES OF BENCHMARKS THAT REALLY PUSH FOR THAT IMPROVEMENT AND WHERE WE WANT TO SEE SCHOOLS FOR RENEWAL, UM, BUT ARE MAYBE NOT SETTING UP UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS IN TERMS OF EVERY SINGLE YEAR WE'RE SEEING THAT SAME SORT OF TRAJECTORY.
YEAH, AND THAT'S A GOOD POINT.
AND I WILL ADD THOUGH, WHEN WE DO THE RENEWAL, WE DO LOOK AT THE ENTIRE TERM AND HOW THEY MET THE BENCHMARK OR DIDN'T MEET THE BENCHMARK.
AND IT'S REVIEWED ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, PART OF OVERSIGHT CONVERSATIONS AND SUCH.
SO IT'S LOOKED AT THE, THE ENTIRE DURATION OF THE CHARTER TERM, HOW THEY DID ON THEIR BENCHMARKS.
UM, JUST A QUESTION, IT'S NOT ON, ON THIS ITEM, BUT JUST OVERALL ON ALL THE CHARTER, UH, RENEWALS AFFILIATED CHARTER, JUST FOR, AND I'LL ASK YOU THIS.
I'VE ASKED YOU THIS BEFORE, SO I'LL ASK YOU AGAIN.
UH, JUST FOR THE PUBLIC'S UNDERSTANDING, CAN YOU WALK US THROUGH THE PROCESS AND CRITERIA USED TO DETERMINE SIX YEAR RENEWAL AND FIVE YEAR RENEWAL, UH, FOR ANY CHARTER AND HOW ACADEMIC OPERATIONAL FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE FACTORS INTO THAT DECISION FOR SIX YEAR AND FOR FIVE YEAR FOR, UM, HIGH PERFORMING AND MIDDLE PERFORMING.
JUST WALK US THROUGH THAT, IF YOU DON'T MIND.
SO THE LAW DOES NOT CLARIFY NECESSARILY A CRITERIA FOR, UH, SIX OR SEVEN YEARS FOR A HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOL.
SO, AS YOU SAID, A HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOL CAN GET A FIVE, SIX, OR SEVEN YEAR TERM.
[04:05:01]
DID DEVELOP A CONSIDERATION, UM, SHEET.AND SO THINGS THAT WE LOOK AT IS HOW THEY MET HIGH PERFORMING CRITERIA.
SO THERE'S TWO WAYS YOU CAN EITHER GET, UH, ACROSS THE BOARD IN ALL INDICATORS, A BLUE AND A GREEN THAT'S HIGH PERFORMING CRITERION ONE, OR YOU CAN GET HIGH PERFORMING CRITERION TWO, WHERE YOU'RE LOOKING AT YOUR, UH, OVERALL SCHOOL-WIDE AND STUDENT GROUPS BEING HIGHER THAN THE STATE.
SO AS PART OF WHAT WE DEVELOPED THEN FOR A SIX YEAR TERM, WHERE THOSE WOULD BE SCHOOLS THAT MET THE HIGH PERFORMING CRITERIA TWO IN ORDER TO GET TO A SEVEN YEAR RENEWAL, WHERE WE WERE LOOKING AT A HIGH PERFORMING CRITERION ONE.
SO THAT MEANS BLUE GREEN ACROSS THE BOARD.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE LOOK AT, UM, THE OVERALL OVERSIGHT RECORD.
WE LOOK AT ANY NOTICES OR TIERED INTERVENTIONS, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVEN'T RECEIVED ANY OF THOSE IN THE LAST YEAR.
WE ALSO LOOK AT ANY PRE IN BENCHMARKS AND MAKE SURE THEY MET THE MAJORITY OF THEIR BENCHMARKS.
AND THEN WE LOOK AT MAKE SURE THERE'S NO ISSUES IN EQUITY AND ACCESS AND OR AND SCHOOL CULTURE.
SO THAT'S THE OVERALL CRITERIA THAT CONSIDERATIONS THAT WE'VE SET IN ORDER TO LOOK AT RECOMMENDING A SIX OR SEVEN YEAR TERM.
THIS IS CONSISTENT FOR ALL INDEPENDENT AND AFFILIATED USE AT CONSISTENTLY.
THIS IS CONSISTENT FOR ALL AFFILIATED AND INDEPENDENT.
AND IT'S AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE TOO.
I JUST WANNA CLARIFY ANYONE ELSE? OKAY.
MR. MCLEAN, I BELIEVE WE HAVE ONE MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC WHO IS HERE TO GIVE US SOME PUBLIC COMMENT.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK MR. TOSKI TO TAB 31 PLAINVIEW ACADEMY, ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY.
THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM.
UM, AND VERY GOOD QUESTIONS ON DATA.
AND, UH, THE LAW IS THE LAW ON THE 5, 6, 7.
IT'S, IT'S IN STATUTE MM-HMM
AND YOU HAVE ONE PERSON OR TWO PEOPLE SPEAK OUT OF 10 MILLION PEOPLE.
THE BOARD OUGHT TO DEVELOP SOME POLICY FOR POSTING FOR PUBLIC HEARINGS SO THAT AT A SCHOOL, THE PARENTS AND THE COMMUNITY KNOW, JUST LIKE WHEN WE TAKE HOUSES OR FOR SCHOOL FOR IMMINENT DOMAIN, WE BLANKET THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND WE LET THE NEIGHBORHOOD KNOW THAT THERE'S AN ISSUE COMING UP.
JUST LIKE WHEN THERE'S LIQUOR LICENSES, WE BLANKET A NEIGHBORHOOD AND LET 'EM KNOW YOU ARE NOT LETTING THE PUBLIC KNOW IN A CLEAR WAY THAT THERE'S PUBLIC HEARING.
THE UTLA OFFICER TODAY SAY THAT THERE ARE, UM, UH, LOADS OF POSITIONS THAT ARE UNFILLED IN THE DISTRICT IS EITHER INACCURATE, OKAY, AND NOBODY SAID IT'S INACCURATE, OR THEY OUGHT TO PICK UP A WILLIAMS COMPLIANCE PIECE OF PAPER THAT SHOULD BE POSTED IN EVERY SCHOOL AND FILL IT OUT.
AFFILIATED CHARTERS, I SUPPORT THE ONE THAT'S BEFORE YOU WITH BENCHMARKS.
PALISADES, UM, MARK HAS ELEMENTARIES AFFILIATED AND PALISADES ELEMENTARIES AFFILIATED, AND YOU'RE DOWNGRADING THE SIZE OF THOSE SCHOOLS.
LET ME TELL YOU, EIGHT PRIVATE SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN BURNT DOWN.
THAT'S NEARLY 5,000 STUDENTS IN THE MARKETPLACE IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD WHO ARE PAYING LOTS OF MONEY TO PRIVATE SCHOOLS.
IF WE REALLY HAD A STRATEGIC ENROLLMENT TEAM, THEY'D BE OUT THERE TALKING TO FAMILIES IN THOSE SCHOOLS.
UH, AND MEANWHILE, AT PALISADES HIGH, WE'RE PROBABLY, UH, NOT THINKING ABOUT, THERE'S NO GIRL SOFTBALL TE UH, FIELD.
THERE'S NO AUDITORIUM IN WHICH TO DO THINGS.
THOSE THINGS OUGHT TO BE BUILT IF UNDER LEADERSHIP, WE COULD GET FEMA AND THE INSURANCE TO TAKE CARE OF IT.
REMEMBER, ALL SCHOOLS WERE OBTAINED AT ONE TIME OVER THE LAST A HUNDRED YEARS AS PUBLIC LAND IN THE GREATEST COMMON GOOD WITH THE LEAST PRIVATE INJURY.
YOU MUST THINK ABOUT PLAY, ARTS, COMMUNITY, THINGS THAT COULD BE IN ALL THESE LANDS.
AND FINALLY, THE INFORMATION YOU RECEIVED ON C-Y-B-H-I-C-Y-B-H-I, UM, WAS BS.
UH, THAT CONCLUDES PUBLIC COMMENT AND DISCUSSION OF TAB 31.
IT'S ALREADY BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED.
UH, BOARD PRESIDENT SCHON? YES.
AND STUDENT MEMBER CORTEZ LOPEZ? YES.
WE'LL COME BACK TO MS. GRIEGO FOR A COUPLE OF VOTES.
UM, UH, BOARD MEMBER NEW BILL ON TAB 10.
I DON'T, I DIDN'T RECORD A VOTE FOR YOU.
I THINK YOU'D STEPPED OUT FOR A MOMENT.
UH, MAY I RECORD YOUR VOTE? YEAH.
SO FOR, UM, BOARD MEMBER NEW BILL, THAT'S, UH, NO.
ON THE BALANCE TO USE MS. GOMEZ'S PHRASE AND, UM, BOARD MEMBER GREG, I, I NEED TO COLLECT YOUR VOTES ON TABS 15,
[04:10:01]
16 AND 17.GIMME A MOMENT TO REVIEW ACTION.
[General Public Comment (Approximately 3:30 P.M.)]
BUSINESS FOR ACTION.AND NOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE INTO PUBLIC COMMENT.
UH, WHOPPING 17 MINUTES EARLY THAN WE HAD ANTICIPATED.
I DO THINK I SEE A FEW FOLKS IN THE ROOM.
UH, WE'LL TAKE THE FOLKS ONLINE FIRST SINCE I KNOW FOR SURE THEY'RE THERE.
JAMILA, I SEE YOU'RE ON THE LINE.
JAMILA, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME? WE SURE CAN.
MY NAME IS JAM F AND I'M A STUDENT AT THE LEADERSHIP AND PUBLIC SERVICE VIRTUAL ACADEMY AND A RESIDENT OF BOARD MEMBER IN NEW BILLS DISTRICT.
I FIRST CHOSE BIRTH LINE TO HELP CARE FOR MY GRANDPARENTS FACE.
BEING CLOSE MEANS EVERYTHING TO ME ALLOWS ME TO SUPPORT THEM.
ARE STILL FOCUSING ON MY SCHOOL.
VIRTUALLY MADE THAT BALANCE POSSIBLE.
BUT THIS YEAR, THAT BALANCE HAS STARTED TO FALL APART.
MANY OF OUR TEACHERS WHO STILL TEACH ENTIRELY ON, HAVE BEEN FORCED TO REPORT TO PHYSICAL CAMPUSES AND I SHARED, CREATE A WHOLE NEW SET OF PROBLEMS. ONE OF THE MAJOR PROBLEMS IS THE LACK OF PRIVACY.
AS SOMEONE FROM IEP, I KNOW THAT IEP DOESN'T SUPPOSED TO BE CON, CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVATE DUE TO FEDERAL LAW.
MULTIPLE TEACHERS CAN HEAR IEP MEETINGS AS WELL AS STUDENTS OTHER ZOOM CLASSROOMS. THIS IS A MAJOR ISSUE.
THIS IS A POTENTIAL LEGAL ISSUE FOR THE USD AND DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE DOING MY IP MEETINGS.
AND NO OTHER STUDENTS WERE SAYING.
IMAGINE THAT YOU HAD ANOTHER MEETING RIGHT NEXT TO YOU IN THIS VERY ROOM, LOUD, NOISY, DISTRACTING.
WOULD THAT FEEL COM? WOULD THAT MAKE YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE? WOULD THAT HELP YOU? FOCUS THEN IS PROBABLY NOT.
LET'S ALSO TALK ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT BOARD MEMBER NEWBELL, MY REPRESENTATIVE WHO HAS SPOKEN ABOUT GREEN, THE EFFORTS BY L-E-U-S-D ON THE LEUD WEBSITE.
THIS POLICY NECESSARY L LYNN LEADS TO MORE CALLS ON THE ROAD AND REMOTE POLLUTION.
I ASKED THAT THE L-E-U-L-U CONSIDER THIS POLICY VIRTUAL LANE FIRM ME, GAVE ME A COMFORT AND A SAFE PLACE TO BOSS MY HOME LIFE WITH MY LEARNING.
PLEASE DON'T TAKE THAT AWAY FROM ME.
LET'S SEE, WE HAVE, UH, LUPITA BARELA ON THE LINE.
LUPITA, PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
LUPITA, CAN YOU GUYS HEAR ME? YEAH, I WOULD JUST SUGGEST YOU SPEAK SLOWLY AND AS SUCCINCTLY AS YOU CAN INTO YOUR DEVICE.
'CAUSE WE'RE HA IT SOUNDS A LITTLE BIT MUFFLED.
I'M A SENIOR AT THE LEADERSHIP AND PUBLIC SERVICE VIRTUAL ACADEMY AND A RESIDENT OF BOARD FRANKLIN, BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN'S DISTRICT.
THIS YEAR, L-A-U-S-D DECIDED TO SEND VIRTUAL TEACHERS ON CAMPUS JUST TO TEACH ENTIRELY REMOTELY.
L-A-U-S-D IS MAKING MANY TEACHERS DRIVE OVER AN HOUR EVERY DAY TO SCHOOL IN LA TRAFFIC JUST TO HAVE TO DRIVE BACK HOME AND SOME MORE TRAFFIC.
L-A-U-S-D HAS BEEN VERY VOCAL ABOUT THEIR STANCE ON CLIMATE CHANGE.
FEBRUARY 8TH, 2022, THE SCHOOL BOARD APPROVED THE TRANSFORMING TEACHING OF CLIMATE CHANGE BOARD MEMBER KELLY EZ.
YOU STATED, AS A FORMER SCIENCE TEACHER, I RECOGNIZE THE URGENCY OF ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE NEED TO ENSURE OUR STUDENTS ARE EDUCATED ABOUT THIS THREAT AND EMPOWER TO TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION.
BOARD MEMBER TIZ FRANKLIN, YOU SAID, I'M PROUD TO SUPPORT TODAY'S RESOLUTION TO INTEGRATE THE TEACHING OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN OUR DISTRICT TO REFLECT THE URGENCY OF THIS GLOBAL ISSUE.
IF THIS IS TRUE, LET'S LOOK AT SOME STATISTICS.
THE SCHOOL YEAR CONSISTS OF 180 DAYS.
LET'S IMAGINE THAT A TEACHER DRIVES TO SCHOOL EVERY DAY FOR THOSE 180 DAYS WITH A NON EV CAR THAT'S ROUGHLY 60 POUNDS OF CARBON DIOXIDE PRODUCED EACH.
THEY DRIVE THIS FEATURE DRIVES TWO HOURS EACH DAY TO AND FROM WORK THAT'S NOW 80 POUNDS EACH DAY.
180 POUNDS HAS STARTED TO 900 A WEEK IN A YEAR.
THAT IS 32,400 POUNDS FROM JUST ONE VEHICLE.
YOU HEARD THAT RIGHT? 32,400 POUNDS OF CARBON DIOXIDE BEING PRODUCED FROM ONE VEHICLE.
JUST BECAUSE L-A-U-S-D DECIDED TO FORCE REMOTE EDUCATORS TO TEACH ON AN IN-PERSON CAMPUS ENTIRELY REMOTELY, THIS IS ONLY ADDING ONTO THE ALREADY EXTREME GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE PROBLEM.
WHEN YOU MULTIPLY 32,400 BY 300, HOW MUCH DO YOU GET? 9 MILLION, 720,000 POUNDS OF CARBON DIOXIDE.
BOARD MEMBERS ES FRANKLIN, BIL, DR.
BU, MEL LOUIS GREGO, AND LOPEZ.
I'M URGING YOU TO RETHINK THIS POLICY.
GIVE VIRTUAL TEACHERS THE OPTION TO WORK FROM HOME.
WE CAN BE SMARTER, WE CAN BE KINDER, WE CAN DO BETTER FOR TEACHERS, FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT AND FOR STUDENTS LIKE ME.
[04:15:02]
OKAY, SO I'LL CALL ON THE FOLKS WHO ARE LISTED AS IN PERSON.UM, UH, GRIS PEREZ, ARE YOU HERE? COME ON UP.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
MY NAME IS GDA PEREZ AND I'M A PROUD OF A MEMBER OF UNITED PARENTS OF FOR EDUCATIONAL JUSTICE AND A PARTNERSHIP FOR LOS ANGELES.
ONE GRADUATED FROM ROOSEVELT AND ACTUALLY ATTENDING CAL STATE LA.
ANOTHER ONE IS STILL, UH, NINTH GRADE FOR ROOSEVELT.
AND MY THIRD ONE IS IN SIXTH GRADE AND HOLLENBECK MIDDLE SCHOOL.
I WANT TO START BY RECOGNIZING YOUR HARD WORK DURING THESE TOUGH BUDGET TIMES FROM DECLINING ENROLLMENT TO LESS STATE FUNDING.
WE APPRECIATE SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO EFFORTS TO AVOID LAID OFFS AND PLAN FOR A YEAR.
FOCUS ON FINDING EFFICIENCIES WITH EQUITY IN MIND AS PARTNERS.
PLEASE RELEASE THE LCAP AND DRAFT 20 25, 20 26 BUDGET PER NEXT TUESDAY, JUNE 10.
THESE, UH, THREE DAYS ARE NOT ENOUGH FOR FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY GROUPS TO REVIEW, UNDERSTAND, AND MEANINGFULLY ENGAGE WITH FEEDBACK IN TIME FOR THE JUNE 17TH HEARING, WE NEED CLARITY ON WHAT WILL BE UP FOR A VOTE AND WANT TO MAKE SURE WE PROVIDE HELPFUL FEEDBACK FROM STUDENTS AND FAMILIES.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE URGE TO PROTECT EQUITY.
DON'T MAKE THE DEEPEST CUTS WHERE THE NEEDS IS GREATEST.
SENI IS A LIFELINE FOR OUR HIGHEST NEEDS SCHOOLS TAKING AWAY FUNDING AND SCHOOL LEVEL DECISION MAKING THREATENS THE REAL PROGRESS WE HAVE MADE.
PRINCIPALS MUST HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY TO MEET THE STUDENTS' NEEDS.
IF WE FAIL TO ACT NOW, IT WILL TAKE YEARS TO RECOVER.
PLEASE CONSIDER EXCLUDING HEIGHTENED SCHOOLS FROM THESE CHANGES AND PROTECTING THE RESOURCES THAT HELP STUDENTS SUCCEED.
LET'S KEEP OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS FRONT AND CENTER AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH TRANSPARENCY AND A STRONG COMMITMENT TO EQUITY.
HOPE YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
MY NAME IS SANDRA ROCHA AND I AM THE PARENT COORDINATOR AT ASPIRE TITAN ACADEMY.
ASPIRE PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF MY LIFE.
I WAS PART OF THE FIRST GRADUATING CLASS OF OF ASPIRE OLINE, AND I AM PROUD TO SAY THAT I NOW WORK AT ASPIRE TITAN ELEMENTARY, UM, TO SERVE IN THE COMMUNITY THAT HAS HELPED ME SHAME, SHAPE ME INTO THE PERSON I AM TODAY.
I AM HERE TODAY TO SHARE SOME OF THE AMAZING THINGS OUR SCHOOL IS DOING TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS.
AT ASPIRE TITAN, WE PLACE A STRONG EMPHASIS ON SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING.
WE EQUIP OUR STUDENTS WITH TOOLS AND STRATEGIES TO HELP THEM RECOGNIZE AND EXPRESS AND MANAGE THEIR EMOTIONS.
WE HAVE A CHECK IN IN CHECKOUT PROGRAM AT TITAN WHERE WE GIVE INDIVIDUALIZED ATTENTION TO SOME STUDENTS WHERE WE DISCUSS HOW THEY ARE FEELING AND SET A PERSONAL OR OR ACADEMIC GOAL, WHICH REALLY SETS THE TONE FOR THEM THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
ADDITIONALLY, EVERY CLASSROOM HAS A SAFE SPACE SET UP WHERE STUDENTS HAVE THE CHOICE TO GO TO WHEN THEY NEED A BREAK.
OUR SCHOOL RECENTLY HAD A KINDNESS CAMPAIGN AND A PEER MENTOR PROGRAM WHERE ALL STUDENTS WERE PAIRED UP WITH A BUDDY FROM A CLASS TO DISCUSS TOPICS SUCH AS SELF-AWARENESS AND PROBLEM SOLVING.
THE STUDENTS ENGAGED IN SEVERAL ACTIVITIES LIKE PROBLEM SOLVING WHEELS AND AN AFFIRMATION QUILT THAT CAN BE FOUND IN OUR HALLWAYS.
WE'RE CONSTANTLY CONNECTING WITH OUR FAMILIES ACROSS DIFFERENT MEDIUMS. WHETHER IT IS ON INSTAGRAM OR A SCHOOL MESSAGING PLATFORM, OUR FAMILIES ARE ALWAYS UP TO DATES, UP TO DATE WITH SCHOOL EVENTS AND IMPORTANT INFORMATION THEY WOULD NEED TO KNOW ABOUT.
WE FREQUENTLY COMMUNICATE WITH FAMILIES ABOUT LOCAL COMMUNITY EVENTS SUCH AS FREE FOOD DRIVES AND COMMUNITY CLEANUPS.
FAMILIES ARE ALSO ENCOURAGED TO GET RESOURCES ON OUR FAMILY ONE, THE LOBBY WHERE WE PROVIDE DIRECTIONS TO OUR NEAREST MENTAL HEALTH CENTERS AND IMMIGRATION RESOURCES.
THIS IS JUST A FRACTION OF THE THINGS WE DO AT.
WE REALLY PRIDE OURSELVES IN SERVING OUR COMMUNITY THE BEST WE CAN AND FINDING NEW INNOVATIVE WAYS TO DO SO.
WE INVITE YOU TO COME VISIT OUR CAMPUS AND EXPERIENCE FIRSTHAND ALL THE GREAT THINGS WE DO EVERY DAY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
UH, MAO TREJO, I FEEL LIKE MAO MIGHT BE HERE SOMEWHERE APPROXIMATELY.
ALL RIGHT, THEN LET'S GO TO MARUS.
YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN, AND THEN AFTER MARUS, IT'LL BE THUR SING WHO I THINK I ALSO SAW IN HERE.
[04:20:12]
HELLO, MY NAME IS MARK QUAIA MARQUS.A LOT OF PEOPLE KIND OF GET THAT CONFUSED.
UM, I'M FROM MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, BUT I WAS A TEACHER HERE, UM, IN LA AND, UM, THE KIDS, THE BLACK KIDS SPECIFICALLY, THEY REALLY NEED THE RESOURCES AND THEY REALLY NEED PEOPLE TO PROTECT THEM IN CERTAIN WAYS THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR THEIR FUTURES.
LIKE I GREW UP IN MEMPHIS, THE MEMPHIS EDUCATION SYSTEM HAS ITS PROBLEMS, BUT I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE LOS LOS ANGELES AND, UM, I WASN'T PLANNING ON SPEAKING TODAY.
BUT AS A FORMER EDUCATOR AND AS SOMEONE WHO IS VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT GETTING STUDENTS WHAT THEY NEED, SPECIFICALLY BLACK STUDENTS, UM, I JUST HAD TO USE THIS TIME TO ADVOCATE FOR THEM.
SO INJUSTICE HERE IS INJUSTICE ANYWHERE LIKE IN MEMPHIS WHERE I'M FROM, AND THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO ME, BUT, UM, WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO FIND THESE STUDENTS, SPECIFICALLY THE BLACK STUDENTS.
ALRIGHT, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
I'M AN L-A-U-S-D ALUM AND IT SEEMS LIKE FOR YEARS, YOU KNOW, STUDENTS, MYSELF INCLUDED, ALUM AND CURRENT STUDENTS HAVE BEEN COMING AND URGING THE BOARD TO CONTINUE TO PROTECT BLACK STUDENTS.
AND AS A SECOND LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THIS NATION, YOU GUYS HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO LEAD THE WAY AND SET EXAMPLES.
UM, YOU GUYS HAVE A LOT, A LOT, A LOT OF INFLUENCE ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
UM, BSAP NEVER EXISTED ANYWHERE UNTIL HERE IN L-A-U-S-G.
NOW THERE'S A BSAP IN LONG BEACH.
UM, THANKFULLY THAT I DID HAVE BSAP AND I DO HAVE FOLKS LIKE JOSEPH AND OTHER STAFF LIKE MAO THAT, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTED ME.
AND YOU KNOW, I'M A FIRST GEN COLLEGE STUDENT AND I MADE IT BY THE GRACE OF GOD, BUT I KNOW THAT THERE'S SO MANY OF MY PEERS THAT THE SYSTEM IS SET UP FOR THEM TO FAIL AND YOU GUYS ARE ENACTING THOSE SAME POLICIES AND YOU GUYS MUST PROTECT BLACK STUDENTS, UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS AND QUEER STUDENTS, ESPECIALLY UNDER THIS CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.
UM, WHEN, WHEN IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THE END, WE WILL BE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY AND Y'ALL WON'T.
SO I URGE YOU GUYS TO DO BETTER.
I THINK I SAW MR. TREJO WALK IN.
UM, IS THE ORDER SET IN IN TERMS OF WHICH, BECAUSE, UM, I WAS WONDERING IF MS. UH, DR.
GAMMAGE CAN GO BEFORE ME OR IS IT A SET ORDER? UH, WELL, WE'LL GO WITH IN THE INTEREST OF TIME.
AND THEN IN THE FUTURE, PERHAPS YOU CAN REACH OUT TO MY OFFICE IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE SPECIFIC ORDER.
I'M A MEMBER OF THE SUPERINTENDENT STUDENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE, A RESIDENT OF YOUR DISTRICT BOARD MEMBER T FRANKLIN, AND A STUDENT FROM THE LEADERSHIP AND PUBLIC SERVICE VIRTUAL ACADEMY.
THIS YEAR, OVER 300 VIRTUAL ACADEMY TEACHERS WERE RECENTLY REQUIRED TO REPORT TO PHYSICAL CAMPUSES TO CONTINUE TEACHING ENTIRELY REMOTELY.
WHILE I APPLAUD L D'S COMMITMENTS TO SUSTAINABILITY IN THE FUTURE OF OUR PLANET, IT HAS MOVED REMOTE TEACHERS TO IN-PERSON CAMPUSES, MANY OF WHICH ARE FAR AWAY FROM THEIR HOMES, WHICH CONTRADICTS THESE GOALS.
INSTEAD OF BEING PLACED ON CAMPUSES NEAR THEIR HOMES, TEACHERS HAVE BEEN PLACED INDISCRIMINATELY.
MANY HAVE BEEN FORCED EX INTO EXTENSIVE DAILY COMMUTES AS HIGH AS FOUR HOURS IN SINGLE DAY ADDING TO TRAFFIC POLLUTION AND BURNOUT.
THERE ARE ALSO THE LEARNING ISSUES.
TEACHERS HAVE BEEN PLACED INTO SHARED ROOMS AS STUDENTS.
WE OFTEN HEAR OTHER TEACHERS IN THE BACKGROUND, TEACHERS ARE PROVIDED HEADPHONES, BUT SOME REFUSE TO WEAR THEM BECAUSE IT MAY CAUSE PAIN OR DISCOMFORT.
HOW CAN MY TEACHERS BE THE BEST POSSIBLE FOR STUDENTS LIKE ME IN THIS COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT? WE'RE ALSO ACTIVELY CONDUCTING A SURVEY FOR TEACHERS.
WE'RE STILL GATHERING RESPONSES, BUT SO FAR 100% HAVE INDICATED THAT THEY HAVE SOME FORM OF DISTRACTION IN THEIR WORKPLACE THAT THAT INCLUDES BURGLARIES.
100% HAVE ALSO INDICATED ISSUES WITH WORKSPACE QUALITY SUCH AS POOR VENTILATION, BATHROOM ISSUES.
AND YES, THAT INCLUDES RODENTS AND RODENT DROPPINGS.
WE HAVE THE DATA TO PROVE THIS.
GOING BACK TO THE ENVIRONMENT, THIS POLICY, WHICH IS TOTALLY UNNECESSARY BECAUSE THESE ARE REMOTE TEACHERS STILL TEACHING REMOTELY ON IN-PERSON CAMPUSES, HAS LED TO MORE HOURS IN TRAFFIC AND MORE POLLUTION.
HERE'S A QUOTE FROM TY'S WEBSITE.
THE LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT IS COMMITTED TO BECOMING THE MOST SUSTAINABLE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY LARGE URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE COUNTRY.
BOARD MEMBER ORTIZ FRANKLIN, MY REPRESENTATIVE, WHO OFTEN APPEARS ON ZOOM AT THESE MEETINGS ON YOUR WEBSITE, YOU STATE AND I QUOTE, I URGE LOS ANGELES COUNTY TO DEVELOP AND COMMIT TO A MORE PROACTIVE, URGENT, AND EQUITABLE APPROACH TO CLIMATE CHANGE.
HOW IS IT SUSTAINABLE AND EQUITABLE TO HURT STUDENTS WHO ARE LEARNING VIRTUALLY, PRIMARILY DUE TO HEALTH REASONS, BULLYING, HOMELESSNESS, A LACK OF TRANSPORTATION LIKE ME OR OTHER REASONS, AND WHO COME PRIMARILY FROM MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES.
HOW DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? HOW DOES THAT SUPPORT THE ENVIRONMENT? AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, HOW DOES THAT SUPPORT US AS STUDENTS? WE ASK THAT YOU CHANGE THIS POLICY.
UH, MA TREJO, I TALK TO, UH, CRYSTAL.
UH, MR. TREJO IS YIELDING HIS TIME TO, UH, ANOTHER SPEAKER.
GOOD EVENING, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.
I'M A JUNIOR AT DEDA HIGH SCHOOL AND I'M HERE
[04:25:01]
ONCE AGAIN TO TALK ABOUT THE CRUCIAL MOVEMENT THAT HAS BEEN GAINING MOMENTUM IN OUR SCHOOLS.THE STUDENTS DESERVE MOVEMENT AS A COMMUNITY, WE NEED TO RECOGNIZE THAT OUR STUDENTS DESERVE MORE THAN WHAT IS JUST CONSIDERED THE BARE MINIMUM.
WE STUDENTS DESERVE THE TIME AND EFFORT THAT GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND INTO OUR EDUCATION.
WE DESERVE TO FEEL MORE THAN SAFE, SUPPORTED AND INCLUSIVE IN LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS THAT PRIORITIZE OUR WELLBEINGS AND SUCCESS.
WE NEED TO STOP INVESTING IN SCHOOL POLICE DEPARTMENTS THAT TARGET AND HARM BLACK UNDOCUMENTED AND L-G-B-T-Q STUDENTS.
INSTEAD, WE SHOULD INVEST IN COMMUNITY-BASED SAFETY INITIATIVES THAT PRIORITIZE STUDENT WELLBEING.
OUR SCHOOL SHOULD PROVIDE WRAPAROUND SERVICES, INCLUDING MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT, ACADEMIC COUNSELING, AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT THE HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT OF OUR STUDENTS.
WE'RE ASKING FOR OUR STUDENTS TO BE HEARD, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO FEEL TARGETED.
I'M ASKING YOU TO ENSURE THAT THEIR CONCERNS AND IDEAS ARE HEARD AND VALUED.
AS EDUCATORS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS, IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU PRIORITIZE THE NEEDS AND VOICES OF MY PEERS.
BY WORKING TOGETHER, WE CAN CREATE MORE THAN JUST AN EQUITABLE EDUCATION SYSTEM THAT SUPPORTS THE SUCCESS OF ALL STUDENTS.
AS A STUDENT, I KNOW THAT ACCESS TO JOYFUL SPACES AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY HELPS US THRIVE.
THAT IS WHY WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SCHOOL HAS A SAFE, INCLUSIVE, VI ENVIRONMENTS FOR ALL STUDENTS TO PLAY AND GROW.
AS YOU PREPARE THE BUDGET FOR THIS UPCOMING YEAR, WE NEED TO SEE INVESTMENTS IN EXPANDING BSAP DREAM CENTERS AND SUPPORT SERVICES FOR LGBTQ PLUS STUDENTS.
THIS WILL HELP US TOWARDS A FUTURE WHERE EVERY STUDENT RECEIVES A SAFE AND SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
SO CHANNING MARTINEZ, UH, STRATEGY CENTER POLICE REAL U BSAP.
UH, GLAD TO BE FINALLY SPEAKING IN PUBLIC COMMENT.
IT'S SO COMPETITIVE TO SIGN UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.
I'VE MISSED THE LAST FOUR MONTHS BECAUSE I'VE MISSED THE CUTOFF BY A FEW SECONDS.
IT IS AS HARD TO SIGN UP TO PUBLIC COMMENT AS IT IS, UH, TO GET INTO HARVARD, QUITE HONESTLY, WHICH IS KIND OF AMAZING.
UM, AND, UH, SPEAKING ABOUT HARVARD, I JUST THINK, YOU KNOW, IT'S TIME TO TALK ABOUT THEM COMPARED TO L-A-U-S-D.
THIS DISTRICT BASED ON THE HARVARD CASE LAST YEAR OR THE YEAR BEFORE, I CAN'T REMEMBER, UM, MOVED TO REMOVE RACE FROM THE BLACK STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT PROGRAM BASED ON A FEDERAL RULING.
AND NOW HERE WE ARE, UH, YEARS LATER, I MEAN A YEAR LATER OR SO.
AND HERE'S THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, UH, YOU KNOW, PROMISING TO BRING DOWN FIGHTS ON EVERY MAJOR CITY, INCLUDING THE NEXT, THE SECOND BIGGEST, UH, SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE COUNTRY.
AND BOARD MEMBERS ARE THINKING THAT SOMEHOW THE BIGGEST SECOND BIGGEST SCHOOL DISTRICT IS GONNA FLY UNDER THE RADAR.
I HAVE TO BE HONEST, I'VE TOLD THAT TO MAJOR FEDERAL FOUNDATION HEADS AND THEY'RE LIKE, WHAT? THAT'S RIDICULOUS.
THEY'RE NOT GONNA FLY UNDER THE RADAR.
YOU'RE THE SECOND BIGGEST DISTRICT IN THE COUNTRY.
AND IF UNDER A DEMOCRATIC, UH, ADMINISTRATION YOU'RE WILLING TO GIVE UP RACE AS A KEY DETERMINANT, THEN I I WORRY ABOUT WHAT AD'S RESPONSE IS GONNA BE WHEN THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION COMES TO LOS ANGELES.
TO GIVE YOU A COMPARISON BY NUMBERS, WHICH I THINK IS REALLY HARD TO FACE, IS IT IS, IN MY OPINION, A LITTLE SHAMEFUL THAT IT TAKES HARVARD WHO, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE PROBLEMS. THEY ARE A LITTLE BIT ANTI-BLACK, BUT THEY ARE STANDING UP AGAINST TRUMP.
WHEREAS L-A-U-S-D-A WHOLE YEAR IN ADVANCE, A WHOLE YEAR IN ADVANCE OF TRUMP ALREADY SAID THAT THEY'RE GOING TO GIVE UP BLACK STUDENTS RIGHTS.
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN WHEN THE WHOLE DISTRICT REPRESENTS MORE BLACK STUDENTS THAN ALL OF THE BLACK STUDENTS THAT ARE ENROLLED IN HARVARD? AND YOU'RE WILLING TO GIVE IT UP, RIGHT? WE'RE ASKING YOU TO SPEND A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS ON BSA TO PROTECT IMMIGRANT STUDENTS AND TO REALLY, REALLY, REALLY NOT JUST SAY STATEMENTS ABOUT L-G-B-T-Q STUDENTS, BUT ACTUALLY STAND FOR THEIR RIGHTS.
UH, CAROLINA GA, ARE YOU HERE? COME ON UP.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME TODAY.
I AM THE VALEDICTORIAN FOR THE VIRTUAL LEADERSHIP AND PUBLIC SERVICES VIRTUAL ACADEMY.
I BEEN IN THIS ACADEMY SINCE THE VERY BEGINNING WHEN THEY TRANSFERRED FROM CITY OF ANGELS AND, UM, AS A STUDENT WHO HAS MADE THEIR ENTIRE
[04:30:01]
LIFE AROUND SCHOOL AND EDUCATION AND DEDICATED THEIR TIME TO BE ABLE TO GIVE THEMSELVES UP FOR THEIR FUTURE.AND I'VE BEEN TRYING TO MANIPULATE THE SYSTEM WHERE, WHAT I'VE NOTICED AS A STUDENT WHO HAS PARENTS WHO ARE DISABLED AND CAN'T BE IN THE RISK OF EXPOSURE OF IN-PERSON SCHOOL, THAT L-A-U-S-D IS NOT SUPPORTING PROPERLY VIRTUAL ACADEMIES AS THEY SHOULD.
THIS ALSO WAS TO ME, SUPPORTED WHEN THEY FORCED OVER 300 OF OUR EDUCATORS IN PERSON INTO CUBICLES THAT ARE NOT COMFORTABLE FOR THEM.
THEY ARE IN VERY POOR ENVIRONMENTS, WHICH IS HARMING US AS STUDENTS, AND IT'S REALLY COMPLICATED FOR US TO PERFORM INTO OUR BEST ABILITY THE SAME WAY AS STUDENTS ACROSS THE L-A-U-S-D WOULD BE IN PERSON.
SO WE ARE ASKING YOU HERE TODAY TO PLEASE CONSIDER TAKING WHAT IS BEST FOR STUDENTS AND LOOKING AT THE CHOICES THAT ARE POSSIBLE TO IMPROVE THE EDUCATION FOR US AS VIRTUAL STUDENTS IN AS WELL AS THE STUDENTS THAT ARE IN PERSON.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
I'M, UH, HEAD OF CYBERSECURITY OVER AT LONG BEACH UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.
UM, AND I'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT, UH, MY DAUGHTER'S EXPERIENCE, UM, IN THE VIRTUAL ACADEMIES.
UM, AS SHE JUST CAME UP, SHE'S THE VALEDICTORIAN IN HER CLASS.
UM, SHE'S GRADUATING WITH A 4.9 GPA AND SHE HAD ABSOLUTELY ZERO HELP WITH GUIDANCE COUNSELORS FOR GETTING INTO COLLEGE.
ABSOLUTELY ZERO HELP, AND I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY MORE SO, UM, WHEN SHE DID HAVE COLLEGE CLASSES, SHE WAS ASSIGNED TO SANTA MONICA COMMUNITY COLLEGE, WHICH I GUESS YOU STOPPED SUPPORTING.
SO WHAT HAPPENED WAS IS I WAS TOLD, UM, WHEN SHE TRIED TO SIGN UP FOR CLASSES FOR THE FINAL SUMMER TO BE ABLE TO GET HER TRANSFER DEGREE FOR PSYCHOLOGY AND A AN AA TRANSFER DEGREE.
HER PRINCIPAL DIDN'T SIGN OFF ON IT.
IN FACT, SHE DECLINED IT WHEN SHE WAS ASKED TO SIGN OFF ON IT.
I EVEN CALLED IN AND TALKED TO, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE EVERYWHERE ABOUT THIS TO GET IT FIXED BEFORE THE CLOSE DATE WAS.
BUT DID SHE NOT? SHE DIDN'T SIGN ON IT.
SO SHE WAS UNABLE TO SIGN UP FOR ANY SANTA MONICA COMMUNITY CLASSES BASED ON THAT FROM THAT POINT ON.
SO NO FURTHER CLASSES THIS ENTIRE YEAR.
SHE COULDN'T TAKE ANOTHER CLASS BECAUSE OF THAT ONE SIGNATURE.
WHY THAT HAPPENED? I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND EXCEPT FOR ONE THING.
THE ENTIRE TIME THAT MY DAUGHTER'S BEEN IN VIRTUAL ACADEMY, IT FEELS LIKE I'VE BEEN EXPLAINING WHAT SHE NEEDS.
IT SEEMS LIKE WHEN SHE JOINED IT, IT WAS A REMEDIAL PROGRAM AND IT WASN'T DESIGNED FOR EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS.
THEY CREATED SOME ACADEMIES FOR EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS, BUT THINGS LIKE AP CLASSES, I MEAN, WHEN SHE STARTED, SHE WAS AN HONOR ROLL STUDENT WHO DIDN'T GET HER HONOR ROLL CLASSES.
IN FACT, SHE HAD TO COME BACK LATER TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THE HONORABLES CLASSES ONE MONTH BEFORE DECEMBER ON HER JUNIOR, ON HER, UH, FRESHMAN YEAR.
SHE THEN THEY ALSO GAVE HER ONE YEAR OF, OF, UH, HONORS GEOLOGY THAT ONE MONTH.
SHE COMPLETED THE ENTIRE YEAR DURING THAT TIME BECAUSE OF A MISTAKE THAT WAS MADE.
THIS ENTIRE TIME HAS BEEN, YOU KNOW, LOTS OF MISTAKES, GETTING CLASSES, YOU KNOW, ASSIGNED TO HER FOR AP CLASSES.
I HAD TO FIGHT TO GET AP CLASSES TO BE ABLE TO EVEN GET THEM INTO THE PROGRAM.
I HAD TO CALL, I HAD TO WRITE LETTERS.
THINGS THAT ARE REALLY BOTHERING ME ARE RETENTION WITH THE TEACHERS.
THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF TURNOVER WITH TEACHERS AND A LOT OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH WHAT THESE KIDS ARE UP HERE TALKING ABOUT, WHICH IS YOU ASK TEACHERS TO COME IN AND WORK IN LOCATIONS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE ABYSMAL TO BE HONEST.
YOU KNOW, FOR SOME OF THE THINGS THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, COCKROACHES IN THE CLASSROOMS ARE PRETTY, PRETTY BAD.
SO I, I JUST WANT YOU TO THINK ABOUT THAT.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE GONNA CONTINUE WITH VIRTUAL ACADEMIES, I THINK THEY'RE VALUABLE.
I THINK THAT THEY KNOW MY DAUGHTER'S PROVEN THAT THEY'RE VALUABLE FOR THE DISTRICT, BUT YOU DO NEED TO PUT SOME MORE SUPPORT FOR 'EM.
AND YOU DEFINITELY NEED TO LOOK AT TEACHERS BECAUSE RETENTION'S IMPORTANT.
JOSEPH WILLIAMS, ARE YOU HERE? JOSEPH WILLIAMS AND THEN ALEXIS HILL.
MR. WILLIAMS, YOU WANT TO COME UP AND SPEAK? I PLEASE.
WE HAVE A WHOLE, A WHOLE ROOM OF PEOPLE WAITING.
I'M A 11TH GRADER AT MIGO CONTRERAS.
AND, UH, DO STUDENTS DESERVE I'M HERE TODAY EVEN THOUGH IT'S FINALS WEEK AND I'M INCREDIBLY BUSY LIKE A STUDENT ALL ACROSS THE DISTRICT.
[04:35:01]
I'M HERE TODAY TO DEMAND THE LUSE, UH, BOARD PROTECTS BLACK UNDOCUMENTED LGBTQ PLUS STUDENTS ACROSS THE DISTRICT.NEARLY 60% OF ALL, UH, OF STUDENTS IN THE LA COUNTY HAVE AT LEAST ONE IMMIGRANT PARENT AND HATE INCIDENTS.
TARGETING LATINO, UH, COMMUNITIES ROSE BY 19%.
UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS DESERVE TO FEEL SAFE, SUPPORTED, AND EMPOWERED IN THEIR SCHOOLS.
UH, THAT'S WHY WE'RE DEMANDING FULL FUNDING FOR DREAM CENTERS AND THE EXPANSION OF THESE SAFE SPACES THROUGHOUT THE USD.
UH, WE'RE ALSO CALLING FOR DEEPER INVESTMENTS.
THE, THE BLACK STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT PLAN B CEP IS WORKING.
UH, UH, BLACK EDUCATION RATES HAVE CONTINUED TO RISE IN AP ENROLLMENT AMONG BLACK STUDENTS UP 11%.
THIS ISN'T JUST A PROGRAM, IT'S A PATH TO EQUITY AND JUSTICE THAT MUST BE FULLY FUNDED.
AND FOR LGBTQ PLUS STUDENTS, THE DATA IS CLEAR.
NEARLY 60% REPORT BEING BULLIED OR MISTREATED AT SCHOOL.
BUT WHEN STUDENTS HAVE ACCESS TO PROTECTIVE SUPPORTS LIKE AN INCLUSIVE CURRICULUM AND AFFIRMING STAFF, THE RISK OF SELF-HARM DROP SIGNIFICANTLY.
THAT'S NOT A STATISTIC, THAT'S A LIFELINE.
AS LEUZ FINALIZES NEXT YEAR BUDGET, WE DEMAND THAT BLACK UNDOCUMENTED LGBTQ PLUS STUDENTS BE PROTECTED.
WE KNOW THAT THE DISTRICT HAS THE MONEY TO SHOW IT REALLY CARES.
WE MUST BUILD A BUDGET THAT PUTS THE NEEDS OF STUDENTS FRONT AND CENTER POWERFUL.
ALEXIS HILL, ARE YOU HERE? ALEXIS HILL? ALEXIS HILL? NO, UH, MARIA DAISY ORTIZ.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
MS. ORTIZ IS GOING TO SPEAK IN SPANISH, SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR WHAT SHE'S SAYING IN ENGLISH, PLEASE PUT YOUR HANDS UP.
WE, AND WE CAN GET YOU OUR TRANSLATION HEADSETS.
SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO EXPERIENCE SIMUL TRANSLATION, PUT YOUR HANDS UP AND WE WILL GET YOU THE HEADSETS.
ONCE YOU PUT THEM ON, THEY'RE AUTOMATICALLY ACTIVATED AND ON THE CORRECT CHANNEL.
MY NAME IS MARIA DECI ORTIZ, AND I WANNA CORROBORATE WITH WHAT THE PREVIOUS SPEAKER SAID.
UH, IT IS TRUE FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.
YOU, YOU REDUCED THE TIME BECAUSE IT IS TRUE.
YOU EXPANDED TO 20 BECAUSE, BUT 20 IS 40, AND NOW IT WAS 15 FOR THREE MINUTES.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO MATH.
WELL, I WANNA CLARIFY THIS FOR YOU.
NOW, TO EXPAND PUBLIC COMMENT, FOR IT TO BE MORE ACCESSIBLE, YOU SHOULD HAVE 25 2 4 2 25 INSTEAD OF 50.
RIGHT? AND THIS WOULD SHOW THAT YOU ARE OPEN TO LISTEN TO PUBLIC COMMENTS.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THE RESOLUTION THAT MS. RIVA PLACED TO COMPLIMENT OR TO BETTER.
AND I'VE BEEN A PERSON WHO LOVES TO WORK WITH STUDENTS, AND I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH STUDENTS TO KNOW THEM MORE.
AND FOR ME, THESE ARE PEOPLE, IS THEY'RE IMMINENT.
AND THIS SPORTS IS SOMETHING SO IMPORTANT TO EVERY STUDENT.
AND SPORTS SHOULD EXIST FOR EV TO EV FOR EVERYONE.
AND IT'S NOT THE PRACTICE IN MIDDLE OR HIGH SCHOOL BECAUSE THEY COME AND THEY INVITE STUDENTS.
AND THIS IS WHERE I DON'T AGREE, BECAUSE THEY, THESE PRACTICES NEEDS A BETTER, THEY COME AND THEY HAVEN'T PRACTICED.
AND MANY OF THESE STUDENTS NEVER BEEN IN A LEAGUE.
THERE ARE REASONS, RIGHT? THEREFORE, IT IS NOT CORRECT FOR THEM TO COME AND FOR THEM TO CHOOSE THE BEST STUDENTS.
THIS DAMAGES A STUDENT'S SELF-ESTEEM.
WE SHOULD HAVE SPORTS WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS FOR BEGINNERS, FOR THE PEOPLE WHO KNOW.
AND FOR COM, FOR, FOR COMPETITIONS.
I WOULD LIKE FOR THESE PRACTICE PRACTICES TO BETTER IN REALITY WITH EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE EMOTIONAL, THESE ARE HELPFUL AND ALONG WITH ARTS.
AND I WANNA TELL YOU THAT ART IS NOT JUST PAINTING THEIR MUSICAL ARTS.
AND IN SOME SCHOOLS, MUSICAL ARTS DOESN'T EXIST.
LIKE HOW TO PLAY PIANO, VIOLIN, GUITAR, DIFFERENT INSTRUMENTS, IN WHICH MANY OF THE TIME, THIS IS WHY ENROLLMENT IS SO LOW, BECAUSE THEY LOOK FOR SCHOOLS WHERE THEY CAN, THEY CAN ACCOMPLISH THEIR DREAMS. THANK YOU.
KALILA, ARE YOU HERE KALILA? I I DON'T HAVE HER ONLINE.
[04:40:01]
UH, GYPSY, AYLA VASQUEZ, PLEASE COME ON UP.YOU'D HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, I'D LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH TO SUPERINTENDENT CARVALLO FOR, UM, BEING SO TRANSPARENT AND AUTHENTIC AND SHARING YOUR MIGRATION STORY, UM, ON ONLINE PLATFORM.
GRACIA, GOOD AFTERNOON, MEMBERS OF THE LASD BOARD, UM, OF DIRECTORS.
MY NAME IS GYPSY VASQUEZ AYALA, AND I'M A THIRD GENERATION CHICANA, BORN AND RAISED IN BOYLE HEIGHTS.
AND I PROUDLY SERVE AS THE MANAGER OF ADVOCACY AND ENGAGEMENT FOR ASPIRE PUBLIC SCHOOLS, THE LOS ANGELES REGION.
I'M HERE TODAY TO SHARE AN IMPORTANT INITIATIVE THAT REFLECTS OUR COLLECTIVE COMMITMENT TO THE SAFETY, DIGNITY, AND EMPOWERMENT OF OUR STUDENTS, FAMILIES, AND COMMUNITIES.
OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS, OUR TEAM LAUNCHED A SERIES OF KNOW YOUR RIGHTS PRESENTATIONS, DESIGNED, DESIGNED TO EQUIP FAMILIES, STUDENTS, AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH UPTODATE FACTUAL INFORMATION ABOUT THEIR RIGHTS, ESPECIALLY DURING TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY.
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DR.
CHRIS CARR, WE DEVELOPED TWO VERSIONS OF THE TRAINING.
ONE FOR FAMILIES AND ONE FOR STAFF.
THESE TRAINEES INCLUDED CURRENT POLICY UPDATES, PRACTICAL SCENARIOS, AND A REBO, A ROBUST LIST OF RESOURCES AND SUPPORTS, ENSURING THAT BOTH OUR EMPLOYEES AND FAMILIES COULD FEEL CONFIDENT, PREPARED, AND PROTECTED.
CARRA AND I KNEW THAT THIS WORK COULDN'T BE AND SHOULDN'T STAY WITHIN THE WALLS OF ASPIRE.
WE MADE IT A PRIORITY TO SHARE THE PRESENTATION DECK AND ALL ACCOMPANYING MATERIALS WITH THE BROADER CHARTER AND DISTRICT SCHOOL.
I PERSONALLY DISTRIBUTED THESE RESOURCES TO SEVERAL EDUCATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND EXPLICITLY ENCOURAGED THEM TO ADAPT, REVISE, AND MAKE IT THEIR OWN.
THIS INFORMATION BELONGS TO THE COMMUNITY, AND IT IS CRUCIAL TO ITS SURVIVAL AND WELLBEING.
I WANNA TAKE A MOMENT TO GIVE A SPECIAL CALL OUT TO BOARD MEMBERS.
WE ARE PROUD TO HAVE ASPIRA SCHOOLS LOCATED IN DISTRICT FIVE AND SEVEN AND DEEPLY VALUE YOUR LEADERSHIP AND PARTNERSHIP IN SERVING OUR STUDENTS AND FAMILIES.
FINALLY, I WARMLY INVITE YOU TO OUR NEXT KNOW YOUR RIGHTS TRAINING ON JUNE 11TH.
THE FLYER GIVES THE INFORMATION AND WE WOULD BE HONORED TO HAVE YOUR PRESENCE.
GINA ZIKA, GINA Z, ARE YOU HERE? GINA? GINA Z.
AND THEN WE HAVE CHERYL KONO, YOU'RE ON THE LINE.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
HELLO? HI, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE MY TIME UP TO EMMANUEL AND ELENA.
I'M GONNA CONNECT THEM RIGHT NOW.
CAN YOU HEAR EMMANUEL SAY HELLO? HI EMMANUEL, CAN YOU HEAR HIM? HELLO? YES.
IS, AND WE WILL, WE'LL ADD A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO THE TIMER AND SO THANK YOU BECAUSE WE'RE ON OUR WAY TO THE MEETING, BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET.
MY NAME'S EMMANUEL AND I AM A SENIOR AT AUGH HIGH SCHOOL.
AND ALSO, UM, I COULDN'T BE AT THE MEETING THIS MOMENT, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT, UM, ON BEHALF OF THE BSAP PROGRAM AT MY SCHOOL, I THINK THAT IT WAS FUNDAMENTAL TO BLACK STUDENTS', UM, OPPORTUNITIES TO ADVANCE THEIR EDUCATIONAL WELFARE.
I THINK THAT EDUCATION IS SO IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY FOR LEOC, WHICH IS, UM, THE FIRST, FIRST SECOND LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE NATION.
SO THAT'S REALLY, UM, IMPACTFUL TO SEE THAT
SO I FEEL LIKE IT'S JUST IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT BLACK STUDENTS, UM, ARE REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, AND THEY'RE IMPACTED BY THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE AT CERTAIN SCHOOLS.
SO IF THERE'S A SCHOOL THAT OFFERS WITH OPPORTUNITIES FOR BLACK STUDENTS AND ANOTHER SCHOOL THAT GIVES BLACK STUDENTS MORE OPPORTUNITIES, BLACK STUDENTS ARE MOST LIKELY BE, WELL, THEY'LL BE DRIVEN TO THAT OTHER SCHOOL INSTEAD OF, UM, SPECIFIC SCHOOL IN QUESTION.
SO I THINK THAT MAKING ALL SCHOOLS, UM, ACCESSIBLE AND RESOURCES AND EQUITABLE, UM, RESOURCES
[04:45:01]
AND ACADEMIC ENGAGING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS, I THINK THAT IT'LL HELP.UM, HELLO, MY NAME'S MY W BECAUSE THEY PROVIDE THE SUPPORT THAT IS NEEDED.
I, I FEEL SUPPORTED TO PSW SOME OF WHO I COULD ALWAYS GO TO WHEN I GO THROUGH SOMETHING.
SOMEONE WHO I SUPPORT, THEY ALWAYS HELP ME WITH MY PAST STRUGGLES AND THEY'LL BE THERE TO HELP AND GUIDE ME TO GET BETTER AND MAKE ME FEEL COMFORTABLE TALKING TO THEM.
SHE HELPS ME PUT MY NAME IN MY EMOTIONS TO HELP ME BETTER UNDERSTAND.
BY GIVING WAYS TO TALK ABOUT CHALLENGES HELPS I'VE LEARNED POSITIVE MYSELF, ALLOWED ME TO SEE THE RISE OF MY PEERS AND TO SEE THE MORE THAN THE SURFACE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
UH, TO THE FOLKS CALLING IN THE, THE CONNECTION WASN'T GREAT.
WE COULDN'T QUITE HEAR, WE COULDN'T QUITE HEAR WHAT YOU WERE SAYING.
IT SOUNDED LIKE THERE WAS A BAD CONNECTION.
SO WE HAVE KAMI, RIA, KAMI, L ON THE LINE.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK ONCE YOU BEGIN.
RIA, I SEE YOU'RE ON THE LINE WITH US.
PLEASE PRESS STAR SIX TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
HELLO? HI, MY NAME IS KAMI LURIA.
UM, I AM A SCHOOL-BASED PSW AND UM, I WORK AT TWO SMALLER ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN REGION SOUTH.
DURING A MEETING OF THE SCHOOL SAFETY AND CLIMATE COMMITTEE ON MARCH 27TH, UM, L-A-U-S-D OPERATIONS SAID THAT THE TOP THREE STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS SERVICE GOALS PRESENTED IN RESPONSE TO THE NEED FOR MORE PWS WERE PROMOTION OF SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING AMONG ALL SCHOOLS PERSONNEL, THE EXPANSION OF COLLABORATION WITH COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS AND RESOURCES, AND THE SUBCONTRACTING AND OUTSOURCING OF OUTSIDE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.
SO THIS RESPECT, THIS RESPONSE DOES NOT DIRECTLY ADDRESS THE QUESTION POSED BY OPERATIONS DEPARTMENT ADMINISTRATOR, WHICH WAS WHAT IS BEING DONE TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF PSW.
THIS IS THE QUESTION THAT MANY OTHER ASKED DURING PUBLIC, PUBLIC COMMENTS AND HAS POED IMPOSED AND SCHOOL COMMUNITY MEMBERS ARE HIGHLY CONCERNED.
WE WOULD LIKE OUR TOP PRIORITY TO BE EXPANDING PSW WITH CENTRAL DISTRICT FUNDING FOR PSW POSITIONS, ONE PSW FOR EVERY SCHOOL.
RIGHT NOW, WE ARE ABLE TO COVER ONE PSW FOR ALL SCHOOLS WITH OVER 600 STUDENTS.
AND WE'RE VERY GRATEFUL FOR THAT.
BUT I CAN SPEAK FOR MY SMALL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.
WE ARE SUFFERING, UM, EVERY YEAR THE FUNDING GOES DOWN.
STUDENTS AND FAMILIES WHO DEPEND ON PWS ASK MYSELF AND THE ADMINISTRATORS WILL OUR PSW REMAIN ON CAMPUS YEAR TO YEAR.
THIS IS ALWAYS AN AN IFFY QUESTION, AND THE STUDENTS REALLY DEPEND ON THE PSW.
I KNOW FIRSTHAND HOW MY ROLE POSITIVELY IMPACTS STUDENTS, FAMILIES, STAFF, AND THE OVERALL SCHOOL CULTURE.
THIS LEADS TO ENHANCED MENTAL HEALTH AND INCREASED ATTENDANCE, GRADES, BEHAVIOR AND GRADUATIONS RATES.
AGAIN, OUR TOP PRE PRIORITY SHOULD BE ONE PSW PER SCHOOL.
AND THAT CONCLUDES GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT.
[Additional Item]
ALL THE, ALL THE BUSINESS HAS BEEN CONDUCTED.I BELIEVE YOU HAD AN ADJOURNING MOTION.
WE HAVE A, UH, A, UH, CERTIFICATE AH, YES.
A CERTIFICATE FOR THE STUDENT BOARD MEMBER.
I'M JUST SO PROUD TO HAVE NELLY AS OUR STUDENT BOARD REP, COMING TO ALL THE MEETINGS, WORKING WITH ALL THE STUDENTS IN THE DISTRICT.
WE ARE JUST SO PROUD OF YOU AND I CONGRATULATE YOU.
HAVE A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL CAREER AFTER L-A-U-S-D.
SAY A FEW THINGS OR THE BOARD MEMBERS, OF COURSE.
[04:50:01]
AND JUST SAY THAT IT HAS BEEN JUST A JOY AND SUCH AN HONOR TO HAVE YOU, UM, JUST LIKE ALL OF OUR SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS.BUT I'M TALKING ABOUT YOU RIGHT NOW, UM, HONOR TO HAVE YOU AND YOU HAVE BEEN VERY DEDICATED, VERY OUTSPOKEN, VERY ELOQUENT IN HOW YOU HAVE, UM, EXPRESSED YOURSELF ON, ON BEHALF OF YOUR PEERS.
WE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER AND I SHARED MY EXPERIENCE AS A COLLEGE STUDENT A LONG TIME AGO.
AND JUST SO, SO GLAD THAT YOU'LL BE GOING TO UC, BERKELEY GO BEARS,
AND I JUST SEE MYSELF REFLECTED IN YOU AND, UM, JUST, YOU KNOW, WORDS CAN, CAN REALLY EXPRESS HOW DEEPLY, DEEPLY I CARE.
AND JUST SO PROUD OF YOU AND I'M SURE JUST YOUR PARENTS ARE AS WELL.
AND JUST WANNA SAY TO ALL OF THE L-A-U-S-D STUDENTS THAT YOU HAVE BEEN VERY WELL REPRESENTED BY MISS ANELLI CORTEZ LOPEZ HERE ON THE DAYS.
AND LOOK FORWARD TO, UM, JUST HAVING YOU BACK AND SHARING WITH US YOUR EXPERIENCES AND KNOW THAT THIS WILL ALWAYS BE A PLACE OF YOUR HOME FOR YOU.
AND JUST EXCITED AND JUST PROUD OF YOU.
OKAY, WELL, NELLY, THIS HAS BEEN A GREAT TIME 'CAUSE IT'S YOUR FIRST, MY FIRST
YOU HAVE REALLY BEEN JUST AN EXAMPLE, UM, FOR YOUR PEERS.
YOU ARTICULATE YOURSELF AND JUST EXPRESS DEEP, UM, THOUGHT INTO EVERYTHING THAT YOU BRING TO THE BOARD ON AND REPRESENTING YOUR PEERS FROM THE SCHOOLS.
AND I'M GRATEFUL TO BE ABLE TO HAVE EXPERIENCED THAT HERE WITH YOU AND LOOK FORWARD TO WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO DO, UM, AND BRING BACK TO THIS DISTRICT.
AS I OFTEN SAY, THIS DISTRICT IS A DISTRICT OF LEGACY, AND YOUR LEGACY WILL CONTINUE ON.
UM, AND WHEN YOU GO OFF AND COME BACK AND SHARE YOUR STORIES TO THOSE AROUND, I KNOW YOU WILL CONTINUE TO INSPIRE MANY.
UH, SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR DEEP HEART THOUGHTS, YOUR DEEP HEART, UM, INTELLECT ON MANY, MANY TOPICS AND CONTINUE TO, UH, LIFT UP AND PAY FORWARD AND ALL THAT YOU DO.
SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR GRACING US HERE ON THE DEUS AND BEING A PART OF THE VOICE FOR OUR COMMUNITY IN L-A-U-S-D.
UM, IT'S SUCH A PLEASURE AND PRIVILEGE TO SERVE WITH YOU ON THE BOARD.
YOU KNOW, AS I WAS THINKING, WE'RE ALL IS THE SEASON OF GRADUATIONS AND WE'RE ALL THINKING ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GONNA SAY TO GRADUATING CLASSES.
AND I WAS WITH THIS CLASS, WITH YOUR CLASS IN PARTICULAR, WHAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN THROUGH WITH PANDEMICS AND STRIKES AND UNREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE AND LIKE THE, THE SALIENCE AND JUST THE BRILLIANCE OF YOUR GENERATION.
I'VE BEEN THINKING LIKE, REALLY YOU ALL SHOULD BE GIVING US THE GRADUATION ADDRESSES.
AND, UM, THEN I THOUGHT ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY AND THE PRIVILEGE HAS BEEN TO SERVE WITH YOU BECAUSE EVERY MONTH WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY ACTUALLY TO HAVE JUST THAT, WHICH IS TO HAVE YOUR VOICE, UM, AND YOUR WISDOM AND YOUR THOUGHTFULNESS.
AND LIKE MY COLLEAGUE SAID, YOU'RE SUCH A CAPABLE REPRESENTATIVE, NOT JUST FOR THE STUDENTS OF LA UNIFIED, OUR, OUR GREATEST CONSTITUENCY, BUT FOR ALL OF US.
UM, AND THEN WE'VE LEARNED A LOT FROM YOU.
APPRECIATE YOUR ADVOCACY AND AS PASS THE TORCH TO THE NEXT GENERATION, UH, YOU KNOW, YOUR, YOUR SUCCESSOR IS LUCKY TO HAVE YOUR GUIDANCE.
UM, I HOPE AS MY COLLEAGUE SAID, THAT YOU WON'T BE A STRANGER, THAT YOU'LL COME BACK.
IT'S NICE TO SEE SOME FORMER LA UNIFIED STUDENT BOARD MEMBERS WHO END UP HERE.
AND IT WAS FUN TO HONOR THEM ALL A FEW MONTHS AGO.
UM, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, AND I'M SURE MY COLLEAGUES AND THE SUPERINTENDENT JOINED ME IN, IN THINKING IN THIS JOB AND IN THIS POLITICAL CLIMATE, WE'RE ASKED A LOT LIKE, HOW DO YOU STAY OPTIMISTIC AND HOW DO YOU STAY POSITIVE? AND IT'S BECAUSE WE GET TO SPEND OUR WEEKS WITH YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT JUST THE, UH, FUTURE, BUT IN LIKE A WEEK OR SHORTER, YOU'LL BE THE PRESENT, UH, WHEN YOU GRADUATE AND THE PRESENT IS BRIGHT BECAUSE OF YOUR, UM, BRILLIANCE.
UH, AND LOOK FORWARD TO VOTING FOR YOU SOMEDAY, ANNALEE.
THANK YOU, MR. THANK YOU, MR. MALVO, MR. SUPERINTENDENT.
SO ANNALEE, YOU'RE NOT ONLY AN INSPIRING HUMAN BEING, UM, ACCOMPLISHED AT A VERY YOUNG AGE, UH, BUT WITH BOUNDLESS PROMISE.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF GRADUATION SEASON.
I'LL TELL YOU WHAT I WHAT I'LL BE SAYING TO A LOT OF INDIVIDUALS, YOU KNOW, THE WORLD YOU'RE GOING TO INHERIT POST HIGH SCHOOL IS NOT A PERFECT ONE.
AND THE SOLUTIONS THAT MY GENERATION AND GENERATIONS PRIOR TO BRING, UH, TO OUR COLLECTIVE EXISTENCE
[04:55:01]
ARE THE SOLUTIONS THAT NOW ARE ON YOUR PLATE, UH, TO DEVISE, TO CREATE, UM, YOUR POISE, YOUR INTELLECTUAL CAPACITY, BUT ALSO YOUR COURAGE AND YOUR COMPASSION ARE TRULY ADMIRABLE.UM, I WAS VERY IMPRESSED FROM DAY ONE WHEN YOU GAVE YOUR SORT OF ACCEPTANCE SPEECH AND YOU REFLECTED ON YOUR FAMILY, YOUR HERITAGE, YOUR CULTURE.
AND, UH, WHEN SOMEONE LEADS WITH THAT AND CONTINUES TO LEAN ON THAT, JUST NOT JUST FOR THE BENEFIT OF YOUR FAMILY, BUT NO DOUBT FOR BENEFIT, THOSE WHO CAN IDENTIFY WITH YOUR JOURNEY, YOU'RE, YOU'RE WATCHING OR WITNESSING SOMEONE WHO IS TRUE TO THEMSELVES, WHO'S FOLLOWING A BASIC CORE OF DECENCY WITH WELL-DEFINED VALUES AND PRINCIPLES THAT WILL SERVE YOU WELL IN YOUR LIFE.
EVEN THOUGH LUCK IS NOT SOMETHING YOU NEED AT BERKELEY, GOOD LUCK NAVIGATING, UH, THE POLITICAL TIMES WE'RE ALL LIVING THROUGH, BUT THAT YOU DON'T NEED AS WELL.
YOU HAVE THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF COURAGE.
AND THANK YOU FOR JUST BEING AN INSPIRATION TO US ALL.
PARTICULARLY AN INSPIRATION TO MANY THAT I'VE SEEN YOU INTERACT WITH, WHETHER IT WAS THE SUPERINTENDENTS, STUDENT ADVISORY COUNCIL, LEADERSHIP GROUPS, YOU'RE ALWAYS THERE AND YOU'RE ALWAYS THERE IN THE PRESENT WAY FOR EVERYONE.
HAVE A GREAT TIME AT BERKELEY, BUT NOT TOO MUCH OF A GREAT TIME.
AND THEN COME BACK, COME BACK AND TEACH US ALL SOMETHING.
I'M GONNA HAVE, UH, MR. MCLEAN BOARD SECRETARIAT.
YOU KNOW, THIS LADY, GO AHEAD.
NORMALLY I WOULD DECLINE, BUT HE'S ONE OF MY SEVEN BOSSES, SO I CAN'T, UM, I, MY HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE IS NO BAROMETER OF SUCCESS TO BE MEASURED AGAINST.
SO WHEN I SEE A STUDENT IN THE BOARDROOM, LET ALONE AT THE DEIS, I'M SO IMPRESSED BECAUSE IT TAKES A LOT TO ADD THAT TO, TO THE LOAD.
UH, THE EMOTIONAL, THE PHYSICAL, THE INTELLECTUAL LOAD THAT STUDENTS HAVE TO BEAR DAY TO DAY AND TO BE HERE DOING WHAT YOU'RE DOING IS QUITE IMPRESSIVE.
UM, AND YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF GRIM TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE OF LA, THE FUTURE OF LA COUNTY, THE FUTURE OF OUR COUNTRY, BUT WHEN PEOPLE COME INTO THE BOARDROOM AND DO WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND ARE NOT YET OUTTA HIGH SCHOOL, I MEAN, WE'RE GONNA BE OKAY.
SO LIKE, I REALLY, I REALLY APPRECIATE, UM, THE STUDENT.
I DON'T, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE STUDENT BOARD MEMBER PARTICIPATION, EVEN THOUGH I TRY AND PLAY IT REAL COOL.
LIKE, I DON'T WANT TO BE A PART OF THE THING.
I IS A NEUTRAL, YOU KNOW? BUT I THINK IT'S, I THINK IT'S PRETTY AMAZING.
SO, UM, ALSO, UH, GO BEARS, THAT WAS A VERY LATE ENTRANT TO COLLEGE, AND I WILL THROW THE GO BEARS IN THERE.
THAT'S A, IT'S A GREAT PLACE TO GO.
UM, ANIL, ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS OF OUR BOARD IS YOU.
IT'S THE FACT THAT YOU ALWAYS ENLIGHTENED US WITH THE EXPERIENCES OF OUR STUDENTS, THE STORIES THAT YOU BROUGHT ABOUT THEIR NEEDS, AND, UM, HOW WE ALL ALWAYS NEED TO KEEP THAT IN MIND.
AND YOU MODELED VULNERABILITY AS COURAGE AND STRENGTH.
YOU SHARED SO MUCH OF YOUR STORY.
UM, TRULY YOU WERE MY FAVORITE PART, MY FAVORITE VOICE HERE, BECAUSE YOU SPOKE TO, TO SO MANY OF OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS.
YOU ALWAYS, ALWAYS WENT BACK TO THAT.
I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU THAT, UM, YOU'RE GRADUATING AND YOU'RE MOVING ON TO A UNIVERSITY AND I KNOW YOU'RE GONNA DO GREAT THINGS AND I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT THE FUTURE BECAUSE OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND THE OTHER YOUTH WHO SHOW UP HERE AFTER SCHOOL TO COME AND DEMAND THINGS FROM US.
'CAUSE I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE THIS, I KNOW THAT YOU WILL CONTINUE TO HOLD HUMANITY ACCOUNTABLE TO THE HIGHEST STANDARDS.
I WANT YOU TO HAVE ALL THE FUN THAT YOU CAN AT CAL.
I DON'T WANT YOU TO HOLD BACK.
AND I ALMOST STILL GONNA SAY, GO BEARS.
UM, BUT, AND NELLY, I DIDN'T REALIZE THIS WAS YOUR LAST MEETING AND I FEEL LIKE I'M NOT EMOTIONALLY READY TO SAY GOODBYE TO YOU JUST YET.
BUT, UM, YOU HAVE JUST STEPPED UP WITHIN SECONDS OF JOINING THE BOARD.
UM, YOU SO SEAMLESSLY TOOK ON THIS ROLE SO BEAUTIFULLY, AND I FEEL I'M GLAD THAT BOARD MEMBER GRIEGO SAID IT BECAUSE I'VE, I FEEL LIKE YOU WERE ALSO MY FAVORITE ON
[05:00:01]
THE BOARD AND, AND THAT WHEN YOU JOINED US, YOU JUST LIFTED THE CALIBER OF THE DISCUSSIONS AT THE DEUS.UM, AND YOU ARE BRILLIANT AND YOU ARE BOLD AND BRAVE.
AND THAT'S WHAT I'VE REALLY TAKEN FROM YOU.
I FEEL LIKE PARTICULARLY AT THIS MOMENT, WHEREAS YOU HAVE SO ELOQUENTLY STATED, OUR, OUR STUDENTS, OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITIES, UM, ARE UNDER ATTACK, ARE FEELING TRAUMA AND FEAR.
YOU ARE EXACTLY THE TYPE OF VOICE THAT OUR STUDENTS NEEDED AT THIS TIME.
I CAN THINK OF NO ONE WHO HAS DONE, WHO WOULD'VE ADVOCATED AND REPRESENTED THEM BETTER THAN YOU.
UM, AND YOU HAVE DONE SO AUTHENTICALLY AND WITH INTENTION TO ENSURE THAT THE VOICES THAT WE DON'T ALWAYS HEAR FROM ARE THE ONES THAT YOU ARE CENTERING.
AND SO I'M JUST SO GRATEFUL THAT YOU, THAT YOU TOOK THE TIME TO BE WITH US DURING AN INCREDIBLY HECTIC SENIOR YEAR.
YOU'RE GOING TO DO AMAZING THINGS THEN IF YOU RUN INTO ANY ISSUES AT CAL, I KNOW I DID.
UM, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT.
UM, BUT YOU'RE GONNA DO AMAZING THINGS AND I'M JUST GRATEFUL TO KNOW YOU.
UM, AN ELLIOT, THE GREATEST THING I CAN SAY ABOUT YOU IS THAT I FEEL THAT YOU ARE ONE OF THE BOARD MEMBERS JUST LIKE US.
AND WHEN YOU COME TO THIS MEETING, I KNOW YOU'RE PREPARED.
YOU KNOW WHAT TO SAY, YOU'VE READ THE MATERIALS AND YOU'RE A REGULAR BOARD MEMBER, JUST LIKE THESE ADULTS SITTING HERE.
SO I'M VERY, VERY PROUD OF YOU AND I THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
WANNA SAY A FEW WORDS BEFORE WE END? I ASKED.
WELL, I AM JUST WITHOUT WORDS FOR THE AMOUNT OF SUPPORT I'VE HAD THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE TERM AND THE PRIVILEGE.
I HAVE TO REPRESENT THE STUDENTS OF LUSD AND HIGHLIGHT THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS WITHIN OUR DISTRICT.
IT'S NOT A POSITION THAT'S EASY.
AND I TALK WITH THE NEXT INCOMING BOARD MEMBER, JERRY YANG, ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF STAYING GROUNDED IN WHAT YOU DO.
AND YES, YOU DO GO TO EVENTS AND YOU HAVE SPECIAL PLACARDS LIKE THIS ONE RIGHT HERE, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU'RE REPRESENTING, AGAIN, THE SECOND SCHOOL, THE NATION'S SECOND LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICT.
AND I'M JUST SO THANKFUL THAT I ALWAYS SAY MY BACKGROUND IS A BLESSING, NOT A BARRIER.
I COME FROM A TITLE ONE SCHOOL IN, IN REGION SOUTH.
I DON'T HAVE THE TRADITIONAL PRE-COLLEGE EXPERIENCE.
I ATTENDED COLLEGE PREP PROGRAMS LIKE MANY OF MY PEERS.
AND THERE IS STILL SO MUCH WORK TO BE DONE THAT I FEEL SO BLESSED TO HAVE BEEN HERE AND HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS, ESPECIALLY WITH THE CURRENT FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION THAT'S CONSTANTLY TRYING TO UNDERMINE THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND THE WORK OF THE STUDENTS THAT ARE IN LUC, LOW INCOME IMMIGRANTS, L-G-B-T-Q, UNDOCUMENTED.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THIS IS JUST THE START OF A BEGINNING.
AND NO MATTER WHAT, I KNOW THAT OUR COMMUNITIES WILL COME TOGETHER AND THE WORK OF A STUDENT BOARD MEMBER IS NOT DONE.
AND I HOPE THAT IN THE NEAR FUTURE, WE CAN ALL CONNECT AGAIN AND CONTINUE WORKING TOWARDS CHANGE IN OUR COMMUNITIES BECAUSE OUR MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS ARE CURRENTLY UNDER ATTACK.
AND IT'S VITAL THAT WE CONTINUE TO COME TOGETHER AS COMMUNITY, NOT WITH FEAR, BUT WITH HOPE, WITH RESILIENCE.
AND THAT ONE DAY WE CAN ALL COME TOGETHER AND CONTINUE FINDING SOLUTIONS TO THE WORLD'S MOST HEARTBREAKING PROBLEMS. AND AGAIN, JUST MY GRATITUDE TO EVERYONE HERE AND TO EVERY SINGLE STUDENT AND EVERY SINGLE STUDENT WHO VOTED FOR ME OR DIDN'T VOTE FOR ME WHEN THE CURRENT ELECTIONS WERE GOING OUT.
THE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS WHO DID, I THANK YOU FOR TRUSTING ME WITH THIS POSITION AND FOR ALLOWING ME TO REPRESENT YOU THE BEST WAY I POSSIBLY COULD.
SO BEFORE, UH, BEFORE WE FINISH UP, WE HAVE TO GET A VOTE FROM MS. GRIEGO.
I NEED, UH, ONE VOTE FROM MS. GRIEGO ON TAB 31 APPROVAL OF THE RENEWAL PETITION FOR PLAIN PLAINVIEW ACADEMIC CHARTER ACADEMY.
AND I JUST WANNA DO A VERY BRIEF, UH, AJOUR MOTION FOR MR. BILL LAMBERT.
AND MR. LAMBERT WAS A PROUD ALUMNUS OF FAIRFAX HIGH SCHOOL.
BEGAN HIS CAREER IN 1955 AS A TEACHER AT MONTE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, AND LATER CONTINUED EDUCATING STUDENTS AT CANTERBURY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND FOLLOWING HIS EARLY EXPERIENCE AS A TEACHER, BILL CONTINUED HIS ONGOING EDUCATIONAL ADVOCACY.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING OF HIS ADVOCACY WAS HE WAS ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF UTLA.
HE WAS AN ELEMENTARY TEACHER AND HE SERVED AS THE PRESIDENT AND SECONDARY PROBATIONARY TEACHERS ASSOCIATION, ONE OF THE MANY PREDECESSORS ORGANIZATIONS THAT EVENTUALLY LED TO UTLA.
[05:05:01]
MR. LAMBERT VERY MUCH.AND UNLESS THERE'S ANY OBJECTION, UH, THE MEETING WOULD ADJOURN, BUT ALSO PERHAPS IT MIGHT BE A GOOD MOMENT TO TAKE A PHOTO WITH THE OUTGOING STUDENT, STUDENT BOARD MEMBER.
SO ARE THERE OBJECTIONS TO THE MEETING ADJOURNING? NO.
THE TIME IS 4:07 PM THANK YOU EVERYONE.