[0:01] Good morning. Welcome everyone. The time is now 10:02 am
[0:06] on june 23rd, 2026. Welcome
[0:10] to the regular meeting of the los angeles unified school district board
[0:14] of education. I'm going to take role, uh, ms. Newbell
[0:19] present, uh, dr. Rivas. Okay. Present.
[0:23] mr. Malvo. Here. Mr. Malvo is here. Uh, ms. Griego.
[0:28] uh, ms. Ez. Ms. Ortiz franklin. Present board president molsen
[0:32] present. Okay. We have quorum.
[0:36] it's now time to move on to the pledge of allegiance brought to us via video
[0:41] from board district two. So please cue the video
[0:45] and it will be in spanish and english. So after the spanish version, please don't sit down right away.
[0:51] okay.
[1:01] right hand
[1:06] I donations to the back
[1:10] of the united states of america,
[1:19] one nation invisible
[1:24] with liberty and justice for all.
[1:57] okay, now, if we could all settle in to observe the land acknowledgement.
[2:03] we acknowledge that the los angeles unified school district
[2:07] operates on land originally and still inhabited and cared for
[2:11] by the gno and ferno tian peoples who have stewarded
[2:15] this land for generations. We recognize these indigenous communities
[2:20] ongoing presence and contributions, and honor their connection
[2:24] to this region. We recognize gabrielino people as
[2:28] the original stewards of los angeles basin and the nearby coastal
[2:32] lands and the ferando tum as protectors of the northern valleys.
[2:37] these lands have and continue to hold deep, cultural and
[2:42] spiritual significance to their people, and have shaped the community we live in
[2:46] today. We pay our respects to the hanuk
[2:50] ancestors, a elders
[2:54] and eo hin our relatives and relations
[2:58] past, present, and emerging, and commit to supporting
[3:02] indigenous communities through education, ensuring their voices
[3:06] are heard and their legacies are respected.
[3:10] we commit to deepening our understanding of the histories and
[3:15] cultures of the native peoples of this land. This acknowledgement
[3:19] demonstrates our ongoing efforts to build and sustain relationships with
[3:23] indigenous communities and contribute to healing and reconciliation.
[3:33] okay. Good morning everyone. Do we have any labor
[3:37] partners who would wish to speak?
[3:42] don't be shy. Come on down. We see, we see you. Come on down. You'll have, uh,
[3:47] up to five minutes to speak once you begin.
[4:04] alright. Thank you. Good morning, everybody. My name is julie van winkle. I'm
[4:08] the a ft vice president for united teachers los angeles. And I
[4:12] just have like a couple, couple different things that I just wanted to put on
[4:16] people's radar. Um, first of all, we at utla are
[4:20] concerned about the, um, the cuts that are being suggested for the peer
[4:24] assistance and review par program. That's something that
[4:28] was kind of a hard fought win in our contract many, many years ago.
[4:32] um, we just had contract negotiations and the district didn't
[4:36] bring it up to, to cut or change that program in any way. And we understand that
[4:41] you all are making a lot of cuts, and that we're concerned about the
[4:45] district's ability to be able to provide the same level of service
[4:49] with, with all these cuts because that is a really important program to help
[4:54] teachers, um, improve in their craft. Um, and to
[4:58] get, you know, really helpful, um,
[5:02] you know, peer help from colleagues instead of just, you know, kind of punitive
[5:07] feedback from an administrator. So we are concerned about that.
[5:11] um, we also, we, we agree with the spirit
[5:15] of the screen time, um, reduction proposal that y'all will be voting on today,
[5:19] but we are a little concerned about how exactly that's
[5:24] gonna look. We're we're concerned that, you know, a lot of these standardized,
[5:28] um, testing and data collection programs like iready and ixl,
[5:33] um, are getting exempted from that screen time reduction. And
[5:37] we're worried that kind of the burden of figuring out, you know, what is
[5:41] exempted and what isn't and how this is gonna work, is gonna fall on the individual schools and
[5:46] on the individual teachers. So we hope that as this rolls out,
[5:50] that, you know, we'll continue having conversations and make sure that
[5:54] we're not, you know, shortchanging changing a kid on being able to have like,
[5:58] word processing skills, um, for the purpose of taking more
[6:02] ixl assessments. So just, you know, hopefully that can be an ongoing conversation
[6:06] as we move through this. Um, and then the last concern we had
[6:11] was about the office of the inspector general. Um,
[6:15] we were wondering why does the oig work plan repeatedly state
[6:19] that oig is primarily focused on bond programs when the majority
[6:23] of its funding is not from bond funds? Um,
[6:28] you know, for, for audits, only one item out of the 21 items
[6:32] listed on the audits is not bond related. And that's not even
[6:36] for a contractor. We, we would like to see the oig focus
[6:40] more on some of these private contracts. Um, you know, especially
[6:44] technology contracts. We know we've had data breaches in the past, and we feel like the
[6:48] oig is so focused on these bonds that
[6:53] they're kind of maybe not having as much oversight
[6:57] on some of these, um, some of these private contracts that you all know we are very concerned
[7:01] about and continue to monitor. So hopefully, um, we can,
[7:05] we can have more conversations about that. But that concludes my
[7:10] talking points. Thank you. Thank you very much.
[7:15] before we move on to, uh, hold on.
[7:20] we have other labor partners. Come on down
[7:33] morning. Maybe a new face, maybe not a new face.
[7:38] my name's julie spry. I am with the los angeles school police management association.
[7:44] hello, board president schuren, board members acting
[7:48] superintendent h and our members of our community.
[7:53] I have the honor of serving as the vice president of the los angeles school police management association.
[7:58] I'm here today to express our serious concerns regarding
[8:03] the proposed reductions to the los angeles school police department
[8:07] under the physical stabilization plan, including
[8:11] approximately $3.5 million in 2020
[8:15] 6 27 school year, and an additional 7 million
[8:20] in 2020 7 28 school year.
[8:25] these proposed reductions come after the department already absorbed
[8:30] a 35% 25 million reduction in 2021.
[8:36] our department has never fully recovered from these cuts.
[8:42] we understand the district faced difficult financial challenges,
[8:46] however, I respectfully ask the board to carefully consider
[8:51] the long-term impact these reductions may have
[8:55] on student safety, school climate, and ultimately,
[8:59] student achievement. Student achievement
[9:04] begins with student attendance, and stu and
[9:08] attendance begins with students feeling safe. Research consistently
[9:13] shows that school climate attendance and
[9:17] perceptions of safety are closely connected to academic performance.
[9:22] when students are worried about violence, threats
[9:27] or emergencies on their campuses, or learning becomes secondary.
[9:32] today's schools face increasingly complex threats.
[9:37] our officers respond to shooting threats, swatting
[9:41] incidents, weapon violations, violent assaults,
[9:46] and other emergencies that unfortunately become part
[9:50] of modern education.
[9:55] lasd campuses have experienced repeated lockdowns and emergency
[10:00] responses. Every one of those incidents inquire requires
[10:04] an immediate, professional and coordinated
[10:08] response. I firmly believe the dedication of our
[10:12] officers have helped prevent incidents from becoming tragedies.
[10:17] most recently, during concerns surrounding immigration enforcement
[10:22] activity near our schools and graduation sites, district leadership
[10:27] relied upon school police to help ensure
[10:31] students and families could celebrate important milestones without fear
[10:36] or intimidation. Those efforts were
[10:40] about protecting access to education. Those efforts
[10:44] were about protecting student achievement, and
[10:48] the demand for these services continues to grow. Although the current
[10:52] fiscal year has not yet ended during the 2020 5 26
[10:57] school year, the los angeles school police department has already handled approximately
[11:03] 89,244 calls for
[11:07] service. In addition, the department has responded
[11:11] to 49 separate requests for on-campus
[11:16] officer support involving 34 different schools across
[11:20] los angeles unified. These numbers
[11:24] demonstrate that the demand for school safety services is not
[11:29] diminishing. The los angeles unified community
[11:34] continues to rely on the los angeles school police department to protect
[11:38] access to education and support
[11:42] student achievement. Families have choices
[11:49] and perceptions of campus safety can influence enrollment
[11:54] decisions. Preserving confidence in the safety of our
[11:58] schools is essential to maintaining the trust of current
[12:02] and future l-a-u-s-d families. Unfortunately,
[12:07] the proposed physical civilization plan moves in the opposite direction
[12:12] at a time when safety challenges are increasing. Reducing
[12:17] resources means reducing capacity. These reductions are not simply
[12:21] numbers on a spreadsheet. They mean fewer opportunities
[12:25] for proactive engagement with students. Re reduce support
[12:30] for administrators during crisises and potentially longer
[12:34] response times during emergencies. The most effective school
[12:38] safe safety strategies are preventative, preventative, and not reactive.
[12:43] once a crisis occurs, we cannot undo the trauma
[12:48] experienced by students and staff. Every incident
[12:52] preve prevented is instructional time preserved.
[12:56] every emergency resolved quickly, helps preserve the safe
[13:00] learning environment our students need to succeed academically.
[13:07] the question before us is whether reducing the district's dedicated
[13:11] school safety resources by millions of dollars
[13:15] over the next two years will weaken our ability to
[13:19] provide that safety. The members of the los angeles school police
[13:24] management association stand ready to work
[13:28] collaboratively with the district leadership
[13:32] to identify efficiencies and support the district's financial
[13:37] goals. But we respectfully urge this board
[13:41] to evaluate alternatives
[13:45] before reducing resources dedicated to the safety and wellbeing
[13:50] of nearly half a million staff and students
[13:55] entrusted to our care. School safety is
[13:59] not optional.
[14:03] budgets reflect priorities. And every
[14:07] investment made in school safety is ultimately an
[14:11] investment in student achievement
[14:16] because supporting student achievement begins with protecting our
[14:20] students. I appreciate your attention. Thank you very much.
[14:27] thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Any other
[14:31] labor partners? Gil, are you coming down? Okay.
[14:36] alright.
[14:43] yes, that, that was sergeant julie spry. Um, I joked she's gonna
[14:47] make me follow that 'cause that that's very true. Statements actually that
[14:51] she made. Um, for starters, I'm, my name's gil gammas. I'm the school police union
[14:55] president of the officers association. And it's very nice when we see the,
[14:59] the children, um, uh, do the pledge of allegiance
[15:03] in class. And I believe it's a california educational code. It says, um, certain student,
[15:08] all all schools need to, um, do the pledge of allegiance before
[15:12] class. And if they don't do that, they need to do a, like exercise to promote
[15:16] nationalism and, and things like this. Um,
[15:21] I I would like to talk about bsap a a beautiful program,
[15:26] and, but when we talk about bsap,
[15:31] we're not talking about one singular issue.
[15:36] it has different layers to it. And whereas
[15:40] I support counselors for bsap teachers for
[15:44] bsap, um, programs that help
[15:48] young men and young women become, uh, better.
[15:53] I do have to talk about the amount of money that comes out of bsap. It's about, it's
[15:57] over $20 million that we call safe passage. These are
[16:02] not district employees. So when we're talking about budgetary
[16:06] issues, every bargaining unit should be a little
[16:10] frustrated when we're, when, when all the unions are facing
[16:14] cuts, um, at their members level, that we're going
[16:18] to somehow finance non-district employees
[16:24] for, to provide security on and around our campuses.
[16:28] and without talking about specific incidents,
[16:32] first of all, there are shooting and stabbing incidents on all of our campuses.
[16:36] there's been cbs news programs, um, winning
[16:40] emmy awards based on stabbings on campuses. This is, this is
[16:44] a, a sad reality, but if I don't say this, then somebody's going to be talking about, um,
[16:48] something at their child's funeral. We've, we've had
[16:53] shootings across, uh, uh, right across from our schools, which resulted in
[16:57] students that died. And we had a bsap security
[17:01] person. I don't even want to taint the, the program with that name. We had a security,
[17:06] uh, safe passage program that was funded from bsap. And the lady on camera
[17:10] says, I'm not doing anything. Call the police. And one of our children got
[17:14] killed. If our police officer would've been there, they, they would've seen the police car. The kids would've
[17:18] ran, the kids would've done what kids do. But in the absence of police officers, not only do
[17:22] we have vigilante justice like we've had on other campuses recently with parents have
[17:27] to go stick up for their children, and parents have to go chase down subjects. We
[17:31] have, we have this, these, these safe
[17:35] passage programs, which are not experts. They are not experts because the strategy setter
[17:39] comes here and they want to convince the board members to be job creators so they
[17:43] can give district non-district employees, um, the
[17:47] funding to the tune of $20 million, $20 million while
[17:52] the other district employees are going to lose their jobs. Is, is it's,
[17:56] it's nothing that the, that a school district should entertain. Having said that, by having
[18:00] inferior safety, by having individuals that don't know anything about safety, you're pretending
[18:05] you're pretending that you could provide safety for children. You're pretending.
[18:09] and that's why we have incidents such as incidents that happen on and around our campus.
[18:15] so I, I urge every
[18:19] labor union to sit there and talk about this, this, um,
[18:24] the security funding for the safe passage program, which are gonna save jobs for
[18:28] people to the tune of $20 million. If we're
[18:33] talking about resolutions and we understand that bsap is a program worth
[18:37] saving, can we make a resolution that say, out of my
[18:41] paycheck, I could, I could give $5 to the bsap fund. We have 70,000
[18:45] employees. Could every, could, could every labor union
[18:49] have something in their bylaws saying that we're going to give, um,
[18:53] a certain amount of money to b sep on behalf of their members? There's other ways
[18:57] to solve these issues, but to have a repeat of defund the school
[19:01] police or have a repeat of defund anything. Not only is it politically, um,
[19:06] suicidal, it doesn't help our children. We are pretending that we understand safety
[19:10] by putting inferior people on and around our campuses. Meanwhile, we're trying
[19:14] to get rid of, um, certified police officers that work for the l-a-u-s-d.
[19:20] and, um, it's, it's, it's,
[19:24] it's hard when I walk into this room and superintendent
[19:28] ch 'cause you were in the seat superintendent, ch there was somebody on your staff here.
[19:32] I responded to her school when there was a stabbing death on campus. And the, and I responded
[19:37] to the hospital. And without naming names, I, I don't, I don't see
[19:41] board members when there's shootings and stuff. I don't, I don't
[19:45] see, I don't see you guys there. It doesn't mean that you don't care, but you don't, you don't
[19:49] see this. Right? So, once
[19:54] again, protect the children. Leave, leave the ideological
[19:58] whatever, out of everything. Um, I, I, I, I
[20:02] wish I was as eloquent and I had something put together like sergeant spry did. Um,
[20:07] but thank you. Thank you, gil.
[20:11] any other labor partners wish to speak?
[20:16] okay. So before we get to, um,
[20:23] board business, I just wanna let you know about what's happening so far.
[20:28] uh, as of june 21st, 2026,
[20:32] the warehouse fire at 1400 los paolos
[20:36] street in boyle heights remains active, but contained
[20:41] to the warehouse site, which continues to emit smoke
[20:46] into the neighborhood and into the surrounding areas. So first,
[20:50] I would like to thank the first responders who have been working all day and
[20:54] all night to protect our entire los angeles community, including
[20:59] the southeast cities and the unincorporated areas. While
[21:04] all shelter in place, orders have been lifted, and, you know, that comes and goes.
[21:08] the south coast air quality management district continues to
[21:13] maintain a particle pollution advisory
[21:17] due to ongoing smoke impacts, and pri primarily
[21:21] within a two mile radius of the fire. So
[21:25] out of abundance of caution, and to ensure the safety of students and
[21:29] staff, four schools closest to the fire
[21:33] were temporarily relocated due to their proximity to the
[21:37] incident. And l-a-u-s-d is also coordinating
[21:41] support for affected families through the l-a-u-s-d foundation
[21:46] and community partners by providing air filters, masks,
[21:51] relocation, compassion funds, and other community
[21:55] resources. So for nearby schools, our staff is working to immediately
[21:59] replace hvac filters, provide food for
[22:03] students, and deploy buses to support student transportation.
[22:08] so if you are in these affected areas, I would advise you to please reach
[22:12] out to your local city or county representatives as they are
[22:16] also deploying services, including masks and air filters.
[22:21] and thank you, thank you, thank you to all district staff who are working
[22:25] diligently to ensure the safety of our students. And thank you to all the community
[22:30] partners for taking the time to care for our los angeles neighborhoods.
[22:34] so please stay up to date on further school updates through the
[22:38] l-a-u-s-d region east and maintenance and operation
[22:42] channels. And thank you once again to all of our l-a-u-s-d employees. Thank you,
[22:47] mr. Mclean. All right. It is now appropriate to
[22:51] do the consent calendar. May have a move and a second for the consent calendar. Move it. Second.
[22:56] I moved by board president schuren, seconded by mr. Melvoin.
[23:00] as you know, the consent calendar is a procedural mechanism to
[23:04] take a multiple items all at once. Um, I'll read through
[23:08] the list of items and it will either put it on consent by saying it out
[23:12] loud or discussion. So, tab one, approval of the 2026
[23:16] through 20 20 30. Strategic plan question. Discussion,
[23:21] sorry. Discussion.
[23:26] uh, tab two, using technology with intention. Discussion, discussion.
[23:30] and I'm going to recuse myself on that item. Okay. Tab three,
[23:35] approval of procurement actions discussion. Okay. And I'm
[23:39] gonna recuse myself on that item. Also. I have a recusal in there, I think.
[23:43] yeah, when we get to that specific item, but not since this on discussion, we'll make those recusals
[23:47] out loud again. Uh, tab four, adoption of the 2026 l-a-u-s-d,
[23:52] local control and accountability plan. Discussion. Discussion.
[23:56] uh, tab five, adoption of the a usd affiliated charter schools, 2026, local control
[24:01] and accountability plans. Consent. Consent.
[24:06] tab six, adoption of the proposed 26 27 budget. Discussion. Discussion
[24:11] tab seven, uh, fiscal year 2027. Oig work plan. Consent
[24:16] that hear consent. Okay, consent. Uh, question,
[24:21] question, question on tab seven, question
[24:26] . Alright, uh, let's see. Tab eight,
[24:30] proclaiming june 27 26. 2026 as play day resolution, consent,
[24:35] consent. Uh, tab nine, report of correspondence, consent.
[24:40] uh, tab 10, adoption of the 26, 27 board meeting schedule. Discussion, discussion.
[24:45] there's just one. Yeah. Comment. Why to discuss
[24:49] calendars, I think. Alright, so we have, um,
[24:54] tabs five, eight, and nine on consent.
[24:59] alright. All right. Is that right? Everyone have that tabs five, eight, and nine on consent?
[25:04] yes. Yes. All right. We'll take public comment on those items. Tab five, there is,
[25:08] uh, one speaker mic. Michelle z, are you here?
[25:12] michelle z, come on down. Michelle z. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin to tab five.
[25:18] adoption of the l-a-u-s-d affiliated charter school's. 2026 local control accountability
[25:23] plans.
[25:32] hi, good morning to the board members and also to all the school advocates
[25:36] behind me. Uh, my name is michelle ek and I am a parent
[25:40] at open magnet charter school, which is an affiliated charter
[25:44] in the district. Um, I'm speaking today about the lcap and
[25:48] dashboard local indicators for affiliated charters. So the
[25:52] lcap is supposed to be the public accountability document, connecting goals, actions,
[25:57] services, stakeholder engagement, and the resources needed to implement
[26:02] them. That is why I am concerned about approving affiliated charter
[26:06] lcaps. While the district is considering reductions to funding streams, schools
[26:10] rely on for student facing services at open, affiliated
[26:15] charter funding has historically supported flexible school site needs,
[26:19] including instructional materials, counseling services, classified
[26:24] support, and contract services that directly affect students.
[26:29] these are not abstract accounting lines. They're part of how an affiliated
[26:33] charter implements the services that families see in an lcap.
[26:37] the board has already recognized that some program reductions require
[26:42] a closer look when the impact on students is serious. I
[26:46] am asking the board to apply that same standard here before
[26:50] approving these lcaps. Please require a school by school impact schedule
[26:54] for affiliated charters showing projected funding reductions, affected
[26:58] program codes and the services, staffing or support at
[27:02] risk. In my opinion, notifying schools at the tail
[27:06] end of the school year, apparently through principals or site leadership,
[27:10] rather than the wider school communities, is not sufficient community engagement
[27:15] for fiscal year 2028. Funding changes of this size,
[27:19] please do not approve affiliated charter lcaps as a compliance exercise
[27:24] without disclosing whether schools still have the resources to implement them.
[27:28] thank you. Thank you for your time. Alright, that
[27:32] concludes public comment on tab five, on tab eight, consent item. There is no
[27:36] public comment on tab nine, a report of correspondence. There
[27:41] is one public comment from david toski, mr. David
[27:45] toski. I see you're signed up to speak remotely. Uh, you are not signed in. Are you in the
[27:49] room, mr. David? T not in the room. Okay. That
[27:53] concludes our very brief consent calendar. Uh, public comment. So it's
[27:57] now appropriate to vote on the consent calendar. So again, the board, you are
[28:01] voting on tabs five, eight and nine on the consent
[28:06] calendar. Uh, ms. Newbell? Yes. Dr. Rivas?
[28:11] yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Uh, ms. Rego? Yes. Ms. Gomez?
[28:15] yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Uh, board president schroen? Yes. All right.
[28:19] that concludes the consent calendar. And now on to individual
[28:24] items on the calendar. So the first tab is approval of the l-e-u-s-d
[28:29] 20 26, 20 30 strategic plan. I believe there is a presentation associated with
[28:33] this. Yes, there is. Uh, good morning
[28:37] board. Good morning, everyone. Uh, today we are pleased to present
[28:42] the district's 20 26, 20 30 strategic plan
[28:46] for your consideration and adoption. This plan
[28:50] represents the culmination of extensive collaboration, engagement, and thoughtful
[28:55] planning across our district community. Over a three month period,
[28:59] the district conducted more than 70 engagement sessions and received
[29:03] input from more than 6,400 participants, including students,
[29:08] families, staff, labor partners, community organizations,
[29:13] advisory groups, and educational partners. Their voices help
[29:17] shape the priorities, goals, and direction reflected
[29:22] in the plan before you today. The themes we heard consistently
[29:26] were student learning and achievement, equity and access,
[29:30] mental health and wellness, and communication and engagement.
[29:35] those themes are reflected throughout the five pillars and district goals
[29:39] that are before the board today. I also want to acknowledge
[29:44] the board's significant engagement throughout this process. Staffed
[29:48] work closely with the board through two strategic planning retreats, a
[29:52] committee of the whole discussion and individual meetings with each board member.
[29:57] the feedback received through those conversations was incorporated
[30:01] into the strategic plan and helped strengthen the final product
[30:06] before proceeding. Further, I would like to thank everyone who contributed to the development
[30:11] of the strategic plan. Developing a plan of this scope requires tremendous
[30:15] dedication, coordination, analysis, and
[30:19] collaboration. And I'm sincerely grateful for everyone's hard work.
[30:24] this plan builds upon the progress achieved under our 20 22 20 26
[30:29] strategic plan, while sharpening our focus on the outcomes that matter most for
[30:33] students. It builds on meaningful progress we have made over the last
[30:37] four years while positioning us for the work ahead and
[30:41] reaffirms our commitment to ensuring every student graduates ready for
[30:46] the world and prepared to thrive in college, career and
[30:50] life. One of the most important distinctions in this plan
[30:54] is that it is intentionally strategic in nature.
[30:58] it establishes our vision, mission, goals, priorities, and measures of success.
[31:04] unlike prior efforts that combine strategic and operational work into a single
[31:08] document, this plan focuses on setting direction and defining the
[31:12] outcomes we seek to achieve. The operational planning that supports
[31:17] implementation is occurring separately and is currently underway.
[31:22] divisions and departments are developing aligned operational plans that will
[31:26] translate this strategic vision into specific actions, timelines,
[31:31] responsibilities, and milestones. Those plans are expected to be completed
[31:35] by the end of this month, and we'll ensure alignment across the organization
[31:40] as we begin the new school year. This plan is
[31:44] also designed to be a living document. We anticipate data from the state
[31:48] in october, which will allow us to set the baselines for our district
[31:52] goals, measures of success and indicators. Before the end of the
[31:56] calendar year. Staff will provide regular progress updates
[32:00] to the board and will make adjustments as necessary to ensure
[32:05] we remain focused on improving outcomes for students.
[32:09] this plan reflects a deliberate shift from focusing primarily
[32:13] on activities to focusing on outcomes. This
[32:17] plan moves us from asking what activities did we complete
[32:21] to asking what outcomes did our students achieve?
[32:26] adoption of this strategic plan before the start of the 20 26, 27
[32:30] school year will provide a shared vision and common direction for our schools,
[32:35] offices and departments as we continue our work on behalf of
[32:39] the students and families we serve. With that, I will turn
[32:43] it over to carolyn spa gonzalez, our chief of staff, who will begin our presentation
[32:48] today. Good morning, uh, board members, superintendent
[32:52] cha. Um, I want to highlight just two things that mr. Chase said
[32:56] that are very important. Number one, um, is that this is a shorter
[33:01] document. It's quite a bit shorter. I think it's even less than half the, the length.
[33:06] um, and the reason for that is, as mr. Chase said, this is about outcome.
[33:10] it's truly a strategic plan and the true sense of the word. And so what that
[33:14] means is the board vision, mission, core values, theory of change,
[33:19] um, and goals. Then we added some of the measures of success that are driving
[33:23] the departmental operations plan so that, that we could provide more color to you all
[33:27] and to the, to the, um, to the community as well. So that's important
[33:32] that this particularly in a time of limited resources, that
[33:36] we have a focus on impact, um, and on outcome
[33:40] and not on output. Um, the second thing is you will see a shift
[33:44] in this plan as well, where we are focusing on customer service, for
[33:48] lack of a better word. So we are really focused on the schools, the
[33:52] families, and the students who are we serve. And you will see that also
[33:56] throughout the document. So I wanted to highlight those two things. Uh,
[34:00] one other thing about community engagement as board members, you know, we had individual
[34:05] meetings in your board district for the landscape analysis as well, which
[34:09] we'll talk about tomorrow. Um, some of the feedback that we got
[34:14] during those sessions didn't fall into the landscape since that was only about
[34:18] programs. But we did take all of that feedback and make sure that
[34:22] we incorporate into the strategic plan. So you will also see, see, uh, some of that
[34:26] in here. So with that, I'll hand it over to, uh, dr.
[34:30] bill johnston to go through the presentation.
[34:36] thank you, carolyn. Thank you. Superintendent cha. Greetings, board members.
[34:42] uh, I'm william johnston, senior executive director of strategy. And it's my pleasure to introduce
[34:46] our proposed strategic plan that aligns our community values to our
[34:51] district goals and our strategic priorities for the next four years. The strategic plan
[34:55] provides a clear vision of where we want to go and ensures accountability across
[34:59] our organization. Uh, in today's
[35:03] presentation, you will, um, you will hear about the strategic plan with a highlight on key
[35:07] updates since the 2226 strategic plan that is, um,
[35:11] currently about to sunset. And we will also discuss the measures of success
[35:15] within the strategic plan. So
[35:19] why have we updated the strategic plan? Well, first off, we want to build on the progress from
[35:23] the 22 to 26 strategic plan, um, that, uh, superintendent champ
[35:28] mentioned. Uh, we also, uh, felt this is an important time to respond to
[35:32] community and board input, um, on, on the strategic plan that was,
[35:36] and set our vision for the next four years ahead, um, and to continue prioritizing
[35:40] student success and wellbeing, um, which is certainly in the last strategic plan.
[35:45] but as noted with a, with a, a new found, a new emphasis
[35:49] on a, a focus on outcomes and non output. Um, and then of course, to refine and
[35:53] update our district goals. Uh, we were moving, um, from four goals
[35:57] to five goals for this, uh, next strategic plan. Uh, and that was done with board
[36:01] input. So before diving in, just a reminder,
[36:06] um, and grounding of who we are as a district, um, in los angeles unified,
[36:10] we have over 442,000 students. Um,
[36:14] and, uh, with, you know, an extremely diverse, um, and multifaceted student
[36:18] body, over 34,000 teachers and substitutes, and over 83,000 employees,
[36:23] um, including administrators, um, thousands, you know, over over a thousand
[36:27] schools and programs, um, over 300 magnet programs, over 200 dual
[36:31] language programs, which on their own would, would, would constitute a very large school district on
[36:35] their own. Um, and then over 160 languages spoken by our students.
[36:39] so, you know, it is, it is of course, our a a part of our core values
[36:44] to, to represent that, that diversity and, and move forward with an equity mindset
[36:48] towards, uh, supporting all of these students and, and staff.
[36:53] first, our, our vision, and, and this is, um, this was recently
[36:57] slightly updated from the pri previous strategic plan, uh, with board input from
[37:01] the board retreats that we have had a few months ago. Um, our vision of what we will
[37:05] achieve in the future is that los angeles unified will graduate all students ready
[37:10] for the world and prepare to thrive in college career and life. And then our mission
[37:14] statement, uh, again, this is, uh, whereas the vision is our future, our future goal, our mission
[37:18] is where, what is our present and, and why we exist. Um, we
[37:22] exist to provide a rigorous, joyful, and culturally relevant education
[37:27] that ensures students achieve academic success and social and emotional
[37:31] wellbeing.
[37:36] this strategic plan, like the previous, continues to be anchored in very
[37:40] important core beliefs that guide how we serve our students, our families, and our districts. I
[37:44] will not read all of these, um, word by word, um, but I do want to, uh, just
[37:48] highlight that. Um, this is, and this is an important area where it very much
[37:52] is a continuation of, of, of the work and the foundational, uh, basis
[37:56] that we have moved forward since 2022. Um, and it's very
[38:00] important that we, you know, continue to highlight equity and all that we do, and call out
[38:05] these persistent opportunity gaps that disproportionately impact underserved communities in our
[38:09] district. And, and undergirding all of this is atri striving for equity.
[38:13] since all of these students deserve the most exemplary education that prepares all students
[38:17] to achieve excellence, um, by coming through l-a-u-s-d,
[38:24] this strategic plan represents, um, a theory of change,
[38:28] uh, and a, a, a roadmap for how we get there. And, you know, in, in
[38:33] a traditional theory of change, it's a, if, if x then y. And so here in,
[38:37] in, in, in la unified, you know, if we align our resources
[38:41] and continue to learn from our community as we are doing in this process, but not just in the
[38:45] strategic plan, community engagement undergirds every, every process and every, every division's
[38:49] activities that they do if we support our teachers, leaders, and staff
[38:53] and proactively collect and analyze and share information. Um,
[38:58] and then of course, aligning our actions, um, across the district. And that alignment
[39:02] happens through the organizational structure of our five pillars. These five pillars
[39:06] have continued from the previous strategic plan. These five pillars represent the
[39:10] first five of the eight goals in the lcap. And that has, that has been
[39:14] the case, and that will continue to be the case moving through into 2030. Um,
[39:18] if we organize our activities in these ways with these investments and, and areas of
[39:22] emphasis, we will achieve our five district goals and we will, um,
[39:27] graduate our students ready for the world.
[39:32] so a note on sort of the conceptual and and practical organization
[39:37] of all of this. So the, the, the core beliefs you see on the left, um,
[39:41] uh, as, as noted, this, this is the sort of, um, this is the, the philosophical,
[39:45] um, and, and real, you know, spirit of, of what guides all
[39:49] of our work. And then we start with the vision statement at the top. And so we get
[39:53] more and more kind of concrete and more and more specific and,
[39:58] and granular, if you will, as we move down this organizing framework. The vision, again,
[40:02] sets, you know, what we will achieve the mission, why we exist, and what are we doing now
[40:06] to achieve that vision, our district goals. Um, you know, what,
[40:10] what are those goalposts that we are hoping to accomplish? The pillars and priorities
[40:15] is where we will focus and how we will organize our activities. The measures of
[40:19] success are the tangible and measurable, um, areas to,
[40:23] to assess how will we know we are making progress as we go? And again, those
[40:27] measures of success will be tracked continuously and will be reported annually,
[40:32] not just waiting till 2030 to, to report on any of this information.
[40:36] um, and then of course, departments themselves will have strategies and actions to achieve these
[40:40] goals, and then milestones within those departmental activities. So
[40:45] the first five boxes on this framework are, are
[40:49] represented in the strategic plan that we're talking about today. Um, as superintendent
[40:53] sha and carolyn mentioned, um, this is, again, setting our long-term direction,
[40:57] defining the, the vision and mission and those measures of success. And then those last three
[41:01] boxes. Um, and yes, there's that overlap. The measures of success does touch on
[41:05] both areas will be of the division's operations plans where
[41:09] we are turning strategy into action. Um, and one piece
[41:13] on this, the operations plans, um, are going, are a part of, of the work we
[41:18] do, certainly. And then when we have our annual reporting, and we're reporting will be, of
[41:22] course, a reporting of our progress on our goals and a progress on our, on
[41:26] our, um, measures of success there. And then we will have consideration and,
[41:30] and, you know, important highlights and milestones achieved for some of these operation
[41:34] plan details, um, organized by our five pillars. And that
[41:38] will be a part of annual reporting we'll do every fall.
[41:43] so a comparison of the previous strategic plan and this strategic plan. Um,
[41:49] first off, and and you'll see this shortly, uh, we are moving from five district goal,
[41:53] four district goals, excuse me, to five district goals with the addition of science as, as an
[41:57] important goal. And then of course, refinement of all the other goals, um, therein, um,
[42:02] going from 95 measures of success to 51 measures of success.
[42:06] um, and, and again, that's just highlighting the, the, the prioritization and
[42:10] focus, um, the focus, uh, approach that we've taken to this work.
[42:15] moving away from de describing activities and, you know, work that
[42:19] we've done to focusing on the impact and in particular the impact on
[42:23] students. There are some metrics here where we're looking at the impact and how that, how that impacts our staff.
[42:27] and yes, of course, how this impacts our families. Um, but students certainly are at
[42:31] the center here. Um, and, uh, you know, nuts and bolts here.
[42:35] uh, the, the strategic plan itself, the booklet, um, that would, that will
[42:39] be produced, um, you know, upon approval, um, is significantly shorter at 32
[42:43] pages.
[42:48] and what is staying the same as mentioned? Um, the five pillars are
[42:52] remaining the same from the pre previous strategic plan, academic excellence, joy and
[42:56] wellness, engagement and collaboration, operational effectiveness, and investing
[43:00] in staff. Annual reporting will continue, um, for all the measures within these,
[43:05] uh, areas. And, uh, we will continue, of course, the commitment to student success
[43:09] and equity in all that we do in, in the service of these pillars.
[43:16] and so what is evolving in this strategic plan? Um, the strategic
[43:20] foundations have, have been refined with board input in our, in our board
[43:24] retreats and, and the committee of the whole, the mission statement. Our vision and our core
[43:28] beliefs, um, have been refined. The activities included in the operations
[43:33] plans will be, again, focused, uh, will be the work of the operations plans.
[43:37] um, and the priorities themselves within the pillars have been refined, um,
[43:41] and streamlined. We have refined the district goals, uh,
[43:46] for english language arts. That was a goal before and is a goal now. We have updated
[43:50] the, which grade levels are in included in that, in that goal, to, to
[43:54] include not just third grade out out outcomes, but looking at third
[43:58] through fifth through the elementary grades, if you will. And then sixth through eight and the middle school
[44:02] grades. Um, separately for english language arts, which is similar to how we have done it for
[44:06] math, um, we have added a new science goal, which we'll be looking at
[44:10] our, our, um, student performance on the california science test. And we
[44:14] have updated our college and career readiness goal and our social and emotional learning goals.
[44:19] and then finally, there is a shift in performance culture, uh, moving away from
[44:23] outputs to outcomes, and then streamlining, um, our efforts with a more focused
[44:28] set of measures of success.
[44:35] pause, um, from the content of the strategic plan to just call out
[44:39] and, and, and share appreciation for the engagement that we have done over
[44:43] this process. It has been a tremendous effort from our, from our various offices. I
[44:47] want to give a special thank you to the strategic initiatives office and
[44:51] the, um, and the s face team for all of the support with on these engagement
[44:56] sessions. And then of course, board members and your staff and the support we had listening
[45:00] sessions in each board members and board members themselves. And your teams have, have lent a
[45:04] lot of time and attention and, and provided really helpful comments along this way. Um,
[45:08] we have met, uh, of course with parents, students, staff, community partners,
[45:13] our labor partners and district parent committees, including our pac, cac, and dlac,
[45:17] um, specifically on the strategic plan. And in some cases, we were, we were discussing
[45:21] the strategic plan alongside with the landscape analysis that, that we will be hearing
[45:25] more about tomorrow.
[45:29] all told, we had over 70 sessions with various
[45:33] interest groups in the district with over 6,400 total participants, either in
[45:37] those in-person sessions or virtual sessions, or participating in our thought exchange,
[45:42] um, that we, we had in the district. And then, and then, um, and again, just want to appreciate
[45:46] the, the, the, the board district listening sessions that we developed in coordination
[45:50] with your offices.
[45:54] and so what have we heard from these listening sessions? Um, superintendent
[45:58] cha called out a few of these themes. I just wanna highlight them again. 'cause these were, these came up
[46:03] again and again and again. And this will continue to be what we focus on and what
[46:07] we report on annually with the strategic plan. So first, student learning and
[46:11] academic achievement. There was a strong, um, interest from across the board,
[46:16] uh, for, you know, for el strong academics, not just, um,
[46:20] raising the floor, but raising the ceiling as well on student achievement across our
[46:24] district. Um, looking at supporting students, uh, a range of students in a range
[46:28] of schools. Um, not just with core curriculum in the classroom, but um,
[46:32] with enrichment programs, um, and of various learning, um,
[46:36] settings, and then equity and access. Uh, strong
[46:41] advocacy for access to high quality programs, supports and services for all
[46:45] students. Um, and then access to mental health and, and wellbeing.
[46:50] um, a a common theme came up about, you know, increasing access or increasing,
[46:54] if not the quantity of programs. The, the communication and
[46:58] the accessibility and, and ease of, ease of access for these programs,
[47:03] uh, for, for physical health, mental health, counseling services, student support
[47:07] services. And then another piece that we heard around wellbeing, um, you know, but
[47:11] it came up in a variety of settings is, you know, a, a range in learning environments, um,
[47:15] and learning opportunities for students as a vehicle for student wellbeing.
[47:20] and then finally, communication and, and engagement. And particularly from
[47:24] families. We, uh, a common theme wa was the need for clearer and more consistent
[47:29] and accessible communication and meaningful opportunities for families to engage
[47:33] in the district. Um, and that has, uh, and these themes have come up and
[47:37] are, are a bit an important part of the strategic plan you see before you, so
[47:41] a little bit more on what we've heard from this. So, some student oriented themes that have come up from
[47:45] this engagement, um, you see here, including increased services to in
[47:49] high need areas for, um, students with, um, in special education, mental
[47:54] health arts and afterschool programming. Um, expand access to arts. Again,
[47:58] um, reducing screen time and focus on hands-on learning experiences. Strengthen
[48:02] student wellbeing by fostering inclusive, safe and clean, welcoming learning environments
[48:06] in terms of like the, the physical state of our schools, as well as the, you know, in the environments
[48:11] that inspire learning in the classroom. And then improve campus conditions,
[48:15] um, as well as increasing the capacity and high demand programs such as magnet
[48:19] cte, dual enrollment enrichment, which we will hear more about tomorrow as well with the landscape analysis
[48:25] and some operational and organizational themes that came up improving our hiring process
[48:29] and timelines, provide focused, meaningful professional development and
[48:34] ensure consistent and equitable funding across schools. Reduce
[48:38] information overload and improve clarity of messaging. I myself am
[48:42] a brand new parent with a student coming into la unified, and I'm already getting overwhelmed, uh, with the amount
[48:46] of information coming at me. Um, so this one is already hitting close to home for me.
[48:51] um, building authentic, ongoing partnerships with families and community organized
[48:55] by involving stakeholders earlier in the planning and decision making process. This certainly comes up,
[48:59] this comes up in various community engagement forums that we've had, not just for the strap plan, but
[49:03] for the lcap and, and otherwise, uh, simplify enrollment and provide clear
[49:08] pathways for families to access programs. Again, having just gone through the enrollment process, this
[49:12] one hits very close to home. And
[49:16] so now let's turn to the content of the strategic plan. And we're gonna start, and
[49:20] this will always be the start. And then many ways this will be, this is the, the final say
[49:24] in our strategic plan is our district goals. And we are very
[49:28] grateful for the collaboration we've had with the board members on establishing these goals through,
[49:32] through numerous conversations. Uh, we feel that these goals are,
[49:36] are broader but not shallower. So, you know, the mile wide inch deep,
[49:40] that's not the case here. This is, we have expanded our scope, but we are just as deep and just
[49:44] as rigorous, and if anything, way, way, way more ambitious with these goals
[49:48] than we have been with previous goals. So first, uh, you'll see that there are five
[49:52] goals here, literacy, numeracy, science, college and career readiness, and social
[49:57] emotional learning. Each of these goals will be reported out in multiple ways, looking
[50:01] at multiple grade spans. And they will also be reported out by student groups similar to
[50:05] how the previous strategic plan was reported. And then
[50:09] the measurement of, of these goals. So for literacy, numeracy, and science, for
[50:13] all of these goals, it's a similar, the, the goal is very similar using
[50:18] the thresholds that the state sets for what is considered
[50:22] on grade level performance for students' grades. Our goal is by 2030,
[50:26] that on average students in the targeted grade spans will be, will
[50:30] be performing at their grade level standard on average. Um,
[50:34] in the ela assessment, the math assessment, and the california science
[50:38] test for college and career readiness,
[50:42] um, the, the goal has been revised to be not just about
[50:46] college readiness, uh, is, which was again, getting
[50:51] to 70% of our four year cohort graduates graduating
[50:55] with, um, a c or better in all of the, the u-c-c-s-u-a to g courses.
[50:59] that will still be reported. But in addition to that, we will be targeting a goal
[51:04] of 85% of our, of our graduates graduating college and or
[51:08] career ready. Um, and that that is encompassing, um, other career
[51:12] oriented pathways, including cte pathway completion and jrc completion
[51:16] as career readiness indicators that we will report in combination with
[51:21] a to g completion, but also separately from a to g completion when we actually do the
[51:25] reporting. And then finally, social and emotional learning as was discussed
[51:29] at, at the, at the recent committee of the whole meeting. Um, we will be developing a new,
[51:33] um, a new and refined report card, um, that, uh,
[51:37] will be used across our grade spans with the goal that by 2030, the students will increase
[51:41] their mastery of social and emotional competencies. And this will be, again, reported
[51:45] multiple times a year, and it will be integrated into the general, you know, report
[51:49] cards that, that, that teachers and schools will use, and that families will see
[51:55] the pillars and priorities are presented here. And we will be going in turn
[52:00] through these pillars and priorities and looking at and calling out some important measures of success
[52:04] that will be, uh, that we will be measuring, um, as we go, um, through
[52:08] the next four years.
[52:13] and so why, why would we want to refine the measures of success? This
[52:17] alignment strengthens, um, it, it strengthens
[52:21] our focus on the district goals and then foc and, and then our, our focus
[52:25] within these priority areas. The, um, the measures of success that you see
[52:29] here, by and large are student outcomes, or again, our, our staff or family
[52:34] outcomes. They're not, you know, checking a box or setting a milestone about, you know,
[52:38] getting this much work done or having this many of a thing happen.
[52:42] but the, the impact of, you know, how does this benefit our communities that we serve?
[52:47] um, those, those important operational milestones are certainly important, but are,
[52:51] are, again, the domain of the operations plans that, that we have discussed.
[52:55] and then when, as to the greatest extent possible, we are targeting, these
[52:59] are smart goals, not just smart, that they're intelligent, uh, but they are, you
[53:03] know, this is an acronym for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and
[53:07] time bound. So that this is, these are measures that are measurable
[53:11] and that are measurable in the right amount of time that we are, um,
[53:15] looking at here between now and 2030, um, that they are attainable,
[53:20] um, and not just, you know, moonshots are great, but, you know, we need to have,
[53:24] you know, you know, some level of attainability and realism with
[53:28] the goals that we are setting, and then certainly relevant to our, the communities that we are serving.
[53:33] and then, um, of course, the measures of success, excuse me, are,
[53:37] are more focused, um, area whenever possible. And
[53:41] so now we're going to look, um, within each priority area at what the measures
[53:46] of success are. And I promise you, I will not read every single measure of success, um,
[53:50] uh, that you see in all of these slides. They are. Um, but we will go through
[53:54] and I want to call out some specific areas and then we will welcome conversation.
[53:59] so first, under academic excellence, which is pillar one,
[54:03] we have, there are three priority areas, high quality instruction,
[54:07] eliminating opportunity gaps and college and career readiness.
[54:12] and then within each of these priority areas, you will see numerous bullet
[54:16] points that call out the measures of success. For each of those priorities.
[54:21] these measures of success will be reported, will be reported annually
[54:26] as data comes in. We will have our first report, uh, later
[54:30] this fall, once we have data available from the state, and that will
[54:34] be our baseline data. So the current 25, 26 school year, we would
[54:38] say is, is our baseline year, if you will. It's year zero of this strategic plan
[54:42] is setting the base, the, the, the starting point from which we will measure and,
[54:46] and our progress annually, and establish our goals for 2030. And so that
[54:50] first report will be coming as soon as the data is available to us for these measures.
[54:55] um, and then I also wanna point out that these bullet points within each of these bullet
[54:59] points, there will be several, in some cases, several numbers that will
[55:04] actually be reported in our annual reports. For, for starters on the left column,
[55:08] the very first one, grade level proficiency and literacy, numeracy and
[55:12] science, that is one of the, that that is actually not just one of our district goals. That is the
[55:16] first three of our district goals. And so we will have, you know, two numbers for
[55:21] each of those elementary grades and middle school grades. And then that will also be reported
[55:25] out by student groups. And this, of course, is an lcap metric. And so
[55:29] whenever possible, we, we highlight where these measures of success overlap with our
[55:33] lcap, and we, um, call out where these measures of success are
[55:37] overlapping with our district goals. Um, another area that
[55:41] I wanna focus on is the, um, just in
[55:45] in the middle, there's some important areas where there's, um, new information from this. And so in the middle column
[55:50] for eliminating opportunity gaps, you'll see the last three metrics there.
[55:54] students with significant cognitive disabilities graduating with a high school diploma, underrepresented
[55:59] students enrolled in advanced academic courses, and students, student participation
[56:03] in gifted and talented programs and services. And so those are gonna be some areas that we
[56:07] are developing a, a strong focus. Now this has been a strong focus in, in
[56:11] data conversations with, with principals and with regions, um, already
[56:15] and, and, you know, student access to advanced learning, and then the performance of students across
[56:19] the, the achievement, the achievement area. And so, and another area relevant
[56:23] to that is the last bullet point on the left under high quality instruction.
[56:28] this is a new measure of success. Students across all achievement levels on average,
[56:32] will show improved academic performance from prior year. So we're not just always
[56:36] looking at the overall average performance of students. We wanna see our students
[56:40] who were low, you know, who performed lower last year, improving, as
[56:44] well as students who were performing higher last year. Are they continuing to improve to make sure that we are
[56:49] encouraging development and growth, uh, for all of our students regardless of how they
[56:53] performed in prior years. And then finally, uh, the right
[56:57] column, college and career readiness. Um, this, this encompasses
[57:01] our, our metrics around, um, how our students are graduating college and career ready.
[57:05] there will be various indicators here for our graduating students that we will look at
[57:09] a to g completion, cte pathways, jay zi, um, uh,
[57:13] we will look at seal of biliteracy, um, outcomes for students. And these are all,
[57:17] you know, traditional metrics that we report to the state, but these will be reported as a
[57:21] part of our strategic plan moving forward. Um, we will also
[57:25] include information around students enrollment and advanced placement, um, courses
[57:29] in international baccalaureate and dual enrollment, as well as not just enrollment, but passage
[57:34] rates for our advanced placement exams, which we saw recent. You know, we
[57:38] were happy about recent improvements there, and we are going to set that as our baseline to see continued
[57:42] improvement into 2030.
[57:48] our second pillar is joy and wellness. Uh, and joy and wellness. We have three
[57:52] priorities, welcoming learning environments, whole child wellbeing and outstanding
[57:56] attendance. First, over on welcoming learning environments.
[58:01] one new measure of success to call out is the reduction in the number of open maintenance
[58:05] and operations service call requests at school sites. This one is, is a bit more operational,
[58:10] we admit, than, than many of the other pieces here. But we do see this as an outcome in and of
[58:14] itself. 'cause this is, this is the final product of a lot of efforts for
[58:18] various offices, um, to, to, to get to sort
[58:23] of, um, a finish line, if you will. Certainly is operational, but needs to be
[58:27] important. This is, and this is reflective of what we heard from community engagement
[58:31] extensively as well. So that's a part of why that one made. It still still is in here
[58:35] in the strategic plan under whole child wellbeing. Um, this is,
[58:39] um, there are going to be, you know, again, the reporting of the social emotional learning competencies,
[58:43] which in the mean for now is gonna continue to be based on the school experience survey.
[58:48] and then moving forward, it will, it will be shifting to the report cards as
[58:52] well as, um, you know, some new internal developed diagnostics that will become a part of
[58:56] a integrated system of measuring of our student social and emotional progress as they
[59:00] go. Um, also we are looking at student participation in
[59:05] academic enrichment programs and extracurricular activities such as robotics and
[59:09] athletics. That will be, this is an example of a measure of success that will have
[59:13] multiple sort of sub metrics that we will continue to track and annually report.
[59:18] um, and then finally, student participation in visual and performing arts programs
[59:22] offerings during the school day. Um, and this is an, this is something that we've heard in our
[59:26] community engagement, obviously access to arts, but not access to arts in a superficial or leave it to
[59:30] the domain of just an after school program. But arts integration throughout the, the school day
[59:35] as a, as an emphasis for our division of instruction and as an emphasis for what we've heard
[59:39] families want. And, and, and of course that is, you
[59:43] know, while that may seem like an academic offering, we see this as, as being a part of whole child wellness,
[59:47] um, for students access to a range in programs, um, for what inspires students to
[59:51] come to school and, and engage with school, um, you know, in variety of ways similar with
[59:55] athletics. And then finally, outstanding attendance. This one is largely unchanged
[1:00:00] from the prior strategic plan. It's been well documented and well discussed about the,
[1:00:04] the important, you know, attendance as an important leading indicator for various other
[1:00:08] student outcomes. So not only are we looking at improving the rate of students
[1:00:13] who have excellent attendance, but a decrease in the students who have chronic, who are chronically absent.
[1:00:17] so movement, you know, you know, reducing the chronic absenteeism and
[1:00:21] increasing, you know, those go hand in hand, but they do tell different stories, and so we wanna report them separately.
[1:00:28] our third pillar is engagement and collaboration. And we heard from
[1:00:33] families, uh, that they want to be involved in decision making, um, not in and
[1:00:37] not in a superficial way. And so this will, this is something that we will be measuring and
[1:00:41] continue to measure, uh, through the school experience survey about parents sense of be of,
[1:00:45] of, of engagement at their schools. Um, but also we'll be looking at various
[1:00:49] other indicators of family engagement, and not just the quantity of family engagement,
[1:00:54] but the quality, the perceived quality of their engagement e efforts as well.
[1:00:58] um, in the middle column leading for impact. This is, um, continuing
[1:01:03] our work. You know, l-a-u-s-d has a lot of, we draw a lot of attention that gravitational,
[1:01:07] um, power of our district, uh, using it to our advantage
[1:01:11] to be a voice for equity, a voice for, for change at the
[1:01:15] state level, at the regional level. And, um, you know, working with,
[1:01:20] you know, collaboration, uh, collaborating and engaging with, with initiatives and other government
[1:01:24] entities. And then, um, you know, our cont continue with our legislative advocacy in sacramento,
[1:01:28] which has come up extensively recently. Um, and then of course, um,
[1:01:32] effective partnerships, uh, with other various entities, not just effective in
[1:01:36] terms of them serving us, but our ability to be a good partner with them is something that we will look
[1:01:41] at. And then accessible information, um, you know, parents reporting
[1:01:45] satisfaction with the district and school communication. Um, and this is, this is
[1:01:49] very cross-cutting and a lot of these metrics are very cross-cutting. Notice we don't call out
[1:01:53] a department by name in any of these measures of success 'cause it's not just many
[1:01:57] of these. And this one in particular is not just owned by our student and family
[1:02:01] and community engagement office that sells this way short. And so an activity like
[1:02:06] this where we're seeing parents being satisfied with district and school communications, which
[1:02:10] in this case is measured by our school experience survey, is the product of,
[1:02:15] are dozens of offices, the schools, the regions, and, and how all the different
[1:02:19] contact points with families. And so it's not a single work stream here, um,
[1:02:23] but it's an important, again, the end product of a lot of effort and a lot of strategic,
[1:02:27] you know, emphasis by various offices is how this bubbles up to be in the
[1:02:31] strategic plan. Next,
[1:02:36] operational effectiveness. So we're on number four, we got five total, so you guys are
[1:02:40] doing great. Um, uh, first modernizing infrastructure.
[1:02:45] there are a couple of important areas here. Some of these might seem operational,
[1:02:49] but again, this was an important part of what we heard of community engagement. And we do see this
[1:02:53] again as, as an outcome for that is the product of various, you know,
[1:02:57] operations efforts there. So increasing the number of centralized processes
[1:03:01] that are digitized you know, uh, enrollment commun, you know, we're looking at, you know, this is,
[1:03:05] this is in response also to a board resolution recently on digitization efforts. So that's, that
[1:03:10] work is continuing increased facilities, capital projects completed on
[1:03:14] time. Um, and then another one I'll call out is, you know, decreased di district wide
[1:03:18] energy usage and our, and our increase of use of renewable energy.
[1:03:23] next, sustainable budgeting. Um, that is certainly,
[1:03:27] uh, an important consideration, uh, and, and guides every, every conversation
[1:03:31] that we will be having in the short term and long term for our district.
[1:03:35] um, and then, uh, finally, our having the district become
[1:03:39] the district of choice for families in the region. Um, this is,
[1:03:43] this is an area of emphasis, has been an area of emphasis, and we'll continue to be, you'll hear
[1:03:48] more about this tomorrow with the landscape analysis. Um, and there's
[1:03:52] a couple ways that we will look at this. One is increasing the count and percentage of
[1:03:56] new student enrollment. So every year looking at, are we bringing in, you know, new
[1:04:00] families, not just at the matriculating grades, you know, coming in at tk in kindergarten, but, you
[1:04:04] know, looking at other grades as well. And then with a focus on, you know, important
[1:04:08] transition periods here, you know, the sixth, you know, the fifth grade to sixth grade, the eighth grade
[1:04:12] to ninth grade transition, both in terms of who are we bringing in more students, and
[1:04:17] then are we stabilizing our retention rate of students? And so not losing, you
[1:04:21] know, decreasing the amount of students we lose from fifth grade to sixth grade as an example.
[1:04:26] and then finally, investing in staff is our fifth priority.
[1:04:31] first, first, I'm sorry, our, our fifth pillar. And then the first priority within there,
[1:04:35] strong and sustainable workforce. A couple measures of success to call out increasing
[1:04:39] the retention rate of teachers across the district with a particular focus on schools and subjects
[1:04:44] with higher turnover. And so this is where there we will, we will in particular
[1:04:48] be focusing on hard to staff schools, hard to staff subjects, hard to staff grade
[1:04:52] spans, um, for the district. And those will be reported separately in the, in the annual
[1:04:57] reporting we will do for the measures of success. And then increasing our
[1:05:01] stabilization rate of principals at our school sites. There's, you know, abundant research that
[1:05:05] shows principal stability, um,
[1:05:09] is, is essential for program implementation, fidelity of implementation, and
[1:05:14] a host of other school climate indicators that, that, that are, um, important
[1:05:18] for student success. Next priority is staff support
[1:05:22] and development. Um, and just one area to call out here is,
[1:05:26] uh, this is where we will really be focusing on professional development. Not just do we do a bunch of
[1:05:30] professional development, but is that professional development, helpful, relevant,
[1:05:35] um, high impact. Um, and then the, the, the, you know, how to what extent might it improve
[1:05:39] our, our teacher's practice moving or our staff members' practices moving forward.
[1:05:43] and then related to that, you know, support is the expectations there of
[1:05:47] high performance standards for our staff. And so, you know, we're gonna be looking at,
[1:05:51] um, staff perceptions of their school having high performance standards,
[1:05:56] and then principal and teachers who, uh, who are reporting that they use data to inform their
[1:06:00] instructional decisions at our school sites. And so, with all,
[1:06:04] again, with all of these measures of success, any one of these bullets will, will be unfolding
[1:06:08] into multiple metrics that will be reported annually, beginning this fall once we have all
[1:06:12] of the baseline data available. Um, and then along that, along with the
[1:06:16] baseline data that you will see this fall, we'll also be information on what, what does that mean in terms of what
[1:06:20] the 2030 target would be for these various measures of success? But we can't set that
[1:06:25] target without the baseline we that we are waiting on. And
[1:06:29] so what does all of this mean for schools? Um, this, that, and the school
[1:06:33] site is going to be an important focus for the work that we do and the, for the strategic
[1:06:37] initiatives office, and this work begins just in a few weeks at the principal leadership institute.
[1:06:41] there will be a mandatory session for all principals, um, at the pli this
[1:06:45] year, um, where principals are, are going to be introduced to the new
[1:06:50] strategic plan. Many of them will perhaps be very familiar with the previous strategic plan. Um,
[1:06:54] but really, you know, leveling the, you know, level setting with all of our
[1:06:58] principles on what the new goals are, um, and then how is this more
[1:07:02] focused and, and how are we going to, again, better align across our systems.
[1:07:06] the, um, and then with that training principles will be given a host of
[1:07:10] resources for coffee with the principal at dex and ask, um, resources for
[1:07:14] communicating with their communities and their families. And so what
[1:07:19] this all means then for next steps, um, first, um, adoption of the
[1:07:23] strategic plan. That is, that is part part of why we are here today to move forward. And I
[1:07:27] do want to emphasize that we are not adopting a concrete set
[1:07:31] in stone unchangeable strategic plan, this strategic plan
[1:07:35] by, by definition and should be a living document that is
[1:07:39] reported continuously and is refined to the extent necessary as
[1:07:43] we go from year to year. This happened with the previous strategic plan as, as,
[1:07:48] as, as progress was made and, and learning happened around various
[1:07:52] measures of success and how we want to move forward. That will continue with this one.
[1:07:56] moving into 2030. Next, communicate, uh, we will be, of
[1:08:00] course, like, as I mentioned, communicating with principals beginning at the pli. We will be communicating
[1:08:05] also with staff and families. Um, our strategic initiatives office has been working
[1:08:09] with innovate public schools to develop a family guide that will be released this fall,
[1:08:14] um, to help our families and communities understand, uh, the strategic plan and
[1:08:18] how it affects them and their students, and how they can be involved. We are also looking into developing
[1:08:22] not just the resources for principals to communicate, so it's not all on principals
[1:08:27] to communicate to their families, but offering some centrally administered, uh, webinars and
[1:08:31] engagement activities to help help our communities understand the
[1:08:35] strategic plan and, um, and own it for, for themselves and their, and their, and their
[1:08:39] and their communities. And then implement, implement. This is already happening, as I mentioned,
[1:08:44] a lot of the strategic plan is, is a continuation of the, of the prior 22
[1:08:48] to 26 strategic plan. We are actively working with offices on
[1:08:52] refining measures and the, and the getting in the weeds on all of the business rules and
[1:08:57] nuances of the measures of success and how we will be reporting those. And
[1:09:01] then of course, the work itself on doing, um, doing what is being, uh, what
[1:09:05] we're holding ourselves accountable to in the strategic plan. Um, and then
[1:09:09] the monitoring. We will be monitoring annually, as I mentioned, this will mostly be in the fall, and that's
[1:09:13] a function of when the data becomes available from the state. We have a good amount of preliminary
[1:09:17] data, for example, for our english, math and science assessments. That data is still
[1:09:22] not final. It will not be final until the fall from the state as, as is traditionally
[1:09:26] the case. Um, and, and, and so on. Usually like the last,
[1:09:30] the last data that we get in an annual cycle is, is usually the graduation metrics
[1:09:34] because of summer school and, and everything. And then the state does its own cleanup.
[1:09:38] so really it is in the fall that we get the final data to, to report out.
[1:09:43] and then finally the monitoring of the operations plans that we will be receiving later this month,
[1:09:47] um, and then, uh, reporting back. So, so with that, um,
[1:09:51] I welcome discussion and questions. We have representatives from various offices
[1:09:56] here to answer questions, um, as well. And, uh, as folks from our strategic initiatives
[1:10:00] office. And I do just want to give a shout out to eric hanson, the executive director of our strategic
[1:10:04] initiatives office and his team for their deep, you know,
[1:10:09] working very hard and working very thoughtfully over the past several months, um,
[1:10:13] on getting us to this point. So thank you eric, and team, and thank you board members
[1:10:17] again for all of your collaboration along the way. Well, well done, well done,
[1:10:21] dr. Johnson. We appreciate it very much. We're going to go to public comment first.
[1:10:25] okay. Okay.
[1:10:33] present. We have anna ortega. Are you here? Anna ortega, you
[1:10:37] wanna come down to the mic, please? Cool. Thank you.
[1:10:53] good morning. My name is anga and I am speaking on behalf
[1:10:57] of expand la, and as a partner in the cell youth hub,
[1:11:01] a regional collective of expanded learning providers, local governments and community
[1:11:05] partners, working together to create safe and supportive spaces for young people across
[1:11:09] southeast los angeles. Also lovingly known as I'm
[1:11:13] encouraged to see that the strategic plan reflects a core belief that we share. Every
[1:11:18] child deserves the opportunity to thrive. Expanded learning programs are essential
[1:11:22] to making that vision a reality. They support the whole child by
[1:11:26] providing safe spaces, trusted relationships, academic support,
[1:11:31] enriching opportunities and connections to critical resources that strengthen student
[1:11:35] wellbeing. But no single organization can do this work alone.
[1:11:39] it takes a village. Collaboration is not just beneficial. It is
[1:11:43] necessary. So when schools, community organizations, local governments
[1:11:47] and expanded learning providers, uh, work together, students gain access to
[1:11:51] a stronger, more coordinated network of support. And so the seattle
[1:11:56] youth hub deeply, um, believes in the power of this cross sector
[1:12:00] collaboration. And we already see it happening in the growing partnerships across our
[1:12:04] region and in local efforts such as the city of cuda hayes collaborative, a growing
[1:12:08] partnership between the city, the district, and community-based organizations. So we're
[1:12:12] really excited for the continued, um, collaborations that will take place.
[1:12:16] most importantly, though, we see it in our young people. As aela youth hub coordinator,
[1:12:20] I have the privilege of working alongside the select youth executive board youth leaders who
[1:12:24] are advocating for stronger partnerships, um, and youth hubs because they
[1:12:29] know these systems of support matter for them, their peers, and future generations.
[1:12:33] so as a proud lasc alumna, I encourage you to listen closely
[1:12:37] to the youth speaking today, and their voices are essential to the strategic plan
[1:12:42] and to building a future where every student has a support that they need to drive
[1:12:46] thrive. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh, daniel sandoval,
[1:12:52] daniel s come on up. And then after
[1:12:56] mr. Sandoval is uriah blackwell, and then jesus rodriguez.
[1:13:14] good morning, president board members and superintendent. My name is daniel sandoval
[1:13:19] and I'm a senior in high school. I'm a leader of ella youth executive board,
[1:13:23] and I'm here today in support of the lesd strategic plan and to share
[1:13:27] how afterschool programs, mentors, and community partnerships have shaped my educational
[1:13:32] journey. When I attended wano park middle school, I helped start a robotics team with
[1:13:36] the support of one of my mentors. Through that experience, I discovered my interests in engineering
[1:13:40] and developed skills that continue to shape my goals. Today. I
[1:13:44] also participated in wolf car rangers and afterschool programs where I built friendships
[1:13:48] and developed leadership skills and found supportive community. As I reviewed
[1:13:52] this strategic plan, I was encouraged to see its focus on academic excellence, join
[1:13:57] wellness and engagement in collaboration. I was also excited
[1:14:01] to see the commitment to expand access to arts stem extracurricular
[1:14:05] activities and afterschool programs. I was especially encouraged by the
[1:14:09] plan to focus on student involvement in decision making and stronger community partnerships.
[1:14:14] as a leader of the cilla youth executive board, I know firsthand the value
[1:14:18] of youth boys. Since young people offer important perspectives
[1:14:23] on the challenges we face and the opportunities to help us succeed. When students are
[1:14:27] meaningful involved, we become more engaged in our school and communities.
[1:14:32] I also encourage l-a-u-s-z to continue strengthening partnerships with community-based
[1:14:36] organizations. Many opportunities that help me discover my interests,
[1:14:40] develop my leadership skills, and connect with mentors, came through these partnerships.
[1:14:45] I look forward to seeing l-a-u-s-z. Continue to invest in student voice
[1:14:49] community partnerships and access opportunities that help student thrive.
[1:14:53] thank you for your time and for con your consideration.
[1:14:57] thank you for your time. Uh, the next speaker is
[1:15:01] uriah blackwell. Uriah b right here.
[1:15:12] all right, let's go on to jesus rodriguez, are you here? Jesus, come
[1:15:16] on down. And then after mr. Rodriguez is shannon rivers,
[1:15:23] come on down. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Good
[1:15:29] afternoon. Board members. My name's jesus rodriguez, and I'm a member of the cell youth executive board
[1:15:34] organizing around the cell youth hub. One of the goals we hear throughout the
[1:15:38] district's strategic plan and lcap is preparing students to be ready for the real world.
[1:15:42] for students like myself, after school programs have given us the opportunity to fully
[1:15:47] develop young professional to develop as young professionals regardless of
[1:15:51] our grades in a classroom. Being ready for the real world means means
[1:15:55] having opportunities to explore careers, develop leadership skills, gain hands-on
[1:15:59] experience, and connect classroom learning to future goals. I found my opportunity
[1:16:03] with southeast community develop corporation, better known as sedc,
[1:16:08] programs that support workforce development and career exploration and internships,
[1:16:12] stem education, technical training, and work-based learning help students see a
[1:16:16] pathway toward economic mobility and future success. Especially students who
[1:16:20] are most at risk, who benefit from programs regardless of their grades. We
[1:16:24] encourage the district to con, continue investigating opportunities that connect students
[1:16:28] to careers, higher education, apprenticeships, internships and public service.
[1:16:33] preparing students for the future requires more than academic achievement alone. It
[1:16:37] requires exposure, experience, mentorship, and opportunity. We appreciate
[1:16:41] the district's, uh, commitment to prepare students to be ready for the world and hope
[1:16:46] these opportunities remain a priority. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[1:16:52] alright, the next in-person speaker is shannon rivers. Come on down, sir. You'll
[1:16:56] have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[1:17:02] good morning board members. Last week I was here and I spoke specifically
[1:17:06] about the american indian and indigenous student comprehensive plan.
[1:17:11] we found out that 20% of mm med's budget was cut,
[1:17:15] and that means that the american indian indigenous student comprehensive plan, we
[1:17:19] take a $2 million cut. Now, what, let me talk
[1:17:24] specifically about the successes of the american indian indigenous student comprehensive
[1:17:28] plan. We know that we distributed books and materials all throughout l-a-u-s-d
[1:17:34] books that were authored by american indian and indigenous authors.
[1:17:38] uh, the excitement that the teachers showed about teaching a new curriculum and developing
[1:17:43] lesson plans with these books and materials,
[1:17:47] and to teach about the true history of the americas. As we celebrate
[1:17:51] this, as you celebrate the 250 years, we also
[1:17:55] recognize that they have, we had a native brilliant ceremony where we recognize
[1:18:00] the excellence of and successes of our american indian and
[1:18:04] indigenous students. So why is multi-year funding important?
[1:18:09] for context? A 2022 california department of education
[1:18:13] report to the state legislative found that american indians and alaskan
[1:18:17] natives held the lowest four year high school graduation rates
[1:18:21] of any ethnic group, american indian indigenous students perform
[1:18:25] two or three grades lower, uh, to their white peers,
[1:18:30] uh, in reading and mathematics. So, as we talk
[1:18:34] about the strategic plan, we need to recognize that native people,
[1:18:39] american indian students, are still under counted. We still do
[1:18:43] not have enough funding. And so we're concerned about where we're going with
[1:18:48] the strategic plan, what it looks like for american indian students.
[1:18:52] remember our history, remember that we are just as important and the
[1:18:57] stories of american indian need to be told to our people in this
[1:19:01] country. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time. Alright,
[1:19:05] I'll call again on uriah blackwell. You're listed as being in person. Are you here?
[1:19:10] and now we'll go to those listed as speaking, uh, remotely. Uh,
[1:19:14] cassandra, someone listed just as cassandra, you're signed up online
[1:19:18] to speak remotely. Are you in the room, cassandra? No. Alright.
[1:19:23] cesar, you are online. Please press star six to unmute yourself. And you have two minutes
[1:19:27] to speak once you begin cesar.
[1:19:37] so you're with us cesar, uh,
[1:19:42] and you're unmuted, so please go ahead. Okay. Uh, thank
[1:19:46] you. Uh, good morning board members. Uh, my name is cj cruz.
[1:19:50] I'm a member of the cillo youth hub, uh, youth executive board and former l-a-u-s-d
[1:19:54] student. Um, the district's local control and accountability plan
[1:19:58] focuses on improving student outcomes and preparing students for the future.
[1:20:03] as a student, I know that some of the most important learning happens beyond the classroom.
[1:20:07] I have had the opportunity to participate in stem programs, leadership development programs,
[1:20:12] and the ymca youth and government mentoring, internships, and other
[1:20:16] community-based programs. These experiences help me discover my interests, build
[1:20:20] confidence, and develop the skills I use today. I honestly would not be standing
[1:20:25] here talking, uh, sitting here, uh, speaking to you if it were not for
[1:20:29] the programs. These pro uh, opportunities, these programs provided. I have
[1:20:33] seen firsthand how these experiences increase student engagement,
[1:20:37] strengthen connections for school, and create pathways for success. I have also
[1:20:42] watched younger students step into the same opportunities falling behind us
[1:20:46] and growing into leaders themselves. I know as you consider difficult
[1:20:50] budget decisions, I encourage you to continue investing in programs that
[1:20:54] expand opportunities for students, especially those who have historically faced barriers to
[1:20:58] access. Through my experience on the ella youth executive board,
[1:21:02] I have seen how important these programs are for young people who are still
[1:21:07] discovering who they want to become. When we invest in youth, we invest in the
[1:21:11] future of our communities. Thank you for your continued commitment to the students. Thank
[1:21:15] you. Thank you for your time. The next remote speaker is adriana del
[1:21:19] tore, adriana della tore, are you in the room? I
[1:21:23] do not have you online at this time. Alright, the next speaker is
[1:21:27] martha cox. I see you're in there. Please press star six to unmute yourself. And you have two minutes
[1:21:31] to speak when you begin. Martha, mr. Ryan?
[1:21:36] hello. Good morning. Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
[1:21:41] thank you. Good morning, superintendent and board members. My name is
[1:21:45] martha cox. I'm a-s-p-s-a counselor, and I'm here to briefly
[1:21:49] speak to item number four, the black student achievement plan.
[1:21:53] I ask that the board approve the contract to align with the provisions of this
[1:21:59] item. In addition, I asked for the board to please investigate the school-based
[1:22:03] psac assignment procedures within the psa unit
[1:22:07] and how seniority is used to assign psa counselors
[1:22:12] into school-based positions. Due to my health, I must now
[1:22:16] return to a school-based psa counselor position.
[1:22:20] my seniority number is 52 out of over 800 psa
[1:22:24] counselors. I was disheartened to learn that I would be relocated to
[1:22:28] region south rather than continuing to work in region east.
[1:22:33] as most of my 30 years within as an l-a-u-s-d
[1:22:37] employee, I asked the board to please investigate this inequity
[1:22:41] as I have served my community in multiple roles for 30 years.
[1:22:45] not only have I advocated for family for decades, I was born and raised in los angeles,
[1:22:50] and I'm a product of la unified schools. As has my son been,
[1:22:55] it's essential that I remain in east region east due to my son being autistic
[1:22:59] and needing assistance to navigate him onto a school, future school
[1:23:03] campus. He is not an independent traveler. We both
[1:23:07] have medical conditions in which I have fmla paperwork for on file,
[1:23:12] and I ask that the district board please review
[1:23:16] how a seniority is not being looked at when we're
[1:23:20] being assigned to our regions.
[1:23:25] it's inequitable. And I have been with the region again for well
[1:23:29] over 20 of my 30 years, and I ask that the school board
[1:23:34] please look into this so that I may maintain my position within
[1:23:38] region east dean, that I am number 52 out of over 800
[1:23:42] psa counselors. Thank you for your time. I have maintained a high caliber
[1:23:46] of hardworking. All right. The next speaker is
[1:23:51] lucia rojas. You're signed up to speak remotely, but I do not have you signed in?
[1:23:55] are you in the room? Lucia did not in the room. So
[1:23:59] that concludes public comment for tab one. It's now appropriate for a board discussion
[1:24:06] board members who would like to go first.
[1:24:10] okay, I'll go first. Thank you. Um,
[1:24:14] slide 17, dr. Johnson,
[1:24:18] under social emotional learning,
[1:24:23] it says that students will increase their mastery of social
[1:24:27] emotional learning competencies. So I'd like to know a couple of
[1:24:31] things. What's the metric for that? How big of an increase
[1:24:36] and how does a report card, how is that used to measure? Um,
[1:24:40] good questions and, and, and, um, there's gonna be a couple things that happen here.
[1:24:45] uh, so there's short term and a longer term. So in the short term, we will be continuing to
[1:24:49] use the school experience survey to, to us that is administered in the spring
[1:24:53] every year. Uh, the, the results from this past year will be released very shortly.
[1:24:58] um, and that is based off of, again, student self reports
[1:25:02] of their, of their, of, of their, you know, um, and these are, these
[1:25:06] are self-report items around, you know, uh, self-efficacy, student social awareness. These
[1:25:10] are, uh, common validated, uh, competencies that are used, um, kind of
[1:25:15] industry standard that will then over the next year, during the 26 27
[1:25:19] school year, we will be developing and piloting this, uh,
[1:25:23] the new report card that will be differentiated by grade level. There will be a, there's gonna be a
[1:25:27] tk specific one, an elementary specific one, and a secondary specific one
[1:25:31] that will be used. Um, and that, uh, that is in the works.
[1:25:36] um, and will be again, uh, developed and piloted this year with the full launch
[1:25:40] slated for fall of 2027. And when that launch does happen, we will
[1:25:44] continue the school experience survey for that first year to look at, you know, to, to, to look at validation
[1:25:49] of, of the, the, the report card metric, um, with how students are
[1:25:53] self-assessing, you know, so there's a teacher perspective and a student per perspective at least,
[1:25:57] at least at first, um, to go from there. And so as far as,
[1:26:01] um, set the goal setting from there that, you know, that that first year, that 27, 28
[1:26:05] year will be really a baseline year. And we're gonna, you know, most likely look
[1:26:10] at it a couple different ways, uh, once the report card is developed. One is
[1:26:14] growth and development within a school year. So, you know, one, one benefit of the report cards versus
[1:26:18] the survey is the report card is a multiple point in time during the school year. And
[1:26:22] so looking at students' progress from the fall to the spring, but then we will also
[1:26:26] wanna look at, you know, spring to spring. So this year's, you know,
[1:26:31] final, um, um, performance for students compared to the subsequent year.
[1:26:35] um, well, you answered all the questions. I appreciate that. Sure. Uh, another
[1:26:39] one on slide 23 under district of choice,
[1:26:44] it states that we plan to increase the number and percentage of new
[1:26:48] student enrollments. And what are the specific metrics on this for? So,
[1:26:52] so that is looking at, you know, at a given school year. And, and we, we do look at this already.
[1:26:57] uh, you know, so, so, you know, at currently of our students, how
[1:27:01] many of our students right now or, you know, in the fall weren't here last school year?
[1:27:05] so what's our, what's our, you know, the, the number of new students that we have? And, you know, to
[1:27:09] some extent we should always expect a lot of new students, especially in the entry grades. Um,
[1:27:13] but looking at, are we bringing in new students, not just there, but
[1:27:17] across the across grade spans. You know, we, we do see, for example, in ninth
[1:27:21] grade, a lot of students come into the district. Many of them actually coming back into
[1:27:25] the district. They may have been here in elementary grades, went somewhere else from middle school, and
[1:27:30] then they're back with us in, in ninth grade. And so, looking to grow those numbers year over year, you
[1:27:34] know, we don't want to say customers, but you know what I mean, it's, it's improving, you
[1:27:38] know, growing the number of, of families that, that we are bringing. And then, and then once they're
[1:27:42] here, making sure that we're offering a good enough service that they wanna stay.
[1:27:46] and so that's the other number, the retention number from year over year. Okay. And last question
[1:27:50] on 23 again, um, it mentions reducing
[1:27:54] workers' compensation. So will there be a priority, for example,
[1:27:59] in training or professional development to reduce, uh, workplace
[1:28:03] injuries or incidents? And can you give us some kind of examples
[1:28:07] of the training that you would like to see done? Um, I, and for that, it's
[1:28:12] a good question. I, I, I don't know if we have colleagues from hr in the room that can speak to
[1:28:16] that, but that's certainly something that, um, we can look to report, uh, to,
[1:28:20] to get back to you on, on, on what those trainings would be. So it's, I'll be awaiting, okay, so simply saying we're
[1:28:24] gonna do it isn't, I think what you're getting at is simply saying that we want this as a goal is not gonna be
[1:28:28] sufficient. There needs to be scaffolding and support to ensure, ensure that actually happens. Okay. Thank
[1:28:32] you very much. Board members, other questions? Ms. Tanya ortiz.
[1:28:36] thank you. I, I was gonna suggest on the workers' comp that we, um, don't let people
[1:28:41] get confused that it's not compensation for workers, but it is workers' comp
[1:28:45] comp claims. Very good. Maybe we went like, some clarification. Very good clarification, yes.
[1:28:49] um, on slide four, the data we're talking about, does that include early
[1:28:53] ed adults, uh, school and, um, our independent charters, the 442,000
[1:28:58] students, 83,000 employees? Good question. So that, that number is a little different than
[1:29:02] fingertip facts, for example. And, and that's because it, we, we took affiliate, uh, independent
[1:29:07] charters out of there. So it is, yes, it's, it's, it's our early ed. It's our
[1:29:11] tk, it's our adult ed, but it's not our independent charters. That's sort of the, the math
[1:29:15] that went behind those numbers there. Okay. That's helpful to, to just be on the same page about.
[1:29:19] and then I know we asked this at the follow up, and we, uh, received the materials from amanda. Thank
[1:29:23] you. But we didn't get clarity. When will we get the measures of success and the,
[1:29:27] um, operational plans after october? So the, um,
[1:29:32] so, so for the measures of success, we, we are almost
[1:29:36] finished with what we're calling the technical appendix, where we spell out the, the specific
[1:29:41] metrics that will go into that. Now, for a lot of those, we don't have the baseline data. Um,
[1:29:45] and so we will be publishing that as soon as we get it, as it it,
[1:29:49] our october is our target for the actual, having the actual baseline data.
[1:29:53] um, the, and again, that's contingent on the state, the state's timeline for their
[1:29:58] fall reporting out is moving up. They're, you know, they're, it used to be november,
[1:30:02] december, and now, and then it was thanksgiving and now it's early november. So we're looking at october,
[1:30:06] if not late september, for when we get those, you know, the four year cohort graduation and
[1:30:11] a to g outcomes. And those are the, usually like the last, the last one there. So,
[1:30:15] um, and we do wanna report those out. We, we will have metrics like the board will receive,
[1:30:19] you know, information on our smarter balance preliminary results sooner than that, and other, other,
[1:30:23] you know, important pieces will come out as as we go the, uh, and so then,
[1:30:27] yeah, so I, I think october is gonna be what we can best promise. Okay. So I might just request whether
[1:30:32] a committee of the whole or another board meeting where we can dive into those collectively in
[1:30:36] a public space, whether it's september or october when we get the information. I'm seeing head nods.
[1:30:40] um, okay. A couple of content things for me, um, but I'll keep it quick. On slide 22,
[1:30:44] engagement and collaboration. Um, on the leading
[1:30:48] for impact, uh, section, I wonder if we could add a measure, if
[1:30:52] the team could consider about deepening our collaboration with, with effective
[1:30:56] partners. We have a piece in here about measuring the effectiveness of our partners, but
[1:31:00] then once we've done that, can we have some sort of vision or commitment to, um,
[1:31:05] strengthening those relationships, you know, supporting their expansion, whatever that might be. So,
[1:31:09] you know, for the team to think about. And then on the accessible information,
[1:31:13] um, that feels limited. I don't know if we track like email open rates. To your
[1:31:17] point, we send a lot of them, I don't know how many of them actually get open or any sort of
[1:31:21] social media or text message engagement, but it seems to me that we could have other measures
[1:31:26] that let us know whether information is, is being actually
[1:31:30] received versus just being sent. Um, so that's something I would encourage the team to think
[1:31:34] about. Okay. On operational effectiveness, this is probably my biggest priority on
[1:31:38] slide 23 under sustainable budgeting. Can we add fair
[1:31:43] or equitable budgeting? I know it's kind of buried in there, but we've talked a lot about equity
[1:31:47] in our, our dollars. And so it'd be powerful to see it in the title. I
[1:31:51] know fair is sometimes more palatable than equitable, so either of those. Um,
[1:31:55] but I would also offer as a metric, uh, some sort of equitable distribution
[1:31:59] of resources. Um, I think there is fair to use equitable,
[1:32:04] 'cause we've talked a lot about it. But again, if it's not in the metric, and especially if se
[1:32:08] or bsap gets, you know, minimized over the next several years, like how can
[1:32:12] we still maintain a commitment to that equitable distribution of dollars in investments?
[1:32:16] um, okay. And then my last one on investing in staff, um, which is 24
[1:32:21] under high performance standards. I would love to add the teaching and learning framework and
[1:32:26] the school leadership framework. Those are really powerful tools that I know our schools use.
[1:32:30] um, and it would be helpful to synthesize some of that information not as a compliance, you
[1:32:34] know, or publicly, you know, producing evaluations of individuals.
[1:32:38] um, but just some way to say the tools that we measure ourselves by are actually
[1:32:43] ones that we look at and can elevate in a way that, um, gives them the, the respect that
[1:32:47] I think they, they deserve. Um, so those are my, my big pieces for now. Thank you. Thank
[1:32:51] you. Anyone else, mr. Melvoin?
[1:32:59] um, well thank you, uh, for the team, uh, to the team for the work on this
[1:33:03] strategic plan. You know, it was a real priority of mine in the first few years to get a
[1:33:07] strategic plan. I know that was shared by my colleagues who were here at the time. The district had
[1:33:11] been operating for, I think over a decade without a plan. Um, and so, you
[1:33:15] know, just grateful for the work that it went into the first plan has as its sunsets.
[1:33:20] I do think that a lot of the district success in terms of achievement, uh, early ed expansion,
[1:33:25] um, some of the budgeting stuff we've discussed was, was because of that. I also think
[1:33:30] that, you know, despite what could have been some periods in the last few years of instability,
[1:33:34] that plan kept focus on the main thing. Um, and
[1:33:38] when you're at schools and you see it there and people are speaking the language of the strategic plan, it really did.
[1:33:42] um, you know, there's kudos to the principals,
[1:33:46] teachers, school staff who are operating against it and working with a plan. Because I really think, again,
[1:33:50] at a time when there could have been a lot of instability and even chaos, I might say
[1:33:55] this district hasn't seen that. And I think it's in large part thanks to the plan and the planning process.
[1:33:59] so I'm very excited for this next one. Um, and, and the improvements that will go into it.
[1:34:03] um, you know, I, I think it being leaner is helpful when it comes to
[1:34:07] communicability with the public. I also kinda, the other
[1:34:12] side of that coin is just the need to create additional opportunities to
[1:34:16] review the measures of success, technical appendix. I mean, I think that's where a lot of
[1:34:20] the, the meat will be. Um, so I, I, uh, look forward to opportunities to
[1:34:24] review that, not only on, on sel, which I, I still am also
[1:34:28] confused about, but also the other goals. Um, and then also to reviewing the,
[1:34:32] the operational plans, um, that will lay out the specific strategies. 'cause that's
[1:34:37] ultimately how, how we'll get there. Um, so, uh,
[1:34:41] so excited for that work. I guess my, just kind of piggybacking on mr. Ortiz franklin, I guess my kind
[1:34:45] of two suggestions, um, if we
[1:34:49] could incorporate, and I don't know, I could, you know, I'll, I'll share them kinda as
[1:34:53] an amendment, but I know, like you said, this is iterative and I do think I wanna be clear with, with
[1:34:58] the staff and the public that it's a living document to some extent, but we don't want, we're
[1:35:02] not moving the goalposts, we're just maybe tweaking strategies and under how to get
[1:35:06] to those goals. But I think when we say living document, we wanna make it clear that it's not like,
[1:35:10] oh, we're gonna be recalibrating all the time. We like, are putting, um,
[1:35:14] you know, flags down of where we think the district needs to go. Uh, and then
[1:35:18] we will, we'll, we'll tweak as we're, uh, to kind of figure out the, like,
[1:35:23] kind of the slope of how to get there on certain things. But, um, agreed. So on
[1:35:27] slide 23 for operational effectiveness, um, I appreciate
[1:35:31] that we're increasing facilities, capital projects completed on time. You know,
[1:35:35] I just think it would be helpful at the, in the subhead, under modernizing infrastructure to
[1:35:39] begin that, um, to begin that, uh,
[1:35:44] sentence or with, um, efficiently build and maintain and resilient, just like get the word
[1:35:48] efficiently in there, because that is both about cost and time.
[1:35:53] um, so modernized infrastructure. So we would say efficiently build and maintain a resilient modern infrastructure
[1:35:57] that supports innovative learning and long-term, um, uh, stability. So
[1:36:01] I would encourage that or suggest that. And then the other one, just because it is been a, has been a priority
[1:36:05] of this board under, uh, slide 22 leading for impact. Um,
[1:36:10] I would love to add a measure of an additional measure of success that,
[1:36:15] um, is about our utilization of school district property for things like housing and
[1:36:19] community school parks and public benefit. And so I had a suggestion of has a, as
[1:36:23] a fourth bullet that would be, um, increased opportunities to effectively utilize
[1:36:28] district property to provide housing and other uses with community benefit
[1:36:33] such as community school parks. Um, thank
[1:36:37] you. I'll take that . So, but, uh, you know, just because the work we're working on it,
[1:36:41] we in, um, so those would be my two suggestions if the team would incorporate them. And unless there
[1:36:45] are objections from the board, but in general, again, just, uh, you know, excited for the
[1:36:49] contin continuity of this process. Thanks, scott. Okay, ms. Ez.
[1:36:56] um, thank you so much. Well, I'll start with appreciation, um, because this
[1:37:00] is the second strategic plan that we're looking at, um, over, I mean,
[1:37:04] since, since the pandemic. And I think that it's an important practice of effective
[1:37:09] organizations and I just want to appreciate the team and undertaking this work.
[1:37:13] um, and similar to mr. Melvin, you know, I was, I was there, helped lead the process
[1:37:18] for, um, defining our original goals as a board, which
[1:37:22] have helped create the foundation for this work. And, um, have seen,
[1:37:26] uh, you know, a ton of progress in in our schools because of
[1:37:31] this work. Of course, it's because of the work of educators in our classrooms, but really having
[1:37:35] a north star as a district, um, not a million priorities, but
[1:37:39] a set defined number of priorities, I believe has been really important to, um, organizational
[1:37:44] coherence and actually being able to make progress on the measures that matter most for our
[1:37:48] students and families. So, um, it, it might feel like a technical
[1:37:52] conversation, but I think this is really important work that helps, um, guide the
[1:37:56] work of our school district and the work in classrooms. Um, I have even seen like
[1:38:01] bulletin boards in teachers classrooms displaying the pillars and which is exciting because
[1:38:05] it means that it's being embraced and also that these pillars and priorities
[1:38:09] authentically reflect, um, what our school communities feel
[1:38:13] are important. Um, and I think some of the major additions that I'm kind
[1:38:17] of noting well changes. One is narrowing the focus, which
[1:38:22] I think is really important, focusing on outcomes and not just activities or strategies.
[1:38:26] um, I also appreciate and uplifting of, uh, career pathways and
[1:38:30] cte and access to cte. I think that's reflective of what we hear from high school
[1:38:34] students in particular as well as their families. Um, continued focus on
[1:38:39] socio-emotional learning. Granted, we have some work to do on the measurement front, but that's
[1:38:43] because we are being thorough and thoughtful. I believe we could, we could be a little bit more
[1:38:47] rote about it and we could solve the problem more easily. But I think that this district
[1:38:51] is trying to chart a different course in terms of really authentically measuring
[1:38:55] students' socio-emotional capacities. And, um, I've seen a ton more work in that
[1:38:59] space in our schools because of the board uplifting this back in 2021,
[1:39:04] um, as well as what was the other, and, and uplifting science, again,
[1:39:08] these are the types of hands-on engaging learning experiences that our
[1:39:12] students crave, um, that they derive joy from. And so I think it's
[1:39:16] really important that we are uplifting this as part of the plan. Um, now to just some
[1:39:21] feedback as well. I, I appreciate you noting that this is a living document and I will
[1:39:25] be making sure that we have another conversation about that because I
[1:39:29] think that this is really important and I want to ensure that the board has an opportunity to weigh in thoroughly
[1:39:34] on it. Um, so just a couple of, uh, more technical notes for
[1:39:38] me. So on college and career readiness, I wanted to just confirm, I think you said this bill,
[1:39:42] but that we are going to be reporting out the career readiness data
[1:39:46] separately by itself. Is that correct? Yeah, we will, we will be able to report
[1:39:51] out, so the kind of the ingredient components of our, of our, what
[1:39:55] is the district goal, you know, so there's the, the a to g obviously the college side, but
[1:39:59] then the career readiness as well. Those can be the very easily reported out on their own,
[1:40:03] so mm-hmm . You know, if, if it's, you know, if it's a venn diagram of, you know, students
[1:40:07] who are, who have reached the milestones to be college ready and
[1:40:11] those re reaching the milestone to be career ready and those who are both, um, you know, certainly
[1:40:15] can be reported out as a part of our, our annual reporting. Okay. Great. And then, and then
[1:40:19] along with that, other, other kind of graduation or cohort related outcomes, like
[1:40:24] this is where we'll have the seal of biliteracy, for example, which is a part of the graduation
[1:40:28] me metrics that we do. And that can be reported out, of course, um, in, in component
[1:40:32] parts for certain student groups, um, as well. Okay. Yes, I would strongly encourage that. I
[1:40:36] think we know that in having conversations about uplifting the career readiness part
[1:40:40] of college and career readiness, that we have a lot of work to do when it comes to equitable
[1:40:45] access to cte programs across our district at all of our secondary schools.
[1:40:49] um, so I think it's really important to ensure that we're taking a look at that part of
[1:40:54] the measure, um, specifically. Okay. Um, I also wanted to note just
[1:40:58] in terms, again, looking at secondary, um, kind of measures,
[1:41:03] um, I'm a, I'm a little concerned about us not getting a, a good
[1:41:07] look at students, particular student groups, um, that
[1:41:11] might not always be fully included in the graduation
[1:41:16] at college and career ready metric or the a through g ontrack measures
[1:41:20] specifically, you know, like our newcomer students who have an extended time to graduate
[1:41:24] high school, our students with disabilities, including those who might do a
[1:41:28] certificate of incomp completion rather than a regular high school diploma. And then our
[1:41:32] students who graduate at lasd adult schools rather than, um, getting their
[1:41:37] diploma from a comprehensive high school. So I would want
[1:41:41] to ensure that we have some measure around like high school completion.
[1:41:46] um, and of course, you know, our goal is for students to, to meet that college and
[1:41:50] career readiness metric and to graduate within four years, but students are legally entitled
[1:41:54] to more time. And I want to ensure that, um, if they are completing that we have a
[1:41:58] sense of that and that, and that the schools that are serving more of our higher needs student
[1:42:02] populations are getting credit for that to the extent that that's possible. Okay. Great.
[1:42:06] I see nodding. So I'm gonna go onto the next one. Um, you
[1:42:10] mentioned the seal of biliteracy, so that was one I was gonna raise as well. I think in the eliminating
[1:42:15] opportunity gap section, um, we, we are taking a look at our english
[1:42:19] language learners. Our district I think, is such a leader and looking at emergent bilinguals
[1:42:23] from an asset mindset and not a deficit mindset. And so I think in
[1:42:28] addition to looking at reclassification, we do want to specifically look at seals of biliteracy
[1:42:32] attainment for our english language learners, because we do want to continue to
[1:42:36] foster growth in their, in their native languages as well as in english.
[1:42:40] um, and then with regards to students with disabilities in that same section, eliminating
[1:42:45] opportunity gaps. I think we've heard a lot from families even last week at the cac
[1:42:49] presentation around, it's not about quantity of minutes
[1:42:54] included in general education programs, it's about the quality
[1:42:58] and how are we better serving this important student group. And I
[1:43:02] think it's tricky, I think from a metrics standpoint, but I feel that these measures
[1:43:06] of ce success are not really getting at the quality question fully,
[1:43:10] or are students getting the individualized support that they need to meet,
[1:43:15] um, their unique needs as students with disabilities. So I think there might be some data
[1:43:19] challenges here, but I would love if we could circle back on this particular topic
[1:43:23] to see how, how could we measure the, the quality of the
[1:43:28] inclusion that students are receiving or the extent to which they're receiving the individualized
[1:43:32] services that they're entitled to. Um, and then on the
[1:43:37] engagement and collaboration section, uh, the topic of communication, which I
[1:43:41] know has been discussed a little bit already, is something that I've definitely heard a lot from families.
[1:43:45] I think families feel strongly that they want not more, but
[1:43:50] better communication from the school district. Um, and, and in particular
[1:43:54] though, not only are we looking at multilingual communication, but multi multimodal
[1:43:59] communication. So perhaps that's part of the operational plans. Um,
[1:44:03] but I know the suggestions I get specifically are like, you know, videos, whatsapp,
[1:44:08] um, and other ways that parents today receive and communicate
[1:44:12] information and ensuring like that we're not just doing a check
[1:44:16] the box, we're we're sending a flyer home, we're putting something in the parent portal,
[1:44:20] but that we're actually being responsive to the ways that families prefer to communicate so they can,
[1:44:24] so we can reach them with our communications. Um, even with the
[1:44:28] parent portal. I, I mean, I think that, that it's, it's helpful.
[1:44:33] I finally, after like three or four years in the district now, now do have my
[1:44:37] parent portal account active, but I, I don't think that that necessarily
[1:44:41] counts as foster and collaborate. Like that's kind of a baseline and we want to shoot for more than that. So
[1:44:45] it is truly that authentic partnership and collaboration with families. Um,
[1:44:49] okay. I almost, I'm almost done, I promise. Um, for leading with impact.
[1:44:54] I know, um, ms or franklin offered some feedback on the initiatives that we're
[1:44:58] collab collaborating with different partners on. I just wanna note that again, it's not just about
[1:45:02] the number of initiatives. I'm not interested in more initiatives. I'm interested in meaningful
[1:45:06] initiatives that yield unique benefits for students and families. So would love for that
[1:45:10] to be incorporated. And then finally, um, in this section
[1:45:14] around joy and wellness and whole child wellbeing,
[1:45:19] you know, there is a mention of something that's really important in that we provide health,
[1:45:23] nutrition, mental health services to our students, that our families want to see more of that,
[1:45:27] but there aren't really any measures of health or nutrition or mental
[1:45:31] health access. So I know that there might be challenges because some of
[1:45:35] those are partner provided services, but I would love for us to explore how can we
[1:45:40] strengthen our data here so we can get a sense of what is the student utilization
[1:45:44] of these types of services and supports as well as families when their services offered for
[1:45:49] families as well. Um, with that, I will, I will conclude. Thank you for listening
[1:45:53] intently. Yeah. Appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. Go ahead, rocio.
[1:46:03] thank, so thank you. Thank you for your presentation. Uh,
[1:46:07] I know it's, it's a lot of work that went into thank you carolyn and the team for
[1:46:11] putting, you know, um, really enhancing, uh, strategic plan
[1:46:16] and moving our, our our district and our schools students
[1:46:20] and communities forward. So, um, you know, the
[1:46:24] conceptual framework and the theory of action is very, you
[1:46:28] know, thoroughly, um, um, described and
[1:46:32] explained here and the goals and objectives. And, um, I agree that
[1:46:37] with, um, my colleague, ms. Ortiz franklin, that, you know, seeing the
[1:46:41] implementation plan or the, the, um,
[1:46:46] the actual, you know, how this plan is gonna be executed is, is,
[1:46:50] um, if not more important because, you know, that is what's gonna drive,
[1:46:54] um, the success in the strategic plan for the next four years. So
[1:46:58] definitely, um, the committee of the whole, we will set some time to,
[1:47:03] um, to review the implementation plan and, you know, further ask
[1:47:07] questions and understand, um, the different departments and, and
[1:47:11] divisions that are really working together to, to make this happen. So
[1:47:16] to make the, make sure that this roadmap is, um, is act actionable
[1:47:20] and functional moving forward. So just a few questions. Um,
[1:47:26] I know that you mentioned here the themes that you heard from the stakeholders,
[1:47:31] from the various stakeholders, um, that were, um,
[1:47:36] included in, um, in the strategic plan, but just wanted to understand a little
[1:47:40] bit more specific examples. And I know that'll come in, hopefully
[1:47:44] that'll come in the implementation plan, but just for now, um,
[1:47:49] are there, can you share any specific examples on the feedback from
[1:47:53] stakeholders, um, that actually changed this final strategic plan
[1:47:57] based from the first one? What was the feedback that, you know,
[1:48:02] um, that really said, oh, we must add, this wasn't in the first four
[1:48:06] set of four years, but now we need to add this in here? Um, uh, I think eric hanson
[1:48:10] will, will share a couple. One that's, that I know that comes to mind right away is, is, uh,
[1:48:15] again, more emphasis on advanced learning opportunities, um, for students and access to those programs.
[1:48:19] um, the last strategic plan wasn't devoid of that necessarily, but that was an area that
[1:48:23] came up repeatedly, not just, uh, for the strategic plan engagement for the landscape analysis
[1:48:28] engagement on what do families want from the program offerings we have across the district. And
[1:48:32] so that is, that is called out very explicitly, um, as a, as a metric in,
[1:48:36] in what we're doing here. So that's just one example. Um, and, and I think another emphasis
[1:48:40] is the, the arts programs and not just, again, not just after school arts, but during
[1:48:44] the school day arts. Um, and having that really be a part of this is a, this
[1:48:48] is a foundational piece of our core curriculum and, and calling it out as such in the, in the, in the plan.
[1:48:52] I'm gonna, eric, if you have others sure. And just one more example, um, just hearing
[1:48:56] from families and, uh, and also staff, but families about
[1:49:01] enrollment and ways to enroll, making it easier, making it
[1:49:05] simpler. The systems are too complex. And, uh,
[1:49:09] also hearing, uh, when we did the region, uh, focus groups, hearing from principals
[1:49:13] about hiring and as a, you know, elementary principal and,
[1:49:17] and, uh, previously when you're trying to hire a teacher in the summer, you wanna
[1:49:22] open school with that teacher. And so working with hr, uh, great
[1:49:26] teams, hr and pc, but you want to get that staff hired. Uh, 'cause you don't wanna lose
[1:49:30] candidates. You could do an interview and, uh, you don't want, you know, your perspective teacher
[1:49:34] to if it was faster or a different school to get hired. So you want to make sure
[1:49:38] that those are efficient systems. So all of that information, uh, goes into
[1:49:43] the, into the plan, but also sharing with departments about what we heard
[1:49:47] in detail from our families, from community, from staff,
[1:49:52] and as they work on operations plans and being mindful of this is what's
[1:49:56] important to those that we serve. So that's just, uh, just one
[1:50:00] other examples that bill already already shared. Yeah, no, thank you. Um, you hit,
[1:50:05] um, the themes that I've heard time and time again, the
[1:50:09] hiring process and also the arts. Um, uh, parents
[1:50:13] really wanna see arts all, not all the time, but really integrated
[1:50:17] into the lesson planning. And also teachers have also mentioned that we need
[1:50:21] more support, not support and professional development, and really how
[1:50:26] to integrate it into everything, you know, that they do. And, um, I
[1:50:30] know that some are able to do it, you know, not better,
[1:50:34] but in a more, um, efficient and effective
[1:50:38] and, you know, and parents can see that. So that was actually one of the areas
[1:50:42] I was gonna ask in the arts. 'cause I hear that time and time again. So, so
[1:50:46] basically what you heard from the, from the feedback from staff,
[1:50:50] students and parents that is gonna, that is informing the operational
[1:50:54] imp implementation plans that hopefully you were gonna, okay. So working together and
[1:50:59] how to make this happen. So that's great. So, um, just, you know, I'm sure there's
[1:51:03] other more examples that you can provide. Just wanted to hear, um, a little bit about
[1:51:07] that. So the priority strategies and measures
[1:51:11] will, um, will incorporate the feedback. Correct.
[1:51:15] awesome. Great. And, um, and continuing
[1:51:19] with stakeholders, how will stakeholders remain involved during the execution phase,
[1:51:24] um, of the strategic plan and also what opportunities will exist
[1:51:28] for ongoing feedback and course correction, um, and shared
[1:51:32] accountability as implementation moves forward? Good question. Um, so
[1:51:37] as I mentioned, we're, you know, we have some initiation activities planned for, you know,
[1:51:41] supporting principals now. And I think some of that work will be a, it'll be a combination of
[1:51:45] our, of us continuing with principals to, to making sure principals
[1:51:49] have the, the resources they need to, to speak to the strategic plan for them to know their data. We're
[1:51:53] looking at whole child is the data system that principals mainly will be
[1:51:57] relying on for, for data at their schools and, and working with, with, um,
[1:52:02] our partners to make sure that the whole child, whole child has a, if you will, a
[1:52:06] kind of a, a bespoke or customized, uh, strategic plan report that principals
[1:52:10] have access to that they can use in their conversations with, with stakeholders or for their own internal
[1:52:15] decision making. So that's, again, supporting principles along the way. So that's gonna be one avenue where
[1:52:19] we foster engagement. I, I do, I do see, um, a work, so as
[1:52:23] we do our community, as we do our, sorry, our annual reporting every year, having, having
[1:52:28] feedback and, and one part of that is going to be not just, you know, the,
[1:52:32] the, the kind of wrote, uh, you know, each metric, here's the number in
[1:52:36] that, that, that plan, but we're going to have organized by pillar, what are some
[1:52:40] key operational, um, highlights or milestones that have happened sort of
[1:52:45] holistically within each pillar. That's gonna be a part of our annual reporting. And for that process there,
[1:52:49] I, I certainly see a, a space where we can have community engagement for how we do that annual reporting,
[1:52:53] um, obviously the strategic initiatives office led by eric, uh, uh,
[1:52:58] as a part of the lcap process, there's a lot of community engagement there. So, so looking for synergy
[1:53:02] with the lcap community engagement that we do, um, to inform the strategic plan, just
[1:53:06] as a couple quick ideas. Okay, great. Thank you. Um,
[1:53:10] let's see, my other questions. And what specific program project management tools
[1:53:15] or dashboards will be used to make the, the, the strategic plan
[1:53:19] more visual, measurable and actionable, uh, for the board staff
[1:53:23] and for our stakeholders? Um, so as, as I just mentioned, whole child will be,
[1:53:27] um, the main tool that is used at the school sites for principals. Um, when
[1:53:31] we're looking at the strategic plan, we, you know, as, um, we currently have for the current strategic
[1:53:35] plan on open data, which is publicly available to everyone, um,
[1:53:40] all of the district goals and breakouts, um, by students are currently on open data
[1:53:44] that will certainly continue. Many of the measures of success along with the lcap are
[1:53:48] on open data and the open data dashboard that will continue. Um, and then for,
[1:53:52] for the board and, and others. And then there will be the, you know, the, the, the annual
[1:53:56] fall report that will be more of a, of a-a-p-d-f format,
[1:54:00] if you will. Uh, you know, a detailed pdf that we can certainly, you know, have presentations
[1:54:04] to, to share that as well. That will be, you know, I don't wanna call that a dashboard, but that will be a very data heavy
[1:54:09] report that will then be mapped to other, other data platforms that we have.
[1:54:13] so combination of internal ones for school sites where they can see their own.
[1:54:17] um, and then some, you know, the, the public publicly available on open data will be the two main
[1:54:21] ones. I think that will be, um, great to add
[1:54:25] into the website for the strategic plan, uh, for, um,
[1:54:30] for staff or principals and also for families, exactly what you said. You can,
[1:54:34] you know, uh, follow the, the, the, I guess the
[1:54:39] progress or the growth or, or here are ways that you can, you know,
[1:54:43] um, inform your school on the strategic plan or how you can be involved,
[1:54:47] I think. And then also incorporating, um, or bringing in our community
[1:54:51] reps also to be able, I know there's a family guide that's gonna be,
[1:54:56] um, developed with, um, is it innovate public schools? So
[1:55:00] I know, you know, from at the last strategic plan, you know, the family guide was,
[1:55:04] you know, very great in explaining and, and, uh, bringing the, our
[1:55:08] families in incorporate the families feedback and also, um,
[1:55:12] a connection to the strategic plan so they understand as they see, you know,
[1:55:17] um, the poster boards on the strategic plan and explaining to them so
[1:55:21] they have it more so it's more tangible for them, right? So incorporating
[1:55:25] that information on the website and also bringing in our community reps and our,
[1:55:29] our parent centers and connecting with families, I think would be really
[1:55:34] great for them to not only understand, but also know where to go to, to,
[1:55:38] you know, see how growth or how these goals and objectives are
[1:55:42] being measured and where they can go and get some additional information. I think
[1:55:46] that would be really, um, rocio, can we important, can we do a round two?
[1:55:51] oh, I just started my questions. Um, okay. Wait,
[1:55:55] hold on one second. Let me see. I have two more. Is that okay?
[1:56:00] um, so just two more questions. How, how are the strategic plan goals
[1:56:04] objectives aligned with the budget that we were going to vote on today?
[1:56:08] and how will future budget decisions be evaluated to ensure continued
[1:56:13] alignment with these priorities and measures of success? Right. So how are really, really
[1:56:17] strategically aligned to the budget? Um, well, the
[1:56:21] budget is not, it's not hardwired, you know, it's not, uh, like, you know, the
[1:56:25] lcap and the, and the, and the budget have a more, you know, close attachment
[1:56:29] of course. But remember the lcap, the first five goals in the lcap are the five pillars
[1:56:34] in the strategic plan. And so the activities reflected here are,
[1:56:38] are also reflective of the lcap and, and the, and the budget that you know, but, and
[1:56:42] remember the lcap is just about local control funding, like just that portion. And so this is larger.
[1:56:46] um, the, uh, the one piece is the budget, the, the budget transparency tool, which is again,
[1:56:50] a publicly available resource that we have, you know, outlines for, for the, and this
[1:56:54] will continue, um, with the new strategic plan. You know, some pieces have moved, some activities
[1:56:59] that were sort of under pillar one, um, in the current strategic plan are gonna be in pillar
[1:57:03] two that will be updated in the fiscal, I'm sorry, in the budget transparency tool
[1:57:07] that we will have moving forward. And so I think that's gonna be the main vehicle where people can see
[1:57:11] how our spending, you know, how, how are we spending our money related to pillar two activities,
[1:57:16] pillar three activities, year over year, um, and so on. So I think that's probably the best,
[1:57:20] the best resource there, other than of course, um, you know, the budget process
[1:57:24] that we have, you know, that's attached to the lcap that we do too, which is aligned. Yeah, that would be
[1:57:28] also great to add to the website. And I'll skip my last question, but the other comment I wanted to make
[1:57:32] for, uh, page 20 on college and career readiness.
[1:57:37] you know, if under the, the bullet points there, it would be
[1:57:41] great to also add the number of students enrolled in peer partnership programs,
[1:57:46] um, because I know, you know, we're expanding our partnerships
[1:57:51] with our, um, construction and trades,
[1:57:55] our locals. And, um, I know we're working, I know pia and, um,
[1:58:00] is really working, you know, really hard and, and really creating, um,
[1:58:04] for high school students to enroll in some of these pre-apprenticeship programs. But
[1:58:09] I think that would be, um, a good metric to see, you know, how many
[1:58:13] students are enrolled as we're expanding our partnerships. And also the number of
[1:58:17] students with internships. I know that you said they're gonna be sub metrics, but, um,
[1:58:22] if I, time and time again, I hear from a lot of our high school students,
[1:58:26] you know, um, as I speak to them and also in, in our,
[1:58:30] when I do school visits, but also in my student advisory council
[1:58:34] internships, we want internships. And, and I know that we are definitely expanding
[1:58:39] on that, but I think that would be, uh, another metric, um, to also,
[1:58:43] um, kind of follow to see how many students are enrolling
[1:58:47] or have access to internships and have internships. Okay. So I'll leave with that. Thanks.
[1:58:52] okay. Thank you, carla. Yes. Um,
[1:58:57] much appreciation like everybody else to all the work that has gone
[1:59:01] into this, uh, strategic plan. I do know that you, I can tell
[1:59:05] from the work that you listened to us as well as the,
[1:59:09] uh, folks, uh, the parents and the community members, um,
[1:59:14] thank you as well for really trying to get that
[1:59:18] sel goal. I know that, uh, that the sel
[1:59:23] division, pbis practically, everyone is really trying hard to try
[1:59:27] to make this happen. So I really want to show appreciation for that effort
[1:59:31] and looking forward, hearing about it. Um, you know, a lot of my,
[1:59:36] one of the things that I I, that really stuck with me is the
[1:59:40] slide on what we heard. And I thank you for sharing that, because
[1:59:44] I think it coincides with what a lot of us board members hear
[1:59:48] from parents when we meet with them. And, um, but for me in
[1:59:52] particular, the mental health and wellbeing is something that I've
[1:59:56] heard, not only from parents, but also from students. And one of the things that students
[2:00:00] talk about is that they don't know who is their psw. They don't,
[2:00:05] especially the big schools, right? They don't know who they can go to if
[2:00:09] they have, if they need some support. Um, and a few months
[2:00:13] ago, I, we passed the resolution on wellness without silos, which
[2:00:17] was trying to address that issue. One, there's different levels of support
[2:00:21] that we can give students in regards to wellness and mental health and
[2:00:25] wellbeing, and that this can come from many folks at
[2:00:29] a school site. So I encourage you to go back and look at that reso,
[2:00:33] because that talks about training for everyone, for all
[2:00:38] staff, um, bringing all of these supports and having
[2:00:42] committees that can look at all the different areas of wellness at
[2:00:46] a school site, and just bringing cohesion to everything. So,
[2:00:50] um, I, I encourage you to look at that to, to,
[2:00:54] when you are thinking about the how, right? So you're not working in silo
[2:00:58] with some of the policies that we've already passed, right? It can all come together.
[2:01:03] um, the other thing I want to a address is the cleanliness. That's
[2:01:07] a very big issue in our campuses. I've heard it not
[2:01:11] only from our students, not only from parents, but from the school sites,
[2:01:16] right? The, the staff really, you know, needing that. And I,
[2:01:20] I wanna uplift that because that's a real concern. And then, uh,
[2:01:24] in creating inclusive environments is very important. Um, so
[2:01:29] the other thing is on slide 14, oh, that, I just spoke about that, but
[2:01:33] I, I wanted to also share, like, for example, our a 3g counselors,
[2:01:37] I worked at a school site that did not have a psw when I was there, but we
[2:01:42] did have an a through g counselor who really did everything for these students.
[2:01:46] and so there's just all these different, um, personnel
[2:01:50] that we have at our schools that can play that role of being supportive, of being
[2:01:54] inclusive, of being welcoming. And, um,
[2:01:59] the other thing is, on slide 14, we als you also talked about
[2:02:03] communi, uh, improving our communication and provide meaningful
[2:02:07] opportunities to engage with community members. And again,
[2:02:11] something I've heard, and I'm wondering, what are some examples, have
[2:02:15] you thought about what are some ways that we're gonna make this happen
[2:02:19] on the, on, on the communication side? Well, I, I know, I mean, one area
[2:02:24] that is a, that is touching on other themes too is, is the, you
[2:02:28] know, the enrollment process and communication for the enrollment process and where, and how families learn
[2:02:32] about their options, where, and how they interface with the schools that their, you know, their options are
[2:02:37] and revisiting the timelines. So that's, that's just one sort of specific example that gets into,
[2:02:41] that's, that's getting into the enrollment processes as well. So that, that's, that's
[2:02:45] one area. Eric, anything else come to mind? Okay. Also, just
[2:02:50] going back to the development of the family guide, as we've had, have had engagement sessions,
[2:02:54] uh, working, collaborating with innovate on the family guide and kind, what we've heard so
[2:02:58] far from families is that the, the, the first family guide, very
[2:03:02] helpful, very helpful for families to dialogue about
[2:03:07] the strategic plan, what's in it, some metrics. Um,
[2:03:12] but we heard it's a little bit long, a little bit lengthy. And so families do want
[2:03:16] a more concise, uh, family guide and really some essential
[2:03:21] questions that they can have either with their school principal or teacher. And
[2:03:25] so, um, looking at as we develop that and then
[2:03:30] roll it out for, as far as going back to engagement, making
[2:03:34] sure that our schools are aware, our regions, our principals, directors, all of that,
[2:03:39] but making sure that our, our school parent reps are,
[2:03:43] are knowledgeable, the face region administrator are knowledgeable
[2:03:48] and rolling it out to our parents and having those, uh, you know,
[2:03:52] the meetings in the regions to make sure parents are aware of the family guide, understand
[2:03:56] it. And then also the imp implementation is really at the school site. And so
[2:04:00] providing those resources or principals when have coffee with the principal to share about the family guide,
[2:04:04] but most importantly how it connects to their school site. Mm-hmm .
[2:04:09] so going back to some of the resources we're developing, uh, for principals
[2:04:13] and school sites is to connect the strategic plan to their
[2:04:17] school site. So as a principal, knowing literacy, numeracy, how
[2:04:21] that connects, but also through special programs I have with a school site,
[2:04:25] um, that, and how that relates to the strategic plan and sharing that with parents.
[2:04:29] so appreciate that, uh, connection between the parent rep and
[2:04:33] their role. In fact, I was gonna suggest that making sure that they
[2:04:38] also get trained and perhaps they can co-facilitate
[2:04:42] with the principal, right? I mean, I think that, uh, bringing, making those
[2:04:46] connections even amongst the staff, uh, can really help, uh, disseminate
[2:04:51] information so that if the parent has a question, they know they can go to the parent rep.
[2:04:55] they don't necessarily have to go to the principal to get that answered. And then
[2:04:59] it's like they're, they're training each other, right? And then even parent leaders can come out of
[2:05:03] that, who can train other parents. So, um, I like that idea. The
[2:05:07] other thing is, I think that, I don't know if this was done with
[2:05:11] the previous strategic plan, if everybody was aware of it. And what I mean
[2:05:15] by everybody, I mean like cafeteria staff, after school
[2:05:20] staff, custodial staff, like everyone. So I don't know if there is a plan
[2:05:24] for how we share this with everyone, because it does impact all levels
[2:05:29] of, of, and so of our workforce. And so, again, part of our engagement,
[2:05:33] going back to the region focus groups, um, one theme we heard was
[2:05:37] we want to see ourselves in the strategic plan. And again, it was, it was,
[2:05:42] it's more concise, right? 32 pages of versus 65. And
[2:05:46] as a, you know, busy school sites, so parent, the,
[2:05:50] for principals develop, developing a tool that,
[2:05:54] so they, when they meet with their instructional aides, when
[2:05:58] they meet with their counseling team, their grade level chairs or their whole staff
[2:06:03] or their, their, their maintenance staff, mm-hmm . All of these are meetings or principals
[2:06:07] have every single month with their teams, but we have a resource where they can,
[2:06:11] when they're meeting, they can say they can go as maintenance,
[2:06:15] we can go right to the, um, to the pillar and see looking at,
[2:06:19] uh, pillar two, the part about, um, uh, maintenance calls.
[2:06:24] so tying that in. So, so schools, no matter what role you
[2:06:28] have, you are supporting students and you can see where your work
[2:06:32] matters in the strategic plan and how it relates to the kids you serve at that school site.
[2:06:36] okay. Good. I'm glad that that's part of the plan. So you have that resource for principals to implement. Okay,
[2:06:41] good. I would love, that's for, for me, that's very important. Um, the
[2:06:45] other thing I was going to suggest is that I don't
[2:06:49] know what our goal is for participation in any survey regarding, um,
[2:06:53] like, uh, what is it, slide 22 when we're trying to, uh,
[2:06:57] it's the pillar on collaboration. So, um,
[2:07:02] I don't know, at least I didn't hear what we are going to
[2:07:07] use as a measure and, um, for any of
[2:07:11] these goals. And then also what our baseline is and what
[2:07:15] we're gonna use as a baseline. So I'm, I'm making an assumption that it's gonna be the school experience
[2:07:19] survey, but I'm wondering is that a correct assumption or should there, are
[2:07:24] there other areas that we are gonna be using other, other tools that we're gonna be using? Yeah. And
[2:07:28] can you just clarify, was there a particular item on this slide, or was it,
[2:07:32] well, um, different ones have different sort of data sources. Oh, sorry. Okay. Um, so
[2:07:36] for example, parents who feel welcome to participate, uh, volunteer
[2:07:41] participation, families responding favor favorably around overall,
[2:07:46] excuse me, overall customer service. Yeah. So the, the two, they feel
[2:07:50] included in the decision making. So yeah, the two you mentioned are, are based off of
[2:07:54] the school experience survey, um, as is there an, uh, a minimum
[2:07:59] participation rate that we're looking for? Um, I think, I mean, obviously more
[2:08:03] is, more is better. Our, our, our parent participation rates on the school experience
[2:08:07] survey district-wide at least are the, are every year we've had the highest ever
[2:08:11] that we've had, and they've continued to grow. So, um, you know, I think
[2:08:15] as far as like holding, you know, if we're gonna be looking as the district at the district
[2:08:19] level for reporting on this, it's going to, we're gonna be in really good shape. But now there we should,
[2:08:23] you know, it's a good question around if we have certain schools where their parent participation is
[2:08:28] 25% or even lower, that'll,
[2:08:32] that's, that's an interesting finding on its own for one. And then two,
[2:08:36] we might want to think about, you know, how much do we caveat that at
[2:08:40] the school level for, you know, and again, at the school level, it's gonna be, uh, you know, that's not gonna
[2:08:44] be what we report necessarily school by school on this when we report out these metrics.
[2:08:48] but principals will have that, that information is available publicly on the school experience survey dashboard
[2:08:53] as well. But I think it's a fair question that we would always wanna caveat information at,
[2:08:58] from a parent, the parent survey around this, um, I should mention the
[2:09:02] staff survey and the student survey. We we're, we're in extreme, we're in very good shape on
[2:09:06] response rates, um, for those. But when it's at, for the parent items, those are
[2:09:11] the, those are generally a little bit lower, but much higher than national norms on,
[2:09:15] you know, voluntary non incentivized surveys that we had that districts asked. And,
[2:09:19] and, and board member, um, sorry, agree. I go over here, back here, back here. , um, one
[2:09:23] thing, and come from above. Um, one thing in general,
[2:09:27] um, so that was a specific answer, but in general, the technical appendix, which you will
[2:09:31] get within the month, will have all of the measures of success, what tool will be
[2:09:35] used, and then where we have it with the baseline will be, but when we get all of
[2:09:40] the data, that's the october-ish date where we'll come back to the board, maybe
[2:09:44] in a cow as, um, board member riva said, um, uh,
[2:09:49] to, to, to present that, to talk about that to the board. So you'll get the, you'll get all of them within
[2:09:53] the month. Okay. I appreciate, and this is my last thing. If
[2:09:57] I think by school, by school, to me, I'm curious about, and especially if a school has
[2:10:01] a very low, uh, participation rate, I definitely would want to
[2:10:05] set a goal for that school, right? And find out what's going on. Why are
[2:10:09] we not getting, uh, parent participation? So I'm wondering if we could also
[2:10:13] add a layer of, um, if people do not participate in the survey as much
[2:10:18] could at that school site, could we do a focus group?
[2:10:22] and then if we don't, if we still do not reach the participation rate
[2:10:26] that we want with a focus group, can we do empathy interviews?
[2:10:31] like just give families as many opportunities and
[2:10:35] many different ways of participating and, um, and train
[2:10:39] our community reps to do that, train other folks at the school site who
[2:10:43] can do that. Um, I find that there are families who,
[2:10:47] with survey, I was one of those, I do not like surveys, but have
[2:10:52] a conversation with me and I was fine. And I think that's another way
[2:10:56] to build relationship with our families, for them to truly feel
[2:11:00] that that was a meaningful engagement. We really care about what they wanna know about,
[2:11:04] about what they're feeling, what they are thinking. So anyway, that's my
[2:11:08] last thing. I'll stop there. Thank you. Okay.
[2:11:12] patient, patient, miss new bill, .
[2:11:19] oh, thank you. Uh, wanna definitely lead with gratitude in the work that's
[2:11:23] done here. I think, um, as we know, it drives our district and
[2:11:27] it drives where we're going. And, uh, I won't repeat a whole
[2:11:32] lot of the instances just to mention it so that, you know, that
[2:11:36] it was one of my concerns as well. Um, however we can
[2:11:40] review the metrics so we all have a better understanding, um, is gonna be
[2:11:44] helpful. And just how they tie into each other, because
[2:11:49] as you say, they're coming from, um, they're, they're cross,
[2:11:53] cross coming departments, and exactly how
[2:11:58] that measurement is going to be, uh, perceived by our parents who are
[2:12:02] not familiar with each department. And so I think it's gonna be helpful for
[2:12:06] us to be able to explain that so that they get a better understanding, um,
[2:12:11] to be able to interpret that information as it comes. Um,
[2:12:15] the stability strong and, uh, sustainable workforce. I think as we mentioned,
[2:12:20] uh, one said, uh, about our framework tools that we already use,
[2:12:25] uh, and I know the work that we'll see from our landscape analysis will kind of
[2:12:29] help us as well, uh, to see how we stabilize, especially
[2:12:33] at the principals level at our schools. And I speak personally because I
[2:12:37] know my schools have some turnover rates that are probably the highest within,
[2:12:41] um, the unified school district with some schools of 2.5
[2:12:46] of years. And so I would love to see how that metric works, and
[2:12:51] if possible, uh, as carla was mentioning, school by school ways
[2:12:55] that on the website, on a dashboard, that our principals
[2:12:59] are able to pull out information to share with the community, their
[2:13:03] community of how this is working. So they have eyes
[2:13:07] on their space. Um, when we build, uh,
[2:13:11] capacity, when we talk about engagement on, um,
[2:13:16] those strong relationships, I think that's what builds the strong relationships, is when
[2:13:20] that community can talk to their issues specifically.
[2:13:24] they know their school, they understand their school, they understand the unified
[2:13:29] district, but they understand their school. And if they're able to pull out those metrics to,
[2:13:33] to address issues as they go, as they see the
[2:13:37] increase, decrease, they'd be able to talk about it. If there's a way for, you know, our
[2:13:41] principals and staff to understand it, but more importantly our parents
[2:13:45] to understand it, uh, the
[2:13:49] quality and implementation as mentioned in the effectiveness of our
[2:13:54] partners. I think our partners are, and I don't wanna say our partners, because sometimes
[2:13:58] we use that word interchangeably with other terms. And I think partners
[2:14:02] are very special. They're, they're very unique to our work here
[2:14:06] at the district and making sure that they're effective in what they
[2:14:10] do and what they provide for us, and that it is a partnership.
[2:14:15] so however we can highlight the quality of that
[2:14:19] and the implementation of what they do for our schools, so that we can see that
[2:14:23] in, in measure. How do we know that, um,
[2:14:29] the, uh, we, we talk about our safety and, um, in
[2:14:34] joy in wellness, and it's just, you know, broadly mentioned,
[2:14:38] you know, how students feel safe at school, and I didn't see the
[2:14:43] inve, the where teachers feel safe at school, if that's
[2:14:47] just as well here in the student, uh, in the,
[2:14:51] in the survey. Or is there other measures to be taken
[2:14:56] into account on safety in our school sites? And would
[2:15:00] that live in pillar five? Um, where,
[2:15:05] um, we're taking into account istar data,
[2:15:09] uh, school experience survey, is that those gonna be combined together? I'm not sure
[2:15:13] if that is or not. And you can, you can lead me where that would go.
[2:15:17] um, it most likely it will, it will, it will be here in welcoming learning environments
[2:15:21] around staff perceptions of safety at their school, likely to be in more in the domain of operations
[2:15:25] plans, but we can certainly consider, um, and, and talk to the teams on, on
[2:15:29] bringing that into the strategic plan. It's an l cap metric. Um, oh,
[2:15:33] is the staff perception of l cap metric? It is. So that investing staff? Yeah. And investing
[2:15:38] in staff. Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you, eric.
[2:15:42] um, wait, I'm sorry. Uh,
[2:15:46] my, my apologies. So, yeah, so if you look at staff support and development staff reporting that the school's
[2:15:50] supportive and inviting place to work, and then would sort of, that would probably be the, the, the,
[2:15:54] the logical home for it. Sorry about that. Just so
[2:15:59] I know, because I know many of our, uh, educators, they wanna make sure
[2:16:03] that they're, they feel safe as well. And I know as we talk about
[2:16:07] safety within our schools, that's a, a key component. Um,
[2:16:12] however the website can be as user
[2:16:16] friendly to, for folks to be able to go there to find
[2:16:20] this the same way as we used, you mentioned the budget transparency tool,
[2:16:25] the whole child. I mean, when you think about all the spaces in which to go
[2:16:29] to narrow it as much as possible for us to be able, uh,
[2:16:33] to capture what we need, um, you said open data, whole
[2:16:38] child, uh, budget transparency tool. For any person
[2:16:42] to be able to gather the information and follow this plan, it would be confusing.
[2:16:47] so however we can minimize that and make it as
[2:16:51] succinct for our families. And I always say, you know, we, we talk about it
[2:16:55] at the third grade level for some of us, that's it. And for our
[2:16:59] families, we need to be able to speak to that language. And I know in the district, we have the alphabet
[2:17:03] soup, we got all these acronyms, we don't know what they mean, they
[2:17:07] some mean different things. And so however we can make it
[2:17:12] easiest for our families to follow. Um, and I think, uh,
[2:17:16] kelly mentioned as a parent, I know parent portal, I'm figuring it out myself.
[2:17:20] I have two children and I am, I'm getting there. I'm getting there. I'm
[2:17:24] gonna be hopefully a pro soon, but however we can do it so our families
[2:17:28] can, can, can follow along with our progress. Um,
[2:17:33] the whole child, we talked about the report card and the shift, and will
[2:17:37] we see that shift sooner than later? How will, how will we notify that shift?
[2:17:42] the shift to the report card? Yes. Um, well, it'll be, you know, the, the, the report card
[2:17:46] will be launched in, in, you know, fall of 2027. The work
[2:17:50] has already begun with our division of instruction, working with, um, working with a
[2:17:54] couple partners. We're, we're, we're talking with, with other, um, external experts, pro bono
[2:17:59] support on developing, uh, what this report card would look like already
[2:18:03] prototyping that. So there will be an engagement process, and that'll be a part of the piloting
[2:18:07] along the way. That won't be a universal pilot, you know, that's, therefore it's not a pilot,
[2:18:11] but it, so there will be engagement. I do, I do see benefit in perhaps conversation.
[2:18:16] we can certainly look at conversations along the way on how the, um,
[2:18:20] you know, so that folks are aware. So it doesn't just drop on everyone's lap in fall of 2027,
[2:18:25] um, out of nowhere. Got it. Yeah. Uh, in academic excellence,
[2:18:30] I didn't hear or mention anything about our apprenticeships or pre-apprenticeship,
[2:18:34] if that lives somewhere in our college and career readiness.
[2:18:38] um, it, it wasn't there. And I don't know if that's something that, a metric that we will be looking
[2:18:42] at. Um, it is, uh, is something that we can consider
[2:18:46] including as, you know, so again, baked into some of those college and career indicators,
[2:18:50] like could possibly be, um, a sub indicator like we, you know, talked about cte
[2:18:55] and, and, and so on, to the extent the data is, is available. Yep. That would be helpful.
[2:18:59] 'cause I know many of our families are looking towards pre apprenticeships and
[2:19:03] obviously going towards that career pathway, um, within our
[2:19:07] cte programs too. Okay. And
[2:19:14] I think folks hit it all. Um,
[2:19:21] I think that was it. Thank you. Thank you. Well, thank you very much.
[2:19:26] I'm gonna have, uh, mr. Chase speak now, and then we're gonna start round two.
[2:19:33] thank you. Board president. Uh, these were, marshall meant to be summative, but certainly welcome
[2:19:37] additional feedback as part of a round two. Uh, really just wanted to, to thank the board
[2:19:41] for the continuing thoughtful engagement. Uh, I've been obviously taking notes throughout.
[2:19:45] I've asked the team to obviously take, uh, thorough notes as to the
[2:19:49] feedback that we've received. Our commitment, of course is, and this is kind of the prevailing
[2:19:53] theme that I heard throughout the discussion this morning, is around communication and engagement.
[2:19:58] so our commitment to the board, obviously is to come back in october, if
[2:20:02] not sooner. And there will be, obviously, engagement even before then around what
[2:20:06] the measures of success look like and how those are informed by the feedback. Even some of the
[2:20:10] feedback given today, we just wanna have the opportunity to engage with the, the, the
[2:20:14] relevant divisions or shops to see how actionable some of those feedback points may be.
[2:20:19] uh, and, and to really come back in october with something that reflects even the
[2:20:23] feedback, uh, that was rendered today. The other side of the communications coin, though,
[2:20:27] of course, is to the larger, larger community. Everything we've heard today from
[2:20:31] making sure that community reps at schools are, are really
[2:20:36] well equipped, not just to talk about the strategic plan as critical as that is, but just in general
[2:20:40] to be able to relay critical information around the district. Uh, again,
[2:20:44] I too have my fair share of parent portal horror stories that I can share, but
[2:20:49] I'm a pretty adept user. Thank you very much. Um, I'll leave it at that.
[2:20:53] uh, but we do need to look at how we refine those processes. You know, one thing, again, that we did,
[2:20:57] uh, over the last couple months is around the communication
[2:21:01] of parents. Uh, we as a district, if I'm being really candid,
[2:21:05] we're, we're basically saturating our parents with messages almost on a weekly basis,
[2:21:10] and a lot of them for very good opportunities, but it was just a lot.
[2:21:14] and so one of the things that we've done is we've scaled that back. So now we send out a weekly newsletter
[2:21:19] every wednesday at five. Every family gets one newsletter that has
[2:21:23] all of those things that they used to get in a dozen or maybe more emails
[2:21:27] over the course of the week. So we're very much committed to that communications
[2:21:31] piece. Round two.
[2:21:36] ross, do you have anything for round two? Round two,
[2:21:41] or anyone else? I I do have one. Go ahead.
[2:21:46] go ahead, rocio. Um, the one I didn't ask, um,
[2:21:50] you probably already answered it, but I wasn't sure, I'll just ask it again. How does
[2:21:54] the plan hold leadership accountable if these initiative benchmarks and the
[2:21:58] outcomes are not met? And what reporting or intervention process
[2:22:02] will be triggered if progress falls behind expectations?
[2:22:07] I think you already answered part of that, but, um, yeah, I mean, the, uh,
[2:22:11] the strategic plan is not necessarily an accountability, you know,
[2:22:15] document on its own, but it, it is a, it is the way in which we hold ourselves accountable.
[2:22:19] um, and I, I do think, you know, the reporting out, I mean, what gets measured gets
[2:22:23] done or at least gets noticed if it's not done. And so I think in that there will be, you know, truth
[2:22:28] and transparency. I don't, carolyn, were you gonna say something? Um, um, that's true. I would add, um,
[2:22:32] hi. I would add that, um, with the superintendent, we have quarterly
[2:22:36] meetings. We'll be looking at these so that we can very quickly get back on track if we're off
[2:22:40] of track. So he will hold us accountable in those meetings as well.
[2:22:46] and I know that in the pre and the first strategic plan, we were, uh,
[2:22:50] at the end of each academic year, we were receiving sort of, um, sort of
[2:22:55] progress or updates. So that was very useful. So expect, and that, and
[2:22:59] that will continue as well. Okay. That was it. Just thanks, carla.
[2:23:04] okay. Just two things. One, you mentioned something about middle school that we
[2:23:08] were gonna be looking at. Let me look at which one. Um,
[2:23:13] when we were looking at district of choice and we were going to
[2:23:18] focus on middle schools, is that, is that correct? Uh, yeah. So, you
[2:23:22] know, looking at retention rates of students that is there, there
[2:23:26] we have the ability, and we have been doing this internally, and this can certainly be something that we
[2:23:30] continue to do here. And this came up in landscape analysis. It's not, student retention is not a
[2:23:34] uniform trend for every grade level. The very, you know, the matriculation points,
[2:23:38] you know, again, by, you know, the, the, the transition points, sorry, from fifth to sixth
[2:23:43] and so on is in particular, but it's not just there. But that is an, that is a
[2:23:47] place where we can, we can look to tell that story with data
[2:23:51] a little bit. And are we making headway on, you know, on, you know, reducing
[2:23:55] the, the loss, you know, of students and increasing the, the gain
[2:23:59] of students whenever possible. I think both of those sides of the story are important and trigger
[2:24:03] different, different strategies in response. Yeah, and I, I appreciate that because
[2:24:07] I do think that that is an, a grade level, an age group that we should
[2:24:11] focus on. Um, it is the age when kids start to,
[2:24:16] if there is any vaping, that's when it happens, whatever,
[2:24:20] it's a, it's a very challenging transition for all, all kids, right?
[2:24:24] so I would, I appreciate uplifting that. And I would
[2:24:28] encourage us to look at some of our middle schools that have wait lists. I have some schools in my
[2:24:33] district that actually have a, a middle school that has a wait list and,
[2:24:37] um, look at, you know, what are their best practices, talk
[2:24:41] to the parents there, why it is that they like that school. And then also talk
[2:24:45] to parents of elementary school students and why they, they,
[2:24:49] they are concerned about sending their child to one of our middle schools
[2:24:54] in l-a-u-s-d so that we can, I, I, I do see that
[2:24:58] there is a drop, you know, from, I think it's fifth to sixth,
[2:25:02] and then we also get some more from eighth through ninth. So
[2:25:06] I wanna investigate more about that. And this is an opportunity, and I think looking at schools that are,
[2:25:11] that are doing well enrollment wise, let's find out
[2:25:15] what it is that attracts parents to that school. What are the things that they're doing
[2:25:19] or that they have, what opportunities are there that, uh, present that?
[2:25:23] and then lastly, you mentioned webinars. And I understand the
[2:25:27] reason for webinars, you have more capacity of folks, but, you
[2:25:31] know, that's one complaint I get from parents is they don't like webinars. They don't feel like
[2:25:35] it's engaging. They feel that it's done on purpose so that we don't get to hear what
[2:25:40] they have to say. It's very controlled. And so
[2:25:44] if we can do, if it's informational, like a one way,
[2:25:48] I guess a webinar would be fine. But if you truly want discussion and
[2:25:52] feedback, then I would encourage that we do zooms, even if the capacity is not
[2:25:57] as high and it means that we have to do more zooms. I just think that's something
[2:26:01] that we can do in terms of getting, yeah, getting families,
[2:26:05] uh, to have that meaningful, meaningful engagement. And then lastly, we need to
[2:26:09] build more capacity at our schools. So, uh, there
[2:26:13] are, as we know, elementary schools may only have one administrator, right? And we're,
[2:26:18] we're putting a lot on that principle to do around this strategic
[2:26:22] plan. And so how can we build capacity at schools, maybe
[2:26:26] creating teams, encouraging those teams to come to meetings together in the
[2:26:30] same way that as face encourages principals and community reps
[2:26:35] to come to a meeting together. Um, I know pli is encouraging
[2:26:39] ilt teams to come together, but just as much as we can create
[2:26:43] this team framework to be able to do this work, I think
[2:26:47] that, um, just pushing that out
[2:26:52] to our administrators, obviously they are the ones in charge, and it's not
[2:26:56] that we're trying to take, you know, some of their responsibility or their power away,
[2:27:00] but rather that we need to share this, this space in order to meet
[2:27:04] our students' needs. Round two,
[2:27:09] round two, round two, she let
[2:27:13] just have one on the whole child wellbeing under there.
[2:27:18] that tab was student participation in visual and performing arts programs
[2:27:22] offering during the school day. Just wanna know how you capture that. This
[2:27:26] is, and this is using, um, our, our, you know, our, our,
[2:27:30] our data systems, our misis, you know, data systems. So this is looking at, you know, um,
[2:27:35] participation in, in programs. It might be courses, it might be other pieces,
[2:27:39] but this is, this is actually a pretty clean and easier, an easier one to measure
[2:27:43] by you sort of looking at what, what offerings are like. Um, and as
[2:27:48] far as, um, at the elementary level where it's not really your enrolling
[2:27:52] in an art course per se, there are vehicles to know about, um, you kind of
[2:27:56] exposure to certain programming opportunities that, that exist in the elementary classrooms.
[2:28:00] I, I don't wanna, I don't want to get too in the weeds on it, 'cause I don't, I don't wanna misspeak on on those,
[2:28:04] but that can be, that will certainly be spelled out as a part of the technical appendix on what we mean, like
[2:28:08] what, what's included in not included in that metric. And that's, that's always a really
[2:28:13] important, you know, way that we'll clarify a lot of these. Like, you know, who's, who's
[2:28:17] included in this measurement, who's not, what's, what types of courses and programs are and are
[2:28:21] not in there. And so that will be spelled out for you all as well. A little bit more than I, perhaps I can do
[2:28:25] right, right here. But I can get back to you on that and appreciate you
[2:28:29] giving the distinction between the secondary. So secondary would be more so
[2:28:33] course offerings versus, 'cause here, it, it's
[2:28:37] pretty clear student participation, visual from our program
[2:28:41] offerings during the school day. So it's definitely just the courses.
[2:28:46] and then there's, uh, support with itinerant teachers, which is again, a
[2:28:50] trackable data that we have on itinerant art, you know, students exposure to,
[2:28:55] to, to working with those types of staff members as well. Okay. And
[2:29:00] that will be one that we revisit . Okay.
[2:29:04] okay. Uh, before I get to mine, which is, uh, slide 24,
[2:29:08] carla, I just wanna mention that there's nothing that strikes fear
[2:29:12] in the hearts of men and women as middle school .
[2:29:17] you have to know that. I think we all know that. I've always been a middle school teacher
[2:29:21] and a middle school assistant principal and a middle school principal. And
[2:29:25] I love middle school. I think it's the most important grade level for kids
[2:29:29] to be successful in high school. And only certain people can teach middle school
[2:29:34] and only certain administrators can be at middle school. It's a very, very tough
[2:29:38] job. But if you love middle school kids, you'll do a great job. We all
[2:29:42] know what I'm saying. Okay. It's tough. It's tough. Okay. Here's my
[2:29:47] question, and you kind of brought this up sherette, because we are on the same wavelength all the time.
[2:29:51] on slide 24, it says, increase
[2:29:56] stabilization of principals at school sites. Well,
[2:30:00] the association of california school administrators did a survey,
[2:30:05] who is the most important? It was the elementary parents, by the way. Who was the most important
[2:30:09] person, do you think, at the school? And I would bet money that
[2:30:13] they would've said my child's teacher, number one. No,
[2:30:18] it was the principal. So there's a stability in
[2:30:22] having a principal remain at that school and doing a good job as
[2:30:26] sherette. And I always talk about, um, some
[2:30:30] principals wanna promote, and there's nothing wrong with wanting to promote. They want to be
[2:30:34] a director or they wanna be a assistant superintendent or a superintendent. That's
[2:30:39] fine, they should be allowed to do that. But if you're only moving
[2:30:43] from your school because you wanna pay raise at a different level,
[2:30:49] I say, let's pay those principals
[2:30:53] a stipend so they stay at that school and keep it going
[2:30:58] and make a successful life for all the kids and their parents too. At
[2:31:02] school, especially at middle school, having stability is very, very important.
[2:31:06] and I think that it's worth a look at to see
[2:31:10] how salary can affect, uh, people remaining at that site
[2:31:14] because they like it there, but they, they're encouraged to, to seek on for higher salary
[2:31:19] rates. So that's what I wanted to say. So thank you very much,
[2:31:23] gentlemen. Great job. Right now, mr. Mclean,
[2:31:28] we, uh, on tab eight, we talked about play day
[2:31:32] and promoting play equity. Oh yeah, I'm sorry. I'm
[2:31:36] sorry. You are absolutely right. You need a motion? Got excited? Yes.
[2:31:41] on tab one, we do need a motion. I moved by ms. Ez. Second, seconded
[2:31:45] by board president schon. Uh, now voting on tab one, approval of
[2:31:49] the l-a-u-s-d 26 through 2030 strategic plan. Ms. New bill? Yes.
[2:31:54] dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Ms. Rego? Yes. Ms. Ez?
[2:31:58] yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Board president schuren? Yes. Alright.
[2:32:03] it is adoptive now on tuesday. Okay. Now I'm all excited with play day. So we
[2:32:07] did, um, it's fun. It's a, it's a fun resolution. It really is. We, um,
[2:32:11] it's on, uh, consent, but I know that, um,
[2:32:16] rocio has a statement and I have a statement too, so please go.
[2:32:20] yes. Thank you. Thank you. Board, board president. Um,
[2:32:24] so I am proud once again to present this resolution, proclaiming
[2:32:29] june 27th, 2026 as play date throughout
[2:32:33] the los angeles unified school district, and reaffirming our commitment to
[2:32:37] advancing play equity for all students at
[2:32:41] a time when the world is captivated by the excitement of the fifa
[2:32:45] world cup. And looking ahead in the 2028 olympic and para,
[2:32:50] uh, paralympic games. Here in la, we have a unique opportunity
[2:32:54] to inspire the next generation of athletes, leaders,
[2:32:58] and healthy young people. These global events remind us of
[2:33:03] the power of sport to unite communities, build confidence,
[2:33:07] and open doors to new possibilities. Yet
[2:33:11] access to play sports and recreation remains deeply
[2:33:15] unequal. According to the 2026 california play equity
[2:33:19] report, 76% of youth are not meeting recommended
[2:33:24] physical activity guidelines with participation rates lowest
[2:33:28] among girls, latino youth and youth with disabilities.
[2:33:32] too often, the students who stand to benefit from sports and
[2:33:37] physical activity face the greatest barriers to participation, whether
[2:33:41] due to cost, transportation, lack of facilities, or limited
[2:33:45] access to ex inclusive programming. Play is not
[2:33:50] simply recreation. It is a critical component of healthy child,
[2:33:55] of a healthy child. Development research shows that sport and
[2:33:59] physical activity improve mental and physical health, support academic
[2:34:03] achievement, build confidence and self-esteem, strengthen
[2:34:07] social connections, and help young people develop leadership and
[2:34:11] teamwork skills. For girls in particular, access to sports can
[2:34:15] be transformative. Participation in athletics is associated
[2:34:19] with higher levels of confidence, stronger academic outcomes, and increased
[2:34:24] leadership opportunities and lifelong health benefits. Yet
[2:34:28] girls continue to participate in sports at lower rates than boys. If we are
[2:34:32] serious about equity, we must be intent, intentional
[2:34:36] about creating opportunities for all students to see themselves
[2:34:40] on the field, on the court, on the track, and in every
[2:34:45] space where they can learn, grow, and thrive. I would like to thank the
[2:34:49] la 84 foundation, the play equity fund, and all of our
[2:34:53] community partners working to ensure that every young person has access
[2:34:57] to lifelong benefits, to sport, play and movement.
[2:35:02] and also a special thank you to james lopez, director of advocacy,
[2:35:06] play equity fund, and celeste soto, executive director of play work,
[2:35:10] socal, sd nonprofit partner and play equity
[2:35:14] coalition member. And thank you all for your work and all you do for our
[2:35:18] students. And I'm so looking forward to this play date on
[2:35:22] june 27th. Um, it's a lot of fun and it just brings me so much joy.
[2:35:26] and I know my, um, my colleague, uh,
[2:35:31] ndi has joined, uh, me and just in celebrating
[2:35:35] just joy, fun and moving our bodies, especially
[2:35:39] our, our young, our young, um, our young students and young children.
[2:35:43] so with that, I, um, ask for my colleagues for your
[2:35:48] support in this resolution. Thank you. Comments from anyone?
[2:35:53] sherette, uh, I would love to co-sponsor and,
[2:35:57] um, as a physical educator, knowing that, you know, the research
[2:36:01] and education has shown just the cognitive science, that co
[2:36:06] physical activity has improved brain health and boosting executive
[2:36:10] functioning, and how we know that allowing our students to stay on
[2:36:14] task. This also improves their grades, their ability
[2:36:18] to socialize. And so, so many things are attributed to opportunities
[2:36:23] as such. And so I'm excited to be a part of
[2:36:27] play day again, uh, in the heart of bd one.
[2:36:31] um, and so, uh, just wanting to say, obviously supporting this, but
[2:36:36] just making sure that families get out an opportunity and as we continue to think about
[2:36:40] physical fitness and how we can improve our physical fitness, um, across the board
[2:36:44] for longevity of life, for increase to even meet what we've talking about
[2:36:48] here with our strategic plan for our students and families to do well, uh,
[2:36:53] wanted to say, uh, appreciate you bringing this resolution again forth, uh,
[2:36:57] to our communities and our schools as we continue to highlight fitness, um,
[2:37:01] as one of the things in play, um, important, especially on the
[2:37:05] heels of, uh, fifa here and in 2028 when
[2:37:09] the olympics come. So, thank you. Thank you. Thank you coach. New
[2:37:13] bill, mr. Yeah, just briefly would also love to be a co-sponsor. I
[2:37:18] have a feeling it'll pass unanimously, um, 'cause it already has. But, um,
[2:37:22] uh, really supportive of this, uh, and, uh, grateful to the partners that you named the play
[2:37:26] equity coalition, um, and, and supportive of this, uh, saw
[2:37:30] it when I was a teacher. See it now as a board member. I think the conversation we're about to have in a few minutes
[2:37:34] on our screen time policy and the cell phone ban I brought years ago all comes outta this desire to get kids
[2:37:38] outside and to play not only for their physical, but also their mental health. So
[2:37:43] thanks for bringing it. Um, and thanks to our partners who are helping with this effort.
[2:37:48] okay. I have a statement also. So, while we always consider equity
[2:37:53] and academics in facilities and other l-a-u-s-d
[2:37:57] issues, we know we can always do more. And what
[2:38:01] does the future look like for play equity? Is
[2:38:05] it a recreational or sports league for our students with disabilities?
[2:38:11] is it greater partnerships with a special olympics?
[2:38:15] and I believe these are interesting conversations to begin, and we
[2:38:19] have to get a clear idea of what can be achieved at l-a-u-s-d. So thank
[2:38:23] you dr. Rivas, for this great resolution, and please add me as a co-sponsor.
[2:38:27] thank you.
[2:38:34] that's great. Uh, it's already been voted on, and now we have the co-sponsors in, in the comments.
[2:38:38] it is now time to move on to tab. Oh,
[2:38:42] we're gonna take a quick photo, just two minutes. That's all two minutes photo break.
[2:38:47] so everyone stand up and catch a stretch
[2:38:51] while the board is taking a photo.
[2:41:55] okay. We have 1, 2, 3, 4 board members and a superintendent. So that's
[2:41:59] a quorum plus one. Uh, we'll move on to tab two, using
[2:42:03] technology with intention, establishing guidelines for student
[2:42:08] screen time. I believe there's a presentation associated with this as well as public comment.
[2:42:34] all right, so on tab two we have a presentation and then,
[2:42:38] and then public comment. Okay. So, uh, but also, uh, board president
[2:42:43] molsen is going to recuse himself. And mike,
[2:42:50] thank you mr. Mcclain. Before we turn it over to dr. Baez and the team to present just very quick,
[2:42:54] uh, remarks from me here, mainly just around gratitude, gratitude, of
[2:42:58] course, for, for the board, their leadership and, and kind of putting the district, I think in
[2:43:03] a very good way. Obviously at the forefront of this important work, uh, gratitude for folks
[2:43:07] that have engaged with us at multiple levels. We've had a lot of really rich conversations
[2:43:11] around this topic with a lot of different stakeholder groups, parents, of course,
[2:43:15] employees and so on. And, and of course, gratitude to the team led by dr. Baez,
[2:43:19] mr. Lay, uh, in, in bringing forth this work, I, I, I wanna mark,
[2:43:24] and, and this kind of almost aligns with like what we were sharing about this strategic plan.
[2:43:28] policies are not meant to, to live in amber and just be kind of frozen. You
[2:43:32] know, once they're, they're developed, they're meant to be living documents. And so what you
[2:43:36] see today is, is the first of potentially many iterations of this policy
[2:43:41] as we go forward. Uh, I anticipate that we could have updates as soon as a
[2:43:45] few months from now, depending on additional data, additional weigh-ins from,
[2:43:49] from critical actors in this space. But I do think that what you'll see today
[2:43:53] reflects a very, very thoughtful engagement on multiple levels
[2:43:57] around this work and, and really positions, again, our students to have
[2:44:02] what I think we've always wanted in this space. And it's about balance. It's never
[2:44:06] been about none of this or all of that, or, you know, being in,
[2:44:10] in one polarity as we talk about. It's really just about achieving that healthy balance
[2:44:14] for our students of using technology in a thoughtful way that actually
[2:44:19] increases, you know, critical thinking skills, but not overs saturating it.
[2:44:23] so I appreciate the work that the team has done. I appreciate the engagement that everyone has,
[2:44:27] has thoughtfully participated in. And with that, I'll turn it over to dr. Baas.
[2:44:33] thank you very much, acting superintendent cha. Uh, good afternoon everyone. Good afternoon, board
[2:44:37] of education and deputy superintendents. I'm here to present the guidelines for
[2:44:41] students screen time policy based on the board resolution titled,
[2:44:45] using technology with intention, establishing guidelines for student
[2:44:49] screen time from the april 21st, 2026 board meeting.
[2:44:53] um, so in this presentation, you will see the changes we have made to the draft
[2:44:58] screen time policy since the may, 2026 committee, the whole, um,
[2:45:02] and, uh, we've made changes up to this point. And I will share the update on engagement
[2:45:07] and show how we've used the latest research, uh, to incorporate it into
[2:45:11] this policy. So the guidelines for,
[2:45:15] uh, student screen time policy include the district values, which consists of the
[2:45:19] following. Instruction is first led by the teacher
[2:45:23] and should not be replaced by technology. So that's at the very top of this. Uh,
[2:45:27] graphic students thrive when learning experiences, foster engagement,
[2:45:32] critical thinking, creativity and human interaction, and consistent
[2:45:36] with guidance from the american academy of pediatrics and the us surgeon general.
[2:45:41] the district prioritizes the quality, purpose, and impact of technology used
[2:45:45] over the amount of time spent on a device emphasizing active
[2:45:49] learning and connection rather than passive consumption.
[2:45:56] students learn best when experiences reflect their age. Developmental readiness
[2:46:00] and capacity for self-regulation and technology use should be
[2:46:04] tailored to developmental needs, and that's what you're going to see in this policy. Um,
[2:46:08] and then students deserve learning environments that minimize distractions and
[2:46:12] maximize engagement. And district devices and systems prioritize curriculum
[2:46:17] aligned educational resources. And so then
[2:46:21] all of these fit into the screen time policy. And, uh, on
[2:46:25] the other end, you'll see, uh, that students require a balance of direct instruction,
[2:46:30] social interaction, and collaboration, physical activity, and hands-on learning.
[2:46:34] we, we have really received a lot of input about that and ensuring that students have that
[2:46:38] whole child approach to learning. Students have access to meaningful
[2:46:42] opportunities with technology, including for assessments, differentiated
[2:46:47] learning, instructional accommodations, assistive technology, digital
[2:46:52] textbooks, ebooks, audiobooks and accessibility tools to help ensure
[2:46:56] that all of our students access learning. And then lastly, effective
[2:47:00] technology, I'm sorry, families are, are also essential partners. And the district
[2:47:04] is committed to clear communication and shared responsibility in
[2:47:08] supporting healthy technology use. And as, uh, acu superintendent ch mentioned
[2:47:13] earlier, this is going to be, um, an iterative po process
[2:47:17] and hearing from our parents and family will be critical as we update this policy. They've been instrumental
[2:47:21] in giving us feedback across our district. And then lastly,
[2:47:25] effective technology, uh, use requires ongoing reflection, evaluation,
[2:47:30] and adaptation. So as the district rolls out the very first grade levels,
[2:47:34] um, with early ed, kinder and first grade with zero minutes, at that point, we'll be able to come
[2:47:38] back and see how things are going in preparation for the rollout of
[2:47:42] the rest of the grade levels. The research and engagement
[2:47:47] that informed this policy, uh, were led by the office of research and program and
[2:47:51] evaluation, uh, and they conducted thorough research. And these are the five themes
[2:47:55] that emerged from the literature review, limiting take
[2:47:59] home devices prior to high school and preserve meaningful parent
[2:48:03] choice design policies and, and
[2:48:07] configure devices to maximize intentional education only use.
[2:48:13] number three, ensuring technology is supplements rather than replaces
[2:48:17] teacher-led instruction. And then
[2:48:21] managing cumulative screen exposure across the school day and homework.
[2:48:26] and then lastly, applying age appropriate guardrails and continuously evaluating
[2:48:30] technology impacts. These were the trends that emerged in the literature review even
[2:48:34] before the surgeon general came out with their, with the, um, suggested,
[2:48:39] uh, minutes. Um, and so the recent surgeon general's advisory after
[2:48:43] the committee of the whole meeting, uh, pointed to the new screen time for children under
[2:48:48] 18 months of age, um, and then one hour a day for students,
[2:48:52] uh, one and a half to six years of age, and a maximum of two hours a day for
[2:48:56] students ages six through 18. So with regards to community
[2:49:01] engagement, the thought exchange was open for two weeks, and approximately
[2:49:05] 19,000 participants gave input. We engaged the elected parent
[2:49:09] committees, labor groups, and conducted regional listening sessions.
[2:49:13] um, and internally we engaged multilingual multicultural education department,
[2:49:18] the special education department, eto and various other offices to
[2:49:22] understand what kinds of differentiation the students would need and when students would need
[2:49:26] technology. Um, and then the emerging themes were strong
[2:49:30] support for zero minutes for early education through grade one.
[2:49:34] we also heard from, uh, the, those that gave input that a balanced approach
[2:49:38] to that prioritizes instructional value, uh, student
[2:49:43] wellbeing and teacher led learning, and then the
[2:49:47] importance of preserving teacher judgment regarding technology use.
[2:49:51] and then, uh, lastly, there was expressed concerns for student focus, attention
[2:49:55] mental health and wellbeing, um, and online safety and privacy. So those are
[2:49:59] some trends that emerged as well. So we can see that there's a level of alignment between the
[2:50:04] research and also what the input was provided and what we've been hearing from the field.
[2:50:10] on may 19th, we provided the board a draft of the screen time, minutes per grade level
[2:50:14] band. And after the surgeon general introduced the 120 minutes of screen time
[2:50:18] per day for ages six and above, we used that as the base for
[2:50:22] grades six through 12. But given that the research shows that less minutes
[2:50:27] should be offered to the lower grades, um, in grades two through five, we
[2:50:31] reduce the minutes in half to follow the research that recommends those,
[2:50:35] those, um, decreases. So that was the methodology used, given
[2:50:39] that at this point, after a lot of research that's been conducted, there's not been
[2:50:44] an established minute grade by grade other than what the resolution called
[2:50:48] for zero minutes in early ed through first grade. And then the surgeon general issued
[2:50:52] the 120 minutes for ages six and above. But knowing that the literature
[2:50:56] says less minutes for elementary as opposed to high school, we
[2:51:00] cut it in half. So in absence of of defined minutes
[2:51:05] in the research, this was our approach.
[2:51:11] the key policy changes between the may 19 draft and the june 23rd
[2:51:15] final version show that going from recommendations to maximum limits.
[2:51:20] um, it also showed, um, so of course we, we received a lot of
[2:51:24] feedback about the recommendations and knowing that the board introduced a resolution in april,
[2:51:28] we turned it around in may. It was very much a draft, so we wanna emphasize it was a draft,
[2:51:32] it was a recommendation. So now we're focusing on maximum limits.
[2:51:37] and then going from general research references to evidence-based research from
[2:51:41] the office of research and program evaluation. So in the policy you'll see
[2:51:45] at the end of the policy, you'll see an appendix that shows what the research, um, consists
[2:51:49] of, and then, um, broad
[2:51:54] guidance to detailed implementation language and then identifying
[2:51:58] specific student groups. And then lastly, from limited parent
[2:52:02] rights language, uh, to expanded transparency and consent
[2:52:06] provisions. And then this was what the language that we
[2:52:10] re, uh, removed, and this is what we replaced it with. We removed non-instructional
[2:52:15] use, shall be discouraged and replaced it with explicit,
[2:52:19] uh, and then restricting of course, and blocking any, uh, providing any blocking requirements.
[2:52:24] we removed broad instructional gaming exception language and replaced it with
[2:52:28] educator directed and approved use exceptions. We removed general
[2:52:32] professional judgment implementation language and replaced it with consistent
[2:52:36] school-wide implementation expectations. And instead of separating
[2:52:41] recommendations for grades six through eight and nine through 12, we provide a clear maximum
[2:52:45] daily and weekly limits.
[2:52:49] the areas of consistency from the may 19th to the june 23rd version are
[2:52:53] that technology supports learning, teacher led instruction remain
[2:52:58] central equity and accessibility remain priorities,
[2:53:02] and students continue to have access to instructional technology.
[2:53:07] the areas that were strengthened were stronger research foundation as shown in
[2:53:11] the appendix, greater parent transparency, more
[2:53:15] explicit protections for student wellbeing and clear expect expectations
[2:53:20] for schools, and of course, expanded safeguards for advertising and
[2:53:24] platform access. And then of course, better alignment. So in the document, you're going to see
[2:53:28] a crosswalk between the resolution language and then the actual page number or
[2:53:32] where, uh, what section you'll be able to find those changes.
[2:53:37] this is the timeline for policy implementation. After the board approves
[2:53:42] the policy, we will host drop-in sessions and, and our new chief academic officer,
[2:53:46] ps komal, has already scheduled meetings with region superintendents starting tomorrow.
[2:53:50] so we're going to begin those, um, sessions with region superintendents.
[2:53:54] send out an informative to, um, our principals before they go on break, letting
[2:53:58] them know about the new policy changes and that it goes into effect in august for early
[2:54:03] ed through first grade. And then, um, when they come back, there'll be office hours. This will
[2:54:07] be also be part of their faculty meeting for teachers and also part of
[2:54:11] the, um, principal leadership institute. So july through
[2:54:15] august, we're going to see professional development at the principal's leadership institute.
[2:54:19] um, there'll be an opportunity for this information at the, um, bank
[2:54:24] time tuesday, we'll provide a, a toolkit for communication so principals
[2:54:28] are clear on what the policy in, uh, entails. And then going
[2:54:32] into november, 2026, we're going to see an implementation in grades two through
[2:54:36] five, ongoing professional development and technical support
[2:54:41] and ongoing fair and, and family engagement by january 20, 26, 27.
[2:54:46] pardon? We'll have an implementation in grades six through seven. Now at this
[2:54:50] point, the resolution calls for us to provide them a number of minutes,
[2:54:54] um, and that will, there'll be reports to parents and so on. The application
[2:54:58] will need to go, um, through the procurement process, and we expect that it'll
[2:55:03] be approved by the fall. And then we'll provide professional development to principals in the use
[2:55:07] of that app so that principals are able to access the data and share it
[2:55:11] with their families, and also make informed decisions, make any changes that are
[2:55:15] required. As, as we see this yellow
[2:55:19] arrow going across continued engagement for feedback, emerging
[2:55:23] research and guidance will be, um, something that continues.
[2:55:28] um, and I also wanna mention that as we are, um, looking at the minutes,
[2:55:33] uh, in the previous slide, uh, one of the things I wanna note is
[2:55:37] that this also includes homework. So the minutes that are listed here
[2:55:41] include homework, um, for every single one of those grade levels bands.
[2:55:46] and at this point, um, that concludes our presentation. Uh, we're open to questions.
[2:55:50] I know we've received a lot of feedback. We've gone through a lot of briefing meetings, and, um,
[2:55:54] um, we're looking forward to receiving your feedback to continue to
[2:55:58] strengthen this policy as you move it forward after the approval. Thank
[2:56:02] you. Thank you, dr. Baez. Now, um, we'll move to, um,
[2:56:06] public comment and then we'll come back for questions for you from board members. All right, thank
[2:56:10] you. We've got 10 folks signed up for public comment. I'll call on the folks listed as being here
[2:56:15] in person first, and then we will call on those who are listed as
[2:56:19] speaking remotely. Uh, luis lopez, are you here? Luis
[2:56:23] lopez, come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin and after.
[2:56:27] uh, mr. Lopez. Lopez is anya meen and
[2:56:32] dr. Deanna stein.
[2:56:39] good afternoon board members. My name is luis lopez and I'm with alliance for a better community.
[2:56:45] I am here today to urge l-a-u-s-d to take an equity centered
[2:56:49] approach as it considers, uh, student technology use and policies
[2:56:53] surrounding student technology use. We agree that students
[2:56:57] need balanced technology use and that technology should be used intentionally
[2:57:02] in the classroom. However, we must be careful not
[2:57:06] to adopt blanket restrictions that create new barriers for students,
[2:57:10] particularly those from low income communities.
[2:57:15] for many l-a-u-s-d families, school issue devices and digital
[2:57:19] learning tools are not just supplemental resources. They are essential
[2:57:23] resources. Reducing access without considering the realities many
[2:57:28] families face could widen gaps between students who have technology and
[2:57:32] internet access at home and those who do not. We had
[2:57:36] a parent from elizabeth learning center and they shared that they support
[2:57:40] students learning with technology because it is an important part of their future,
[2:57:45] but she also believes, you know, there must be a balance as students also need that real
[2:57:49] human connection. Again, our goal is not to
[2:57:54] advocate for more screen time necessarily, but we are asking that the
[2:57:58] implementation of this policy reflects the needs of all l-a-u-s-d
[2:58:02] students. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Anya meen,
[2:58:06] come on up, anya. And then after ms. Meen is dr.
[2:58:11] deanna stein and then, uh, lila bock.
[2:58:17] lila bock. Hi,
[2:58:21] my name is anya meen and be, and on behalf of the entire schools beyond screens
[2:58:25] membership, we wanna thank you for all of your efforts thus far to establish
[2:58:29] a safe, intentional, and evidence-based technology policy for l-a-u-s-d.
[2:58:34] we are pleased to see the significant updates that have been made between the draft policy presented
[2:58:38] at the may committee of the whole and the policy being voted on today. However,
[2:58:42] there are still three crucial issues we hope you will address through table amendments
[2:58:46] to the policy today. First, we are alarmed to see that the limit for grades
[2:58:51] two through five has actually increased from the draft policy to 60 minutes per day.
[2:58:55] we strongly advocate for a return to the original proposed limits of 20 minutes
[2:58:59] per day for grades two to three and 30 minutes per day for grades four to five.
[2:59:03] we also suggest extending the total device ban to second grade as
[2:59:07] numerous other districts have already done. Second, we are still extremely
[2:59:11] concerned about the limits for grades six to 12 being organized in a way
[2:59:16] that is impossible for teachers to enforce or monitor. We continue
[2:59:20] to insist that weekly minutes organized by subject is the only realistic
[2:59:24] approach for middle and high school. So teachers in different subject areas can plan their
[2:59:28] screen use independently. And third, we are reiterating our urgent call
[2:59:33] for an ai moratorium until the ad hoc committee submits its final
[2:59:37] report. The existing ai policy is sorely outdated, leaving
[2:59:41] students, teachers, and parents without essential guidance regarding the use of these rapidly changing
[2:59:45] tools. Given the lack of clear benefits to generative ai in education
[2:59:50] and the significant well-documented harms to children's cognitive and mental health,
[2:59:54] a temporary ban is the only reasonable approach to keeping kids safe
[2:59:58] while the ad hoc committee completes its work. And finally, on the subject
[3:00:03] of mr. Carlo's resignation, schools beyond screens strongly endorses
[3:00:07] making acting superintendent chase's position permanent. We believe
[3:00:11] mr. Ch has demonstrated tremendous character, vision and transparency
[3:00:15] while leading l-a-u-s-d through this difficult transition, and we look forward to continuing
[3:00:20] to work with him on the implementation of this historic policy. Thank you so
[3:00:24] much. Thank you for your time. Uh, dr. Deanna stein,
[3:00:28] come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[3:00:35] hi, my name is dini echstein. I'm a clinical psychologist and
[3:00:39] parent in l-a-u-s-d. First, I wanna thank you for voting yes on
[3:00:43] the using technology with intention resolution and for taking a huge step in
[3:00:47] giving children what they deserve, a safe and distraction free learning environment.
[3:00:52] since I only have two minutes, I'd like to quickly propose some table amendments to
[3:00:56] strengthen the policy. Part of my work with sbs is collecting teacher
[3:01:00] and administrator feedback to help us understand how to improve educational
[3:01:05] outcomes. Thankfully, this policy proposes much of what we suggested,
[3:01:10] however, some of the vague language burden schools with a lack of clarity when it
[3:01:14] comes to implementation. One area to amend is appendix
[3:01:18] c, page 63, consider prohibiting
[3:01:22] and or blocking the use of non-instructional gaming platforms like roblox
[3:01:26] and fortnite. Did you know on roblox you can have an experience
[3:01:31] as the school shooter at sandy hook elementary? You can hear the screams
[3:01:35] of the kids as the shooter makes their way through the hallways and see the names of the children massacred
[3:01:40] at the end. Roblox rated this experience eight and up.
[3:01:44] do you still wanna just consider blocking the gaming platform or do you think we should
[3:01:48] ban it? It's quite literally up to you. Many students are desperately
[3:01:52] trying to focus and can't because I quote, all everyone is doing
[3:01:56] in class is playing video games. Students deserve a safe and distraction-free
[3:02:01] learning environment, and this policy can make that right ironclad.
[3:02:05] please don't leave it up to schools whether they ban video games or how they
[3:02:09] could block harmful content with a safe list of approved websites.
[3:02:14] appendix b, page 59. Please amend words like consider
[3:02:18] and could to should and block. This
[3:02:22] is language that schools can clearly implement. Thank you for helping us protect
[3:02:26] our kids' educational experience. Thank you for your time.
[3:02:32] uh, lila bock, leila bock.
[3:02:37] it goes in my brain one time and it sticks. I apologize.
[3:02:44] hi. Yep. I'm leila bock. Um, I'm the founder of schools beyond screens,
[3:02:48] and I just wanna say that the process of bringing this policy into existence has restored
[3:02:52] my faith in democracy. . A year and a half ago, I began to sense there was
[3:02:56] something deeply wrong about the level of big tech influence in my children's school.
[3:03:00] I gathered some allies and we came to you, our elected representatives to talk about how to fix
[3:03:04] this problem. And through a lot of back and forth we've arrived at this document, which,
[3:03:09] although far from perfect, is going to improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of students and
[3:03:13] teachers throughout l-a-u-s-d. Not only that, but we're setting a new standard for the rest
[3:03:17] of the country, from atlanta to dc to houston. They're all trying to do
[3:03:21] what we're doing here today. Um, board member ortiz franklin, uh,
[3:03:25] spoke when she spoke about the resolution back in april. She said, when we know better, we do better.
[3:03:29] and I found that incredibly moving. 10 years ago, we bought the narrative
[3:03:34] from the tech companies that the only way to prepare our students for the future was to
[3:03:38] hand each of them a chromebook or an ipad. Now we know better and all of
[3:03:42] us collectively are working to create a different kind of future for our kids.
[3:03:46] so that's the good news. The bad news is that we're making the same mistakes
[3:03:50] we made with the chromebooks right now, again, with ai once again, right
[3:03:54] on queue, we have the tech companies threatening us that our students will be left behind
[3:03:59] if we don't buy their products. But this time their threats ring hollow
[3:04:03] because on the other side of the debate, we've got every scientist and doctor and education
[3:04:07] expert who studied this technology telling us not only does it not benefit
[3:04:11] the learning process, it's actively harmful to students cognition and
[3:04:15] mental health. Even the pope agrees every day a new study
[3:04:19] is published with dire warnings about how dangerous these tools are for children. Google
[3:04:24] gemini, which is currently enabled on all district devices, has been deemed high
[3:04:28] risk for kids by common sense media. We've basically got flashing
[3:04:32] lights and sirens blaring at us not to put this technology in schools.
[3:04:36] we cannot wait another decade while children are harmed. 1100 supporters
[3:04:41] have already signed our petition in the last five days, demanding a temporary moratorium
[3:04:45] on generative ai use and lusd until the ad hoc committee completes its recommendations,
[3:04:50] we know better. Let's do better. Let's show america that democracy
[3:04:54] is more powerful than the tech companies. Thank you for your time.
[3:04:58] alright, the next speaker is john wooden. Come on up. John w
[3:05:04] all right, I'm gonna see if mr. W is online with us
[3:05:10] now. Uh, mire garcia, are you here? Mire,
[3:05:15] come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin
[3:05:30] translation headsets. Oh, okay. So, uh, the speaker's gonna speak
[3:05:34] in spanish, so if you'd like to hear what she's saying in english, please put your hands up and we'll get you these
[3:05:38] translation headsets so you can experience simultaneous trans
[3:05:43] translation.
[3:06:22] okay, thank you. Good
[3:06:26] afternoon. My name is good afternoon, my member families.
[3:06:30] my name is maria garcia and I am here as a mom and a grandma.
[3:06:34] I'm here. I'm speaking now for my daughter and my granddaughters, but for other parents
[3:06:38] and families that share the same concern
[3:06:43] as any mother, any grandmother, I want the best for my daughters and my granddaughters.
[3:06:47] I want them to grow up healthy and happy and ready to learn and
[3:06:51] to have the same opportunities as other children. I understand the concern
[3:06:55] about the too much time behind screens, but the students
[3:07:00] need to explore, play, read, talk to their families, and spend
[3:07:04] time away from screens. But I do ask you please to be
[3:07:08] careful because sometimes a policy that has the intention of helping,
[3:07:12] maybe it has consequences that can harm children, especially
[3:07:16] for, uh, students and low income families. I am not
[3:07:21] asking more time for screens. I am asking for a balance.
[3:07:25] not all the time behind screens is the same. There's a difference between seeing, watching videos
[3:07:30] and using a new learning tool. And it helps
[3:07:35] that will help a student read to learn words and to practice
[3:07:39] language or receiving additional support. In my home, we have a computer
[3:07:43] that we share. Among many members of my family, many, uh,
[3:07:47] families can buy additional devices, uh,
[3:07:51] learning tools, tutoring, or other device or other tools
[3:07:56] in schools where many children have access to these tools. And I want
[3:08:00] for my children and my granddaughters and all children have the same opportunity
[3:08:04] to learn just like the children that live in, uh, communities
[3:08:08] with, uh, more resources. I don't want them to lose access
[3:08:12] to tools that can help them read to learn and to be successful. So please
[3:08:17] consider amendments before continuing forward. Please
[3:08:21] create, uh, clear guidelines while grade level, separate the,
[3:08:26] uh, creation time, uh, behind screens in learning tools, and listen to
[3:08:30] families and educators as you implement this policy. As a mother
[3:08:34] and grandmother, I want students to be, uh, protected from
[3:08:38] too much time behind screens, but I also want them to have access to the tools they need to be able to learn
[3:08:42] and prosper. Thank you. The next speaker is katie pace.
[3:08:47] kdp katie pace are you're here. Come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you
[3:08:51] begin.
[3:09:02] good morning. I wanna thank you for listening to our pleas and the experts
[3:09:06] and lowering the minute restrictions for our six to 12 grade levels. However, the
[3:09:10] policy still has these minutes listed cumulatively, but as you said previously,
[3:09:14] middle and high school is more nuanced than that. They have anywhere from four to eight classes
[3:09:19] a day leaving not only a lot of room for error with the guidelines, but requiring additional
[3:09:23] time from teachers to collaborate in minute distribution. We're asking that you please list the
[3:09:27] minute restrictions by subject per week so that teachers can maintain their autonomy
[3:09:31] guidelines, have a higher success rate, and screen time homework is more easily managed.
[3:09:36] speaking of homework, the policies chart about use guidelines says that all grade
[3:09:40] levels should default to no one-to-one take home devices. But
[3:09:44] in the homework use guidelines, section five d, it says, schools and educators are
[3:09:48] encouraged to provide only elementary and middle school students with offscreen homework options.
[3:09:52] high school needs to be included in this as all students should have analog homework opportunities.
[3:09:57] these students are still learning how to write by hand and to solve and organized math problems
[3:10:01] on paper, and they need encouragement to do so. In addition, high schoolers need
[3:10:06] to be added to the section that prohibits students from using their devices during passing periods, lunch and
[3:10:10] snack times. This is a critical period of socialization for high school, vital
[3:10:14] for healthy human development, and the time is instead often used for watching videos and
[3:10:18] surfing the internet. I'm also asking that you please push the six to 12 implementation
[3:10:23] date of all of this to august. It will not only cause more confusion and chaos starting in
[3:10:27] january. Sorry, I lost my place. Um,
[3:10:31] and teens will be spending five additional months with their, with their eyes and brains glued
[3:10:35] to a screen. Lastly, this morning, the la times ran a story about a recent national
[3:10:39] study that says nine out of 10 kids ages nine to 17 are using ai
[3:10:44] and a quarter of them are using it for homework. Especially those who struggle with math skills or
[3:10:48] writing essays. We cannot just expect kids not to use ai. These devices
[3:10:52] are like candy and ai is just giving them their fixes faster. We have to be the
[3:10:56] adults in the room, the ones that take it away from them. Please enact to complete
[3:11:00] ai moratorium until you have an ad hoc committee, until you have ad hoc committee recommendations.
[3:11:04] because right now none of this is proven safe, especially for children. And we
[3:11:08] have no seat belts. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[3:11:13] alright, the next speaker is listed as calling in kate brody. Kate
[3:11:18] brody, are you in the room? Um, kate is actually stuck in an airplane and asked if she
[3:11:22] could donate her time to william gerard. She's unable to call in.
[3:11:27] is william here? Come on up, william. Let's do it. Two minutes please.
[3:11:40] hi, uh, my name is william gerard and I'm a member of schools beyond screens,
[3:11:45] as well as an l-a-s-u-s-d parent. I I'm here today to oppose
[3:11:49] the sudden increase in screen time, uh, limits for elementary, uh,
[3:11:53] students in grades two through five. These limits were tripled for second and
[3:11:57] third graders and doubled for fourth and fifth graders without any advanced notice
[3:12:01] or opportunity for feedback. There is no pedagogical justification for
[3:12:05] elementary students to spend an hour of their daily instructional time on a
[3:12:09] screen. I'm strongly advocating for a return to the original proposed limits of
[3:12:13] 20 minutes per day for grades two to three and 30 minutes per day for
[3:12:18] grades four to five. I'm also advocating for an extension of the one-to-one device
[3:12:22] span to include second grade, which has already been done by several other districts, including
[3:12:26] beverly hills. Second graders need to build foundational reading, writing,
[3:12:31] and attention skills through research-backed multimodal instruction,
[3:12:35] not gamified apps. Ample time exists in third grade to
[3:12:39] practice for state assessments and become familiar with the digital tools necessary to complete these
[3:12:43] tests. It is already standard practice for, uh, in l-a-u-s-d
[3:12:48] for third graders to prepare for these assessments by taking practice tests. So having an
[3:12:52] entire additional year of exposure to addictive devices is both
[3:12:56] unnecessary and poses risks that can be easily be avoided. Um,
[3:13:00] I also wanna call attention to the confusion around I-ready and ixl minutes being exempt
[3:13:04] from the screen time policy. The only exemptions mentioned in the policy are for
[3:13:09] district and state mandated assessments, not for practice minutes. And
[3:13:13] it's essential that the district eliminate the confusion to prevent completely undermining the intent
[3:13:17] of this policy. Since I-ready and ixl practice minutes are
[3:13:21] the main culprits in excessive screen time, uh, that the board is trying to combat.
[3:13:26] finally, it was recently communicated by the district that moving forward I-ready
[3:13:30] practice minutes would only be used for students below grade level. This seems to
[3:13:34] be a disaster for equity if only, if only underperforming students are forced
[3:13:38] to use an inferior product with no research backed efficacy as a
[3:13:42] remedial tool. One, which is also being sued for privacy violations of
[3:13:46] student data. Thank you. Thank you for your time. The next speaker is
[3:13:51] andy self. I see you're online with us. Please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes
[3:13:55] to speak once you begin. Andy self.
[3:14:00] hi. Can you hear me? We sure can. Please go ahead. Thank
[3:14:04] you. Thank you superintendent and board members. I appreciate the work that you
[3:14:08] have done to, uh, create this policy for us. It's been
[3:14:12] a long time coming and I really do appreciate it. Um, I'd like to speak
[3:14:17] about equity and equitable enforcement across schools. In terms of this policy,
[3:14:22] I'd like to highlight that the policy treats adolescents in grade six through 12
[3:14:26] as adult adjacent. It's, uh, critical in grade six through 12 to continue
[3:14:30] to support our kids during the most dynamic period of brain development
[3:14:34] that is second only to infancy. They're wiring new neural connections between
[3:14:39] brain regions that will shape their adult abilities. This
[3:14:43] policy assumes that screen time can be measured and enforced consistently
[3:14:47] across schools, in and classrooms. It cannot not all
[3:14:51] students process information at the same speed, tolerate screen exposure the same way,
[3:14:55] or have the same neurological medical and developmental needs. Students with
[3:15:00] a dhd migraines, visual impairments, anxiety, autism,
[3:15:04] or even 5 0 4 accommodations may need significantly more time
[3:15:08] to complete the exact same digital assignment or needed on paper.
[3:15:12] equal screen limits do not produce equal access to learning. My
[3:15:16] daughter is twice exceptional with a 5 0 4 allowing paper-based work. She's
[3:15:20] in middle school, seventh grade, yet she was still graded on I-ready practice
[3:15:24] minutes in her algebra class. She could not tolerate additional screen time
[3:15:28] after a full school day. The proposed solution by the school
[3:15:33] was not to provide an equivalent off-screen alternative per her 5 0 4,
[3:15:37] but to find another time during the day to put her in front of a screen
[3:15:41] that is not accommodation. That or equity that is a relocation
[3:15:45] of a barrier. I would urge the board to focus not only on limits,
[3:15:50] but on consistent enforcement across schools classrooms,
[3:15:54] meaningful off-screen alternatives and protections for students whose disabilities
[3:15:59] medical conditions or learning differences make prolong screen exposure
[3:16:03] a barrier to learning. Thank you very much. Thank
[3:16:07] you for your time. The next remote speaker is amanda walsh baker. I see
[3:16:11] you're online with us. Please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to
[3:16:16] speak once you begin. Amanda walsh baker.
[3:16:22] hi, this is amanda walsh baker. I would like to yield my time to amy
[3:16:27] del who is there in person. Please come on down, ms. Del. Thank you.
[3:16:31] uh, you'll have about two minutes to speak once you begin. Hi, welcome.
[3:16:36] I mean, I'm used to being the librarian at school and saying, welcome to the library.
[3:16:40] my name is ms. B, that's how you can remember me. So
[3:16:45] I am very fortunate to be a library technician in one of our elementary schools.
[3:16:49] I'm also a proud member of csea, anyone proud member
[3:16:53] of schools beyond screens as well. So I'm here to
[3:16:58] ask for a moratorium on ai. I believe we
[3:17:02] should not dive into something unknown before we fund something
[3:17:06] that is known. Parents and guardians are often surprised
[3:17:11] that our district does not present any kind of a budget for library
[3:17:15] books. We don't have any specific budget line for that. So what
[3:17:19] does that have to do with edtech? Edtech contracts, when you look at them,
[3:17:23] can amount to almost $2,000 per student. The american library
[3:17:28] association recommends $10 per student per
[3:17:32] year to create dynamic uptodate libraries.
[3:17:36] that's all it would take. It's easy math. 10 times around 400,000
[3:17:40] could solve an equity issue that we have in the district. We have the
[3:17:45] devices, but we don't have physical books. The physical books are
[3:17:49] what contribute the most to our literacy. My students love the library,
[3:17:53] and we are fortunate that our library is in really great shape. The reason for
[3:17:57] that, my principal would say is because I'm scrappy. There is not
[3:18:01] a grant or a fundraiser that I don't love and chase like a dog with
[3:18:05] a bone. We also are fortunate to be in a community where
[3:18:10] our families can contribute. That is not equitable. That does
[3:18:14] not pertain to most of the students in our district. Seeing that
[3:18:18] inequity has been heartbreaking. I also, as a librarian,
[3:18:22] have witnessed the dysregulation that comes with devices at school.
[3:18:26] and so I would encourage more physical media for all of our schools and particularly
[3:18:31] our libraries. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you for your time.
[3:18:38] that concludes public comment for tab two.
[3:18:43] thank you for all the public, uh, comments today. Um, so
[3:18:47] now the floor is open for board members to, for questions.
[3:18:51] mr. Vin, I see you. Great. Thank you dr. Rivas. Um, and thanks to
[3:18:55] our, our speakers and advocates, um, uh, and thanks to the team,
[3:18:59] I'm a lot of gratitude and then I'll get to some thoughts and, and a few amendments.
[3:19:03] but, um, thanks to the team for the work on this policy. Uh, there
[3:19:07] were a lot of turnarounds and that you really, um, as was said by some of our speakers engaged
[3:19:12] with the board offices and with the community and with experts. So to dr. Baez, to
[3:19:16] dr. Estrada, to superintendent sha, to um, to, uh,
[3:19:20] to douglas and to dominic, uh, and to, um,
[3:19:24] pia and to everyone. So just a lot of gratitude and of course to the advocates and the partners and
[3:19:28] the parents, um, who, uh, help bring this to fruition.
[3:19:32] um, when I, uh, you know,
[3:19:36] was looking at the policy, um, in preparation for today and, and the iterations,
[3:19:41] um, you know, I was struck as has been present. It's not perfect, but,
[3:19:45] um, and I'll, I'll bring some amendments, but, uh, it's an incredibly
[3:19:50] robust and groundbreaking document. Um, and as has been said
[3:19:54] is going to be, um, I think the basis for reform throughout
[3:19:59] the country, if not the world. And I remember when, you know, I first met with some
[3:20:03] of the parents in the audience, and when my office was looking at this independently a few years ago,
[3:20:07] we were looking for something like this to guide what we did in la we were
[3:20:11] looking at districts, we were looking at independent schools, colleges, universities, and nothing was out there.
[3:20:15] and we now have the surgeon general guidance that came after this resolution.
[3:20:19] very much like how the surgeon general's warning on, uh, smartphone
[3:20:23] use as an epidemic akin to smoking and tobacco use came, I
[3:20:28] think the day that I, I brought that resolution on cell phone use. Um, and so it
[3:20:32] made it much harder because there wasn't something to look at, um, and model. But it
[3:20:36] is gonna be the basis. And we've already heard, I think as we mentioned at the committee of the whole,
[3:20:40] from dozens of districts of all sizes who are trying to adopt this. And I think that will
[3:20:44] continue. First the resolution, but now this is the meat of the policy. So, um, you know, just
[3:20:48] want to acknowledge, uh, how groundbreaking this is. And, and with change, you know, change is hard.
[3:20:52] change requires change management. Um, we're not, you know, these are iterative processes.
[3:20:57] this isn't gonna be perfect in its first or even third draft form, but, but it's really
[3:21:01] exciting and the team deserves a lot of credit. Um, there's more work
[3:21:05] to be done coming outta the resolution. One of the things I do love in the policy, dr. Baez, is the crosswalk
[3:21:09] from the resolution to the policy. I think all of our policies should have that.
[3:21:13] for those who haven't seen, it was great. There's an appendix that says, here's what says, it
[3:21:17] says in the resolution. Here's where you find that in the policy. So just a great practice for transparency's
[3:21:22] sake. So really appreciate that. You know, there's the comprehensive itemized report of
[3:21:26] contracts related to classroom technology that we still have to see the professional development
[3:21:30] for teachers and admin updates, the responsible use policy, uh, and the
[3:21:35] student and family consent form, the ad hoc ai committee that's been addressed that ms.
[3:21:39] uh, ez and ms. Ortiz franklin and I will be on, um, the, uh,
[3:21:43] I-ready findings. Um, and I think more differentiation between the assessment
[3:21:47] tool and the mypath. Um, and so those discussions will come. Um,
[3:21:51] I also am glad that since the committee of the whole, the team has headed the initial
[3:21:55] policy and added restrictions around pe uh, the o uh, orpi
[3:22:00] research, the, um, sections on advertising commercial content
[3:22:04] and generative ai and llms, as well as more information on the parenting guardian
[3:22:08] rights, including sections, um, clarifying opt-in and procedures.
[3:22:12] and I do, because we heard from advocates before and today, we don't want to be clear that
[3:22:16] for families, um, who have economic needs that require the district
[3:22:21] to provide devices as we have for years and have been a, a leader in that,
[3:22:25] his policy does allow that, um, and wanna make sure that we don't, aren't
[3:22:29] creating barriers to student access to technology. And it also doesn't prohibit, um, parent
[3:22:33] student use of that device, uh, for pursuing own, whether that's tutoring or
[3:22:37] literacy tools. Um, it has guidelines that do include homework. Uh, and, and I'll
[3:22:42] note too, that the surgeon general's guidelines are for the whole day, not just the school
[3:22:46] day. And we know that students are going home to a lot of screen time. Um,
[3:22:50] and, and I think there's an equity argument to be made about why these have to be tight, because we also know, and
[3:22:54] this was true with cell phones, that, that a lot of parents who are working multiple jobs, those
[3:22:58] are the students who are often on screens, um, when more affluent students and
[3:23:02] families, you know, are at camps and enrichment. Um, and it, it was kind
[3:23:06] of like when we brought the cell phone ban, a lot of these independent schools had in
[3:23:10] the, um, in silicon valley and la had banned cell phones years ago because they knew
[3:23:15] the harms. And similarly, so I, I think when we, when we think about,
[3:23:19] uh, the equity piece, it's making sure that parents have access to devices, but
[3:23:23] also that we're thinking about the whole day and understanding what happens when kids get home. Um,
[3:23:27] uh, and, uh, so, so want to note that and appreciate the advocacy that that
[3:23:31] has come to make sure that the pendulums doesn't swing too far in one direction. Um, I,
[3:23:36] I do have some concerns regarding, um, the, uh, the guidelines,
[3:23:40] uh, you know, as they've advanced or as they've evolved and screen, uh,
[3:23:44] since the first draft. Um, and so I have a few amendments that relate
[3:23:49] to, uh, to that. Um, and then also, uh, around,
[3:23:53] uh, um, middle school based on subjects, um, which
[3:23:57] is something I brought up at the cow. Um, and same with high school as well. Uh, so
[3:24:02] I think, um, the easiest thing to do is maybe just read from
[3:24:06] these amendments that I'd sent to the board secretary and have hard copies of for the board. Um,
[3:24:11] and I will, I will pass out. Um,
[3:24:15] thank you, mr. Mclean. Um, and,
[3:24:19] uh, the, the amendment here too, for the is one page, but it, it, um, refers to
[3:24:24] two pages in the policy. So on page seven, and I know there may be more conversation around the monitor
[3:24:28] accountability and continuous improvement, um, section, but it
[3:24:32] just adds the, um, it adds families to the feedback loop.
[3:24:36] the policy said the first annual review of this policy shall include feedback from
[3:24:40] educators regarding policy implementation. I think we just wanna include families as well.
[3:24:45] um, and then I think the most, um, uh,
[3:24:49] important amendments that I'd like to bring, um, and have shared, have shared with
[3:24:53] the administrative team are, are around the, um, around
[3:24:57] the limits. And so I would like to go back to kind of the original draft that
[3:25:01] delineates grades two and three, separately and grades four and five. And
[3:25:05] for grades two and three limits at, uh, zero to 20 minutes per day or
[3:25:09] a hundred minutes per week. Homework included. Guidance will be provided for
[3:25:14] grades four to five limits, zero to 30 minutes per day, or zero
[3:25:18] to 150 minutes per week. Um, grades six through eight
[3:25:22] limits, uh, zero to 60 minutes per subject per week,
[3:25:27] um, homework included. And then grades nine to 12 limits of zero to 90
[3:25:31] minutes per subject, uh, per week. Um, if that
[3:25:35] is at least for, um, elementary school,
[3:25:39] uh, goes back to kind of the, the first draft and, and with the caveat of homework and then
[3:25:43] has some changes for secondary, uh, both limiting the time and then specifying
[3:25:47] subjects. Um, I do think that is easier being a middle school teacher myself in
[3:25:52] the past, it's harder for teacher in elementary school, one teacher who can decide
[3:25:56] kind of what you're doing on tuesday and then what, what the balance is on homework and, and
[3:26:00] in class instruction. Much harder for teachers and secondary to coordinate across,
[3:26:04] you know, five or six subjects. So I think that makes more sense. So, um,
[3:26:09] those are the amendments that I, I move. Um, if there's a second,
[3:26:13] I would appreciate second. Oh, thank you both, second and third. Um,
[3:26:17] and then I will pass the floor back to the chair, uh, to, um, continue the conversation
[3:26:21] on other amendments. But those amendments I'm, I'm bringing in. Again, I just wanna thank everyone, um, more
[3:26:26] work to be do, done, including with our ad hoc committee on ai. Uh, but incredibly exciting
[3:26:30] work, uh, and proud to be a part of it. So thank you.
[3:26:39] so it's dis yeah, they're gonna discuss the amendments they're
[3:26:43] being posted online right now, and my staff are printing copies for folks in the audience right now.
[3:26:49] I, I don't know if I should pose this as a friendly amendment to the, uh, one that's just been raised, but mine
[3:26:54] was on, uh, section 12 on, uh, including families on the
[3:26:58] data. Um, so passing that one around as well. And, and nick's
[3:27:02] also mentions adding families. So mine is just a little bit more including students parents
[3:27:07] on their perceptions of screen time. I think we talked about this when the reso came up.
[3:27:11] um, whether it's through the school experience survey or some sort of structure
[3:27:15] to hear from folks, uh, how as much, not enough. And I think we should be asking that
[3:27:19] of families, uh, staff, but also the students themselves. Um, and from my
[3:27:23] understanding, staff has looked at this and thought, you know, that might work. So I don't know if this is a, a friendly
[3:27:27] amendment. I, I looks it to me. So I would accept it as friendly. Great. And then I'll just say for
[3:27:31] the, um, the timing that you suggested, I think that, um,
[3:27:36] aligns with, with my vision. I appreciate the team considering the surgeon
[3:27:40] general's, um, guidance. And I think the biggest part of this,
[3:27:44] uh, resolution was about limiting. And so the increase in minutes is,
[3:27:48] is concerning. So I, I support, um, reducing it back to the original idea.
[3:27:53] um, all the red line edits I think are, are going in the right direction. I have some other
[3:27:57] questions, but I'll, I'll leave it there to just focus on your amendment.
[3:28:05] just to clarify, nick, for the high school nine through 12,
[3:28:10] um, so I was looking zero to 90 minutes per subject per
[3:28:14] week. So if it's six periods, it would add up to five 40, which is
[3:28:18] less than what is suggested right now. But some of our schools have eight periods
[3:28:22] and some have seven periods, so that could potentially make it more
[3:28:26] minutes. Right. Am I doing that so that
[3:28:30] that's concerns me? The, the per subject concerns me because of that?
[3:28:34] yeah. And I'm curious, I'm curious for dr. Bias's input on this too. I mean, I think it is
[3:28:39] in high school, the policy also does contemplate as has been discussed here that certain classes
[3:28:43] like computer science or graphic design or yearbook or I was the editor of
[3:28:47] my high school newspaper when we did layout, like that's done on a computer. So, um, you know,
[3:28:51] I think the, the, obviously the spirit of the resolution is to limit as much as possible.
[3:28:56] I think the, um, for, for
[3:29:00] ease of implementation with teachers, even in that eight period day, making sure
[3:29:04] that they're thinking about their class and their screen time is gonna be easier than coordinating with
[3:29:09] seven other teachers. Um, but I think this is where
[3:29:13] that, that feedback loop would be helpful if those students are spending a lot more time on a device,
[3:29:17] um, because they have more periods. It's a kind of an inadvertent loophole in the policy.
[3:29:21] so I'm open, I'm, it's a good question. I don't know dr. Baez kind of, yeah, it,
[3:29:25] it's a good question that you raise. However, when you have, for example, a block schedule and
[3:29:29] classes are two hours long, um, so that would really help with saying we're
[3:29:33] reducing the number of minutes, even though it's a two hour block of, um, schedule, we're
[3:29:38] reducing it to 90 minutes instead of having 120, it's actually less. So I think maybe some
[3:29:42] language there that, you know, um, that is like proportionate to the number of
[3:29:46] periods per day so that people can see that it's really, um, just
[3:29:51] depending on what their schedule is. So the language will probably need to
[3:29:55] be written in such a way that says that's, that is personalized
[3:29:59] per school schedule, um, but not to exceed a certain amount of minutes,
[3:30:04] maybe a certain amount of minutes per week at that point then yeah. So it does not exceed
[3:30:09] the weekly minutes. Yeah. Yeah. Wondering that might be an option. Can I just ask another
[3:30:13] question, dr. Baez, in my same question. Um,
[3:30:18] what was the feedback from educators around this, if, if there was any,
[3:30:22] around what they felt would be more manageable in
[3:30:26] terms of per subject or per week?
[3:30:31] yep. So in terms for dating, so overall they felt that their,
[3:30:35] they, the thought exchange here, um, those results were pretty much comparable to what
[3:30:40] teachers said in terms of concerns for students' focus.
[3:30:44] and they really wanted to have the teacher be the person making the
[3:30:49] decision maker about how many minutes and what the type of engagement would be for the students.
[3:30:53] for secondary, the secondary level. The question is how do you monitor
[3:30:58] the, the screen time in period six for period one, period two,
[3:31:02] the very thing that you're all raising right now is we don't have a mechanism for that, but your
[3:31:06] language here would help us. Okay, say that this is the amount of minutes it'll help them monitor. That
[3:31:10] was the biggest concern is there, there's not gonna be a way for them to monitor period by period.
[3:31:15] alright, thank you. I'll pause for there
[3:31:20] along the same lines. Um, in secondary, is it subject
[3:31:24] or classes? So I know we're talking block schedule, we're talking,
[3:31:28] um, uh, classes versus a subject that
[3:31:32] may come under social studies. You may have, or math you may have a block,
[3:31:36] you have, uh, intervention course as well as the other course.
[3:31:41] that's still the math subject for the day, but they're two different classes.
[3:31:46] so I'm not sure when we modify or look at this.
[3:31:51] maybe that's to, to the author, the
[3:31:56] subject versus the classes. Yeah. To, to
[3:32:00] me it would be per course. Okay. So it, it's the courses of
[3:32:04] the day. So it means if you have to, what we were mentioning, you have eight classes
[3:32:08] a day or eight classes. 'cause most of the eight classes are block
[3:32:12] schedules and not most, most schools aren't, period. And they're not. And so when it's block
[3:32:17] schedule, remember that students don't meet with their teacher every day. Correct. So it's like maybe two
[3:32:21] times a week. So just to acknowledge that a period or or subject
[3:32:26] could take place in a period and period could be two hours long. We're not gonna have students sitting there
[3:32:30] for 120 minutes because it's two hours long. So we wanna make sure that we
[3:32:34] don't exceed a certain amount of minutes because I think the, the spirit of the resolution
[3:32:38] here is, or the amendment is the 90 minutes per subject.
[3:32:43] got it. And, and I guess the, the tool that we are going to present
[3:32:48] is to supposed to help keep track of
[3:32:52] the device that is used or how, how do you keep track?
[3:32:57] the, the application that we will be procured will, the expectation is
[3:33:01] that we'll be tracking the minutes on the screen and then we will be able to,
[3:33:05] um, present or share that with, um, parents. Um, principals will see it,
[3:33:09] teachers will see it, and we're able to track the minutes on the screen. Got
[3:33:13] it. Any other yes, ms
[3:33:18] ez? Yeah, it's a little, it's a little bit hard to follow, but, um, I,
[3:33:23] I think, well, I will just appreciate the amendment. I do think also having been a secondary teacher that
[3:33:27] doing it on a like class by class basis makes a ton of sense from
[3:33:31] a teacher perspective. Um, I wasn't clear on the back
[3:33:35] and forth with board member diego. If the idea was, then we'd also supplement this
[3:33:39] with like, um, an upper limit on the weekly minutes. Is it like,
[3:33:44] I'm looking at grades nine to 12, for example, zero to 90 minutes per subject per week
[3:33:49] with no more than, I dunno, 450 minutes a week. Four
[3:33:53] example. Is that yeah, I like what she was suggesting. I mean, the original
[3:33:58] policy had, um, a recommendation of 91 80 minutes.
[3:34:02] so 180 would be what, 900 minutes
[3:34:06] a week? Which I think is high. I think her suggestion was if you have a six course, um,
[3:34:11] schedule, you're at 540 minutes a weekly max. And so maybe you create a
[3:34:15] buffer there for those and you, I mean, you get a little arbitrary, but you say something like 600
[3:34:20] or, um, you know, but no greater than 600 or no greater than six 50.
[3:34:24] so I, I would be open to an amendment along those lines for those
[3:34:28] secondary schools that have, you know, an eight period
[3:34:32] schedule. But I think that's what she was getting at.
[3:34:37] if I can add, I, I think the tool that we have will help us gather that data and then
[3:34:41] we can also share that with principals, right? So they can see, oh, on average my school
[3:34:45] is, you know, approaching the 500, 600 minutes per week. Um, so that the
[3:34:50] teachers don't have to coordinate with each other, but they can see it at the, the school aid level.
[3:34:54] dr. Price is nodding, but maybe you wanna add something about that's okay. That's correct. Great.
[3:35:00] and any other questions? Okay,
[3:35:04] I was just gonna say board member griego, ms. Ez was asking for like, do, do you wanna make an amendment
[3:35:09] a friendly amendment with the, a weekly limit, like 600
[3:35:13] or something for, to address? 'cause you're right, the zero to 90 minutes per subject per week, if
[3:35:17] you have a six subject period, it's 540 minutes.
[3:35:26] yeah. Just as, but there was kind of an arbitrariness to, to that. Oh yeah, sure. I'll
[3:35:30] make a friendly amendment to, um, to do it. Um, right
[3:35:34] now it is in the policy, is it 600? I'm sorry, I gotta go back and look
[3:35:38] at my, right now it's zero to nine. The amendment is zero to 90 minutes per subject per week, which
[3:35:42] would be 500, you know, no, no greater than 540 minutes per
[3:35:46] week. But that assumes a six six period period,
[3:35:51] schedule six period. So if you wanted to add like a outer limit of saying, and shall
[3:35:55] not, but shall not exceed 600, 600 kind of yeah, I will, I think,
[3:36:00] I think that would be my amendment not to exceed 600 minutes per week.
[3:36:04] okay. I will accept that as friendly. So thank you for that. Okay, cool.
[3:36:08] wonderful. Glad we got through that seamlessly, so
[3:36:12] to speak. So, yeah, so, uh, open for vote mr. Melean for
[3:36:17] the amendment correct. So voting on the nick's amendment that
[3:36:21] now contains board member ortiz's amendment, which now contains board member
[3:36:25] rego's friendly amendment to the policy as contemplated
[3:36:30] in the materials that we all received. Okay, so this is just for those,
[3:36:34] the single amendment, uh, ms. Newbell?
[3:36:39] yes. Dr. Rivas. Yes. Uh, mr. Melvoin? Yes. Uh, ms. Griego?
[3:36:43] yes. Ms. Ez? Yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin?
[3:36:47] yes. Okay. That's five eyes as to the amendment. And now the entire policy
[3:36:51] can be contemplated. Sorry, I thought of an issue right as we were voting.
[3:36:55] um, we didn't include an upper weekly limit for middle school, but we did for high school.
[3:36:59] might it? Might that be something we wanna think about? Maybe I can suggest
[3:37:04] that we would wanna do that as well. Um, yeah. And dr. Bra,
[3:37:08] remind me, uh, do you have a sense of how
[3:37:12] many schools are outside of a six period? Like what's the flexibility from, lemme
[3:37:16] ask penn, do you have the number
[3:37:20] middle? Yeah. Can you, well, given the existence of middle schools at
[3:37:24] the eight period day, I think that makes sense. And so, um,
[3:37:29] making an amendment. Yeah. Or if there are other, if folks have other amendments to the policy, maybe
[3:37:33] we fold that one in. But the question is how many schools are
[3:37:37] outside of the regular sixth period day? Or how many of 'em are block schedule? Oh yeah. Or
[3:37:41] if specifically middle. But I think it makes sense regardless. I'm just curious. Um, uh, middle,
[3:37:46] I have to check the last count was under the 30, but let me verify that right now for you. Um,
[3:37:50] there were very few middle schools that were still following the alternative schedule. Still makes sense though,
[3:37:54] I think.
[3:38:06] well, yeah, that was just the superintendent was pointing out the proportionality for middle school would be about 400,
[3:38:10] like a, maybe a barrier of 400, uh, upper limb to 400 minutes per week. But
[3:38:19] yeah. And then we'll monitor it this fall and we'll come back and see where we are and if we need to go
[3:38:23] up or down and sounds great. So
[3:38:27] we don't wanna make a formal, um, amendment to that or just,
[3:38:32] well, I think we should. I think we should. Um, I think it should be specified. So 400
[3:38:36] minutes weekly. I'm more in the 360 realm of things, but
[3:38:41] 360. Okay, well I'll, I'll, I'll move 360 that we amend it to 360
[3:38:45] minute weekly upper limit for grade six through eight. I'll second.
[3:38:50] can I, can I just add, say, point something out though, that would be more than what
[3:38:55] they are suggesting? 'cause no, you're looking at that second.
[3:39:00] oh, ah, sorry. Take it back
[3:39:05] very well. Okay. So just a clear statement of what's being proposed to the existing amendments
[3:39:09] that mr. Melvin made is, uh, board member ez is suggesting upper limit of 360
[3:39:13] minute limit to screen time for rate six through eight
[3:39:17] per week, grades six through eight
[3:39:21] per week. And that was moved by you, ms. Gomez, and seconded by mr. Malvo. Correct. Is
[3:39:26] that right? That's correct. Thank you. Now we're gonna vote on this
[3:39:30] additional amendment. All right. Ms. Newbell? Yes.
[3:39:34] dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Ms. Cgo? Yes. Ms. Ez?
[3:39:38] yes. Uh, before we take the last one, any last minute ones to this?
[3:39:43] kidding. Uh, ms. . Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Okay. So
[3:39:47] now we have fully amended policy for, for discussion and vote in front of the board.
[3:39:52] anything else mr. Vin did you wanted to add or you're okay? So, um, yes, ms. Ortiz
[3:39:57] franklin, can I ask, um, separately, so you said that we're gonna have professional development this summer on the policy.
[3:40:01] I'm assuming it's not just on the screen time limits. Will there be some pd on
[3:40:05] ai? I know that was also contemplated in the resolution. So a ai,
[3:40:09] there was the professional development, there's been a professional development on ai every summer
[3:40:14] and throughout the year for teachers. Um, and there will be, there'll continue to be a
[3:40:18] reminder of our current, um, ai policy, digital citizenship, what's required to
[3:40:22] engage our students 13 and above in ai. So that will be a reminder, but really digging
[3:40:26] deep into the screen time and to, um, the shifts between what
[3:40:30] digital tools were used before and where you could find those supplemental materials in the curriculum
[3:40:35] for, for, um, lessons to be teacher led. Okay. So it sounds
[3:40:39] like we'll be continuing with the a ipd. We've already been doing, not necessarily changing it quite
[3:40:43] yet, maybe after the ad hoc committee has a chance to learn more and weigh in more.
[3:40:47] I did just wanna ask, and maybe this is for doug on ai because it's come up several times.
[3:40:52] um, gemini is in all of our google tools, and I know we had contemplated,
[3:40:56] you know, what, we're turning on and off with google. Is there a way to turn off gemini
[3:41:00] and can staff do it? Because I, I don't want it coming up on my emails either. Sometimes, uh,
[3:41:04] for the google search, uh, browser, you cannot, this is not a feature,
[3:41:08] um, google has right now. Um, other apps have a
[3:41:12] feature we can turn off the ai features such as adobe and canva, right?
[3:41:16] they that feature that they have an on and off option. Unfortunately
[3:41:20] for google, uh, browsers and the chrome browser, you cannot
[3:41:25] yet. So I don't know who needs to do this, but it's such a big contract. We have, it seems
[3:41:29] to me we're a powerhouse and should be able to tell them if we're gonna keep, you know, using
[3:41:33] you, which it feels some ways, like we have to, um, I dunno if that's something that the team wants
[3:41:37] to contemplate in our next negotiations with them. Like if la unified is gonna purchase it, we
[3:41:42] wanna have that, uh, ability. I would, I would echo that. And I would
[3:41:46] say this came up with youtube too. I mean the, the two most, um, insidious
[3:41:50] parts of youtube for me are the autoplay algorithm and then the ads. And google has so far refused
[3:41:55] to, um, budge on that for districts. I think a lot of districts would be okay with
[3:41:59] some instructional videos as part of these limits who are not for the ads
[3:42:03] and the algorithm. And so I'd like to, you know, but I think that's great. We should definitely be using our
[3:42:07] purchasing power as the second biggest issue in the country to force change with
[3:42:11] google and the other tech companies.
[3:42:17] anything else? No. Okay. Ms. Uh, hand new will just had
[3:42:21] a few questions. Um, as we talk about implementing
[3:42:26] and how are we planning to educate our families about the options
[3:42:30] for offering, uh, consent, the opt in out,
[3:42:34] opt in, opt out, uh, po of the policy?
[3:42:42] good afternoon. Members of the board, uh, we are already collaborating with sase,
[3:42:46] so part of our work will be to incorporate that in the family academy webinar.
[3:42:51] but also we have our friday office hours where any parent can come
[3:42:55] in and join, uh, ask questions around it. But more formally, we will be launching
[3:43:00] a full fledge, uh, program where our professional learning and training support
[3:43:04] will not just be for educators and administrators, but also for parents and families
[3:43:09] specifically around screen time, but more so the broader issues that are gonna come out, uh, out
[3:43:13] of the broader resolution issues. Got it. And
[3:43:17] then what are are the mechanisms and the plan cadence
[3:43:21] for gathering the community feedback?
[3:43:26] I can speak to that. So, uh, to the screen time policy timeline that dr.
[3:43:30] baez shared earlier. Uh, right away, our feedback gathering mechanism
[3:43:34] will be on an ongoing basis, starting with right away tomorrow with
[3:43:38] our region leadership as well as our administrators from different, uh,
[3:43:43] offices. We already have our drop in sessions, including folding
[3:43:47] that into our, uh, approach for parents and families and all the way
[3:43:51] to the opening of schools, uh, what that would look like for, uh,
[3:43:55] not during the, um, what we used to call the buyback
[3:44:00] dates. We're launching, uh, summer pd, uh, through my
[3:44:04] pln, but also toolkits for parents, uh, for principals to share with
[3:44:08] parents and families via, uh, back to school night, as well as, uh, those
[3:44:12] coffee with the principals. So we're already developing these materials that are public facing,
[3:44:17] especially for parents and families, so that principals have these
[3:44:21] templates that they can readily, uh, share with the community.
[3:44:25] and then ongoing, of course, uh, as called for by the resolution and the policy
[3:44:30] is an ongoing mechanism. We plan to continue using thought exchange
[3:44:34] as a mechanism to gather at least, if not monthly, a quarterly, uh,
[3:44:38] feedback, uh, gathering process. So you're saying monthly and
[3:44:42] quarterly or if not monthly, uh, quarterly at least.
[3:44:48] and then, um, some more specific questions to our,
[3:44:52] um, reading difficulty screener, it will that be exempt
[3:44:57] from the screen time policy? So the reading difficulty
[3:45:01] screener is, um, is, is uh, administered by the teacher,
[3:45:05] so the students are not on a screen. Okay. So that's, that wouldn't be affected, that
[3:45:09] particular assessment wouldn't be affected by this. Got it. Um,
[3:45:14] and are there exemptions for any of the remediation
[3:45:18] or online tutoring platforms that students may need?
[3:45:23] so when it comes to, um, the tutoring, our teachers will be the first, uh, tutors
[3:45:28] for students after school. We're changing our model, so it's a teacher led tutoring model
[3:45:32] and at schools where teachers are not available to conduct tutoring, at that point, we're going to
[3:45:36] tap into our bench and really prioritize the tutoring, um, uh,
[3:45:41] services that are led by, by, by tutors face-to-face versus online.
[3:45:45] um, with regards to any other kind of differentiation and supports,
[3:45:50] um, that is in our, um, in the policy, it indicates that there are some exceptions
[3:45:54] to students who have an iep or any other kinds of, um,
[3:45:58] re requirements where they, they need additional support. Um, those
[3:46:02] students would be exempt from that and that would be written up in their iep
[3:46:07] as well or how, how would, I can't speak to what, um,
[3:46:11] but if it's in their iep, if it's currently in their iep, then of course that's something we're
[3:46:15] going to, um, address right away. And I'm sure that, um, mr. Aguilar, others could come to speak
[3:46:19] to what would happen at this point forward. But given that this policy will be adopted, the whole
[3:46:23] system will have to prob will definitely move in the same direction in different
[3:46:27] offices. Um, and
[3:46:32] then there's a, uh, platform, the snowflake platform mentioned in the policy. Is that
[3:46:36] a new tool or do we currently have access to it in our suite of,
[3:46:40] uh, powerschool? I can speak that, uh, snowflake is a,
[3:46:44] a cloud-based environment that we host our data and that is where we get a lot of
[3:46:49] the data from for reporting for analytics and dashboard.
[3:46:53] and so it's already something we've been using. Yes. And
[3:46:58] last question is come to what we talked, what is the cadence for monitoring and reviewing
[3:47:02] the policy as we have more data from the implementation
[3:47:06] of the policy? So I know we talked about gathering
[3:47:11] information monthly, quarterly, and then I know there's some timelines here.
[3:47:15] and what would that cadence look like as, so initially as we're rolling out the,
[3:47:19] um, zero minutes on screen time, uh, definitely just the observation
[3:47:24] feedback from principals to teachers seeing, um, how the implementation
[3:47:28] is going. The region office would need to implement, uh, observe as well and
[3:47:32] monitor the implementation. Uh, and so at the initial stages will be about observation
[3:47:37] feedback and ensuring that those, uh, screen time minutes are abide, we're
[3:47:42] abiding by those screen time minutes. Then later when we implement the secondary, um,
[3:47:46] is when we'll have the app and we'll have data and at that point the frequency will
[3:47:50] increase. Um, so, um, initially it'll be observation and feedback because it's, it's going
[3:47:54] to be zero screen time. So that's the way we plan to implement that right
[3:47:58] away and monitor its use and be able to conduct that feedback loop.
[3:48:03] got it. And then the last is our, um, our esports component. How is
[3:48:07] that affected by this, uh, uh, this policy? So esports would be exempt. So anything
[3:48:11] that is, uh, if it's a course that relies on certain types of online
[3:48:16] platforms, like cte requires a certain kind of an architect,
[3:48:20] um, program software, then that course would be exempt from those types
[3:48:24] of minutes. Thank you. Wonderful. Yes, ms.
[3:48:28] ez. Um, well I wanna thank and appreciate the team. Um, it's not
[3:48:33] often that we get from resolution to policy in such a quick period of time, so I just want to
[3:48:37] appreciate, uh, the rapid efforts that were made to implement this. And certainly there's a lot of urgency,
[3:48:41] so I appreciate that we're meeting the moment. Um, and of course all the advocacy for from
[3:48:45] families, I think that has been a huge driver in, in getting to this
[3:48:49] significant change. Um, as we combat, you know, the increased
[3:48:53] digitization of the world, you know, we are centering humans and human
[3:48:57] experiences for our students and you know, as we were just talking about with our strategic plan,
[3:49:01] you know, the experiences that bring joy, um, and hands-on learning. Um,
[3:49:06] I did wanna lift up a couple of items that I think were raised in the comments and that also,
[3:49:10] um, raised some questions for me. So just with regard to the gaming
[3:49:14] platforms and roblox specifically, which, you know, as a parent is,
[3:49:18] is not something my kids use, but that I have a lot of knowledge is like
[3:49:22] a very harmful kind of platform. Can you share like, what are the
[3:49:27] approved platforms currently and is roblox one of them? And then I think there's
[3:49:31] also updated language on those gaming platforms. So maybe, um, dr.
[3:49:35] baas or, or anyone on the team, I'll start what's different? Yeah, I'll start and then hand
[3:49:39] it off to, to dominic. So, um, you'll see that in the, uh, appendix
[3:49:43] c because we were crosswalk the resolution and the resolution calls
[3:49:48] out those, those, uh, those, uh, roadblocks and,
[3:49:52] and those additional tools. But we, the district doesn't have access to, students don't have access
[3:49:56] to that. It's blocked. So, um, what the crosswalk says is these
[3:50:01] are, this is what the resolution calls for and it says, we suggest that this
[3:50:05] be blocked. And then the action, the policy section is in section seven,
[3:50:09] we go to section seven, and that's where we're addressing that. So we don't call it out and
[3:50:13] we don't, we, we, we blocked it. It's not available to students, but dominic, would
[3:50:18] you like to share more? And that is a process that's
[3:50:22] already in place. Uh, in fact, for all our esports programs,
[3:50:26] all games that, uh, courses students need to use for
[3:50:30] their esports courses, they have to go through an approval process. So between the
[3:50:34] division of instruction and uh, information technology services, we have a team
[3:50:39] of evaluators to again, evaluate the value
[3:50:43] of these games. Similar to the or the pods process. Uh,
[3:50:47] right now it's currently manual. We bring a team together. A lot of the work
[3:50:51] is, uh, reviewing the games, uh, google docs and all of that. But
[3:50:55] we're also do making an effort to embed the video game approval process
[3:51:00] through the pods process so that it will be transparent for schools
[3:51:04] and principals to know which games are actually approved to be used for the esports
[3:51:08] programs. And definitely anything that has not gone through that or anything
[3:51:12] that is not even educational, uh, but just video game in general, they're
[3:51:16] automatically blocked. And, and so thank you so much for walking me through
[3:51:20] that not a process that I was aware of before. Um, like if a parent were
[3:51:24] interested in finding out what was that approved list, where where could one, is that publicly
[3:51:28] available? If not, could it be, we can make a list of what's already approved. Uh,
[3:51:33] and that's the reason why we are also transitioning this through the pods process because
[3:51:37] then we can, uh, readily generate a list of, uh, approved, uh, to,
[3:51:41] uh, games similar to the pods list. Okay. That's helpful.
[3:51:46] um, and then I wanted to also follow up on the, the comments and questions
[3:51:50] regarding iready and ixl and how those minutes are,
[3:51:54] how do they, how do they align with the limits that are within the policy? Right, so the
[3:51:58] policy doesn't call out iready or ixl, it says that the us
[3:52:02] that the district and state assessments are exempt from those minutes because
[3:52:07] a smarter balanced assessment that's a state adopted assessment is conducted online.
[3:52:11] and so then those minutes would be exempted, of course, in the guidance we provided our
[3:52:15] schools is we don't want students to take an exam on once,
[3:52:19] uh, just on one time. They need to spread out the, the minutes over time. Um,
[3:52:24] so that, um, that is what the language says that district
[3:52:28] and state assessments are exempt from the screen time policy during that
[3:52:32] period of time where we're doing the beginning, middle, and, uh, end of years
[3:52:36] optional except for els for reclassification and during the, the state assessments.
[3:52:41] okay. That, that's helpful to clarify. And then of course, you know, there is ongoing work
[3:52:46] regarding this conversation around our utilization of technology to do
[3:52:50] formative and interim assessments for students. So just, I will look forward to
[3:52:54] that conversation with regard to iready and ensuring that we're striking the
[3:52:58] appropriate balance and hearing the feedback from the fields I've been having like, informal
[3:53:02] focus groups with teachers to hear. And I, and I think, you know, one of the things I've heard
[3:53:06] in the primary grades is a concern that it's
[3:53:10] kind of the worst of both worlds now with this change is that they will still be assessed utilizing
[3:53:15] iready, but they won't get the practice time on I-ready. And so I think that that's,
[3:53:19] and, and I also separately here on the secondary side, just a feeling that it's
[3:53:23] not really developmentally appropriate for middle, middle school students and above.
[3:53:28] so, um, a lot of work to continue to do on that front. So I look forward in the fall for more
[3:53:32] information on that. Absolutely. And we are continuing to modify our,
[3:53:36] our, um, policies as well, so they're developmentally age appropriate for students. So,
[3:53:40] um, yes. We'll, we're happy to provide that update. Okay, great. I've got a lot of people who
[3:53:44] are eager to talk about it. So, you know, you let you or someone let me know about how I can loop
[3:53:48] them into a conversation process. Um, I also wanted to ask about,
[3:53:52] I, I think I raised this during the committee of the whole presentation, but about the
[3:53:57] procurement, um, components of this, the, um,
[3:54:02] the, the class monitoring and classroom management tool just,
[3:54:06] uh, is this a general fund obligation that we will have
[3:54:11] annually, uh, funding still need to
[3:54:15] be identified for the procurement of, uh, this tool as well as the laptop
[3:54:19] carts? This is something that, uh, we provided in the impact statement,
[3:54:23] but yes, this is a, an annual subscription that will be needed to
[3:54:27] fund annually. And did we consider in the development of the policy whether
[3:54:31] a, like a non-technological approach could be taken to monitor the
[3:54:36] screen time limits? It'd be fully accurate. We have
[3:54:40] to use a tool to, to not just run, it's on each student device,
[3:54:44] right? And the student when they logged in, not, um, the total screen time usage
[3:54:48] as well as, uh, the minutes they spend on each app, right? We talk about
[3:54:52] iready and ixl, so all those will be captured. And also ability
[3:54:57] to push those data out to the parent, to
[3:55:01] the teacher, to the principal, as well as to the board members, uh, without
[3:55:05] that being captured digitally or electronically is, it'll be very difficult,
[3:55:09] if not impossible to report out. Got it. And, and certainly I
[3:55:13] know we, we hear from, from families a strong desire for transparency,
[3:55:17] and I want that too. I think just we are in a, a highly financially constrained
[3:55:22] environment and any, any additional purchase that takes away from like core
[3:55:26] classroom expenses, it will be a concern for me. So I hope that
[3:55:30] as this is an ongoing process, we can look at the implementation
[3:55:34] of this tool and see in the future when we have a really firm
[3:55:38] grip on the implementation of this policy, whether it's necessary on an ongoing basis,
[3:55:43] um, because I, I just, I have concerns about devoting our limited dollars to
[3:55:47] something like that. So just putting out that out there. And then I think the final
[3:55:51] question that I had, um, there was a, a concern raise around some of our neurodivergent
[3:55:56] learners. And, um, I, I appreciate the, that the policy highlights,
[3:56:01] you know, uh, students with disabilities where, you know, assistive technology is
[3:56:05] required as part of an iep or for our multilingual learners who might
[3:56:09] utilize technology for translation. Um, but it is also true that some
[3:56:13] children with disabilities who, um, have executive functioning challenges, perhaps
[3:56:18] that technology is not helpful, but could actually be more harmful than for
[3:56:22] a neurotypical learner. So just curious about how those particular
[3:56:26] needs are going to be addressed or considered as part of the policy. So in section
[3:56:30] nine and, and just know that there are a lot of people who gave feedback into this policy,
[3:56:35] and of course we connected with the special ed, uh, division, uh, and they
[3:56:39] have, um, provided at section nine as the exclusionary clause for
[3:56:43] the, um, the use of, of tech, uh, really for students who have
[3:56:47] a 5 0 4 or an iep. So if the, if the, uh,
[3:56:51] iep committee decides that that's something the student needs, they'll incorporate it, but
[3:56:55] if not, they won't. So it's really based on what the iep indicates. So, um,
[3:57:00] you know, of course we could definitely continue the discussion with the special ed team, but it's really just
[3:57:04] based on what the iep decided for their child, which includes their parent.
[3:57:08] and if their parent doesn't want the tech, then it wouldn't be an iep. Okay.
[3:57:12] yes. I, well, maybe, um, maybe it's a slightly more proactive approach where we're
[3:57:16] kind of acknowledging that for some students, technology can, um, can cause more, more
[3:57:21] harm than for others, and that we might want to think about even lower limits for that particular
[3:57:25] student dependent on their unique needs. Um, I think that that is all
[3:57:29] for me for now. Thank you, ms. Gral.
[3:57:33] thank you. Yes. I wanna echo the gratitude for getting this policy,
[3:57:39] um, drafted so quickly, and also for the presentation
[3:57:43] at the cal where you got to hear some feedback from folks and ms. Gona
[3:57:47] ans asked some of the questions that I had. I'm just wondering,
[3:57:51] um, regarding some of these, you said all these gaming, uh,
[3:57:56] platforms are blocked, right? So if some somebody wants to use it, they have to go
[3:58:00] through a process and it would have to, and then it's vetted, right?
[3:58:04] the, the, okay, so just that, and then regarding the
[3:58:08] cost, I mean, my calculation looks like the initial cost will be $5.2 million,
[3:58:14] um, and then there's gonna be a $50,000 annual
[3:58:19] ongoing cost. Is that correct? And can you share,
[3:58:23] um, what this will cover? Yeah, let me, let me break down the
[3:58:27] cost for you for the software component, uh, to, to
[3:58:31] track the, um, the enhanced filtering on the student device,
[3:58:35] the analytics, as well as ability for teachers to override
[3:58:39] some blocks and as well as to address special student needs as iep in section 5 0 4.
[3:58:44] uh, that software is, we're still going to procurement. There's probably, uh, about a
[3:58:48] million dollar a year for that. Uh, there will be some, uh, cloud
[3:58:53] storage costs, uh, to, to provide the analytics, right? That's
[3:58:57] about, uh, $300,000. The, but the majority of the cost
[3:59:01] is, um, this is like probably the, the most expensive, uh,
[3:59:06] scenario is like if every classroom from k to five
[3:59:11] requires a laptop cart, right? I do not have enough inventory for that.
[3:59:15] um, I'm about, uh, 3000 laptop
[3:59:20] cart short, and each one roughly, depending on the model, is about
[3:59:24] $1,300 each, right? That's the worst, most expensive, uh,
[3:59:28] scenario. Now we're looking at and, and again, we're gonna survey the
[3:59:32] school in the fall, what model they want, whether they, they remain one-on-one, a laptop
[3:59:36] card model, or uh, a lab model, right?
[3:59:41] um, and we're looking at also, like for k and one,
[3:59:45] they do not need a a card, uh, in each classroom.
[3:59:49] they could share it maybe one per school, you know, one
[3:59:53] for all k classes and one for all first grade. So
[3:59:57] once that survey and this analysis come in, the cost will go down and
[4:00:01] I will have a better realistic number, uh, what I need for the laptop cards.
[4:00:06] alright. And, um, can I, sure.
[4:00:11] one thing that has not yet been fleshed out, um, fleshed out because
[4:00:15] we don't know yet, but there, there will be cost savings when it comes to purchasing fewer devices,
[4:00:19] particularly pre-k to first, and then also the licenses for some
[4:00:23] of the software that will, will be less utilized. And so it's harder to
[4:00:27] quantify, but in addition to what douglas was saying around kind of iterating on
[4:00:31] laptop carts, you know, we do assume when we're not doing one-to-one as a default, we'll be purchasing
[4:00:36] fewer devices and then we'll be purchasing fewer licenses on the software. And
[4:00:40] so, uh, uh, the team can track that cost savings that would be helpful for the board as well. And,
[4:00:44] and that is already taking place as we're looking at out year procurement,
[4:00:48] um, use like the device refresh program that contemplating contemplated
[4:00:53] implementing that from kinder or tk through sixth grade
[4:00:57] or fifth grade at elementary schools. There we're having to
[4:01:01] reevaluate, you know, do we need to refresh in particular grade levels and repurpose
[4:01:05] some of those dollars for either implementation here for carts or, you know,
[4:01:09] repurposing those dollars for other use. Thank you. Um,
[4:01:14] and I also wanna acknowledge the concerns from some of the folks who came and
[4:01:18] spoke today about equity and access. And that
[4:01:23] for some of our families, this may be the only opportunity they have to
[4:01:27] use any technology. And, um, and also
[4:01:31] for parents, I, I know that, um, for some
[4:01:35] parents they use that in order to be able to participate any, any
[4:01:40] school function, right? That, um, any meetings that we have, we
[4:01:44] have a lot of webinars, we have a lot of zoom meetings for parents. And so this is
[4:01:48] a device. So can you, um, explain to me what we're
[4:01:52] gonna do to be able to support those families who,
[4:01:56] who may need this? So in our rup, the option for parents
[4:02:00] to opt in a take home device, we did not take that out. It's still there.
[4:02:04] even with the screen time policy and the, uh, limits and restrictions.
[4:02:09] a family, a parent can still opt in to take a device home. Is that
[4:02:14] also true for tk to first grade families? All grades? Yes. Okay, great.
[4:02:18] so families will still continue to have access. Wonderful. And,
[4:02:22] um, and then regarding the rolling out at school sites, um,
[4:02:26] you mentioned there's gonna be a lot of, uh, you know, you're gonna bring it up at the
[4:02:30] pli and, but how are we going to engage the actual school sites?
[4:02:34] and then this is a two-parter, and then for those, uh, teachers
[4:02:39] in the, uh, tk to one who may need to
[4:02:43] provide intervention to our students who are not, who are
[4:02:47] currently using, um, the device to do
[4:02:51] I-ready minutes during the week, what are we going, how are we gonna support those
[4:02:55] teachers to be able to, to have materials for their, for
[4:02:59] their little ones? Sure. Mm-hmm . So the first part of your question about the school site engagement, that will
[4:03:03] begin, um, before the principals go on vacation. So their last day is
[4:03:08] the 29th. Tomorrow we'll begin with the region superintendents and directors, and then
[4:03:12] we'll move on to our principals and we'll inform the principals about the
[4:03:16] policy and then, uh, the implementation of the, uh, early
[4:03:20] ed through first grade. Uh, and then at that time, we'll give them the office hours
[4:03:25] and the, the various sessions when they come back. Um, and the,
[4:03:29] the first week they come back is when we have pli. So at that point, we'll be able to engage them and then prepare
[4:03:33] them for engaging teachers. Um, so it's going to be something that
[4:03:38] progressively will increase more engagement throughout the, the school site as, as
[4:03:42] teachers and employees come back, because they're all going, teachers are on vacation. So as soon as
[4:03:46] they come back, we'll begin to engage them. Um, when it comes to, um, the intervention,
[4:03:51] we're also providing our, our early ed through first grade teachers, um,
[4:03:55] with a, a, a chart that says if you use a particular digital
[4:04:00] tool for numeracy or, or math, um, this is where you
[4:04:04] can find the intervention or the supplemental lesson for that particular standard
[4:04:08] in this curriculum. Um, and so we'll do the same for literacy and we'll do the
[4:04:12] same for science. So whatever the school was using for that particular subject area
[4:04:16] to close, um, achievement gaps or to bring students up to grade level, we're going
[4:04:20] to show them where that exists in addition to schedules, because we
[4:04:25] also want to ensure that by doing this, we know that teachers may not have the minutes
[4:04:29] in the day to see the students every single day for that tier two and three, but
[4:04:33] we'll give them the schedules. Um, and our hope is that the schedules will help them to see
[4:04:37] where they can fit in that additional scoop, the second scoop, and the third scoop
[4:04:41] for the students who are not at grade level. All right. Thank you so much. And
[4:04:45] then just one last question are, is there going to be a refresh
[4:04:49] of any laptops at the, for the high schoolers? Um, because
[4:04:54] one, and it has nothing to do with the policy per se, but one of the
[4:04:58] things I've heard from, uh, educators is that some of our
[4:05:02] students, like in general, you know, average student may not have
[4:05:07] the, the tools, the laptop tool that is
[4:05:11] equipped for them to use for their classes. And yet other, other
[4:05:16] classes like students in say, an I eep class or a magnet program,
[4:05:20] they might have better equipment. And so I wonder if that's,
[4:05:24] that reminds me of equity, right? Like, do we have the same type
[4:05:29] of, of tools for, um, all of our students?
[4:05:33] so the tech refresh, um, program project is still in progress. It's
[4:05:37] still going on. Um, it will end in june of 2027.
[4:05:41] so the team is in a process of not just refreshing student devices,
[4:05:46] but also devices in the, uh, school front office as well.
[4:05:50] alright, thank you so much.
[4:05:55] it's my turn now. Um, so I'm overall going,
[4:06:00] I mean, they were all great questions. Some questions that already that I have, have already been asked.
[4:06:04] and, um, thank you for thoroughly asking, um, answering
[4:06:08] them. So I'm gonna, um, just provide my overall, um,
[4:06:13] analysis of, of, um, the screen time policy
[4:06:17] and some unintended consequences. Um, and then just some questions. So
[4:06:21] bear with me and then if you wanna chime in as, as, as I'm, uh, reading
[4:06:25] some of the consequences and potential, um, solutions.
[4:06:30] so overall, the policy is very detailed. Um, and following
[4:06:34] the latest and limited research, which is still growing and evolving,
[4:06:38] it moves beyond general statements about responsible technology use
[4:06:42] and attempts to establish enforceable limits, parental rights and instructional
[4:06:47] guard rules, which is exactly what the resolution called for. However, there
[4:06:51] are some implementation measurement and equity issues that remain unresolved,
[4:06:56] unresolved that have been, um, mentioned here. So if implemented
[4:07:00] well, this policy could become, and I think it is gonna become
[4:07:04] a national model for shifting schools away from excessive passive
[4:07:08] device centered instruction and back toward teacher led relationship
[4:07:13] based learning. Uh, its strongest elements are the focus on educational
[4:07:18] purpose, active learning, parent, uh, transparency
[4:07:22] and restrictions on non-instructional technology use. The greatest
[4:07:26] risks, um, are the specific time limits, um, which have
[4:07:30] already been addressed by the amendments here, um, that,
[4:07:34] um, clearly established, uh, research basis, which
[4:07:39] lack, uh, clearly established research, research basis enforcement may
[4:07:43] be difficult at scale. And I know that's still gonna be, we are gonna be
[4:07:47] tweaking that as, as of in the fall. And the implementation could create some
[4:07:51] significant operational burdens and possibly some unintended inequities.
[4:07:56] um, before adoption, district leadership here should provide
[4:08:01] a detailed implementation and measurement plan showing exactly how screen time
[4:08:05] will be tracked, how compliance will, will be evaluated,
[4:08:09] and how student outcomes will be monitored. So
[4:08:13] with that said, I'll just go straight into the possible unintended consequences.
[4:08:18] so reduced educational innovation, um, because of this,
[4:08:22] and hopefully you'll provide some guidelines for teachers. Um, teachers
[4:08:26] may avoid multimedia projects, digital storytelling,
[4:08:31] coding activities or collaborative online work. Uh,
[4:08:35] so that's something to, to, you know, uh, provide some guidelines. And then because screen
[4:08:39] time minutes become a scarce resource, right,
[4:08:43] the, the, the, the minutes will, may impede
[4:08:47] some of these activities, which are, you know, um, I know
[4:08:51] that students definitely, um, love them. I have a magnet,
[4:08:55] monte vista, and they, the students, you know, work a lot on,
[4:09:00] um, creating films. And I know dr. Estrada was there and they were
[4:09:04] great. So the students were really working on the devices. So I hope that could, you
[4:09:08] know, consider that and maybe being exempt from this because these are really
[4:09:12] great projects that also families enjoy. Um,
[4:09:16] so also more instructional time spent tracking compliance.
[4:09:21] uh, schools may end up focusing on counting minutes, documenting usage,
[4:09:26] auditing classrooms instead of evaluating learning outcomes. So hopefully,
[4:09:30] you know, take that into consideration as we're, um, looking at
[4:09:34] tracking the minutes, um, on a day-to-day basis. And also
[4:09:38] weekly, it could potentially increase workload for teachers.
[4:09:42] uh, teachers may need to redesign lessons, create paper alternatives,
[4:09:48] duplicate digital and analog assignments, or coordinate
[4:09:52] screen time usage across, um, the school. So those
[4:09:56] are some unintended consequences. Um, this is a substantial change management
[4:10:01] effort, right? So it's gonna, it's gonna take some time right to, for our
[4:10:05] teachers and our, our students to also, you know, sort of adjust to these changes.
[4:10:10] uh, parent opt-in fragmentation. Uh, a classroom could contain
[4:10:15] students who take devices home, do not take devices home,
[4:10:19] have ai permissions, do not have ai permissions,
[4:10:23] have different application permissions. So this may create some
[4:10:27] instructional complexity, not only within the classroom or within the school. So
[4:10:31] how do we manage that and how does the principal manage that? So, um,
[4:10:36] also adding to the workload of, of our, um,
[4:10:41] our principals and some teachers. So with that said,
[4:10:45] I'll just go onto some questions. Um, so the first one,
[4:10:49] what outcomes will determine whether the limits that have now
[4:10:53] been amended are successful? Is there any, um,
[4:10:58] what are indicators that you would use to say, you know? Yeah,
[4:11:03] so I think the, the resolution calls for spec specific minutes by grade level
[4:11:07] and grade span. So once we have the app that demonstrates the minutes,
[4:11:11] I believe we've achieved the goal, because I think that's the goal is to decrease the amount of minutes.
[4:11:15] so I think we would use that as a way to measure if it's been successful.
[4:11:19] I think the board expects us to follow the minutes. So I believe that's what it would, that's how
[4:11:23] we would measure that. And in terms of measurement and accountability, what
[4:11:27] percentage compliance is expected? How, how do you expect
[4:11:31] that that has not been established? It's definitely something we could discuss
[4:11:36] about how we, I mean, we, we hope that the, the goal is for a hundred percent implementation
[4:11:41] and we're going to go full force to ensure that there's a hundred percent implementation. So given
[4:11:45] the schools the tools that they need. So we're starting with, with, um, early
[4:11:49] ed through first week with zero minutes in, uh, august, so that it gives us enough time
[4:11:54] to prepare everybody. Um, so that's, that's what our goal is, a hundred percent and
[4:11:58] we'll support everyone to get there. And what happens if schools or a classroom
[4:12:02] exceeds limits? They've gone over the established limits? Yeah, so
[4:12:06] at that point, a principal can just, um, have a conversation with the teacher about what they
[4:12:10] could do to decrease the minutes so that we're within the guidelines.
[4:12:16] so if, if, uh, say a school goes over the limits,
[4:12:20] so that means that next week they would do less or how, or, or they
[4:12:24] would have to provide some guidelines into like, okay, where was it that
[4:12:28] you exceeded the limits and how do we make sure it doesn't repeat right, exactly. So
[4:12:33] we don't, um, subtract the minutes for the next week, and we don't, we just, uh, help
[4:12:37] the teacher to stay within those limits. That would be the, the goal. And in
[4:12:41] terms of academic impact, what indicators will trigger, um, a
[4:12:45] revision of this policy? I think that, um, and I think the,
[4:12:49] uh, board has also mentioned this is we're going through the feedback loop.
[4:12:54] um, it was mentioned here that we should have questions in the school experience survey. They
[4:12:58] talk about if they feel that they're using the, um, if there's too much time, not enough
[4:13:02] time on screen, we're gonna look at, uh, feedback from the school community,
[4:13:07] but we're also gonna look at achievement data and looking at achievement data to see how
[4:13:11] students were performing before the policy. And then, um,
[4:13:15] and then after the policy around the same time, august to august,
[4:13:19] september to september before the policy, after the policy, are we seeing that
[4:13:24] students are performing at the same rate? Or are we seeing that there's a change and report
[4:13:28] to the board and hear what the board will do as a result of that.
[4:13:33] and in terms of equity, how will im impact be monitored across
[4:13:37] english learners, um, students with disabilities,
[4:13:41] gifted students and low income students. How will you monitor the
[4:13:46] impact of this limited, uh, use of, you know, screen time or technology,
[4:13:51] um, on those specific students? Yep. So, um, the same way. So,
[4:13:55] uh, looking at achievement data. So if we see that a student is not performing at grade
[4:13:59] level, um, and the, the teacher uses a lot of their own assessment,
[4:14:04] not just the, the, uh, adopted assessment, but through teacher monitoring
[4:14:08] observation, and teacher would need to group would need to group the
[4:14:12] students, um, and conduct that additional tier two support
[4:14:17] in the classroom, and then after school tutoring so that the student is receiving
[4:14:21] that one-to-one support or small group in five to six, number of ratio
[4:14:25] of five to one. Um, and if we're seeing the students not progressing,
[4:14:29] then at that point revisit that, uh, plan with the
[4:14:33] family, of course, uh, to see what additional measures could be made so that
[4:14:37] the student doesn't decline, but continues to accelerate in their learning.
[4:14:42] um, in terms of technology readiness, how will students develop digital skills
[4:14:47] under reduced green exposure? So I think at the last, how
[4:14:51] we indicated that we're in the process of establishing grade level expectations to what
[4:14:55] students need to know and be able to do with technology. Uh, and so we're
[4:14:59] just going to need to work within the, the minutes that have been, um,
[4:15:04] approved by the board, uh, to provide them those, those lessons so that students are
[4:15:08] ready, um, to compete with, with the world when it comes to technology.
[4:15:12] so you'll be establishing, um, competencies that
[4:15:16] students need to demonstrate either by each grade level, or would it be like, say
[4:15:20] for instance, um, fifth grade and then eighth grade and 12th grade, or is
[4:15:24] it gonna be by each grade level? The goal is by grade level. By grade level, mm-hmm .
[4:15:29] um, and how will the district evaluate college and workforce readiness?
[4:15:33] readiness impacts? Yeah, so with college and workforce readiness,
[4:15:37] as was mentioned earlier, it's part of our strategic plan and the measures are there and there's
[4:15:42] an operational plan. And so our operational plan, um, includes,
[4:15:46] um, our current, our current structure for work, work readiness. Uh,
[4:15:50] when we think about our dream it achieve it initiative that ensures that our
[4:15:54] students have access to dual enrollment, that they have access to, um, career
[4:15:59] technical education programs, that's how we ensure that our students have the career readiness
[4:16:03] skills. Uh, and some courses may or may not include tech, uh,
[4:16:08] or earlier I mentioned there's an architecture class that does require that architect,
[4:16:12] um, program that's online. So certain courses that students take for that,
[4:16:16] for their program will, may or may not require technology. So that will
[4:16:20] really establish the performance of the students in those areas
[4:16:25] based on what the strategic plan calls for.
[4:16:29] and I had another question I'm looking for in terms of
[4:16:35] the cards.
[4:16:40] yeah. So, um, we were mentioned, um, in
[4:16:44] terms of the, the carts, will schools receive funding to acquire,
[4:16:49] um, lap, um, laptop carts, or is that gonna be centrally funded
[4:16:54] and provided computer lab access or monitoring systems? Or what is
[4:16:58] the cost of the schools? Or is it all gonna be centralized costs? I think that
[4:17:02] discussion is to be had with, with budget, how we're gonna fund, fund this resolution.
[4:17:06] yeah. And when will that discussion be taking place?
[4:17:12] before december, before the first interim, or before the schools get their budget or
[4:17:16] by fall? Like, um, it would be good to have a timeline
[4:17:20] part. We anticipate it'll be a, a fall discussion, especially as we head into
[4:17:24] school budget development and making determinations on what will be a born class
[4:17:29] by a school versus what will be centrally covered. So overall,
[4:17:33] you know, the, the, as long as we can
[4:17:37] limit our, the burden on principals and teachers and
[4:17:41] parents as well, it would, you know, I think that would help,
[4:17:46] um, the implementation and, you know, the process that it will take
[4:17:50] to adjust to this new policy. But overall, you know,
[4:17:54] I commend you for, you know, creating this. It's very thorough. There's
[4:17:59] still areas that needs to be tweaked and that's, you know, to be expected, particularly if
[4:18:03] this is po, this is the first policy in, in our nation in regards
[4:18:07] to screen time and technology use. And like I said, um, I'm
[4:18:11] already being, um, asked or from other school board members,
[4:18:15] um, you know, not only in cali but also, you know, throughout our state.
[4:18:19] I was like, give us more. So I did share, um, the presentation
[4:18:24] at the committee of the whole and the resolution. So for
[4:18:28] sure all eyes are on us and, and this policy. So I commend you for that. So thank
[4:18:32] you so much for all your work. And with that, um, unless
[4:18:37] there are any other questions or discussions, oh, go ahead, ms. New hand bill.
[4:18:42] just, um, she made a a point about the
[4:18:46] minutes exceeding and this being
[4:18:51] in the classroom, but if it exceeds at the parent's
[4:18:55] expense, how does that get recorded? Or
[4:18:59] if a parent exceeds the time that they're supposed to have,
[4:19:04] that's yet to be determined because, um, we need to figure out how we're
[4:19:08] gonna monitor the entire day, right? Because we're including homework. But the
[4:19:12] way that we intend to, um, provide guidance to our
[4:19:16] teachers would be that, um, we look at the homework policy,
[4:19:20] uh, and reduce the number of assignments that are issued that
[4:19:24] would be required screen time. Um, aside from that,
[4:19:29] we're open to ideas of how to monitor that part of the screen
[4:19:33] time at home. Yes. Okay. And then with the, um,
[4:19:37] obviously the screen time when
[4:19:41] we're talking instruction, and I, I want to keep us, 'cause I keep thinking screen time,
[4:19:45] like we're sitting here, um, trying to monitor
[4:19:50] our students. Obviously we don't want them playing games and we know that, but this is instructional time
[4:19:54] with the instruction. Our families going
[4:19:59] to be educated on what this instruction looks like, because for many of
[4:20:03] our families, that is, that is new. So what will we be doing
[4:20:07] to help our families understand instruction versus screen time? Because when
[4:20:11] you say screen time, like, I mean, our kids are not addicted to, you know, I-ready,
[4:20:15] they're not, you know, they're not just like addicted to the I-ready, right? That's not
[4:20:19] it. Alright, we're talking about gaming, but instructional time
[4:20:23] for our families. How do we help them understand that? Yep. And I'll bring up, um, dominic
[4:20:28] who I think had already talked about how we're engaging with pac and our parents about that. Yes.
[4:20:32] so part of that work will be to, uh, develop within those
[4:20:36] workshops, trainings and toolkits, uh, give parents actual scenarios.
[4:20:40] same way that we do with teachers for our pd is to really give
[4:20:44] them concrete examples of what is your child actually doing, especially when
[4:20:48] outside of the instructional, uh, setting at home is,
[4:20:53] if this is instructional, we'll be able to provide them, uh, sort of
[4:20:57] like two different scenarios and they'll be able to kind of see and decide for themselves
[4:21:01] what are those, uh, active screen time use that are instructional
[4:21:05] in nature or homework related versus recreational. And that's also
[4:21:09] the reason why we're harping on the educational use. Uh, within l-a-u-s-d.
[4:21:14] previously, the version of the policy was educational versus non-educational
[4:21:18] use. We're just focusing on educational use. And that's gonna be consistent across
[4:21:22] the board with whatever toolkit and resources and materials we're providing.
[4:21:26] and even the research, 'cause of the research, is it delineated that way where
[4:21:30] screen time is dealing between instruction and recreation?
[4:21:35] is the research given to us? There are some of that, but it's more around passive and, uh,
[4:21:39] active. And when you look at the definition, or at least the examples
[4:21:43] of active consumption of, uh, technology or just using screen
[4:21:47] actively, it really speaks to the, the rigor and the cognitive demand.
[4:21:52] when students are using the technology, is it to the level of like
[4:21:56] a bloom's taxonomy level for, or the okay level forward, they're
[4:22:00] actually creating something and not just, again, scrolling through. And so instructionally,
[4:22:04] there's already a huge alignment that we can use as a foundation to
[4:22:09] really, um, bring to life and to, uh, exemplify
[4:22:13] to parents and families just by connecting it back to the,
[4:22:17] uh, instructional frameworks that are happening in the classroom.
[4:22:22] thank you. That's it. One quick question in regards to the toolkits, and I forgot,
[4:22:26] I know you, um, you mentioned that the toolkits, the principal, the principals
[4:22:31] will be able to, um, have, you know, something
[4:22:35] to share with parents at, you know, back to school night or open house
[4:22:39] and, um, coffee with the principal. But it would also be great to
[4:22:44] also, you know, connect with principals after they've implemented them. 'cause I could
[4:22:48] imagine, you know, questions from parents came up or
[4:22:52] students, and then I think that would continue to inform the policy,
[4:22:56] particularly, um, when it comes to, you know, the implementation
[4:23:01] or, or parents, right? I'm sure they're gonna have questions. The principal's like, that's a good question.
[4:23:05] let me come back. So I think it would be helpful to have that open,
[4:23:09] um, dialogue, particularly, you know, when during, um, principals
[4:23:14] meetings to have some time to say, okay, how is this policy
[4:23:18] going? Are you receiving questions so they can, you know, continue, you know, we get
[4:23:22] the information from school sites, um, to improve
[4:23:26] and this the policy. Okay. Awesome. Thank you. Wonderful.
[4:23:31] okay, I think we are ready to vote. Mr. Mclean.
[4:23:35] we are, I'm looking at the materials and I failed to collect
[4:23:39] a motion and a second for the main item, move item moved by ms. Ez,
[4:23:43] seconded by dr. Rivas. And then I actually just
[4:23:47] need to pull up some language, uh, for, uh, the
[4:23:51] specific disqualifying language for, um, board members molson. So I'm gonna read
[4:23:55] it out loud. The recusal language for board member sheen, who's been outside for
[4:24:00] the entirety of this discussion, out of an abundance of caution and following the
[4:24:04] procedures of section 1 8 7 0 7 of the california code of regulations
[4:24:08] board president molson is and has publicly recused himself from discussing or
[4:24:12] taking action on tab two, division of instruction, using technology with intention,
[4:24:16] establishing guidelines for student screen time due to his ownership of stock
[4:24:21] and google inc. Okay, that's outta the way. Motion and seconds
[4:24:25] have been made. Uh, now calling the vote. Uh, ms. Newbell? Yes.
[4:24:30] dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Ms. Griego?
[4:24:34] yes. Ms. Ez? Yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Okay. That's six
[4:24:38] ayes. All right.
[4:24:42] uh, moving on to tab .
[4:24:47] oh, no, let's slap that. Uh,
[4:24:51] moving on to tab three. Um, approval of
[4:24:55] procurement actions. Um, may I have a motion and a second?
[4:25:01] moved. Moved by dr. Reba.
[4:25:05] anybody wanna second? Second. Seconded by me. Seconded by, uh,
[4:25:09] mr. Uh, melvoin. Um, I will note for the audience and
[4:25:13] our friends at home, items, uh, s and t have been
[4:25:18] withdrawn, items s and t. And for those who are following
[4:25:22] along, approval of procurement action contains a number of different
[4:25:26] items within it, all listed by alphabet, starting with a, and sometimes going all
[4:25:30] the way through zz. But today, items s and t
[4:25:35] have been, uh, withdrawn in their entirety.
[4:25:39] mr. Mclean, the agenda we have or the, uh, matrix we have says
[4:25:43] tnu? That's correct. I, I just sent a clarifying email, uh, prior to
[4:25:47] my announcement and, um, to make sure that, uh, everyone understood that there is no u on
[4:25:51] the, on the posted materials that the public has, which is the same as the board has,
[4:25:56] and s and ts as in sam and t as in toy,
[4:26:00] have been removed for, for withdrawn, for, for vote. And then,
[4:26:04] uh, mi, mr. Melvoin, you have a recusal for item p
[4:26:08] only. So if item p is going to be discussed, mr. Melvoin will take off.
[4:26:13] um, if it is not going to be discussed, he may remain seated. Uh, there,
[4:26:18] so, um, after having been moved and seconded, it's now appropriate for board discussion.
[4:26:24] hey, who would like to go first? Go ahead, mr. Mal point.
[4:26:28] sure. Thank you. And thanks for noting I'll, I'll recuse from item p and if discussable
[4:26:33] we'll leave the room. Um, I've a few questions and comments on, on four of
[4:26:37] the sub items. The first is item e, um,
[4:26:41] which is the contract capacity increases. And, um,
[4:26:47] this is one, and I, I, I appreciate the team was proactive in saying that there have been, um,
[4:26:51] systems put in place to prevent this from happening in the future. But we've had a lot of
[4:26:55] conversations as a board recently about contracts and capacity versus expenditures
[4:27:00] and putting safeguards in place to make sure that those capacity, those
[4:27:04] contract capacities are not exceeded. And, and this item is before us because they were
[4:27:08] exceeded. So mr. Friedman, can you just explain, have services already provi been
[4:27:13] provided? Um, you know, what happens if the item fails, and just how do we make sure that
[4:27:17] this doesn't happen in the future as such that folks go above the, the board approved limits?
[4:27:21] yep. Good, good afternoon. Uh, so in july of
[4:27:25] 2024, the district implemented a new procurement system. So that's
[4:27:29] sap ariba. And prior to that, the district ran a, a system
[4:27:33] also owned by sap, but it was independent of ariba. Uh,
[4:27:38] and at that time, we implemented in waves or phases where,
[4:27:42] uh, first central office, then two regions, then two other
[4:27:46] regions of the course about six months. And during that time, we ran
[4:27:50] two concurrent systems at the same time. So you could place a purchase order
[4:27:54] in the old system as well as purchase order in the new system. And so as a result
[4:27:58] of that, uh, the data transition, um, and maybe to go backwards,
[4:28:02] anytime that, um, we run an implementation, uh, you have an option
[4:28:07] of running a big bang, meaning you, you do the entire implementation all at one time, or
[4:28:11] you run two concurrent systems. Um, the decision was made a number of years back to
[4:28:15] run two concurrent systems. Um, and as a result of that, uh, data that
[4:28:19] transitioned over, um, didn't come over in a manner that, uh, was consumable
[4:28:23] and appropriate for us to run a procurement system. Uh,
[4:28:29] when we identified it in about august of 25, uh, we
[4:28:33] then ran a full contract audit of all 3000 plus contracts
[4:28:37] in the district. Um, and as we found contracts or
[4:28:41] benches, um, in a couple of these situations, we closed off
[4:28:45] those contracts from being purchased or, or any purchases made against those contracts.
[4:28:49] um, and so the, the mitigating factors that we addressed
[4:28:53] was, uh, entering a, a custom development within the new
[4:28:57] system, that hard codes a max or a cap on contracts
[4:29:02] specific to what the board authorizes, as well as adding a secondary
[4:29:06] approval within our division to make sure that all the data within a
[4:29:10] contract prior to being published for consumption in the district has a second set
[4:29:14] of eyes on it. So it's a two factor along with training and other things.
[4:29:19] got it. And I, I think, you know, just for the public, I mean the, so the
[4:29:23] increases are 2.6 million for services rendered that schools used.
[4:29:28] um, but what if typical gone through a process to get those contract
[4:29:32] capacity, capacity increased by the board prior to this happening?
[4:29:36] so I understand there's some change management and it seems like that's been taken care of, but wanted
[4:29:40] to flag that because it was, um, you know, anomalous and also I
[4:29:44] not a great practice, which I think you agree. Um, and that's why it's being fixed. The
[4:29:48] other one just for, for you, 'cause it's more about the procurement, I believe is item n.
[4:29:53] um, if I'm right, uh, yes, item n
[4:29:57] you know, I don't remember in my time on the board seeing a second best bidder,
[4:30:02] like a bidder came in second place win. Um, and I think it, it just,
[4:30:06] you know, again, without knowing more, and I know you're gonna share some more, it, it kind of, um,
[4:30:11] cast some doubts on the credibility of the process. If you're like, you're doing an rfp and then we're not going
[4:30:15] with the first place winner because we actually like the second place winner better. And so can you just explain
[4:30:19] how, like, how that is possible in the law and in our policy? Why does
[4:30:23] it happen? Does it happen often? And, um, you know, 'cause that one was like the first
[4:30:27] one where not a great practice to go above board authorized limits. This one
[4:30:32] also seems odd. Uh, so in my time
[4:30:36] we actually went back to look, um, there's been at least one scenario where we've awarded to
[4:30:40] a second highest scoring proposer. Uh, the reality is that the
[4:30:44] district reserves the right to, uh, award based on,
[4:30:49] uh, non negotiations. So price terms or any requirements
[4:30:53] of the district, um, example would be, um, specifically on our benches
[4:30:58] where we might have 20 firms that have been awarded an agreement under
[4:31:02] that bench. But some of them don't actually agree to all the district's terms specific
[4:31:06] to insurance or otherwise. Um, in this scenario, we gave an opportunity for
[4:31:11] the highest scoring proposer to meet us where we needed to be from a budgetary standpoint,
[4:31:15] understanding that there's roughly a $1.5 million transition
[4:31:20] cost that you wouldn't see in the contract. So that's district budget requirements
[4:31:24] as far as training, um, it implementation project management, we gave
[4:31:28] that opportunity for, for them to actually meet us where we needed to be.
[4:31:32] and they did not do. So can you explain though why you would do an rfp for a certain
[4:31:36] budgetary amount and then someone would win and then you'd say, actually it's not
[4:31:41] that amount. And, and I see the rationale for why you wouldn't bake those into the,
[4:31:45] the procurement process. 'cause then you're kind of, um, favoring incumbents. 'cause there
[4:31:49] will be some change management, but it, it seems odd to say like you've won, but actually you
[4:31:53] have to come down below. So help me explain, understand, just to confirm,
[4:31:58] when, when we run an rfp, we don't run it based on a, a budgetary
[4:32:02] amount, um, specifically on, on rfps as opposed to an
[4:32:06] ifp, which is a low cost bid. Um, these are based on proposals that
[4:32:10] may, they may, uh, bid a million dollars, they may bid $20 million.
[4:32:15] and so all of that is contemplated as part of the discussion. And, and again, the negotiations
[4:32:19] as we get on into the procurement, the first place winner based on the kind
[4:32:23] of confluence of best value, we still wanted them to meet a cost. We gave them the opportunity,
[4:32:28] they couldn't and so we went with the second place. Correct. Yeah,
[4:32:32] it's still, um, I gotta think about that one. It's still, thanks for the understanding
[4:32:36] and the fact that it's a rarity, but it is just a weird, you know, and again, as there's more scrutiny now
[4:32:40] on contracts and procurement process, it's, it's odd and it's something that maybe
[4:32:44] we will agendize at a procurement and facilities and procurement meeting
[4:32:49] in the fall to just kind of understand these processes to build some, some confidence
[4:32:53] in them. Um, so thank you. My other, um, I have, um,
[4:32:57] two other items I just wanted to ask about. One is, I think I, the first
[4:33:01] one is item, um, I, and this may be as for
[4:33:05] the superintendent or for deputy superintendent salcito, you know, this is our metro,
[4:33:09] um, metro contract that I know has changed as a result of the f sb. And
[4:33:13] I, I understand why I voted for that particular amendment, but I do, um,
[4:33:17] wanna start by saying I want all students to have metro cards. I know students on my youth advisory council have them,
[4:33:21] like, you know, our adult students have them. And, uh, as metro
[4:33:26] continues to expand the, um, d-line expansion and others like,
[4:33:30] and public transportation is a way in la to get to this, the city's infrastructure. Like we want
[4:33:34] our students to be able to access them. So I want to just be clear on what's happening. Is it that
[4:33:38] the contract amount is extended for one year while we figure out next steps related to the fsp
[4:33:43] and like we're gonna work with metro? 'cause I agree with the conversation last week that like we should have metro,
[4:33:47] um, and the city and the county do this as a service to our students and the past we've
[4:33:52] paid for it. But I also wanna understand, are we paying a fixed rate or
[4:33:56] is it per usage? And just like how, so I, so I guess for our deputy superintendent,
[4:34:00] for those of us, which I think is all of us who are interested in making sure students have free metro
[4:34:04] cards, where do things stand now as we think about cost savings in the fsb? Yeah, our,
[4:34:08] our expected path forward is to maintain the same
[4:34:12] level of procured services for the 26 27 year. Meaning
[4:34:17] we pay $7 per student per year. Meaning
[4:34:21] that any child, any student in the district from kinder
[4:34:25] through adult school can register and receive a metro
[4:34:30] go pass. The district covers that cost at $7 per
[4:34:34] participant. Um, what we have seen is
[4:34:38] we have about 35 to 40,000 registrants, meaning
[4:34:42] we're paying $7 per student, but only
[4:34:46] 35 to 40,000 are taking advantage of it. And so
[4:34:50] the question is, do we go back and reevaluate, uh, per usage,
[4:34:55] per registration cost versus paying for every single student
[4:34:59] in the district? And I think that's the broader conversation and um,
[4:35:03] that's the conversation that we'll be having with metro. Um, and so what makes
[4:35:07] sense given with constrained resources, uh, directive as part of the
[4:35:11] fsp, um, and how we might renegotiate utilization in the
[4:35:16] district? I, I will say this, there also needs to be greater promotion
[4:35:20] of the program and awareness of the program. And, and through the student advisory council,
[4:35:25] our attendance student advisory council, it was one of the recommendations that the students
[4:35:29] want to do kind of a peer-to-peer, um, kind of advocacy and promotional
[4:35:34] effort around what's available to them. And so that is something that we will leverage
[4:35:38] for this coming year so that we can get a better sense of what is the true registration
[4:35:42] level look like. And then based off of that, establishing a baseline to
[4:35:47] kind of renegotiate out your contracts around this. Yeah, I mean that makes
[4:35:51] sense. And also, I mean, nearly 37,000 student riders for I think over 6 million
[4:35:55] rides, which is not nothing. Um, I guess is there a reason, what's the benefit
[4:35:59] to metro in, in a, like why aren't we, why aren't
[4:36:03] we, why have we not always been paying just per student activation?
[4:36:08] like what do they gain from charging us? I mean money, but like what's the like,
[4:36:12] you know, is that, was that part of the, the leverage to get down to $7
[4:36:16] that we had to do it? Historically, we used to actually only pay
[4:36:21] for foster and homeless youth, and on average we would pay about $82
[4:36:26] a month, um, for a metro pass for those students. You know, our
[4:36:30] partnership with metro has been a very positive one over the years, and
[4:36:34] we were able to negotiate a broader access across the district for our
[4:36:39] students. Um, but you know, we're learning in terms of participation and thinking
[4:36:43] about what would be the appropriate structure. And I think the appropriate structure is utilization and
[4:36:47] registration and active go pass account, um,
[4:36:51] being something that's available, um, as an accounted for.
[4:36:56] and so that'll be part of the conversation as we move forward. Um, in terms of the benefit
[4:37:02] metro's investment is if you can develop the early writer, they
[4:37:06] become a life, yeah. Long writer of, of metro and
[4:37:10] utilizing our, our network in la which we know, you know, we have
[4:37:14] to build that culture and our, our students are part of that future. Um,
[4:37:18] yes, and I, I remember being at the metro hearings with some of my colleagues on the board as we advocated
[4:37:23] for this partnership. I think it's just either they should be willing to switch to a
[4:37:28] activation or we should get a fixed number, you know, for the $7
[4:37:32] rate we should get 400,000 passes and like
[4:37:36] come september if students haven't utilized, we should think about family members for students or educ
[4:37:40] educate, like, you know, the fact that we've just had hundreds of thousands of dollars
[4:37:44] or hundreds of thousands of unused activation
[4:37:49] capacity for metro seems like it's a loss for us. But also to your point about building ridership
[4:37:53] a loss for, for metro. So, you know, I I'll just say on this one,
[4:37:57] you know, there's also, I know the board, you know, metro is
[4:38:01] composed of folks from the city council, from the board of supervisors, from the cities within the county.
[4:38:06] I think we all have relationships there. So to the extent that we can help advocate with our colleagues
[4:38:10] in other areas of, of local government, please, please let us know because this
[4:38:14] is one, you know, it's, and everyone's benefit to increase this partnership,
[4:38:19] um, or to continue the partnership and increase ridership. Um, my last just,
[4:38:23] it's not even a question, it's just a comment on item li just wanna know 'cause we are
[4:38:27] talking a lot as a district about, um, contracts and contracted
[4:38:32] services and, and what are contracts and like our, you know, our biggest contract
[4:38:36] today item l $350 million, you know, we talk
[4:38:40] for, um, uh, dairy, uh, for the most part. Um,
[4:38:45] and well bread produce dairy products. So I just want to note too, like we talk
[4:38:49] about non-labor expenses and where we can cut, um, and we've been talking about contracted
[4:38:53] services with people and those are important conversations to have. But one of the points I've been
[4:38:57] making is that a lot of these that look at as the district contracting out are for things like,
[4:39:02] in this case, fresh produce, dairy products, bread, $350 million.
[4:39:06] but of course we want our students to be able to eat. And so just wanna note that, uh, given
[4:39:10] it's a big one and it's for one of those contracted, um, non-labor expenses.
[4:39:15] so, uh, thanks mr. Charleson. Who
[4:39:19] is next? Go ahead rocio.
[4:39:23] I have a question on item p. .
[4:39:28] oh, that was you. My bad. I forgot
[4:39:32] that was you. Bye .
[4:39:39] okay, he's out. Um, so this platform collects a significant
[4:39:43] amount of visitor student operational data. Uh, can
[4:39:48] staff discuss the privacy and cybersecurity protections that will govern the system
[4:39:52] in particular? Uh, who owns the data? What limitations exist on
[4:39:56] data retention and use, and what oversight mechanisms are in
[4:40:00] place to ensure student and family information remains protected?
[4:40:05] thank you for the question. So this is like cloud-based, uh, solution. So
[4:40:09] that data is, uh, is uh, is hosted in the cloud and the aws
[4:40:13] environment. Uh, we own the data. Uh, there's something we own
[4:40:18] and this is a data we use for analytics. Uh, we're using it right now, um,
[4:40:22] as a pilot with, with some of the beyond the be programs. And it's a huge success.
[4:40:26] so they could actually see in real time what program is successful, who's
[4:40:31] participating and and whatnot. Um, we had the contract with the vendor
[4:40:35] ensures that, uh, our data is being protected. Uh, should we,
[4:40:39] uh, say no longer doing business, the vendor, there is a clause in the contract that
[4:40:43] they will destroy the data, uh, in their environment. Um,
[4:40:48] uh, but what, we'll, what we'll have a set of data here in our own environment.
[4:40:52] and what, um, what guarantees, uh,
[4:40:56] have you seen that, how it's protected or how they're protecting it? Are
[4:41:00] you able to to see that? Um, well the, the whole application have gone through
[4:41:04] our, uh, internal its security review to make sure,
[4:41:08] uh, the way they store the data, the data, uh, is encrypted
[4:41:12] at rest and also encrypted in transit, meaning when it's going back and forth in, in
[4:41:17] transit. Um, so those, those we, it goes through our
[4:41:21] security review and um, and a lot of cases, uh, the
[4:41:25] vendor provides a sort of a third party, uh, cybersecurity
[4:41:30] check that their application went through. And are there
[4:41:34] any, um, in the contract with kokomo is, is there a stipulation
[4:41:39] that indicates if
[4:41:44] under what circumstances will the contract be terminated if any
[4:41:49] of these, um, you know, privacy or cybersecurity is
[4:41:53] breached? Is is there something stipulated in the contract that says, okay,
[4:41:57] if this happens then we're gonna terminate the contract? Yes. Like all contractors clause
[4:42:01] for, um, termination for cause and termination for convenience. Yes.
[4:42:05] wonderful. That's all for me on that one. Thanks.
[4:42:10] go ahead carla. Yes, I have a follow up question regarding
[4:42:15] item e and the situation that you were describing to nick about
[4:42:20] the fact that the contract, the one, the the one who had the highest
[4:42:25] rating, um, we're not meeting us at the, at
[4:42:29] the, at the budget level that we were, um, that we had, right,
[4:42:33] for, for that contract. In that situation could,
[4:42:37] if they are the highest rated company and you think
[4:42:42] or the team, the, the raiders believe that they are the best ones
[4:42:46] for, for what we need, could you have come back to the board, share
[4:42:50] that information with us and we could have decided, you know what, it's worth the investment
[4:42:55] increasing this, uh, budget amount
[4:42:59] and you know, that conversation could have happened?
[4:43:06] um, so I think you're referring to item ni would not item n yeah, you're right, you're right.
[4:43:10] it is item n uh, the power school one. The, the, the
[4:43:14] conversations I think may be independent, um, in regards to budget authority
[4:43:19] and allocation of budget versus, uh, a contractual
[4:43:24] rfps discussion. Um, and so I think if, if that
[4:43:28] sponsoring department, um, thought that they could
[4:43:32] get budget authority to actually implement it and had the resources
[4:43:36] and the ability to do so, then they, they would've gone back and done that
[4:43:40] and then we could have moved forward with the rfp. So you,
[4:43:44] but I, I guess what I'm trying to say is that those conversations are independent from one another. They're not,
[4:43:48] um, in the sense of, hey, here's a an rfp board, we'd like you to, to
[4:43:53] authorize more budget authority. I think that that rfp in itself is independent
[4:43:57] of that discussion. Okay. But I mean, I guess the concern is
[4:44:01] that you went, what I heard was that a decision was made to go
[4:44:05] with the second place per group because they already met us to
[4:44:09] where we were budgetary wise. Correct. And so my
[4:44:14] question is, could the team have chosen to go with,
[4:44:18] I mean if the, if the decision was made because they did not believe
[4:44:22] that they had the budgetary authority to go with
[4:44:27] first place, where if it's not, where
[4:44:31] does that conversation happen where they can think about going with first place or
[4:44:36] that that would be the sponsoring department that would go back and, and say,
[4:44:40] can we get budget authority and the resources to be able to do this?
[4:44:45] um, and that would be kind of their discretion decision alongside budget and the finance team.
[4:44:49] and now what budget, I'll, I'll step in here 'cause I, I think the important thing that
[4:44:53] matt is distinguishing is that you have an evaluation team that is scoring
[4:44:58] and selecting a particular vendor as part of the procurement process. And
[4:45:02] so when the board actually weighs in is now
[4:45:07] it is before you, um, how that process and, and the consideration
[4:45:11] of budgets that around how a decision was made. And so it is
[4:45:15] before you today for that purpose, how the scoring
[4:45:19] team makes that decision is something that we protect as part of the
[4:45:23] procurement process. And you generally don't want board intervention in
[4:45:28] the middle of something like that. It is now when you actually have from,
[4:45:32] from a board perspective, would weigh in and make a decision
[4:45:36] on whether this is a appropriate course forward. Got it. Alright. So this is the moment
[4:45:40] where we would say, you know, we don't,
[4:45:44] we don't approve of this or, okay. Got it. Thank you. Oh,
[4:45:48] hold on. I have another, not for you though. I think it's for mr.
[4:45:52] cizneros regarding item r.
[4:46:04] thank you. Okay. So can you, um, share,
[4:46:08] um, about this item, how
[4:46:12] the implementation of this has improved outcomes for our students?
[4:46:17] yes. So joel cisneros, executive director for student mental health and wellness
[4:46:21] services. So this item in front of you is our electronic health record.
[4:46:26] uh, I know it's listed as continuum cloud, but it's also known as well agent.
[4:46:31] so this is the, essentially the electronic platform
[4:46:35] where our staff document all their services so it improves
[4:46:40] outcomes because that's where we are able to track effectiveness and impact.
[4:46:44] and essentially that's where we can report a help to lcap and other various
[4:46:49] measures. And has this, it's, it's
[4:46:53] the, um, the platform where is it only psw or also
[4:46:57] psas enter enter minutes. We have some psas from student support programs,
[4:47:02] um, that use that platform. And then addition to that are also our
[4:47:06] student family resource navigators. Oh, okay. And has this impacted
[4:47:10] the workload for, uh, the folks who use this platform or
[4:47:14] providers? No, it, it's, it's part of their responsibility of documenting services
[4:47:19] and the absence of that, they would have to use paper and pencil. Oh, okay. And
[4:47:23] then, um, how long have we been doing this for? How long, uh,
[4:47:27] this contract? Um, so what, what's in front of you is re to renew the
[4:47:31] four remaining options. Uh, but this contract or this
[4:47:35] vendor has been with us for about almost 10 years. Well, well, agent yes. But
[4:47:39] for the, for the pr we use this, the, this one is
[4:47:44] being funded by the children and youth behavioral health initiative grant, right?
[4:47:48] correct. So how long have we been, uh, using it, using that grant?
[4:47:52] uh, this is the first year, so oh, this is the first year? Yeah. So this current year
[4:47:57] we were able to use and leverage those dollars through the c-y-b-h-I
[4:48:01] grant. And do we have an idea of how much we've received
[4:48:06] from, or have we not received any, any reimbursements yet? Yes, we've been
[4:48:10] able to submit some reimbursements, uh, year to date we're about close to $400,000
[4:48:15] of reimbursement in less than a year of build. So, sorry, I should correct myself
[4:48:19] of build. Um, and we've received close to 200,000.
[4:48:23] and this is in less than a year? Correct. Okay. And then where is this
[4:48:27] money housed right now? It sits in, uh, student mental health and
[4:48:32] wellness services and it's, uh, being earmarked, whether it be to
[4:48:36] reinvest to, uh, determine the needs of the programs and the department.
[4:48:42] um, do we expect this amount of reimbursement to grow
[4:48:46] over time or do we, what is our expectation of how much we should
[4:48:50] be seeing? Yeah, absolutely. I think that's a good question because as, as you
[4:48:54] mentioned, this is part of the first year that we've rolled it out. Uh, there's still a lot of operational
[4:48:59] pieces that we're, we're developing, but yes, our goal is to increase
[4:49:03] this significantly. And then these funds would be considered discretionary funds
[4:49:07] for that department, correct. Or that division? Correct. Alright. Okay. Thank you.
[4:49:12] yeah, thank you. Who else has a question?
[4:49:19] okay, I would like to go back to the, um, metro cards
[4:49:23] again.
[4:49:30] okay. Okay. Thank you. So tell
[4:49:34] me how the students actually receive in their hand
[4:49:38] their, uh, tap card. How do they receive it? Thank you for the
[4:49:42] question. Uh, in terms of the cards at, at each school, each
[4:49:46] region is allotted a certain amount of cards. We distribute 'em, uh, throughout
[4:49:50] the region and we provide them with codes. Uh, the kids are able
[4:49:54] to request a card at one of their pop-up events that we've
[4:49:58] had, or either at the school administration, uh, offices,
[4:50:03] uh, they can actually request a card and at that point they can activate the
[4:50:07] card within 30 days. And after, if they don't activate it within the 30
[4:50:11] days, they then have to get a new, a new registration activation code.
[4:50:15] okay. And my, the question is, because I was at a school where it was
[4:50:19] being distributed. Okay. And one of the questions I think was how
[4:50:24] do parents, well, how do you communicate that it's going out, how do we do that?
[4:50:28] and so what we've done, uh, for the past three years, we've provided an email
[4:50:33] to go out to all of the students, uh, through their, uh, email accounts,
[4:50:37] and students were able to activate their, uh, card. If
[4:50:41] they had a previous card, they were able to activate it, uh, through registering
[4:50:45] online and didn't have to come into the office or didn't have to request anything. So
[4:50:50] we gave them their actual activation codes through those emails. So we
[4:50:54] distributed 400, we worked with its, distributed it in, uh,
[4:50:58] july, and they would receive it by no later than the fourth. This
[4:51:02] past year, we were able to get it out and make sure that there
[4:51:06] was no gap in services, um, between, uh, the summer session.
[4:51:11] so june 30th is when it expired. So let me tell you what I saw with
[4:51:15] my own eyes. At a middle school, the teacher came down with
[4:51:19] his class and they were giving out the cards, and the kid said,
[4:51:23] I don't want it. And I said, what do you mean you don't
[4:51:27] want it? I don't want it. Well, does your mom
[4:51:32] or dad know that you're entitled to a tap card? And
[4:51:36] you said, I don't want it. You're not, you're not the adult in the house.
[4:51:40] so that's why I think we're missing the parent part of telling the parents,
[4:51:44] your child's gonna be given a free tap card, right? No.
[4:51:49] well, it doesn't make sense. I just couldn't beli. Well, it was middle school, so I couldn't believe it.
[4:51:53] it was middle school and I just couldn't believe that the kids were saying that I don't want the card.
[4:51:59] maybe they're all millionaire children, I don't know. But they didn't want the card, so I, we,
[4:52:03] we need let the parents know. Okay, thank you. And what, what we've done also, just
[4:52:07] to add to it, okay. We've, we've put out a lot of communications. We work with our comms team
[4:52:11] to post out the, on the slider. Um, we had a video that was created by
[4:52:16] students to, uh, show how easy it is to use their tap cards,
[4:52:20] whether it's for the weekends, for cultural events exactly. Or
[4:52:24] for any other events, museums, or whatever the case may be. And as well as using it for
[4:52:28] school. And then also we sent out messages for parents, um, through their,
[4:52:32] so we, we, we've done a lot of outreach, so, okay. Um, we will do,
[4:52:36] we'll continue to do that, but believe it or not, there are students who do say, I don't, I don't want it.
[4:52:40] so thank you. Thank you. Unfortunately. Okay. Unfortunately is right. Thank you.
[4:52:47] anyone else? Go ahead, kelly. Thank you.
[4:52:51] um, a couple items that have already been discussed, but um, on item,
[4:52:56] sorry, the renumbering of these is getting me really confused. The firefighter
[4:53:00] joint apprenticeship committee, um, item
[4:53:05] maybe g, maybe fh
[4:53:11] is there anyone who can speak on that one? Hi.
[4:53:15] um, a really easy one was just curious about if there's an opportunity
[4:53:19] to connect the apprenticeship to our fire academies, um, that are operating
[4:53:24] district wide. Um, my belief is yes,
[4:53:28] but we can come back with a formal answer for you. Okay. I look forward to the formal answer.
[4:53:32] I sounds good. And then on the
[4:53:36] translation bench,
[4:53:43] oh, dr. Soto's coming down. Okay, perfect.
[4:53:49] give him some travel time.
[4:54:01] bye.
[4:54:09] hi, dr. Soto. Hi, good afternoon. My specific question on
[4:54:13] the bench, I I, and I think others have raised, you know, the idea of bringing
[4:54:17] more translation in-house. One other item that was raised by the cac at their presentation
[4:54:22] last week was remote, um, translation versus in-person translation.
[4:54:26] can you share whether, uh, these contracted vendors provide
[4:54:31] remote only or do they also provide in-person translation? Yes, so
[4:54:35] they actually provide both ways. Uh, depending on the request that's made.
[4:54:40] uh, if we're able, if the vendor's able to come and participate in the ieb in person,
[4:54:44] they will depending, again, also on the language that's being requested. If there's
[4:54:48] a limited amount of translators for certain language, then they'll request to be able to
[4:54:52] zoom in or, uh, be, participate virtually in the iep. Okay.
[4:54:56] yeah. And if there's any way, I mean, my continued belief is yes, if we can
[4:55:00] grow our own translation unit, that's the best possible option, but if
[4:55:05] not, um, having them come in person as much as possible is responsive to
[4:55:09] what, what was raised by the cac members. Absolutely. Okay, great. Thank you. Sorry to make you
[4:55:13] walk all this way for that single question. Um, and then on
[4:55:17] the, uh, item l the driftwood, dairy,
[4:55:22] et cetera, um, food product
[4:55:26] contracts, I dunno if mr. Singh is here.
[4:55:33] hi. Um, was just wondering, uh, if you can share
[4:55:37] anything about the alignment of these contracts with our good food purchasing policy?
[4:55:44] uh, specific to that, I, I would probably have to get back to you in, in
[4:55:48] speaking with manishh. Um, I can talk to the framework of the agreement and
[4:55:52] pricing and all that sort of stuff, if that's helpful. But, um, specific to good food
[4:55:56] policy, that'd be something else. Uh, got it. Yeah, it would be great. You know, that's a, a policy
[4:56:01] priority and a partnership that the district has to ensure that, you know, both our workforce and
[4:56:05] our environment is all taken care of when it comes to the purchasing of our food products. So
[4:56:09] yeah, if you could get back to me, that would be great. And I
[4:56:13] think those are all of my questions. Thank you, mr. Schroen.
[4:56:20] anyone else? Okay, mr. Cle.
[4:56:25] all right. There's also a recusal from ms. Ez on item r.
[4:56:30] so whatever vote she records will not, uh, go towards item
[4:56:34] r. And the same will apply for mr. Melvoin as to, uh, item p. So
[4:56:38] whatever your vote is, mr. Mal wayne, it won't apply to, to that particular, um,
[4:56:43] item within tab three. Alright. Uh, moved by dr. Rivas,
[4:56:47] seconded by mr. Melvoin, the vote on tab three, procurement. Ms. Newbell?
[4:56:51] yes, dr. Rivas? I'm abstaining
[4:56:55] on item c and I am a no
[4:57:00] on item n and p. So that's an abstention
[4:57:04] on item c, a, no on item
[4:57:08] n, n as
[4:57:12] in no. And, uh,
[4:57:18] and p. Alright.
[4:57:22] and yes, on the balance? Yes, correct. Okay. Uh,
[4:57:26] mr. Melvoin, I'm a no on e as in
[4:57:31] emily, , earth, um, and n as in nick,
[4:57:35] um, a recusal on p and a? Yes. On the balance. Uh,
[4:57:40] could you repeat that? No. On e, yes. No. On e and n. Recusal.
[4:57:44] on p, yes, on the balance. Thank you.
[4:57:49] uh, ms. Rego? Um, no. On e, on
[4:57:53] n as in no. And p as in paul? No. On
[4:57:57] e and, and p, is that correct?
[4:58:01] yes. Thank you. Uh, ms. Conez, um,
[4:58:06] I'm going to abstain on item c and then refusal
[4:58:10] on r.
[4:58:15] okay. Uh, ms. Ortiz. Franklin, I'm just a yes. .
[4:58:19] okay. Just a yes. And board president. Schuren.
[4:58:23] I'm just a yes, also . Okay.
[4:58:27] um, I need to go through and see what, um,
[4:58:32] impact this has on particular items.
[4:58:38] there were three nos on ends, uh, so it passes
[4:58:44] and, uh, recusal on pa, no on
[4:58:48] p and a second no on p. So four
[4:58:52] affirmative votes for that also. Okay.
[4:58:57] um, and if anyone has anything different than what I'm saying, please
[4:59:02] say it out loud. Uh, we have two abstentions for item c. So it's
[4:59:06] five affirmative, five affirmative votes for that.
[4:59:10] okay. That concludes tab three.
[4:59:16] lemme check for public comment and what, uh, our next direction will be. I
[5:00:01] for the record and out of an abundance of caution, as to tab three, procurement actions.
[5:00:06] item r. Uh, with respect to, uh, board member ez,
[5:00:10] she recused herself out of an abundance of caution again, uh,
[5:00:14] because a campaign donation in excess of $500 was made by
[5:00:19] an entity associated with that item. So that's why she didn't vote on it. And now that's
[5:00:23] on the record. Uh, now we go to tab four. Is that right? Public comment. Alright.
[5:00:27] public comment for tab four
[5:00:32] coming right up.
[5:00:37] all right, I'll call on the folks who are listed as being, uh, in person, and then we
[5:00:41] will call on the folks listed, uh, as remote speakers. Deanna
[5:00:46] guillen, are you here, ms. Guillen? There's
[5:00:50] a lot of movement. I'm looking for ms. Guillen. I don't see her. I'm gonna see
[5:00:54] if ms. Guinn is with us online. On note,
[5:01:00] uh, ms. Guillen may show up. Let's
[5:01:04] see. The next in person is monica ola. Monica, are you here?
[5:01:09] monica ola. Monica arla. Also not
[5:01:13] here right now. I'll check online. And the next speaker for tab four
[5:01:18] is abigail de la torre. I see you're online. Please press star six to unmute
[5:01:22] yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Abigail de la torre.
[5:01:29] good afternoon, members of the board. My name is abigail de la tore. I'm a recent
[5:01:33] graduate and a taxpayer. Today I'm speaking on the lcap process and how was
[5:01:37] reportedly run without transparency and through intimidation. According to the student whistle
[5:01:41] blowing, instead of receiving full transparency, full knowledge, and full independence,
[5:01:46] student representatives were lied to about the lcap process by senior
[5:01:50] l-a-u-s-c officials, antonio placencia and eric l edward at the office of family
[5:01:54] and community engagement. This has been confirmed in a whistleblower
[5:01:58] memo, distributed district-wide and intermediate agencies. It is also my understanding that
[5:02:03] similar allegations have already been made by parents, specifically that antonio placencia
[5:02:07] and eric l edward have intimidated and lied to parents. Now it's happening to students
[5:02:11] who ask simple questions about the lcap. It's because these student representatives
[5:02:15] push back and are independent. We are outraged that this is happening to our representatives.
[5:02:20] the board of education should be aware of this, which is our purpose here today.
[5:02:25] you should instruct antonio placencia and eric edward to never lie again and to apologize
[5:02:29] for their improper and, and potentially illegal conduct. With the lcap process,
[5:02:34] we, they obstructed the oversight of billions in taxpayer funds in the lcap process.
[5:02:38] this is incredibly inequitable, was lacentia and edward's comments being opposed to equitable
[5:02:43] information, but it is also a blended violation of lad's and california's
[5:02:47] principles. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[5:02:52] I see maria daisy ortiz is out there. Please, uh, come on up. You'll have two minutes to
[5:02:56] speak once you begin. Ms. Ortiz is gonna speak in spanish, so if you'd like to hear what she's
[5:03:00] saying in english, please put your hands up and we'll get you these translation headsets. So
[5:03:04] we'll just take a few moments to do that, please.
[5:03:11] our last regular board meeting. So I just wanna appreciate our folks in translations
[5:03:15] who, uh, not only make sure this meeting can be transmitted
[5:03:21] in a, in a couple of different languages, including a sl, but also
[5:03:26] get in a lot of steps passing these translation headsets out. And it's
[5:03:30] typically flawless. We think we
[5:03:34] have just a couple more in the back. I wasn't kidding about the steps. I see
[5:03:38] bert, he's fast. He's fast, he's fast.
[5:03:49] okay, when I started.
[5:03:54] good afternoon everyone. My name is maria and I am very happy that more
[5:03:59] people are opening their eyes, especially because all
[5:04:03] of you know is no connection with the parents in
[5:04:07] the school. Although it is a part to help the students
[5:04:11] in the whole school, it doesn't exist. So
[5:04:15] the means for the vehicle for this to be information, to be fluid.
[5:04:20] on the contrary, many parents don't even know what lup is and what it is
[5:04:24] for. So in reality, we, we are being treated
[5:04:28] like third class citizens. Aside from being taxpayers,
[5:04:33] aside from being leader parents in the community,
[5:04:37] we are not being listened to. Our recommendations
[5:04:41] aren't being listened to second place. Uh, there isn't a way in
[5:04:45] which to measure the lcap only using
[5:04:50] the smart balance. I don't feel like it is something
[5:04:55] the smarter balance is many times taking in april. And then
[5:04:59] by june the school year is closed. So we are with delayed data. Another
[5:05:03] item, academic excellence. Academic
[5:05:07] excellence means that no more children will be graduating with
[5:05:12] d or with remi ated materials
[5:05:16] because there's going to be a lot of failure with students that are graduating without being at their reading
[5:05:20] level because you want to look nice. 85%, but
[5:05:25] competitive is 35%. Another item,
[5:05:31] the way in which parents are being involved, you have to create those vehicles
[5:05:35] of information. Mr. Carvallo knew that
[5:05:39] there had to be a ba pa base so
[5:05:43] that this information can be fluid in the district in a way in which
[5:05:47] we can measure effective parent involvement, not through a survey
[5:05:52] in which the language of that survey doesn't represent
[5:05:56] the participation of the parents. It has to be better. And lastly, just the
[5:06:00] way you have translation here and you clap for the translation department, that's
[5:06:04] the way there should be in schools. The school site doesn't have representation because many
[5:06:08] schools do not reserve or there isn't enough interpreters that can
[5:06:13] get to the schools to interpret that is a deficiency that it should
[5:06:17] be fixed. And another one no one spoke about is security
[5:06:21] because you don't care about security of our children. How will
[5:06:25] you guarantee everything that you have put on that l cap when there is
[5:06:29] reduction in the funds? I want answers because seeing you
[5:06:33] here concretely, thank you for your time. Makes me sick. Thank you.
[5:06:38] alright, I have, I have, uh, alex
[5:06:42] halo, uh, signed up to speak remotely. Are you in the room? I don't have you signed in, in front of me,
[5:06:47] so not here. Isabella teez is on the line. Please press star six
[5:06:51] to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Isabella teez.
[5:07:00] hello? Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
[5:07:04] okay. My name's isabella teez. I recently graduated at the independent
[5:07:08] leadership and public service virtual academy graduation ceremony for just our school
[5:07:13] board member. Franklin, thank you for pushing that for that opportunity. I'm
[5:07:17] here today to speak on the lcap and how the process, the process was
[5:07:21] reportedly swayed by high ranking lasd officials. This has been
[5:07:25] tamed the lcap comment. It's unfortunate that my
[5:07:30] peers and I have to come here so often to report these things as students. We are
[5:07:34] represented, represented by advocates on the student advisory council.
[5:07:38] I was incredibly surprised and upset when I learned that our advocates were misled by
[5:07:42] lesc officials during the lcap process, specifically antonio
[5:07:46] placencia and el eric l edward lied to students and tainted
[5:07:50] the lcap recommendations. You've heard prior. Lesd in the office
[5:07:54] of student and family engagement claimed to be for student voice inclusion and
[5:07:58] transparency, eric l edward, and antonio placencia taking advantage
[5:08:03] of students, cosing them, intimidating them, lying to them, and then refusing
[5:08:07] to answer questions lies in the face of this exact
[5:08:11] message. The board should be made aware of the improper
[5:08:16] and illegal conduct l word and placencia, as should all the students
[5:08:20] involved in this programming. The lack of transparency, the corruption,
[5:08:24] and the intimidation totally exploded in the face of engagement. Office. Lu
[5:08:28] and elridge should now be held accountable to the public for misinforming,
[5:08:33] our lcap representative on taxpayer firm. Bye.
[5:08:37] thank you for your time. All right, the next speaker is,
[5:08:43] uh, leah driscoll. Leah driscal, are you here? You're signed up to speak
[5:08:47] remotely, but are you in the room? Not here. Your
[5:08:52] and I have concerned parent on the line concerned parent. Please press star six to
[5:08:56] unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Concerned parent.
[5:09:07] good afternoon. Board members. So as I'm reading the materials,
[5:09:12] there is a description of what the lcap is, what
[5:09:16] it's supposed to do, and what the expected outcomes are. However,
[5:09:21] the materials don't express how the district is going to do this.
[5:09:25] throughout many of the presentations today, there's been a lot of comments about
[5:09:29] how input was collected through focus groups, different,
[5:09:34] um, committees, but oftentimes these committees leave
[5:09:38] a lot of parents out. It seems that a lot of the committees, a
[5:09:43] lot of the community based organizations are very aligned,
[5:09:47] which is very interesting because there are 500,000
[5:09:52] students in your district. However, it seems that the concerns
[5:09:56] of just a, a portion of that are being
[5:10:00] reflected in your policy. So I wanna speak to the
[5:10:04] parent engagement specifically. Thank you board members for
[5:10:08] pointing that out because this is something that happens a lot.
[5:10:13] I believe it was a board member nobel that mentioned that
[5:10:17] in secondary schools, parents sort of just start opting
[5:10:21] out of their students' lives. That's not something that the parents are
[5:10:25] doing. It's something that it seems to be intentional from the district.
[5:10:30] it doesn't matter that students are growing and they're, they're able to start
[5:10:34] making decisions on their own. They aren't minors and it's the parents that
[5:10:38] are responsible for their educational rights. So I want to encourage
[5:10:42] the district to start campaigning
[5:10:47] more of that family partnership in your schools because what
[5:10:51] you have been doing for the last couple of years have seemed to be driving
[5:10:56] a division between parents and students. Yes, we are living
[5:11:00] in different times, but at the end of the day, it is the parents that are responsible
[5:11:04] for the students and no community organization or your
[5:11:08] organization specifically are going to, um,
[5:11:13] deter pa, should be deterring parents from being involved in active
[5:11:17] members and their families education. Thank you. Thank
[5:11:21] you for your time. That concludes public comment on tab four.
[5:11:25] um, it is now appropriate for the board to discuss, but before they do may have a motion and
[5:11:30] a second to bring it to the table, move it. Oh, oh boy. Second
[5:11:35] moved by board president schon seconded by board member ez.
[5:11:40] so of course, just just want to, you know, refresh the, the board's memory, our
[5:11:44] audience's memory, that of course we had a robust presentation around the l cap last week. Lcap budget,
[5:11:49] fsp, all of those pieces kind of interweave with each other. And of course the team
[5:11:53] stands ready to answer any questions that the board may have.
[5:12:00] further questions from anyone? Go ahead, mr. Melvin. Sure.
[5:12:04] thank you. Just two questions. Um, one is, given
[5:12:08] the similarity in this year's lcap versus last year's, how
[5:12:12] will we ensure that this upcoming lcap is aligned with a new strategic plan
[5:12:17] that was adopted today? Yeah,
[5:12:21] uh, eric ward, lcap administrator. In terms of the, the lcap alignment
[5:12:25] to the strategic plan, the goals will remain the same. So in terms of goals
[5:12:30] one through five, academic excellence, two, investing in staff,
[5:12:34] that will be the same, uh, as the strategic plan moving forward. I think the
[5:12:38] changes that you're gonna see as we move into, uh, not the el kafr
[5:12:42] next year, 26, 27, but it's really 27, 28 around
[5:12:46] targets and updating actions and really ensuring that the
[5:12:51] work done in developing the strategic plan and measures success where they are
[5:12:55] applicable can connect to the lcap around the state funded actions.
[5:12:59] so specifically the goals will remain the same. Uh, the actions, uh,
[5:13:03] might fluctuate going into 27 28, uh, but the metrics
[5:13:07] were applicable, we'll say the same, but then the targets will play out
[5:13:11] to 2030. Got it. Yep. Thank you. And I guess my second
[5:13:15] question, comment, kind of caveat, word of caution of the above, but the
[5:13:20] lcap um, explains our strategies to support all students within the
[5:13:24] flexibility of lcff, but in particular to demonstrate how we're using supplemental and
[5:13:28] concentration dollars to support high needs students and to hold the district accountable for
[5:13:32] equitable strategies. And in the last few years, our primary strategy for supporting
[5:13:36] high needs students, or at least maybe the greatest of a few has been
[5:13:41] se um, which has continued, uh,
[5:13:45] continues to be reflected in this year's actions and expenditures. But as we enter a
[5:13:49] phase of our budgeting, um, with more limited spending and enter a new lcap
[5:13:53] cycle next year, I'm hoping the team can come back to the board before next
[5:13:57] june with its best thinking for how we continue to demonstrate support
[5:14:01] for low income el foster youth with our supplemental and concentration dollars
[5:14:05] in a meaningful and targeted way, as we see, at least in the current iteration of the fsp,
[5:14:09] that those s do dollars are going away. Um, 'cause I worry that even,
[5:14:14] even norm based investments with like an equity lens, um, may not help
[5:14:18] us accomplish the goals in the way that c did. Um, and so I
[5:14:22] see that mr. Brava, carini is here too, but, um, just wanna make sure
[5:14:26] if you wanna speak to it now, but I, I just, I think more in the fall, like it just, it's
[5:14:30] a, a flag that I have, I know others have too, and I wanna make sure we're being explicit and
[5:14:34] upfront about it. So thank you. Understood.
[5:14:42] anyone else further comments? No. Okay,
[5:14:46] go ahead ms. Tanya ortiz. Franklin. So I'll just build out a little bit off of what, um,
[5:14:51] mr. Voy mentioned. Can you, can the team explain, and I'm not sure if this is um, simon or
[5:14:55] the lcap team, but, um, you know, when lcff was
[5:14:59] first passed and we had all this additional targeted student funding, also known as
[5:15:03] supplemental and concentration from the state, it was about a billion dollars. And so advocates were
[5:15:08] encouraging the district to put all of that through an equitable formula. And so c started
[5:15:12] really small, it got bigger, last year was the biggest at 700 million, not quite a billion,
[5:15:17] but why can we not put all of the supplemental and concentration funds
[5:15:21] through the c formula?
[5:15:26] it is possible, but we would have to eliminate every other
[5:15:30] current use of supplemental concentration grant funds. And
[5:15:34] they are significant. Um, many of those
[5:15:39] funds are used for things that we are contractually obligated to provide as part of our union
[5:15:44] contracts. And so, um, there are some constraints even on
[5:15:48] being able to cut things that are currently being funded programs. Uh, it's
[5:15:52] not unlimited, the ability to cut those and, um, they're being used for,
[5:15:57] uh, many things that are, uh, you know, very
[5:16:01] important to student learning. Uh, very important to meeting the needs of our unduplicated
[5:16:06] students. Um, but that's why when cni was increased
[5:16:10] to $700 million, it was actually possible only due
[5:16:14] to the availability of covid relief funds. Uh, those covid relief
[5:16:19] funds, um, were used to fund it at $700 million
[5:16:23] for two years. Um, the district was in a position
[5:16:27] to keep it at $700 million for a little bit longer.
[5:16:32] um, but now as you know, based on the fiscal stabilization plan and the projected,
[5:16:36] the very significant projected negative ending balances that we're facing, um,
[5:16:41] we can't sustain sending nor many other very important programs at
[5:16:45] at previous levels. Do we have a percentage of how much of
[5:16:49] our, um, lcff budget is, uh, determined by collective
[5:16:53] bargaining agreements? So it was
[5:16:58] typically about a third of the positions that
[5:17:02] are provided. Uh, and I think in the 26 27 budget,
[5:17:07] it's getting even closer to 40%, if I'm not mistaken, even like 38%.
[5:17:12] those are just the positions, uh, that are defined
[5:17:16] in terms of the ratios by which they're allocated. Obviously labor agreements
[5:17:20] include other costs like salary increases that are just part of the cost of a
[5:17:25] position. That's part of why a position will be more expensive or cost more
[5:17:29] from one year to the next. But just the positions alone, classroom teachers is
[5:17:33] the biggest example are, uh, at least for next year's budget, well over a
[5:17:37] third of general fund unrestricted. Okay. And I imagine we might ask more budget questions
[5:17:41] in the budget item. So lemme just ask on the lcap, uh, or lcf f1
[5:17:45] more question. The, um, school experience survey is used for
[5:17:49] a couple of metrics and I know we're making some revisions. Can you just tell us about what
[5:17:53] to expect for next year's school experience survey
[5:17:58] in terms of changing up some of the metrics? I probably wanna hand it over to bill on this
[5:18:02] one. I think you were probably going where I was going.
[5:18:06] um, hello. So, so certainly our accounting for any, any school experience
[5:18:11] survey, current survey items that are in the lcap or are in the, the, the
[5:18:15] former or soon to be current, uh, new strategic plan. Those will certainly
[5:18:19] be kept, uh, for lack of disruption and we, you know, we certainly account
[5:18:23] for that along the way. Um, for the school experience survey. Then moving
[5:18:27] forward, uh, the, uh, there's going to, there's gonna be a,
[5:18:31] a version that's essentially the core body of the survey that are gonna be non-negotiables
[5:18:36] that from year to year and, and anything on the lcap will be a part of that core part of the
[5:18:40] survey. And then other items that might come and go with a new policy where we need a one year temperature
[5:18:44] gauge or something, we might do that for the survey, but lcap items are gonna be be in
[5:18:48] there through and through. And what's the timing for the survey next year? Uh, the survey will be in,
[5:18:52] it'll be administered in early spring or around february is when we open up the window and it's done
[5:18:56] by spring break the same as this year? Yeah. Okay. Alright. Thank you. Mm-hmm .
[5:19:05] anyone else? Mr. Mclean?
[5:19:10] alright. The vote on tab four. Ms. New bill? Yes,
[5:19:14] that's a yes. Uh, dr. Reba? Uh, mr. Melvin? Yes. Uh, ms.
[5:19:18] crego. Ms. Ez? Yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Board
[5:19:23] president schuren? Yes. Alright, that's five eyes. So it passes.
[5:19:27] we'll come back to the, to dr. Rivas and ms. Griego
[5:19:32] in a moment. So now onto tab
[5:19:36] six, adoption of the proposed 26 27
[5:19:40] budget.
[5:19:45] move it right. Thank you. Second, moved by ms. Ez,
[5:19:50] seconded by board president schon. There are 12
[5:19:55] spots of public comment for this. I'll call the folks who are in person first
[5:19:59] and then we'll call on those who are listed as being remote. This appears to be mostly
[5:20:04] in person folks. So on tab six, uh,
[5:20:08] delana walker, are you here? Yes. Come
[5:20:12] on up, ms. Walker. You have two minutes to speak once you begin. And after
[5:20:16] ms. Walker is emma hernandez, then kim
[5:20:20] richards and then julie brooks. The two minutes is yours.
[5:20:32] good afternoon board members. My name is delana walker. I work at the los
[5:20:36] angeles conservation corps. We've partnered with l-a-u-s-d for over 40
[5:20:41] years and now serve 6,000 students
[5:20:45] across 2222 schools in high need communities. I urge
[5:20:49] you to protect and fully fund high school expanded learning programs.
[5:20:55] we keep students engaged on track and from hanging out in the streets.
[5:20:59] in the 20 24 20 25 school year participants
[5:21:04] attended about 18.5 more days of school,
[5:21:09] earn credit at a much higher rate, and performed
[5:21:13] better in core subjects.
[5:21:18] we also provide college and career readiness, mentoring and essential
[5:21:22] life skills, while also reducing screen time through meaningful
[5:21:26] activities and relationships. We support l-a-u-s-d
[5:21:31] vision for student success and urge the board to act now
[5:21:36] if cbo programs close every single high school
[5:21:40] after school program in l-a-u-s-d closes,
[5:21:44] establish rates that reflect true cost of delivering programs,
[5:21:48] brain master contracts current fully reinstate our
[5:21:53] elop funding and the community-based organization serving
[5:21:57] l-a-u-s-d highest need students can continue to do
[5:22:01] this great work. We are com a committed partner
[5:22:06] and we look forward to continuing this work. Thank you.
[5:22:10] thank you for your time. All right,
[5:22:14] emma hernandez, come on up. Ms. Hernandez, you'll have two minutes
[5:22:18] to speak once you begin. And after ms. Hernandez, it is kim richards,
[5:22:23] sorry. Good afternoon, president
[5:22:28] board members and acting superintendent. My name is emma hernandez and
[5:22:32] I serve as ceo of the southeast community development corporation. Each year
[5:22:36] our organizations serve hundreds of students through afterschool and summer programs at support
[5:22:40] youth and families throughout southeast los angeles. I'm also
[5:22:44] a proud l-a-u-s-g graduate who has returned to serve the community that helped shape
[5:22:48] my future. I appreciate the work that has gone into
[5:22:52] developing the budget of the district's continued commitment to student success and educational
[5:22:57] equity. Today I urge the board to protect
[5:23:01] and sustain investments in afterschool and expanded learning programs and
[5:23:06] to ensure that funding levels reflect the true cost of providing these services.
[5:23:10] earlier today, you heard directly from southeast la
[5:23:15] students about the impact that afterschool programs have had on their lives.
[5:23:19] their stories demonstrate that these programs do far more than just provide afterschool
[5:23:23] activities. They create safe spaces, connect students with trusted
[5:23:28] mentors, provide academic and enrichment opportunities, and help young
[5:23:32] people build confidence, leadership skills, and a vision for their future.
[5:23:36] many of these programs have served l-a-u-s-d students and families for decades. They've
[5:23:40] built trusted relationships and a deep understanding of community needs that cannot
[5:23:45] be replicated overnight. However, sustaining these programs require funding
[5:23:49] that keeps pace with the actual cost of staffing, training, facilities,
[5:23:53] transportation supplies, and program operations. The question
[5:23:57] is not whether these programs work. The students who spoke today have already answered that
[5:24:02] question. The question is whether we will continue investing at a level that
[5:24:06] allows these programs to remain strong and accessible for future generations of
[5:24:10] students. As you adopt this budget, I respectfully ask that you support funding strategies
[5:24:15] that fully sustain high quality after school and expanded learning programs
[5:24:19] for the students and families who depend on them. Thank you for your leadership and commitment
[5:24:23] to l-a-u-s-d students. Thank you for your time.
[5:24:28] alright, kim richards, come on down. You have two
[5:24:32] minutes to speak once you begin, then it's julie brooks. Uh, channing
[5:24:36] martinez and geo gomez. Hi, good afternoon.
[5:24:41] my name is kim richards and I represent a collective of boys and
[5:24:45] girls clubs throughout l los angeles that have served los angeles unified school
[5:24:49] district for decades. L-a-u-s-d receives more than 500 million through
[5:24:53] elop aces and 21st century designated for
[5:24:58] expanded learning. While ais in 21st century may be, uh, receiving
[5:25:03] reductions. Keep in mind that these grants were awarded years
[5:25:07] ago when enrollment was much higher. In fact, between 2013 and
[5:25:11] 2023, enrollment has gone down by nearly 35%
[5:25:17] reduction in aces in 21st century learning funding are driven by
[5:25:21] enrollment, not performance. Elop is an apportionment
[5:25:25] and it has not been reduced. In fact, the state has increased funding for,
[5:25:29] um, to expand access in rural and smaller districts.
[5:25:33] any reported reductions are a result of sun setting carry over
[5:25:38] funds. The change in funding, um, that the cbos receive
[5:25:42] is because the district chooses to reallocate elop dollars
[5:25:46] to pay for items previously covered by either the general fund or other
[5:25:50] funds. Unlike other grants, cbos can't reduce the
[5:25:54] spots that, um, are in their program or wait list, um, wait list
[5:25:59] families or operate below staffing ratios. Unlike other grants,
[5:26:03] when we get a funding reduction, so do the outcomes that we are expected to
[5:26:07] deliver. However, now we are being asked to do more with
[5:26:11] less. This poses an ethical, uh, concern. When
[5:26:16] cbos are expected to absorb ongoing district imposed deficits.
[5:26:20] it undermines the intent of a fully funded public system and places
[5:26:24] the district's operating deficit on the back of the communities. We serve
[5:26:29] those that are already un resourced. Uh, the
[5:26:33] contract structure needs to be, uh, revised. We are asking the board today to direct
[5:26:37] for a contract rebuild and to designate adequate elop
[5:26:41] funding before this budget passes. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[5:26:50] and, uh, I'm just gonna say very quickly for our friends and operations, they're just gently ushering
[5:26:55] folks into seats. We thank you. We don't want you, uh, in the hallways for any other
[5:26:59] reason than safety. So if they're ushering into you, into seats, I, I intrigued
[5:27:03] you. Please just grab a seat and enjoy, enjoy the show and come out and
[5:27:07] come out of the the aisles. Uh, the next speaker is julie brooks. Come on
[5:27:11] down ms. Brooks, you'll have two minutes to speak when she begin.
[5:27:16] thank you. Good afternoon. I am julie brooks, ceo of woodcraft rangers. We
[5:27:20] currently operate programs at 54 schools, serving thousands of lusd students each
[5:27:24] day. The proposed cbos cbo rates are barely half the cost of
[5:27:29] operations. The district funding. The district has found funding for the past
[5:27:33] four years, but are suddenly reverting back to rates from 2009. Only
[5:27:37] cbos can determine our costs. We must be at the table to create a funding model and contract
[5:27:41] that meets current realities. Fully funding cbos requires only
[5:27:45] 10% of the pool of funding, but cbos can deliver a third,
[5:27:49] do deliver a third of the legally required work and provide service to
[5:27:53] all high school programs throughout the district. Replacing cbo sites internally
[5:27:58] would cost millions, tens of millions more. I also wanna clear up
[5:28:02] some misconceptions. Aces in 21st century alone cannot fund operations.
[5:28:06] the cde explicitly intends that eop be blended and braided with aces
[5:28:10] in 21st century for one comprehensive program, $15
[5:28:14] and 63 cents is the minimum amount to fund base operations for
[5:28:18] cbos. District run sites already rate funding at a cost much higher
[5:28:23] enhancement funds don't fix the contract. Cbos cannot
[5:28:27] operate on a da reimbursement. We staff to ratio per
[5:28:32] eops universal access requirements. We need cohort billing
[5:28:36] to ensure that, uh, we cover costs. The state gives the district
[5:28:40] full grants and retired in a da reimbursement model. In 2008,
[5:28:45] the district can give cbos 15% indirect allocation. The
[5:28:49] district takes 15% from all elop funds and 15% from aces in 21st
[5:28:54] century at its own sites. And 6.1% at cbo run sites
[5:28:58] leaving cbos with only 8.9% indirect total. This
[5:29:02] is a relic and has no, because eop has no indirect ceiling.
[5:29:07] cbos do not have to fundraise a match for aces in 21st century funding. It's
[5:29:11] not a cash match. Perspe statute bring us to the table to fix the
[5:29:15] contract and ensure sustainability for programs for all students. Thank you. Thank
[5:29:19] you for your time. Next
[5:29:23] speaker is mr. Channing martinez. Channing martinez. I see you're out there. And then
[5:29:28] it's gio gomez, then annette toscano. Come on up, sir. You'll have two minutes to speak
[5:29:32] once you begin. Uh, channing
[5:29:36] martinez center. Um, I don't
[5:29:40] know what mr. Gomez's and the school police obsession is with naming
[5:29:44] in particular the strategy center in their public comment to the school
[5:29:48] board. But since we're talking about budget and making hard
[5:29:53] decisions and as the school police and their management association said
[5:29:57] school safety, which I agree is not optional, let's
[5:30:02] talk about what school safety is and how the budget should reflect actual
[5:30:06] safety, which spoiler alert does not include the repression
[5:30:10] squad that we all know as the school police. Did you
[5:30:14] know that the district spent nearly $350 million
[5:30:18] on school police since 2019? Many
[5:30:22] of you have said we have to make tough decisions. And
[5:30:27] you went, you even went on to say, we told you when we first
[5:30:31] considered these equity programs, that this is done with one-time funds. And
[5:30:35] that later there may be cuts, but almost, but you
[5:30:39] almost move to cut the black student achievement program by 80%. Meanwhile,
[5:30:43] leaving in place the budget of the very military force that works to enforce
[5:30:47] elements of educational genocide against black students. The school
[5:30:51] police. We worked with you to find ways to save the program, but you're
[5:30:56] still considering, uh, cutting c by 80%
[5:31:00] completely eliminated, eliminating the whole category in the third year of
[5:31:04] the fiscal stabilization plan. So now it's our turn
[5:31:08] to tell you, we told you so. We told you to eliminate
[5:31:13] the genocide squad and warn that keeping that funding reflects
[5:31:17] budget priorities, the criminalization and brutalization of black and latinx students.
[5:31:21] and now we're warning you again today, um, that
[5:31:25] you know, as the head of the union used the same tactics as the president has used
[5:31:30] naming specific groups with the intention of a borderline threat.
[5:31:34] at what point did does the district reflect on why they
[5:31:38] continue to spend money on a force for violence? Do imagine
[5:31:42] what it means to save more than $220 million over the next three
[5:31:46] years by not funding the school police and actually fundings. Thank you for your
[5:31:51] time. The next speaker is gio gomez
[5:31:56] geo gomez, and then annette toscano. And after ms. Toscano
[5:32:00] is carol opine and then jeannie marroquin.
[5:32:09] good afternoon board members. My name is giovanni gomez and I'm going into my senior year of
[5:32:13] high school. I have attended l-a-u-s-d schools and I have siblings who are also in l-a-u-s-d
[5:32:18] students. Currently I am also a c youth executive board member
[5:32:22] of expand la's southeast la youth hub. When I was in third grade,
[5:32:26] my mom learned about a robotics program at southeast community development corporation, also
[5:32:30] known scdc in bell. Growing up, I was a very active kid with a lot of
[5:32:34] energy and my mom knew I needed to find something that would end up funneling that energy
[5:32:38] in a positive way, which is how I ended up in scdc. The robotics program
[5:32:43] at scdc introduced me to mentors, community leaders, and positive role models.
[5:32:47] it helped me discover a passion for robotics that I may never have found in during the regular
[5:32:51] school day. I learned problem solving, teamwork, collaboration,
[5:32:56] critical skin, critical thinkings, and public speaking skills. Today,
[5:33:00] those skills have helped me become a leader. As a member of the cell youth executive board,
[5:33:04] I have presented to perform multiple south el southeast la city councils and
[5:33:08] I've advocated for issues that matter to young people in my community. My after afterschool
[5:33:13] robotics program became my safe space and the place that supported me to be the best version of
[5:33:17] myself. Every day, students are looking for safe spaces like the one
[5:33:21] I found and like the afterschool programs presented today, they're looking for
[5:33:25] mentors who care about them. They're looking for programs that push them to think outside the box.
[5:33:30] they're looking for enrichment opportunities that will help them leaders
[5:33:34] to help them be leaders in their communities. As the district makes difficult
[5:33:38] budget decisions, I ask that you continue investing in programs that expand opportunities
[5:33:42] for students. We urge that l-a-u-s-d leaders to ensure that
[5:33:47] elop funding continues to support community-based organizations
[5:33:51] that have been serving students in all the ways I've described and more when students
[5:33:55] have access to meaningful opportunities beyond the classroom, we are better
[5:33:59] prepared for car college careers and life. Thank you for your time.
[5:34:04] thank you for your time. Annette toscano, annette
[5:34:09] t come on up. We have two minutes to speak when she begin.
[5:34:14] good afternoon board members. I yield my time to ms. Michelle broad. Next.
[5:34:19] good afternoon board members. My name is michelle brona and I serve as the ceo of
[5:34:24] la's best, a unique public private partnership among the city of los
[5:34:28] angeles, the los angeles unified school district, um, and la's
[5:34:32] best, which is an independent nonprofit organization. More than 35 years
[5:34:36] ago, under the leadership of mari tom bradley la's best was created to operate
[5:34:40] afterschool programs on l-a-u-s-d campuses. Over the decades, we
[5:34:44] have supported the growth and evolution of expanded learning through a partner, through
[5:34:48] partnership development, policy advocacy, marketing and communications,
[5:34:53] program evaluation, fundraising, and the creation of specialized programming
[5:34:57] content that enriches the lives of students. Unlike most community-based
[5:35:02] organizations, la's best has always functioned as an integral
[5:35:06] part of the district's expanded learning infrastructure. Our work is
[5:35:10] embedded across 201 schools and leverages a unique fundraising model
[5:35:14] that brings private investment directly to l-a-u-s-d programs.
[5:35:18] we were built with the district before the district created beyond the bell
[5:35:22] department, not simply contracted by it. I'm here today because what
[5:35:27] is being proposed reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how this
[5:35:31] nationally recognized ecosystem works. To borrow
[5:35:35] a familiar expression, we are at risk of losing the forest
[5:35:39] for the trees. La's best is not part of
[5:35:43] the community-based organization master of contract. We operate under a separate
[5:35:47] mou that has long recognized the dis distinct distinct nature
[5:35:52] of this partnership. Yet what is being proposed would effectively treat
[5:35:56] la's best as a vendor. It includes spending restrictions,
[5:36:00] fundraising restrictions, and reimbursement language that would prevent us from functioning
[5:36:04] as the organization we were created to be. And we are currently contracted
[5:36:08] to be and have successfully been for more than three decades.
[5:36:14] since I have three seconds left, I strongly recommend that you support,
[5:36:18] uh, the reorganization of our contracts and support the continued
[5:36:23] investment that you've made in expanded learning over for over 30 years. Thank you.
[5:36:27] thank you for your time. Carol
[5:36:31] opine. Carol c coming up after carol is
[5:36:35] jeanie marroquin carol and
[5:36:39] then jeanie.
[5:36:44] hello board members. I'll be yielding my time to chanel della genia. Can
[5:36:49] can you just gimme your name real quick? My name is carol. Perfect. Thank you.
[5:36:57] pull the mic down a little bit. Yeah. Okay.
[5:37:02] am I good to start? Okay. Good afternoon. My name is al
[5:37:06] genia. I am a junior in carson high school and I come from the boys and girls club of carson.
[5:37:10] boys and girls club supports its students in various ways, such as providing
[5:37:15] a safe space for students who wait for hours for a ride to go home after school.
[5:37:19] a quiet space for extra tutoring or space to relax and socialize.
[5:37:24] beyond this boys and girls clubs acts as another source of education and
[5:37:28] opportunity. It encourages its members to partake in programs such as basketball,
[5:37:32] life and workforce readiness and clubs like keystone club or debate
[5:37:37] club. The program life and work readiness force helps student secure
[5:37:41] paid internship and certification such as food handler certificate and a
[5:37:45] workplace soft skill certificate for free. The club's, keystone
[5:37:49] club and debate club help foster students' leadership ability and public
[5:37:53] speaking ability respectively. All of this heavily encourages
[5:37:57] students to be better prepared for the workforce. Along with all these opportunities
[5:38:01] is the chance to travel. Boys and girls club has traveled to ucla
[5:38:06] and po college to broaden its students' awareness of which colleges
[5:38:10] are available to them post high school. They have also gotten the opportunity to
[5:38:14] travel to sacramento and dc to advocate to state senators
[5:38:18] and congressmen about the club's funding mental health and for the
[5:38:22] specific education that schools do not provide. In conclusion, boys and
[5:38:26] girls clubs preside safe spaces for various extracurricular activities
[5:38:31] and extra and extraordinary opportunities that benefits
[5:38:35] its students beyond high school. The club is not just an after school program, but
[5:38:39] it's access to opportunities beyond after school helping
[5:38:43] pave the way to my success. Thank you for your consideration to increase the
[5:38:47] funding for boys and girls clubs. Thank you so much. Appreciate your
[5:38:51] time. Next speaker is jenny jeannie marroquin.
[5:38:57] jeannie are you here? Jeannie m
[5:39:05] good afternoon board members. I will be yielding my time to will and you're a genie.
[5:39:10] okay, great. Thank you. Hi, I'm will seymour.
[5:39:14] I'm here with the laer afterschool programs. We serve. So, uh,
[5:39:18] thousands of youth, uh, middle school and high school students in l-a-u-s-d.
[5:39:23] our organization was founded 32 years ago by former board member
[5:39:27] jackie goldberg, sharon stricker and volunteers like myself.
[5:39:31] we built laer to serve and provide l-a-u-s-d students. Every
[5:39:35] middle school, every high school program we, we, we run every
[5:39:40] teaching artist, every tutor, former student and coach. We employ
[5:39:44] every dollar we raise and community partnership we build
[5:39:48] exists because of our commitment to l-a-u-s-d students.
[5:39:52] with the current allocation of expanded learning dollars, we are facing
[5:39:56] a massive financial challenge. We have an outdated funding
[5:40:00] model, a very low student reimbursement rate, and we have an
[5:40:04] outdated contract. All the while student participation in our programs
[5:40:09] are growing at record levels and so has the food and
[5:40:13] security. Thousands of 10 to 18-year-old l-a-u-s-d
[5:40:17] students depend on us for safety, food and our crucial programming like
[5:40:22] driver ed, totally unaffordable without laer and
[5:40:26] actually saved my life to get out of the town that I grew up in. And here's the thing, with all the grants
[5:40:30] that we've been awarded, nearly $570 million
[5:40:34] flow into l-a-u-s-d, these dollars can be
[5:40:39] blended together and fully fund all of the community based
[5:40:43] organizations. So I'm pleased asking you to fully fund our
[5:40:47] programs with the resources that we've already been awarded and commit
[5:40:51] to rebuilding our contract. We have been built
[5:40:56] by the community for the community from hollywood high school all the
[5:41:00] way to irving middle school. And we've given everything to this work and we're
[5:41:04] a crucial component to this wonderful strategic plan that was presented
[5:41:09] today. We are your partners. Thank you so much
[5:41:13] for your time. Thank you for your time.
[5:41:17] alright, moving to remote callers. Diana de la torre.
[5:41:21] I see you're on the line. Please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes
[5:41:25] to speak once you begin.
[5:41:32] good afternoon. Acting superintendent shade and members of the board. My name is diana
[5:41:36] de la tore. I'm director of collective action at gpsn. And before that,
[5:41:40] I taught at augustus hawkins high school and king drew magnet. I speak today on
[5:41:45] behalf of over 80 non-profits in our collective action group organizations
[5:41:49] united around one mission catalyzing excellence in la public schools so
[5:41:53] every student can thrive this morning. More than 30 of those groups joined
[5:41:57] gpsn in sending you a letter about the fsp and proposed budget calling
[5:42:01] on you to demonstrate that fiscal constraints and equity commitments are
[5:42:06] not mutually exclusive. L-a-u-s-d has both the opportunity
[5:42:10] and the obligation to make funding decisions that center its most vulnerable students.
[5:42:14] we recognize the weight of the decisions and we wanna be direct. The board has taken meaningful
[5:42:19] steps forward. The board adopted amendment establishing a funding floor for bsap,
[5:42:24] a commitment to restore it. If state revenue allowed an explicit
[5:42:28] prioritization of highest need schools for any restoration dollars reflects
[5:42:32] value. This community has been advocating for the district to uphold
[5:42:37] despite the progress declining enrollment and state funding that has not kept up pace with
[5:42:41] the true cost of providing students a high quality education have created
[5:42:45] structural constraints that will not resolve quickly. Communities need a durable,
[5:42:49] transparent framework that governs how equity is protected across every
[5:42:53] budget cycle to come. We are asking the district for three things. First,
[5:42:58] publish school site impact data communities deserve to know if schools are
[5:43:02] experiencing disproportionate impact and absorbing a concentration of cuts
[5:43:06] above the district average. Next, define and codify a multi-year
[5:43:10] restoration framework for c and bsap. We ask the district to
[5:43:14] commit publicly to a multi-year trajectory that build c towards its full funding
[5:43:18] level with highest needs schools prioritized at each stage.
[5:43:22] lastly, establish a standing engagement process. Sustained community engagement
[5:43:27] is the only way the district can build legitimacy. It will need to make difficult
[5:43:31] choices with community trust intact. The fiscal pressures this district faces
[5:43:35] are not temporary. The framework for navigating them equitably must not
[5:43:39] be either. We remain committed partners in this work. Thank you. Thank you for
[5:43:43] your time. The next speaker is maria luisa palmer. You're signed up to speak
[5:43:47] remotely, but I do not have you online in front of me. Maria luisa palmer, are
[5:43:52] you in the room ms. Palmer? Not in the room. Let's
[5:43:56] see who's next. Uh, dayan. I see you are online. Please
[5:44:00] press star six to unmute yourself. And you have two minutes to speak once you begin dayan.
[5:44:11] hello, my name is dave sun with catalyst, california and equity
[5:44:15] alliance for la's kids. We urge l-a-u-s-d to restore and
[5:44:19] protect sunny's full 700 million funding in the fiscal year 27
[5:44:23] budget and future iterations of the fiscal stabilization plan
[5:44:27] in the newly proposed strategic plan, l-a-u-s-c claims that
[5:44:31] they are committed to disrupting the generational and systemic
[5:44:35] effects of discrimination and racism in our schools, and that they'll
[5:44:40] strategically allocate resources in the name of equity. This
[5:44:44] is diametrically opposed to the district's choice to zero out any
[5:44:48] in two years. Feni is a community driven equity framework
[5:44:52] that actively seeks to repair a generational harm that black and brown
[5:44:57] students experience throughout the district's history. By codifying an equity-based funding
[5:45:01] approach that leverages a holistic understanding of student needs through community
[5:45:05] indicators of asthma rates and gun violence, which we know are
[5:45:10] systemic factors that impact some of our students daily. For students,
[5:45:14] ene means the psw who offers mental support as they deal with trauma,
[5:45:18] the field trip to experience and explore new career fields. The campus aide
[5:45:22] who provides a safe space and a time in the world feels everything but
[5:45:27] further betting sunny deals. A racially ine equitably low
[5:45:31] to our students in sunny highest needs schools, there are 1.5 times
[5:45:35] as many black students and 1.4 times as many latinx students
[5:45:40] compared to lowest needs schools and nearly four times as many english learners.
[5:45:44] we recognize your decision to preserve bsap in response to the community, and
[5:45:48] we call on the district to exercise this same boldness for an integral
[5:45:52] landmark equity tool and investment that is sunny, restore, sunny,
[5:45:57] protect, sunny. This is the equity that our communities are demanding.
[5:46:01] thank you. Thank you for your time. That concludes public comment for tab
[5:46:05] six.
[5:46:14] it's already been moved in. Uh, before
[5:46:18] we turn it over again to to board discussion again, uh, just
[5:46:22] last week we had a very robust presentation from the team around budget,
[5:46:26] fsp, lcap, again, all of which speak to each other. So, uh, team stands
[5:46:30] ready to answer questions. Uh, but before we dive into
[5:46:35] that, just wanted to speak directly to some of the advocacy that we've received today and actually for,
[5:46:39] for a number of weeks now. Uh, and of course had, uh, multiple opportunities to engage
[5:46:43] with board members around this same topic. So in, in working with
[5:46:47] staff as part of the proposed budget, uh, for this coming year that the board will now
[5:46:51] take up, um, we're looking at shifting some of the,
[5:46:55] uh, what folks may know is the elop enhancement dollars for, for our,
[5:46:59] uh, partner providers. And, and by the way, you truly are partners. And I say this is a
[5:47:03] former principal who had la's best when I was an elementary principal. I've
[5:47:07] had lots of experience with woodcraft rangers and so on. Uh, currently the
[5:47:11] the enhancement dollars, uh, were slated to be about 25,000 per
[5:47:15] site, uh, working with the team and still working within the elop universe. And of
[5:47:20] course, uh, pending board approval, uh, we're looking at setting the, the minimum
[5:47:24] baseline allocation at, uh, no less than about $44,000
[5:47:29] per site. Uh, there's also going to be an element, uh, essentially of
[5:47:33] a per pupil element, or excuse me, an enrollment element, which could,
[5:47:38] uh, raise that allocation to about as high as about $80,000.
[5:47:42] um, we also commit to a longer conversation around what it looks like to
[5:47:46] fund these programs, uh, more sustainably,
[5:47:50] although I want to acknowledge that there is always a larger picture, right? There's a larger budgetary
[5:47:54] reality, there's commitments made to other parties that we always have to be
[5:47:59] mindful and cognizant of. None of these things work in, in silos or should work in silos.
[5:48:03] but I did wanna let folks know that, uh, the advocacy was certainly received
[5:48:07] and of course there was a lot of engagement with, uh, board offices around this. I wanted
[5:48:11] to tee that up for consideration by our board members. Uh, with that, I'll
[5:48:16] turn it over to staff for any questions that, uh, board members may have.
[5:48:20] go ahead, ms. Ortiz. Franklin. Thank you. And I really appreciate that mr.
[5:48:24] shade. I know we've been talking about this for quite some time. Really wanna appreciate our partners. And what
[5:48:29] I'm hearing from you, and I wanna make sure we're starting from this point, is a commitment to collaborate
[5:48:33] on some of the structural challenges that we've heard for months, um, because it sounds
[5:48:37] like it's been an ongoing, um, kind of bandaid with these
[5:48:41] enhancement dollars when really, uh, what I'm hearing from the community is
[5:48:46] a request to, um, fix the way that we fund the programs through
[5:48:50] potentially a cohort model, but really listening to those who are serving, asking
[5:48:54] them about their costs rather than assuming a reimbursement rate is enough because
[5:48:58] the cde said it was enough, but really oh, okay. . Um,
[5:49:04] so maybe first I'll, I'll I'll ask, you know, what do you imagine that
[5:49:08] collaboration looking like and when could we expect some revised,
[5:49:12] um, structural changes? So
[5:49:17] you, you summarized it very succinctly. So yes, there would be an engagement process.
[5:49:21] it would be myself, members of my team, beyond the bell staff. It would be of course representatives
[5:49:26] from our pro, uh, partner providers. My anticipated timeline
[5:49:30] would be that most of that engagement would happen in the very late summer, early fall, once
[5:49:34] we're back in session come august 12th. And then that would be able to inform
[5:49:38] our practice for the 27 28 school year, what I just
[5:49:43] proposed in my opening would, for lack of a better term, get us through 26, 27.
[5:49:48] okay. So, um, part of what's been challenging about understanding this is like the different set
[5:49:52] of math facts. So from the partners, thank you so much for doing a lot of the heavy
[5:49:56] lifting. I've understood, um, broadly what the elop funding
[5:50:01] is, how many students they serve, and what their sort of fair share would be be and
[5:50:05] also what their costs are to operate their programs. From the district's perspective, I've
[5:50:09] gotten the per pupil reimbursement rate that doesn't necessarily match up
[5:50:13] to the cost of, uh, the enrollment, um, because it's an a da
[5:50:18] reimbursement. Um, so, so one challenge is like, let's get on the same page about what
[5:50:22] numbers we're using and maybe that's something we could even do this summer. Um, so that
[5:50:26] we're operating from the, the same, uh, numbers and cents. Fundamentally,
[5:50:31] we were funding about $15 per student and next year we're offering
[5:50:35] about $8 per student. With this 40 k up to 80
[5:50:39] k um, rate per school, does that get us to $15
[5:50:43] per student or do we have a, a comparison? Uh,
[5:50:47] no, I don't believe it gets to $15. We'd have to
[5:50:51] d what does it get? I don't know. We'd have to figure it, figure that out. Uh, certainly we're
[5:50:55] committed to doing that math, comparing
[5:51:00] our numbers. Um, obviously ultimately what we care most about is, is
[5:51:04] the benefit to our students, their access to important programs. So
[5:51:08] it's not so much about fairness per se, as much as
[5:51:12] excellent programming for our kids. Yeah. And um, and certainly our,
[5:51:16] our our district costs are, are increasing, um, certainly
[5:51:20] fos. So for the programs that are provided by beyond the bell, um, certainly
[5:51:25] the costs are gonna continue to increase. Uh, the recent seiu agreement
[5:51:29] did have an increase in hours and also health benefits as well as significant salary increases.
[5:51:33] and so those cost increases will also need to
[5:51:37] be absorbed into elop. They will, all things being equal necessitate further reductions
[5:51:41] beyond what has already been reduced to very important programs. Uh, the
[5:51:46] elop budget for next year included substantial reductions across the board on in,
[5:51:50] in many, many areas. Um, obviously one of them is, is the, the
[5:51:54] rates provided to our, our contracted providers, but very painful
[5:51:58] reductions throughout the program. Um, and as I mentioned,
[5:52:02] uh, further reductions likely necessary in the future, but we're still committed to working
[5:52:06] in partnership with these contracted providers to
[5:52:10] work on, you know, structural, structural changes beyond what,
[5:52:15] what's already being proposed as an increase, uh, for next school year, but something that's more
[5:52:19] durable, uh, long term, but again, within those
[5:52:23] financial constraints that, that we are, are, are coping with. Yeah, no, I
[5:52:27] I appreciate that we we're all understanding that the constraints that wonder, another way to think about it is,
[5:52:31] um, we have cut what I understand, there's like a $25 million
[5:52:36] gap from the 25 26 to the 26, 27 school year for our providers.
[5:52:41] and the last I heard it might be an, you know, you're, you're closing that by maybe half
[5:52:45] with this additional enhancement. So still maybe what would've been
[5:52:49] full is still a gap of like $12 million that we can't
[5:52:53] find the funding for, or we need to reduce because we don't have the carryover that we had had
[5:52:57] previously. And so I think, you know, there's some of that, that understanding there. Um,
[5:53:02] but ultimately, I, I think what I would like to walk away today with is
[5:53:06] a lot of confidence that the partners who have provided such amazing services
[5:53:10] to our students don't leave. And that we don't penalize them for
[5:53:15] anything that we are, um, treating beyond the bell differently. And you said, you know, cost
[5:53:19] of labor is going up. Of course, they're also competing with that, right? If they wanna fund their
[5:53:23] folks, they have to give them a competitive salary.
[5:53:28] so I feel like we, we've heard from staff, we've heard from partners, but I don't know if, if today we're gonna
[5:53:32] get to the, the meeting of the minds such that we don't lose our partners come this
[5:53:36] fall. When does the contract end? Or what is the timing
[5:53:41] for, um, being ready to go for the, the start of the school year?
[5:53:47] uh, we can have dr. Baez confirm, but this starts for the 26 27
[5:53:52] school year. That's what the original, the enhancement dollars were for
[5:53:56] were to be provided for the 26 27 school year.
[5:54:01] so july one. Yeah. Yeah. So this is a really late conversation
[5:54:05] for us. You know, our schools are getting their budgets in november, december,
[5:54:09] and then here we are in june for our, our partner decision. And it's hard to say in
[5:54:14] a week they might be gone. Like, what, what do we need to do today? Is to make sure that
[5:54:18] in a week we were not gone. Um, I'll pause to hear from my colleagues about, you
[5:54:22] know, what you've heard and what you might, um, you know, ask of staff to see if, if
[5:54:26] this is, uh, the solution that, um, is, is gonna make sure that we don't lose our
[5:54:30] partners. That's what I'm most concerned about. Tanya, let me ask you a question. From this
[5:54:34] part of money, um, field trips to
[5:54:38] museums and concerts and things, they're also part of that same lump sum of money that
[5:54:43] is being paid to the providers as far as you know? Yeah, so I think the last we saw on
[5:54:47] the elop and the team can correct us was about 65,000 under the cap. Sorry,
[5:54:51] 65 million under the cap field trips under el
[5:54:55] p, uh, not from the cap. This was the non cap field trips. We had repurposed those
[5:54:59] dollars was part of some of this, uh, reallocation of elop dollars
[5:55:04] to fund this. So dr. Ba can share marcus, not the, what I'm hearing from dr. Mill
[5:55:08] is how much under, under elop are we fund spending on field trips.
[5:55:13] but we had two buckets. We had cap dollars and we had non
[5:55:17] cap field trips. And what are those two? So the first one was the non
[5:55:21] cap field trips was 5.5. And I wanna say for the cap
[5:55:25] it was 45 million. So the, it's 65 for next
[5:55:29] school year. 65. Yeah. So it's five. So for the non cap field trips, which
[5:55:34] can be for any type of afterschool field trip, not restricted
[5:55:38] to cultural arts passport, uh, criteria like arts, um,
[5:55:42] it was 5.5 million. The budget in el from, funded from eop for the cap
[5:55:46] cultural arts passport field trip for next year is the $65 million figure. Did
[5:55:50] that stay the same? The prior year was last school
[5:55:55] year, or the current school year technically was $76 million
[5:55:59] was the cap field trip allocation. So it went from $76 million
[5:56:03] to 65 million. So that's an example of one of the programs I mentioned that was reduced year over
[5:56:07] year. The non cap field trips was
[5:56:12] almost $20 million in the current year, reduced down to 5.5.
[5:56:18] um, in order to fund the augmentation that acting superintendent ch mentioned that
[5:56:22] that allocation would be zero. And so there would be no funds allocated to schools
[5:56:27] for the non cultural arts passport field trips. Um, out
[5:56:31] of elop, we have other funding for out of eop. Yeah, that's exactly right. So
[5:56:35] tanya, let me just try to explain what I'm trying to get to. There's
[5:56:40] nothing better than the kids going to a, to the pantages and seeing a live performance.
[5:56:44] I mean, it's, it's just marvelous for the kids to see that. But when I have to
[5:56:48] think about my priorities, is it more important
[5:56:53] to me that they have this good after school or before school
[5:56:57] program and have to sacrifice some of these field trips, which I
[5:57:01] think are just fantastic. It's a matter of balancing what's, what's more important.
[5:57:05] and to me what's more important is to have a, a robust
[5:57:09] after school program. That's my opinion.
[5:57:16] you anyone else, nick?
[5:57:20] yeah, I appreciate mr. Smi on that articulation. 'cause that's the balance we're all working on. And and I
[5:57:24] share your perspective on that. Ms. Ortiz, franklin, I, I think, asked some of the questions
[5:57:28] and articulated the appreciation we have, um,
[5:57:32] for our partners, um, very well. So I just want
[5:57:37] to add one, one, thank you for your partnership and your advocacy. It's,
[5:57:41] you know, I think from the perspective of folks who are at our schools quite often, like the board members,
[5:57:46] it's, we don't even see you as partners. We see you as embedded. Like, I don't think I've ever been to bancroft and not seen
[5:57:50] will seymour at the school. Um, uh, same with hollywood
[5:57:54] and others. And so I, it's, um, and I think partnership is not only about funding
[5:57:58] adequately, but really about bringing you all into the conversation to help us
[5:58:02] navigate challenges, which you're well aware of. And what I have found, and I know, uh, superintendent,
[5:58:07] you've committed to this ongoing dialogue, but that like, there's not an unreasonableness
[5:58:11] around trying to, to be competitive with other districts to
[5:58:15] try to be competitive with the district's own salaries. Um, and to find a path that makes sense,
[5:58:19] whether that's per pupil or some cohort based model, like a norming of sorts. And so
[5:58:24] I, I think it, it's not just about the funding, but I want to use this opportunity the day to say, and I've, I've
[5:58:28] spoken to district staff about this. It's about the difference between sending
[5:58:32] a, um, a letter that goes through the general counsel's office versus picking up the phone
[5:58:36] and saying, well, you've been at the school for longer than I have. Let's try to figure this out together.
[5:58:40] and I really, really hope that this administration can, can commit to that
[5:58:44] level of collaboration. Um, so
[5:58:48] I, I want to be clear about that. Um, and the after school and before school, I
[5:58:53] mean, many students spend up to a third of their time at a school before or after
[5:58:57] school. Um, and, uh, I'm glad that we're, I brought a resolution a few years
[5:59:01] ago to kind of bring some coherence, but I really appreciate, um, the, the way that this
[5:59:05] advocacy coalition and expand la has had us, uh, think about this
[5:59:09] as, as core, not extra as in the kind of 180, you know, the, um,
[5:59:14] 180 school days and instructional minutes, but not, but not extra when it comes to what's
[5:59:18] making, uh, you know, kids come to school and, and stay in school. Um, I guess my
[5:59:22] clarifying question, superintendent, is, does the change that you articulated,
[5:59:26] which I agree, kind of gets us there, it's a commitment to do more. Um, I, I think
[5:59:30] in my back of the envelope, tanya gets us to like 11 or $12,
[5:59:34] you know, as opposed to that 15. Um, but someone and
[5:59:38] the team can, can do the work there. Does that require an amendment or because the allocations are part
[5:59:43] of the board book and not the budget financial pages, just, is your commitment public here
[5:59:47] enough? Or do we have to kind of bring an amendment of sorts?
[5:59:52] no board action is needed as far as I'm aware. Um, we
[5:59:56] will move forward with making this change, the increase to the enhancement
[6:00:01] allocation as described by acting superintendent sha. And, uh, I don't, I don't believe any,
[6:00:05] any board action is necessary. Great. Well, I, I, um,
[6:00:09] then I kind of appreciate that as, uh, you know, at least kind an opening salvo in
[6:00:13] terms of this iterative process to get, to get with our afterschool partners where we can.
[6:00:17] I'll say too that the elop, you know, I was looking in the last week, and I really appreciate the iterative
[6:00:21] process we've had internally with the team and some of those things. I mean, greening
[6:00:26] projects are helpful because our students before and after school are using them,
[6:00:30] but are not core. I mean, a lot of districts are using elop to fund core after
[6:00:34] school programs fully. We are, you know, to the, to the articulation and the balance that mr.
[6:00:38] sen was talking about. We're not doing that. I don't know that I fully agree with that strategy. I think
[6:00:42] we, like, it would be one of those like kind of fill what's most important first, like fully
[6:00:46] fund our after school partners and programs and then add on top.
[6:00:51] um, and I can see the app being a change. We evolve to, but I, I do
[6:00:55] realize that we support a lot of different things. I also will note that there is contingencies built in the
[6:00:59] tutoring budget. Tutoring is something I've been really, um, focused on is important. But I
[6:01:03] could also see, you know, as we've been working, uh, with the orientation towards solutions,
[6:01:07] that is, that is an area, um, where I think there, there could be some funding that falls
[6:01:11] out that we could put towards after school providers. The only other thing I'll say, just because this is on the
[6:01:15] budget, not just the lop, is I, I do want to thank the team for the, um,
[6:01:20] the iterative process with the board and with the public on getting to this budget. Um, there's a lot of
[6:01:24] important mission aligned spending here, uh, investments in our employees, our english
[6:01:29] learners and high needs students, um, in the coming year, tutoring and expanded learning as we're
[6:01:33] discussing. There's also things I know my colleagues and I don't love, you know, around cuts and changes that
[6:01:37] we've had to implement terrain in costs. Um, you know, I don't support our, our current
[6:01:41] fsp in its form and, and voted against that last week, um, because of my concerns
[6:01:45] about the financial footing of the district going forward. But I also, you know, was
[6:01:50] supportive of the initial fsp. And I think it's obviously not a
[6:01:54] coincidence that our ab 12 hundreds we're making a $3 billion investment, and then we have to find a way to balance
[6:01:58] $3 billion. And I think these are the choices the, the board has been engaged
[6:02:02] in. I also just want to acknowledge that this is probably one of the more confusing and
[6:02:06] challenging budgets to understand in my tenure, which is ironic because like the, the
[6:02:10] data transparency work and the conversations we've been having as a board have been much more robust.
[6:02:15] but just the, the nature of, um, the labor contracts
[6:02:19] and the state budget cycle and the fsp and, and kind of our understanding that
[6:02:23] this budget will change as we get more allocation. So it's, it's for those, you
[6:02:27] know, who are trying to piece this together, how does this fit with the fsp and why are
[6:02:31] some labor costs included in this, but not all of them. Like it is. I just
[6:02:35] want to acknowledge that it's complicated, not not through the fault of, of your, the cfo
[6:02:39] or the team, um, but just given the nature of it. So, um, want to own that.
[6:02:44] and I know that in a month or two we'll see revised budget that will fully reflects those
[6:02:48] increased labor costs, um, and incorporates what I hope is, you know, better news
[6:02:52] from the state. So, uh, you know, that being said, I, I, I plan to support the budget today.
[6:02:56] I appreciate the, the move towards some partial progress for our afterschool providers. Um,
[6:03:00] and thank the team for, you know, answering our, um, you know, I was gonna
[6:03:04] say dozens, probably hundreds of questions, uh, and being so responsive. So thanks to kurt and you
[6:03:08] simonon and the team who would like to go next.
[6:03:13] rocio. And then she,
[6:03:18] no, I just wanna, um, also add on, on my comments
[6:03:22] on, um, our afterschool providers and our partners. Um, I'm
[6:03:27] grateful to our acting superintendent, um, because, you
[6:03:31] know, I was also reiterating the importance of our partners and
[6:03:35] afterschool programs. Me as a mom, um, my son definitely
[6:03:40] has been, um, benefiting from, um, educa. Is it educa?
[6:03:44] yes, yes. Or educa, sorry. Um, and, um,
[6:03:49] you know, I've seen the difference, um, from a previous, uh, afterschool
[6:03:53] provider to now to our high school students. And, you know, I personally,
[6:03:57] I've seen exactly all of the activities and, um,
[6:04:01] interaction and, and outreach particularly for high school students. 'cause a lot of 'em then they leave
[6:04:06] after school and then, you know, uh, we want them to be able to be,
[6:04:10] um, participating and enjoying, um, activities that are
[6:04:14] not only very social, but also academic. So, you know, very
[6:04:18] grateful to. And then continuing to improve on the relationship and have communication
[6:04:23] and also to, um, before, you know, certain decisions,
[6:04:27] um, that affect our, our, you know, after
[6:04:31] school partners or any partners. It would be great to confer with the, with the board. It
[6:04:35] is like, I do appreciate particularly, um, with pia, you know, she
[6:04:39] would meet and say, hey, these are the things that we're, things have changing. What do you think? And that
[6:04:44] gives us an opportunity to provide feedback, um, and input prior
[6:04:48] to the changes being made. And I think, um, equally so with any
[6:04:52] changes that have to do with our external partners in after school, you know, let us
[6:04:56] know what the changes are rather than after. Because then, you know, we're
[6:05:00] meeting, we are hearing one narrative, and then we're hearing another, and we wanna be able to come
[6:05:05] together, um, uh, towards, um, a solution. So I'm grateful that moving
[6:05:09] forward, um, there would be a better planning, communication and,
[6:05:13] and partnership. So I do appreciate that. And I know that, um, tanya
[6:05:17] franklin also came, you know, let me know what the plans was like. I totally agree. We really
[6:05:21] need to address, um, these issues. So thank you for, you
[6:05:26] know, and I know that el l funding is, you know, um, we're trying to stretch
[6:05:30] it and as much as possible, but I think when it comes to afterschool,
[6:05:34] particularly when the la city's budget on, uh, rec and parks
[6:05:38] is so minimal, um, the least that we can do as a school
[6:05:43] district is provide that for our students. Having, uh, with our great partners
[6:05:47] that have been with us for years and years and really don't want to,
[6:05:51] um, affect the relationship that we have with our partners. So thank you for that.
[6:05:55] thanks. Thank you. Sherette. Yes. Um, I wanna say
[6:05:59] thank you for coming with solutions to this, um, action.
[6:06:05] uh, andreas ch because I know our partners have been
[6:06:09] asking, and I think one of the things that has elevated is obviously
[6:06:13] common understanding of what's going on, because it seemed like there was
[6:06:17] two different, two different blueprints, two different languages being spoken, and they weren't meeting in
[6:06:21] the middle. And, um, for us to, as board members, to have that education
[6:06:25] as well, so that we are knowledgeable as we speak on behalf of those
[6:06:29] that we are the voice of. So I appreciate that. And just coming with,
[6:06:33] um, for all our partners that are here, that are providing
[6:06:38] a part of our ecosystem for our families, I think more than anything, um,
[6:06:42] I'm in a community with a lot of families who, uh, just
[6:06:46] lean on their partnership an after school or before school, otherwise
[6:06:51] they can't do what they do as family, as parents for their children.
[6:06:56] um, so, uh, just appreciate
[6:07:00] that, appreciate us being able to, to save publicly now that we
[6:07:04] will come up with those definitions that are common that we understand.
[6:07:08] and, um, as mentioned, there are areas that we looked at, um,
[6:07:13] even today brought up in other parts of our meeting about where
[6:07:17] there could be funding to help us, um, kind of close this gap
[6:07:21] when we talk about tutoring. I know we mentioned in another portion
[6:07:25] of our meeting that online tutoring was going to be changing. So it's
[6:07:29] going to change this, um, budget. And wanted to ask simon
[6:07:34] as we talk about, um, it is, it can be confusing.
[6:07:38] I appreciate you nick bringing that up, because every time I look at a document
[6:07:43] and you're trying to put 'em comparatively together, it confuses
[6:07:47] you. And you probably just throw it down because it doesn't make sense when we talk about
[6:07:51] our students. The, the numbers don't translate in every
[6:07:55] report. Um, and just even we looked at lcap, there was
[6:07:59] a different number. We looked at our, um, strategic plan,
[6:08:04] our educating students was a different number. When we are providing this,
[6:08:08] can we put an asterisk as to what this is? Because when we're seeing
[6:08:13] a district profile, when we're looking at numbers and they're
[6:08:17] not consistent throughout it, definitely for the average person
[6:08:22] to understand what we're doing. So however we can make that
[6:08:26] seamless, and whether it's, I don't care color coded, I don't know what we do,
[6:08:30] but we need to do something so that when we're reading through our different reports,
[6:08:35] that we understand how this translates into the next one. So that we
[6:08:39] all have the same understanding. To the point even being made today about how
[6:08:43] our partners are coming in the room saying, we can't do this. And we're saying, yes,
[6:08:47] you can, but how do we meet in the middle so that we have the same understanding
[6:08:51] with that. Um, uh, I think,
[6:08:58] I think that was it that I had thank you more. Sorry, go ahead. Rocia. You know
[6:09:02] that we, there's a new governor coming into town and to the state,
[6:09:06] and I think we really, uh, we can come together as a coalition to go
[6:09:10] to state as and let the, a new governor know that this funding,
[6:09:15] eal funding has been so beneficial for our students and before and after
[6:09:19] school to continue because we don't know, right? With this, the priorities
[6:09:23] of, of, you know, new governor would have. And then, you know, just
[6:09:28] reiterating the importance and how beneficial this funding has been.
[6:09:32] um, not only for us, for the district, but also for our partners. So I think it'd be a
[6:09:36] good, you know, coming together to advocate for continued
[6:09:40] elop funding. So, okay, this side, who
[6:09:44] would like to go first? Okay, carla? Yeah, I have some
[6:09:49] questions about just in general about cap and then the, um,
[6:09:54] the other areas in elop. Um, so
[6:09:59] cap went from six 76 million
[6:10:05] to 65 million. And then the other, the
[6:10:09] non cap field trips went from 19 million to about
[6:10:13] 5 million, right? So I'm just wondering what data was used to
[6:10:17] make that decision? And if it was usage or if it
[6:10:21] was expenditures, do we know why, why people are not
[6:10:26] able to, particularly the non cap, it seems like that's an
[6:10:30] area that was not expended. So wanna know.
[6:10:36] so rick, with respect to non cap, what we found are some of the challenges is,
[6:10:40] uh, because these trips have to be, uh, beyond the instructional day and on
[6:10:44] saturdays, some of the factors could be that maybe there's not staff available
[6:10:49] to, um, to, uh, coordinate these trips or to, uh,
[6:10:53] uh, be on the bus with the students. It, it might be that maybe, um,
[6:10:57] securing a location, the coordination, 'cause they're coordinating all of
[6:11:01] the cap trips that it may be that by the time they get to the non cap there's other challenges or
[6:11:05] maybe all the buses have been scheduled and secured. Um, so there's
[6:11:09] a number of, of factors that could contribute to not being able to, and the decision
[6:11:13] was really based on the spend. And so even though we provided support
[6:11:18] to the schools, we're monitoring the spend, uh, the rate of spend throughout the year,
[6:11:22] um, we provide them some support to, to see what we can do to help them. Um, so at
[6:11:26] the end of the year when we found that there was this, this, um, balance left and
[6:11:30] that's how we decided to cut in that area. Alright. Um,
[6:11:34] and then what about, um, in
[6:11:41] the cap, have we found any, any sort,
[6:11:45] 'cause it's, as of may, there were only 37 million spent.
[6:11:50] so what are the concerns there? What are some issues there that's
[6:11:54] making it hard to spend that money? Similar, similar restrictions.
[6:11:58] so, uh, it has to be after school or, or on the saturday. And,
[6:12:02] um, specifically has to be used for
[6:12:07] access to arts. Uh, where president schon gave an example
[6:12:11] of like a show at the pantages, things like that. So we
[6:12:15] only reduced cap though by about 11 million right. Versus
[6:12:20] the other one by a lot more. So I'm just wondering why,
[6:12:24] why we made that decision of only going down 11 million. Could we go farther
[6:12:29] down and use some of those funds for the, the
[6:12:33] afterschool programs? Wondering about that cap
[6:12:39] cap was reduced to 65 million to be more in line with what we
[6:12:43] expect to be expended once we finalize the current school year.
[6:12:47] um, and, um, so that, that's why it was reduced
[6:12:51] to that, to that figure. Okay. And then this
[6:12:56] is more of a concern because foster youth programs was, um,
[6:13:01] budgeted for 499,000, but only 16,000
[6:13:05] had, has been spent. And so that sounds like a very
[6:13:10] high need program. It's a program that serves very high need. So what
[6:13:14] are the issues there? Only 3% of it had been spent. Does anybody know?
[6:13:18] I don't expect you to answer all the questions want, but if anybody can respond to those
[6:13:22] questions, uh, we can certainly follow up, uh, with,
[6:13:26] hey, I would like a more specific, I would like to spend all of that because it seems this is a
[6:13:30] high need group and, um, we need to investigate why it is that we're not using
[6:13:35] all of these funds. What are the barriers? What
[6:13:39] are wisely? Yes, we need to make, well, yeah, we wanna spend it wisely, but
[6:13:43] we wanna make sure that these funds go to the students that need it the most and
[6:13:48] what are, what's happening there. Um, and you know, just echo
[6:13:52] the same concerns about the afterschool programs. Um,
[6:13:56] they're, they're essential for our students. It's part of our strategic plan.
[6:14:01] we want enrichment opportunities, we want, um, internships. Some
[6:14:05] of these programs provide internships and, uh, work experience.
[6:14:09] it just expands their breadth of experience. And for some of our kids,
[6:14:14] that's the only place they're gonna get it. And so it's not only just,
[6:14:18] you know, like the interest, but also an equity issue, right? And we are
[6:14:22] a title one district. We have to fill that gap. So thank
[6:14:26] you andres, for proposing to, to, um, move some funds
[6:14:31] around to, uh, to address some of this. But I would
[6:14:35] like to know how far are we from meeting the,
[6:14:39] the, that from closing that gap that we have right now? And it's,
[6:14:43] I'm not comfortable not knowing.
[6:14:47] yeah. Do you need to close the gap for our providers? Yeah. From the per pupil
[6:14:52] spending, that I don't think we have the answer yet, do we?
[6:14:57] I understand enforcement. Yeah. Yeah. I've been trying to piece together some of the, the parts here.
[6:15:01] so it's, it sounds to me that, um, the, the gap is really
[6:15:05] about the 25 million that we reduced. Yes. 24 million overall mm-hmm . And
[6:15:09] so maybe the team does agree with that. So I, you know, I wanted to hear where the full
[6:15:13] board was on this, and it sounds like there is real desire to support our partners if we
[6:15:17] can find it. Um, I know it's difficult to find, but under
[6:15:22] elop, we do have these really big categories that we often budget for and don't always
[6:15:26] find, don't always fulfill the, um, actual expenditures throughout
[6:15:30] the course of the year. So I wanna make a motion at some point if today is, if
[6:15:34] this is the right moment, mr. Smls, um, appreciating the $12 million,
[6:15:38] it sounds like five and a half would come from non cap and wherever the
[6:15:42] other 19.5 could come from greening cap funding,
[6:15:47] intercession, uh, there's a few other options there. You know, I, I wanna leave
[6:15:51] the expertise to the leadership. I don't want the board to get too much into the weeds here, but,
[6:15:55] and I know it will be hard, very, very hard. Um, but I, I believe
[6:15:59] in this district and I believe that, um, mr. S framed it really well, right? If
[6:16:03] this board wants to keep the partners who are serving 100,000
[6:16:08] of our students every day after school, then let's find the additional $12 million
[6:16:13] they need to close the hole. So I'm gonna,
[6:16:20] so I just sent a budget amendment. It's very, very simple. Mr. Mclean has it, if he
[6:16:24] can circulate and print it, but it, it's literally just says 25 million
[6:16:28] to afterschool partners with the five and a half you all already found. And then the additional
[6:16:32] 19.5 flexible from any of the, the pots. And, and I'll
[6:16:36] just add it a as we do that work, and you define kind of those,
[6:16:41] um, buckets of reallocation, is that
[6:16:45] there's an understanding that there's implications on the trade offs, right? And so
[6:16:49] if you reduce greening, it means either descoping canceling, planned
[6:16:54] greening projects, um, in order to repurpose some of those dollars.
[6:16:58] if we're talking about immediate cap dollars that are already allocated to schools that
[6:17:02] were part of their budget development, it may be pulling that back or
[6:17:07] reassessing midyear to say, okay, there may be underspend here and pulling
[6:17:11] back dollars in order to reallocate. And I, I just, we go
[6:17:15] in, I wanna make sure folks go in with the understanding is that we're gonna look at every
[6:17:19] option, but there may be other implications and
[6:17:24] other conversations that make results out of this. And so just sharing that, I wanna
[6:17:28] make sure that you all have awareness on what the implications are.
[6:17:32] I appreciate that. And that's hard to, to tell a school, you know, we allocated some dollars to
[6:17:36] you for funding. I'll tell you, the majority of my schools would be like, it's fine. I don't even have the actual
[6:17:40] plan for my field trips yet. So I'd rather keep my afterschool partner.
[6:17:44] I think particularly when, like I said, schools got their budgets back in november.
[6:17:48] we told labor partners there were gonna be layoffs in february, and here we are one week before
[6:17:53] the start of the new fiscal year for our partners. I'd really love to keep them at the same funding they've
[6:17:57] been expecting. So I did make a, a motion. I, I do need a second to, to
[6:18:01] entertain it, and I think mr. Mclean has sent it around. Thank you, dr. Rivas ,
[6:18:08] and we'll invite others to weigh in.
[6:18:14] she waiting for the language, but, um,
[6:18:19] okay.
[6:18:25] did you wanna read the amendment? So while we wait for the copy, I don't
[6:18:29] know if you have already. Sure, yeah, sure. Yeah. Very, very simple. Amend the
[6:18:33] 26 27 les due it by restoring 25 million to the afterschool
[6:18:37] providers from elop funding, including 5.5 million from non cap field trips. That's
[6:18:41] what the team already found. And 19.5 million from any combination
[6:18:45] of cap greening, intercession and or high dosage tutoring. And I, maybe my,
[6:18:49] the board wants to weigh in on exactly how, um, but I tend to trust the team to figure out
[6:18:53] exactly how ette, go ahead. Yeah, so I mean, obviously
[6:18:58] when we look at spaces of underspent, I think that's where that initial dollars
[6:19:02] come from, right? Because if we're not spending it, then it can be reallocated
[6:19:07] somewhere else. And I think to the point made here, um, making
[6:19:11] sure we close that gap and finding it within the areas
[6:19:15] that we, I mean we discussed, like I mentioned with the tutoring, I'm thinking those are some areas
[6:19:19] that's gonna be underspent throughout, and I think the school sites would understand that
[6:19:24] if we're giving it in this format. So I appreciate the,
[6:19:28] the motion. Kelly? Hi. Yes, sorry,
[6:19:32] I, I haven't weighed in on all of this and I, and I think will I, what I will say is, I think it we're
[6:19:37] in a challenging moment and, and I appreciate, um, the other board members
[6:19:41] weighing in on, obviously we, we have to make prioritizations, and I do think
[6:19:45] the afterschool partners provide essential services for our students and for
[6:19:49] our families, for our working families. Like this is a lifeline, both the afterschool
[6:19:54] programs that we provide, but also our partner programs. And I know, um, those that
[6:19:58] exist in my district, you know, have, have a good reputation and families are really reliant
[6:20:02] upon, um, upon these programs. We also know that
[6:20:06] extended learning programs are not just about care, but it's also about safety, wellbeing,
[6:20:10] um, access to enriching experiences for our students. So, um, I just wanna
[6:20:15] validate all of that. Um, the, I guess the one thing I will note just as part
[6:20:19] of the board's conversation is, um, you know, we, we are
[6:20:23] also looking at like, how can we help restore really important programs
[6:20:27] like bsap and c that maybe also include
[6:20:31] these types of components. And, um, ensuring that eligible
[6:20:35] expenses are funded through restricted programs is a part of
[6:20:40] that equation. So, um, I just, I think it's important to make sure we are, we're
[6:20:44] also seeing the fuller picture because these are the same students. The students who
[6:20:48] whose schools receive funds through c or through bsap may also be
[6:20:52] the ones that are provided afterschool programs through these partners. Um,
[6:20:57] and there are impacts from whatever decision one might make.
[6:21:01] so, um, not, I don't, I have to read the amendment. I haven't
[6:21:05] read the amendment yet, but, um, I just want to ensure that
[6:21:09] we're thinking about those things as we are making these kinds of decisions, um,
[6:21:14] and considering where those impacts will be. Um, as far
[6:21:18] as the greening item as well, I mean, I think my understanding is that those are for projects that
[6:21:22] were already approved. No, there's no new projects that are being approved and, and funded through,
[6:21:26] through this allocation. Um, so again, like
[6:21:30] the pro this approach works if there is a real opportunity
[6:21:34] to do, to make some savings in some other areas, and I, I don't,
[6:21:38] I don't wanna set us up for failure in terms of like, is there actual dollars that
[6:21:43] could be repurposed here? So anyone
[6:21:47] else? Can I clarify who moved and seconded the amendment?
[6:21:51] it was, thank you.
[6:21:56] ready to vote? Maybe I can provide some, just some clarification.
[6:22:00] I think it was said before, but, um, the allocation that was proposed
[6:22:05] by the acting superintendent costs $12 million.
[6:22:10] of that $12 million, we've only identified five and a half of the
[6:22:14] 12. Uh, we have not, I, we're committing to the $12 million because
[6:22:19] of all of the, for the reasons stated by board members, by our,
[6:22:23] by our valued partners because of the importance of those programs. But we are
[6:22:27] short six and a half million dollars of the $12 million that's
[6:22:31] already being proposed. Um, and then I, you know,
[6:22:35] 19 and a half short of the amendment before you today,
[6:22:40] um, just wanted to make that clear. I'm not advocating one way or the other,
[6:22:44] but just to, to make clear that we have not identified the funding for what was
[6:22:48] already proposed by, by the acting superintendent.
[6:22:53] and, and while the greening projects that were mentioned are, you're right, that what's budgeted
[6:22:57] for the eop budget next year, our
[6:23:01] e our greening projects that were previously proposed and approved, freeing
[6:23:06] up those funds to repeat what deputy superintendent ceto said
[6:23:10] would necessitate the, the descoping or cancellation of those projects. It's
[6:23:14] possible, but, um, it's not, uh, uh, it's
[6:23:18] not the case that we would be not approving future projects. It
[6:23:23] would be canceling existing projects. I guess my preference would be that it comes from
[6:23:27] cap, um, given that that's such a large budget, and there might be
[6:23:31] some other intricacies that the team might need to figure out, which is why I didn't wanna specify like exclusively
[6:23:35] from cap. But to mr. Rimson's point, if we're trying to decide the highest quality
[6:23:39] experiences for expanded learning, then I, this board sounds like we're leaning into
[6:23:43] the daily experiences and not just the one time, as much as I love one time field trips,
[6:23:48] I proposed that when we got all this covid money, I was like, let's send kids on field trips with the one time dollars,
[6:23:52] and instead we committed to personnel that we are now having to, um, figure out. So,
[6:23:57] um, that's why, you know, leaving the flexibility open, I recognize that $19.5 million
[6:24:01] is not easy. It's not hiding in the couch cushions. Um, and I, I
[6:24:06] am hearing from the partners that if we don't do that for next week, because
[6:24:10] literally july one is next week, um, that they will not be able to sustain the programming at
[6:24:14] our schools. And given the late timing of this, I think from my perspective,
[6:24:18] we owe it to sustain the work for next school year and to do exactly what the
[6:24:22] superintendent said this summer and fall, sit down and fix the structural issues so that
[6:24:26] we don't do these band-aids last minute, but it just feels so late to me that it,
[6:24:30] it would feel like pulling the rug out from under partners who we have built such great relationships
[6:24:35] with. And I don't want, um, people to feel like they, uh, can't be here in la
[6:24:39] unified. We, we hear that too often from people who say, it's too hard to work in la unified. We don't
[6:24:43] wanna lose the great people who already are working with us.
[6:24:48] go ahead, kelly, um, to mr. Bravo
[6:24:52] creamy, um, to understand, uh, like our own costs for
[6:24:56] afterschool programs. Um, we recently unanimously approved a new agreement
[6:25:01] with sciu, which includes, as you said, expanded hours and also
[6:25:05] increased salary for our beyond the bell workers. How
[6:25:09] is that reflected in, in this? How, or is it a, is it reflected
[6:25:13] in this budget? It's not, it's not. It's not. Okay. So that's, that's kind of kind, what,
[6:25:18] what would you anticipate that might mean in terms of additional costs for our own afterschool
[6:25:22] programs, it's tens of millions of dollars. Um, it's gonna depend on
[6:25:26] the employees, the, the eligible. So it's, it's an increase in hours.
[6:25:31] the substantial increase in cost is the salary increase, which is over a three year period, 24%.
[6:25:36] but specifically for beyond the bell increasing their hours from three and a quarter hours per
[6:25:41] day to four hours per day, that 15 minutes of additional wages
[6:25:45] is not the big cost increase. It's that they now become eligible for health
[6:25:49] benefits. Uh, health benefits are provided, um,
[6:25:53] at, at four hours per day for classified employees. And there's some more details
[6:25:57] and nuance specifically to, to when they become eligible,
[6:26:02] when beyond the bell workers specifically become eligible. But, uh, there, that's a
[6:26:06] considerable cost that will need to be absorbed ultimately and,
[6:26:10] um, and will necessitate reductions. And so the reductions
[6:26:14] to absorb those costs have not been identified. I mentioned
[6:26:18] last week that there were significant impacts to our other operating funds and
[6:26:22] to restricted general fund. We focused most of our attention on general
[6:26:27] fund unrestricted to typically in our presentations. But given the scale of
[6:26:31] the, the cost of these recent agreements,
[6:26:35] we showed last week the impact on the ending balances for child development,
[6:26:39] which were projected to go negative, a cafeteria fund, which was projected to go negative
[6:26:43] and, and general fund restricted, which was not projected to go negative. But general fund restricted is
[6:26:48] a combination of many, many different grants. And the assumption is
[6:26:52] that all of these programs will self balance. That's
[6:26:56] the kind of inside baseball term we use. But what it means is that they'll live within the revenues
[6:27:00] that they receive. And so the cost increases to title one
[6:27:04] must be ref accommodated within the allocation. The revenues we get from title one,
[6:27:08] same with elop, same with these other operating funds, cafeteria child development, adult
[6:27:13] ed. So our general fund, unrestricted multi-year projection
[6:27:17] does not assume any contribution from unrestricted to those other
[6:27:22] restricted programs implicitly, it assumes that they will self balance, that
[6:27:26] they'll cut the necessary things to absorb those costs.
[6:27:31] arguably, that's the, that's not a conservative approach. The more conservative approach would've
[6:27:35] been to assume that those restricted programs will not be able to
[6:27:39] absorb these costs, and that it will instead come from general fund unrestricted. What that would've meant is
[6:27:44] a substantially larger fiscal stabilization plan much bigger than the $3.6 billion,
[6:27:49] which is already obviously of, of a very deep concern
[6:27:53] from a financial and programmatic standpoint. And so, uh, sorry
[6:27:57] for the long response to your question, but the, the shorter response is those increased
[6:28:01] costs are not reflected yet, and the cuts necessary to
[6:28:05] absorb them have not been identified yet. And in terms of when, um, because sometimes
[6:28:09] we approve salary increases that are in the future, but when
[6:28:14] it comes to the seiu agreement, my understanding is that that's a
[6:28:18] contract that expired a couple of years ago. That's right. At this point. So I would
[6:28:22] imagine then, uh, that those retroactive
[6:28:26] wages we're going to fill those fairly immediately. That's right. Since
[6:28:30] the board just approved to those contracts. So it's not, it's not as though maybe we have a year before
[6:28:35] those fully, um, are implemented. Um, we we're going to fill them sooner.
[6:28:39] that's exactly right. The seiu agreement is actually for the 24 25
[6:28:44] school year, 25, 26 school year and 26 27 school year.
[6:28:48] and so every cost associated
[6:28:52] with the salary increases that are in the past, which is all of 24, 25, and, and
[6:28:56] really all of 25, 26 are going to, um,
[6:29:00] be incurred moving forward. Mm-hmm . And so it's exactly as,
[6:29:04] as you described. Okay. Maybe as a fall from this conversation, we can get
[6:29:08] a little bit more like a, a ballpark estimate of the impact on a
[6:29:12] lop for, um, increase, uh, labor costs
[6:29:17] associated with the seiu agreement for, for beyond the bell. I just think that
[6:29:21] as we're taking a multi-year look at our budget as is required,
[6:29:25] um, we need to understand like what the specific impacts, because we might, maybe it's the case that
[6:29:30] we could find some funding for this year through,
[6:29:34] but in terms of the broader problem that ms. Ortiz franklin is raising around
[6:29:38] the structural issues, um, with maybe how our partner programs are funded,
[6:29:43] that's going to be an additional significant consideration and
[6:29:47] a significant amount of money that, that we're going to need to provide for our employees.
[6:29:51] that's right. Can I, I just clarify
[6:29:56] when you say the sciu labor costs aren't reflected, they are in the fsp,
[6:30:02] the impact on general fund. So on all funds, they are on all funds. They are
[6:30:06] in terms of the myp impact, but we have not identified the necessary reductions to prevent
[6:30:10] some of those programs. Like the one that we talked a bit last week on, we
[6:30:14] talked a bit about were cafeteria and child development. Um, they're
[6:30:19] projected to, to go negative. And so we have not identified the necessary
[6:30:23] reductions and that that's true of some of the other smaller grants as well. But that's the discreet
[6:30:27] like line item. I mean the, the, the nut that we have to cover for the sau
[6:30:32] contract is not like, that's what I was talking about with some of the confusion. Some of it's not in here,
[6:30:36] but it's contemplating the fsp, I mean, so to scones question, like if we
[6:30:40] reallocate the another 19 point a half million within the llp,
[6:30:44] the lop, that does not significantly change the challenge we have with s like
[6:30:48] the fsp already contemplates those rising costs. No, the fsp
[6:30:52] only a addresses the impact to general fund unrestricted
[6:30:57] specifically. And so the multi-year projection for general fund unrestricted
[6:31:01] only includes the costs against general fund unrestricted.
[6:31:06] and so the fsp, that's $3.6 billion shortfall at by the, the 20
[6:31:10] end of the 28 29 school year. And that's why all the reductions in the fiscal stabilization plan
[6:31:15] are also to general fund unrestricted. And so to the extent that there's a
[6:31:19] reduction, uh, that is not general fund unrestricted, that doesn't
[6:31:23] address our shortfall in general fund unrestricted. And so,
[6:31:27] uh, we still have a lot of work to do to reflect and absorb the impact
[6:31:32] of these reduction, uh, of the cost increases across other funds.
[6:31:37] and so to answer to, to address specifically your question, if we were to identify
[6:31:41] reductions to provide 19.5 million additional
[6:31:45] funding to providers instead of the, uh, what was proposed earlier,
[6:31:49] uh, those are reductions that otherwise could have gone to offset these increasing costs as
[6:31:54] part of the seio agreement that won't be available. We'll have to cut other stuff.
[6:31:58] so each year in the budget, we, we, we try to anticipate
[6:32:02] in these programs, salary increases, right? We know we're in the middle of negotiations.
[6:32:07] we know that we're gonna have cost increases. And it's what's called, this is another
[6:32:11] kind of inside baseball term. We call it a potential funding variance. And it's what schools are familiar with
[6:32:15] 'cause they see it in their budgets. Um,
[6:32:19] there is a little bit set aside for these cost increases, but when the salary increases
[6:32:23] are so significant, they're far exceed whatever buffer
[6:32:28] we might have set aside. So if we set aside 5% and the salary
[6:32:32] increases 12% in that one 12 month period,
[6:32:36] that buffer is less than half of the cost of the salary increase.
[6:32:41] um, and to board member go's point, when we're settling an agreement
[6:32:45] a couple years after the expiration, then you're seeing a huge sum of,
[6:32:50] of costs happening all at the same time. And so I'm,
[6:32:54] I'm just sharing this information because it's relevant to one, it's important
[6:32:58] for the, for the, for the board and public to be aware of it, but I think it's relevant for the
[6:33:02] decision at hand.
[6:33:06] okay. Everyone, are we ready to vote? Any more comments?
[6:33:11] okay. I had one a question, but it was not on, on, um, it had
[6:33:15] to do, I don't know if it was already asked.
[6:33:20] second. Um, you know, the board
[6:33:25] made a significant commitment, uh, approved of the 10 million to support
[6:33:29] implementation of the american indian indigenous student comprehensive plan.
[6:33:34] um, yet the budget before us reflects an 8 million
[6:33:38] allocation. So can staff clarify whether the district is maintaining
[6:33:42] the full approved investment or whether funding and or why funding has
[6:33:47] been reduced and if funding has changed? When did that occur?
[6:33:51] what was the rationale, the impact, if any, uh, will it
[6:33:55] have on the implementation of the plan of services of students moving forward?
[6:33:59] dr. Rivas, we have, uh, lydia osa stevens coming and, uh, mr. Tony aguilar
[6:34:04] to share more. Uh, but, uh, this was part of last year's
[6:34:08] central office reductions that we also had to make. Uh,
[6:34:12] and so they can share a little bit more, uh, on what that is
[6:34:16] impacting. Go ahead, lydia. And, and tony,
[6:34:23] thank you. Yes. This is part of, um, the reductions overall that were
[6:34:27] taken by, uh, departments across the district. So that impact
[6:34:31] is down to $8 million will be the amount for the 26 27 school
[6:34:35] year. Um, if you can see a highlight of it
[6:34:39] is that the investments we made the last two years really have placed
[6:34:44] a really strong foundation in the work and investments in classrooms.
[6:34:48] we worked really diligently to make sure we had the literature
[6:34:52] by the authors, authentic authors, so that all classrooms and classroom
[6:34:56] libraries had sets of this authentic literature to
[6:35:01] continue the work that we're doing. Today, I've got about 800 people
[6:35:05] being trained on that lesson development piece all day long
[6:35:09] to ensure we continue to support that. We've also invested
[6:35:13] in key development with teachers, that cadre of
[6:35:17] teachers is growing to continue to, uh, spread the knowledge at their schools.
[6:35:22] and the lesson development, another investment that we've made is with key partners
[6:35:26] like the tavian and, um, our cielo group
[6:35:30] and discussions with in in california, native ways of knowing.
[6:35:34] so those relationships are strong and we've been working together.
[6:35:39] and, um, we will continue the concerted efforts to ensure
[6:35:43] to grow, including identification of students that we've been
[6:35:47] doubling with that piece. So there were huge investments made in misys
[6:35:51] identification, getting mailers out, putting these items in our enrollment
[6:35:56] package. So those were like one-time costs that we won't have to repeat.
[6:36:00] I'm not sure if that's helpful or if you have another question. So the 2 million was based
[6:36:04] on staff. The reduction in staff was the 2 million that it's the 2 million
[6:36:08] overall of the 10 million. So we've been able to hold
[6:36:13] on to some of the staff to ensure that all these program implementations
[6:36:17] that we've been doing are maintained and continue the supports for students at
[6:36:21] schools and the high interest we have with teachers, um,
[6:36:25] implementing the content, clrp, all of those different pieces.
[6:36:31] I have. Anything else, mr. Gui? The reminder that this is as a result of the general fund.
[6:36:35] so the commitment that was made by the board, that $10 million was from the general fund unrestricted.
[6:36:39] hence, when we were looking at those reductions, that's where we were. All of our divisions were looking at those
[6:36:44] kind of budget line items. Thank you.
[6:36:48] okay. Ready to vote. Mr. Mclean? Sorry, we're voting on the amendment
[6:36:52] first, right? Got a couple things. Yes, we got the amendment first. Oh, I'm, and the
[6:36:56] underlying, I'm sorry. Voting on the budget. So, um, oh no, not yet. And maybe
[6:37:01] I'll just say before we vote on the amendment, um, if the amendment doesn't
[6:37:05] pass and partners do walk, then staff will have to be prepared to
[6:37:09] staff up beyond the bell, right? And potentially pay then for more for our
[6:37:13] seiu positions at the school sites where our partners might leave. So it could be
[6:37:17] more costly. Just a consideration
[6:37:21] for my colleagues. Any other questions before we do the amendment?
[6:37:26] everybody clear on the amendment? We're gonna vote on the amendment. Okay.
[6:37:30] all right. Voting on the amendment. Uh, ms. Newbell? Yes.
[6:37:35] dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Ms. Rego,
[6:37:41] you know, I'm gonna abstain because I think that I don't have all the information
[6:37:45] and I am concerned about not having,
[6:37:49] how pulling the monies from other buckets in elop is
[6:37:53] going to affect other areas of that we've already made commitments to
[6:37:57] ab so I'm gonna abstain from that. Abstention. Uh, ms. Ez, I'll abstain for the same reasons.
[6:38:02] abstention, uh, ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. That's a yes. And board president sch
[6:38:06] yes. So that's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 yeses for the amendment.
[6:38:10] and, uh, two abstentions
[6:38:17] board. The board is discussing the underlying now amended
[6:38:21] budget.
[6:38:35] just one last comment on my indigenous question. Um, just,
[6:38:40] you know, they don't, you don't have to come forward. It's just, I just wanna thank you for the work,
[6:38:44] um, uh, on, on making sure that our american indian
[6:38:48] indigenous student, you know, comprehensive plan and the funds were, were you,
[6:38:52] uh, were utilized, um, not only for long term, short term and
[6:38:56] long term and that we being used effectively, efficiently, but just wanna make sure
[6:39:00] that we continue on working on identifying our,
[6:39:05] um, american indian and indigenous students. 'cause we need to
[6:39:09] make sure that we're counting them and we know exactly the needs and connecting
[6:39:13] with them. So I think that is, um, an area that still needs to, to,
[6:39:17] that we need to work on. So, thanks. That's all. There's an ongoing commitment, dr. Rivas.
[6:39:21] you're absolutely right.
[6:39:29] okay. I'd like to make a comment if I may. I haven't spoken yet. So,
[6:39:33] um, I just want the auditorium to know that
[6:39:38] I do support heat and bsap ever
[6:39:42] since it was at its inception. And that's thanks to dr. George
[6:39:46] mckenna. Uh, his great ideas. And I've seen the great
[6:39:51] progress that our students have made. Um,
[6:39:55] and that's why I supported ms. G's, um,
[6:40:01] suggestion that we borrow from the, uh, opep
[6:40:05] to fund bsap after I was, uh,
[6:40:10] assured that it would not be illegal and that
[6:40:14] our retired employees would not suffer because of that. So I
[6:40:18] was okay with that. Supporting bsap.
[6:40:22] now we have the central office budget cuts
[6:40:26] and they were also very necessary because without that, our fiscal
[6:40:31] stabilization plan would not work. And the county of
[6:40:35] los angeles board of education would not accept our
[6:40:39] budget. And I do appreciate that all the cuts
[6:40:43] were made were trying to be made away from the schools. That is really important and we
[6:40:47] all know that. But, you know, the cuts to
[6:40:51] central office also affect our schools. And many,
[6:40:56] many services at central office supplies to our schools is being cut
[6:41:01] and having to decide where to cut is very sad. Very, very
[6:41:05] sad. Central office people are our people too. We all work for the board
[6:41:09] of education, l-a-u-s-d. So many
[6:41:14] of these cuts unfairly target our school police.
[6:41:21] school police are tasked with protecting our district
[6:41:25] assets and even more important, protecting the safety
[6:41:29] of our students and our staff and I have worked for
[6:41:33] the district and in schools, in schools longer than anybody sitting
[6:41:37] here, including the superintendent longer than. And I have seen and
[6:41:41] experienced and witnessed the great work and the
[6:41:46] assistance from school police all the time.
[6:41:50] now I know there are members of the board who simply do not appreciate school police.
[6:41:55] and I see how that is reflected in the many resolutions.
[6:42:00] and following the resolutions, the amendments to the
[6:42:04] resolutions that seem to always target school police,
[6:42:08] they're always mentioned to be cut, always mentioned to be cut by name.
[6:42:14] so the last amendment called for additional cuts
[6:42:18] to central office and included school police. And regretfully,
[6:42:23] I had to vote yes. Not that I wanna cut school police, but
[6:42:27] I understand that we are in a very difficult situation and we have to make
[6:42:31] cuts in order to make our fiscal stabilization plan work.
[6:42:36] so, mr. Ch, I just wanna make sure that any
[6:42:41] reductions that we continue to make to school police
[6:42:46] would not affect the actual officers who are protecting us.
[6:42:50] but other assets, aspects of the school police
[6:42:54] department that make it furnished.
[6:42:59] thank you. Board president. So there, there were a few items that were called out last week as,
[6:43:03] as we discussed, the fiscal stabilization plan. And there's three parts that would,
[6:43:08] uh, potentially impact school police. One is, uh, just a
[6:43:12] general central office reduction. Again, we had already put a $50 million
[6:43:16] reduction for central office for 27 28, which would include,
[6:43:21] uh, school police taking a reduction there. There was an additional, uh, by amendment,
[6:43:25] there was an additional 20 million of central office reduction that was added. So a total
[6:43:29] of 70 million. And again, school police would be impacted there.
[6:43:33] um, there were two other reductions specific to school police, uh,
[6:43:38] uh, inserted via amendment. Uh, one was for the coming
[6:43:42] year, uh, three and a half million dollars reduction. And for the
[6:43:46] following year, a $7 million reduction. Uh, in looking at those
[6:43:50] reductions and in looking at what's available, what we can do based
[6:43:55] on staff analysis is look at that three and a half million dollars reduction
[6:43:59] that could be done without directly impacting
[6:44:03] personnel within school police. I cannot say the same for
[6:44:08] any of the other reductions, but specific to the three and a half million, yes.
[6:44:14] okay. Thank you. Other comments? Anyone else? Other comments,
[6:44:19] sherette? Yeah, well I appreciate you bringing that up. Um, 'cause obviously we were,
[6:44:24] I'm gonna say we, I was put in a predicament as well because I do believe in our safety
[6:44:28] officers as well in our school sites. And yet, and often
[6:44:33] we have put one against the other. It was even mentioned here in
[6:44:37] public comment, and it is not synonymous, nor is
[6:44:42] it, um, in a tangent
[6:44:46] to our program that we have titled
[6:44:50] black student achievement program. And that by no means
[6:44:54] do one trump the other, or one is better than the other
[6:44:58] or however we want to frame it. However, I know our school sites
[6:45:03] and many of our families have come to this
[6:45:07] board and have made mention to their need for
[6:45:11] our school officers to be present near their school sites. And so I
[6:45:15] appreciate you bringing the comment publicly so that we could have that conversation.
[6:45:20] um, because it is true and our officers do more than we
[6:45:24] can imagine, um, as we continue to lose revenue at
[6:45:28] our school sites. And so just for public record, we are losing
[6:45:33] items at our school site because we don't have oversight of some of the property
[6:45:37] that our school resource officers tend
[6:45:41] to respond to. And so anything 50 grand plus
[6:45:46] our officers are not responding to our school sites and yet we are losing
[6:45:50] revenue that way as well because of loss of property. And so, um,
[6:45:55] wanting to always mention, um, the facts so that we are still on the
[6:45:59] same page, uh, to that point. And it is
[6:46:03] unfortunate. And I do, uh, definitely say that our schools
[6:46:07] and the voices of, as we mentioned in this board, about 5,000
[6:46:12] continue to wanna support our resource safety.
[6:46:16] so thank you for that. Thank you. Any other comments before
[6:46:21] we vote on the budget? On the budget? Oh, okay.
[6:46:27] okay. Go ahead carla.
[6:46:37] simon, I remember I had that question about the increase in costs
[6:46:42] for the pay as you go. I I, can you explain to me why
[6:46:46] it went up? From my calculations, it looks like it went up. Okay, let
[6:46:50] me explain it. Every year we budget pay as
[6:46:54] you go to pay for our benefits. The benefits for our retirees,
[6:46:58] right? Our current retirees. Yes. And it's always in the budget. It's never
[6:47:02] taken out. And in the june 12th book
[6:47:07] board book you, um, there was a page that showed,
[6:47:11] um, how much we have been budgeting for pay as
[6:47:15] you go since 2021. And then what I
[6:47:19] noticed is that between 24 25
[6:47:26] and then 25 26, the rate or the percentage
[6:47:30] that it went up by was like 26% versus previous years,
[6:47:34] it went up 2% or 4% was the highest. And
[6:47:39] then once we established that, that 26.2
[6:47:43] level, the next few years that are in the board book, in the fiscal,
[6:47:48] uh, pages, it goes up by like nine or 10% each year.
[6:47:52] so can you explain to me why? Yeah. So
[6:47:56] now, now, now that I, and thank you for sharing the, the page
[6:48:00] number that you were referencing and, and the board material date, I think, uh, that's
[6:48:04] very helpful. We're gonna have to follow up with you. Um, when I quickly looked at it,
[6:48:09] uh, there's a difference between past years, which are actual expenditures
[6:48:13] and forward-looking, which is what's budgeted. I can speak to how we budget
[6:48:17] for this. I mentioned a little bit last week, but it's
[6:48:21] all based on the health benefit agreement. So we make estimates before
[6:48:26] the budget is developed for the following school year of
[6:48:30] how many people are going to be actually retired and drawing benefits during that
[6:48:34] school year. Um, as well as what the cost of the premiums will
[6:48:38] be. That way we can build it into the budget and it's built into the budget
[6:48:43] at the individual position level. So when you look at an actual position in the budget, you'll see the
[6:48:47] salary, you'll see the cost attributable to their active employee
[6:48:51] benefits, but also a a a a share that's basically kind of spread across
[6:48:55] all positions related to those that are already retired. Mm-hmm . And
[6:48:59] the reason for that is that we collect kind of the fair share cost
[6:49:05] from all funds, right? So that general fund unrestricted isn't bearing the
[6:49:09] full cost of retiree health benefits 'cause employees who've earned
[6:49:13] them have come from the bond program, from title I, from the cafeteria pro program,
[6:49:18] et cetera. And so that's how we ensure that every fund is paying its fair share
[6:49:22] and that the general fund understood it is not overburdened for those costs.
[6:49:26] and so every, so that we budget, let's say it's like 5,000 per
[6:49:30] position attributable to the amount for those that are already retired,
[6:49:35] but then a position is either filled or not filled. That actually determines how much we collect
[6:49:39] through that kind of payroll process to then put into the health and welfare fund.
[6:49:44] but what is put in the health and welfare fund is defined by the health benefit
[6:49:48] agreement. There's no, uh, discretion
[6:49:53] regardless of whether a position is filled or not filled, regardless of whether we estimated
[6:49:57] correctly by contract, we have to put a certain amount
[6:50:01] for every person that's actually retired and drawing benefits.
[6:50:05] and so if our estimates are off,
[6:50:10] we either are gonna be underfunding the health and welfare fund
[6:50:14] or overfunding the health and welfare fund. Um, now
[6:50:18] typically our estimates have been pretty solid. Like we have a pretty good understanding based
[6:50:22] on several years of data on, on where things are land. But, but what's
[6:50:26] budgeted for next year is based on our estimate for how
[6:50:31] many people are gonna be retired and what we're required by contract
[6:50:35] in the health benefit agreement to put into the health and welfare fund for every
[6:50:39] person who's retired. And so the total that you see in that table is like, I think
[6:50:43] it was about $330 million. Mm-hmm . Is just that, that kind of math. It's
[6:50:47] kind of the, the amount we're required by contract to put in for every retired
[6:50:51] person against the number of people that we think are gonna be retired. And that's kind
[6:50:55] of the grand total. So we can look a little bit more into why
[6:51:00] the, the past years where they were actual expenditures as opposed to something that's
[6:51:04] forward looking, what, what other factors might have contributed to it. But,
[6:51:08] but generally speaking, the costs are always just the number of people drawing
[6:51:13] benefits and the cost per the labor,
[6:51:17] but the, the health benefit agreement that we're required to put to put in. Alright. Yeah, if
[6:51:21] you can get me that info, that would be sure. Really helpful. And then when
[6:51:25] will we know what the actual is for 25, 26? When do
[6:51:29] we get that information? So the first update will be at, in september when we have an audited
[6:51:33] actuals. Those numbers are almost final, final. And then
[6:51:37] the audit is typically presented to the board in, in january. And so january
[6:51:42] is when kind of, we'll be officially closing the books on this
[6:51:46] school year 25, 26. Okay. And then what happens if we do find that we
[6:51:51] over budget by a lot? What happens to that? So per the health benefit
[6:51:55] agreement, if we've contribute, if there are more contributions
[6:51:59] than costs within the agreement, uh, the reserve
[6:52:04] amount up to $125 million, um,
[6:52:09] stays in the reserve. Okay. Um, and
[6:52:13] half of it could go to pay for the next agreement, but the
[6:52:17] other half is retained by, by the health benefit committee to
[6:52:21] pay for, uh, potential increases to benefit levels and things like that.
[6:52:25] okay. So it stays in the reserve within the health and welfare up to, within the health and
[6:52:29] welfare fund? Yeah. In, in that reserve. That's exactly, I'm sorry. Clarify. That's right. That's clarifying. No, no, that's right. Yeah,
[6:52:33] up until up to 125 million. Okay. Correct. Got it. Thank you.
[6:52:38] sure. The other thing is on page, um, two nine
[6:52:42] of the budget book,
[6:52:47] there is, um, an increase, let me see, two nine. Yeah.
[6:52:54] there is a, um, an increase of over 50 million for utilities
[6:52:58] and sustainability. Can you explain why do you have
[6:53:02] that in full by chance? You said page 29, no,
[6:53:07] two roman numeral two, number nine,
[6:53:11] two roman numeral two dash nine.
[6:53:15] see on line 29, number 29, it says utilities in
[6:53:19] the districtwide operations. So I'm just wondering why the
[6:53:23] increase, there's no fte changes, so why that $50 million
[6:53:29] increase?
[6:53:36] uh, I'm gonna have to follow up, uh, on that. Curious about that.
[6:53:40] also, on page two eight, in the
[6:53:44] tk instruction number four, it says contracted
[6:53:48] services, it went up to 14.5 million. It went up by 14.5 million.
[6:53:54] and can somebody speak to what those contracted
[6:53:58] services are under instruction? I'm sorry, can you point me to the
[6:54:02] page number again, please? Sure. Um, roman numeral two dash eight
[6:54:07] and it's line four contracted services.
[6:54:14] I'll, I'll have to follow up with you. Um, this is all operating funds. So
[6:54:18] this is not just general funds. This includes all of the different operating funds.
[6:54:22] um, and you are asking about the contracted
[6:54:26] services, contracted services on page two dash eight, item number four, and
[6:54:31] it's under take 12 instruction. So that's what I'm curious, like why, what, what
[6:54:35] does that entail? Yeah, I'm sorry. I don't have the, the detail on, on every,
[6:54:39] um, okay. Item within this document. But we can certainly
[6:54:43] follow up, uh, with an answer to each of those questions. Okay.
[6:54:47] and then just, not necessarily about the budget book, but just how we
[6:54:52] allocate funds. And, um, I just recently learned
[6:54:56] that bsap funds, 25 million of them were
[6:55:00] allocated in january of this year. So it made it very difficult
[6:55:05] to spend that money. And maybe pedro can, is he here? I don't know. Where, where
[6:55:09] is he? He's, he's back there. Oh, there you are. Um, can you share with
[6:55:13] me why those funds went out so late to the school sites? $25 million
[6:55:18] were sent in january that at a school site, that's
[6:55:22] difficult to spend. So what happened, I
[6:55:26] would have to look into the release. It may have been that this was the additional
[6:55:31] supplemental allocation that was approved in the june budget when we went
[6:55:35] from 1 25 to one 50, it probably, or 1 75 uhhuh . Um, and there
[6:55:39] was a determination to release the initial dollars look at spend because
[6:55:43] that, what we had seen in the prior year is that there was underspend. So
[6:55:47] as schools were spending down, we released a second tranche. Um, so
[6:55:51] to make sure that, you know, they were first spending down their initial
[6:55:56] allocation, it's just very difficult for school sites
[6:56:00] to spend their money when we do that. And I know we have that awareness because
[6:56:04] we have talked about it. And so we have to figure out a way that
[6:56:08] if we already know that the money is going to go to that particular
[6:56:13] office or that particular school site for x amount
[6:56:18] for x program or services, it makes it better.
[6:56:22] I mean, I, it makes it easier for a school to be able to plan
[6:56:26] if the money's already there, not that they get it at the, you know, in january it's
[6:56:30] nearly impossible if it, if you're gonna hire somebody, you can't hire somebody in january.
[6:56:35] so it's, we have to change that practice because what, who winds
[6:56:39] up hurting is our, our students at the school sites, right? They're the ones
[6:56:43] who, so what can we do to fix that? And carla, that's what goes
[6:56:47] on in at our schools all the time. Yes. Money has come in and then you
[6:56:52] can't buy anymore because time has passed. So we can, as,
[6:56:56] as mr. Salcito mentioned, we can certainly follow up after we research the
[6:57:00] specific timing that, that you're referring to. But it is often the practice
[6:57:04] that when the allocations are provided throughout the year
[6:57:09] as spending gets up to limits, um,
[6:57:13] we certainly don't wanna prevent programs in schools from being able to implement their programs. But
[6:57:17] I do need to be transparent that moving forward, under the current
[6:57:21] financial circumstances, there will almost certainly be more procedures
[6:57:25] and practices put into place that make it harder for people to spend money.
[6:57:29] um, we will be doing things that will create friction
[6:57:33] in, in, in the system to generate $200 million of non-contract
[6:57:39] reductions. We will be implementing not just identifying specific contracts
[6:57:43] and specific budgets to reduce, but, but review processes that do
[6:57:47] make things slower. There's an impact to that. Now, we always do everything we
[6:57:51] can so that those processes do not impact
[6:57:55] our schools. Um, we do our best to give a little bit more,
[6:58:00] um, flexibility in terms of the timing and processes, but,
[6:58:04] but there are still things that, that will be necessary, uh,
[6:58:09] that are, like I said, gonna create some friction. And so I certainly, um, you
[6:58:13] know, we want to try to strike the balance between, um, implementing programs
[6:58:17] with fidelity and quickly and giving some deference to program
[6:58:22] staff. But when districts are facing the size of the financial
[6:58:26] challenge that, that, that we're facing, um, some
[6:58:30] of those pro procedures and processes that get put in place
[6:58:34] to address them can, can have some,
[6:58:38] some consequences. And so I just wanted to, while I, your point is well taken,
[6:58:42] I do want to, I don't wanna be disingenuous and say that, that it's going to
[6:58:47] only get smoother and better. And in fact, it's likely to be the opposite.
[6:58:51] I understand and I foresee a lot of friction, but if the money has already been budgeted
[6:58:56] and then we're not allocating it until later in the year, we're almost setting them up
[6:59:00] not to spend it. And that's not the plan. Right? There's gonna be
[6:59:04] cuts and we know that there's gonna be cuts, and we know that it's gonna be tighter and there's gonna
[6:59:08] be more restrictions on how do you spend the money. But in terms of once
[6:59:12] the bud the money has been budgeted for that particular program
[6:59:16] at school sites, they should receive the money in enough time to
[6:59:21] be able to use it other, otherwise, it's disingenuous of us to say
[6:59:25] we're allocating funds, but then we do it in such a way that it makes it impossible for
[6:59:29] them to spend it. And with our new policies of sweeping back
[6:59:33] funds that are not spent, they're never gonna spend it. Right. So
[6:59:38] I just, I, I hear what you're saying about how things are gonna get tougher, and
[6:59:42] I, I think everybody expects that, but I also want us to be,
[6:59:46] uh, mindful and uh, and set up processes that
[6:59:50] will allow our students to receive the services that
[6:59:55] we have decided are going to be going to their sites for a particular thing.
[6:59:59] and it's not new. This is not a new thing. Like scott said, this is an
[7:00:03] ongoing issue, but especially now as we are cutting and people
[7:00:07] are depending highly on every single dollar that they get,
[7:00:11] it is more important for us to, to stick to processes
[7:00:16] that alleviate that, that, um, issue of not
[7:00:20] spending the money. Same thing with sunny funds. That's a lot of the issues that happen with sunny
[7:00:24] is some schools would get their allocations later. So that's it for right now.
[7:00:28] thank you. Thank you, carla. Thank you. Now are we ready
[7:00:32] to vote? One more? Kelly, go ahead. Uh, apologies.
[7:00:37] not to belabor the conversation, just wanted to raise, I know, you know, there's an ongoing
[7:00:41] conversation about our equitable funding streams and, and this is going to be a continued
[7:00:45] conversation as we see what new state revenue we hopefully, um, receive, um,
[7:00:49] when the state budget is finalized. Um, but I, I think there were a couple of important points
[7:00:53] raised around, um, as we look at, uh, concerns
[7:00:57] about preserving those equitable funding streams, how do we plan for the future? Um,
[7:01:01] a couple suggestions that were raised by partners around looking at school site
[7:01:06] impact data. So as we look at reductions over the next several years, how can we lift up
[7:01:10] what are the on the ground impacts that schools will see? And how does that differ
[7:01:14] depending on the, the needs, uh, of the community and their semi ranking,
[7:01:19] um, developing a multi-year restoration framework.
[7:01:23] um, and you know, we, we made commitments last week as part of
[7:01:27] the fsp, but what does that specifically look like? What are the, the
[7:01:31] triggers for restoration of those funds? Um, any criteria
[7:01:35] that we would want to make explicit as well as a standing process
[7:01:39] to be able to engage with community partners around, um, these essential
[7:01:44] funding streams that were, were really one and developed in partnership with
[7:01:48] community-based organizations, with students, with families, et cetera. Um, so
[7:01:52] I, I guess it's more of a question for superintendent cha, whether you, um, are there
[7:01:56] commitments or responses that we can make around those specific ideas?
[7:02:01] sure. I, I, I mean, I think in very broad strokes, that's the commitment that we made last week.
[7:02:05] as, as you referenced, uh, uh, I don't have any concerns with
[7:02:10] drilling down to a specific process for restoration. Obviously it
[7:02:14] would be very, very, very contingency based. Uh, the, the largest, if
[7:02:18] not the sole contingency being additional revenue coming in. Additional revenue
[7:02:22] can take any number of forms. It can be additional dollars from the state. It can be underspends
[7:02:27] in certain categories that are then reallocated that would establish our
[7:02:31] baseline. Once we have that, then yes, we can engage in a process, obviously under
[7:02:35] board direction around how those dollars would be spent in prioritizing
[7:02:40] semi restoration. Bsap is already essentially restored for the next
[7:02:44] three year cycle. So it's really about addressing se uh,
[7:02:48] as we cited last week or as we committed to last week, we
[7:02:52] would begin with the high highest with those two quintiles. And then
[7:02:56] assuming that there were dollars beyond that, which is
[7:03:01] aspirational, then we would try to solve for the three remaining quintiles.
[7:03:06] yeah. And I would assume, you know, we're going to go in order based on, based on ranking. You know, even
[7:03:10] if we got to just the highest need of the moderate tier, for example, like that
[7:03:14] would, that would be the right approach to take, um, given limited funds.
[7:03:18] great. Well, I hope maybe more specifics can be offered when we revisit the fsp
[7:03:22] come the fall and, and that also a clear, there's a clear process
[7:03:26] for community to articulate their, their ideas and, and priorities.
[7:03:30] um, and then the one other piece I was gonna mention is just also to the extent that,
[7:03:35] well, I guess somewhat contrary to the conversation we just had, but to the extent that highest
[7:03:39] needs schools and communities can be prioritized when it comes to restricted funding sources.
[7:03:43] I'll note for example, our title one threshold that's listed in the budget documents
[7:03:48] is 45%. So 45% of students, um, being
[7:03:52] eligible for free and reduced price lunch. When you think about the needs in los angeles and
[7:03:56] the concentrations of poverty that we have in so many of our communities, that that
[7:04:00] is not, you know, near the highest of need. And that's probably not even the average
[7:04:04] level of poverty at our schools. So we, we need to think about
[7:04:08] in an environment of constrained resources, how do we concentrate those dollars in the communities that
[7:04:13] most need them? Understanding that our general fund, uh, revenue
[7:04:17] is, is limited. It's not enough for, for the needs we know that our students have. So
[7:04:21] hopefully more specifics on that front can be brought in september as well.
[7:04:25] absolutely. Okay. I think we're now ready to vote on our proposed budget,
[7:04:30] mr. Mclean. All right. Tab six. Uh, after having
[7:04:34] been amended, taking the vote, uh, ms. Newbell?
[7:04:38] yes. Dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvin? Yes. Ms. Griego?
[7:04:43] yes. Uh, ms. Gomez? Yes. Ms. Ortiz franklin? Yes. Board
[7:04:47] president schon? Yes. That's seven. Aye.
[7:04:51] all right. We're gonna move to tab seven quickly and then general public comment right
[7:04:55] after that. Uh, tab seven is the fiscal year 2027
[7:04:59] oig work plan. May I have a motion and a second move it. I second
[7:05:03] moved by board president molson, seconded by mr. Mein. I believe there's a
[7:05:07] question on the item and I have general public co a public comment on it actually. So let
[7:05:12] me, uh, let me get to the public comment as folks shuffle out.
[7:05:16] mr. Toski, I believe come on down and we'll wait for the comment until folks are
[7:05:20] a little bit quieter, but come on up. You left two minutes to speak to tab seven.
[7:05:25] you have a presentation? No, there's no presentation today, but the materials
[7:05:29] are available online for you.
[7:05:37] just one second, folks are shuffling out pretty please.
[7:06:05] okay, mr. Koski, I think, uh, I think we're set. The two minutes is yours. Thank you for
[7:06:09] your patience. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to mr. President, mr. Superintendent
[7:06:13] and board and public. Uh, first of all, I'm here on the annual work plan
[7:06:18] of the office of the inspector general as a former board member of 12 years, and
[7:06:22] the author of the motion that became the piece of the institution of the inspector
[7:06:26] general's office. I'm here to remind you that the item
[7:06:30] before you has signatures on it that should not
[7:06:34] be on it. This office is a direct report to the board
[7:06:39] of education. If you read that report and the public looks at it, it says
[7:06:43] it's presented by, reviewed by. This is the
[7:06:47] inspector general's area and the
[7:06:51] board. And so I wanna welcome our new inspector general if he hasn't earlier today
[7:06:55] been introduced. I also wanna say board,
[7:06:59] you lost the last inspector general. She's now the deputy mayor of safety in
[7:07:03] the city of la for whatever reasons that were never publicly made
[7:07:08] out there. But let me say, one of the issues sue
[7:07:12] always talked about was there's not enough general fund money in there.
[7:07:16] and you need as a board, as you do the budget and adjust
[7:07:21] it to put more general fund. Otherwise, you're predominantly auditing
[7:07:25] only facilities bond money. For example, elop, $2 billion
[7:07:30] has been spent on elop. Are you gonna wait until the state hoover
[7:07:34] commission or somebody audits that you're spending elop? People
[7:07:39] are getting pcard in the tens of millions and spending last minute.
[7:07:43] when you finally get a list, you are gonna be very upset. And let me say
[7:07:48] congratulations to ms. Franklin for, for finding budget dust.
[7:07:52] as marguerite lamont used to call it, $11 million. There's $500 million
[7:07:57] in elop. In addition, prop 49 has a after school program,
[7:08:01] 160 million. The federal government gives you 2 million, 200 million. That's
[7:08:05] $900 million for after school. Meanwhile,
[7:08:10] this audit plan gives us hamilton high thank you harbor freight
[7:08:14] tools, developer fees, the downtown law group. There is
[7:08:19] so much money that the return on the investment of your inspector general
[7:08:23] can give you. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time.
[7:08:30] so I believe that no questions right, ms.
[7:08:34] new bill. Okay. Let me just say since I'm
[7:08:38] sorry. You do, go ahead. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It was just clarification because
[7:08:43] I wanted to know because we were adopting the work plan
[7:08:47] and the inspector general
[7:08:52] just got here. So wanting to know could it be adjusted or
[7:08:56] amended after its adoption? That was the question that I had
[7:09:01] you answer. Yes.
[7:09:06] and that's all. And welcome to our anything's possible. Right.
[7:09:10] okay. I wanna say welcome yes. As well. Yes, mr. Hoffman,
[7:09:15] you're, I know you're gonna meet with every one of us individually, but let me give you
[7:09:19] from the board of education a welcome to the board of education. And I hope you had a fun
[7:09:23] day here today. Thank you very much.
[7:09:29] any further questions on tab seven? It's been moved and seconded.
[7:09:34] uh, ms. Newbell? Yes. Dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Malvo?
[7:09:38] yes. Ms. Crego? Yes. Uh, ms. Ez? Yes. Uh, ms. Ortiz
[7:09:42] franklin, uh, board president schroon? Yes. All right. That's six ayes. I need to collect votes
[7:09:47] on a prior item. Tab four. Um, dr. Reva,
[7:09:51] this is the local control and accountability plan. Yes. And, uh, same
[7:09:55] for you. Um, ms. Greggo, how do you vote? Yes, thank you. Um,
[7:10:01] okay. And we'll come back to tab seven for, uh, ms. Ortiz
[7:10:06] franklin. And we have some very patient folks who've been with us most of the day
[7:10:10] for the, uh, general public comment. And then after general public comment, we
[7:10:14] have mr. Mel's adoption of the 26 27. He has
[7:10:18] a question. Yes, that's right. Okay. You got it. Okay. So, uh,
[7:10:23] general public comment. We have 20 folks signed up. I'll call on those who,
[7:10:28] uh, have listed themselves as being here in person. And then
[7:10:32] we will call on those who are, uh, remote. Let's see. Mao trejo, are you
[7:10:36] here? I think I saw mr. Trejo.
[7:10:41] come on up. Mr. Trejo. You have two minutes to speak once you begin. Then christopher covington,
[7:10:47] uh, then adrian and then marvia more.
[7:10:57] I suspect some seating of time is coming.
[7:11:04] I'm mealing my time to your end. Thank you. Come on up, sir. You'll have two minutes to speak once
[7:11:08] you begin. Hello. Good afternoon. My name is iran lopez.
[7:11:12] I'm gonna be a upcoming senior at man uca community school.
[7:11:18] I'm here to talk about how you guys have all this. Uh, you guys are keep
[7:11:22] cutting bsap. You guys are keep cutting budgets. And that's
[7:11:26] affecting my school, especially my school. It's a community school. It's a school from sixth
[7:11:30] grade to 12th grade. My school. You, uh, right now we're seeing
[7:11:34] an event. Uh, we don't have enough computers because
[7:11:40] the computers that we have at our school, they're being taken for I-ready
[7:11:44] testing. So the classrooms that don't do I-ready like
[7:11:48] math, ap african american studies don't have computers.
[7:11:52] why? Because we are having to put them in the rooms where, um,
[7:11:57] they're having to do I-ready and all this testing instead
[7:12:01] of spending all that money. And I-ready. You guys should put that
[7:12:05] money back in. Bap. Put that money back in our schools.
[7:12:10] my school in ap african american studies. We didn't
[7:12:15] even do some of the work. Why? Because we didn't have chromebooks.
[7:12:20] and 'cause the school is, we're
[7:12:24] a sixth grade and 12th grade school, so we don't have enough money for
[7:12:28] all the students. So we don't have chromebooks and we don't
[7:12:32] do the work. So like please put the money where it belongs.
[7:12:37] cut school police, put the money in our schools please.
[7:12:42] and thank you. Have a great, thank you very much.
[7:12:46] I'm gonna take the last 20 seconds. Um, I just wanna take some time to
[7:12:51] commend you all board for passing the fiscal stabilization plan that protected
[7:12:55] bsap. I did wanna speak directly to ms. New bill, um, today
[7:12:59] as well and acknowledge the decision that was made, um, as the only black board
[7:13:03] member to continue to support bsap. I do also wanna express my disappointment
[7:13:08] with melvoin and ms. Ortiz franklin for their lack of support for black
[7:13:12] students. And like finding time today to save afterschool programs. Afterschool
[7:13:16] programs are important, and I think at the same time as people that have,
[7:13:20] um, advocated for bsap to not have voted on that fiscal stabilization plan
[7:13:24] was truly a shameful. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Trejo.
[7:13:32] christopher covington, come on up please. Hi. Thank you. I yield
[7:13:36] my time to chloe. Okay, chloe.
[7:13:40] hi, good evening. I'm chloe clarkton. As soon be senior at
[7:13:44] san pedro high school. Um, I came here to say why the multimillion
[7:13:48] dollar funding for l-e-s-p-d should be redirected towards bsap.
[7:13:53] bsap has a number of beneficial factors for students. First, they fund
[7:13:57] school counselors, which regulate students classes and keep them on track for graduation.
[7:14:01] they offer support by acting as a guardian, making sure that students are completing
[7:14:05] their a through g requirements while instilling the importance of having good grades. With
[7:14:10] the help of bsap, students are able to manage their courses and work knowing they have a group
[7:14:14] of people that are working in their favor to support them. On the other hand, police
[7:14:18] officers sole purpose is to maintain the authority to
[7:14:22] maintain order as an authority figure, um,
[7:14:27] which cuts off any possible connection with the students. They're meaning to protect
[7:14:31] even when something does happen and the police are called, they often come after the
[7:14:35] situation was already resolved. I personally witnessed this in a high school in gardena because
[7:14:40] I was waiting for my mom to come pick me up. And this lady, she came to
[7:14:44] file a complaint to the school, but she ended up fighting the, the daughters that
[7:14:48] the girls that beat up her daughter. So they called the police on them and
[7:14:52] they came like 20 minutes later after everything already happened. And the staff members
[7:14:56] at the school had to get the lady off the girls 'cause she was beating them up.
[7:15:02] so, along with that, um,
[7:15:06] on top of their tardiness, police officers do not listen to the needs of the students while
[7:15:10] bsap hosts surveys for african american students to give them feedback on how they can be represented
[7:15:14] better in schools, police officers maintain their distance with students and only
[7:15:18] interact if they're perceived as a threat or causing disruption. I know it's not their job to
[7:15:23] like, take into the consideration like the needs of the students, but
[7:15:27] it would make them less of a, of a scary authority figure and more like
[7:15:31] a criticizing or reconstructing caregiver
[7:15:36] and comparing the positive. Oh, well have a nice day. Thank you.
[7:15:41] thank you for your time. Adrian,
[7:15:45] are you out there? Adrian? Coming up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[7:15:55] good afternoon. My name is, can I,
[7:15:59] we have a speaker in spanish, so if you'd like to hear what she's saying in english, please put on these translation
[7:16:04] headsets and you can experience, uh, simultaneous translation.
[7:16:22] okay. Ade, my name is pa leon
[7:16:26] and I'm a mother and also presenting middle
[7:16:30] school. My name is eight, the northridge middle
[7:16:35] school.
[7:16:56] it also states that the board itself says that, uh, attendance must benefit the
[7:17:00] district through achieve through achievement of the following outcomes. Attendance should lead
[7:17:05] directly to the professional or technical growth of the individual, uh,
[7:17:09] and to improve the dis uh, of the district programs. Um, attendance is important
[7:17:13] to the interest and welfare of the district, and attendance should lead to directly to
[7:17:17] the improvement of efficiency and operations of the district.
[7:17:22] um, the principal at norridge middle school has been frequently absent, uh,
[7:17:26] in part to attend axa conferences. This includes spending $2,700
[7:17:30] for axa leadership summit in san diego. Uh, this vacation,
[7:17:35] or sorry, uh, conference lasted four days.
[7:17:39] um, it also includes axa legislative, uh, action trips as
[7:17:43] well as attendance to axa leadership assemblies. And our concern
[7:17:47] is that these trips do not meet the stated goals of l-a-u-s-d as outlined by
[7:17:51] the school board. Um, as parents were concerned that the use of funds,
[7:17:55] lack of explanation, and the number of absences, um, uh, also,
[7:17:59] um, we're deeply concerned that the public money is being used for her
[7:18:04] personal benefit, especially in a time of budget cuts like we've been discussing
[7:18:08] today. The only thing we're asking
[7:18:12] district, especially with these expenditures, like all expenditures, assure that
[7:18:17] everyone follows the policies of the district. And that mr. Scott
[7:18:21] take seriously these concerns that we have. 'cause we feel disappointed because
[7:18:26] we'd already had these problems and nor did before and they didn't do anything about in respects
[7:18:30] to this. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time. Qua moore.
[7:18:37] and then after mr. Moore is eric white and then ian
[7:18:41] kirksey. I'll be yielding my time to crystal and frank. Alright, come on up.
[7:18:45] you have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[7:18:49] good afternoon, superintendent and board members. My name is crystal corona and
[7:18:53] I am here today not as a high school student anymore, but as a college freshman
[7:18:57] and a proud member of students deserve fighting for all students to have a brighter, better, and
[7:19:01] safer future. My past four years at school have shown shown me that school police
[7:19:06] do nothing but intimidate and criminalize students rather than giving them the support, attention
[7:19:10] and opportunities that they need. The $75 million that go into
[7:19:14] school police should be going into education and the wellbeing of our students because
[7:19:18] we quite literally are the future. We are demanding that lod
[7:19:22] fully funds programs like bsap, lgbtq plus supports and dream centers
[7:19:27] instead of spending that money on the necessary programs like school police because we, you are
[7:19:31] encountering for the negative impact school police has done to students. Instead
[7:19:35] of helping students feel like a sense of safety and support, they're creating
[7:19:39] a-p-t-s-d response. Lus d's main focus should be
[7:19:43] encouraging students to feel engaged, supported, and safe. Thank you,
[7:19:47] crystal. Hi, my name is frank sli. I'm a recent graduate
[7:19:51] from diego rivera learning complex, and I would like to highlight
[7:19:55] the importance of, since you won't use your money in order to help fund
[7:20:00] programs, um, at least do background checks on the teachers that
[7:20:04] you actually are hiring. Because I felt like as a student that grew up
[7:20:08] in south central and also graduated from there, I realized that they didn't care about
[7:20:12] whether I graduated or not. They cared about, they cared about, they cared about the paycheck that
[7:20:17] they got. At the end of the day, they didn't care about the individual that was actually coming from,
[7:20:21] um, a broken home from an environment where nobody believed in them.
[7:20:26] so I feel like it's more important to actually know who you're hiring better than
[7:20:30] the, the, I guess their credentials. But yeah, thank
[7:20:34] you. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[7:20:40] eric white and then ian kirksey. I think I saw both of those gentlemen.
[7:20:44] there you are, sir, come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[7:20:50] good afternoon. I'm gonna yield my time to elena price.
[7:20:54] all right. Come on up. Thank you.
[7:21:00] I could start. Okay. Good afternoon. Board members.
[7:21:04] can you adjust the mic? Just there's no nerves. There you go. We just wanna be able to hear you.
[7:21:09] good afternoon board members. My name is elena price. I'm a parent
[7:21:13] in la unified and apparently they reclaim our school's. La
[7:21:17] I want to thank this board for protecting bsap funding, but our work is not done.
[7:21:22] programs that support black students and families cannot continue to be treated
[7:21:26] as optional. Bsap provides resources, advocacy,
[7:21:30] and support that many of our students will not otherwise receive.
[7:21:35] I also want to speak about the importance of safe passage in other school
[7:21:39] climate programs. Students cannot learn if they do not feel safe getting to school,
[7:21:43] leaving school or being on campus. Investing in prevention, relationships
[7:21:47] and community support is a much better investment than cutting programs
[7:21:52] that help keep students connected and get engaged.
[7:21:56] finally, I want to acknowledge mrs. Cohen at martin luther king,
[7:22:00] jr. Elementary. Mrs. Cohen has been a consistent support
[7:22:04] for students, families, and the school community staff who build trust with
[7:22:09] families and serve as a bridge between schools and communities are
[7:22:13] valuable. And I hope the district continues to recognize and keep her at mlk school.
[7:22:18] as the district faces budget challenges and leadership changes,
[7:22:22] I ask that you continue to center students, families, and equity in your decisions.
[7:22:26] protect bsap, protect safe passage, protect the people and programs
[7:22:31] that help our children succeed. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[7:22:35] ian kirksey, come on up. Ian kirksey.
[7:22:43] hey y'all, this is ian kirkey. I'm gonna get my time to sade, but as always defund the school police and
[7:22:48] fully fund b seven.
[7:22:53] good afternoon superintendent and members of the board. My name is sade lopez, a writing
[7:22:57] a rising senior at nar on high school. We are standing at a
[7:23:01] critical crossroads for the future of equity in l-a-u-s-d. Today we are here
[7:23:05] to deliver a, a clear unwavering demand, fully fund,
[7:23:09] expand and protect the black student achievement plan. Bsap is
[7:23:13] not just a line item on a spreadsheet. It is one of the most vital equity
[7:23:17] investments this district has ever made. It provides real resources
[7:23:21] to black students who have been historically underserved and over criminalized.
[7:23:26] when we talk about bsap, we are talking about human beings. We are talking about our counselors,
[7:23:31] our ps, ws, and our school climate advocates. These are the leaders
[7:23:35] who create true safety, safety rooted in care, trust and mental health
[7:23:39] support, not handcuffs. If this board cuts bsap, you aren't
[7:23:43] just cutting positions, you are abandoning our students. Furthermore, we
[7:23:47] must double down on the community-based safety and safe passage programs.
[7:23:51] our students have told us directly they feel safer seeing trusted community
[7:23:55] members, guiding them to school, then they do seeing a police cruiser at the
[7:23:59] time when authoritarianism is rising nationally and immigrant
[7:24:03] communities are facing constant threats. L-a-u-s-d must stand as a
[7:24:08] sanctuary of support. It is shameful that this district still spends $75 million
[7:24:12] on school police. While we have to fight for the basic wellbeing of our youth,
[7:24:17] we demand that l-a-u-s-d fully defund the school police and reallocate those millions
[7:24:21] where they belong. We say today, no more cuts to bsap, no cuts
[7:24:25] to dream centers, no cuts to our pws climate advocates or campus
[7:24:29] aides. Invest in the whole child, choose care over criminalization.
[7:24:34] fully fund our future. Thank you.
[7:24:38] thank you for your time. Joseph williams. I think I saw you sir. Come on
[7:24:42] up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Hello mr. Williams.
[7:24:47] and then after mr. Williams is ursing and then paola de leon on,
[7:24:57] um,
[7:25:03] roger that come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin.
[7:25:10] good evening board members. My name is jay santini.
[7:25:15] I do not have a speech made today, but I'm gonna speak from my heart. My, I am
[7:25:19] a parent slash leader of student deserve, member of blm los angeles.
[7:25:24] my child mckenna laws goes to el camino novo elementary. Uh,
[7:25:28] first off, I want to thank you for doing, um, some cuts
[7:25:32] to defunding the police. You know, we do and that's what I wanna speak on
[7:25:36] today. Very quickly, um, as you already
[7:25:40] know, you guys know me. I have said some curse words,
[7:25:44] which I apologize. I'm just very passionate about these kids and about change
[7:25:49] and you know, I've had a hard life growing up. Just like all of us have a story.
[7:25:54] I just wanna say, can we please continue to defund the school police so our
[7:25:58] children don't be targeted. Don't feel like a criminal. You know, you don't know what
[7:26:02] they go through behind closed doors, just like us human beings. And all
[7:26:06] they're trying to do is get a better education to better their lives. You know, we
[7:26:10] live in a tough world, but it doesn't have to continue being tough. And it starts with you. Like
[7:26:15] I always say, and I've said this many a times before, that god puts you where
[7:26:19] he put you for a reason. Right? And I don't wanna keep on saying that
[7:26:23] till my face turned blue. You know, I know we have our, you guys run a
[7:26:27] business and it's like, okay, next person, next person. I'm ready to go home. Right? But
[7:26:31] you know, just it starts with you to where when you go home, let yourself and
[7:26:36] god knows that you did something. You know what I mean? And I do thank you for
[7:26:40] the victories that we have coming so far. And I know the fight is still not done.
[7:26:44] you know, there's a million things you guys can do. There's a million things we can do.
[7:26:48] you know, heck what these kids can do. But they're here for a reason. And all
[7:26:52] of us are tired of being tired, right? We all have trauma,
[7:26:57] we all have pain, but we want to see our promised land. We want
[7:27:01] to see difference. We want to see action and consistency. And it starts
[7:27:05] with you. And I just still, once again, thank you for the victories. We have
[7:27:09] come so far 'cause we come a long
[7:27:13] and, um, I know it's not done. So thank you and god bless.
[7:27:18] thank you for your time. Uh, ur singh, are you here?
[7:27:23] there you are. After mr. Singh or uh, pa de leon and then
[7:27:27] raya blakely.
[7:27:40] good evening. Members of the board. You're probably like, why is this kid still here?
[7:27:44] I thought he graduated. I thought we got rid of him. I did graduate about 11 years ago, or
[7:27:48] 11 days ago. Um, but unfortunately I have to return
[7:27:52] this time as a whistleblower. Um, as a member of this,
[7:27:57] uh, year's superintendent student advisory council, I learned some very concerning information.
[7:28:02] I learned that students were misled, obstructed, and lied to by antonio
[7:28:06] placencia, dr. Eric el edward and ms. Rashir.
[7:28:11] I independently conducted outreach to attorneys auditors, lako.
[7:28:15] they all contradicted what these individuals said and confirmed that they lied about the
[7:28:19] lcap to students. I had asked them follow up questions and
[7:28:23] emails. They refused to respond except l word. L edward did incriminate himself in one
[7:28:27] email. And I've saved that email. How is this equitable to lie to students?
[7:28:31] it's untransparent and it's really simple questions like, what does this red
[7:28:36] highlight mean on this? Pdf ward didn't respond. Placencia didn't respond
[7:28:40] to this simple question. I did ask placencia
[7:28:44] in person last time I saw him, and he responded in a very aggressive tone.
[7:28:48] and it was just very traumatizing to see that side of him that we aren't used to.
[7:28:53] um, and of course we are familiar with parents coming here saying that they've experienced
[7:28:57] similar intimidation lies and now it's happening to students.
[7:29:01] and I also learned that placencia during the most recent student board member election
[7:29:06] pressured two students to change their speeches. That's highly inappropriate. He
[7:29:10] pressured them because he thought, he said that you wouldn't like their speeches because they were talking about
[7:29:14] corruption. And albert told me the same thing about, um,
[7:29:18] about the lcap. He said that you would not like some of our recommendations as reason
[7:29:22] for removing them. And placent and edward did direct me to dr. Murphy
[7:29:27] in the back. And dr. Murphy let me know that they're the experts on this, yet they still
[7:29:32] refuse to respond. And I have reached out to janet carter.
[7:29:36] she's, I still haven't heard back yet either. So we, I ask that you please
[7:29:40] make them, make them answer these questions publicly. Make make it
[7:29:44] transparent. And I hope that you investigate this because this is corruption and
[7:29:48] this is fraud, what they did. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh, pa
[7:29:53] de leon, paola. Paola,
[7:29:57] are you here? Last call for
[7:30:01] paola. All right, how about araya blakely?
[7:30:14] hi, I am aray, I'm yielding to janae. Hello janae. I'm
[7:30:18] aray today , um, you guys already
[7:30:22] know who I am. I'm janae tyler. I am the parent and family organizer for
[7:30:26] students deserve parent and family center director at
[7:30:30] hamilton high school. And I have to start off by saying thank
[7:30:35] you. I have to say thank you and I'm not gonna cry, I promise I
[7:30:39] have to say thank you to she and her bd one staff.
[7:30:43] I have to say thank you to superintendent shade,
[7:30:47] pedro sto, kristen murphy, for
[7:30:51] all the work that you guys have done alongside my community
[7:30:56] to help keep me in my position, serving my families at
[7:31:00] hamilton high school. I'm not gonna stand here in front of my
[7:31:04] community and not thank these parents and students and staff members
[7:31:08] that sent in over 200 emails on my behalf. It's
[7:31:12] humbling and I'm more than grateful and I thank you guys for that.
[7:31:18] but you guys know that if I'm standing here, I'm not gonna just use my, I'm not gonna just
[7:31:22] use my time to show my gratitude. I could stand here and do
[7:31:27] that forever, but I also have to continue to stand here and fight for our babies.
[7:31:32] and I just wanna thank you first of all for the amendments that you guys did
[7:31:36] make to the budget. I'm thankful for carla. I'm thankful for
[7:31:40] kelly for having you guys take a deeper dive into areas
[7:31:44] that could, that we can cut from that doesn't come
[7:31:48] on the backs of our black and brown students. Our most vulnerable students,
[7:31:54] people probably tired of hearing me say it, but I wanna remind you guys that in 2011
[7:31:59] the federal government mandated l-a-u-s-d to create
[7:32:03] programming to address the far below basic that our students were
[7:32:07] and said that it was so egregious that it seemed intentional.
[7:32:12] so I just want you guys to remember that we serve our students
[7:32:16] as a data-driven district. The data shows that bsap is working,
[7:32:21] the data shows that c is working. And yes, I am
[7:32:25] grateful that these cuts to central office also are cuts to school
[7:32:30] police. Thank you for your time. Our children deserve care, not cops.
[7:32:34] thank you. Right. The next speaker is marshe
[7:32:39] doss. Marshe. Are you here?
[7:32:45] uh, let's see. After ms. Doss is, uh, jessica santiago
[7:32:49] and then fara d
[7:32:55] hi. I yield my time to jonah. Line up jonah, you have two minutes to
[7:32:59] speak. Alright, thank you. Good evening to the school board. My name is
[7:33:03] jonah daniels. I'm an up and coming 10th grade at laces. The same
[7:33:07] one who was here last week. Fine. For you not to defund bsap.
[7:33:11] now I'm back. For you to fully fund bsap and defund school police
[7:33:16] as it is heavily important to school campuses and culture for black people overall,
[7:33:21] you expanded it with greatly benefit sta students and staff members
[7:33:25] as bsap is one of the most important quality investments
[7:33:30] that lsc has done as a support. In addition for a place of culture
[7:33:34] and learning for both black and non-black students show its equality.
[7:33:39] bsap in itself gives black students true resources and support that staff
[7:33:43] members and teachers can't give. If you cut bsap, that's taking away
[7:33:47] culture in a safe place. That which would lead to you cutting
[7:33:51] other culture organizations that don't, doesn't fit your standards.
[7:33:55] if you could fund school police, you can most definitely fund bsap as
[7:33:59] a student of laces, I've seen bsap do more than I've ever
[7:34:03] seen school police do something besides just standing around on
[7:34:08] campus. I've had times where I'm passing by my main building
[7:34:12] and I would see school police either outside on their phone or on
[7:34:16] some cases inside on their phone, not on lookout. Is that truly
[7:34:20] something you want to fund? Bsap serves all students while school police
[7:34:24] serves no one but their selves. Defund school, police and fund
[7:34:29] bsap. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh,
[7:34:33] jessica santiago. Hello.
[7:34:37] I will be yielding my time to diana marlene. Alright, come on
[7:34:41] up. You have two minutes to speak. Hello, members of the l-a-u-s-d school board.
[7:34:45] my name is marlene and I recently graduated from high school. Throughout my time as
[7:34:49] a student, I was involved in leadership and advocacy efforts that supported the
[7:34:54] lgbtq plus communities. I am here today to respectfully urge the
[7:34:58] l-a-u-s-d school board to collaborate with stakeholders to establish an lgbtq
[7:35:02] plus steering committee to help supporters support teachers, students, and
[7:35:06] families across the entire lasd district. As a student and advocate,
[7:35:11] I saw first town how important supportive spaces are for lgbtq
[7:35:15] plus students and allies. These spaces provided young people with a sense of belonging,
[7:35:19] support, and community. However, I also witnessed that access
[7:35:23] to resource is not always equal at every school. While some campuses do have
[7:35:27] some strong programs and support systems, others have limited resources available to
[7:35:31] students who need it the most. Creating an lgbtq plus steering committee would
[7:35:36] help ensure that grant funds are used strategically, transparently, and equ
[7:35:40] by including educators and community members. The steering committee could better
[7:35:45] identify the needs of schools across the district and ensure resources
[7:35:49] reach the students and programs they're intended to support. It would also
[7:35:53] strengthen accountability and given give those directly impacted by these initiatives.
[7:35:57] a voice in the decision making process. I respectfully asked the lasd school board
[7:36:01] to create an lgbtq plus steering committee that has decisions making
[7:36:06] powers to help guide the allocation of funding and ensure resources are used in
[7:36:10] a way that best supports the lgbtq plus students throughout u-l-a-s-d. Thank
[7:36:14] you. Hello, my name is diana and
[7:36:18] I'm here respectfully to urge the members of the le zoo board to
[7:36:22] work with stakeholders to create steering committee responsible for guiding how
[7:36:27] lgbtq plus grants grant funds are allocated.
[7:36:31] um, as a pride club leader, I,
[7:36:36] I want these funds to be granted to our clubs
[7:36:40] so we could get to resources that
[7:36:44] we need. Uh, thank you. Thank you for your time.
[7:36:51] alright, farah d are you here? Come on up.
[7:36:55] and then alma de jesus. And then, uh, vicente
[7:37:00] rubio.
[7:37:05] hello, uh, my name is farah dodi and I am the president of pflag
[7:37:10] los angeles. Pflag is a 50-year-old organization dedicated to
[7:37:14] the support, education and advocacy for the lgbtq plus
[7:37:18] community and the parents, friends and family who love them.
[7:37:22] I am here to urge the board to implement an lgbtq plus steering committee to
[7:37:27] maintain a consistent dialogue regarding the rollout of lgbtq plus programming and
[7:37:31] funding allocation. As a parent and an ally, I
[7:37:35] know firsthand that the well-planned implement implementation of funds
[7:37:39] can increase student outcomes immeasurably. And this steering committee
[7:37:43] will help to ensure that. And I'm now going to see the rest of my time to essence
[7:37:48] phillips. Hello, members of the
[7:37:52] l-a-u-s-d school board. My name is essence phillips. I attend
[7:37:56] east los angeles community college and work at the los angeles lgbt
[7:38:00] center. As a peer advocate supporting lgbtqia plus youth
[7:38:05] across the l-a-u-s-d, I urge the board to pass a
[7:38:09] resolution, establishing an lgbtqia plus steering committee
[7:38:13] to help guide the allocation of grant funds across the district. Growing
[7:38:17] up in south central la I witnessed how uneven access to support
[7:38:21] affects students many lgbtqia plus youth face financial
[7:38:26] barriers, cultural stigma, religious pressures,
[7:38:31] and a lack of support or access to it. When people who share
[7:38:35] our lived experiences understand our community and recognize
[7:38:39] the stu the students, what students face are shaping decisions,
[7:38:43] students needs are more likely to be understood and addressed.
[7:38:48] while l-a-u-s-d staff work hard to serve a diverse district,
[7:38:52] a dedicated steering committee can provide that focus, insight,
[7:38:56] and ensure these funds reach the students who need them most. Thank you for
[7:39:00] your time and commitment to creating safe and inclusive schools for all students.
[7:39:05] thank you for your time.
[7:39:10] all right, alma de jesus. Alma, are you here?
[7:39:18] hello? Board members. I yield my time to yoanna.
[7:39:22] come on up johanna. Yeah.
[7:39:31] good afternoon. Board members and acting superintendent chair.
[7:39:36] my name is joanna lawrence and I'm a parent of a student
[7:39:40] currently enrolled in enrolled in district five. I'm
[7:39:44] also the vice chair of the school site, council of the school
[7:39:48] and I'm a proud member of reclaim our school's la
[7:39:53] ladies and gentlemen, today is not the first day I will walk through the doors
[7:39:58] of this building. I am a parent
[7:40:02] and I am, it is my responsibility to come in here to encourage you
[7:40:07] this board, to consider that the funding provided
[7:40:12] to school police should be in efforts of providing goods, stewardship
[7:40:16] and leadership for our students.
[7:40:21] I am from belize recently, naturalized citizen.
[7:40:25] the schools where we have, we don't have school, police home.
[7:40:30] there is no need for school police. It
[7:40:34] is essential that we remember that the behavior of
[7:40:39] our leadership represents how our students will behave
[7:40:43] in the future. It is also
[7:40:47] very essential that the people in position like yourselves
[7:40:51] encourage parents to make impacts in our
[7:40:56] students as well. I am a single parent and I have a son
[7:41:00] who is now 15 years old. Times have changed
[7:41:04] to the point of instead of us learning from our many mistakes,
[7:41:09] we keep holding on to what has staggered our forward and
[7:41:13] progressive movement to prosperity. I wish you could
[7:41:17] see the item I currently hold in my hand. Like
[7:41:21] many keepsakes we would have. This item came with my son
[7:41:26] who before acquiring this object kept saying he did not
[7:41:30] see how much going to college will benefit him.
[7:41:35] this is proof that with his tour of a-h-b-c-u college of
[7:41:40] howard and morgan university in april of this year through
[7:41:44] the bsap program. Thank you very much for your time. He came home
[7:41:48] saying that he wants to go to college because he had the opportunity.
[7:41:52] great. I am urging you all. Thank you for your time please
[7:41:57] with your decision this week, last week, madam new bill and
[7:42:01] of course with you madame greggo and everybody else on this board. Thank you for keeping
[7:42:05] this program alive and like my son and a lot of little brown boys out there,
[7:42:09] we do need this. Well thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it. Yes, thank you. Alright,
[7:42:13] vicente, are you here? Vicente, come on down, vicente
[7:42:18] and then elena. Price.
[7:42:32] good afternoon. My name is vicente rubio and I'm an incoming junior at san pedro
[7:42:36] high school and a youth leader of students deserve. As a lifelong l-a-o-s-d
[7:42:40] student, I know how important it is for us students to feel safe in and around our
[7:42:44] schools. And we are proud to say that we have worked to get l-a-u-s-d
[7:42:49] to fund more community-based safety programs at like safe passage.
[7:42:54] students have already reported that they feel more comfortable with a community member
[7:42:59] who is invested in these students more than a-l-a-s-p-d
[7:43:03] cop who will only criminalize our students. And this
[7:43:07] issue is very important to me as I see around our schools,
[7:43:11] especially when considering just last year, my grandparents were driving me and my
[7:43:15] brother by banning high school and we witnessed a fight between two students where
[7:43:19] the other was threatened with a gun. One of the students who was
[7:43:23] threatened with a gun shouted and I quote, I don't bang like that.
[7:43:28] and they, that may have saved his life. We students need
[7:43:32] safer areas around our schools.
[7:43:36] so please continue and recognize your power to protect
[7:43:41] our students and from the rise of white supremacy across
[7:43:45] america and the dangers that are that we face every day.
[7:43:50] I also wanna take some time to recall that senny was given a major
[7:43:54] cut and needs to be given proper funding for our schools
[7:43:59] and for our students. Thank you for your time.
[7:44:05] for your time. Elena price. Elena, are you
[7:44:09] here? Elena? Price. All right.
[7:44:13] is that that someone leaving? Sorry. Okay, so we
[7:44:17] have uh, remote speakers. The first remote speaker is jamila. I see you're on the line. Please
[7:44:21] press star six to unmute yourself, jamila, and you'll have two minutes to speak once
[7:44:26] you begin. Jamila.
[7:44:32] hello? Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead. Alright, dear members
[7:44:36] of the school, but my name is jamila f and I'm here as a student and community
[7:44:40] advocate. Today we are aware that jesus, um, a and marie
[7:44:44] continue to work on, on the taxpayer's d these individuals aided
[7:44:49] and and I the of a student and pled for it. They
[7:44:53] were permit by anglo works for
[7:44:57] virtual academy. Now the lesd think it could hide ang
[7:45:03] clearly, at least you that wrong. Natasha ster works for d two.
[7:45:07] she said that rape was not a concern if it was 20 years ago. Argue you that these words
[7:45:11] reflect on your reput reputation as a spokeperson for the
[7:45:15] district. Her words are your words. Why the fast action against c
[7:45:20] torez and not here. If jeffrey epstein were an employee
[7:45:24] failure state, would you give him a type risk like you did? Um, and buck
[7:45:29] the right, the right course of action would be to place all three of these individuals
[7:45:33] on I on an immediate suspicion without pay. We know, we know that
[7:45:37] these have happened. We know that this has not happened, then fire them or have them
[7:45:41] resign. Don't expect for this to be covered up again. The national media
[7:45:45] is already aware of it. We will continue to speak here no matter how long it takes. And to
[7:45:49] jesus and maria timore and lat book are fired. If it takes a
[7:45:53] year, two or five, so be it. We'll be here. I assuming that the takes,
[7:45:58] I recommend the luc takes the right approach and places them on immediate suspicion and then fire
[7:46:02] immediate suspicion and then fires them. Currently these people still work for
[7:46:06] the district. Thank you. Thank you for your time. The next speaker
[7:46:10] is christopher estella. Christopher, I see you're on the line. Please press star six to unmute
[7:46:15] yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Christopher,
[7:46:22] uh, hello? Can you hear me? Yes, we can maybe just speak up a little bit. You sound
[7:46:26] a little muffled. Oh, okay. Thank
[7:46:30] you for clarifying. Um,
[7:46:34] right. Good morning a or good afternoon everyone. I should say. My name
[7:46:38] is christopher stella torres. I am a rising virtual academy senior. Hello. Usd
[7:46:42] is already under investigation by the department of education for allegedly
[7:46:48] covering up the sexual abuses of students. This is exactly what
[7:46:52] maria meyer did. What it was their reward. I asked, they
[7:46:56] were promoted on your dime just a few years ago. And also on your dime you paid
[7:47:00] a settlement of $6.5 million. Then there is latasha
[7:47:04] buck. While latasha buck has a lavish salary on tax paper dollars.
[7:47:09] she had said that the rape of students is okay if it was 20 years
[7:47:13] ago. As parents, I ask, how do you feel? Do you feel no disgust,
[7:47:17] no anger. As you prepare to head on summer recess,
[7:47:21] you should think about it. What if this was your son or daughter who was molested
[7:47:25] by their teacher? And what if they were taken into a room by his and maria sotomeyer
[7:47:29] and held hostage for hours to avoid making accusations? And what if
[7:47:33] natasha buck later said that your child's rape was not a concern since it was 20
[7:47:38] years ago? Come on, we all know that this would,
[7:47:42] or that you would have that person fired and jailed immediately. Why is
[7:47:46] it different for other kids? The community does not understand the holdup.
[7:47:50] it is. It union rules maybe with termination, but frankly, I don't see or
[7:47:54] comprehend why you cannot take, uh, safety individuals on immediate suspension
[7:47:59] pending further investigation. If you don't take action that, uh, displays into
[7:48:03] the department of justice investigation perfectly consider what message you want
[7:48:07] to send to families and students by letting these child's predators named
[7:48:11] slo and maria sotomeyer along with their supporters such as natasha buck on your
[7:48:15] payroll. Thank you and goodbye. Thank you for your time.
[7:48:20] um, mariana calderon, I see you're on the line. Please press star six to unmute
[7:48:24] yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Mariana calderon.
[7:48:30] hello? Can you hear me? Yes, perfectly. Thank you. Okay,
[7:48:34] um, I will start. Hi everyone. My name is mariana calderon. I am currently
[7:48:38] a pedro high school and for the asking
[7:48:43] help unnecessary at our schools, I have brought a problem to you, but I
[7:48:47] have also brought solutions. Yes, I have seen yet I have seen no change. I
[7:48:51] understand it takes time to take action, but time is something we're running low on.
[7:48:55] there is currently more plastic in the ocean than there are fish when measured by weight. Something
[7:48:59] truly depressing. Depressing. Yet relevant to this meeting, our schools,
[7:49:03] as I have stated again and again, offer plastic straws along with you with our
[7:49:07] plastic utensils during lunch. They are extremely unnecessary. They aren't even
[7:49:11] straws. They're stirs and the drinks that are provided with them don't require
[7:49:16] a straw because they are packaged in cartons completely. Stopping the
[7:49:20] distribution. Distribution of these items would not only benefit the
[7:49:24] environment we go to in school, but it would also represent less spending for you as
[7:49:28] a district. This conversation belongs in students that serve because of the environmental
[7:49:33] racism that we see, that we see neighborhoods
[7:49:37] with families of higher incomes and white demographics like beverly hills or orange
[7:49:41] county have significantly less trash on the streets compared to other cities like
[7:49:45] compton or south central. This problem is definitely caused by the negligence
[7:49:49] and arrogance of those in power like the governor and mayor. But I ask, I
[7:49:53] insist that you help us take action. Because l-a-u-s-d enrolls over 400,000
[7:49:59] students annually, millions of individual plastic straws are distributed each year through
[7:50:03] district breakfast carts and cafeteria meals. And completely stopping their distribution
[7:50:08] would significantly help us even only a little in keeping our communities and
[7:50:12] learning environments clean and healthy. This is a decision that can affect the lives
[7:50:16] of generations that follow and rest on your hands. Please help us live in a
[7:50:20] world as clean as the one you grew up in. Thank you for your time. Thank
[7:50:24] you for your time. The next speaker is brianna. I see you're on the line. Please press star six to unmute
[7:50:29] yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Brianna.
[7:50:36] hi, can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
[7:50:40] okay, wonderful. Thank you dear members of the board. My name is brianna hernandez.
[7:50:44] in addition to uplifting the concerns of my peers about predators like jesus, maria
[7:50:49] and natasha buck, who defendant a code and minimize the damage of rape caused to victims
[7:50:53] while still working for ali ud. I'm here to today to share something that
[7:50:57] I have never shared before. This school year, I was one of 11 candidates for the position of student
[7:51:01] board member. I'm here to tell you for the first time today that mr. Antonio placencia
[7:51:06] pressured and intimidated me to revise my speech for student board member because he felt that you might
[7:51:10] oppose some of my comments, which focus on corruption. Pcia shared with
[7:51:14] me that he had done the same to another student as well. Now that recent events are coming to light
[7:51:18] with news of mixed intimidation of other students, I feel the need to bring this
[7:51:23] to your attention. Pio removes my voice to coercion. It was only after
[7:51:27] I sent an email with my mom that I was given permission to record again. If I had not
[7:51:31] fought for myself. Vicente was silenced. Me as a student's. Conduct
[7:51:35] here made me doubt my abilities and my voice. Mr. Is the
[7:51:39] director for an office that ishold student voice and inclusion. His conduct in
[7:51:43] cases like these clearly paints a pic, a different picture. Cia's
[7:51:47] conduct also opposes student equity, especially for minority students like myself who
[7:51:52] crushed the strength of their own voice. Again, I'm brianna hernandez. I'm a
[7:51:56] student whistleblower speaking here today to share my experience with antonio precia. In
[7:52:00] affirmation of what other students have shared regarding his intimidation tactics,
[7:52:04] we expect a rapid response to percentage violations of student rights and the law. We also
[7:52:08] expect a rapid response on natasha and maria
[7:52:13] and pleading to covering up rape. And despite buck stating that rape is not a concern,
[7:52:18] this was 20 years ago, they continue to remain upheld by you. They
[7:52:22] have not been placed on any visible leave. They've yet to be fired. We don't care how long the process takes
[7:52:26] to fire them. We only care that you just do it. We'll keep speaking the entire
[7:52:30] year until you fire them. Thank you. Thank you for your time.
[7:52:34] uh, let's see. I'll call again on, uh, paola de leon. Are you here? Paola,
[7:52:39] paula? Still not here. And elena? Price still not here. Okay. That
[7:52:43] concludes general public comment. Uh, the board will now move on
[7:52:47] to, um, actually for tab seven. Um,
[7:52:51] ms. Ortiz franklin, can I collect your vote on tab seven? Uh, yes. That is a yes. On
[7:52:56] tab seven. Yes. Okay. Thank you.
[7:53:00] all right. So now moving to the final, uh, piece of business
[7:53:04] is the adoption of the 2027 calendar. I'll move it
[7:53:08] moved by, move by mr. Mel. Seconded by, sorry.
[7:53:13] uh, dr. Reva, uh, before, there's
[7:53:17] no public comment on this before discussion begins, I just wanna make a comment about,
[7:53:23] uh, the december 22nd date. I have received a lot of
[7:53:27] feedback.
[7:53:36] okay. Can you, can you go tell my staff in, in the, in the booth back there and, and
[7:53:40] we'll, we will sort it out. Um, I'm not sure where, where
[7:53:44] you signed up if my operations friends could maybe guide them,
[7:53:48] guide them back there. We'll, we'll take this item and then if possible, we'll return to those folks who've
[7:53:52] been waiting. The, the december 22nd date, I, I
[7:53:56] am hearing is not a good time also, that had been set aside as a regular
[7:54:01] charter items only meeting. And I'm told right now there's only two charters that will be around
[7:54:05] at that time for action. So, um,
[7:54:09] I, if it's still my calendar, I would just take the 22nd of december right off of there.
[7:54:14] um, but that's up to the board. We put those items
[7:54:18] on the 15th. You, we would take them at the, at the meeting one day or one week
[7:54:22] prior or, or later, depending on however chartered division. Yeah. Yeah, I had pulled
[7:54:26] it, the two dates I wanted to flag were the december 22nd one as fridays,
[7:54:31] obviously, christmas the 25th. And then also we have a cow, it looks like
[7:54:35] scheduled for november 24th, which is the tuesday of thanksgiving week
[7:54:39] when schools are out of session. And also, I just assume staff or board members
[7:54:43] may have commitments. So my suggestion would be to see about moving or pulling that
[7:54:48] one. And then I would accept your suggestion of just getting rid of the 22nd
[7:54:52] meeting. Okay. Just the december 22nd meeting. Does anyone have an objection to
[7:54:56] me modifying the calendar to remove the 22nd of december? All right, so I'm
[7:55:00] gonna take that off entirely. Um, and then as to the
[7:55:05] november date, does everyone understand what, um, mr. Mel, mr.
[7:55:09] melvin is saying? It's, it's right in the middle of the thanksgiving break period.
[7:55:13] um, and it's a committee of the whole, uh, staff might
[7:55:17] be challenged on that date in addition to board members. That's november.
[7:55:24] um, and we can, we can search for another cow date and add it at another time
[7:55:28] or, um, but if I can get some feedback from the board about removing
[7:55:32] it. Does anyone object? Object to that. Object to
[7:55:36] moving it. Okay. We should keep it, but move it maybe the week prior on like a thursday
[7:55:40] or, okay. Keep a cow. So
[7:55:45] what I'm hearing is keep the cow so the number of cows stays the same,
[7:55:49] but not on that date. Okay. So, um,
[7:55:55] alright. That will be the, that's the amended calendar. Oh, and
[7:55:59] sorry, maybe not the thursday of the week prior. 'cause we have a regular and a close that tuesday, wednesday, so
[7:56:03] maybe the week prior, but another time in, in november. Okay.
[7:56:07] so I'll bring that change to the board, uh, likely in august or september.
[7:56:13] 'cause I would need to nail down the dates. And the reason the calendar's very impacted there is because there's
[7:56:17] holidays book ending everywhere at that time. Um, and
[7:56:21] I just wanna, yeah, sorry. I I also just wanna flag the board retreats really appreciate you for
[7:56:25] putting those in. Um, you all know that, uh, dr. Rivas and I are on the board rules
[7:56:29] ad hoc committee where we've been thinking about governance and kind of roles and responsibility. And
[7:56:33] we'll do some of that. But also I wanna invite, um, you all to think about what other
[7:56:37] learnings might we need, maybe around labor or budget or, um,
[7:56:41] uh, additional governance or general counsel issues that we might wanna, um,
[7:56:46] service either publicly or, um, just, you know, for us to be learning about. So
[7:56:50] think about how we wanna get better as a board. You're
[7:56:54] welcome. I mean, just for putting it on there.
[7:56:58] I mean, that's, that's, yeah. Yeah. Um, all right. Any other,
[7:57:02] let's wait to see what pieces of input.
[7:57:17] okay. So, um, can I, uh, take the vote on this, uh, amended calendar?
[7:57:21] yeah. Uh, ms. Newville? Yes. Dr. Rivas? Yes. Mr. Melvoin?
[7:57:25] yes. Ms. Rego? Yes. Ms. Ez? Uh, ms. Ortiz
[7:57:30] franklin? Yes. Board president schon? Yes. Okay. That wraps up that item. And for the two individuals
[7:57:34] who, who, um, look, sounds like there was a bit of a mistake, but you can each have two minutes
[7:57:38] each for general public comment. Um, so would you like to come up and do
[7:57:42] that now?
[7:57:52] please come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin, give us your name and then, uh,
[7:57:56] you'll have two minutes worth of comment.
[7:58:08] good evening, super. Superintendent and board members. My name is maria gonzalez.
[7:58:12] I'm here from gardena elementary. I'm a parent. Uh, we have put
[7:58:16] together a few concerned parents that need answers on the funding for lcr
[7:58:21] set guard. Uh, gardena elementary. Elementary,
[7:58:25] please stand. Thank.
[7:58:30] we're worried about the academic development of our children
[7:58:34] that require of these resources and demand
[7:58:38] full transparency on how the funds have been used and allocated
[7:58:43] by our principal, ms. Cynthia diaz. We also urge for
[7:58:47] the community representative, ms. Tamara ra, to remain at our school
[7:58:52] as she's being retaliated against because she had,
[7:58:57] she and the member, the members of elac have inquired on the llcr
[7:59:01] said in intervention spending. That is all.
[7:59:07] thank you.
[7:59:11] thank you for your time. And, uh, ms. Vega, come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once
[7:59:15] you begin. When I started, um,
[7:59:21] good afternoon. Members of the board, the reason I'm here is because I'm
[7:59:25] here representing the parent center from gardena elementary school,
[7:59:29] along with my other colleagues for the injustices that are being committed against our representative
[7:59:34] for our committee representative ms. Tamra or who is being removed
[7:59:38] and moved to another school, uh, without any prior notification,
[7:59:43] not even by part of the district, nor by ms. Diaz, who is the principal
[7:59:48] at our school. And also I am president of elect.
[7:59:52] and our priority has always been the wellbeing of our children and
[7:59:57] for the staff at school. And we've always recommended
[8:00:01] for ms. Tamra ora because she's been 14 years at gardena
[8:00:06] school and she's done a good job so much for our children, for the school,
[8:00:10] for the community, and if they do this in justice, everything that's happening with her.
[8:00:15] and we've come to ask for help, how you all can poss help
[8:00:19] us. So that way she's able to retake her place at our school, her work,
[8:00:23] because they've also removed the hours, which also seems unfair because it's been more
[8:00:27] than what she deserves. And also, from another part, we also
[8:00:31] have the program, the lecture program, that's mr. Gallegos
[8:00:36] who's here right now. That for us, is also a priority for the education
[8:00:40] of our children, of which has not been heard. Because the program
[8:00:44] is based in three years, we need one more year to be able to fulfill in the principle.
[8:00:49] cynthia diaz says that the budget is not enough for the next year,
[8:00:53] and they're going to remove it. This lecture program, I'm looking for
[8:00:57] fairness and justice and for you all to help us in every possible way. And thank you very much
[8:01:02] for your attention. Thank you for your time.
[8:01:06] that officially concludes the general public comment portion of the meeting, and
[8:01:10] there is no more business for action. Are there any objections to
[8:01:14] adjournment? No
[8:01:19] timing. The meeting is adjourned. The time is now 6 0 4.