CVUSD Board Meeting 11/13/2025

001Okay, good evening everybody. Was no. Uh we're going to go ahead and uh call this meeting to order. Um going to go to 1.2. Uh student trustee Calio Garcia, would you lead us on the pledge? Yeah. Okay. Um, Anita, could you help us with roll call? President Jocelyn Vargas here. >> Vice President Tomas Tortez >> here. >> Clerk Valerie Garcia >> here. >> Board Trustee Joey Akuna >> here. >> Board Trustee Reinidar Aradondo >> present. >> Board Trustee Jesus Gonzalez >> here. >> Board Trustee Alena Galimmanes >> here. >> Superintendent Dr. Francis Esparza >> present. Assistant Superintendent Human Resources Dr. M Monaco Mwitz >> present. >> Assistant Superintendent Educational Services Sakoro Sanchez >> Assistant Superintendent Business Services Julie Vigil >> present. >> Student Alina Student Trustee Alina Codillo Garcia >> present. >> Thank you. >>

002Okay, thank you. Uh we're going to move on to 2.1 close session public comments. Do we have close session public comments? None. Okay. Uh, we're going to move on to 2.2. So, um, do I have a motion to enter into close session? >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Uh, Trustee um, Calio Garcia and support or that we go to close session. >> Yes. >> Okay. Uh, all those in favor? >> I uh opposed. Uh, abstensions. Uh, so we'll be back from close session at 7:00 p.m. Thank you. Okay. Um, good evening everyone. Everybody, we had a motion and a second to enter into open session. Uh 3.2 um announcements um action taken in close session. Okay. The board took action to the board took action during close session to appoint Alysia Zamorano

003Nunes to principal of Desert Mirage High School effective the 14th day of November 2025. Motion was made by trustee Gonzalez, seconded by trustee Akuna. Um there were zero abstensions. The motion carried 70 um unanimously. Can you please stand, Alicia? >> Congratulations. All right. The board took action during close session regarding stipulated expulsion recommendation case number 2526-00004 with the Coachella Valley Unified School District effective on the 13th day of November 2025. Motion was made by Trustee Aridondo, seconded by Trustee to Tortez. There were zero abstensions. Motion carried 43. The votes were um President Vargas I. Uh Vice President Tortez I. Um myself I uh Trustee Akuna nay. Trustee Ardondo I. Trustee Calimmanes a nay. Trustee Gonzalez. Nay. Next one we have is the board took action during close session regarded stipulated expulsion recommendation case number 25/26-003

004with the Coachella Valley Unified School District effective this 13th day of November 2025. Motion was made by Trustee Aridondo, seconded by Trustee Tortez. There were zero abstensions. The motion carried 43 and the votes were President Vargas I. Vice President Tortez I, myself I. Trustee Akuna nay. Trustee Ardondo I. Trustee Calimmanes nay. Trustee Gonzalez nay. Finally, the board took action during close session regarding stipulated expulsion recommendation case number 2526-00002 with the Coachella Valley Unified School District effective this 13th day of November 2025. Motion was made by Trustee Aridondo, seconded by Trustee Tortez. Zero abstensions. The motion carried 43 and the votes were trusty Vargas I. Trustee Tortez I. Myself I trustee Akuna nay. Trustee Arredondo I. Trustee Calimmanes nay. Trustee Gonzalez nay. And that completes the report. >> Okay. Thank you. Uh moving on to 3.3.

005Approval of agenda submitted. Do I have a motion? Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Um, any additions, comments to the agenda? >> Yes. There is an addition to the agenda to the certificated personnel report. We are adding seven new teachers and removing our substitutes beginning November 14th. First is Charity Barria, special education teacher. Monica Lavrada, teacher at Bobby Duke Middle School. Natalie Martinez, teacher at West Shores High School. Jorge Moreno, special education teacher. Carol Mosbe, teacher at DM High School. Nash Tabac, teacher at DM High School, and Amber Zabalasa, special education teacher. Again, we are removing substitutes and putting in credential teachers into these positions. >> So, those that you just named out will be added to the certificated >> personnel. >> Okay. >> Uh any other additions to the agenda? Um there

006aren't um student trustee um Garcia. Uh your vote. >> Yes. Okay. Okay. I um all those in favor I >> I >> opposed abstensions. Motion passes. Um 4.1 uh board notifications. Um for public comments, um introductory comments and requests to address the board on items on the adopted agenda and items not on the adop adopted agenda will be considered from the audience at this time. Please complete a request to address the governing board form and hand it to the recording secretary. Speakers will be limited to three minutes per person with a maximum of 20 minutes for each subject matter. Additionally, the person making the request should state his or her name and the name of the organization or group represented. Please be advised that the board is not always at liberty to Is it on

007automatically? >> Sounds like it's on. Maybe put it closer to >> Good evening. My name is Samantha Shroyer and today I'm speaking with you as a deeply concerned parent regarding a recent incident at CU Elementary. Last Thursday, it was reported that a student made a threat to bring a gun to school. This situation has understandably caused a great deal of concern among families, including my own. One thing that troubles me is that although there were several students who witnessed what was said, it is being downplayed by the principal as a rumor. I feel this situation deserves to be taken very seriously to ensure the safety and emotional well-being of everyone on campus. I also can't help but feel that C view is sometimes treated as an afterthought within our district because we are located so

008far out. Our children deserve the same attention, care, and prompt res response as any other school when serious issues arise. When parents and students feel unheard or dismissed, it erodess the trust in the district and school leadership and leaves our community feeling unsafe and unsupported. While accountability and transparency are essential, I also believe compassion is key. The child who made this threat may be struggling with deeper emotional or behavioral challenges. I strongly urge the district to provide access to child therapy or counseling services to help address the root cause of this behavior and to pro provide them with healthy ways to cope and communicate. In my opinion, having this resource on campus is a necessity. Early intervention could make a world of difference for this student and for the safety and peace of mind of

009everyone in the school community. Thank you for taking this matter seriously and prioritizing the safety and well-being of all students and staff. I would appreciate a response or update regarding how this situation is being addressed and what steps the district is taking to ensure that all concerns are properly investigated. Thank you. Thank you. Uh next public comment. Next public comment we have Abby Sanchez uh on the same concern safety at C view. Thank you. Good evening, members of the board, President Vargas, Superintendent Esparza, and members of the audience. I am Abby Sanchez. I am speaking to you tonight as both a mother and as a laid-off Coachella Valley Unified School District teacher who now substitutes in the district. I am deeply concerned for the safety of my sons and many other students at C View

010Elementary. recent incidents seemed to have not been handled in accordance with the district's legal obligations to maintain a safe learning environment. My son was first punched in class. I reported it immediately. Yet, no disciplinary action was taken. Weeks later, the same student grabbed my son by the shirt, twisted it so tightly he felt as if he was being strangled. Again, both his teacher and I reported it again. There were no consequences, only the suggestion suggestion that my son be moved to a different classroom again. Last Thursday, the same student told multiple classmates that he would bring a gun to school. Children in different classes heard this threat, yet it was dismissed as just a rumor. I tried to report the incident through the district complaint line, but the number was incorrect. I called the superintendent's

011office, but my call went unanswered and and it was never returned. Today after returning from suspension, that student again targeted my son and another student, closing and attempting to lock the bathroom door on them despite being prohibited from being near the restrooms. At this point, the district's lack of intervention seems to violate the law. California Ed Code 32280 through 32289 requires effective and enforced school safety plans. Education code 44807 requires staff to ensure supervision and safety. Threats, violence, and repeated harassment fall under education code 48900, which requires documented responses and appropriate action, not dismissal or inaction. I also need to highlight a major gap in student support. Cue does not have a dedicated counselor. That means students who are frightened, anxious or trying to cope with repeated incidents of violence have no consistent professional to

012turn to. Um sorry, it is a safety issu issue. CVU students deserve decisive action, accountability, and leadership that prior pri sorry prioritizes their safety. I also want to address the district's complaint process. For weeks, the posted phone number on the district website was incorrect. Connecting families to a private individual. It was corrected only I after I reported it multiple times. under ED code 35186, families must have accurate access to the complaint process. Um, thank you for listening. >> Thank you. Uh, the next speaker we have, uh, Heather Dunan, uh, safety and support at C view. >> Good evening. My name is Heather. I am a district employee, but most importantly, I am a parent. I am here to discuss the ongoing issues at C View Elementary. Despite many meetings with union reps, NHR, nothing has

013been done regarding the issue of bullying. These kids are being shown that no matter what they do, there are no real consequences. All last year, my own child went through this bullying to the extent he started harming himself. These instances were all reported and documented with Mrs. Magna, and nothing was done. Not even when my child was stabbed with a pencil, leaving him with a physical scar as a constant reminder of his pain he sustained while he was trying to learn. This year, I myself have dealt with bullying from sixth graders who threatened me and again, no consequences. And because the student denied it, it I was told it was unfounded. It literally took over a month to formally call me a liar and by doing so tell students it's okay to bully the staff

014without consequences as long as you say you didn't do it. Since when do we live in a world where the adults are held accountable for their actions but not the children? What are we really teaching these kids? That it's okay to lie. That no matter what you say or do, you won't be held accountable. I myself am not teaching my kids that. I tell my kids, if you're going to if you're going to do it, you better be ready for the consequences. Every day I am there and I see the things that happen and I see nothing done about it. I personally have seen Miss Magna on several occasions tell students, "Don't let me find out you do it again. I mean it." And have heard other staff call kids liars. How can we expect

015anything to be done about bullying if the people in charge are doing it themselves? Uh these kids need to learn that there are real consequences and not just reflection time in school suspension or lunch in the office. They have inschool suspension and just run around in the office or sit in Miss Allen's office playing with toys. The kids run this school at this point because Miss Magna lacks the leadership skills required to maintain a professional atmosphere, therefore causing a hostile work environment. There's only four of us safety supervisors in the afternoon. There's not enough of us with all of the students that we have. Us as a school, we do not have the support that we need, but we still show up for these kids and do our best despite Miss Magna constantly changing things

016up on us. It's time for the district to step in and take control. If we don't start doing something soon, you could end up having an Aby's Wernern case on your hands. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker we have uh Marisol Huarez, S View Elementary. Marisol Huarees. Sorry, I need a minute. Hello, my name is Marisol Huarees and I'm here in representation of several concerned parents from C View Elementary. We demand immediate attention and action regarding ongoing safety and discipline concerns at our school. following the November 6th incident where a student stated that he intended to bring a gun to school the following day. We feel that the disciplinary response of a two-day suspension was insufficient given the seriousness of the threat. A situation of this matter, sorry, a situation of this

017nature places the safety of our children and school staff at risk and must be addressed appropriate and with firm consequences. On the day of the incident, my son was the reporting party and personally heard those words directly from the other child. When I accompanied my son to the office, approximately 10 to 15 staff members expressed concerns about the threat as well as the ongoing incidents involving the same student. Teachers do not want the child's this child's backpack in their class. I would like to notate that there have been multiple concern behavior reporting involving this child, including choking other students, locking children in the bathroom, hitting other children without a provoca provocation, and disappearing for extended periods of time when allowed to go use the restroom. While we understand Principal Ma Magana seeks to build positive

018relationship with students as she transitions into her new role, it is equally important that clear boundaries and consequences are established. Continued leniency towards students making harmful threats only reinforces negative behavior and creates a unsafe environment. Restorative justice may be effective in some cases, but it is not suitable for every situation, especially when it involves threats and bullying. On October 29, I organized a parent meeting to discuss several issues brought up by several concerned parents. Both Principal Magna and Dr. Esparsa were included in the communication. Yet, Dr. Esparsa did not attend or provide notice of her absence. When parents take the time to vote collective concerns, district leadership should make it a priority to listen and engage directly with the community. Additionally, there is ongoing issue with the transportation. Buses keep breaking down every single day.

019Children are being uh injured in the bus due to fights at the bus. Our community has long felt overlooked and these recurring problems reinforce the perspection that schools in Sultan City are being neglected whenever there are budget cuts. We the Sultan CU parents demand change. We ask that the district revises its protocols to allow principles to reinforce stronger consequences for bullies. >> Yeah. No. >> Can I finish? >> Uh yeah. Um, do you have your uh statement written? Cuz we could also uh share it with the board members. >> I do have it written, but I would like for the parents to hear. It's just like >> Okay. >> Just a little bit more. Yeah. >> The board and superintendent prioritize direct engage. This is what we demand. The board and superintendent prioritize direct engagement

020with our schools community. Not only when serious concerns arise, greater attention and equitable resources be allocated to our schools area to ensure safety and well-being for our students. Our community deserves leadership that listens, acts, and truly cares about our children's safety and education. If the current board and an administration are unwilling or unable to make these necessary changes, we respectfully suggest that they step down and allow other parent others who are committed and improving our school to take take their place. >> Thank Thank you, M. If you could if you could please uh submit your statement to the Yeah, thank you. Um Oh, uh next public comment. Uh, Immari Nicolof, Transportation Department and Sensitivity Training. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. >> Thank you. >> My name is Mari Nicolaf. I'm a um educational >>

021consultant. Anyway, um today is World Kindness Day. Thank you CVS for making me aware of this concept as it's posted on your Facebook page. I believe we can all agree that the video Marissa Aguilar posted on Tik Tok about the little boy on her bus was the exact opposite of kind. Such antonyms found in Miriam Webster thesaurus include cruel, callous, harsh, mean, and insensitive. Let me break this down for you so everyone is aware of the Tik Tok video timeline. 10:13 7:35 p.m. Oh, let me breathe. I um I received a Facebook message containing a link to a Tik Tok video from a parent who is a special needs student that rides a bus in the district who is afraid her son's dignity might be compromised. Also 10:13 8:01 p.m. I sent a text to

022Aaron Wilson's district phone with a video. 10:13 8:24 p.m. Aaron Wilson responded letting me know the video was sent to management even though my text was after business hours. He responded to me and I'm grateful to him for acknowledging my text due to the nature of the situation. My concern was that Marissa Aguular would be allowed to transport other special education students before this video could be addressed with her. 10:13 8:43 p.m. I followed my text conversation with an email to Aaron Wilson CCing the rest of the board and the media notifying everyone of the video. 10:14 I participated in a media opportunity where I voiced my opinion about the situation, including the fact that Aguular knew she was talking about a special education student because she used it as a hashtag in her then

023deleted Tik Tok video. Hashtags are used to gain attention to certain videos by using words after the hashtag to describe what it's about. They don't just appear. AI doesn't assign them. Rather, they have to be included in the video's description by the author. 10:15 CVSUSD releases a statement acknowledging awareness of the video. 10:17 CVSUSD re released a follow-up statement saying transportation staff will undergo additional training on supporting and appropriately interacting with students with disabilities as part of the district's commitment to treating all students with care, dignity, and respect. 1112. I received communication that the additional training occurred and I want to thank the district for following through with their promise to do what they can to prevent this from happening to another student. This demonstrates while you as a district recognize you cannot control the

024maladaptive behavior of your employees, you can and will respond to their behavior by addressing it with others in attempt to prevent it from happening again. I know employment laws dictate prevent the district from commenting on human resource matters. So we as the public will not know from you whether or not Marissa Aguular will still be employed. However, I do strongly believe providing the public me with confirmation the extra training has occurred was all I as an advocate, an educator and a human can openly ask for in this particular situation. And I want to thank you for responding appropriately and not just making the training an empty promise. >> Thank you. Next, next next speaker we have Jason Vega, uh, C View Elementary. Okay. Uh, last speaker, Sonia Rodriguez on item 4.1. Sonia Rodriguez. No, Sonia

025Rodriguez. Oh, did you submit a >> So, I do have her speech if I'm able to read it for her. Um, if you could please just submit uh uh one of the things uh after if you want to. Yeah. And then please submit your um so we can have it for the record. You could say your name and um >> Yeah. Thank you. >> Okay. My name is Billy Franco. I am um an employee here for CVUSD. Um I am a PAR educator at Coral Mountain, but I was u given this letter um from the parent from Sonia Rodriguez to read on her behalf. It says, "Uh, my name is Sonia Rodriguez and my daughter attends Oasis School. I am writing again to request something very important. I would like to request that the parent

026liaison position held by Mrs. Haramo be reinstated. Our parent liaison was a person with a huge heart who truly cared about our families. She was someone who always found time to listen, guide, help with school forms, translate at important meetings, or simply offer a kind word. When a parent felt lost, she was always there. She created trust and unity between the school and families. Since her position was eliminated, that unity had been lost. We have heard many times that these that these are difficult times and that difficult decisions must be made. But when we attend these meetings, we see that over time and new purchases are being approved. That makes us wonder, why can't a position that directly supports our families and our communities be prioritized? Furthermore, we know that funds have already been set

027aside to bring back the parent liaison. But because the district and the union did not reach an agreement, our community is paying the price. Families, the ones who pay taxes and support this district, have been left without a voice in a decision that deeply affects us. And honestly, this is heartbreaking. We have also heard that no matter how many times we come to ask for it, you are going to return us to our parent liaison. the decision has uh returned to us that our parent leaison the decision has already been made and the parent le parent leaison position will not return to our schools. Hearing that hurts because it shows a disconnect with the community you you serve. This position is a necessity for us parents. That is why I am here tonight to ask

028for transparency. We want to understand why this decision was made and why is and why a solution that truly benefits families and students has not been sought. Hiring the three liaison who work in the district is not a solution. That does not work for us. Oasis needs needs someone to who knows and loves our community. Someone who will continue to improve the relationship between the administration and families. We want to feel part of this district. Thank you. >> Thank you. Any other any other public comment? Okay. Um I'm going to go ahead and write this here then. Okay. Um I just noted that noticed that we don't have um the an item we have an item missing on the agenda for written comm uh read written public comment. So I'll we do have one that

029I'll go ahead and read. Um uh this one's from Juan Lopez and it's on item 5.1. So this says uh dear members of the board and superintendent. I hope you're all doing well. I'm writing as a dedicated employee who has proudly served CBUSD for over 15 years. I care deeply deeply about our district, our students, and the support systems that help our our schools uh function effectively. Because of this, I want to share some concerns regarding the current operations within the IT department. Over the years, I have observed ongoing uh issues with communication, consistency, and accountability. When site staff reach out to IT administrators for support or clarification, emails often go unanswered. Procedures may be done one way one day and then change the next without notice or documentation. This inconsistency makes it difficult for

030school sites to operate smoothly and creates unnecessary barriers for those of us who rely on IT services to to assist teachers and students. I also want to be clear, there are many technicians in the department who are dedicated, hardworking, and truly go above and beyond for our sites. Unfortunately, these individuals often go unnoticed. The concerns I'm raising are primarily related to the administrative and coordinator level uh where favoritism, nepotism, lack of accountability, and inconsistent leadership appear to be impacting the entire department. In addition, I personally feel that I have been discouraged or overlooked for opportunities within the department because I have outspoken I have been outspoken about these issues. This has left me be feeling that my experience and opinions do not matter and that there's a culture where some individuals hold themselves above site

031technicians and other support staff. I'm not sharing this to criticize without purpose but as to for help in improving the department for the benefit of the entire district. A stronger structure with clear policies, consistent procedures, accountability, and equitable opportunities would allow the IT department and the employees who supported to function more effectively and fairly. Thank you for taking the time to hear these concerns. I truly hope steps can be taken to improve communication, professionalism, and fairness within the department so that all staff feel supported, valued, and able to contribute to the success of CVUSD. Okay. Thank you. Let's make sure we have the written communication on the agenda. Um, okay. Moving on to 5.1 uh student board member report. Um, student trustee Garcia. Yes. >> Good evening everyone. Desert Mirage has actively supporting has been

032actively supporting students through several college and career reading initiatives. The college and career center and counseling department have been assisting seniors with university applications, Cal States, UC's and for college of the of the desert. Our counselors have been highly proactive through government and economic classes. Counselors have also provided hands-on workshops for fast and dream act applications. Hosted the first financial aid parent workshop today for seniors and their families at the Desert Mirage Library. Parent conferences were held recently last week on Tuesday where Justin's came in person to take orders for cap and gowns. The counseling team also recruited FEMA students for the Oilia project with the first meeting scheduled for today, November 13th, led by mentors Olga Orto and Diane Bakovich. Looking ahead from November 17 to the 21st next week, counselors will be presenting

033study skills and time management lessons to all 9th grade students through their ethnic studies classes. Our PUTA program continues to show strong academic performance. All 118 Pente seniors have submitted their Calst State applications and many have already received admissions to campuses such as Cal State Fullerton, CalState San Bernardino, Cal State Chico, Cal State LA, and more. 80 out of those 118 seniors have completed their FASA and Dream Act applications. With full completion expected by the end of November, we invite you all for the CVUSD Community Resource Center event next Saturday hosted at the Desert Mar at Desert Mirage High School. At Coachella Valley High School, they continue to make progress in academics, leadership, and student engagement. The ASB club has done excellent job creating events that boost school spirit and con connect students across grade

034levels. Their dedication has helped build a stronger and more positive campus environment. The school also recently recognized student achievement through CASP standard awards and reclassification awards. Between February and now 118 students successfully reclassified, showing showcasing their hard work and academic growth. Students are showing great excitement as they prepare for their future through college and career programs. Teachers and staff continue to support and resources to help all students reach their goals. Overall, Coachella Valley High School remains focused on empowering every student to succeed and make a difference in their community. At West Shores High School, they continue to make strong progress academically in student life. EL held successful data chats on November 7th and parent teacher conferences saw record participation. NebGen offers after school credit recovery and Mr. Sunniga provides tutoring with middle school from 2:15

035to 3:15 p.m. and high school on Tuesdays and Thursdays through ASUS. Counselors have met with all eighth graders to ensure promotion readiness while seniors receive graduation guidance on FASA and college applications. Upcoming events include AVID's UCLA trip, health pathway students visiting Eisenhower on November 19th, migrant program university visits in December, and a community schools off-road safety presentation on November 20. Student life is active and with prom planning, Thanksgiving celebrations, football making the playoffs, the start of the soccer season, a new girls basketball coach, and continued leadership for the boys basketball team. At last, quarter is moving along at Laafia High School. Seniors are getting ready for to return to their home site for the second semester. Seniors are already meeting one-on-one with their counselor to solidify their plans for those finishing up their credits. Last

036Wednesday at Laafamilia High School, ASB held a meeting to talk about the blood drive they had on September 18, which raised $260. Their Halloween week went very well. They also talked about the Christmas Coachella parade, which they will be putting together a Christmas float. On November 21st, they will have Friday Night Live at their school for a rock and lunch activity. Also, they will be giving out a piece of pumpkin pie during lunch. That is the end of my school reports. >> Thank you. We're going to move on to 5.2 board member reports. Uh we could start with uh Trusty Auna. Trust start. >> Good evening everyone. um short report this week. Um first of all, uh just a kind of a community update. I know the um the ASUS football tournament and the resource

037fair event at Desert Mirage High Schools have been rescheduled, correct? I guess there's football one got cancelled as well, right? They're going to be rescheduled just for those of you who might or might not have been going out there. um like this. It's supposed to rain. So, uh just real quick on that for those of you um I had the uh also I had the extreme pleasure of being able to attend um a program a um choreography competition over at the um McCullum Theater which showcased our dance programs from both CV High School and Desert Mirage. Uh it was a full competition and then our dancers had a special part uh towards the end before they did the uh announcements. Um they did great. They were amazing. Uh we had a lot of compliments after

038the fact from the actual performers and other people that were there talking about how great that program was and the kids. Um the McCullum Theater is very happy and honored to work with this program. So I want to shout out to them. um those uh young men and women uh in that program just uh they make us proud. So, I wanted to give them a good shout out cuz sometimes with all the other stuff going on, they they uh they don't get their they don't get the uh attention that they deserve for the great job they do. Uh secondly, I wanted to congratulate CV High School on their win and then tomorrow night uh their next game against Paris up in Paris. Um so, congratulations to them. Um, pretty much it. Uh, one last thing.

039Um, I obviously maybe I don't know about the rest of the board members. Got a lot of calls on Monday about late buses, substitute teachers, things not being done. I will just let the community know. We had 480 people that were not at work on Monday. Uh normally that numbers are closer to 350 400 but I guess the fact that Veterans Day was the next day some people decided to take an extra day. So when you parents call me and I'm not trying to be a smart alec but when I say 480 people were at work 480 people were at work that's going to affect the services that happens. And this isn't in just one department this is across the board. So this is not to target and I've spoke on this a couple of

040times. This is an attitude of coming to work or not coming to work. And yes, some people have sick time and yes, some people have uh personal necessity days, but just cuz you have the right to do something doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Uh we expect people to show up for work when they can show up for work. So, um just to let those parents know that called me when I did explain to them and maybe some of you who were not aware, 480 people were at work. So that's my report. >> Thank you. Uh Trusty Arondo, >> thank you everyone for being here. Thank you for your public comments. We always uh want to want you to come in and be able to talk tell us uh those uh inform us

041of the things that that we need to do better. Um I got a chance to go to visit Mount Vista. I got to see their music program happen during the day. Um, and I get to say that the uh, Prop 28 program is uh, up and running at Mount Vista. I also got to see the the Diu Muertos Alarez from the dual language program at uh, Mount Vista, which I thought I mean great work to all the teachers and students and everybody who did the alteres there. Um, and then I got to go see a couple of dual language classrooms uh, which were uh, filled with students. So, I think that um you know the uh the families are taking advantage of the dual language program at least at Mount Vista where I was able

042to visit. Um I know that they're in need of possibly a a playground for their younger um younger stu uh students and I know that um there are several schools that need playground equipment right today. Durham facilities. We we we know that V Sol is having a playground equipment there, but we just had an unveiling for their whole um space, their whole recreational space. So, I I just I hope that we can um my ask Dr. Sparzas to put together a list of those schools that still need playground equipment for their students and recreational spaces for the students, I think, is is very very important. Um, and and I'd like to receive an update on what's going on with our two uh our two uh uh sort of refreshers for Westside Elementary and Peter Pendleton.

043I know that at the beginning of the year we were told they were coming to board uh and going to uh you know start happening right when shovels on the ground and I haven't seen it. So um if I could have an update on that. Thank you. Nothing further madam president. Okay. Uh, Trusty Calmanis, >> thank you very much. Uh, first I did want on a happy note, I wanted to say I really enjoyed going to the bell game. That was it was a lot of fun. Um, and it brought back me many memories because I used to go to lots of football games when both my girls were on marching band and color gardens. It was a lot of fun going to that. So, I was very happy to have that invitation. On a

044not so >> on a not so happy note, um I was contacted by an educator at C view the night of the incident and uh about the threat about the gun situation which was dismissed as a rumor. It was not a rumor. Uh the concern of both educators and parents was real. Uh this was shown by the fact that almost half the students didn't show up to school the next day. And that's significant. Uh I have al also spoken to a parent whose daughter has been bullied for a long time at C view and it was always dismissed and ignored. Nothing has ever been done about the situation. Uh I know there was a vote of no confidence uh in the principal. Um, I am asking for an accounting as to what is happening at

045C view that is leading to the low morale of staff and families at C view and and really no confidence in in what's going on at C View. Thank you. >> Thank you, Trustee uh Gonzalez. >> Thank you, President Vargas. Um I uh as we were negotiating uh the difficult choices of of layoffs uh the condition that unfortunately we found ourselves in. Um I feel that there's positions that truly need to be protected. their positions that that might not seem important but actually are very very important and and I'm speaking of the parent leaison I believe that they represent a connection between our institution of learning and our community and they do an amazing job of buffering that relationship allowing parents allowing the community to better understand what we are as an institution As it

046was being negotiated, for the record, I was watching how we were going to handle the 21, I believe, parent leaison, and ultimately we decided to keep three of them who now meander through the school sites, I think six a piece, somehow trying to fill the void of of what parent leaison do. When this negotiation was going on, I'm very troubled, right? I know we had a gentleman I believe last name Franco who's part of the leadership of the union. I know that what was on the table Dr. Esparsa was that we were going to keep our parent leaison. Unfortunately, they were only going to work 5 hours but they were going to be able to keep their benefits. And I understood cuz I asked when we were negotiating that the union wanted nothing to do

047with negotiating a settlement that represented the parent leazison positions. And I find it troubling that a gentleman who is in the leadership that he sat up here today uh and actually read something that I believe he could have did a little bit more on. I I do challenge you Dr. Sparsa. I challenge HR. I challenge our cabinet to find a method to restore these positions of parent leaison. I think they serve a vital and critical role of who we are as a school district. Um if it's 5 hours, if it's 4 hours, whatever it may be, I think the benefit packet is important to these families. They play a very critical role. And again, I remind you that that this is important to me and I think it's important to the community. and we got

048to find a way to bring uh these parent leaison back. Um on another subject, I want to thank every teacher right at CBUSD. I want to thank our teacher coaches right who have done an amazing job coaching our teachers. I want to thank Larry Soda for the work that he's done. And I think when we do things, it's best measured by results. I had uh I had been noticed that our state standardized testing scores have improved and that's always a good move in the right direction. Dr. Spars, I want to personally thank you for your leadership, for your hard work and your courageous decisions cuz I don't believe change comes by doing the same thing. And sometimes when we do things and we challenge ourselves to be better, uh it's controversial and it goes noticed

049by the community. But I believe that what CBUSD was and how we get to improve is why I'm on this board. And so, thank you again, Dr. Sparsa, for your work. Uh, and everybody that had something to do with it. And it starts with the teachers, right? Teachers showing up, uh, wanting to do what they learned from their coaches. It starts with this innovative idea of Mr. Sto and the things that he brings. But I did want to publicly acknowledge the work and and the improvement uh and and our community deserves to be better. They deserve to continue to improve and and that's why we're here. >> Uh uh Trustee uh Garcia, >> thank you. Thank you to everyone who comes and speak to speak to us. Um, anyone who takes the time out to

050come and address us, we understand that you're taking time out of your day to do that. Um, it's a big deal. We take it seriously and we think it's very important to hear from our community, our staff, whoever feels the need to. Um, I would second um, Trusty Khalim Manes in asking for more information about the S View Elementary situation. the information I heard and what was shared today were those are very different amounts of information. So to get a bigger picture of what's going on, more context, um I think it's necessary just to understand if we're doing enough. Um, I'd also like to add, I know we're in November, but things move quickly. Um, at the bell game, we were having conversations about graduation for this year. I know that we're not going to

051have Indian Wells um, tennis gardens as an option because they're under construction, but I want to us to begin to work on what is possible. Um because we know that when graduations are held at the fields, it's very hot. There isn't enough tickets for all family members. We've have big families and to give our staff enough time to coordinate other options so that we can figure that out. Um I think we have to start now. Um, and if other options are more expensive, and I know we're in a stabilization plan, maybe this is an opportunity for the foundation to use monies for our students and our families. I know that's a different process, but I don't know of a better reason to spend money than for our students and families when they've achieved all that

052they have every school year, right? Um, it's such an important event and I just want to make sure we give it enough time so that we can really figure something out. Um, thank you. Thank you all. >> Uh, Vice President uh, Tortez, >> thank you, President. Um, I just want to reiterate what with the community. I hear the community here for C view and safety. And you know as a parent uh my child was there 10 years ago same thing was bullied at Civu and and when upon death years so what I ended up doing is having to move him and so ever since then I brought him to Los Palas and Toro and he he's almost about to graduate here but the same thing I'm I'm surprised here that 10 years later this is

053still happening and I said that same thing about transportation but this is something that is you board, different boards ago was still happening and we know that we talked about it in the back that Coachella Valley School District has a restorative justice model and part of that model, right, says that we're to provide district staff professional development. We're supposed to build district community with social emotional learning. We're supposed to model, teach, and acknowledge tools to self-regulate and strengthen coping skills. were supposed to provide healthy learning environment for students and staff. So beyond that, you know, I I think that when we talk about restorative justice and and divide, you know, kind of decide if it's going to be punitive, I agree with a lot of the parents here that um this individual and these type

054of individuals need to be uh we need to have intervention. We need to have the the um counseling to find out what happened. We talked about that back in the meeting back there also to find out where the source of all of this is coming from and to stop it. And it wasn't just TVO because you know as my kids came through Las Pomeides and El Toro, there was still um gun threats. There was guns being brought to school, bullets being brought to school. There was a plastic grenade which caused everyone to evacuate. All of these things, you know, are part of the the society that we're living in now. But I think we we need to step step it up and protect our kids because um I was there in Salt Lake City when

055I when I drove by the bus stop. There weren't any kids out on that day for the fear of somebody bringing a gun um to school. So that's something that we have to we have to address and I and I believe the board has to step step up work with the teachers and provide this safety environment for the kids whatever that may be. And then on another note you know I was talking about um transportation and how late you know the buses are and all of that but I don't know the transportation manager is he here tonight? >> I don't know who it is. >> Okay. Yeah, I just I just had an incident that happened, you know, um just a couple days ago, too. But I want to commend the manager because I know

056when the group came up um the last meeting and said that there, you know, there are not everyone's bad in the department and I believe not everyone bad in every department. And so I experienced, you know, an incident where I had to go to the uh transportation here and um they spoke of having to work 12-hour days. And I have I I have evidence of that cuz I had to come here at 3:30 in the morning and I waited for some of the staff to arrive and they all got here. You know, no one is here at 3:30, but 4:00, you know, everyone got here on time and then I waited till 5 to talk to the transportation manager, but he resolved the incident. uh before the school that day. So, I just want to

057thank him for his help that he helped me with this incident with my you know, my kids uh at at the time that I needed and by 5:00 and then I was able to go back to work. But my point is that I understand, you know, that now I see these individuals have to get up, you know, 3:00 wherever they come from. They get there 4:00 every day and coming in to the board meeting, the buses weren't even all back yet. So, um I have to give props to their 12hour 14-hour day that these good employees have to do uh bus driving around and and uh I'm I'm glad that it's improved. I spoke of how 12 years that I thought it hasn't but I see that you know it's somewhat improved and you know

058my kids still ride the bus uh these days and without any incidents that I can report just as good incident that I would like to commend the transportation manager on. Thank you for your assistance the other day. That's all I have. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh uh yeah. Uhhuh. Um I would also like um to add regarding the graduation topic um for Desert Mirage High School and for CV um high school, there is growing concern um once again about the graduation date and venue. Um a lot of students um when they're doing scholarships certain there's certain questions where um they're asked when the graduation when is their graduation date and they simply don't know what to put. So I would also like an update Thank you. Um, okay. Uh, for myself, I I I

059did also receive a number of emails uh from um parents and community members at C view kind of sharing um you know, the concerns about the incident uh a couple weeks ago. Um I appreciate everyone that came tonight to provide the public comment and just share a little bit more of like that experience. Um, you know, from the email that I got, um, it it is concerning. I think one thing that kind of stayed with me is just our our communication, right, with parents. I think it's always been an issue, an area of growth and concern, right? Um, I think we want to make sure that we're um, we're communicating in a way that really shares to parents and kind of has builds that confidence, I think, that we're doing something right. I don't think

060it's um you know with such an incident and and an an issue um I wouldn't want parents to feel like we're just dismissing it or we're just considering something like this as a rumor, right? Um I know staff was doing um the work to ensure that um this was not um like what's the right word? um a credible threat or a threat that was you know potential. I'm like what's the correct wording right? Uh but I think at at the end of the day I I think it also for us for me it's about ensuring that we're communicating exactly to parents so that they are assured that we're not just dismissing their concern that we are taking um you know like these these threats or these comments um seriously. Right. Um it does bring a

061question um for me. I know a couple years ago we you know had conversations around the safety and school climate at our schools. I know we've had committees before. Um I feel like oftent times we're very um uh you know we have this conversation when an incident happens and I think the more we can have those conversations the better. Um I you know I also kind of um balancing our our our priorities around restorative justice, right? And so I think the more we can have those conversations um around safety, restorative just justice and clarifying um to our community like what that looks like, I think will be really helpful and just being able to address and intervene when we do have these um incidences in the community. So um I do want to ask and

062share that comment. Um, I think that's it for me. So, uh, we'll move on to 5.3, uh, superintendence report. >> Thank you. Thank you to everyone who, uh, came out to speak to us. Um, uh, for those, uh, who are from C view, I'd like to have a meeting with, uh, with the parents who are here and the staff that are here, if you can please give your name and your phone number uh, to Mr. Lopez sitting there in the black shirt and he'll be able to schedule that appointment. And it's important that I sit with you and that some of my staff who support C view are also hearing your message as well. Um I do want everyone to know that uh we did put out messaging and when we found out about the

063situation uh we uh immediately had law enforcement involved. Law enforcement did uh check at the home to make sure that there was no gun and there was no gun. And so with that, uh, the law enforcement stated that it was not credible and may have been a rumor. Um, we moved forward to make sure that we provided that information to the, uh, parents and the staff at the school. And so that's who we worked with. We worked with law enforcement on that. So for more precaution, we made sure that we had law enforcement as well as district uh, safety and security uh, in the area. and know that um at West Shores we always have our safety and security who is also to support the C view school as well. So I just wanted to

064make sure that you were aware of that. I have spoken to a few parents from C view but not the ones who came here today um especially one parent who I did meet with and my staff met with today. Um and again it was about more messaging wanting more detail. Unfortunately, we can't give the students name. We can't give the students grade. Although you may know because you live in the community and it's a small community and people know each other um we can't put that information into any type of public uh media and so um because the child is a minor and so know that we do hear you and uh we are supporting and we will support in whatever it is needed. So please again if you can please give your name to

065Mr. Lopez. I do um have some other announcements. Uh and I was talking to Mr. Gonzalez uh earlier today and uh it has come out that uh 2025 California state test scores. Our dashboard reflects uh significant progress for the Coachella Valley Unified School District showing continued upward momentum across multiple indicators. This past year, CBUSD demonstrated gains in English language arts in math. our graduation rates went up and we achieved further reductions in our chronic absenteeism. So, a clear evidence that the strong collective work occurring throughout our schools is working. I want to congratulate our teachers, our ELA coaches, our math coaches, our MTSS coaches, our principles, our assistant principles, and to all of the educational services leaders sitting here in the audience today. We also need to thank uh Beyond the Bell, which includes our

066ELOP uh program that provides the engaging student activities and interventions for our students after school. Uh we'd like to thank our read with me uh volunteers and all the other um programs that partner with us that help us to show this type of growth. It is significant. You're going to see a presentation today. It's the first time in over 10 years that we're at this level in academics. And that's what we are here for. We are for here to teach our students. And so we're doing a great job uh in the classroom. We have other places where we need to fix things. We understand that and we will be working uh on that. Your dedication to everyone who has been involved in this, parents as well, supporting us with the education of your children, um

067our staff with their expertise. uh the unwavering commitment it's directly contributed to these improved outcomes for all our students which again we want to create champions and we're doing that it's been proven uh in the test scores. I also want to thank um those who donated for our turkey drive. We'll be having a turkey drive next Monday uh at Oasis Elementary School. Uh we have uh Mr. Jeremy Smith from the thermal club. Uh Ron and Denise Moras from Kennedy Market and Valley Plumbing. Uh um Desert Concepts has uh also provided a donation. Genesis Floors, Sanders, Dave Bang and Associates, Mloud Tech, MCI Construction, and US Shade. Their donations are going to allow us to give the community and Oasis and Desert Mirage a thousand turkeys and produce boxes uh next Monday. So, please join us

068there. Uh, thank you to all those who donated. Thank you. >> Thank you. Okay, we're going to move on to information presentation. 6.1 Terra Henchin uh instructional feedback information. You can't hear me? Okay. Good evening, uh, board president Joselyn Vargas and all board members, Dr. Spars and all cabinet members. We are the MTSS directors of elementary and secondary and our coordinators. My name is Karina De Laen. My colleagues are Tara Henchen, Elizabeth Sautello, Cindy Bratley, and Eddie Simino. As you can see from the newly released California dashboard, we are showing consistent significant improvement in the measures that are listed here, such as graduation rate, college and career readiness, as well as English learner progress. We wanted to share with you how we are focusing on clear, direct, consistent and factual feedback that is helping to

069move the needles on the dashboard in a positive direction. Good evening everyone. Here we explain what we mean by instructional feedback at CBUSD and why is it essential to improving teaching and learning. Instructional feedback is not just commentary. It is clear, direct, consistent, and based on observable evidence. Effective feedback provides actionable next steps that help teachers align their practice to expectations and improve student outcomes. It is a tool for continuous improvement not only for our students, our teachers, our staff, even our principles are going through feedback that we give them. So, it is a cycle. It is feedback that we all need as we look at um any sport, right? If we want to get better, we need to be able to get feedback. And that's exactly what we're doing at CBUSD. We are currently

070implementing four phases of feedback here at CBUSD. These four phases intentionally align to our instructional framework, the gradual release teaching model, and instructional practices that impact instruction. The different types of feedback ensure that principles focused on key elements such as best first instruction, checking for understanding, pacing of a lesson, student discourse, and teaching practices. High quality feedback is timing, ongoing, and consistent. And as a result, teachers receive meaningful support throughout the year. The four feedback types that we prioritize are userfriendly called reference feedback, administrator co-eing, tangible and transparent and actionable feedback. Looking at our feedback cycle which is central to strengthening uh the teaching and learning across our district. We begin with principal calibration and coaching. And this is where um educational service directors work with principles to ensure feedback is consistent, highquality, and focused

071on student learning. Following these visits, principles conduct walkthroughs in classrooms where site leaders observe instruction aligned to our instructional framework. And then the final step is principles provide timely specific feedback to teachers to reinforce effective practices and address areas for growth. This continuous cycle builds stronger instructional leadership, supports teachers, and ultimately improves student achievement across the district, as you can see in our first slide with our our new dashboard data, which we're really, really proud of. So, thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Are there Thank you. Are there any questions? >> Are there any Yeah, questions? >> I I just I just want to thank you guys, the MTSS squad. Thank you. Good work. We're seeing the results. >> Okay. Thank you. Trusty Ardondo, >> can you like call out the maybe an

072elementary school, a middle school, and a high school that you saw the most growth in? >> Elementary side. For the Spartan side is a Mecca school, which hasn't seen improvement in a while. >> In the Olympians cohort, it would be Peter Pton Elementary. >> Secondary, Desert Rash High School. >> Nice. Good job. Other questions, comments? Student trustee, any comments? No. Okay. Oh, trusty Garcia. Sorry. So, what we heard a couple of weeks ago was concerns about comments being o overly negative. Um, can you talk a little bit about that? I know you give an overview where it's supposed to be observable and kind of a relationship building almost, but in practice it sounded like there were concerns about it being overly negative and I'm not sure how people grow in that kind of environment. So,

073can you talk a little bit about what you're actually seeing in the field? I understand that the goal is for it to be a very it can't always be positive and I understand that but there are models that say positives and negatives you know not all leaning any particular side can you just talk about what you've heard feedbacks that way we don't want to lose talent because of culture >> so one of the things that we share with our principles is that Feedback is just feedback. It's not positive or negative. It's addressing something that needs to improve or needs to continue to happen in order to reach mastery. Uh you mentioned a method or a model that is used where you do something positive that is called cognitive coaching. And the purpose of cognitive coaching

074is to improve communication skills not practices. So with feedback, our goal is to improve practices so that we can create a learning environment where students can learn and improve and reach their academic goals so that when they graduate from high school, they can make the decision to go into the workforce because they want to and not because they don't have the skills to go to college. So that's that's that that's what we have for feedback. Feedback is feedback but it addresses what we observe and it gives the supports to make sure that instruction is improving through the practices that we observe. >> Great job. >> Also just to add to that um part of the process as we mentioned was that cycle where we're continuously working with the principles we look at their feedback we

075offer training and support as well. So that is something that we are continually doing to make it um something that is um being able to be receptive so that we can move forward and make sure that students are mastering the the learning and that's going on in the classroom. >> Um just to add right to my colleagues, we have the instructional framework that you know you all of you approved and I thank you for that um because that aligns ourselves K TK through 12. So the feedback that teachers are receiving and principles not only um our teachers is based on our instructional framework. It is not based on any other practices. So it is very important that one we continue to provide PD for our teachers which we are. We're providing support with our coaches

076because we have a new framework right it's going to take us five year five years to roll out the framework. So it is very important that we continue to provide those supports to our teachers and our staff and we do that through feedback um and also supports right with our our coaches that we have. So um please know that the feedback is based solely on our instructional framework and we use it so that we can continue to provide that supports for teachers. Our professional development depends on that feedback. >> Trusty Kman. >> Uh just one quick question. Um such good news that you provided the beginning. What's being done to publicize that? So I mean we've had so much bad publicity about CVUSD. This is just really great feedback. >> Great job. >> Oh, just

077came out today. Okay. But just came out today. I was going to say >> already what to do with it. >> Just came out today. Yes. >> We were waiting for it to drop so we can >> This is our first announcement. >> Thanks again, ladies. >> Anyone else? Thank you so much. Uh 6.2. Oh, do we clap? That's great. Thank you. 6.2. Uh Julia Behil stabilization timeline 2025 26. Uh good evening board of trustees um superintendent Dr. Sparsa cabinet and the community. Tonight we will present our stabilization timeline, our revised reduction amount based on our adopted budget and our unodudited actuals. Please note that this presentation does not include updated revenues or projections that will be presented in first interim. The Riverside Office County of Ed requires that the district to submit an updated

078fiscal stabilization plan that address addresses the incorporated reductions to the district's deficit. The presented timeline outlines key activities and milestones. As you can see, for the month of November, the presentation of the timeline and a list of areas are for review. For December, the board is presented with a plan draft for further discussion as well as in January, the approval of the draft, and the areas identified for the reductions and right sizing may be necessary. in February and March, the beginning of the implementation of the approved action. And in the month of April, we will begin our budget development and incorporating those actions into our multi-year projections. The district is actively considering all potential internal cost-saving measures and conducting a review of current processes to ensure efficient and responsible uses of resources and impacts on

079the general fund. As part of this process, the district will evaluate the impacts of any proposed programs, modifications, or eliminations before bringing recommendations forward to the board for consideration. This will consist of reviewing enrollment student performance data related to those programs. Additionally, the district is reviewing service contracts to identify opportunities to bring certain need service-based in-house by reviewing development um development pieces for staff to build internal capacity. Such areas are being uh researched is a pathway for credentiing for speech and language certification. Now, let's take a moment to focus on where we came from and where we are. The initial stabilization plan was a reduction of 46 million with the final plan being approved with the estimated reductions of 57 million that are going to be ongoing in the three out years. Some of the

080initial steps to the reduction in spending resources and operations were through strategic realignment of departments such as transportation as one of them. They were streamlined and reorganized to improve systems and efficiency. Additionally, f future phases of stabilization process will include program alignment of career and technology along with additional operations such as technology services to further enhance efficiency and long-term sustainability. Again, the district remains committed to ensuring equity and access for all students as a central priority in decision-making and resource allocation. We will continue to collaborate with our community partners through our LCAP meetings, through our sitebased parent meetings, and other engagement activities to gain input to strengthen program effectiveness and student success. the reduction of based on over the 46 million in reduction in implemented in 2425 and the 25 adopted budget. The district must

081continue to um add stabilization measures to ensure fiscal solveny. There is still a need for a $20 million reduction in ongoing cuts which are included in um year 2627. The reduction of positions was supposed to result in a cost savings of over 27 million. However, additional staffing that were added as changes as far as compliance to our sped programs um did not result in the cost savings that we were looking for. we only had an additional 9.6 million. Some of the increases that we also see um were contract and services related to our sped programs which I spoke about in our earlier slide as far as building capacity for our speech and language pathology pathologists. Sorry. However, if you take a note to um column 2728, if the reductions are not fully implemented, we will

082not meet our 3% reserve balance of 11.2 million. As you can see in column 2627, there is a negative $10 million. However, 2728 takes that 10 million back out. So it is really imperative as we focus on what types of programming and centered student focused um educational pieces that we are going to make as far as the reductions in the outy years for future planning and budgeting. Tomorrow we have our second committee budget meeting along with an additional late for November and December. and the December board, we will have time to review um the revised stabilization plan and as f and additional options for recommendations in reductions. The district's first interim will be presented at that meeting and it will reflect updated revenues, the cola at that time of 2.3% and enrollment of 15,421. We

083will also have our updated projected average daily attendance, also known as ADA. Lastly, the stabilization plan, the draft that is approved, will be reflected in our second interim budget as well as our final average daily attendance to give our um complete picture of our budget. So, I just want to take a minute to recognize my fiscal staff that's here with me. I could not have done everything that we need to do without these fantastic ladies. >> I want to take say thank you to Miss Anna Alvarado, Miss Lily Aggera, Miss Lorenna PMPA, and Myra Kirk. Honestly, it has been a pleasure working with them. They are so helpful and they are so nice. So, I just want to say thank you and thank you. Thank you. >> And do we have any questions? >> Yes.

084Um, where should we start? Trustee Garcia. Um, thank you for this. I did notice the timeline at the very beginning. Um, remember we have this one board meeting for November and we have only one board meeting in December. Then we're on winter break. So, I would like the board to have as much time with the plans as we possibly can. Um, getting the plan on a Monday and having to make these real real decisions by a Thursday does not feel like enough time. The sooner we can begin looking and and really asking the questions that we need to about even the draft. remember December happens, then we're on break. Then January happens and we're supposed to adopt um a more full plan. Um you heard tonight what we hear every night recently um for as

085long as we did the last plan. Um parents and and the community are still upset about what we did last year. So the more information we have and for longer so that we can do the due diligence that we need to that's what I'm asking for from this board if we need special sessions added I mean whatever we need to do I understand that the budget committee is going to meet um we only have so much time and those are recommendations but this board would still need time to go through that and understand and if we need to modify is we need to we need time to be able to do that. >> Excuse me. >> Um the fall is a busy time for everyone. We want to make sure that we do this justice

086because as you said, anything we're cutting now is a big deal. It's going to hurt. It hurt last year. It's going to hurt even more this year. It's going to hurt even more next year. So my call to action for us is give ourselves enough time to make these difficult decisions. Um otherwise, thank you. I do understand this is a big undertaking. You're new to our district and this is not easy, but it's not easy for any of us and we're going to need what we're going to need regardless. So thank you. >> Thank you, Trusty Garcia. >> Uh Trusty Gonzalez. >> Sure. Um, >> you've been with us for how long? >> I've been with us uh a little over two months. >> You've been here for two months. >> Two months. >> Mhm.

087>> And so when you got here, you had never met any of your staff? >> No. >> Yeah. And then when you work, you're not like us. We we show up to a board meeting uh once a month, twice a month at best. You come to work every day and you're working 50, 60 hours a week, I'm sure. >> Yes. >> Yeah. So, I I guess my point for bringing this up is I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for for taking on this tough task. Um, I am not a financial expert. I'm never going to claim that you're hiding money like other board members do. Uh, I know that you're putting your best foot forward. I trust you and your staff, your professionalism, your dedication. Uh I've had an opportunity

088of spending a little bit of time with you here at the dis and I know that you're doing the best you can and believe me taking on the challenge of uh 20 25 $30 million in cuts, $10 million in cuts, there is nothing pleasurable about it affecting families that depend on incomes and insurance in the middle of their lives. people that have been here for 10, 15, 20, 25 years losing their job. There's nothing cool about it. Unfortunately, prior management, prior fiscal people in your position didn't see the fact that all the CO money was going to dry up. We hired a bunch of people on full-time in full-time positions. I called this two years ago. This isn't a surprise to me. This is something that I expected to happen and it happened. And I

089I know you're walking into a very very difficult situation. I am not going to take away a minute from the work that you people are doing in your department. I'm going to trust in your professionalism. I'm here to support you as a board member. Not to tell you how to do your job cuz I don't know your job. But I know that you guys are working as hard as you can. I know that Dr. Sparsa is doing the best she can and the state has recognized that we're doing a great job with the stabilization plan. I also want to thank Dr. Gomez and the Riverside County. These gentlemen, I'm sure they have better things to do than to be out here in thermal and and they're here and they've been here and every time I

090see them, I tell them, "Hey, man, they don't let you go home." And so, I want to thank them. Their staff for being here, they're watching us. They're helping us. Just keep doing what you're doing. I don't need any special meetings. I don't need to go to special meetings to nitpick the work that I don't understand. Right. I'm going to trust in the work that you're doing and I want to thank you for being here. >> Thank you, Trusty Gonzalez. Uh other trustees. >> Okay. >> Thank you for the work that you're doing and I know that um uh you're going to have to make some tough cuts, but I also would like to request those extra meetings. not not to nitpick at your work, but ultimately we're held accountable as board members for the

091cuts that we that we make. And I want to make sure that, you know, for example, you know, we're looking at bringing back parent leaison, right? According to Mr. Gonzalez, right? But the next budget talks about cuts, right? So, it's going to be very hard to advocate to bring back positions or to make positions, especially when we are facing continued cuts. So, I would just like special meetings um to better understand the budget process and how we make those cuts, not to criticize your work for the work that you're doing. Thank you. >> Thank you, Trusty Aondo. >> Uh Trusty, >> first of all, thank you for all your work. I was going to say you're you're not a newbie anymore. You're you're you're one of us now. For good or for bad, you're you're

092one of us. Um thank you and the team. Obviously, we know some of the members of the team have been here in the past and they've struggled through the difficult uh days back then as well. Um we again like Mr. Gonzalez said, uh this is not my wheelhouse. My wheelhouse is to make sure the numbers add up. Uh if I have a question, I'll call you or I'll call Dr. Sparza as we normally do. I don't need a special meeting to hash out and decide here and there. Uh I would want to mention though, just to correct Mr. a little bit what Mr. Gonzalez was talking about. There was a budget laid out for the parent leaison that the union did not accept the terms but that budget line is still there. So it's not

093like we're spending more money or adding more money. There is the line item there. The union just chose as their as is their right to not negotiate that particular thing. So there is a line item in there for that particular budget. um we can add it in if nothing happens obviously we can add it in uh but that line item is in there so I just wanted to make it clear because I don't want you all to think that suddenly you know we're finding looking for money that's not there there is some money there that we did that for the other uh positions as well when we made our original budget those positions based on what we offered the union were embedded in the budget so there was money there there is money there is

094a line item there we anticipated that the union chose again as their right? Not to negotiate that particular those positions, but it's not like suddenly we're going to start adding more money and ballooning the deficit. That's not what we're talking about. And again, I I don't need a special meeting. You send it out. I'm smart enough to understand it. And if I don't, I'll ask the questions. Thank you. >> Thank you, Trusty Okuna. Uh Trusty Tortez, um Colonas, any comments, questions? >> Yeah. >> Uh Trusty Tortz. >> Thank you, President. So is this a combined unrestricted and restricted uh report that you're putting together? Is it >> So the current report that you were looking at is only the unrestricted >> current unrestricted. Correct. >> Okay. So yeah, like I was mentioning before, I'm glad

095that you brought that up because the uh unrestricted general fund I always last meeting I talked about how we got the COVID money and expanded like director Gonzalez said and we have to go back to living within our means because if anyone can go back into the unrestricted general fund which you presented in in 201617 right our budget was 196 million in 2017 198 218 29 million 219 26 million and 2020 28 million and that was all before CO. So that's what I'm talking about about going back to living within our means is going back to that budget and everyone has to understand that was our budget before CO. We got the lottery when the co hit and like director said we spent that money expecting to retain that but we have to have a

096spend down plan and I'm glad you're working on that now to get back to these type of budgets because that's reality. That's what we have to get back to uh because it's it's so bloated now. And so anyone can go on the CVS TV CVUSD website and look up the financials. I just looked it up right now and you could see what our budget was before. It wasn't that there was all of a sudden we got more money. We've been getting the same money that's not going to change, maybe less. Uh but um thank you for your presentation. >> Thank you, Trusty Tortez. and agreed that you do all have a very very difficult decision um in reviewing that and it's completely understood that you would want clear and concise information when presented to you

097in order to review and make an accurate decision um on behalf of the district. And yes, CO monies were one-time monies. And yes, we did hire staff with those. And then once those CO monies went away, we either had to um release the staff or you have to pick it up in your general fund. And as you can see here, our general fund is not stabilized in order to do so. So, thank you. And if there's no further questions, um like our student trustee, no questions. Uh no, I I mean I appreciate everyone's perspectives, right? I think are we all I mean I we have some hard decisions that we'll continue to make in the coming months and I'm sure it'll continue to be a conversation um you know for the next coming years right

098just to make sure that out in the future we are able to be at a place where we're we're stable right um I think the goal is really you know 5 10 years from now we're not having the same conversation again and so um you know I think at every meeting we there's a lot of you know from public comment that's shared um from listening um our board members listening to the community, right? There's different priorities. There's different things that now that we've um implemented our previous stabilization plan that we might see areas where we want to adjust. Um you know, seeing our dashboard, I think I'm sure it'll inform some of the other areas that maybe uh we want to prioritize in the coming plan. Um, so you know, I think it's just helpful

099to be able to understand, at least for me. I think the budget's also kind of an area that I've always wanted to learn a little bit more, right? It's not necessarily my area expertise. Um, but I think the more information that we can kind of dive into um to kind of break down how complex it is um not just for ourselves, but for our community as well. Uh, which is one of the reasons why I thought it was important that we have this conversation starting November, right? I, you know, maybe we should have had it in August, right? To start having those conversations, but I think it's always been on the back of our mind, but I think as we're having those conversations, um, I think it's also important to break it down for our

100community. Um, there was a comment that was made around, you know, um, we made all these cuts and you're still spending like you're you're making all these purchases. And so I think sometimes it um reconciling that sometimes is very hard um especially when we don't understand the big picture of the budget and how it works and the restrictions and unrestrictions. So I think it's helpful just to get an understanding. Um I don't have any other comments. >> I do want to uh clarify for those who um don't know how big our budgets are in school districts of this size. They're $300 million and so there's a lot of moving parts and a big chunk of that goes to staffing. At least 75 to 80% of that goes for payroll. Know that we're not waiting for

101the last minute to make these decisions. The books closed for last year August 31st and we already started school that year. And so we also have to close and find out our count of how many students that closes October 31st. So we just found that out exactly what we have in our schools on October 31st. So now we are here in November to bring this forth to you for transparency so that you can see that we are moving forward to create a stabilization plan where we will need to cut $10 million this year either in programs, contracts, and some staffing and in the following year as well. I just wanted to make that clear. >> Great point. I think there's also this past year there's been a lot of last because of our federal government

102a lot of areas where we've had to adjust unfortunately uh money we were expecting that just didn't come in or it's been held and so I think being prepared for those situations um is very important. Um okay so we'll thank you so much. >> Thank you President Vargas. We're going to move on to going to move on to action items uh 7.1 educational services. Um we have uh Sokoro Sanchez requesting approval of agreement between Coachella Valley Unified School District and College of the Desert for the college and career access pathways. >> Motion second. >> Okay. Uh trustee um Mike Caldo Garcia I Okay. I uh all those in favor I >> I opposed abstensions. Motion carries. Uh 7.2 Sooro Sanchez requesting approval of 2025 Northshore Northshore Elementary School plan for student achievement. >> Motion the

103same. Second. >> Second. Um trustee Kio Garcia. >> I Okay. All those in favor? >> I >> opposed. Abstension. Motion carries. Um 8.1 uh action items for business services. Uh Julie Vhil, approval of resolution 2026-21, temporary loan from the restricted fund for nutrition services funding to cover potential delays and federal reimbursements due to the 2025 government shutdown. Do I have a motion? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Um any comments or questions? I'm sorry. >> Okay. Uh trustee Gio Garcia. >> I >> Okay. Uh all those in favor? I I >> opposed abstension. Uh motion carries 8.2 um Julie Vill approval to increase Olivaris Maduga Law Organization LLP contract amount to provide council and other legal services for the 2526 fiscal year. >> Motion. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Okay. Um comments

104or questions? Trustee Kman? I was trying to understand this because it it appears that the original budget was um uh was it 500,000 and then it's now being increased by another 400,000. >> Yes. That seems like in a period of a short amount of time it's increased significantly. Uh that >> would you like to talk a little bit about some of the lawsuits? I know you can't give, you know, confidential information, but the costs of them. >> We handle a lot of lawsuits and discipline. So, we have a number of large um lawsuits and which will entail um some substantial uh charges and because it's going to be carried possibly throughout this current year. And so to have staff on for that and then when you look at that original budget of 500,000 that is

105not only shared with HR but that is all of the cabinet's budgets pieces and just as I am business services I do have to contact lawyers at times >> to get confirmation on different findings that come out. >> Okay. Thank you for the explanation. >> Other comments questions? Uh trustee Killio Garcia. >> Hi. >> Okay. Uh all all those in favor I >> I >> opposed. >> I >> Okay. Uh two oppositions. Uh abstensions. Motion carries for two zero. Okay. Uh 8.3 uh Julie. Oh uh I'm sorry. 42 >> 52. You said we went like this. I'm sorry. 42 uh zero. Wait, I'm sorry. 52. Um, motion carries. It's It's late. Um, >> do you want to just clarify the the >> Yes. So, we had one, two, three, four, five votes for yes, one,

106two, and zero abstensions. >> Yeah. Thank you. >> Um, not >> Oh, yeah. Trust Redondo and Trusty Garcia says no. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Thank you. Um action items, human resources 9 9.1. Dr. Monica Makawick's uh approval of amended standard agreement with Department of General Services, Office of Administrative Hearings. You >> skip Margus. Did we skip uh items? >> Skip one. >> 8.3. >> I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. >> Um >> buy the car. >> It's been a day. >> All right. 8.3 Julie Vhil uh requesting approval of 12026 Ford Explorer uh for career technical education work experience uh programs. Do I have a motion? >> A motion. Second. >> Second. Uh questions, comments? >> Only if they lend it to the golf program. I'm just kidding. >> Trustee Galo um Garcia. I

107Okay. >> Yes. Point. I'm I'm I'm trying to understand how is it being done now because a Ford Explorer how many people can it hold you know how many um how many days a week is it being used is it using just for one program and I'm trying to understand how one explorer can make the difference of of of when we're looking to do a lot of CTE programs >> okay yeah >> thank you for your question I can answer that um so this is just in addition additional vehicle that we're going to be adding to the current CTE vehicles that we already have. So, those have been moved to the district office and then we do have a system where our teachers in every secondary school are actually booking any of the CTE cars.

108And the reason we moved them here to the district office is so that we can ensure the maintenance of the vehicles and make sure that they are in good condition so that our students are able to be transported to do either um job shadowing or anything like that. So this is an additional one. >> So there's always a teacher leison on who drives. >> Absolutely. >> Okay. >> And they are clear and they're following the new guidelines that our district has. >> Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> Okay. Uh any other comments, questions? Uh all those in favor? I >> opposed abstensions. Motion carries. Uh 9.1 uh action items, human resources, Dr. Monica Makawitz approval of amended standard agreement with Department of General Services Office of Administrative Hearings. Do I have a motion? >> So

109move. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Um any comments, questions? Trusty Calio Garcia I. >> Okay. Uh all those um all those in favor I >> I >> opposed. Abstensions. Motion carries. 9.2 uh Dr. Monica Makawitz approval of job description for coordinator workbased learning Golden State Pathways Program. >> Motion to >> have a second. >> Second. >> Okay. Uh comments, questions. Trustee Kalamus, >> a quick question about I know that we're look at at saving money. Does it have to be a 12-month program? Can it be an 11month program? >> Uh staff. >> Um thank you again for the question. So, this is a position that we're bringing on a grant. Um, and based on the 12 or 11 months, like I don't know if that's something that um they can decide,

110but it is on a grant. It's a three-year grant. So, this position is a temporary position. >> Okay. Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> Any other comments, questions? >> I I just I think that's a great point, Miss Elmont Springs. I think staff should make their determination if it could be a a 10-month if obviously if it if it could be 12 months and we have the ability to pay for and there's the need and then whatever your professional staff would recommend to the board but something to consider for sure. >> Um I was looking at the job description. I don't know if we can add temporary I know it says position based on grant funding but just noting that it's temporary. Well, I think I mean that's eight charges of duty. I'm sure they'll

111cover that when that person is hired. I I just think >> I mean you guys are obviously recommending 12 months. If we need 12 months, I would we need 12 months. And good to hear that the money's coming from a Yeah, I can definitely add to that. Um this is a position that is going to help us bring some work-based learning that we desperately need at the secondary level. um specifically because we do not have any board policies and this person will help us get there and ensure that our students do have work-based experience um and bringing those opportunities with the dual enrollment and really you know connecting our students with work after high school which is one of our goals um and it is based on a grant on a three-year grant um and

112that said it is a temporary position. Yeah, I think my comment is just to that uh it's temporary grant based >> correct >> money goes the position goes. Okay. Yes. >> All right. Uh any other comments or questions? Okay. Trust Kio Garcia >> I. >> All those in favor? >> I opposed. Abstensions. Uh motion carries. Um consent calendar. All matters listed under the consent calendar are considered by the board but to be routine and will be acted upon in one motion. There will be no discussion of these items prior to the time the board considers a motion unless members of the board or staff request specific items to be discussed and or removed from the consent calendar. In which event the items will be considered separately. The superintendent, assistant superintendent of educational services, assistant superintendent

113of business and finance and assistant superintendent of human resources recommend the approval of all consent calendar items. Um do I have a motion to approve the consent? A motion to approve the consent calendar respecting any board member wanting to pull an item. >> I'll second that. >> Okay. Any items that board members want to pull? >> I'd like to pull for discussion. 13.5 13.5 Okay. Any other items that folks want to pull? Okay. Uh Trustee Garcia I Okay. All those in favor? >> I I All those opposed? Abstensions? Motion carries. Uh 13.5 Julie Vill authorization to issue a purchase order to Atkinson Adamson Loya Rude and Romo for legal services for public works issues. Can I get a motion? >> A motion. >> A second. >> Um Trusty Garcia. Yeah. I don't like even the

114way it's written here. It suggests that we're double paying lawyers. So, we have to check with OML law to see if they're going to adequately support us or not. And if they can't, then we work with this law firm. I know it's a relatively small amount of money compared to what we just gave again, but it just feels like I'm double paying lawyers to get the work done that we obviously need. I'm not saying we don't. it it's written in that way and I don't like that. I don't understand why it would be written that way. >> Can staff clarify or >> Yes, I want to go ahead and answer it. My name is Leticia Torres, director of facilities. I use uh Atkinson Anderson for my annual and 5-year developer fees report. Uh when I

115reached out to Amllo, they they're not proficient in that area. That is why I use them. They only charge me like $4,000. This is just I'm only requesting for $25,000 for this fiscal year in case I need him for other cases. >> Yep. So you already checked in with OML. So do we need to check in with OML again or you're just going to be able to use this firm now? >> Dr. Sparsa. >> So we already have checked in with OMLO on using facility services and they are uh in agreement that Leti is able. She does contact them and they let us know if they're uh proficient in that area. And if they're not, then AAL or R is our go-to. >> So we wouldn't in theory we wouldn't have to recheck in with

116them every time she needs it. >> No. I guess I then I just don't like the way it's written in here cuz it definitely reads like every time you need them, we're going to have to be charged by law to hear about this which just is mindboggling to me. >> Yes. No, I'm not going to be we're not going to be build by two different uh attorneys. >> Got it. Thank you. >> Other comments? Uh Trusty Kio Garcia? >> I Okay. All those in favor? >> I. All those opposed abstensions. Motion carries. Um don't have any more close session items. Can I get them? Oh >> yes. >> Oh yeah. >> And how long? Right. How long is the training? >> How long? Yeah. I mean, but it makes a difference if it's in the

117morning or it's in the afternoon. >> What day? looking at 91. >> Maybe Anita can clarify. uh once we adjourn. Yeah. >> Well, I think just now that we know it's from 9 to 12, I think we just pick the dates that's conducive for us, right? And then they'll try to figure it out. Correct. >> We just didn't have time or hours. That's what last time. >> Okay. So, just all trustees to to make sure. Thank you for bringing it up because I was going to skip it too. Um but all trustes got this letter about attending this uh mandatory training. Um, so please make sure before you leave to fill it out. And if you have questions about timing, you can check in with Anita. Um, do I have a motion to adjurnn? >>

118So move. >> A second. Second. Uh, trustee Calio Garcia. >> I. Okay. All those in favor? I. >> Uh, opposed. Abstensions. Uh, motion carries. Good night everybody. Thank you. Happy Thanksgiving. Happy holidays.