001All right, I'm going to call the meeting to order at 4:01. Um, roll call. >> Trusty Wagan >> here. >> Trusty Soilu >> here. >> Trusty Murphy. Trusty Pearson >> here. >> Trusty Anderson. >> Trusty Mroy >> here. >> Trusty Crane >> here. >> Dr. Smith >> here. Uh, adoption of agenda. Do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. Uh, moved by Trusty Crane, seconded by Trusty Ursulu. >> Roll call vote. >> Trusty Wagan. >> Yes. >> Trusty. >> Yes. >> Trusty Murphy. Trusty Pearson. >> Yes. >> Trusty Anderson. >> Trusty Mroy. >> Yes. >> Trusty Crane. >> Yes. All right. Number three, community input on close session items. Do we have any? Seeing none, we will move into close session. Um the items are uh A liability claims workers comp, B, conference
002with legal workers compensation, C conference with labor negotiator. Um D, public employee discipline dismissal release, and E public employee performance evaluation superintendent. We will return to open session at 6 pm. Okay. I'm going to call the meeting to order at 6:03. Uh opening ceremonies and moment of reflection led by our student board member Rosalyn Ruiz. >> Place your right hand over your heart. Ready? Begin. I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all >> of adoption of minutes from the 102125 board mint, Inc. Uh, do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Moved by Trusty Crane, seconded by Trusty Ursulu or sorry, excuse me, um, Pearson. Uh, roll call vote. >>
003Trusty Wagan, >> yes. Trusty. >> Trusty Murphy, >> yes. >> Trusty Pearson, >> yes. >> Trusty Anderson, >> yes. >> Trusty Mroy, >> yes. Trusty Crate. Yes. >> All right. Motion carries. 60. Uh recognition. Uh Miss >> Shields. I don't know. >> Hello. >> Now, >> no, I it's not going to >> Hello. >> Yeah. Okay. Well, >> do you mind? >> Because we want to make sure this person gets their view. So, I just want to make sure everyone can hear. Tonight, uh, we have two recognitions. The first is for Lena Dingle, who won an award. I'm going to bring up Christy Flores, who's going to speak to all of her accomplishments. But I really just want to congratulate Lena for the job she's been doing uh at Whittier and everything she's contributed to
004that campus. And so, it's with great pride bring up Christy to share more. >> Good evening. Dr. Smith, President Wagan, board trustees, executive cabinet, colleagues, and guests. It is my honor to recognize Lena Dingle, ELOP admin intern at Whittier Elementary School, who has received statewide recognition for her outstanding leadership and commitment to expanded learning. Lena was recently awarded the Emerging Leadership Award at the 2025 Lights on After School California Expanded Learning Leadership Awards hosted by the California Department of Education's Expanded Learning Division and the California After School Network. This prestigious honor celebrates exceptional leaders who make a lasting and positive impact on students, families, and communities. Now in her third year as an ELOP admin interned dedicated years as a teacher at Ray, Lena has distinguished herself as a leader grounded in purpose and heart.
005Her leadership is characterized by genuine passion, a calm and steady presence, and an innovative approach to student programming. She is deeply committed to fostering a sense of belonging on campus, ensuring that students, staff, and families feel seen, heard, supported, and safe, especially in times of adversity. Her composed and thoughtful response to challenges inspire those around her and helps create a learning environment where every individual feels valued and respected. Lena's recognition highlights not only her remarkable dedication, but also the meaningful daily influence she has on the Whittier School community. She truly embodies the heart of expanded learning and the spirit of servant leadership that strengthens our schools. Please join me in congratulating Lena Dingle on this well-deserved honor and in celebrating the positive impact she continues to make at Whittier Elementary and across our district. [applause]
006Will they come out? >> [applause] >> All right. Next up, Kurt Sir. >> Yes. So, we are honored tonight to celebrate a science teacher in Newport Mesa by the name of Kathleen Harmon. She is being recognized for UC Davis's C STEM teacher of the year and she's also being recognized as the 2025 2026 um teacher of the year for Project Lead the Way, which is a national recognition. And here to provide some details and recognize her with us is her principal, Dr. Dr. Joe Irvin from Adams Elementary School. [applause] >> Good evening, NMUSD board president Wagan, board trustees, superintendent Dr. Smith, assistant superintendent, and the NMUSD community. I am honored to share two exceptional recognitions earned by Kathleen Harmon, RC STEM, and Project Lead the Way Teacher at Adams Elementary. Mrs. Harmon was recently named
007Project Lead the Way Outstanding Teacher of the Year. This was a national recognition highlighting the project highlighted on the project lead the way website. Project lead the way is a comprehension comprehensive STEM curriculum that all of our TK through sixth grade students receive through pull out instruction each day. The modules are fully project-based with students engaging in three builds to solve novel engineering and design challenges. Mrs. Harmon received this recognition due to her exemplary instructional practices and the high number of modules that our students have successfully completed with her guidance. In addition, Mrs. Harmon was named STEM teacher of the year for the state of California, an honor presented to her by UC Davis on October 18th. In our STEM robotics program, students in grades three through six participate in 30 minutes of enrichment five
008days per week. Through this program, students learn about block coding, engineering foundations, and mathematical concepts while programming multiple robots to navigate a field and complete complex tasks. RC STEM students also participate annually under Mrs. Harmon's direction in the Southern California Robo Play Challenge, giving them the opportunity to apply their skills in real world compet competition settings. This enrichment has become an outstanding opportunity for our highest achieving students providing rigorous hands-on STEM learning every day. [snorts] These two signature programs high um led by Mrs. Harmon both projectly the way an STEM robotics are transforming the perception of our Adams Elementary within our community. Families are increasingly recognizing the innovative and highquality STEM education that we offer and we are seeing enrollment grow as a direct result of these efforts. We are incredibly proud of Mrs. Harmon
009for her statewide and national accomplishments and for her extraordinary opportunities that she is bringing to the students of Adams Elementary. [applause] Can we get one more? >> [laughter] >> All right. Now, student board member reports. Trusty Ursulu. This month the student board members um were asked to report on the following topic. Um as we get into the last part of the semester, what are the ways the district, staff, principles, programs, and things can best support you and your peers? Um so first we have Rosyn Ruiz from Estansia. Good evening, President Wagan, vice president or soyu, superintendent, and board members. It is truly an honor to be here tonight representing the voices of the students at Estantia High School. As we enter the final stretch of the semester, I'd like to share some feedback from my
010peers on how the district, staff, and programs have been supporting us, as well as what we hope for moving forward. One student mentioned that how the staff have been proactive with check-ins in class, offering fun activities that promote unity and creating opportunities for involvement in various programs. For example, some seniors have benefit benefited from the YES program while working on their senior projects, which has been incredibly helpful. Many students also expressed how they've appreciated the therapy dog visits that took place in previous years. These visits provided comfort and emotional support during stressful times and many are hoping to have them back this year. The therapy dogs have made a real difference and students are looking forward to that support once again. In addition, students have students share that they're feeling nervous as finals approach, but
011they are really looking forward to receive more attentiveness and support from their teachers. As we head into these final weeks, they're hoping for guidance and encouragement from their teachers to help them through the stressful time. Finally, we're looking forward to Let's Be Kind Day. This day is Friday, weather permitting. This event promotes kindness and positivity throughout our school community. And it's a great opportunity for everyone to come together and celebrate those values. Thank you again for all your continued support. We truly appreciate the efforts of the district and staff in creating an environment where students can thrive. And we look forward to seeing even more in the more positive initiatives in the future. >> [applause] >> And next we have Jeremy from Early College. Good evening, Superintendent Smith, esteemed board members, and members of the
012community. My name is Jeremy Lure, and I represent the students of Early College High School. Now that we are approaching the end of the school year, students are really feeling the pressure. It's encouraging to hear that the district is adamant to support us as students. And so I spoke with some of my peers to ask about how that support can best be given. As finals approach, it's time for cumulative tests that cover the past four months of material. To students, it means cramming and memorizing as many terms as possible. But I also ask students to weigh in on factors outside of their control that are still adding to their stress. I heard one item repeatedly come up. Open SIED, the curriculum for earth science, biology, chemistry, and physics that has now been adopted at every
013high school. I've personally never participated in a class that follows the curriculum plan as it's relatively new, but I have heard from numerous students over the past few months. Some of the largest areas of concern that I've heard is that it is very focused on concepts, removing hands-on elements, and fixating on a single topic for months at a time. As a result, cumulative assessments become difficult for teachers to proctor and for students to excel in because of how this curriculum is structured. It is my understanding that the program is still in its early stages and being adjusted. I simply wanted to express today the issues that I have heard. I will continue to look into these concerns throughout my school site and collaborate with my peers from other sites to gain a better understanding of
014how this curriculum is working for students across the district. I've also heard concerns from students about their futures beyond just the next few weeks. As we enter the workforce to pursue higher education, we want to be prepared beyond just knowing algebraic equations or being able to identify the authoral intent of a text. While these are very important skills, we will we also want to have a better grasp of life skills. Personal finance, budgeting, taxes, owning and maintaining a car, cooking, and the list goes on and on. There are so many aspects of life and I understand that high school can't prepare us for every bit of it, but there is still more that can be done to support us in our lives after high school. One last thing I repeatedly heard as an area of
015support that we can grow in is increased access to RO courses and other onampus opportunities. At ECS, we are beginning to see some growth as we have a few RO courses offered directly at our school, but the offerings are still slim. I've heard too many students having to drive over 45 minutes to reach an RP course or simply being unable to take one because it's too far. Part of why this came up is because of how much students enjoy classes that are hands-on. Whether it was when discussing the open-sided curriculum or in their desire for more RO classes, students feel that they learn better and gain more valuable knowledge in hands-on environments. Now that I've gotten most of what students want to see changed going into the future out of the way, I want to
016focus on successes that we have seen on our campus. At the last meeting, I brought up nutritional services and food on our campus. I'm incredibly happy to say that ECHS has had a meeting with the nutritional department, and we have a follow-up one planned soon. Dialogue has begun, and we are approaching issues with feasible solutions. I'm incredibly thankful for the cooperation of the nutritional services department and their dedication to student well-being. With the end of this semester approaching, it's easy for students to feel overwhelmed and stressed. The issues I have presented today, whether it be related to curriculum, access to RO opportunities, or feeling prepared for life after high school, are all weighing on the minds of students. I firmly believe that as it stands, the district supports student success. These are simply areas that
017can be improved upon going forward. Thank you. [applause] >> Great. Next, we have Angie from Beck. Hi, good afternoon. My name is Angie Alupe and I'm here to represent Back Bay High School. Honestly, it's an honor to be here representing Bag Bay. Truly, it's an amazing place for me and I would like to speak for everybody, my classmates, and just how thankful we are to have that support system. And I spoken to my classmates and my peers and from what they told me, they wouldn't change anything about it. They love it how it is. And I don't know. I'm so sorry. I'm so nervous. [laughter] >> You're doing a good job. >> And I got off track. Um but yeah like I couldn't thank my teachers, the staff members, our principal for literally everything. Back
018Bay has changed my life and I would like to say literally our friends lives like just I'm sorry [laughter] but one topic that did get brought up the most was transportation at Backbait. A lots of students don't really have that transportation and our attendance I would I would say is not the best for because of transportation and I am like willing to try my best to help them and to just for you guys to hear me out and to help like name. Sorry. [laughter] >> I'm so nervous. Um, but I don't know. But yeah, [laughter] >> you're good. You're good. That's helpful. Thank you. >> Yes. I think that's all. >> Perfect. Thank you so much. [applause] And last but not least, we have Audrey from Newport Harbor. Hi everyone. Um, my name is Audrey
019Salman and I'm the representative from Newport Harbor High School. I want to start off by saying thank you all for having me. Um, I realize this is a very unique opportunity. So, thank you for giving me a chance to speak on behalf of my fellow classmates. Okay, so naturally, when you ask a group of teenage students what they wish to improve about their school, the feedback is a mile long. So my job here tonight is to summarize that information into something eligible and kind also that you guys can understand and hopefully take constructive uh information from. So I'll start with all the good stuff that they pointed out and I will say that when departments organize specific sessions of studying and tutoring at our school for specific subjects, students find that very helpful. One specific
020example of that at our school is math lab. I know that there are so many rigorous mathematic courses at Newport Harbor. Calculus is like number one that comes to mind. I'm in that right now and it is brutal. And so math lab, which is three days a week after school, like two hours at every time where there are math teachers there just devoted to helping you, cranking out your homework. That's amazing, especially as finals come up. And it's just it just is so nice to see that teachers are really they're there for you. I mean, how many teachers spend their evening multiple days a week just going over repeating problems? It's really great. Another thing that they pointed to as being really helpful, as Rosyn said, was the therapy dogs and other unique activities that
021just kind of boost the morale. I mean, going into finals, it's it's a rough time. You you just get really, you know, bogged down with a lot of assignments, and it's nice to have something that kind of relieves the pressure a little bit, if only for just a short amount of time. So, therapy dogs was really good. Our ASB organized a coffee cart in the library. So the week of study sessions we had things like that and just overall activities that kind of you know make the mood better. And then room for improvement. I would say hearing from my students is math labs after school is really nice, but a lot of teachers if they could just carve out a period of class that is completely devoted to studying before the final would be really
022great just cuz and I quote from one of my classmates, teachers seem to cram the material into our brains so much that they don't really consider whether we're actually retaining it or not. And it seems like towards the end of the year as finals, you know, get closer, it's do remember this, remember this, remember this, rather than taking a time to catch up and really process that information. And then the last area of improvement that I hope can be met in the future eventually is bathrooms. Ironically, how does this apply to curriculum and academics, you wonder? Um actually many students mention that especially during finals we have a very limited number of minutes in a class period and many students have found that recently at my school specifically Newport Harbor High School the bathrooms have
023been shut down just lacking in the cleanliness and all of that and many students have said that the nearest bathroom to their classroom has like I said been shut down so they have to kind of go on a trip and it's like a 10-minute excursion that takes away from their class time especally in this time where every minute counts to soak up that information and if you're gone even 10 minutes it's like you just missed a whole whole section of the textbook or whatever it might be. So yeah, bathrooms. Thank you guys. [laughter] [applause] All right, thank you. Those were great comments. We'll get back to you on all of those things. Bathrooms, transportation, all that good stuff. All right. Um, number 13, CSCA, uh, President Amy Ching. >> Hi. Good evening. Sorry. Um, all
024right. Good evening everybody. President Wagant, trustees, Superintendent Smith, Cabinet, and guests. All our students are all our students. As I have said before, to fully live this vision, we must also embrace the belief that all our staff means all our staff. I want to share some feedback I received from the professional development provided on November 5th. The training was great. I plan on going back to my site and sharing the information I received about building workspace relationships with my co-workers and helping create a better environment for all of us. The AI session is timely and relevant to the world we are experiencing. I appreciate the district taking the lead on this. They fed us lunch, a real lunch. [laughter] So, all in all, I have heard great positive things about the experience and um in
025speaking with assistant deputy superintendent Torres, um it was well attended and um I'm looking forward to um continuing the training of our workforce. Um, your actions show classified employees that they are valued and respected. We are off to a good start and we look forward to continuing to expand on this ongoing initiative with the district. I know Tracy and I have had some conversations about moving that forward. So, I appreciate that. During our negotiations, CSEA discussed our interest in supporting classified employees in the transportation department. Before my time, there was a portion their portion of the contract was adjusted to correct some errors. We don't believe that the current contract addresses all the issues and in some ways creates more. The transportation contract is a lot to absorb. Along with our prior labor rep, I
026spent a year meeting with the transportation employees, reviewing their contract, and there are still times where they say something and I go, I I don't I'm not quite sure. So there's it's a lot there's a lot moving on in their portion of the contract. Um and I have brought this forward with Jeff and Tracy to see how we can work together to hopefully resolve some of these issues. And I would like to invite any of the trustees to reach out to me to discuss if you are interested in hearing um our perspective on it because we would like to work collaboratively to continue to support classified employees. So I appreciate that. Um, our chapter has concluded executive nominations for the 20 26th year. All positions have been filled except second vice president. Two members were
027uh accepted nominations for this position and we will hold an election at our December chapter meeting. I ran unopposed. So, lucky you, you get me again. But seriously, I do enjoy uh working with all of you and supporting classified staff. So, I look forward to another year together. Um, I hope that you trustees and cabinet uh can join us for a short meeting on January 8th when we we install our executive board into their positions. I know some of you u were able to attend last year, so looking forward to seeing some of you again. And I'll follow up with a email invite. Uh, and lastly, I hope to see some of you at the Estansia Theater Friday night. And I uh wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. So, thank you. always look forward to continuing
028the good work for students, staff, and the community. Thank you. >> Thank you. [applause] Next up, we have NMFT President Rhonda Reid. Good evening, President Wen, Trustees, Superintendent Smith, Cabinet, and guests here tonight. I want to acknowledge all the educators that have been turning out to let their voices be heard. I also want to thank CTF and AFT for their support during this time. So, we're surprised to be here. We're surprised and disheartened that the district rushed to Impass and didn't want to stay at the table with us to work things out. The districts did say they would return, but only if we would accept the 2%. And we [clears throat] knew we couldn't do this. We knew our educators deserved more. And so do our students. They are literally the hardest working educators in
029the county. And now I believe they are um the educators with the most meetings in the county, if not the state. They br worked really hard to bring students out of learning loss that COVID cost all of us all the districts and it's um their hard work is showing because test scores are improving while smaller class sizes and supports like elementary counselors at every elementary school is important to the equation. But this is the bare necessity that all educators need to support their students. So this is what great districts do and should do to support their educators and students. Your educators care deeply for their district, their community, and most importantly, they care deeply for their students. The connections they build with their students is tied directly to student success. They make students feel seen
030and heard and safe and that they belong. They take care of the students. You should take care of the educators. We are still waiting to be seen, heard, and valued. Thank you. [applause] >> Thank you. Next. [applause] Next up, uh, community input on non-aggendaized items. Um, Clerk Murphy. This is an opportunity for the public to address the board regarding items not on the regular meeting agenda. Comments on non-aggenda topics are limited to three minutes per comment, up to 20 minutes per topic. A speaker may not relinquish his her time to another person. By order of the Brown Act section 54954.2, the board will take no action nor have any discussion on non-aggendaized items. The superintendent may provide clarification during superintendent's comments. Thank you. Um I'm going to make a quick statement before we get into
031um our public comments. Um let me there uh just before we get into different topics we have I think two topics uh one topic will get three minutes the other topic will get two minutes and 30 seconds and I will let you know about that. Um [clears throat] uh the district is aware of the allegations that have been raised and we understand that such concerns can cause uncertainty in our community. District Legal Council has carefully reviewed the matter and determined that it does not fall within the district's roles, responsibility, or jurisdiction. While we recognize the importance of the issues being discussed, we will not be providing further comment as it lies outside the district's authority. With that, I am going to um start with um this first topic which each person will get three minutes
032and the person is uh first person is Rachel Jimenez. >> [applause] >> Hi, I'm Rachel Himenez and I'm one of the um I'm a special education teacher at CDM. I want to actually tell you about yes an incident that happened yesterday. Not an incident but a um an encounter I had with my student and it was one of my students. I teach ninth grade complate at SAI and yesterday I was talking to my students about my one student about the novel. So he's actually reading way ahead of us. And I was like, what is going on? Like why, you know, are you ahead? And he was telling me that in his whole educational career that this is the first time he's feeling emotions in the book, that he is excited, that it doesn't even feel
033like reading, that he's like, I read an hour and it didn't even feel like it. He's like, oh my goodness. Um, I feel like I'm in the book. It feels like a movie. And it was the it was his first time to feel that way. And as a teacher that was amazing and especially because they're in the SAI where they already struggle with, you know, reading with a reading disability. And yet I've been teaching for 18 years and it was my first time in my career that I felt like changing professions. the it's it to know that you that the district will be taking 200 to possibly $400 out of our check and um the last check before Christmas is really disheartening. Um if an organization did this to you or your loved ones, would
034you feel valued? Thank you. [applause] Next up, Kirby Piaza. Kirby Piaza. >> Good evening, board and superintendent Smith. Um, I have an easy question for you all. Raise your hand if you think teachers are overpaid. It's unanimous. When the district compares us to other underpaid teachers, it comes off as out of touch. Well, now it is time to reconnect and not only make things right, but actually set the bar for how districts can show the value of hardworking educators that dedicate their lives. And that includes late hours, after school, weekends, summers to the kids, families in the community. So, let's do what's right. Let's do what's possible. And let's do it now. Thank you very much. [applause] Next, Anthony Solless. Good evening, Superintendent uh Smith. Uh board members, executive cabinet, educators, students, parents, and the
035community. Uh first and foremost, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to address you all. My name is Anthony Solis. I'm a field representative with CTF. I have this distinct pleasure to serving as uh chief negotiator for NMFT and as a union staffer. I'm joined tonight by CFT's executive vice president, Juan Ramirez. Um, I also come with the support of CFT's uh, President Jeff Raidus, the CFT's executive council, and CFT's 120,000 members. Excuse me. Um, having a moment. Um, I must say I'm very disappointed in where the district is at in negotiations with NMFT. And considering the district has had um some changes in chief negotiator and the CBO, it would have been nice to have a little bit more time instead of taking a hardline impass position. And MFTt has provided the
036district with grace and empathy as it relates to recent changes in executive cabinet. And what have we received in turn? Well, uh, its members are without a raise this new school year. And even more infuriating, NMT's members will see a pay decrease given the district's decision to pass on the full increase to healthcare premiums to district educators. To this point, we are sure management has been told that this is merely the district following the CBA. Um, but this financial shakedown of our members right before the holidays could have been pre prevented and the district could have implemented the rates that were agreed on on health care plans months ago. But why is the district not doing this? And why are we here tonight? It's because our members, the district's educators, are demanding more than a
0372% salary increase. 2% is less than the state authoriz authorized cost of living adjustment most [snorts] districts have seen in the state this year thus far. 2% is less than the current local inflation rate. 2% is less than the salary increase provided to educators in comparable districts. And 2% is not going to get educators closer to the other Orange County basic a school district which pays 22% more on average than N m uh NMUSD does. And 2% is not going to address the fact that Garden Grove Unified, a LCFF non-basic aid school district pays its educators higher salaries on comparable salary points with the exception of maximum salary. Hell, what we're asking for is not going to resolve a lot of these issues, but it is going to make our educators feel more valued. So,
038I ask you to do what's right. Right. Pay our educators a fair, livable wage. Thank you. [applause] [cheering] >> Next, we have Michelle Brown. >> All right. Good morning or good evening, everyone. I'm used to saying good morning. Um, I'm here to speak to you on behalf of especially the young teachers that are coming up in our district. Um, I'm someone who has only been in the district for about 3 years. Um, but I also grew up in this district. Both myself and my partner are Estansia High School alumni. We came back specifically to this district because this is the community we want to serve. However, both of us came from other fields. I was a zookeeper before I became a teacher. The reason I became a teacher was to pass on that information on
039how our students are active participants on their planet. My partner was supposed to be a medical student. And so when we look at the current situation with our pay and our raises as young teachers, we look at this pay proposal as something that is taking away hope. Because for my partner and I, we would like to stay in this community. And yet, even if we saved up a down payment, our payment would be $10,000 per month. And so, when you don't pay the teachers, even the cost of living increase, you take away a little bit of hope of what our future looks like here in Newport Mesa. I want to urge you to come back to the table because the future of your teaching staff is what is currently at stake because you have extremely
040skilled teachers who want to be here. But if you cannot make it liveable to stay here, that puts us in a very awkward position. How much are you asking your teachers to give and not compensating? We put in that emotional effort. We put in that time outside of school and for those 10 months those students become our kids because we currently don't have them, right? And so when you do not come to the table and look at how much you're paying your teachers, you are asking us to sacrifice that outside of school hope that we hold for ourselves and that dignity we hold for ourselves. So, please come back to the table, value your teachers, look at what their future looks like, and give us a little bit of hope. Thank you. [cheering] >> Thank
041[applause] you, Susan Bond. Yeah. >> Good evening. Susan Bond, teacher at Newport Harbor High School. I'm in my 30th year teaching here. I'm proud to be a teacher here. I was a product of these schools. I was grateful to the school district back then and the very inspiring teachers that I had that made me want to come back and be a teacher. I know several of my colleagues are also products of these schools. All of them. Okay. And um I love what I do. I know the other teachers. We love what we doing and we show up every day for these students. Um because we feel like it's a community and appreciate the community. And I've taught so I'm at Newport Harbor High School. I've taught history, government, economics. I'm currently teaching health, personal finance.
042Okay. In these classes, one of the things I try to do, which I think is the mission of this school district, is to try to help these students become productive members of society, right? Where they can learn to support themselves, go out, get a job, you know, pay for themselves, have their families, live their dreams, own their own homes, do all the things that we all want to do in this American dream. Okay? And as you may know, you know, that's getting tougher nowadays. All right. Um, we've been told that we've received a 20 and a half% increase in the past few years. Thank you. Thank you for that. Okay. Um, but meanwhile, the cost of living since the pandemic has gone up 27%. So 20% raise, but that's not our wages are decreasing. Okay?
043We're not keeping up with inflation. So then it's not technically like a raise if we can't even keep up with the inflation. It's very hard. I appreciate who just shared. Okay. She's a younger teacher. I'm a teacher that's been around a while. Um we want to keep working here. We really do because we care and it feels like um a family I'll tell you after all these years because we spend so much time at our job and we wouldn't stick around if we didn't care and didn't feel like it meant something. So when I ask my students, you know, go live your life, learn to take care of yourself, um but don't forget to take care of your community and remember to care about other people because it's not just you living self in this
044world. You're not just living on an island. You're living in a part of this community. Okay? And so I'm going to ask you to please remember, you know, to try to care about our community here and what can you do to help step up so that I, for example, you know, this past year had to ask my landlord. I'm no longer a homeowner. I was at one point, but I'm not. And so I pay rent and they wanted to raise the rent on me, but I asked them, "Please, >> thank you. >> Please don't." >> And thankfully they didn't. But who's to say they're not going to do that? >> Thank you so much. If you have more, you can always send us an email. Thank you. [applause] >> Next up, we have Scott Tarno.
045That's a tough one to follow. Good evening, esteemed members of the board and superintendent. I stand before you tonight in uh my capacity as a special education teacher, coach, and union representative, a position that grants me a wide and unique perspective on our district. I deeply respect the vital work of the district, and I know that our educators give everything that they have to provide the highest quality education and support systems for every child entrusted to us. Through my roles, I have witnessed firsthand the exceptional talent, profound dedication, and professional excellence of our teachers. However, dedication does alone does not pay the bills. Moving forward, I sincerely hope to see future negotiations characterized by increased collaboration and transparency rather than feeling divisive and financially heavy-handed. The objective is simple. We must elevate teacher salaries not
046merely to tread water against inflation but to provide a genuine meaningful raise. This is critical for two reasons. One, retention. Our current talented and dedicated teachers deserve the necessary financial stability to live adequately and thrive in this area. Two, recruitment. Competitive salaries are essential to attract the next generation of highly qualified educators to Newport Mesa, an area known for its incredible students and outstanding community. Finally, we must look at the facts. As a financially welloff basic aid district, we have the resources and the capacity to invest in our greatest asset, our people. It is difficult to accept that the only other basic aid district in our immediate area compensates their educators an average of $22,000 more a year. This gap is simply too large. I urge the board to recognize the immense talent we retain
047and the critical need to invest in a salary structure that reflects the true value of our educators. Thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. [applause] Next we have uh Ruth Kobayashi. And this next group of folks, you get two minutes and um 30 seconds because we um have our limit to uh 20 minutes per topic. >> Good evening. I'm Ruth Kobayashi. I'm parent of two NMUSD graduates and an ardent supporter of our school district. Tonight I address the troubling conduct of trustees Ashley Anderson, Michelle Murphy, and Leah Orsoyu at last month's board meeting and the pattern that it continues. During the October meeting, these three trustees did not sit at the DEAS for most of the meeting. They convene in a back room for nearly the entire session, an action that raised
048serious concerns under the Brown Acts open meeting requirements. They entered the meeting only after my agenda's comments about Trustee Anderson's September conduct and just after item 19 of the 24 items on the agenda. Rather than address the September incident with accountability, trustees Anderson, Murphy, and Orilu engaged in a coordinated display of disrespect toward the board, the staff, the public, and the students. This is the latest in a pattern that erodess public trust and obstructs sound decisionmaking for our children's education. Civility is the bare minimum we should expect in this room. I urge this board to formally denounce this as contrary to any code of conduct and certainly our district values. I call for meaningful consequences including mandatory training and decorum and brown act compliance, reduction of paid stipen for time missed at the meeting, formal
049censure of trustees Anderson, Murphy and our soilu. Our community deserves an entire board that models respect and focuses on education. Let's commit tonight to restoring the public's trust. Our students are watching. Let's show them leadership worth following. Thank you. >> Next up, we have Sarah Mooney. Hi, I wanted to thank everybody on the board for your service, especially Ashley Anderson. I know you've been under attack and I think that the comments made against you are just horrible. You've been such a great trustee and I hope that you continue in your position for a long time to come. >> Thank you. Next, we have Francine Howard. Thank you. I'd like to address um Ashley Anderson and the not alleged um crime that was committed. Um she did plead guilty to a hit and run. So these
050things are no longer alleged. A quick gro search will bring up everything that happened. And on that night where she fled the scene of a hidden run, the things that this other woman brought up seemed to be dovetailing, where integrity and uh civility and doing what is right has gone by the wayside. And that isn't a very big example of what we're talking about tonight. Um I do have a student who goes to a elementary school in Newport Mesa and all over the schools are plastered integrity, integrity, doing what is right. And we are um especially the board and uh Ms. Anderson represents the board inside and outside of this these walls on her as a profession she is known as a school board member. So when you say that we are not going to
051address this issue, you are saying that she being the face of the school board wherever she goes and in the community is not important. And it actually will um it's a shadow on all of you who do do the right thing to have a board member and I guess many who act in such a way that um people laugh and jeer and don't take seriously any longer. Maybe this is your intent to bring this down to such a low that there is no bar at the schools or out in our very small community. And that's a part of the problem. As I said, a quick search on the internet now brings up all these things and the students are very familiar with AI. So you've created a firestorm here by not addressing this three years
052ago and it seems to be have come home to roost at this time. >> Thank you. Next up we have Will O'Neal. >> Thank you, President Wagan. My name is Will O'Neal. I am a two-time mayor of Newport Beach and I'm used to public scrutiny and so I think that we ought to be engaging in the same here. What's come out in the last two weeks is that in this room on December 13th, 2022, Trustee Ashley Anderson was sworn back into the board and became president of the board that night. The meeting adjourned at approximately 8:24 p.m. And according to an email from the victim to this board and a police report from that night, approximately 90 minutes after the board adjourned, Ashley Anderson drove into a Costa Mesa intersection and broad-sighted a 20-year-old 21-year-old
053woman. According to the police report, Trusty Anderson then got into a gray Honda CRV driven by someone else and fled the scene. The Orange County District Attorney charged her and two years later she plead guilty to that hidden run. And if anything I just said is incorrect, I can tell you Trusty Anderson, I and many people would like to know. Frankly, the distur the information is disturbing and shocking when while I don't expect answers tonight, I think at least a few questions should be answered at some point by Trusty Anderson. Did Trusty Anderson drink alcohol after that meeting before her hit and run? And if so, were any of her colleagues, or was any NMUSD staff there to witness it? Who picked up Trustee Anderson and took her away from that hit and run? And
054was Anderson over the uh legal limit for blood alcohol content when she engaged in the hit and run? Now, I am also the chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County, and there may be some that say that my call for your resignation is partisan, but we all know you're neither Republican nor Democrat. You are instead unfit to serve, and I hope you resign. Thank you. >> Next up, Steve Smith. >> Hi there. My name is uh Steve Smith. I'm a uh resident of Costa Mesa. Uh I'm not here to talk about uh Trustee Anderson's December 2022 hit and run. That's between her, the victim, and the courts. I'm here because the district lied to the public about it. NMUSD acknowledged receiving an email about this incident and in the most blatant manner flatly stated
055this communication did not exist. This institution has a duty to students, to parents, and to taxpayers, not to block and tackle for board me for a member who has fallen a foul of the law. The act of concealing this represents an indictment on the character of our trustee and the staff. It would have been easier to tell the truth. This institution needs to explain why it stonewalled multiple public records requests and made demonstrabably false representations to the public about it. Thank you. >> Next up, Bill Dunlap. >> [snorts] >> Thank you, board and uh Superintendent Smith. Good to see you all. I didn't dress in the really outrageous jacket tonight. I thought I'd keep it calm. Uh but anyway, I'm speaking on the uh Ashley Anderson event. Uh the function and duty for an appointed
056or elected public [snorts] official is to act responsibly, honestly, and with transparency. Public officials are held to a higher standard. We all know that. We know that people need to step up to the plate knowing they're under the public eye. Your ethics, integrity, and moral character are in the public spotlight. This is why only a few survive the rigors of public office. Alex Dtoqueville who studied America and wrote about it in his famous book democracy in America said America is a country uh different for the people have a keen understanding of truth and morality. He also said of the great leaders of the world Napoleon was outstanding but he lacked virtue. [snorts] Our character is composed of our actions and habits. Unfortunately, Ashley, your past actions have demonstrated a serious character flaw. But as a
057woman of faith, you know the remedy and you can be forgiven. But this will require that you step down from the board. to the rest of the board. Maybe absent board member Mroy and Superintendent Smith, you are aware, if you were aware of this egregious event and did not disclose it, you have caused serious damage to the public and their trust in you. You all have taken an oath. that oath last sentence ends with and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I'm about to enter. The question is has that taken place? >> Next up, Wendy Lee. [applause] Good evening, uh, Superintendent Smith and President Wan. My name is Wendy Lee. Um, I feel an obligation tonight to come back here, uh, to speak. I was here when there was the
058groundbreaking and I served here from 94 to02 as trustee in area in zone 7, which Miss Anderson serves in. Uh, and that's why I'm here. I'm concerned that Trusty Anderson's hit and run accident nearly three years ago is not being taken seriously by you. It and to walk away from an accident and to have somebody deliver her wherever she went and not stay there and deal with the consequences is is wrong. It's unethical. And you are all responsible for holding her accountable. Did you ask her um have you helped restore her in the last few years? In other words, in a close session because it is a personnel matter. She does work for the district. Um do you think that her actions by leaving the scene of inaction represent a good role model for our
059students? Absolutely not. There was a I read briefly that there was a young man um on the way to school today on a hit and run in Dana Point and um it's not good behavior in this school district. It's not easy for me to come here tonight because um I've known Ashley for about 40 years. We used to walk a lot in Canyon Park and talk about how we could improve education in zone 7. and I know that she's done a good job getting facilitators for the schools and also the the um theater and preserving the trees. But um it's time that she resigns and for the good of the district so that we don't waste any more time on this that we get on with educating the children and um using our tax dollars
060wisely. There should be no exception for her to stay. there should be no excuse for her to stay for her own well-being that she should resign and apologize for the the turmoil that h has caused. Um I come here, you know, in the spirit of a Bible verse. It's Galatians 6:1. If anyone is overtaken in a fault, we are to restore such a one in a spirit of meekness, considering ourselves vest lest we also be tempted. And have you worked this in this time that it was covered up to restore her? >> Uh Craig Holidayiday. [applause] >> Hi. Thank you. Um first of all, uh I was a teacher, but I couldn't hack it. So I know what you guys are going through. It's a tough business, and I I hope you can come to
061a resolution. Um, I came here because of the Ashley Anderson issue. I read about it on Substack, actually called the attorney, who's uh, Ivy League educated to to verify it. And, um, you know, I don't like a lot of political sayings, but silence is violence, I think, applies here. You know, if you guys don't get together and investigate this and write a report, uh, it really condemns your authority. you you need to do that. I mean, they've already shown you all the facts, a hit and run, leaving the scene, a prior DUIs based on the articles in Substack. Um, the part, you know, it happened right after she apparently was with all of you at uh after being sworn in and then serving as president after the fact. If this were a high school team
062and somebody acted that way, you take the ball away from them. You'd bench them. You don't make him the the team captain. She became president. So you guys have to do your job because if you are silent, you're you're perpetuating violence. Someone could have died in that accident. It's right there on Placentia Victoria. So you need to come out and write a thorough report and let the people know. Otherwise, your legitimacy is is is seriously undermined. there there's been public requests for records and everything I read from this attorney shows that there's some kind of cover up. I don't know why. You know, when somebody sends records to a a public entity, they become part of the public record and the victim who was involved [snorts] in the accident contacted several board members. So, those
063emails are public record, but yet somebody from representing I don't know who your law firm is. Uh, I don't think they did a good job. Um, said that they don't have to disclose those things, but they're they're wrong. If anyone looks up the law, I am a lawyer. I don't do I don't do this type of law, but it's pretty easy to figure out. Someone needs to do a thorough report and let the public know what happened. and Ashley, maybe it's time you take a a a break and and work on your personal life. Thank you. >> Next up, superintendent comments. >> Let me first um apologize for the difficulty maybe hearing me, although to some of you that might be welcomed. Um, I'm wearing a mask tonight, not for political reasons, but because I
064have the cold or flu and we have imunomp compromised people on the board, uh, and perhaps in the audience. So, apologies for the way I sound uh, but because I care about the folks next to me, uh, I'm going to sound like this for tonight. Um, I I'll start with the the last set of comments and just say that there seems to be two items. And the first confusion around the district's role responsibility. Um it was stated by President Wan that it's not in the board's jurisdiction or purview. Um can't sweep something under the rug that isn't yours. Um she is not an employee of the district by the way. Trustees are not employees of the district. That's also inaccurate. Um they are elected officials um not part of um a high school team as
065the analogy went. So there are different rules, protocols. There is no place for reporter investigation for a school board when a matter is not in their jurisdiction. Um, so I just want to clarify that point. As far as the public records go, the the district does work with attorneys to respond to all public records requests. Um, and we do so uh with integrity. And if there's a challenge to that, there's a process for that. So we welcome we welcome that conversation as well. on on the first one. You know, I'm going to use words that people will say, "Well, that's easy for you to say that, but show us. Don't just use words." Well, and that's fine. Um I I value your opinion and and and certainly um you have your right to it. Uh
066I I respect that uh our uh employees in the district and working their tails off postco to turn around those test scores. I stood at the state of the schools recently and celebrated those very things. I have not been silent on giving folks credit for that, nor has this school board. Uh we're very very proud um and respect the efforts of of our employees. They do work hard. These are incredibly tough jobs. As I said, my dad was a teacher and you've heard me say for almost 40 years. Um so I got to see it. Um I've been a teacher for a time in my life. I I get it. Okay. Tough jobs. Respect their work. Respect their right to rally, right? and to say that they want more. Respect that wanting more, right? Value
067people who want more. Um I respect that their leaders advocate for them. Um a real strength in leadership. There's advocacy on behalf of their members and certainly respect and and value that. I I struggle and it's probably just a difference of opinion. So I'll just put this out there. I struggle with some of the characterizations and so that's part of the clarification I'd like to make on behalf of the board. We talk about colo like it's an automatic pass through to salary and we all know in the state of California that's not accurate. It's for the overall increase of costs for goods and services of those institutions. And certainly one of those costs is for the employees, their salaries, their health, welfare benefits, all those things that cost money. And usually that's important to explain
068in in other districts because a district rarely gets a total compensation package. And for our folks in the audience, that's, you know, anything that costs money, the agree to increase, that's total compensation, right? It's a dollar or a $100. It all goes together and $101 total compensation. And in other districts, they never get to that cola, right? I don't really feel like we have to overexlain that here because when we look at our salaries over the last four years. I think that was a reference and the increased cost of health and welfare that the district picked up that the district covered and step and column which we never put out there because we're not trying to beat people over the head with that. It it exceeds that cola. So it seems like that's probably not
069the un or that's not fair comparison, right? Again, I respect saying, you know, we want more. Also, when people say we deserve more, I'm not going to argue with any educator in the state of California that says they deserve more. Nor nor anyone in the sport. We should pay our educators like we pay um our musicians and the people at concerts and the people uh on the athletic fields and professional sports. we should value in our society. Those folks, I'm not saying anything about deserving. Won't get an argument. But as we look here at this suggestion that the district is trying to take things away from people, I just want to make sure that we're clear that the last time the district went to impass, um, we followed the same process. So, we've been consistent.
070We have a contract that we value. We're honoring that contract until we have a new contract, right? And for folks that think that that's heavy-handed or um we're trying to hold something against someone, I just would point out what's public knowledge. Uh and that's an elective bargaining agreement with CSEA. I mean, there's clear language, contingency language that says because the economy could be better. There's some labor leaders in the district. We have friendly conversations about where that's going to land and it may land higher than we think it's going to land. And for that reason, we've said in contingency language that we agree to with CSEA that if it comes in higher than expected by a percent, then we'll come back to the table and we'll give you more, right? We'll talk about where we
071land on that. And so folks didn't have to have something taken out and could still have looked for more to come from our property taxes. And I I I hope folks are right. I hope we're wrong. It'd be great if we had that challenge of let's talk about doing more. And this notion of of fair um I I guess it depends on who you're asking, right? When I hear words like most other districts, I struggle with that because I talk to most other districts as well and I don't see them doing better than we're doing. What I see is over the last four years, the number is out there, right? But more importantly, we've gone from fifth to second in Orange County. And I know I've been told by my my labor allies and friends,
072don't brag about second. I'm not bragging about second. I'm bragging about not being in fifth, right? And working closer to being in first. And you look at the context of this year and say that most others that's just not accurate in Orange County, right? For the districts that have settled two on salary for the district that was quoted over and over again tonight. That's what they did. Two ongoing on salary, right? Another district in our county 1% and one off. The only other one to settle 2.3 in a two-year deal. Last year they got about a percent. We got seven. So, we take these things in context and the district believes that these are fair. If people believe they aren't, well, then we'll continue to have these conversations. The thing that we do guarantee is
073that we will get back together. We're now scheduled for impass. It's an interesting conversation about why we're there. What I know is that both parties have signed an agreement October 24th saying we mutually declare impass. So, we're mutually going and the district's been there before. We're hopeful that we work this out. We're hopeful that we get to a solution um where folks feel valued, where they feel safe, where they feel seen and supported. And that's our that's our commitment and that's what we hope to do soon. Hopefully they can schedule that really soon and we can get after it because we don't want people and their lives to be disrupted and we'd like for them if they don't want to be here on a Tuesday night to be with their families. So doing something other
074than rallying. And so we're committed to getting together when that's scheduled and trying to do the right thing by the district, our students, and our employees. Thank you. Next up, community input and agendaized items. Do we have any? Seeing none, we'll move on to number 17, achievement report on elementary literacy assessment and intervention. Assistant superintendent, sir. Assistant Superintendent Shield. Yes. So, um, uh, thank you very much, President Wagan. Uh, tonight we'll be sharing an overview of our district's elementary literacy assessment and intervention systems with a focus on how these structures support strong reading outcomes for all students. This presentation will highlight our core instructional practices, the tools we use to measure growth, and the ways we respond when students need additional support. Together, these elements illustrate how we are strengthening literacy through our aligned instruction,
075datadriven decision-making, and strong intervention systems. Learning to read is a critical instructional priority. And here with us tonight is Dr. Lori Hernandez to share with us the work that is happening in our district. >> Good evening, President Wan, board members, Dr. Smith, staff, and guests. I'm here again to talk about my favorite topic, elementary literacy. Um we have some updates for you tonight. But uh again, we are still working on improving academic achievement. So that's um still something that we're always going to continue to focus on is that board goal. So that's what the presentation is about tonight. So starting with Scarboro's rope, which is something we've shown you in presentations before about literacy. How does a child become a skilled reader? So there's two parts to becoming a skilled reader. one is word recognition
076which is phonics um decoding letters make sounds they come together to make words but then also beyond that is comprehension so uh it's not just enough to be able to decode a word but there's also a lot to understanding text in Newport Mesa we have been working on improvements on in core instruction assessment systems and intervention and so what I'm going to share with you tonight is some updates um to those three cuz I know I've I've presented on these before, but we're continuing to improve. So, first to define the terms when we say core instruction, what we're referring to is that instructional block when all students are taught using our district adopted materials. So, when we say our core reading instruction, there's a time of day when we're using our core materials, all students
077would be in the class for their what we would call their first best instruction. And when you hear the term like an uninterrupted core block, what we mean by that is we mean we want all children in the class in the room during that core instruction, during that heity phonics lesson. We don't want a child leaving for intervention or um speech services or other types of programming. We want all students in there to get their first best instruction. And then with assessment systems, so we use assessments in a lot of different ways. Tonight I'm going to tell you about some updates to literacy assessment. But we screen students, we progress monitor them, we look at summitive data, we evaluate our programs, we look at individual students. So there are a lot of ways we use
078uh literacy assessments. And then with intervention, when a child has had their first best instruction and they are not mastering it once they've had, you know, some really quality instruction with maybe some reteing, then we would look at intervention. And we do have in place systems because it should be really part of a bigger system so that no matter what school you're in, there's there's criteria that puts you into an intervention program and we have uh instructional materials that are consistent for those intervention programs. So strong core literacy instruction these are the this is the curriculum you would see. So in TK2 we use bridge to reading with for uh phmic awareness and phonics and then we use wonders which addresses all the other areas of literacy and then in 36 it's just wonders and
079that's considered the language arts curriculum but as I shared before vocabulary knowledge background knowledge language all of those things also contribute to literacy. So literacy is actually also taught through the content areas. So we've recently adopted new materials for science and social studies and we are encouraging teachers to use those highqualityformational texts because um background knowledge and vocabulary are extremely important. So we don't just want everyone sticking in phonics and in their wonders. We actually want children to weed read widely across all content areas. And so it's important um to understand that literacy is also taught through all the content areas with our assessment systems. Uh assessment is something that we have to also consider the developmental levels of students. We wouldn't give the CASP to a first grader. We wouldn't give even star reading
080to a first grader necessarily or a kindergartener that hasn't mastered decoding yet. So in each grade span we have specific literacy assessments that we use and they're they're assessing specific elements of literacy. So tonight I'm going to talk about dibbles and our transition to dibbles. That's new for us this year. So you'll hear more about that. Star reading is something that's been around for a lot of years and I'm sure you've heard of that. But we'll talk about some different ways we're using it now. And then of course uh the CASP which I'm not going to address tonight but I know we heard about that at the last meeting. So I'm going to compare Aadian to Dibbles. So we used to use an assessment called Aadians. This district used it for many many years. And
081so Dibbles is has a lot of the same measures. A Cadence was a version of Dibbles as I shared when I presented to you um at the end of last year. You adopted Dibbles as your official literacy screener for the district, but we we use it in a lot of ways. And so many of the measures are the same. um oral reading fluency, phone segmentation, the maze, which is a comprehension um measure. Those are all exactly the same from acadens to dibbles. So, what's different, what you'll see now is that in dibbles, there's only one oral reading passage instead of three, which makes it a lot more efficient to administer. Um it doesn't give first sound fluency, and that's because uh phone segmentation fluency can assess the same things. And so it they determined that
082that was not a necessary measure. The biggest difference is that instead of paper pencil booklets, it's now a digital platform. So the children still have paper in front of them and they're reading off of of a piece of paper, but the adult has either a computer or an iPad and they're scoring in real time. So that makes it so much better for us in the long run because previously they would give the test in a little booklet and then the teacher would have to sit down at the computer and enter all that data into the system. Now it's all one event. They they give it in real time. The data are right there in real time. And then there is a real word reading measure in Dibbles. In Acadians it was only the nonsense words
083and in Dibbles there's real word reading and uh nonsense word reading. So, it's an updated version and and we're really happy with it so far. Something else that's new and improved with the cadence, there were there was really no kind of parent report that would help parents understand the assessment. And in Dibbles, we have some really nice parent reports. Um, this is an area that we have some development to do as far as training teachers and use of the reports. We're just learning ourselves how to get those and they're in English and in Spanish and then we will work on getting a version in Russian as well for those families. And so it it does explain each of the measures for families. Um and so we feel like that's a really big plus to the
084system. One of the downsides of transitioning from a cadence to Dibbles would be a lot of the measures, you know, if you think of the composite score, we can't necessarily take our composite score from a cadence, take our composite score from dibbles. It's not going to be an exact match as far as understanding year-over-year growth, but some of the measures are identical. So we've looked at some of those individual measures. So for example um correct letter sound which is a phonics measure the nonsense word measure. Um if we look at the percent meeting benchmark at the start of grade two you can see that we have been on a trajectory of improvement. And so we are really happy to say that 76% of our kids are entering second grade with really strong phonics skills intact.
085Um that's a huge success for us. That means in second grade those kids are ready to be to be readers. Something exciting is that because this platform is used all across the country, we can actually compare our students to about two million kids across the country. So when we break down different measures, this is actually the composite of K2. So the total score for K2, we are 18% higher than the country um when we com when we're comparing ourselves. And so that's pretty cool that we can actually look at the whole country and just see where we stand. Just kind of a fun thing. So in phone segmentation in grade one you see that NMUSD we have 71% of our first graders meeting standard on that measure compared to only 57% nationally. Nonsense word fluency
086um 67% compared to nationally 50. That's all of um all grades. And then grade 2 oral reading fluency 71% meeting or exceeding which is extremely high and and we're really proud of that compared to the national average which is 53%. So we're pretty excited to just have that capability in the system. Um shifting to star. So once kids actually are comprehend comprehenders once they're able to read independently at a certain level of fluency then we start using star reading. So we start this measure in second grade and we use it for three different purposes. So we it is a universal screener. So we screen all of the kids at the start of the year. It establishes their independent reading level which is useful for knowing you know which AR books they should check out, what
087their independent capability is. It also gives us a starting point to measure growth. We use it as a benchmark which is predictive to CASP. So that'll tell us if they are meeting the reading standards and it's computer adaptive. So it really does do a good job of pinpointing their achievement level. And then for progress monitoring, so teachers give it throughout the year to to really determine if students are making growth or not. And so we are using it in a variety of ways, the same tool. So with benchmarking, this is an just an example. You've seen these reports before. We've reported star rating before. So, we can look at percentages meeting and exceeding and we can track that through the year. But something that you may not know is when we use it to progress
088monitor, it gives us all kinds of really exciting reports. So, what you're looking at here, each of those little circles represents a school. Um, if you were in the system, you could hover over and see the schools and drill down, but each of those represents a school. So from beginning of year to the midfall checkpoint, that shows you that the within the green lines would be the expected amount of growth kids would make from beginning of year to the mid-fall checkpoint. And you can see that all every single one of our schools is actually on or above that midline in the middle of typical growth. So really anything in the green would be good. That would be the adequate, you know, amount of growth we would want to see. And so you see that even
089some of our schools are across the green line on the right, meaning they're making more than typical growth. None of our schools are in the low growth range. This report is pretty neat and actually principles can get it for their school and drill down all the way to to look at which individual students are not making growth. Um, and it also has so it it has growth and achievement. So it's kind of a two-way. So the schools at the top, the bubbles at the top are high achieving and then to the right would be high growth. So they can do that drill down all the way to the student. Teachers can look at their class on this kind of a grid to really pinpoint who isn't making the adequate amount of growth. So that's an
090example of how we would use it as a progress monitoring tool. And then what do we do when we have students that are not making adequate growth? So this triangle is a pretty commonly used image to represent the tiers of instruction. So tier one is what I mentioned that first best core instruction. Tier 2 would be for some students that maybe are not making the growth we want them to make and it can be short-term, it can be more long-term, but it is in addition to tier one. So we never want a child to be missing their core reading instruction to go get help from an intervention teacher. That creates a Swiss cheese effect, right? because they're missing that daily lesson. So, they might be going to get help with the long a sound, but
091that day in class, the long e sound is being taught and they're going to miss it. And then they're going to need more intervention to make up for that. So, we really have to make sure that all students are present for that first best teaching. And then intervention in the early grades with phonics and and phmic awareness should be very closely tied to the instruction. So whatever has been taught over that last month, we're scooping kids that aren't making it and we're intervening as early as possible before it becomes more and more, you know, holes in the skill set. So that that's what intervention looks like in K2. And some of the shifts we're making in intervention is what I just mentioned that tier 2 instruction is happening at a different time than the tier
092one. The only way that works is if you have a coordinated master schedule at the elementary level. And that's something that we've really been working on is having a coordinated system at each school. So that and some schools call it something fun like you know swimming sharks or walk to learn or they call it tier 2 or they call it the win block. Win stands for what I need. A lot of schools call it that. So they have whatever name they have for it. But what that means is that's a designated block of time when the grade level gives each child what they need. So that's a great time to even do acceleration for kids that need more. That's a great time to have a child you maybe go get services from a speech teacher,
093go to a phonics intervention. So it's it really is designed to um be using the data to be constantly moving kids into whatever they need for that block of time. So we are working toward having these systems in place so that it's a coordinated schedule so that it we make sure that kids are in the core instruction as much as possible. And then with K1, one of the shifts is that the scope and sequence, as I mentioned, should match the core instruction. It should be very closely tied. We we are not really um putting kids in K1 in a separate program like we're not going to maybe they're struggling in, you know, to master their weekly phonics and then we might take them maybe in the past we took kindergarteners and put them into like
094SIPs program. SIPS is a great program, but we've shifted it for K1 to be really closely tied to the scope and sequence because there's no reason to intervene in a program that might introduce a certain sound pattern sooner than they've been introduced in core. So, it's important to have a very coordinated scope and sequence with phonics. And so, that's one of the shifts that we've made. And then starting in second grade, we might use alternate programs to really um because they might be missing some skills from kindergarten, some skills from first grade. So, you know, the older they get, we try to catch them as early as possible, but in cases they make it to grade two and above without some of those um basic word recognition skills intact, then we would put them in
095a very intensive kind of separate curriculum um to try a different approach. And then a shift in reading comprehension and language intervention is the use of onle and above level readers instead of lowering the text level. So, in the past, you might have seen where maybe upper graders that have phonics skills intact but struggle in comprehension would be given a lower level of the text. And there were all kinds of these programs and um tools online to lower text level. But the the newest approach really is about exposing them to the on level and teaching them how to tackle it. So, the the analogy is that you can't climb a mountain if you only practice on hills. And so that is really um a shift that you know we are working toward and not everyone
096maybe even agrees with right because you know practices that have been around a lot of years um you know tend to be harder to shift but we are starting to remove those lower level readers buy more of the onle and above level so that when you're working in a small group you should really be teaching kids how to break down the complex text because if they stay if they're a fifth grader and they're staying in third grade level text all year and then they sit down to take the CASP, they have no confidence. They have no strategies. So really, it's scaffolding is far more appropriate and impactful than lowering the text level. So that is a shift that we are working toward. We've provided training for our support teachers. Um we are shifting some of
097those uh intervention practices. So I wanted to spotlight one school that's doing a great job. Um so this is second grade at College Park. So during their win time, I happen to walk in on this and these are two second grade teachers at College Park and they are um they actually have the onle and above level kids um that are you know at grade level maybe have a reading level higher and what they're doing is they're sitting there with leveled readers but the above level readers and the kids are reading the text and creating a map and they're going to write from it. So the even the kids that are on and above level are getting some small group targeted instruction while some kids and this is second grade. So some kids are in a
098phonics intervention. Some kids might be in like a fluency group so that the other kids are with other teachers the reading support teachers a part-time support teacher and they are actually also doing a small group. So instead of maybe the whole class doing independent work while some kids are going out to a reading teacher, everyone is getting some targeted uh instruction. So, I thought it was a great a great example of what we are um putting into place at many of our schools right now. Any questions? >> Trusty Mroy. >> Um I have a question. >> Um what literacy support um and reading intervention is provided for upper grades? >> Yeah, that's a great question. So, one of the things that we're doing is you can tell, I mean, if you just look at our
099data, our our phonics and our early literacy work is working, right? So, we're getting them to second grade as readers. The hardest thing to do next is turn in second and third grade and really turn to comprehension and writing and the higher level skills. And so that's um so in upper grade we want to see more of exactly what I showed you the picture of like really working in small groups helping kids tackle more complex text and only intervening on for students that have like the skill gaps from K2. So in in our upper grades you will see a phonics intervention group because there are some kids that still need to work at that part of reading and we're not going to give up on them. So that's where you'll see a a replacement program
100like a SIP and a small group and you'll see a reading teacher working with those kids. But for anyone that can decode independently at about 60 or 70 words a minute once they have their phonics skills intact, we want to push them up. We want to sit with them with a complex text with writing. So, we're shifting more toward more toward less intervening for kids that are that have those skills. Um, and really building their confidence with more advanced tasks and then really just intervening for the kids that really need it and not over intervening. >> Great. Thank you, Trusty Pearson. >> Thank you. This is amazing and fantastic. And I mean I'm we're just all all shaking our heads. Yes. On these on the shifts. I mean, especially I mean when our kids were
101in school, they were pulled during that core time. Um they didn't stay at grade level. So this to me is just amazing and fantastic. When did these shifts go into place? Is that >> Yeah. So um I we have been working with our principles. So a big part of it is the master scheduling. So it it's taken some time. we've had to really adjust the specialist like the the music and all the specialist schedules and um work on making sure um so not pulling kids out of core that's happening now to the level of like these wind blocks and like what I you saw at the college park most of our sites have that in in a majority of grade levels um and then in kinder first you might see something where it's like center
102time and teachers are coming into the classroom as part of like a center rotation so it it might look a a little different at everywhere, but we really are um we really are not pulling kids out of core anymore and and you see the results in our in our reading results for for early literacy. So, yeah. >> And do you feel like you have enough of the supplies and the curriculum that you need to keep this program going? >> Yeah. And we're we we will fulfill it where we need it. Right. So, like if a site calls and says like we like we've when we made this shift with the leveled readers, we had a lot of sites call us. they needed more onle readers. Great, we will order you more. So, we are we
103are working to um fulfill any needs that our sites have, but you know, our sites are very well resourced. They have everything they need. We've even had um with Bridge to Reading, they don't because you know, we were early adopters of that phonics program, our TOSAs created, one of our TOSAs actually worked really hard to create some lessons that go along with it. So if you taught, you know, this week's phonics skill and the kids didn't get it, she made small groupoup lessons so that we could respond right away. So when we can't when we don't have anything or we can't find anything, we make it. We're we're trying to uh make sure that we, you know, fill any gap that exists. >> Thank you, >> Trusty Anderson. >> Thank you. That's exciting to hear
104about the leveled readers. I know that was one of the top um requested items for the Newport Mesa Schools Foundation. It was one of the most common requests. So, I appreciate that we're now providing that. Um, I had a question about how we are ensuring the strong core instruction time along with the calendar, but how do we ensure that that every site is doing that to fidelity? >> So, we have um collected schedules from our principles. Um, you know, our assistant superintendents are very supportive with that. Um, we walk through classrooms, we go and and we see it with our own eyes. And I can tell you, you know, I've walked through several of the schools already this year and observed the instruction and and it is happening. So, and when we see that maybe
105something's off, you know, we ask those questions, we coach those teachers. We have uh teachers on special assignment um from the teaching and learning department that are going in when we find a teacher that's maybe having a hard time with their core. We go in, we provide demo lessons, we figure out what the barrier is, we figure out what is needed. But with the scheduling, we don't we're not really, you know, the principles all believe in it. We all want our kids, especially in the early grades with reading, we don't want that ever to be skipped. So, um I think you know it's just it's been like a real whole department effort with principles and and everyone on board. >> Awesome. Thank you. Yeah, it seems to be making a huge difference. >> Um I
106also wanted to know um for the assessments how we're measuring the growth particularly with um the variety of different techniques that we use based on grade. How are we explaining that to parents? >> That is definitely an area that um now with Dibbles having those reports and all of this kind of stuff. We're working on some like data tools to use with parents um to roll out for like parent teacher conferences. The the reports that we get out of dibbles definitely help that conversation. Um I think it kind of varies, you know, if I'm being honest, right? like every teacher has their own data they're they're using with parents, their own things. But I think that we're doing a little bit better job now that we have these reports. We had our support teachers print
107the reports for the classroom teachers before their conferences and help them get ready. Um and you know, it's always going to be a work in progress. Um you know, we get feedback from parents too with when parents ask us questions about the data, then it tells us like, okay, maybe we need to make some some information on that assessment. Um, Star Reading also has some parent tools that they can use and so yeah, >> thank you. I was just wondering um perhaps Dr. West, Dr. Smith, if we could have a training for some of our parents to understand that, how to interpret those. I had some parents reach out this week that they got their report cards and they're just used to, you know, 20 years ago and that's kind of the number one level
108setter and so they don't know what dimples is. they don't know how to interpret it. And so, particularly before, you know, too much time goes by and we're waiting for conferences, I just think it could be helpful to do a training for parents. So, we really break that down, particularly in Spanish. >> We can always consider ways to better inform and engage our parents. >> Yeah. Thank you. >> Absolutely. >> Thank you. This is awesome to see and to see the progress and um you know having 71% of our students or well let's say all grades 67% of our students meet or exceed that that's huge. Um and as we continue to roll this out and the teachers get better trained I'm sure that these numbers are only going to grow. Uh so I want
109to say thank you for all the focus on that. Thank you for um doing this with um with the with all of the teachers um and and doing all the wind time. I know that that has been um really successful with not only getting our folks that need to need to come up to grade level but even those that can achieve even more. So appreciate all the hard work. It's really great. So thank you. >> All right. Oh, wait. We had one more question. Excuse me. Trusty Crane came in late. >> Excellent presentation. Um I also wanted to just uh comment as a former educator I would have done anything to to get scoring in real time. Mhm. >> I mean that's you can make a difference that same day, that same hour, that same
110It's just fantastic to have that data so you can pivot in the classroom and catch uh someone who's needs to go further or someone who could use more intervention and I just love the fact that it's also it's computer adaptive. >> It's fantastic. Good job. >> Yeah, we have great system. So, thank you to the board for uh supporting our staff with the adoption of Dibbles because it has really been a successful roll out. >> Great. Thank you guys. Thank you so much. Great work. >> Okay. Um moving on to the consent calendar. Um do I have a motion? >> Oh, I uh quick quickly uh I have to recuse myself from voting on the consent calendar because I have a conflict with 18 uh B6. Otherwise, so I have a motion. 18 B6. >>
111Yes. >> So move. >> Second. Moved by Trusty Pearson, seconded by Trusty uh Murphy. >> I have a question. >> Yes. Question. Trusty Anderson. >> Um I just wanted to highlight um we have items D 6 through 10. Um, we have five items about renewing the contracts for the residential treatment centers, the RTC's, um, that are often out of state. Um, and I I know we have to, um, approve them. I know we need to, if someone has an IEP, send them there. And I just wanted to highlight um, the cost of some of these are quite high. And so just in the um you know desire to be more fiscally responsible, I just wanted to make sure that we are highlighting to staff other alternatives like um more local um places that offer the
112same services and perhaps other techniques and newer ways of doing that. Thank you. >> Okay, any other comments? Otherwise, we'll go to roll call vote. Okay, Sam. Roll call vote, please. >> Trusty Soilu, >> yes. >> Trusty Murphy, >> yes. >> Trusty Pearson, >> yes. >> Trusty Anderson, >> yes. >> Trusty Mroy, >> yes. >> Trusty Crane, >> yes. >> Motion carries 60. Okay. Number 19, discussion action calendar 19A, approve the 2026 CSBA delegate assembly nomination. Dr. Smith. The California School Boards Association has delegates who meet and govern on their behalf. So, it's a bunch of governors governing at the state level and uh Trusty Crane has um been nominated for that. And so, that's the item in front of you tonight >> to >> I >> Yes. >> Do you want me to nominate
113Carol? Can I nominate her? >> Yes, >> I would love to nominate Carol. [laughter] Okay. Do I have a So you that is the first. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Okay. Moved by Trusty Pearson, seconded by Trusty Murphy. Questions, comments. >> Thank you for your service. Yeah. Thank you for your service. All right. Roll call vote. Student board member Roselyn Ruiz. >> Yes. >> Trusty Wagan. >> Yes. >> Trusty. >> Yes. Trusty Murphy, >> yes. >> Trusty Pearson, >> yes. >> Trusty Anderson, >> yes. >> Trusty Mroy, >> yes. >> Trusty Crane, >> yes. >> Motion passes 70. 19B, first reading and adoption of modifications to to board policy. Dr. Smith. >> Yeah. I'm going to pass this off to Deputy Superintendent Dr. Torres. Um because she staffs the board uh in
114their policy committee and because she's not wearing a mask tonight. [laughter] Yes, you can hear me better this evening. And good evening, trustees. And yes, in front of you, you have um three policies, three board policies that are coming to you tonight. Um as a result of the uh subcommittee, the board policy subcommittee meeting and evaluating these three policies. Um Mahmud v. Taylor uh was uh passed in June of 2025 Supreme Court ruling and as a result there are some modifications to policies we've had to make. Those are in front of you tonight. You have three sexual health and aids, recognition of religious beliefs and customs and comprehensive health education. Um the takeaway here is to ensure that the public is aware that the opt out policies are clearly stated in each of the policies.
115they're consistent and aligned. Um so that parents who opt out and choose out of those um have the ability to do so. >> Yes, Dr. Smith. >> Just to point of order, we uploaded the wrong document for the board and the public. We've corrected that tonight. You have the correct document there and we've made copies available to the public so they [clears throat] have that just to be clear. >> Okay, great. Uh, Trusty Crane, >> Dr. Smith, all three of these. >> No, no. >> Or just the first. Okay. >> Only one was was submitted to them. >> Okay. >> Because the staff the wrong one >> and that's 6142.1. >> Okay. Thank you. [clears throat] >> Do I have a motion? We'll do a motion in a second. Then we could have some more
116questions or comments if needed. >> So, >> okay. Moved by Trusty Ursulu. >> Seconded by Trusty Crane. Questions, comments. >> Um, Trusty Crane. >> So, the these uh these blue lined um these the Okay, so we redlined and then we added the blue, right? And this is all CSBA um suggested and recommended. >> Um yes. So we start as a starting point with the CSBA recommended language and then we modify that language for um with our committee uh to make sure that the language is um something that Newport Mesa is comfortable with. >> Okay. And then and then as a result you you will once we were to approve this would that be a final draft tonight or is it a second reading? No, that that is the we have a first and an adoption
117tonight. >> Okay. And then lastly, this is that when you then update the ARS, >> correct? >> Okay. >> Yes. This is our first step towards that and then we go back as a policy team um with cabinet and we update the ARs >> because that's a big job. >> Okay. Any other questions, comments? You're ready to vote? Okay. >> Sam, roll call vote. >> Student board member Rossyn Ruiz, >> yes. >> Trusty Wagan, >> yes. >> Trusty Soil, >> yes. >> Trusty Murphy, >> yes. >> Trusty Pearson, >> yes. >> Trusty Anderson, >> yes. >> Trusty Mroy, >> yes. >> Trusty Crane, >> yes. >> Right. Motion carries 70. Okay. Um, now going on to informal reports. Number 20. Superintendent Smith. sort of limit it to one um update tonight. We had last week
118very very successful strategic planning days one and two. We brought in over 150 um constituents into a room um to really reimagine Newport Mesa Unified for um our foreseeable future and beyond hopefully um to come up with a portrait of a graduate identifying what students need to know and be able to do for a world and careers that haven't even been imagined quite honestly. Um we got a lot of great feedback. people identified that was in their minds the first time something of that scope had been done like that in the district. Um we also got comments that it was a very very diverse representation in the room. What I mean by that is from different constituent groups, community members, staff members, from different demographics, points of view, sides of town. Um it was a
119melting pot. Um and again we were complimented for that. We're excited to see how the um folks bring that back to us, our consultants, and share the ahas for the board. The next step will be the board to look at this feedback and then decide, okay, is this tracking uh our reimagining our vision moving forward and we intend to do that next step on December 10th at our workshop where we'll also talk about bike safety. So, two uh softball topics to discuss on December 10th. Great. Thank you. Um I'm going to start with um Trustee Crane and if you want to keep it to a uh committee member meeting and um some great um events you've been to. Okay. So I had the pleasure of attending the Back Bay High School Halloween party uh on
120the 31st because Halloween was on a Friday and it was such um a wonderful experience. Every time I walk onto the uh Backbay campus and I want to refer to the Backbay student who was here tonight, our student board member, you know, she lo you could tell she loves her school and no one could say it better than a student. But you know, when an adult walks in and feels it as well, that's just doubling down on that. And I I it was such a wonderful experience. The kids were having fun. The teachers were playing musical chairs. Even um principal principal Scott Majure also was trying to fight for those last seats and um it's just nice seeing them all just kind of interact and have a wonderful time. And then as far as a
121a committee because I'm going to stick to what I was instructed to do um President Want [laughter] um we well I guess I'll speak for President Wagan Trusty Pearson and myself we attended the Newport Beach Lison meeting. We are part of the committee that goes and speaks to uh the city of Newport Beach staff and also the um council members and such and we I I love those meetings because they become really they become really uh meaningful conversations uh mostly on safety and we were coordinating between um we're giving updates on our AI installed cameras AI enhanced installed cameras on our all of our campuses and how we could coordinate with the police with their software. It's pretty it's very very complicated and but we're all vested and it was just a wonderful conversation to
122see where we are and how we're working so closely with our police department and staff at the city. And then we also of course got on the subject of ebikes and I'm very excited to see the progress that the city is uh tackling and owning for our communities. And we did make a we we did have a great discussion about how we have to spread the word to our community, our parents who are buying the bikes, our businesses who are selling the bikes. So, it was just great conversation and this is kind of our our partnerships matter and I think they're going to be very they're always impactful. So, that was wonderful. >> Trusty McElroy. Um, well, I'm not on a committee yet, so I will do a report and then I have something else
123to say. Um, so I got to go to the Newport L um ebike bike bike safety um I don't even know what you call it. >> It was a It was put on by the police department and it was awesome. the kids um they really listened and they asked a lot of questions, but my favorite part of it was that they like told on themselves over and over again, not realizing it was like, "When I do a wheelie, can I do this?" [laughter] And it was really cute and um they were really into it and they it seemed like they learned a lot and uh the police did a great job explaining and like stop signs and everything. So that was really cute. Uh the other thing is that um Newport Harbor Water Polo are
124CIF champs and um they are back-to-back CIF champs and it's their 16th CIF victory in their history. So that's really exciting. Um and then I have another thing I want to say. Um, and I prepared this um um in response to u last month's meeting. So, uh as a school board member elected by this community, I am accountable first and foremost to the taxpayers and the families who place their trust in me to do this job dilig diligently. That's why I'm making this commitment publicly. Our meeting schedule is set well in advance and there is rarely a valid reason to miss one. If I ever have an unexcused absence from a regularly scheduled schoolboard meeting, I will immediately donate my full stipen for that month back to the district. I ran on a promise to
125maintain the highest level of integ integrity, restore and protect public faith in our school district's leadership, operate with complete transparency, foster a positive and focused learning environment for every student in and ensure responsible common sense governance. Showing up consistently and without excuse is the bare minimum I owe you. I intend to exceed it every single day day I serve. >> Trusty Anderson. Thank you. Um tonight was a unique meeting. Um so I have something also that I've prepared to share. Um I would like to acknowledge the comments made here tonight and the online rhetoric. I'm I categorically deny the assumptions and the demands that were made. I am only forced to respond tonight right now because the comments are distracting us from our very important work on behalf of students and as you heard tonight
126particularly our teachers and the district as a whole. While I made a mistake in that moment, I took full responsibility. So much so so that I notified those closest to the situation which includes law enforcement about the car accident that I was in as well as the fact that I was injured in that accident. I am working through the dismissal process now. This is a non-story. It is certainly not about my role on the board. Since first being elected in 2018, I have stayed grounded in service and outcomes, not politics. I remain committed to serving the families in area 7. Now, moving on to my reports. Uh, kindness, love, and generosity are the qualities that I choose to lean into this month. Multiple school sites had activities and the celebration around Let's Be Kind Week.
127Founded by a Mesa graduate, I'm thankful for their growing endeavor to reduce bullying and increase kindness in schools and in our community. On Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 300 p.m., I dedicated my time, as I often do, to supporting our students and our families. First, with Love Our Schools Day, I participated at Wilson Elementary with a team of students, parents, and community partners from Christ Lutheran to put together incentive gift bags for the principal's monthly recognitions. When I worked with Trellis in Love Costa Mesa several years ago, the first partnership that I set up was with Wilson Elementary second grade students and the Christ Lutheran 8th grade students to walk over and to help out as literacy volunteers. It's truly remarkable to see this partnership continue to flourish more than 10 years later now. Later,
128I went to IKEA to provide assistance with food donations as well as making food and care packages for some of the most vulnerable families around us who are struggling with food insecurity. For my report for my committee, I attended DAC which was as always a delight with amazing and outstanding participation and the focus was on learning about career technical education, CTE and Coastline ROP. Um the parents were really engaged and loved to see including the seventh grade pipeline. There were so many questions. It was amazing. And um again, thank you. I don't know if he's here for um Dr. Carmona for he did his presentation in Spanish and he did a fantastic job. Um lastly, it was a joy to participate in the retired employee celebration event. We had the most retirees ever. Um, it
129was an awesome evening celebrating so many longtime and amazing educators and staff members. >> Thank you, Trusty Pearson. >> Yes. Um, I'm glad that we have addressed the difficult some difficult issues that we needed to do tonight, but I don't want those challenges to overshadow the incredible things taking place in our schools every single day. Over the past month alone, we've celebrated rising test scores. We've watched kids march in Halloween parades. Um, seen campuses come alive for kindness day. Newport Coast held a jogathon that felt like the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. All put on by amazing volunteer moms who pour their hearts into our schools every single day. I also attended events that brought our entire community to tears. Happy tears. At Estansia High, the gym was packed. And this is my one. I
130know I'm not following your rules, but it's too it's there's too much good going on. >> At at Estansia High, the gym was packed as students and families cheered on a unified sports basketball game for our students with special needs. Truly not a dry eye in the building. At Costa Mesa High, I watched Principal Jake Haley deliver a beautiful tribute to two remarkable retired teachers, Sandra Gilbo and John Lynfurs. Moments later, with the help of Trusty Murphy, their names were unveiled on the performing arts center. A welldeserved honor. >> At least I didn't fall. >> And you didn't fall. And it came off. I was so glad it came off. >> Absolutely. I attended Veterans Day assemblies at Harbor View and Anderson, which reminded us of what gratitude looks like. The entire student bodies waving
131American flags and singing to honor their neighborhood veterans, again, not a dry eye, on the campus. We also celebrated the CDM girls flag football team winning a CIF championship. And and finally, we saw Lisa Snowden and her team host a college fair that truly reflects our mission, helping students build bright futures. That's who we are as a district. That's what defines Newport Mesa Unified School District. And that's where our board will keep our focus on our kids, their achievements, and the incredible momentum happening across our schools. >> Thank you, Trusty Murphy. Well, I'm gonna have to start that off [laughter] with sad tears. Um the the Mustangs did not win their CIF game, but um but but they tried super hard and um thanks to everyone who who managed to make it out to Yucka
132somewhere and um and uh didn't >> No, I didn't. It was a Friday um at 6. Anyways, but uh the team tried so hard and we had a great great um year and so thank you to all the players and the coaches and everyone who supported the Mustangs this year. So um hopefully next year. Um I also yes was at the newly named Gilbo and Lynn Forest Performing Arts Center. Um it was that was tearful. Well, I was standing next to them when we pulled off um the the the cord to show the name and um and they teared up both of them. So, uh so that was amazing. Um also at the theater, uh Alice in Wonderland Junior show was last weekend. I hope anyone everyone got to go see it. Um it was
133amazing. Great job. Costa Mesa drama again. And then um moving forward, uh Sonora Elementary is doing Shrek the Musical Junior this weekend. So, as I said to friends, if it's raining, Costa Mesa High School's Performing Arts Center is a great place to hang out when it's raining. So, I suggest you go there and see Sonora um do the Shrek Musical Junior perform that. Um, also College Park will be having a holiday boutique on Saturday, December 6th. So, if anyone feels like uh they should be out buying holiday gifts on December 6th, um, please stop by College Park Elementary also will be inside. Won't be raining, so you will stay dry. And, um, and lastly, Paulino Elementary, which is so amazing, they are hosting a food drive. Um, and donations will be accepted through November 21st.
134So, um, if you have something to drop off, you can do it at the office. And thank you, Palino Elementary and staff for, um, providing that to the community. So, thank you. Thank you, Trusty Ursula. >> Um, not much going on from my, uh, past month, but um, go see Frozen at Estansia. It is opening on Thursday. >> That's competition. Frozen's the best and [laughter] we all know that. So, so go see Frozen this weekend. Um, and right now, I apologize. I was getting some playbyplays. Uh, the CDM girls JV is in a tournament right now actively. Um, I'm going to try to catch the last 10 minutes of my daughter's game if I can get out of here. Um, they just lost to Modern Day, but now they're in a different game right now.
135So, we will see. So yes, go see Frozen. >> Well, thank you. Um in the instance of this month being, you know, gratitude and giving thanksgiving, um I want to thank a bunch of people, but a couple people. Um the strategic planning um volunteers that we all um provided recommendations for that was two days out of their out of their week. And I want to say thank you so much for that time. Um I want to say thank you to our veterans as well. Uh there's a beautiful Veterans Day assemblies um with you know past betetts of our um student students fathers, students you know mothers and students grandparents. It was great to see that um and to see them come into our into our um classrooms. Um it's also kindness week. So I know
136that's not lost on me. Um I just want to say um you know thank you for the kindness that this board here has has shown me. Um, I'm grateful for working for with you guys every single day. Um, give a little a teary eye, but thank you for all the work that you do for my kids. Um, and thank you everyone out there for all the work that you've do doing on uh for all of our kids. Um, this will be my last galing in uh president meeting. And so that's exciting. And um and also it's been it's been a great experience. But I just want to say thank you guys for your professionalism today. I know it hasn't been an easy night um for anyone and um and you know I I just think
137about what we can come through for our students and I'm I'm just really excited about the future for all of us. And then one last comment um November 25th is a really special day um for school. Um it's the 67th day of school. 67. How do I do it for my kids? [laughter] All right. 67. Okay, with that um adjourning at 8:04. >> Bye. [laughter]