001good evening welcome to this regular meeting of the PO Unified School Board what day is it it is May 9th and it is 606 uh this meeting is being recorded and broadcast so if you're here you might be seen on that recording before we begin tonight I want to acknowledge that we recently lost a beloved member of Team PUSD and to speak briefly about him I invite Chapparal principal Dr Denise gouard to to the speaker's desk Dr oh there you are thank you welcome thank you thank you for this time in space board of tristes to honor one of our own my name is Denise schoolar and I'm the site principal at cheral elementary school our community was very sadden to hear of the passing of our night custodian refy manala Hansen who's his sudden
002departure has left a void in our hearts and in our community and recognition of his dedication his genuine kindness and the impact that he's made on posd I ask that we have a moment of silence in his name please join me in paying our respects thank you thank you very much Dr Gard I invite you now to stand and join me in the pledge I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation God indivisible and jusice for all for our report out of closed session clerk Kat so close session began at 405 and the Board of Education took the following action 2.1 d a in the matter of conference with legal council pending existing litigation case number ADR 2024 on a motion
003by plotsky and a second by sitma the V approve uh unanimously voted to approve the settlement agreement 2.1 DB in the matter of conference with legal councel pending existing litigation ation case number ADR 0329 2024 on a motion by ploty and a second by sitma the board voted unanimously to approve the settlement agreement 2. one-c in the matter of conference with legal council pending existing litigation case number ADR 2024 on a motion by plotsky and a second by Patel the board unanimously voted to approve the settlement agreement um close session re recessed at 557 and we'll be going back at the end thank you clerk kuet uh item 3.3 members in attendance all six of us are here hey everybody 3.4 is our welcome to the public Miss travetti welcome to the monthly meeting of
004the Board of Education if you would like to address the board on any agenda item please complete a speaker slip all requests to speak must be submitted to the clerk of the board before the agenda item comes up speaking time for agenda items is 2 minutes per speaker if you would like to address the board on a non- agendized item you may do so under item 4.2 public comments speaking time is limited to 2 minutes per speaker with a maximum of 30 minutes total unless waved by the board president there will be a 30-second yellow warning light when time is running out speakers may speak only on one topic under item 4.2 and may not defer their speaking time to another individual if there are concerns regarding specific individuals is preferred that the speaker refrain
005from naming them publicly to respect their privacy the board will accept and review any written materials that would provide more specific information the brown act does not permit board action or accident discussion of any item not on the agenda but your concerns will be referred to staff with that said welcome and thank you for coming thank you Miss travetti item 3.5 is approval of the agenda sequence I would like us to I I'll just make this motion to move items 4.3 4.4 and 4.5 up after 4.1 and before 4.2 public comment a recognition of all of the Avid fans we have here at standing room only is there a second second on a motion by okon Ratcliffe second by kuet all in favor I'll start with Miss tretti and everyone else I I all right
006that passes unanimously thank you that takes us to 4.1 let's go to those student Representatives okay we're good never mind um from Mount Carmel soel Bramwell welcome good evening board members I'm so brl I am Mount carmel's vice president and will be president for the 2024 to 2025 school year and here's a little update of what's happening with the sundevils this week and into next week our sunas are starting AP testing I actually took my psych test this morning with lots of studing and review groups our sundols are showing off everything we learned throughout this whole year another event that's happening this week is Teacher Appreciation where our ASB students created teacher doors to thank all of our teachers for all their hard work and dedication with also showing off all their hobbies and likes
007during may we have many activities to engage our students we have a giant dodgeball tournament coming up as a bonding experience for all of our school levels we also have our sunville Bowl which is an upper classman event for the girls where the junior girls and Junior or senior girls take on each other in a flag football match we also have a friendly game against the west view um upper class seniors and juniors in the battle of the 56 as a school year comes to a close our Athletics arts and other classes are winding down to end to prepare for finals and the beginning of Summer I cannot wait to see everything that will happen and create more memories and friendships I appreciate your time and what's happening in the Red Sea and remember it's
008great to be a Sunil thank you and next from pawe to Palomar Middle College La chalal [Applause] welcome good evening my name is Le shalal I am the senior class president at P to palore middle college and I'm excited to to share what we are uh what we're up to at ppmc and what we've been up to uh this past year as all schools at this time of year we are very busy at ppmc we held our Spring Showcase at May 1st and uh it was out in our Courtyard the weather is beautiful and it was picnic themed students had a chance to Showcase Club class and internship work we had a wonderful musical uh musical performance from our music club and our student panel did a great job talking about their personal experiences at
009PPN C uh this is always a great time for families and community members to engage with our students and we will be carrying on this tradition next year our Junior and senior prom is next Saturday at the heights with an old Hollywood theme ASB is busy planning and prepping to make sure that the night is very magical tomorrow our equity and inclusion team will be presenting our final no place for hate lesson for the year and this uh Focus will be on addressing anti-semitic incidents with allyship and advocacy this team along with our student affairs team is also working on posts and presentations for current and upcoming awareness months towards the end of 12th grade seniors who had participated in the internship program will have developed either social impact projects for real world organizations in
010the United States or a personal defense of their career Readiness learning they'll present their work as part of their demonstration of progress in their internship curriculum and these presentations will address five critical career uh sustainability skills ranging from analytical reasoning systematically thinking collaborating productively and proudly communicating and these panels or these are delivered before a panel of administrator staff and sponsors and peers defending uh what they are what they have learned and that they are ready for the next stage of their Career Development speak speaking of our seniors by the end of the year our seniors will have completed a total of 223 College courses over the course of their time at ppmc this inaugural uh class of ppmc is so excited to celebrate this achievement and others at our upcoming senior activities and graduation
011the last week of May will be a very busy one plans include a trip to SeaWorld a senior picnic and breakfast and then of course our very first ever graduation ceremony we have come so far and can't wait to celebrate during these culminating events finally we are so grateful for you district and board members for allowing Powe to palar middle college to continue we've already enrolled students for next year's class and this class for uh next year's junior class will be our biggest class yet we are now meeting with our new families and getting them prepared to sign up for new ppmc classes and uh we appreciate your consideration and support more than you ever know thank you for all of your [Applause] time from uh design39 campus svi P ready welcome dear esteemed board
012members and guests my name is Sam PTI re and I am in e8th grade at design 39 campus today I want to discuss an extraordinary Place design 39 campus it's more than just a school it's a Vibrant Community where students are empowered to become designers of their future at design 39 the focus is on the individual learner every student has unique talents and interest and our curriculum is crafted to nurture those imagine a place where classrooms aren't just rows of deaths but collaborative spaces that buzz with creativity here students just memorize facts they tackle real world problems through design thinking for example in past years students have tried to create their own businesses through a process called Shark Tank and those that do make it make their own businesses and go through however ones that
013don't are make their own resumés and take cover letters from their teachers to an other students business so It prepares students for the real world this approach Fosters a culture of inquiry students are encouraged to answer questions delve deep into subjects and connect their learning to the world around them they don't just learn from textbooks they learn they use technology and real world tools to bring their ideas to life for example when we were learning about circuits and the flow electricity students made their own circuit boards and add-on electrical WS through soldering with a solder we don't just learn in theory we put those those learning and ideas to use but design 39 isn't just about academics students understand the importance of fostering a strong Community as someone who has been here for 10 years
014I can confidently say that I know every single person there we have so many opportunities to meet and connect with other students we change classroom groups every two years in elementary school and every year in Middle School however this socializing is wider than grade level third graders are often paired with kindergarteners as reading buddies and we have also an annual science project that requires 8th graders to create a children's book for our school's second graders we also have great events where other students can get to know each other such as hangout 39 and After School sports activities however most of our after school events would not have been possible without the D3 9C collaborative a dedicated group of volunteers who work tirelessly to enrich the student experience they believe in the power of collaboration not
015just within the classroom rols but reaching and connecting up globally perhaps the most important aspect of z39 is emphasis on growth mindset it instills the courage to take risks P the perseverance to overcome challenges and the belief that anyone can achieve their goals and this nurturing environment students developed the confidence to become the change makers of tomorrow so if you're looking for a school that pushes boundaries ignites creativity and empowers students to become lifelong Learners then look no further than design39 campus it's a place where learning takes flight and the possibilities are endless thank [Applause] you all right we've got connect Academy here tonight reos boli Elise ooza and B's last small come on [Applause] down uh good evening members of the board superintendent miselle and cabinet members my name is Belle's last small and
016I'm an eighth grade student at connect Academy today I'm joined by second grader rayan SP and sixth grade student uh Elise ooza thank you for inviting us to speak at tonight's meeting there have been many incredible things happening at connect Academy this year to begin we were honored to we are honored to be awarded as a common sense recognizes school for digital citizenship and receive a new 3D printer for our work um rayan will begin telling you a little bit about what our Elementary classes have been doing hi my name is ran balii and I am in second grade in our elementary school school we are learning all about animals and their habitats to get ready for our exciting field trip to uh to the San Diego Safari Park this will be an old school
017trip that will include first grade all the way through 8th we love working together at colnect Academy currently our third through six great classes are working together to create neuro diverse math videos to help teach other students math we are also learning fractions area and parameter by doing an interactive Pizza Garden project that includes working in our garden to grow ingredients make peas and share our learning with all grades at our school other highlights include making recycle paper writing books and poetry designing sustainable cars using solar panels making a giant California topography map that shows water sources and building culturally inclusive community to help teach people to be inclusive we have so much fun working together and learning from each other and are amazing teachers we will miss them next year good evening my name
018is Elisa pza and I'm currently a sixth grade student at kect Academy our Middle School class got back late last night from our annual trip to Disney imagination campus it was so much fun and we got to go behind the scenes to learn about the technology and science of Disney rides and attractions excuse me the trip is a combination of the Disney imagineering projects we've been working on in our classes all year in exploring te class using digital art we design our own theme parks while making connections to math science and writing in our park in our other content class sixth and seventh grade students recently finished writing their theme park narrative stories which are based on our original theme park designs designs furthermore we get to designs rides and roller coasters as we learn
019about force and motion and the theme park technology in seventh grade students are collaborating with the second grade class to 3D print wacky animals where they combine two different animals in preparation for a field trip to the San Diego San Diego Safari Park this month on the trip middle school students will also be looking into the many careers that make the park function we will use this with the information we gain from our Zillow portfolios to make educated decisions of our own Futures we want to thank PCS the CTE department for collaborating with us on these projects we are proud of all of our hard work this year which was display at each of our trimester celebration of learning one highlight from our last celebration was a work we did for Black History Month there
020are many student created videos mag magazine covers and door decorations that honored incredible contributions black Americans have made to our country we hope you will all come to one of our celebrations in the future thank [Applause] you um we also need to celebrate one of our outstanding eighth grade students Emily Duke who won first place in the greater San Diego Science and Engineering fair in biomedical engineering in the junior Division and one first place in the Society of women's engineering for Science and Engineering divisions additionally she won second place at the um hold on okay she won second place at the California Science and Engineering fair in the cognitive science category and was nominated to participate in the thermofisher junior innovators challenge Emily created a smart bracelet that listens to the student speech and determines
021if the child said the word correctly this Stu this system was integrated into a game which acts as a supplementary tool for students for students enrolled in speech therapy to practice their speech articulation anytime and anywhere her work is truly amazing um this is just one example of the amazing passion projects our students are working on connect Academy has always embraced our strengths interests and passions which is what which is one of the things that makes it such a special place to learn earlier this year we were given the prompt at connect Academy I feel blank answers included respect Ed valued kindness heard empathy welcome Etc as we wind down this year we see that these statements still remain true as students we chose connect Academy for a variety of reasons whether it be flexibility
022so we can train for a competitive sport metal conditions that prohibit us from providing um from attending a traditional school or feelings of anxiety and safety or we just want to be an Innova approach to learning whatever the reason we have found a place where we can along and together together in its connect Academy we realize that it's the environment cultures and teachers who make us feel this way our teachers are so important to what connect Academy is and we're while we're sad to see the elementary portion of connect Academy close we're excited and optimistic about the possibilities of what the Middle School move to design 39 will bring as we move forward remember it's our teachers who have had the greatest impact on our unique outstanding and educational environment thank you for your [Applause]
023time and lastly from SCH Creek Elementary School Andrew kupy and andari Oola [Applause] good evening board members my name is Andrew kupy and I am a fifth grade student at sh Creek Elementary School this past September our school celebrated our 25th anniversary with a welcome back picnic our students and families came together to celebrate this milestone for our school and we had lots of fun especially with Oli de otter our school mascot we also had our start with hello week where students came to school and read lots of kind messages welcoming us back and in different languages as well in January we had our kindness week students and oh wait sorry every wait oh no sorry students and staff exchanged kind messages with each other and it ended up ended with our kindness dance which
024had games and snacks and and a DJ with lots of dancing this year I had the opportunity to be part of the junior hope Squad this squad Fosters human connection community and hope by elevating mental well-being through this peer-to-peer suicide prevention program I have enjoy being part of this group and helping students when they need it good evening board members my name is andario aola and I am a fourth grade student at SCH Creek Elementary one of my favorite favorite things that we do at our school is Friday flat my teacher always calls students up to share their jokes with us and the jokes are funny every class has a college chant and we get to share them each month some other fun happenings that our school this year includes our annual fall festival in
025October Our Heritage night where we where our families share their Traditions food clothing dance and music we also get to do a scaer hunt and collect Sur priz at the end in April we had her science night with lots of Hands-On activities that students and families got to do and and a and experience science this year I am part of the no place for hate student group and a safe School Ambassador our no place for group in helps plan and do activities three times a year our last lesson focused on three sh cre expectations be safe be respectful and be responsible and we created lessons that were specific to our playground interactions with each other being a safe School Ambassador helped me learn how to notice mistreatment think about the mistreatment and act by balancing
026supporting reasoning distracting or getting help being an ambassador helps me make a POS positive difference in our school we would like to end by sharing our school mot at Creek we work hard be kind have fun and keep smiling thank you thank you all very much you are of course welcome to stay and help us celebrate Avid but we understand it's nearing the end of the year and you got a lot going on we just heard AP studying is happening um that's not an excuse for the elementary but you guys could go too if you'd like um otherwise we are ready to begin item 4.3 our appointment of our student board member who will serve next year Mr misel So based upon board adopted byw 9150 we're asking the board tonight to approve the appointment
027of chenade Kylie from Del Norte High School as the student board member for the 2024 2025 school year a subcommittee of us met on April 23rd 2024 to interview finalists from each of our high schools and as you can imagine it was a deep pool of talented people but chenade really stood out she stood out through her application her experience and her interview her passion and dedication serving students and improving how her school in the district meets students needs was truly inspiring we know she'll do an excellent job her term of office will start at the first board meeting in August 2024 and and at the last board meeting in June 2025 at this time we asked the board to approve Shen's appointment and Raina agrawal from Poway high as the alternate right thank you
028Mr M and Jana can you just wave so everyone knows who you are yay I would offer the uh Motion in second to our two board members who sat on the committee motion to approve motion by Miss kuet second By Me Miss platsky and I will go down to our student board member who was also on the panel for the first vote I and everybody else hi welcome we're excited to have you [Applause] chenade and next time we introduce you you'll have to speak but not tonight all right item 4.4 this is AVID Avid and Avid Excel 8th grade and Senior standout I will turn it over to miss Peterson thank you madam President we are so pleased to recognize our avid standouts this evening we will have our interim superintendent Greg miselle and board
029president Michelle oconor Ratcliffe at the front of the dis to recognize our Avid standouts with a certificate we will call each student standout one at a time to the front along with their school's Avid staff members and administrators for a picture the following students are Avid and Avid Excel 8th grade and Senior standouts Avid stands for advancement via individual determination avid's mission is to close the achievement Gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success in a global Society Avid Excel is designed to prepare Middle School English Learners to enter High School Avid by accelerating language acquisition and developing literacy to succeed in college preparatory coursework in high school each year we celebrate 8ighth grade Avid and Avid Excel as where well as our senior Avid standouts from each Middle School and High School
030these outstanding students are chosen for their strong academic performance and commitment to their community so let's begin 8ighth grade Avid standouts Lemuel forn EST storo Bernardo Heights Middle School AVID coordinator Denise Flynn principal gas and assistant principal Cal Montalvo LM is an LM is a natural leader who is always striving to be the best possible version of himself and help those around him he excels at self- advocacy and can step into any leadership role with Charisma and confidence thank you LM for truly encompassing Bob C pride and being a great role model for your peers we look forward to the great things you are bound to accomplish in your future endeavors [Music] congratulations modaser hataki Avid Excel Black Mountain Middle School AVID coordinator Danielle Reyes English learner coordinator Danielle Brown and principal Darcel Glover [Applause]
031Mazer has made tremendous growth as an avid Excel student this year his confidence has grown as an English speaker and a student he jumped a whole grade level and a half on I ready consistently has an A in class and always comes prepared he is one of the first students to pull out needed materials for the day and Turnin work mazer's hard work in class has truly paid off and shown what it means to be a Black Mountain Avid Excel student congratulations Malia Rose Jimenez Black Mountain Middle School AVID coordinator Danielle Reyes and principal Darcel Glover in two years in her two years in Avid at Black Mountain Mia has demonstrated what it means to be individually determined Mia comes to school every day with a positive caring attitude ready to learn persevere through obstacles
032and help others along the way she has stepped into the leadership roles of a peer tutor and Avid Ambassador which has increased her confidence and supported her Avid family members along the way Malia has applied to be an avid summer Institute student speaker in hopes to continue teaching others about the Avid impact congratulations Maya Felix design 39 campus AVID coordinator Ashley roer and principal Bobby Koy Maya was selected as the standout student because she has really stepped up to the challenge of avid she shows up every day with a smile on her face and an eager attitude Maya is diligent in her work and ensures it is done with 110% effort she has a creative mind with endless questions which makes everyday an avid and exciting Adventure we are thrilled to see her flourish in
033her next journey in high school congratulations Karina Rak Canova Avid Excel Meadow Brook Middle School Aid AVID coordinator Katherine melis Avid Excel elective teacher Roman Delgado and principal Crystal brownley Karina is a bright talented and charismatic student that I have had the privilege to teach this year well I have not but her teacher did she is one of the most kind-hearted individuals who works hard to consistently receive high marks in her classes and is a clear example for other students to follow she has Ambitions and goals and is willing to put in the work and the fact that she is a mult is multilingual is but one of her many tools she will carry forth with her into the future [Applause] congratulations uh Brian our next student is not able to attend for Meadow Brook
034but we will read congratulations to Brian tonai Meadow Brook Middle School AVID coordinator Katherine melis and principal crystal brownley Brian was nominated by his peers as our Avid standout this year because he consistently embodies the Avid Spirit Brian excels in managing his assignments and shines during tutorials where he acts as a leader mentor and collaborative team member his actions embody the core values of the Avid college readiness system displaying thorough preparedness for daily tasks and assignments while demonstrating empathy and support to his peers his dedication extends beyond the classroom he is often seen assisting teachers and participating in campus cleanup activities after school remarkably he accomplishes all this while maintaining a perfect 4.0 GPA Brian is a valuable member of our ad AVID program and we are confident he will continue to achieve great things
035in the future congratulations Brian Sunny weights Mesa Verde Middle School AVID coordinator Amy McCoy and Prin principal Kelly Moore Sunny's Presence at school constantly brightens our days with her outgoing personality and positive attitude she arrives daily with a smile and is a steadfast support for her classmates she truly makes the classroom a better place for all of us each and every day she excels when faced with challenges advocating for herself collaborating effectively with peers and actively engaging by asking questions we are grateful for the energy that Sunny consistently brings and look forward to the wonderful achievements her future holds congratulations Adam on Oak Valley Middle School Avid coordinators summer Yami and Jessica mostellar principal Colin Young and assistant principal Bonnie gonzale is Adam shines brightly within our Avid Community embodying the core values of Oak
036Valley Middle School with kindness and determination his commitment to Excellence is evident in every aspect of his academic Journey as he not only excels in his own studies but also extends a helping hand to his peers whenever needed his innate ability to advocate for himself and and others sets him apart as a role model within our Avid family Adam's exceptional work ethic and genuine kindness make him a valued member of our school Community both in and out of the classroom Oak Valley Middle School is proud to call Adam one of our own and we eagerly anticipate the great contributions he will make to our world congratulations Melanie um Guera our next student for Twin Peaks Middle School is not able to attend this evening but Melanie Guera Avid Excel Twin Peaks Middle School AVID coordinator
037Mickey Mattia and Avid Excel elective teacher Ethan Kaufman principal Steven Mills and assistant principal Jessica Turner Melanie embodies the spirit of avid our Ohana family and more importantly a newfound pride in herself which has developed through her Avid participation Melanie takes her Avid skills and applies them to her other classes and sets an example for others she Embraces challenges and never backs down when faced with adversity her bilingualism is not only a gift to her but to others and she supports other bilingual students Melanie stands out to us because of her grit to want more for herself and her future congratulations Melanie Parker Roar Twin Peaks Middle School AVID coordinator Mickey Mattia and principal Steven Mills and assistant principal Jessica Turner Parker emanates the true Avid Ohana Spirit at Twin Peaks her leadership and dedication
038to success are guides she uses to help herself and others through challenges is being the best version of herself liberates others and inspires them to do the same Parker's big heart and smile is contagious she is always willing to welcome a new friend and encourage an old one to work as hard as she does Parker is an incredible Avid standout who continues to work on building a strong Ram community at Twin Peaks and for our Avid Ohana congratulations and now our high school senior Avid standouts Julia vizard from delnorte high school AVID coordinator Kenneth Simmons Avid elective teacher Kristen James and principal Ty evth Julia is a strong independent self-starter who is committed to Exel delling in everything she pursues she consistently engages in class discussions collaborates effectively with her peers and demonstrates a genuine
039passion for excellence Julia is appreciated for her consistent positive attitude which along with her integrity and perseverance makes her a shining example to her classmates Julia will be attending Baylor University majoring in kinesiology congratulations [Applause] Jasmine Tran Mount carmell High School AVID coordinator Susan Randall principal yel Bose and assistant principal Matt hunt from her freshman year it was clear that Jasmine would one day be recognized as the senior standout at Mount car M High School her commitment to the AVID program personal development Athletics and various clubs Mark her as a leader and an exemplary student Jasmine is currently weighing her options for higher education considering the University of California Santa Barbara the University of California Santa Cruz and the University of Hawaii monoa she plans to pursue a degree in international business with a focus
040on fashion design and policy congratulations to Jasmine on her achievements and contributions to Avid at the mount congratulations McKenzie Lopez Powe High School Avid coordinators Karen Kawasaki Williams and Sher locky and principal Richard Nash as Avid co-president McKenzie has organized our Avid recommitment ceremony and shared her High School Journey with a gym full of people at 8th grade family night in class and on campus she takes initiative provides encouragement to peers and works hard to achieve her College dreams McKenzie is resilient kind creative and determined to make a difference in her community McKenzie McKenzie recently won the Cindy Bishop Avid scholarship and she will attend the University of California Riverside where she will study psychology [Applause] congratulations Samantha forom Rancho Bernardo High School AVID coordinator Leanne Marshall principal Hans Becker and assistant principal Anthony Bradley
041[Applause] Samantha is an outstanding Avid student and won the Donald Costa Avid scholarship she embodies courage resilience and demonstrates deep commitment along with a passion for family mathematics and education Samantha is considering several universities for her higher education including California poly Technic State University in San Louis abiso or Pomona University of California Santa Cruz and San Diego State University her academic interests lie in pursuing a degree in materials engineering mechanical engineering or electrical engineering her achievements are a source of great pride at Rancho Bernardo High School congratulations and Aiden Lou Westview High School avid cour coordinators Jose Lucero and Kimberly Bennett and principal Ernie Remillard in Aiden's college essay his father aptly described him as a renaissance man a label that resonates through his diverse Pursuits and achievements his broad range of volunteer activities illustrates
042his versatile talents from contributing to the Boy Scouts and the Chinese Association of Science and Technology to teaching magic at a Youth Development Resource Center additionally Aiden shares his passion for Taekwondo as both a student and instructor and creatively engages young minds as a Lego engineer as an integral member of the Avid family he actively participates in academic discussions collaborates with peers and consistently seeks ways to assist others Aiden's multifaceted interests and skills make him a valued and respected member of our community Aiden is deciding between San Diego State University University of California Santa Cruz s Santa Cruz orchester poly Polytechnic Institute or renir poly Technic Institute where he will study mechanical engineering Aiden is the winner of the Avid Founders scholarship congrat [Applause] congratulations we're going to move on to our Avid tutor standouts
043in one moment just need water that was a lot of reading all right tonight we also recognize our Avid tutor standouts these valued staff members are a key component of our Avid college readiness systems they are trained in the Avid tutorial process in order to support students writing reading inquiry collaboration and organiz organizational skills development the tutor standouts being recognized tonight have shown exemplary service to our students they serve as role models who offer opportunity knowledge about college and careers encourage the development of student agency and Inspire our young people to be the very best versions of themselves every day we will call all of the tutor standouts to the front of the dis together to receive their certificates and take a picture with interim superintendent uh Greg misel and board president Michelle oconor Ratcliffe
044Avid tutor standouts Andrew Diaz Andrew has served as a dedicated tutor for the PD AVID program for four years he is a self-starter and has proven to be an invaluable resource to his fellow tutors as a mentor for our Avid elective students Andrew offers personalized support meaningful feedback and consistent assistance enhancing their educational experience his kindness patience and genuine concern for the success of our students have significantly strengthened our Avid Community thank you Andrew [Applause] Jenny Han Jenny is an extraordinary Avid tutor whose impact has been profound especially as she has been a significant support to one of our School's first year of the Avid electives implementation her dedication creativity and systematic approach not only make learning fun but also ensure that everything runs seamlessly Jenny has gone above love and Beyond in assisting students
045and establishing connections widely even beyond our Avid cohort her support positively affects all students we are immensely grateful for the contributions she has made to enhance our educational environment thank you Jenny Cheyenne Dalton cyen significantly enhances our students experiences each day renowned for her vibrant personality passion for Learning and innate ability to forge relationships Cheyenne is a Dependable presence our Avid student students unanimously recognize her as an exceptional tutor because she consistently ensures that each individual feels wholly supported having made a lasting impression as an avid student Cheyenne has now cemented her Legacy as a tutor within the Powe unified AVID program thank you Cheyenne and Aiden Simpson Aiden Simpson has been recognized as an avid tutor standout demonstrating a level of dedication to students that is truly exceptional Aiden's commitment to helping students Master
046complex content Concepts is evident in his willingness to relearn chemistry aiding students in a subject that has proven challenging he invests time in building meaningful relationships with each student tailoring his approach to their individual learning styles and needs Beyond academics Aiden embodies a spirit of generosity fostering joy and warmth throughout the Avid Community Aiden excels in connecting with students and making even the most challenging subjects accessible congratulations Aiden we are deeply grateful for your invaluable presence thank you thank you to our Avid tutors and I think we're going to get one final group chat [Laughter] [Applause] let's say one more round of applause for all of our Avid standout [Applause] thank you all so much and if you want to stay you're welcome if you'd like to go I'm going to take about a one
047minute recess here to let you wander out well I probably should holy moolly e all right I think we're ready to move on 4.2 is public comments if you would like to address the board please fill out a public speaker request and submit it to miss Anderson before the agenda item is called speaking time is limited to 2 minutes per speaker with a maximum of 30 minutes total so submitting a card does not guarantee you will be able to speak reminder if you have concerns regarding specific individuals it's preferred that you refrain from naming them publicly the appropriate complaint process can be obtained again from Miss Anderson the board will not allow any disturbance or willful interruptions of our meeting we have an expectation that everyone here will conduct themselves with decorum respect and Civility
048and with that in mind clerk kuet please call the first Speaker Tim great can we close the door over there so that we don't have the lobby noise thank you very much thanks so good evening uh my name is Tim dockerty and first I want to take a moment to appreciate all of our amazing teachers here at PD it is teacher appreci apption week so thank you to all the dedicated past and present Educators in the room tonight uh so tonight I'm announcing my candidacy for PD Board of Education trustee area a and my mission is to help ensure our district provides a highquality education keeps our students and teachers safe and manages its budget with care while our district has many success stories it also faces significant challenges ahead we have a $185 million
049backlog in school facility projects declining test scores and a $30 million budget shortfall this year another 52 million shortfalls projected over the next three years and that's with cuts that are proposed the recent termination of a superintendent after a lengthening investigation adds to the uncertainty I believe in focusing on fundamentals as a PTA member for years including two his president and a School site Council chairman for three years I've worked with parents and teachers to make our schools better I also manage a global supply chain and operations in my professional life and I've been an educator myself I've spoken here before advocating for common sense Solutions and voicing the concerns of parents and the community if elected I'll work with the current board members to ensure transparency and accountability as we address these challenges together
050please visit my website at timd forp usd.com to learn more that's timd fo r p usd.com and finally I do want to thank everyone in the room tonight we are all here because we care about the education and the future of our students so thank you Dr Dees FASA good evening my name is Dr D visha and at the last board meeting I announced my candidacy um for how we Unified School Board trustee area a um last meeting I spoke about the urgent need of student mental health and how it's critical that we continue continue to um provide resources towards that issue today I'd like to focus uh my time on the budget and the budget shortfall um I really have appreciated the board's approach particularly in trying to limit cuts that are near the
051classroom so preserving School uh classroom sizes obviously keeping our Personnel um unlike our neighboring District which did have to cut a number of staff and teachers you know to me that emphasis on protecting the classroom is so important um I grew up in public schools in Irvine and attended UC San Diego have three degrees from there and so for me you know protecting public education is really a key value of this campaign um when it comes to budget I approach it in my sort of role as a doctor and also medical director at a large community health center and so we similarly have to address budget cuts and and sort of adjust to changes in what the state and federal government provide um and I always think similar to how you think about looking at
052the classroom I focus on the doctor patient interaction how do we limit um cuts that shorten appointment times or that um prevent the doctor and the patient from connecting and that's where I focus my effort and time so I think I would bring that sort of attitude to the board um I think it's important to have a healthcare worker also in this position um because we do have a unique sort of insight into how to serve um our students so thank you for your time again it's Dr davish vashishta and I'm running for power unified truste area a my website is uh D for p usd.com d v f p usd.com thank you Kristen French oh I'm sorry push oh okay sorry um okay I want to start by asking if um sorry if you
053have any little ones in the room I'd ask them to leave uh please before I share my name is Kristen I'm a mom four in the PD um District I want to start by asking you if you think that it is acceptable to share sexually explicit material with children I'm going to read quotes from the sex education curriculum being taught next week in the PD Middle School to PSD middle schoolers lesson 1 page 39 explains that an erect penis put into a vagina is called vaginal sex an erect penis put into an anus is called anal sex an erect penis put into a mouth is called oral sex goes on to explain that digital sexual contact involves the insertion of fingers into a vagina or anus page 55 of the curriculum binder lesson one an
054erect penis may be put into the anus during sexual intercourse some people choose to put a penis fingers or an object into the anus during sex in the terms glossery oral sex is an activity using the mouth to simulate a partner's genitalia there is absolutely no reason and zero educational benefit from T talking to Children about anal sex putting objects and fingers into their anus Digital Sex uh oral sex and how oral sex is a way to stimulate their Partners General tell you it's absolutely appalling that the school district thinks that these are necessary topics for children and the fact that the power Unified School District would make it so incredibly difficult for parents to have the details of these lessons so that they can make an informed decision on on whether or not they
055want their child to be exposed to such sexually explicit material is also extremely upsetting sex education needs to be an opt-in option not an opt out many parents I have shared this with didn't even know that the unit was starting next week I had to share it online I emailed you all and never heard back so um H the lack of transparency is extremely upsetting we as parents honestly as PD should be ashamed that you are backing this material this is sexually explicit it's over sexualizing our children it does not need to be discussed these are Educators talking to minors about putting objects in their anus why is this in the curriculum we are urging you to relle babler Michelle babler the sentiment expressed through Nextdoor social media and various media Outlets is that many
056in the community potentially hundreds or thousands are deeply disappointed with the board's delayed response in dealing with the superintendent it took you way too long to take action and it appears that it was only taken in response to the filing of a lawsuit and the significant pressure from the community and media attention now that the superintendent has been terminated we as concerned members and taxpayers demand transparency transparency regarding the findings of your internal investigation there are numerous online discussions where community members are calling for the board to release the findings including any information information received from thirdparty sources that contributed to your investigative efforts while we understand the results will not put the board in a favorable light it is our right to understand the full scope of what was uncovered the investigation was done
057for the public not you it was paid for by the taxpayer not you it is not yours to hide in secrecies behind closed doors I also want to make sure you're aware that there are reports of the former superintendent still intimidating students and players at the softball fields we want to know what action you're are going to take to put an end to inappropriate behavior once and for all children families and the community are watching you your actions speak a thousand words by your actions you demonstrate to every student what behaviors are acceptable and what the consequences of unacceptable behaviors are it is imperative that your response clearly communicates that such conduct will not be tolerated and we and will be met with consequences while the board may consider the matter with the superintendent resolved
058the community clearly does not and continues to watch your actions intently as you all aware I have announced the recall effort of three of you and the superintendent's termin termination with cause does not change this in case you're wondering the board was asleep at the wheel requiring others to step in and address issues that were within your perview ultimately leading to the superintendent's embarrassing termination moving forward the decisions and actions you undertake will not only Define your capabilities as fiduciaries to the public but also Olga Reyes Olga Reyes good evening board my name is Olga Rees and I am the mother of the senior southb student that came to speak to you at the November board meeting I was honestly afraid of retaliation against her us like I am sure most people would be but
059I fully supported her today I come to you because two of our softball coaches who spoke at this November meeting were not asked to come back to coach at the down orte high school they were pretty much fired clearly in my eyes retaliation one of them having over a decade of serving our community as a Del Norte High School softball coach Michelle you stated at the last special board meeting that the reason for termination of the superintendent was that you quote lost all confidence and Trust in her unquote if that is the case I ask you plead with you to please return the coaches back to their respective positions they were let go unjustly and on the account of someone that you mentioned you lost Trust trust in please do the right thing and if
060I may hand the clerk a sign letter by the softball parents I'd appreciate that thank you Scott Fisher Scott Fisher good evening my name is Scott fiser and I am a member of the Powe USD Community for the past 40 years and and have been a um um a teacher and an administrator in this district for over 30 years as well a principal for 24 years um I'm here tonight to talk about the issue of selecting a new superintendent um before I do that I'd like to thank the board for the work that you do um it appears to me that that politics in general is is um really challenging work and you guys take it and and you move ahead and and make tough decisions that need to be made um so I thank
061you for that that work that you do I'm here tonight um to Advocate at the request of no one um just my own opinion for Greg myel as permanent superintendent of Poway Unified School District I've had the the um pleasure of working with Greg over the years um and I have found him to be the following honest and integrity-driven attentive to student needs always comfortable around kids a strong Communicator which we need and an IND individual who thinks outside the box so often in solving problems with an important leadership transition facing the district and with budget and hiring challenges on the horizon we need a leader capable of addressing these challenges that that individual is Greg misel thank you so much for your time Jill Smith hi my name is Jill Smith I'm a mother
062of a Valley Elementary kider Garner and second grader I volunteer in their classes often today I'd like to talk with you about the overuse of computers in elementary school before you judge what I have to say I want you to know that I have an electrical engineering degree from Cal Poly slow and I'm an engineer at Cisco I think computers are incredibly valuable tools but have nothing to do in elementary school before I get specific on recommendations I'd like to share a quick antidote last week I volunteered in my son's kinder class and even though there were three adults in the kindergarten class half the students were instructed to work on computers at 8:30 a.m. for 30 minutes Prime brain learning time I'd like to request three changes in Poway Elementary Schools starting in Fall
063there should be zero use of computers until fourth grade there should be a limit on the amount of screen time per day regardless of weather there should be no mandated software programs I'm asking for these changes because the overuse of computers by our kids has major negative Health impacts that you are all innately aware of and to be known to be true they are well documented by medical sources and I'd be happy to share those the negative impacts to our kids include physical health issues increasing obesity sleep issues chronic neck and back pain eye issues skin damage and even hearing loss the negative impacts to their mental health and cognitive ability include increases in anxiety depression ADHD OCD language development issues and even thinning of the brain's cortex the changes I will propose will improve
064kids health and learning both are currently trending in the wrong direction the changes will also save the district a significant amount of money so you can improve health learning and save money while doing it a Tracy dennak good evening my name is Tracy Dennis I have three children one at Meadowbrook who went through the dual immersion at Valley one currently in second grade at Valley and my youngest will attend Valley in 2 years I'm continuing on um Jill's topic of uh the request to eliminate scream time in classrooms for lower elementary or at least drastically reduce it um according to the American Academy Association of Pediatrics for 5 to 17y olds generally no more than two hours per day of screen time is recommended except for homework as a parent volunteer in the classroom over
065the years I have witnessed the wasted time on screens for very young children the kids use the tablets during rotations and consistently use the wrong app or wrong grade level settings they get zero value out of the screen usage and the minutes add up after am and p.m rotations I ready time reading books on the tablet that could be done in uh a real book rainy or excessive heat Day movies at recess and lunch which ha happens often they have reached or exceeded the max recommendation by pediatricians and they haven't even gone home yet where they're getting even more screen time better uses of school time for lower elementary kids would be theater play performances PE teachers reading aloud teachers teaching lessons students reading to the class class discussions music time for Kinder my second
066grader writing entire books rather than just two page papers learning through play art activities dice games and even just worksheets for teachers the impact of eliminate eliminating classroom screen time would be less wasted time acting as it setting up maintaining troubleshooting and charging more time for class instruction and Interac ING with our awesome kids the budget impact by not having computers until fourth grade the district will save money by not purchasing or maintaining computers saving on the software licenses updates and charging of the computers this will reduce your need for mental health speech therapy and other District Services needed due to the negative health effects of excessive screen [Applause] time I'm sorry Jenny Hall hello uh my name is Jenny Hall I have one student at TK at Valley Elementary I've worked for paway schools
067as a substitute teacher and most recently as an impact teacher at Valley I'm in total agreement with what Jill and Tracy uh said on the matter of screen time in younger grades it is impossible to ignore the growing studies Publications speakers Etc demonstr in the negative impact of screening time on children and in my time working in various classrooms at Valley and other schools I have observed several concerning aspects of Technology use especially in the early grades I have repeatedly seen the offer of free time on a laptop as a reward for finishing a task I have seen screen time used as a calming mechanism for example a class is having a bad day behaviorally so a teacher resorts to I ready for the kids to work on individually or the weather is bad so
068a cartoonist put on throughout the entire school for kids to watch during recess and breaks um in another time I had to physically pry a laptop from a student's hands in order to move on to the next activity in another instance students VY for roles in student council submitted videos about their candidacy to their peers which had the like feature embedded in the program a feature popular in social media which has contributed to mental health problems in teens this was in third grade I've observed books being read in class through a video on YouTube I observed kids who are experts at the pre-loaded programs on the laptops given to them but cannot read or write the list of examples is endless the aspect of this that hurts the most at that these companies of the
069programs are profiting off of our kids usage I'm fully aware that technology is an important and useful tool in society that can lead to progress and that it isn't going anywhere but I can't see any evidence that technology is a positive force and is better than books paper and pencil at these young ages no one can deny the importance of playtime and free time at that stage of growth It is Well documented that children are getting less of it than ever I do hope the district can consider removing laptops from classrooms in those Early Elementary grades and putting steuart cook for years I've had to protect my children from sick curriculum and people at every level in this District as well as from outside groups like Jedi and trans Family Services your ethnic studies curriculum
070says whites believe every negative word in the English language about people of color and that whites are unconsciously oppressive providing no references someone from the superintendent's office told me that had no business of questioning a black woman about what's in our curriculum regarding oppression because she was black and I wasn't teachers and administrators told me that white male perspective needs to be done away with but if they said black male perspective needed to be done away with they would have been fired and lost their pensions my suggestion if PD's people and curriculum don't have anything positive to say about children's race or ethnicity including whites then don't say anything at all the district also collaborates with groups like Jedi and trans Family Services who in their own meeting notes say they want to engage three
071to 5-year-old children in discussions of sex and gender because that's when they're most vulnerable a quote from Jedi's own documents reads quote students rely on school libraries for information even information that some people consider pornographic unquote Jedi saying that students rely on school library for pornography shows there's pornography in your school libraries but the mechanism to remove Library materials is impossible to use I have years of receipts for all of these issues and more all racism inappropriate materials and sex and gender pedaling by outside organizations needs to be investigated Frank shu thank you my turn so good evening trustees my name is Frank Shu a Rano penis uh penis resident first of all thank you for eventually executing your power to fire Phelps even though you could have done so way earlier if you listen
072to your constituents now that Phelps is fired I urge the board to carefully review all all Personnel decisions she has made in the past two years to avoid future potential litigations and to reverse the toxic culture she has brought to the school district especially for the promotions and demotions in the Del not high school a clear example is that uh please review how two softball coaches were fired please hire those two brave men back give them proper compensation and discipline those who carried Phelps orders to retaliate against these two coaches and M James gin gines you spoke publicly here on the November 15th special board meeting in support of Phelps how much information did you have about the cabber gate when you spoke ask yourself what motivated you to speak in support of her and
073it's time for you to publicly admit your mistake and express your ol ology to the community and to the so-called team PSD be a role model of our students admit your mistake to the least publicly by the way trusty Patel did you write the November 15 statement by yourself or someone or someone else wrote it for you you need to review that process as well why would the author smear the community as misinformed when the investigation had not even started by then thank you coming up together is Freda brazelle and Catherine Sage there board members and staff I'm freedom brel and this is Katherine sage and we represent a group of parents teach teachers and community members Palomar Council PTA recently hosted an event called how to help your struggling reader um the event was
074well attended and thank you so much Heather plotsky for attending um there is a general sentiment among parents that their children are not getting a structured evid evidence-based reading instruction sadly there is too much going back and forth between Barton imsc sips and other programs parents don't even know the name of we know that it doesn't work well to mix programs and one program should be done with Fidelity we appreciate TR Seva's presentation at the last board meeting we want to add our concerns as parents um so I'm going we're going to list our top concerns uh there is a lack of Fidel Fidelity balanced literacy is still being being used with imsc many parents report that balanced literacy bookmarks listing ineffective so-called strategies are still being distributed in classrooms books with repetitive parents that
075encourage guessing and looking at pictures for cues are still being used in kindergarten classrooms all over the district when decodable readers are sent home they often do not follow the scope and sequence of what's taught in class that NE negates some of the benefits of having a systematic program administrators and Prin principles we're giving a brief overview of imse but that's not enough to fully understand the program and make an informed decision regarding the impation we heard from some parents attending that that their students receive imsc in J the Gen Ed classroom but that they're taught balanced literacy during special ed this continued use of balanced literacy approaches for decoding skills is especially harmful to our children in special education so please let's ensure that only structured lit and evidence-based programs are used we do
076need a continuation of structured literacy in third grade and Beyond we need a better plan for students who are not at grade level in third grade all the way to high school because those students are still in our district IMC has provided the how for structured literacy and that's a great first step but many teachers are still missing the why and that may be part of why we're seeing this mixing of of methods we would like the district to offer a program like letters or similar to teach the science of reading which is independent of curriculum but gives the foundation in the knowledge that teachers need to be most effective in this area another issue many parents are sharing that sips did not help their children unfortunately sips does not have very strong efficacy data
077and I'm happy to share the comparisons I've done um and it it doesn't incorporate all the available science of reading and instruction and decoding I sat with some of the developers just recently at the um science excuse me the the reading leads conference that was held here in San Diego and they are making some changes to their program but it's not enough they're not doing a full overhaul so there are better programs available imse being one of them mtss for decoding skills really works best if the same highly effective program is used in all tiers of instruction but the intensity is increased for those children who are struggling and the teacher providing that instruction is highly trained and so better equipped to identify the weaknesses and address them why isn't IMC being used by our
078impact teachers and other tier 2 supports when it's already in use for general education and special education having a Continuum of support can help children to not have to learn new routines and new program terminology but focus on the skills they're trying to master thank you we have one left Sarah Torres Sarah Torres that right is Sarah Torres here no okay thank you clerk KET that takes us to the consent calendar is there anything that any member would like to pull we have a comment on 5.4 D okay anything else to pull no is there a motion to approve except for 40 motion to approve except for 40 thank you Dr Patel is there a second second second second by Dr sesma all in favor I I any opposed if that passes 5 nothing let's
079go to 5.4 D this is approval of resolution number 55-220 entitled endorse the proclamation of the month of June as lesbian gay bisexual transgender and queer pride month Miss Peterson uh this item is the as uh stated by President ' Conor Radcliffe is a resolution whereby Pawa Unified School District and our Board of Education endorsed the proclamation uh of the month of June as lesbian gay bisexual transgender and queer pride month the the attached resolution serves serves as support that the paway to Unified School District and the Board of Education recognize and honor the month of June as lesbian gay bisexual transgender and queer pridem thank you Miss Peterson clerk kuet Lenny Christ yes I noticed that you listed in the consent calendar recommendation by learning Support Services to approve a resolution proclaiming junis lgbtq
080pride month the agenda item caught my eye not just because I believe it's completely inappropriate to groom children but because I could have sworn this resolution was on the May agenda last year so while our district is in crisis a budget crisis a mental health crisis a learning loss crisis just to name a few the board is presented with a new lgbtq resolution that singles out certain people you added a phrase that in June the district would create a welcoming and safe School environment what what was it not welcoming and safe before I have a feeling will hear about this desire to feel safe and a sense of belonging at nauseum through the next school year I can see why you took out the phrase mentioning numerous students just mentioning numerous studies just on the
081fact that none these studies were cited but I'm struggling with the phrase School AED years are critical time for lgbtq youth as they are often in need of support as it relates to their identities all children are vulnerable and need support the added phrase about school age years being critical reminds me of the secret Jedi meeting notes or the trans Family Support Services rep shared with the divisive Palomar Council PTA Jedi committee that ages 3 to F five is often when children begin to recognize their gender and we've seen a rap rise in trans non-binary identification in the last years there's also been a boom in literature on gender which can help both kids and adults to learn have you seen those notes I will send them to you Shelly it would be in the
082best interest of the district and students if the board and LSS stopped wasting time and taxpayer money on harmful political moves and started focusing on Student Success for all students absolutely any discussion by the board is there a motion to approve I'll make the motion to approve is there a second motion by Dr Patel second yes second by Miss plotsky go to oh we don't have a you should be able to vote on this if you'd like to go ahead but otherwise all in favor I thank you that passes unanimously item 6.1 is ratification of the Powe School Employees Association unit 1 threeyear successor agreement 2023 to 2026 Mr Jimenez I know how to say your name yeah thank you madam president we're presenting to you a ratification of a new three-year collective bargaining agreement
083with Highway School Employees Association it was ratified over the last three days and passed overwhelmingly with 99% yes votes in unit one this will be a year contract that will be effective through June 30th 2026 this evening the board has asked to approve so that we can move forward with the process of publishing the contract and posting this online for both our Collective bargain unit members and our administrators thank you Mr jenez is there question discussion motion motion approve okay I'll second all right on a motion by Dr patella second by miss kuet any discussion at this point no very pleased to see this successor agreement thank you for your hard work everyone on the team all in favor I I that passes unanimously 5 to nothing 6.2 ratification of the paway School Employees Association
084unit 2 three-year successor agreement 2023 to 2026 Mr Jimenez you're up again thank you included in this uh successor negotiations was a new three-year contract for unit 2 for the PO School Employees Association this also was overwhelmingly voted in favor by unit 2 members with 91% yes votes this contract is also a three-year contract that's effective through June 30th 2026 it will go into effect upon the board's approval this evening thank you very much any questions for Mr Jimenez no nope is there a motion a motion by Miss ploty second second by miss kuet any discussion I'll just say I really appreciate the uh collaboration with our Union Partners here as well this is hard work on both sides I want to acknowledge that yes thank you all in favor I that passes unanimously 6.3
085initial proposal for contract reopener negotiations from the Board of Education to the Powe School Employees Association unit 1 2024 2025 this is a first reading Mr Jimenez thank you as part of the new psca unit 1 contract that was just approved the parties are preparing to initiate what is called reopener negotiations for year two of this three-year contract for the upcoming 2024 2025 school year for the provisions in the term of agreement article of this contract the parties agreed to reopen wages and Health and Welfare plus two additional articles for each party to select the district's initial proposal is presented as information only this evening for the public and for our represented employees to review at an upcoming board meeting in June the initial proposal will be open for public hearing and comment prior to
086the board taking action to approve the district's initial proposal once it is approved the parties can then begin uh reopener negotiations for year two this existing three-year contract thank you any questions for Mr Jimenez on this item all right that was a first reading only 6.4 is initial proposal for contract re reopener negotiations from the Board of Education to the Powe School Employees Association unit 2 for 2024 2025 Mr Jimenez thank you madam president with the approval of the unit 2 successor three-year contract the parties are also requesting to initiate reopener negotiations for what is considered due two of this three-year contract for the upcoming school year for the provisions of the term of agreement we agree to reopen articles on wages and Health and Welfare and plus two additional articles for each party to
087select the initial proposal as well is just presented for information only this evening it will be it will return on an agenda in June uh for a public hearing and any comment prior to the board taking action for final approval thank you Mr man is any questions on this item no thank you very much then move to 7.1 this is a public hearing and approval of resolution number 53- 2024 entitled approval of an increase in fees on development projects pursuant to government code section 65995 and 66001 and California Education Code section 17620 Mr little yes thank you Madame President this item is being presented to the board this evening for approval and consideration of an increase in our level one developer fees on development projects which provide a source of funding for facilities projects throughout
088the district each each January and even numbered years the school the state allocation board reviews the maximum authorized developer fees that can be charged by school districts after January 24 meeting the fees were increased the maximum developer fees authorized are currently $5 17 per square foot uh for residential construction and 84 cents per square foot for commercial and Industrial Development in order to impose those level one fees uh on development within our district boundaries power unified is required to prepare a fee justification study which we did and we have and we shared with you uh it's in your packet uh as you noted as you reviewed it the study finds that the district is reasonably justified in leving level one developer fees at the current rate so we have been leving them uh just not
089at the rate uh at the new rate which was just uh recently uh increased we have with us this evening Justin borgan of key analytics vice president uh he's here to answer any specific questions you may have uh his firm helped us with the fee justification study thank you Mr little are there any questions we did get a nice report in here I think the last page is the one that the public would probably be the most interested in you can find that in multiple places on our district website our long range facilities Master Plan update and estimated facilities cost any questions though before we vote on this one no I just would like to make a comment that it's good fiscal stewardship to keep our district up with the current recommended fees it helps
090us um keep Pace with our facilities needs thank you any additional questions I will take a motion we need a public hearing sorry oh there's a public hearing here yes there is all right at this time I will open the public hearing on this item at is that seven oh gosh I need it in front of me 7:38 thank you the public hearing is now open are there any public comments on this item clerk CET thank you very much the public hearing on this item is now closed at 7:38 and we're back so now is there a motion motion to approve thank you Dr Patel is there a second second second by Miss Kett I'll start with our student board member I thank you and everyone else all in favor I I thank you that
091passes unanimously six to nothing thank you thanks very much and thank you for catching the public hearing piece 8.1 is civic's textbook adoption for a first reading Miss Peterson thank you madam president tonight we bring forward for a first reading for a new Civics textbook among the key features that led teachers to recommend this title include the alignment to the California history social science framework and Civics content standards as well as the ability for students to learn through debate discussions and simulations the new text includes Supreme Court cases that reflect more contemporary social issues representative teachers from our high schools reviewed and piloted materials before recommending McGraw Hills United States government textbook this is a first read only thank you Miss Peterson are there questions on this item no right would you mind sharing I
092you already answered this for me but would you mind sharing with the public why are we adopting a new textbook again uh we are adopting a new textbook a because it's current B because our current textbooks are from the year 1999 and so there we are limited in Supply um as well as the quality of the copies available to our students are many are in disrepair and um again not current content or contemporary content thank thank you very much Miss Peterson and this is a first reading 8.2 is presentation on revisions to the expanded learning opportunities program and expenditure plans Miss Peterson once again Madame President thank you in PD we have a wide range of programs supporting students and families beyond the typical school day at this time I would like to invite Christine
093Carrera director of preschool and before and after school programs to come up and present an update to the Extended Learning opportunities program which is state funded and supports comprehensive and intercessional learning opportunity for unduplicated students which are defined as English Learners students eligible for a free and or reduced price meal or is a foster youth Miss Carrera thank you uh good evening members of the board and cabinet um as you're all well aware the state of California requires all local education agencies uh to implement the expanded learning opportunities program or commonly referred to as elop um for the benefit of our community members that may be less familiar with the program please allow me to share a brief overview of the state's legislature's intent next slide Please Mr Garcia um so the elop was established
094by AB 130 back in July 2021 which requires all leas to provide a minimum of nine hours of programming daily to all students in grades TK through six um that's inclusive of instructional minutes it also requires leas to provide uh 30 non-school days of programming for a minimum of 9 hours each of those non-school days and requires leas to prioritize uh Services expanded learning program services to its lowest income communities in uh subsequent legislative updates since 2021 uh it's been clarified that effective this school year 23 24 that districts must offer the program to all unduplicated pupils which includes homeless Foster youth those eligible for free and reduced price meals and English Learners and must provide access to the program if requested by a parent or guardian and um it's the intent of the programs
095to provide um programming that's complementary but not duplicative of what's happening during the regular instructional school day so really a focus on it enrichment um educational enrichment and other enrichment opportunities that aren't available during regular instructional programming so uh next slide Please Mr Garcia um so oh I did want to mention if we could go back just really quick I'm sorry that um by leveraging our existing ESS and Asus programs uh PD actually exceeds the state's minimum requirements so we're operating between 9 and a half to 11 and a half hours on all regular school days just depending on the school start time and we're operating 48 non-school days um which include February April District recesses and summer sessions thank you so there's been a substantial amount of work that's been done to launch and
096implement this new elop program since um the initial program plan was presented to the board back in November of 2022 so some of these highlights is that ESS fees have been waved for all income eligible students so those um done in partnership with food and nutrition services um through their verification of Eligibility um our department has been able to uh provide that relief to families as required um priority access to the ESS and Asus programs have been prior uh provided to our English Learners as also required by um the elop program um we were able to expand our Asus program which operated at six middle schools currently operates at six middle schools and previously had only operated at five middle schools not in including Oak Valley and was taken from a 9-month school day program
097to 12month program so we're able to operate in the inner session and summer um at Oak Valley with this funding to provide continuous services to middle school students um we also were able to increase the availability of the valley Asus program in partnership with um a mo Inc um Miss iy I know uh clerk kuat's very familiar with Miss itsy's program there um we were uh created a single comprehensive program uh blending both the Asus program and ESS program together as one uh just really big ESS uh program at Valley and so uh we were able to take a 9-month program uh Asus and extend to 12 month services for students um primarily accessing ESS or I'm sorry Asus um were our up students who were limited to just before and after school services on
098all regular school days but now can access summer enrichment through ESS um it also includes free access to before school programming for all students at Valley Elementary through the Asus before school Grant um which is unique to that site so even though that's an early start school we're able to provide a before school program to uh that Community um through this funding we've also been able to enhance enrichment opportunities that you're seeing in ESS in particular uh through organiz Partnerships with organizations like YMCA and sing and speak Spanish we're bringing um enrichment targeted enrichment to other to certain sites prioritizing those um additional services to our lowest income communities but also making that opportunity available to all other sites that want to start to implement it and um we owe a big one for this
099year was our centralized program application management system so all families now instead of of applying to the program at their local neighborhood school they apply through a a centralized District uh application management system that's housed here at the district office which was developed in Partnership between our before and after school department and it it was a project that was started back in September and has just launched um this season so that'll be ongoing um it also establishes prioritization criteria based on Education Code as required by elop as well as Community input from families that were weight listed last July that was one of the first things I did was ask for um stakehold um part Community partner input on um what we should prioritize as a community for those that are weight listed and most
100recently just last month we passed our first internal audit for elop which is a big accomplishment flying colors um next slide please so a couple of updates that are pretty notable in the program plan for this version everything's pretty much the same but we added some key components to make sure that we're fully compliant with all of the state's requirements for the program so uh one is implementing a sliding fee scale for ESS um so this is going to be implemented effective this coming school year and it's going to be based on the state meean income ceilings and mirror the process for income eligibility that we do for the California State preschool program and luckily my department also operates that program so we're very familiar with that um so that'll give relief to families who
101are not um meeting the federal uh income guidelines for free and reduced price meals but may be still in need of additional support and then we have uh the implementation of a continuous quality improvement program uh the state requires that expanded learning programs um Eng engage in datadriven continuous Improvement so we'll be implementing a centralized datadriven process to be able to collect um feedback from all educational partners that have an interest in improving the ESS and Asis program so including students parents and other community members um the next big thing is qu around uh quality standard for Quality staff so developing a recruitment and retention strategy for our program Aid and Lead assistant positions as you all know we have many community members that are disappointed every fall when we cannot enroll their families in
102ESS and the biggest contributor to that is um not be having enough qualified staff to be providing the program so we're going to be working very intentionally this year with our uh labor Partners in PSA as well as the Personnel commission to be able to develop um a more uh robust Recruitment and Retention strategy for those very key positions um the other thing we're going to be doing um is implementing a systematic and onboarding training for all staff as you may know um many program AES um their young staff this might be their first or one of their very first jobs as the esss program a so we're going to be um implementing uh a standardized onboard in training that includes you know just general professionalism for firsttime employees and of course you know how
103to engage students uh and youth uh through a trauma informed practices and inclusive practices so that's happening and um we're going to be expanding uh continue to expand academic and enrichment opportunities um most notable will be the expansion of our Asus sports program our inter mural Sports uh to H have that opportunity available to students uh in grades 6 through 8 at design 39 because they're the only ones that have been left out of that so far and so we want to make sure we include them um next slide and then lastly we have um along with the program plan is the elop expenditure plan which has been updated um to remove the onetime funding the elog funding that's no longer available uh for our program um the plan sections were revised just for greater
104Clarity on what the funding was going to be used for um it was uh reorganized so that expenses are organized and allocated by a percentage because the funding is uh fluid so it's based on a funding formula that's tied to uh kpads data uh for up students in the prior fiscal year so every fiscal year it will be different and um so we want to make sure were able to um operate flexibly depending on the exact amount of funding that we get and then um of course priority to fund Direct Services to students for any funding that's not orig expended on its original intent will be moved directly to Direct Services and next slide I just thought I'd end with a a few pictures of students in our Asus and ESS program engaging in Hands-On
105exciting enrichment opportunities learning to sew um that's I believe the camel dairy farm and some students engaging in some uh stem activities thank you thank you director Carrera this was a good presentation I had a few questions but you answered them before uh okay good before I got them written down even so thank you that was that was very thorough board members questions yes Miss K thank you so thank you I have a couple question sorry sure sure so um so I'm so excited to see Middle School sports and activities coming back I think that was a sad one that went away so that's super exciting couple of questions on on how do you you're saying you're assessing the program are you looking at increasing attendance rates are you looking at increased test scores what
106are you doing to to see the benefits um well number one we're trying to increase the quality of the program first of all and um our students will be the first to tell us if we're engaging them quality programming so they'll be our first kind of focus to try to get feedback on what they want to be experiencing in these programs um there's definitely uh different standards uh that align that are out there for uh expanded learning programs such as skill building and um so that's that's where kind of like the academic piece might be able to be tracked um and of course elop does require that our programs provide daily opportunities for academic enrich M which include things like homework support or tutoring and so all of that's going to be a focus of
107our programming in the next several years no please one more question you say the funding is fluid and yet we're offering more hours and more days does that amount that we're able to tutor change depending on what the funding is annually um that's a very good question I think because the funding is so new we'll have to keep really good track of it and really good track of what's sustainable for us right now over the years as the funding changes um I think we're positioned well just with what we have with ESS historically bringing in um funding through parent fees and you know the implementation of the new sliding scale will also change our um overall like fiscal picture for ESS so we'll just have to really monitor it very closely to make sure we're
108able to maintain those levels of services and if not then obviously we'll have to maybe scale back a little bit 48 non-school days is a lot it's a lot it's a it's above and beyond um what the state requires but we were already offering that level of service to tuition-based families and it only seemed right to be able to continue that for students that are being supported through State subsidized uh programming yeah you're welcome Ginger's question question um had me trigger a thought as well so I I wanted to make sure that your thought was completely addressed because I heard it differently are we is there any expectation that this program and this funding will have an improvement on kids um attendance discipline achievement in the regular school day is there any expectation that we
109we we will be tracking that and following we can it's not currently required by the state but if that's um if that's that's determined to be an important yeah yeah that's what I was hearing you were asking yeah I mean if that's determined by you know educational Partners like the board and parents and as something we want to track we can certainly build that into this centralized data collection process that we're going to start to build yeah I'm intrigued by that because I think it would help us make sure that we're providing services that are in line and you know sort of synergize with what we're doing during the school day absolutely so thank you of course thank you for being open to that oh sure of course Dr sitma so you've indicated that it's
110offered to all of their UPS um do you know the percentage off hand is it are a large percentage of our kids participating in this or of it's a pro the up data um the last I checked it was approximately 20% but I could double check and respond to the board but it's is that it's about 20% okay is there and maybe this isn't just for you maybe this is for everyone up here is there an expectation that this funding is going to be stable um that's a good question anybody I don't want to put director Carrera as it's the only one on the spot here anything that anyone has heard from our we anticipate that the funding will be stable I think we're in our second year of the elop or the second year
111of the elop funding um we anticipate that it will be stable it is a quite large expenditure on the state's part um and so it is with an aim to ensure that um really sort of to to your question um Kurt KET um like are we tracking data for students and their attendance and how these Support Services before and after school may impact student attendance and their performance within the day it really is the aim of the state and the hope that the state that through these comprehensive supports beyond the the standard Traditional School day that we are um helping students feel be successful and be at school and have someplace to go when a parent's work day may not um be conducive to getting their child at 2:45 in the afternoon I appreciate that
112I just always think that we we think things like this are wonderful and then we find in Sacramento that it lost its Champion or got moved into a different category and now we have to fund it on our own without their help so that's always terrible but I like the funding um and what we're using it for it looks great to me yes cautiously optimistic I think we have to move forward in that way I will give you credit for your optim is m in this funding climate from the state um this is an action item to approve this expenditure plan so if there are no further questions or discussion I'll take a motion motion to approve thank you Dr Patel second oh who gets it Dr seisman gets the second and I'll go to
113our student board member for the first vote I thank you and everyone else all in favor I all right that passes six to nothing thank you very much thank you very much 8.3 is field trip approval process Miss Peterson all right thank you Madame President at this time I would like to invite executive directors David lamaster and Kimmy lockel along with Frank Isa director of Mi risk management and can I ask them to hold because we have a public speaker first of course yes I don't want you to walk up here and then have to move again so when you come up or when they come up they will share information about the field trip approval process in P USD cler KET Michelle babler it's been brought to my attention that not every field trip
114is presented on the list seat provided to the public I've also been made aware that there is a risk management manager in our district that is running around and denying denying our students from having these experiences on International trips it is my knowledge that there's actually no litigation on any one of them and for local trips it's car accidents which as we know may happen talk to your G jpa so why are trips being denied to our students do we not trust staff some might perhaps take that take it this way or is it because you don't want your name mentioned in any litigation field trips are not a problem area can we focus on the problem areas and not nonsensical ones or ones where poor decisions are made for personnel reasons is the risk
115manager accountable for every kid not going on a trip the problem is not the process the problem seems to be risk management the risk manager should Implement what the board desires not assume the role of the board they have not been elected and should not and should be taking counsel from you and lastly I just have to say this Michelle your comment about Mr X's pron pronunciation of Mr Jimenez was so incredibly rude as a board president miss babler I did not comment on anyone's pronunciation but my own did everybody here heard it I sh darling so you're going to make the recall process really easy you did you did Shelley me good evening everyone wow this is a long meeting um I just wanted to say thanks for letting me pop up here and
116um say a little something about the field trips as well um so my name is Shelley me I'm a mom of three PC students here um Elementary Middle School soon to be high school um I'm also uh kind of a long-term person for PTA and PTSA have been on the boards for and Counting years and um I'm just kind of here on behalf of the kids and parents that might not get a chance to come up here and say anything um and to encourage you guys to retain and rather than remove um or res re well sorry um rather than remove or restrict rather field trip sorry that's a lot of RS in one sentence sorry about that um you guys already know that these are are uh community and experience-based learning opportunities for the
117kids um they teach critical life skills such as uh BizTown with the money management working in career career fields and such like that um they have historical significance such as at the USS Midway the Californian um which tie into the maritime and the colonialism subjects um they also demonstrate cultural relevance like at the Kumi interpretive Center um through natural teamwork Co-op learning experiences um I could kind of go on and on but I'm afraid that thing's going to click off so these are just a few examples of this uh valuable enrichment learning opportunities that these field trips provide to all of our Future Leaders at PD so um let's try and keep them amazing if we can thank you that's all that's [Applause] all okay proceed with the presentation please all right now at this
118time I would like to invite executive directors David lamaster Kimmy lockel and Frank Isa director of risk management up to share information about the field trip approval process thank you good evening Madam board president for board members interim superintendent Mr miselle and cabinet members thank you for the opportunity for us to share with you the field trip approval process for in-county out of County and overnight field trips field trips are a positive factor in motivating students in enriching their learning experience to that end these activities must be well planned and carried out with safety as a priority and in a consistent manner to minimize District liability you will see next slide Ed code 35330 which refers to the Assumption of risk meaning that parents understand and accept the risks of field trips and that they
119theoretically wave all claims against the district however Ed code 44488 there are limitations to the district's relative immunity from liability with respect to negligence next slide please there are three main reasons why we reexamined our approval process we receive a high number of out ofc County and overnight field trip requests second schools had their own way of planning field trips as well as some of the changes of school Personnel that called for a need for a clear and consistent field trip approval process to ensure student safety and limit District liability and finally there have been significant changes in insurance which Mr ISO will speak to later on in our presentation next slide please we were already moving in the direction for systems alignment for example prior to 2020 high schools shifted from having students visit
120amusement parks which with limited educational benefit during the instructional school day to taking trips either in the evening or on non-school days so that students did not miss key instruction these trips are of higher risk and middle schools were beginning to align we then created a systemic approach to the approval process so that all schools can plan a safe and enriching learning experience off campus many considerations must be well thought out to ensure we return our students back to school safe and sound we formed an overnight field trip committee we ensured broad representation of Staff across our system who handle the many different aspects of planning field trips we met regularly last year and had check-ins this year next slide please this year we refined our process based on site feedback we created a streamlined
121online process in order to be more efficient with Transportation request required forms and financial procedures we listened to our site teams and gathered the feedback and made those adjustments the lessons we learned informed our in-county and outof count approval process next please a question we always ask ourselves ourselves are how do we evaluate and approve in-county day trips overnight and outof County field trips our response is it's it's a balanced approach let's use this scale to represent how we weigh in on approving these types of requests we ask does the educational social emotional benefit outweigh or is there a balance between the level of risk to students and staff cost of the trip and liability to the district Mr Isa will now expand on liability and insurance next slide thank you in the postco era
122we've experienced a great deal of Market turbulence with respect to insurance and the actual landscape itself there's been a great deal of consolidation we have less lines of coverage and opportunity from our insurers many have moved out of California or decided not to do business in the public entity space as a result we've these dislocations have caused significant increases in what we consider be premiums on the consumer side but contributions on the public enity side because we're soft insured and power Unified School District is also self-managed in many of its programs there's been a great deal of change in in the scope basically the breadth of the claims that public entities are are uh facing and experiencing postco in addition to that the actual expenses with respect to the settlements and actually resolution of the
123claims themselves has increased rapidly next slide in the 2023 24 school year the district conducted an exhaustive and very comprehensive analysis of jpa Partners throughout Southern California to determine which jpa or which partner would meet the the needs of the district as we move forward we have very unique needs as a district of our size there was a unanimous decision by the panel um to move in a New Direction and we moved from Keenan and Associates to the Sano County School's risk management joint Powers Authority we believe that they're our best Partners moving forward because they us local control we have a great deal U greater breadth of qualified claims we have increased coverage limits and the liability side of things and we have more opportunity to have Direct Control of resolving majority of our
124claims that fall within what we call the self-insured retention or our layer that we retain as a district the effects of the intering coverage um we've we feel gives us a broader opportunity to take more control and actively participate in the process the net District fiso impacts we've saved a significant amount of money that we believe will be realized over the next couple years as we de de velop adequate reserves in a new insurance program next slide thank you Miss thank you Mr Isa Mrs loel so one of the most often asked questions we get is why are we no longer approving field trips the answer is we approve the majority of trips that we receive to date we've approved over 150 trips there have been a few that have been denied however we've worked
125with the groups who've requested the trips on alternative options and they were provided as well as suggestions on how to restructure those trips as you can see there's a great deal of information that we gather and a lot of planning that goes into approving these school trips our goal is to help support the site leaders to get to yes when possible especially for legacy type trips we have been and will continue to meet with ASB directors classes clubs ptsas foundations and teachers who are requesting to take students on trips part of the meetings are to educate and to um help them understand the changes that have been made and to the insurance and increased cost for trips and safety as well as discussing Alternatives and possible restructuring to trips the trips to get to yes
126as parents and Educators our highest priority is to return our students to their families in the same manner in which they we receive them both physically and mentally when we take students off campus regardless of the reason our families expect their students to be returned to them whole our goal is to provide trips that will allow students to have memorable and educational experiences many which were just described by our speaker in a safe and positive manner so we thank you for this time and we welcome any questions that you may have thank you all for the presentation any questions I think we have a lot let's keep going around yeah I'll only do that all right we'll start with Dr Patel I'll do one at a time so that everyone gets their chance so for
127full transparency I've got a daughter at Mesa Verde and I know there's a lot of concern around the families there 8th grade um there is a tradition you you mentioned traditional field trips there's an eighth grade traditional field trip to at the end of their U middle school education process they get a fun trip to notb farm and clearly that has been denied and there seems to be a lot of back forth on what alternatives might be what how did it get to this point and why is that field trip in particular um why was that removed I know there was a lot of concern around the same similar field trip at many of the other middle schools as well is that question yes that is a question how did how did that happen and
128what is the background for that from my perspective um this being the third large District that I've participated in most districts have moved away from field trips of this nature during the school day and they've been restructured for variety reasons for for for the most part no district is really ured for 500 kids to participate in any one thing at one time if there's a catastrophic loss that' be one consideration the instructional amend would be another consideration and the educational value would be another consideration but most districts have move these trips to a Saturday to where it becomes more of a private event versus a publicly sponsored event so that's kind of where the landscape is and we do a lot of market analysis too by calling districts that are same size and scope as
129us to see what they're doing it' be kind of be considered one of the best practices in the insurance industry yeah I add to that Mrs lockfield mentioned that the high schools were already moving in this direction so back in 2013 14 and 15 our high schools would take students to Disneyland the seniors and so those trips were all moved to a Saturday and so that work had been done prior to 2020 so when we came back schools were resuming those trips the high schools had already made that adjustment they were no longer taking those trips on during the school week and during the school day it was outside of the school day and so the middle schools were still engaged in that so that's it was kind of a continuance of where we had
130already been and where we were going sorry quick follow-up question did these Middle School 8th grade classes know ahead of time that they were to schedule that on a Saturday or I mean did did they know that that was what they were supposed to do to make it happen ins sufficient time to make that schedule change we did we met we talked with them and I know last year they took those trips and so as we came into this year we started having those conversations early on so that they could begin to restructure them and have that uh in place and we do know some middle schools are going on a Saturday so my question is when you're looking at field trips um now that the majority of Cl um classes are inclusive um how
131are we supporting students with disabilities attend these trips um are they limit especially when they have limited amount of chaperon spaces because parents especially when they are um late at night or Saturdays parents aren't allowed or they're very limited of how many can go like senior night um I know there was an issue that we couldn't buy extra tickets to Disney for seniors I'd be happy to address that question that's an excellent question and one of the things that in our process we learned that that was an area that we needed to shore up to make sure that all students could participate so a student who has a a requirement for additional support we built into our system so that whole System's alignment was to make sure that we were asking every group is are
132there students who um require additional supports not only um around supervision but there's students who may have medical needs and so all of those forms and um procedures really help school teams think about how are we going to support our students so that they truly have full access and can experience the uh the day trip or overnight field trip um with great success so one if a student has one-on ones or things like that they're sending one-on ones with them or something yes okay yes thanks Heather if I may one think that we're all aligned on in the spirit of the Ed code anytime you have an population identified to go to a field trip we make sure that all have the opportunity to participate or no one does so something that's Central to our
133core can I follow up on that quickly when you say we're moving field trips such as amusement park trips to weekends that completely takes it out of a school related field trip correct so there is no requirement that all students be allowed to go or that it be made accessible or affordable correct it is true that all field trips are optional um we it is not a requirement the main requirement is that if um a a parent or Guardian decides that they don't want their child to participate such as like sixth grade camp that we would have to provide other alternative activities back at the school site I'm talking about the exact opposite a parent does want their child to be able B to participate but they can't afford it or they can't send an
134aid and it's a weekend trip and now we're no longer required to provide that help it's it's certainly now hearing how you're phrasing that I understand the question um we we would always want to make sure that trips that are um School sponsored District sponsor all of those uh requirements are put into place and we can still have those type of of trips that are not on school days there are also trips that we can have that we would encourage a private trip and so that is um another way of school not school sponsor but non-school sponsor trips to occur without having the so that's what I'm trying to get at when we put it on a non-school day it's no longer a school sponsored trip it doesn't fall under our insurance we are no
135longer required to provide any of those assistance pieces for our students correct you're correct but I do believe with a district this size that we have the ability to address those nuances to support students I think we can find a mechanism to do that I sure hope so because it sounds terrible no and I and I would say that we did that in the cases where we went on a Saturday we would bring we would pay for AIDS to be there we we would cover those so we would never deny a student even though it was an event that was held on the weekend we would work to make sure sure that students were included and we would also scholarship students who couldn't necessarily afford who still wanted to go we would find ways to
136scholarship them and get them there that's good to hear I'm glad to hear that thank you sorry I jumped out of my place in line no I I do know that it's not happening across the district that's why I'm asking the question I'm hoping you get it rectified by next year but it definitely did not happen this year for all students um it it was not happening across the district students um um like things like prompt that's an event that's sponsored by ASV there's not somebody going to be there that's and those are out of town they're they're not there um you can't count on a senior buddy to take care of because they have a date to take care of another senior you can't take care of a you know send somebody to Disneyland
137from like 9:00 till 2:30 in the morning that's got autism when you don't have a one-on-one so if the school specifically is not taking care of it it's not during school hours if we do not have a oneon-one and someone guaranteed that there's there we can't even guarantee we give one-on ones during the class day most of the time how are you going to spend $300 to send your kid when you don't know that there's going to be somebody there so Michelle's correct like there's no I know specifically I've had parents say I couldn't send my kids on the senior trips this year because they told me no there would not be any supervision so my kids's going to be wandering around not even know how to get to the gate so I I want
138to make sure that this is corrected for next year that there's something going on thank you for that is it okay to switch away from the the the special needs side of it so um I happen to go to Pal our council meeting the other day and um this was a major topic um and um I see that get to yes I see you know the insurance I I see that and um it's really frustrating and I feel that it's been kind of run a muck and I think that we're not doing the best interests and as you're talking about how insurance has changed it sounds like actually now it's more in our control which means we should be able to make the decisions on what are feasible um field trips to go on and
139what really made me angry is when you kind of say well we want our kids back safe we've always wanted our kids back safe nothing has changed on that so why all of a sudden are we being more restrictive and who decides what's educational and what's not educational because I think going to nottsbury farm is an eighth grade class is more educational than watching repeated movies in some of the classes that is going on at the last week of school um so don't don't know if there's a question in there I guess I can pull one question out of that is how has the insurance changed when it sounds like it's more an our control that we are now at Jeopardy to allow more of these trips it's more it's within our control to resolve
140the claim after the claim has been filed not more in our control to to allow a broader array of field trips it's once a claim is filed once the district experiences a theoretical loss we have more ability to directly manage that and directly address it with than our layer one follow have we seen have we seen our insurance claims increase over the past few years or are they staying the same as an independent school district we have seen significant increase in our claims and as a aggregate because we're a member of a pool we're not only independent but we also interdependent with the other schools that make up our pool we've seen significant increase in claims across the board and this is a direct result from field trips with respect to field trips um while
141we've seen claims as far as injuries are concerned resulting from field trips see those numbers because it would be interesting to see where they're happening and which field trips are causing the most injuries yeah as a followup to that I think we would like to see that tracking maybe over a 10e time period before after covid with the different insurance right if we have that we should have that information we'll do the best we can and track it down thank you um I most of my questions questions have been answered and I Echo a lot of the frustrations um you know as being a part of the community and hearing you know parents that are are questioning you know why this is happening and um you know we have those questions as well um so
142I I only have one question based on we were giving um an older slide deck this was a different one that was presented on the screen um I'm curious about on your FAQs when you've said are we saving money is that related to the insurance or is that related to sending these kids because I know that we are all most almost every single field trip that our kids go on there's a a fee that's attached to sending our kid and sometimes they're saying if you're able to contribute a little bit more so that someone else who can't afford can go you know you're welcome to do that so I'm I'm curious about the statement on this one are do we save money I I'm trying to connect the dots I believe that was a question
143that was posed as with respect to the insurance programs Now versus what we had in the past so I believe that's what that question was referencing and the answer is we have sign save significance amount of money and changing from the prior insurance program with Keenan to this senual County Office of Education Program okay through that program do the other schools that are part of the county GPA on this do they are they are we all required to have a similar policy on field trips or is this just the way we interpret it because as a jpa we're certainly our rates are going to increase based on what all the schools all the districts within that jpa do not just us yes we're tied to a larger District pool of about 10 to 12 districts
144I believe somewhere in that area are other districts adjusting what they're doing in the same way we are are we saving everyone money and taking their liability I I don't think I can answer that question we've only been there for a year um but we tend to be pretty aligned yeah so I have a question then coming up on our board policy definitely calls out that trips may be conducted in connection with school related social activities they need not be educational solely social activities are specifically called out in our board policy additionally our administrative regulation defines it says that high-risk activities such as amusement parks may be allowed if parents sign a waiver can you talk about signing a waiver so there's a natural Assumption of risk document that's pretty much aligns with the 35330
145uh and that Assumption of risk I think you can say in Prior years really created a blanket of immunity for school districts that you're participating in something under your under your own volition and there are associat rism we're disclosing these things in recent years that blanket immunity has diminished greatly in the sense that if plaintiff's council can make an argument that there's some relative negligence on behalf of the district and there are a variety of areas where that can um happen especially when there's harm caused of students in one form whether it be physical or emotional our opportunity to throw something out in summary judgment as a fact of law has diminished greatly and judges allowing these claims to pass through and have a jury of our peers determine the outcome so what I'm hearing
146there is that perhaps we will need to change our board policy or administrative regulations or both to either align with what's happening now or say no we're not okay with this and we're going to take on the extra risk I don't think our current board policy and administrative regulation aligns with what is happening currently I do think we need to look it over because it doesn't match I agree that inconsistency seems to be problematic and I think it's where parents are going to see to to see why and what is causing field trips to be approved or not approved and the lack of consistency may be in whether staff are following those maybe outdated policies and ARS versus what you know they they're they're trying to adhere to going forward based on recommendations they've heard
147verbally so it it does seem like we need to adjust or update our policies and our ARS to align with the current landscape and I would like to know which other schools are involved in that jpa pool you don't have to answer that now maybe in a followup I think that would be helpful to know what those other districts are and what their field trip policy is that should be a board policy that we'd be able to pull up pretty easily well also as we're talking about making things even across the district we have some middle schools that are going and some aren't we have had routine field trips going on for years and years and years can there be a template because what I'm hearing also is people apply for it 30 days later
148they're denied they're not told exactly why they're denied they have to kind of guess then they reput it in they wait another 30 days and they're denied again and they're like shoot I didn't guess right that time um so when we're talking about these is there CU you know again talking about Palomar Council we have incredible volunteers who are trying to help our teachers and our our administrators so they can move things along and make your life easier too if you want to go to nottsbury farm on your eighth grade trip here's what it looks like give me the date give me the number of kids and you'll be approved um is there some sort of thing that we can do for you know the whatever all these traditional Biz town all the ones that
149we have to get approval for so it's just more concise and easier for our volunteers and for our teachers and so that they can get approval faster exactly so Bown Bown was a field trip we did participate in as a district so that was not bis toown is something we do participate in we've approved that yeah right right um if I may as I spoke earlier about the consolidation that's also happened on the vendor side as well so there were some activities that we were able to participate in as a district and then we received the terms of usage for a lack of better language the contractual terms vendors have also tightened that up quite a bit too and so we try to what we we try to partner with our vendors and look what
150we call Mutual in ification which means you're responsible for what you cause we're responsible for what we cause but vendors have moved to a different platform to limit their liability which basically says anything that happens is your fault within the scope of the law what's legally defensible in addition to that many many due to the consolidation many of the larger vendors we participate in don't have jurisdiction in California we're not allowed to enter in contracts that don't have jur jic and resolution mechanism in state of California can you give me a couple examples of these vendors um yeah so for instance uh a lot of them will be like a third party that's an intermediary that actually creates opportunities like World strides many of these people are Incorporated outside the state of California for a
151variety of reasons virin all right um anyone who's Incorporated outside the state of California does that to limit their liability because California tends to be relatively litigious and so a lot of times they'll have resolution mechanisms that you wave all your legal rights which you never want want enter into either on as an individual or or public entity they have very strict resolution mechanisms like binding arbitration and the jurisdictions outside the state of California which means we none of our council's licensed to participate in legal servic outside the California so that has been rather problematic I can't assure you that those weren't the terms prior to covid but they are definitely the terms that we are subject to now in some of these contractual agreements so I'm looking at again different slides than you have
152out here so you approved at 156 total according to your papers sheets um field trips this year but you only had six denials so we have seven correct middle schools so I'm guessing the six denials are to not fa Farm no I don't believe so um not all of our middle schools had Nots very far has a plan trip I think one of them for sure I know in my mind does not do this trip okay has not done this trip well yeah that there are seven but so but I don't know I I don't know what those exact six are I know that um we have approved the majority of trips and when not Berry Farm has come up we have spoke with either the ptsas or the asbs or whomever had concerns about
153it I know one school I met with um teachers and and talk with them about it and and try to help them come up with another plan to to create a trip and experience that they were wanting for their for their students and so they were able to come up with an alternative trip and plan that worked for them but it it it would that's how we would handle it so I don't know exactly what those six were but in those instances we worked with the schools or the foundations or as whoever was asking to take the trip to figure out a way to do something either different or get to yes for that particular venue all right because I just want to make sure we we're all aware that this is six denial I
154don't think that was inclusive of in County out of County and overnight I think that's much too small of a number that's why the slide was removed okay that's why I'm asking so I think I'm trying to look at you know why the board asked for you to present this there's a a lot of community confusion between students themselves that we had a couple kids in their report mention it right parents are talking about it whether in PTA and Foundations or outside of it a lot of um confusion around it is there a communication strategy that's being conveyed to the teachers on how they can talk about some of these field trips going away or maybe you know what's going on because I think part of this is um managing expectations around what is approved
155and what isn't and then creating a clear transparent communication strategy so that parents know how to manage those expectations and have respectful conversations with their staff and with their students at home so is there a way that we can help smoothing this process out while we go through it so it's not so emotional absolutely so thank you for that I think that that's um an important next step is now that we have a really good sense of what the asks are and to be able to provide that guidance for schools and students and families I have one specific case just because I'm pretty close to City of pawe and palamar Council heard my fr ation on this one um I don't if the sixth graders or seventh graders used to always partner with the Poway
156community center um and the pool instead of being locked in their classroom during graduation which is no educational value um and I guess they can't be in more than four inches of water or something like that and that's why they had to not be able to go to the pool and I talked to the city today and they really want to make it work the city of Po welcomes our kids to come to the pool and how to get TS what is it do we need to have a 10 to1 adult kid ratio do we need to have an extra lifeguard what do we do need to do to be able to get these kids to be able to go into the swimming pool swimming is mandatory in in what ninth grade PE class so
157it's only two years away so I I know we can do that so it's just a matter of okay if the insurance policy says this what is the volunteer ratio because I know our parents would step up to help versus keeping these kids locked in the last day of school so um the city of Powe wants to partner with us um they said that they have given everything they can to us and we're the roadblock which really makes me sad um because it's our kids that are hurting and our families and and also obviously our our um reputation um so thanks I'm not seeing anyone else with burning questions or comments at this time just to try to summarize um where Go From Here board I'm hearing um a lot of frustration up here I
158think that our board policy and administrative regulations don't necessarily match what we heard there um I feel like we may be looking at we are we asking directing staff to bring us some recommendations for amending board policy and administrative regulations so that we can look at something concrete that matches up with either what the what the board would want want to to say or what staff is recommending and and go from there I think that sounds good but I would also like to have that follow-up information to inform our decision on what those changes might be so I want to make sure we're looking at the same information when those recommendations come forward well we certainly have to adopt any amended board policy so it would definitely come to us again but I want to
159see the information that informs those changes I got it okay so we're asking for some information okay do you want to restate the information you're looking for are we trusting that someone wrote it down and got it yeah I got it okay so we're asking for the information to the questions we've asked and the concerns we had and then moving forward after we received some of that considering an amended board policy or administrative regulation or both to see if we're in agreement with the direction we're going here with a full understanding of all of the consequences of changing anything Etc because I think it's quite possible that our presenters out there didn't understand the consequences from our perspective and we didn't understand the consequences from their perspective okay we've got a okay we got it
160thank you all right anything further at this point all right there is nothing to approve here we thank you for your one last comment I know this isn't going to happen before our June meeting just to reasonably set expectations around timing thank you thank you thank you I'm going to call a quick recess here can we make it 5 minutes 5 minutes oh I'm sorry I should save the time it is 8 oh god7 thank you e e e my my close clock so I don't have to guess um this takes us to 11.1 approval of regular board meeting dates for calendar year 2025 this is a first reading associate super I'm sorry you're not associate super you're an interim superintendent miselle does anybody have a problem with any of those dates nope okay I
161look forward to approving those next month moving on 12.2 recruitment process for new superintendent including possible creation of a board subcommittee and use of a search firm this also says throw to Mr miselle but really this is our item so I'll just take it um the goal for this item is to decide on new steps for our superintendent recruitment process obviously do you have speakers on this no yes yes okay let's do that okay first up I'm I'm all over the place here um relle bab is the fourth time the charm the past three superintendents had to be terminated for cause due to miss conduct the broader problem is not the superintendence it is the Judgment of the board members who select them our district operates with a total lack of oversight no key performance
162indicators and no accountability the failure is at the very top fool me once shame on you fool me three times shame on the board the superintendent oversees an annual budget in excess of $530 million and holds in their hands the well-being and futures of nearly 35,000 young students the position pays close to $1 half million per year with benefit P families and students deserve and can afford the best of the best and at the minimum the board should consider the services of San Diego County of education for the superintendent surch costing little to no money potentially saving taxpayers upwards of $40,000 either way key professionals who specialize in this selection process must be utilized given the lack the current lack of public trust in your decision-making capabilities I urge the board to postpone any appointments
163until after the upcoming elections which are just a few months away many community members have expressed their views on social media and seemed comfortable with Mr miselle serving as interim superintendent during this period some of you are personally responsible for selecting our recent now terminated superintendent all of you fumbled the decision to dismiss an individual who was known to bully and harass Children and Families your overall decision-making and voting record are Central to the problems our district faces given these concerns I believe many would agree that it would be prudent to wait for new trustworthy trustworthy leadership thank you for considering these points sounds good Frank Shu excuse me I'm here to urge the board to make the recruitment process as transparent as possible and learn from the past mistakes consider Merit over anything else
164and listen to a wide range of PSD Community instead of just one-sided opinion so trusty o coner redcliffe and trusty Patel you were two of the three trustees who voted to hire Phelps first of all seven years ago you violate you violated Brown act to announce that you picked Phelps over others without an official board meeting conducted publicly please make sure you won't do that again also you two made then trusty TJ Zen flip his vote from a more qualified candidate to um two Phelps over one weekend I suspect that you actually hired her not because she's a better candidate better candidate with Integrity but because of her identity your past decision put the school district in a very bad position when now the school district needs the public trust badly please put Merit over
165identity politics and anything else this time last but not least please listen to the wide range of PD Community instead of just opinions from one research form by smearing the community as misinformed before you even started the investigation you clearly demonstrated that you have a dam dangerous and harmful habit that you listen to only one Side Story even when you were making critical decisions for the school district please correct that Behavior This Time by the way I teach kids Bible regularly in my church and those lovely kids sometimes make fun of my pronunciation as well I believe they would learn from past mistakes and won't do that when they one day grew more mature and maybe became a School District board president like truste okon radliff so again please learn from your past mistakes [Applause]
166[Music] so the goal for this item is to decide on next steps for the superintendent recruitment process so I think the first item on our agenda here is whether the board is interested in retaining a search firm to help us and I'd open that up to discussion I wasn't aware of a San Diego County situation what does that look like that is assistance with a search as well so even if we want any assistance outside of our school District the answer here is yes let's get help yeah I think we I think we need to get that help and if we can include the county one we should do that I don't I think we should acknowledge yeah that none of us are human resource professionals yeah yeah okay so that was easy consensus um
167so here's what that could look like um I would work with staff and councel um invite three to four firms I I'm balling three to four last time we had four firms come in and talk to us um invite them to submit written materials to us about their qualifications um the services they'd provide the cost um what they consider to be best practices in this search um you know from past experience the timeline um Community engagement in the process are things that we'd be interested I think um but once we get those then we'd invite them um to an upcoming board meeting I I would suggest a special meeting so we don't bog down a regular board meeting with that um and do that as soon as possible they they'd make some brief presentations to
168us answer our questions and then as a board not necessarily in that meeting but we could do it in that meeting vote and select one of those um that is generally how that might go I mean I'd be open to adjustments in what that might look like but that is generally how it looks in every District that goes through this well one of my main concerns is to find out what the community feels I I think um from the last Bond try that we did as well as what we've gone through with this I think that we need to rele into the into not only the teachers but the staff the te you know and I know U Mr Melle has done a really good job trying to get a sense of that so as
169we try to find the right group um to lead us this way that's a really important key I think is to bring all those those players to the table um and the reason why I say that is I think our last Bond um group that we had missed missed the mark so I want to make sure I know California is a very special state so we don't want to go Nationwide necessarily but I do think they need to have a sense of what Poway is so these are some things that we can ask them to present to us when they come to a meeting or in their written materials that they submit us what the public engagement piece they they explain that we would like a lot and ask them what that process looks like
170to them what they feel like best processes are yes Mr Vetti um also maybe figure out some way to include some sort of student input um whatever would be appropriate in that case but I think one thing we probably want to do is try to you know continue Bridging the Gap between the board and the students um and just make sure that you know students um are you know happy with the decision that's being made yeah I think it's important that we do have a firm that has proven track record and experience with um you know actually doing the community engagement piece while I wasn't on the board when the previous firm was chosen I think we did see areas that we can improve going forward right I don't think it was the best process
171at the time but I wasn't a board member when that process got initiated I think there were some complications there if I remember correctly so I think there was significant Community input that went on for well over a month in person and online um that that doesn't just because it took a long time doesn't mean it was well done right yeah yeah and I think with keeping the scope focused in California Educators where we know that they understand Ed code in California law because California public education has done very differently I think that'll be beneficial as well one that's something that the board did not necessarily agree on last time so one thing in keeping with the timeline too I I don't know if if we can decide right after their presentations that might be
172unless unless there's a complete standout I don't know if that's going to happen but as far as Community engagement goes we're looking at July or August and that's when everyone's not really here so we're kind of stuck on that timeline of getting pushed more toward towards a September time to get that Community engagement so I I think our our timing is a little difficult with Summer where it's falling I I agree with you I think selecting them as rapidly as possible would be great but the next step after we select them there are some limitations in the summertime yes yeah I agree with that I would like to see if does the San Diego County have off offic side do they have a selection process I have no idea but I would definitely reach out
173and find out um or AA or whatever the the version of csba has a firm that they recommend as well I'm sure that there are recommended firms and I know the different districts in our our County it's it's kind of The Usual Suspects who okay come in it doesn't mean that there aren't others that would be good though so I I just was looking at as a we have a if if those kind of places that are less costly have something I will say that last time around csba has recommended firm was the most expensive not the least but I'm not familiar with the counties or if csba is still recommending the same firm as they were you know eight years ago but I some the school board was I was thinking might have one
174as well thanks I would just like that you know whomever we have come and present to us that they are able to provide us something in writing beforehand because this is this is a really really big task that I mean most of us have not been in this position before where we're having to hire someone let alone hire someone that is going to impact thousands of people um and to to be able to just kind of see in writing their process and it's I I mean right now I just I have so many questions I don't even know where to begin um and I just want to make sure I'm doing you know right by everybody yeah that makes sense I want to make sure that the public knows that just because we're hiring somebody
175that we are not Crossing out people that work within the district as well that that that they can apply just because we have an interm does not mean they cannot become permanent or other staff can also apply we are not barring anyone from applying from a position just because we hire a search fir to help us I'm just saying I want to make that public yeah so all right so I guess at this point I mean we have there's a couple other things here if if you guys are like I don't know if we have like perfect consensus during this conversation so if there's a motion um I may be looking for something that the board president would work with staff to contact potential search firms and request written materials and schedule them to come
176in to present their qualifications do we need to put together kind of what we're looking for to send out to to attract these firms or like just which comes first the this is what we expect from you who wants to present on this so I can tell you that last time the board did this again eight years ago go we did send out a pretty lengthy packet of things that we wanted the board did not really give any input into that staff pulled it from other sources which um which was interesting and when I talked to um an employment lawyer who our district already contracts with um talked to him about what this might look like he said that districts don't do rfqs that that's kind of an outdated method and that they just invite
177firms to submit um I think for us in an invitation to say what we're looking for makes a lot of sense but it doesn't have to be something necessarily that we go through um ask our human resources department to write up the qualifications for their next boss that's kind of weird so I sort of understood what they were explaining um if this board would like to write up something um we could discuss that now or I might suggest that we do a board subcommittee of two board members to work on this um otherwise maybe we see if there are the county um csba axess recommendation people who have worked with other um districts in the county if that's a group of four that just is like oh of course those are the four us MH
178um I haven't done this before what what about if we put out that all call right you as board president you can work with staff to just put out that all call and then we have another board meeting in early June and by then we can have a motion that includes or have an agenda item that includes what we'll be searching for in a search firm so this isn't what the search firm will necessarily be asking as a qualified superintendent because that we will do with the search firm right this is what are we looking for in a search firm what are their areas of expertise you know what superintendent have they placed how long have they placed how long have those superintendant last what kind of ongoing coaching might they provide for that superintendent
179we can ask what their areas of expertise are um and we can come up with that list but right now let's just put out the all call and and I think that's important that's one thing that I was surprised going to the csba events is we are a rather large District that there's not many districts our size so different firms aren't used to picking a superintendent that has necessarily all the capabilities that are necessary to run our district um so having that definition I think it be very very helpful so as I'm searching for what what we're saying I feel like we're talking about after we select a firm what we want to do with them so as far as helping to select a firm to inviting firms to come are we comfortable with me
180working with staff and councel who are already experts and have done this before with other districts to bring in three to four or even five if that's the number that you know exists in our space are we comfortable with that piece and then the board weighs in as much as we like at that point to tell them once we once we hear from these firms see what they recommend as best practices we'll see if we agree I think five would be good actually well I guess I'm just throwing out I have no idea how many will even three would be too narrow last time we only had four reply when we asked when we open it up to the whole world so um I have a feeling that four was a lot because some of
181them were not from instate and um are we comfortable with the beginning of that process at least in bringing in firms to tell us why we should hire them yes yeah okay yeah I think I heard you right I kind of would be more comfortable if we had a motion and a vote to make sure that I'm hearing you I think I heard you but I want to be sure let's get this on record I make a motion what's your motion that you work with Council and staff to bring in is three to four lawyers and attorneys no se sear search firms okay okay I I hear that motion everybody agrees they understand the motion by Miss platsky is there a second second okay can we vote in favor of this you you can be
182in included in this Mr ready I okay everyone else I okay so that passes unanimously 6 nothing I think the next thing maybe is their interest in establishing a board subcommittee of two members to work on any logistical issues that come up at this point I mean I can do this first part but do we want to I'd be comfortable if one other board member was kind of in this with me so I don't feel like I'm walking out there all by myself thinking I heard what you said and maybe I didn't quite get it well what I would like to see on that is that there's two people you and somebody else put together a list of of questions and it helps again to to go off of somebody else is you're trying to
183assemble at the best list that you think encompasses as much obviously anyone else is welcome to add questions when they come but if we have the foresight to really be organized um I think that would be very valuable and I think that's maybe yes that could be the beginning at least of what that subcommittee would do and present it to the rest of the board the subcommittee is not making any decisions for the board as a whole under any circumstance um it would just be uh the board is obviously going to be responsible for interviewing our search firms and making that decision the subcommittee would not do that under no circumstances but I think it would help with the structure though of how we go about trying to decide because right now we're all going
184wow I don't know even know what's going to be coming in front of us so if two of us can really work off each other um I think that might really allow structure for the process so I guess I'm I'm kind of phrasing it at this point as a subcommittee to work on logistical issues related to the process at this point because we're not going to work on any we don't want the subcommittee to take away anything that the Board needs to do as a whole but to work on logistical issues that's kind of broadly stated but um Okay who wants to be on this subcommittee so we can have a solid uh motion and vote vote on the subcommittee idea I'm going to say me because I'm already on the first part you'd like
185to be on it Cindy okay so this is the logistic subcommittee of Dr sesman and I on this okay um is there a motion a second and a vote on that and then I think we're done with this item for now I'd like to make the motion to form a subcommittee including board president Okana Ratcliffe and board vice president Dr sitma to work on legist ICS in selection of the selection firm thank you is there a second I will second that thank you Miss ploty with the second okay miss travetti you can take the first vote on this one as well I thank you and to everyone else I okay that sounds unanimous six nothing thank you all the these are really just the first of many decisions and steps we're going to be needing
186to take um as this process progresses it is the most important job of the board so I'm thank just want to thank everybody for um taking this seriously even today just for our first initial baby steps here okay that takes us to 12.1 board member reports let's start at the end M tretti so the weekend after the last board meeting I got to attend um The Breakfast of Champions ceremony honoring student athletes um and it was just so cool to see um two athletes from each of our high schools be honored for um their contributions not only in athletics but also academics um and their ability to maintain a high GPA despite handling um some of them were Tri sport athletes um all the athletic stuff was really amazing um and also we had some
187really cool guest speakers like um I think a former player on the padr um and um a really cool speech from a police officer um who had a really um inspiring story to share um so I think it's really amazing that these student athletes are doing some really great work um also just through community service um in their communities um and then the week after that I got to be a part of the process in choosing the next student board member um and I'm really excited for chenade Kylie from Del Norte um and we chose her just because of there were many qualified applicants but she really stood out because of her commitment to giving back to PD um and you know despite having you know many awards and everything her main focus was on
188um you know the tutoring work she does across different schools um and just sort of the on the ground impact she has and that I think really resonated with us um as a subcommittee um and then on Wednesday I attended the pursuing passion not Perfection event um for our eighth graders and their families um and I think um it was our second year as the superintendence um advisory Council doing it and I think there were a lot of things that um really improved from last year um including sort of um giving more time for parents and students to talk to each other um to make sure that parents weren't hearing one thing and students weren't hearing another thing um and we also had this um sort of mock College interview panel um that modeled sort
189of the college application um evaluation process for our students which is really interesting um and I hope to see like something like this continue even after um you know this year I think it's a really cool opportunity for students to learn I think there's just so many miscon ceptions and myths surrounding going into high school and you know what boxes you have to tick um and that's kind of part of the you know mental health problem um and you know like the academic um problems that we're facing so I think it's really cool if we can continue to do an event like that and um the next week I got to hear from a lot of you know teachers and parents who came up to me um during school hours and said that they went
190there with their kids and they got a lot out of it so that was really cool to hear um and then today I finished my last AP test um which you know AP classes is not I know U not the most exciting experience for students but um I'm grateful that um I'm grateful that we have this opportunity to you know get college credit and take advanced classes it's the amount of APs we offer in our high schools is pretty significant compared to a lot of other high schools um so I think that's um really cool and um this is also teacher appreciation week so um I think going into high school I realized that you know we appreciate our teachers not just for teaching us like things from the curriculum but also being like mentors
191um and now towards like the end of the year when we have like less work to do um I still find myself you know like going to study hall or Wolverine time or you know tutorial um you know just asking for advice on you know like how to you know approach academics or you know balancing time management um you know even Beyond high school and I think um that mentorship that our teachers provide is something really invaluable for all of our students um and so we should appreciate them not just this week but every week um and this month um something I look forward to working more on is um there have been a number of laws like passed in California recently trying to empower more student voice on school boards and so sort of
192seeing what we can do to make sure that um future student board members have um you know as much voice as they possibly can um on you know issues regarding um things that affect students so that's all for me well congratulations on being done with APS that's a big deal considering I have a house full of that right now good evening everyone happy to use my time with you to share out a few of the events I've attended on behalf of the district in my role as a trustee we are officially in celebration season so some of my updates will be around celebrations that I attended I was also delighted to join um several of our board members and board member travetti to celebrate with our scholar athletes at The kuas Breakfast of Champions where
193two scholar athletes from each High School recognized and presented with a scholarship check my sinceres gratitude for our Community Partners in helping our students achieve their goals so a lot of times our students are recognized not just in the district but with partner organizations in the community and those Partnerships are very important I was able to learn quite a bit at this year school bus drivers and technicians and staff Appreciation Day Not only was this a chance to gather and get to know newer staff and catch up with some of our more familiar faces we've had several employees of the year come out of that transportation department it was also an opportunity to hear about concerns and possible solutions thank you for all that you do to our bus drivers and our transportation department for
194keeping our kids safe on their journey to and from school their athletic or after school activities and on field trips um in recognition of mental health awareness month I was also able to attend the P pursuing passions not Perfection event that our um student superintendent um advisory committee I always get the crr cabinet Council committee um it was an excellent event organized by our students it's a completely student run event they brought in counselors from a lot of different um types of colleges and universities to present to parents they also put on student panels and I was able to moderate one of those panels for STEM related fields it was um two sessions of this full of attendees students who are interested in stem Pathways asking um seniors and juniors what they did to get
195to where they're going in their next steps it was pretty cool our students have um good inquiry they ask really powerful questions um it was an honor to join interim superintendent miselle um and principales Kelly Moore of Mesa Verde and Colin Young of Oak Valley and being awarded the California distinguished schools for those two middle schools and we received that award from the C superintendent of Public Instruction directly congratulations once again to our two middle schools for Oak Valley this was their first time earning that award so big congratulations I attended the ppmc Showcase with board member okor ratliffe and board member kuet I'll let them fill in the details on that one so they get something to talk about and not get overshadowed by us but um a lot of what La shalal described
196um I agree that it was pretty incredible to see what they're able to accomplish at that special program that we created just in the last couple years I want to make a shout out to Westview physics and Engineering teacher Don Hester we kicked off teacher appreciation week with a huge surprise celebration for her at Westview she's also the option 16 robotics team adviser and she was one of four teachers out of 144 nominees selected for the Honda random acts of helpfulness prize before that day I never knew such a thing existed but it was impressive to see employees from Honda come and acknowledge and recognize the difference she makes in her students lives she received $55,000 worth of classroom supplies for being nominated for this award and she was showered with this surprise event including
197lunch and much appreciation from her students Don if you're out there listening you are so loved valued and appreciated it was pretty clear from that celebration additionally I attended the College Bound end of year event to wish our Scholars graduating from the program much success in the next phase of their life Journey and with that I am at the end of my report as award seasons are upon us graduations promotions are just a few weeks away parents take a deep breath and enjoy it be proud let your children run to their friends or selfies first and don't be hurt for some it may be the last time they will be seeing their friends so let them soak in that joy we we all had friends in high school that we thought we would know forever
198now when we get a friend request on Facebook or we go to a home for a reunion we have no idea who they are then we have our Forever Friends our ride or die the Inseparable friends and those who we didn't get to go to the same college or they joined the armed forces and we missed them as much as we missed our families when we see them once every 5 to 10 years or just our yearly phone calls we pick up right where we left off I pray all our children have gotten at least one of those kinds of friendships here at Powe in the last 13 years I attended College Bound Graduation Ceremony this week this program is especially ESP special to me as my second oldest son went through the program in
199Oceanside without it his future would be much different than it is today as a teacher Dr Willis and Miss Martha Parham are an amazing Community leaders after the awards and scholarships are given out each senior went up onto the stage and as their baby photo was presented on the large screen they listed all of the college schools they had been accepted to which were quite impressive and in their hands facing their parents in a in a glass frame was a letter they had written to thank their adult who for all they had done for helping them to get to that moment the parents and Guardians responded and kind some took longer to get through because as they read their letters through tears and again the adults returned in kind through tears leaving the audience is
200tears as well as they finished their senior photo appeared on the screen in it with words that said I have decided to attend and each announce which college on the list they were going to with each announcement there was a thunderous tears from the crowd congratulations to all and remember thank your teachers and staff as well as your instructional aids for helping all of the students get to their where they're going this year how and that ends my report um this time of year there's so many wonderful um events celebrating our students and staff that I I do have quite a few but I'll keep each comment short um first off I just want to say to Eddie Park sitting in the back um he's still working as magic building International relationships um the visit
201from the Japanese delegation visit at Powe high school was a wonderful way for us to showcas CTE in America everyone knows I'm a huge advocate for CTE so having the opportunity to induce our philosophy of inspiring P inspiring passions is exciting um the bus driver appreciation breakfast was a great opportunity to sit and actually listen to our drivers AIDS and technicians um as Dr battel mentioned this department is so important um that there are details that need to be addressed to support its success um again welcome Sade um Kelsey to uh our position we're going to miss you um but I know that we had just an amazing afternoon interviewing um all these student leaders and um so is going to be a wonderful addition to the board um for the ssac um passions um
202well done to all the students um as I mentioned about student leadership as interviewing for the student board member um this was a student organized event and our younger students learned so much more from their peers and their older kids because we shouldn't kid ourselves that they're much cooler than we are um and I look forward to encouraging more programming where the older students serve as um important mentors especially navigating social media and other stressors um as mentioned also the ppmc Showcase um everyone knows I support the alternative programs and this one's especially exciting hearing the students talk about their previous negative experiences and the sanctuary and support that this program reinforces it I'm sorry re the sanctuary and support that this program reinforces what we know that not all kids learn the same and
203thrive in the same environment um I understand the economic concerns but looking holistically at these programs I think it'll determine many options for us um talking about the community um support from like champion of of breakfast a Champions um the foundation golf tournament I know we raise lots of money I want to thank all our community supporters who help us do that um talking about another student leaders um I got to judge the RB pageant again and um these ladies will learn such skills as navigating conversations with politicians and Community leaders and Business Leaders as well as performing in 50 other philanthropic activities in one year so during the interview process we asked them what is the biggest obstacle for teenagers and every single one answered that it was social media so to everybody out
204there please attend our last safety Summit on Thursday May 23rd at 6 o'clock which will have a panel discussing the impacts of social media um finally sorry there's two there's a few more sorry um College Bound um we all attended College Bound which really shows a lot of support for again um these student leader organizations um I always reflect on their code because it takes personal responsibility um we can give everyone the supports that they have but the students have to take responsibility and do the work and um College Bound reinforces that and that is why it's a room full of student leaders um as you guys got a mouthful today from me I apologize but I have to thank all my PTA members um I know many families out there are juggling a lot
205and I thank all those PTA members that give of their time their talents and also their treasure to enhance the experiences of our students and we're going to figure out the field trip and the party issues and then finally um the elephant in the room is a PUSD leadership change um it's a big deal and we need to get it right so while we follow the process I again want to thank interim superintendent Greg Melle for stepping into this role um with Grace as well as a support of all of Team PUSD and that concludes my report okay um it's only been 3 weeks since we were last here but while there's only 19 days left of school remaining um the events around the district are unlimited as as my colleagues have mentioned uh here's
206a few highlights from the three weeks that just flew by um I also was at the K's Breakfast of Champions each of the five compran high schools selected um one boy and one girl scholar athlete who will graduate next month and leave behind a legacy of dedication sacrifice and kindness this was no easy task to select these individuals um these 10 students were honored that were honored was welld deserved um congratulations though to all of our amazing multi-talented hardworking students the tour of pawe high school with the Oklahoma City um council members um was was really a unique opportunity and special that this was the first um Sisterhood of its kind between pawe high school and heg High School um they we we toured all of the CTA programs and we're there to to witness
207the official signing of their partnership they just watching their faces we we've H been blessed with having the opportunity to see many of the CTE programs and I think it's a week from today is the Expo the CTE Expo um I I went last year if you don't if you have the opportunity to go what our kids are doing in in the middle school and high school CTE Pathways is just amazing so that's that's next week five to seven somewhere I don't remember where our be I don't know somewhere it's it's it's a the information's out there Place some it's some place some place in the area I'm tired um school bus driver and transportation Appreciation Day definitely a day to honk your horn and celebrate all these hardworking individuals who coordinate and safely transport
208thousands of students on any given day from home to school and back again on Phil and athletic events I don't think they are thanked enough and we continue to have a shortage and they just step up and do um the first elect her training coordinated by staff at West for high school girls around our district was a huge success several of us were honored to be on the panel as women in leadership and or elected officials the three-hour training these young women were provided as they begin or for many have already begun making their Mark as strong women leaders was powerful these young women were so engaged and eager to learn I sincerely hope there are more opportunities such as this where our students can come together with other students from around the district to
209learn and work together the ey on art at paway high so cool the community came out to celebrate with these students as they showcased everything from floral designs photography short films Ceramics I I could go on there was live music from the band to a young upand cominging um vocalist who has already written and produced several songs um as well as there was live art from several Advanced painters they were in these huge Shadow cases and they had like decorated backgrounds that matched their unique style I was enthralled at watching these artists live in their artistic element it's definitely a musty if you've never seen it before um I also was at the college bound program this program enriches our students with the ultimate growth mindset coupled with a rigorous parent and student engaged program
210that embodies high standards and a can do motto it was exciting to to hear where the graduating seniors had committed to for their next big chapter in their lives in the fall I was invited to be part of the Twin Peaks Middle School counseling advisory committee the committee was formed initially as part of the requirement for the ramp application process the conversation ideas that are sparked in these meetings have inspired the counseling department to keep this committee ongoing the students teachers staff and parental contributions are incredibly valuable good luck to all of our students um in AP exams we had one checked off this morning in our household good luck to all of our student students as they head into finals in just a couple of weeks um we can see the light at the
211end of the tunnel for the 2324 school year hang in there happy Mother's Day to Everybody Happy Teacher appreciations week and with that I conclude my report thank you Dr sesma I'm gonna skip through a bunch of stuff here that we've already kind of talked about this superintendent student advisory Council event was fantastic um Poway palamar to Middle College Spring Showcase that was just joyful as heck but we did hear about it from their um student body president already just th those comets there love their school that was wonderful to be at um The College Bound program finale I really can't beat um Miss plotsky storytelling on this front so I'll leave that be and just say um College Bound really is helping to narrow some of our District's achievement and opportunity gaps and improving
212our student outcomes those students work really hard to get where they are and so congratulations to them the elect her panel we already talked about that as well um great questions great interests from these students they are getting ready to run the world they're on their way um I I let slip at one point that I'm a huge fan of student performing arts and I have since received two invitations to different student performances so proof that they were listening um and they are trying to make connections so um great first steps and you know speaking of vaa um Power unified student actors absolutely cleaned up in the Broadway San Diego Awards nominations this is the countywide possibly even greater than countywide um organization that runs all of the Broadway shows downtown we had four of
213the 10 best actress nominations two of 10 best actors and two of five best musical nominations so I just want to read them off quickly Shira from Westview who played the lead in Mean Girls Chloe from Mount Carmella who played Cinderella and into the woods Catherine who played Fiona in ranch of Bernardo production of Shrek Karen who played Ariel in Powe High's Little Mermaid and then Carlos who was Shrek at RB High Tyler who was Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors at Del Norte and Mal carmel's entire theater crew for into the woods and RB for Shrek for best musical in the whole County at the high school level um I can't say enough if you haven't been to our students shows don't miss it the middle schools are still coming um it's Newsies Newsies
214Jr at Bernardo Heights tomorrow shows tomorrow night and Saturday get out there they do a great job and there's a reason Ranch of Bernardo High School's program is fantastic they have an amazing feeder there um I am currently virtually attending the Sip inclusion conference which started today and I'm really looking forward to seeing our posd team prevent presenting tomorrow um I attended the county salute to teachers reception with Mr miselle and again celebrated our district County Teachers or our district teachers of the year who are vying for County and hopefully state I'm Ross call and Elise milling and nios stle and finally um May is a big lunch big lunch I'm looking at the hero never mind it's a big month for school Employee Appreciation we've got school lunch hero day um principal's day school
215nurse Day speech pathologist day Teacher Appreciation Week classified school employee week last month we had the bus drivers we heard about that so I won't talk about that anymore but the vast majority of our District employees are working really really hard every single day to do the best that they can for our students we hear about it all the time walk any site in the district and you'll see absolute excellence in action and sometimes it feels really easy to get caught up in the negative and to jump on that bandwagon it it just gets more airtime out there in the world but I urge you students and families out there recognize and acknowledge at least one District employee who is really good at their job and making an impact that you have personally felt um
216when I think of people who have improved the educational experience of my children maybe just even in the past week just in one week the list is really long um it now as a great time to tell them don't wait so on that note you took like the first paragraph off uh I have a couple of suggestions of people that we can celebrate and and before I before I make those suggestions can I just say I agree with you that may is kind of the high five to everybody month it's nurses principes it's classified staff it's principal uh it's Administrative Assistant like I'm sure I miss somebody but everybody gets a hug and and you know what in A Moment Like This in a moment where we find ourselves presently expressing appreciation to the people
217who are here and making a difference day in and day out the secret sauce to what makes paway unified paway unified right let's make sure we do that and let's make sure we do that well so we have a lot of people who serve our students in this community unselfishly quietly unseen uh day after day month after month year after year right um and I'm going to share just a couple of quick stories so lamis abalam how many of you met her come on I got a couple of board members who have she is an English learner assistant at Bernarda Heights Middle School she was our classified employee of the year she Advanced the San Diego County level where she was the San Diego County employee of the year uh no surprise if you've met
218lamise she is a spark like you hand her the plaque and she takes over the passion just comes out she loves our kids um she loves loves her work uh she's not doing what she does for money it's it's her purpose it's it's it's kind of the the thing that drives her so she loves our students new to the US and she loves our students who are learning English for the first time and she is a strong Advocate on their behalf so lamise no joke she's headed to the state level and uh my fingers are crossed I hope she wins some recognition there as well she's certainly deserving and then another person I had the opportunity to meet I was encouraged to attend of all things a retirement um in the back of the maintenance
219and operations uh facility I I never have time on my calendar and a little white spot opened up and I thought you know what I'm going to go and the group that was gathered was celebrating one of our employees David David mcneel a locksmith in pawe unified so here's here's David just quick story graduates from from Powe high in 1976 proud Titan he started work in our district in 1974 as a student he worked in the warehouse and as a substitute custodian this guy um quiet unassuming humble unselfish dedicated highly skilled and clearly a great teammate I Googled him not one image he said to me I like to do go about my work like a magician I said tell me more he said 'well thinkk locksmith right a door doesn't swing right or the
220lock is sticking he saysi slide in I take care of the issue and like a magician I slide back out and all anyone knows is that door wasn't working and now it is right and I just thought there it is like how many years has this guy been behind like just nobody knows his name he's he he likes it that way um I I was really like it it hit me well I'm bringing him into the light now yeah he's retired uh he got his spell the whole bit it was awesome pulled pork it was a great moment with the guys and the women everybody there was wonderful uh but anyways this magician like person I just I was reminded in that moment right that what makes our district great are all of the some
221ones like Dave who diligently behind the scenes uh are taking great care of us our children our community um their faces aren't prominently featured in our social media posts um but they are the the people who make this District special so this month of May when we're high-fiving everybody find someone you haven't met learn somebody's story uh because I think if if your experience is anything like mine you'll be reinspach in this community okay with that uh Studio 701 interns we have another uh what do we have 2 minute and 24 second video highlighting uh CTE student expo well no it's not the Expo but I'll I'll I'll hit that it's the Career Technical education side though uh this is our Mount carel High School fire science and emergency service program let's take a look
222Don gear prep for Progressive hose after the Call Comes in within minutes students are geared up and ready to go when it comes to emergencies every second counts these students are part of Mount carmel's High School fire science program a one-of-a-kind Career Technical education opportunity in the power Unified School District what is coming I joined this program so that way I could work on getting better with my skills so that way I can continue a career in the fire service it's a different generation that's coming into the fire service now so my goal is just to make sure that they are prepared and know what to expect and and how to be good firefighters although carmel's program is focused on fire science this along with additional classes in the pathway often serve as a launching
223point for other careers as First Responders we have a good number of students that are looking to either go into firefighting or a first responder either as an EMT I've had some students that um are looking to maybe go into nursing and it's all tied together and that is what many of Martinez's students are thinking about like April nwin and Jackson Rush who are considering jobs other fields and gaining real life skills along the way we do some EMT stuff in here and I just thought it was like I like working with the patients more than like actually fighting a fire working on our skills the most because it helps us not only with just this class but also in the real world and with career path in the future recently Mount Carmel students had
224an opportunity to put their skills and teamwork to the test alongside other schools in the yearly best of the best challenge we wanted to link all the San Diego County high school programs together and create a competition um to test their manipa of skills their academic abilities Mount Carmel competed against two other High School fire programs where they demonstrated their endurance strength and teamwork it's an army and a team to make this but the one thing I love about this event is that everybody comes together it's not just one person there's so much Unity behind it everybody is just happy smiles on everyone faces so that's a that's a blessing and a dub to me the hope is that their enthusiasm and passion now spk a future career serving our community for the Excellence and
225education series I'm Mars Pratt Studio 701 Studio 701 for the win so good and that video highlights right our Career Technical education program and this is what I was starting to promote here I want to welcome our parents students and Community to attend the upcoming CTE student Expo hosted by longtime business partner HB heet Packard um at their Ranch of Bernardo headquarters it's going to be next Thursday May 16th from 7 5: to 7:00 p.m. I I want to encourage you to join me there where our students will be showing off like this video uh they're learning in an exhibit style event so you're not going to want to miss it that concludes my report probably God all right thank you Mr miselle we are not adjourning yet but we are closing here for the
226moment and going back to close session at 9:39