May 29, 2025 - 3pm Charter School Committee

001testing. One, two, testing. Testing. Mic. Check on the gooseseneck microphone in the translations. Goose neck microphone in the translations booth. One, two, one, two, three. One, two, three. I will now jump over to the Spanish headsets. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Oh, oh. [Music] Oh. [Music] Oh, oh, oh. [Music] Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh [Music] oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh [Music] Good afternoon. We went good afternoon everyone. Uh welcome to the uh charter school committee meeting. I am Dr. Rosio Rivas and this is our last committee meeting of the 2425 school year. Um first I want to um thank everyone everything here everybody here and I

002want to recognize somebody who's new to this um horseshoe table the days we have Mr. Jose Kutierrez who is now the senior executive director of strategy so I want to welcome him to the committee so thank you very much Dr. Rivas, thank you. Here to be of service and glad to be part of this committee. Yes, I wanted to we have somebody new here. Um, so as we wrap up this year's work, I want to thank all of you, the families, educators, partners, and colleagues for your engagement and commitment to ensuring strong support and oversight for our charter schools. This committee has been a space for meaningful dialogue, transparency, collaboration, and I'm proud of the conversations we fostered uh throughout this academic year together. Today's meetings uh meeting will begin with remarks from our labor

003partners, then an opportunity for public comment and followed by a status update on the 2526 Proposition 39 collocation process presented by Miss Mara Wilmont and also interim director of who is the interim director of charter schools division and Miss Janette Bordon, charter schools division operations manager. Uh we'll then spotlight Animal Watts College Preparatory Academy presented by Principal Oed Oadelli. I hope I said that correctly. Uh alumni Karen Sanchez and 12th grade student Mariana Liddell and um a close opport a second opportunity for public comment if um we'll do first half and then we'll finish it off at the end of the committee. So now I want to start off the meeting uh with our labor partners. If there are any labor partners present who would like to speak, please come forward by luck a special

004education teacher out of East area and I have also been the point officer on colllocation issues. Um today I will seed um most of my time to Mr. Omos I sorry Miss Omos and Mr. Carter who are from 24th Street Elementary. But before I hand it over I just want to speak to what you are about to hear from 24th Street Elementary. Um there's not a single day that I don't miss the classroom. I am a special education teacher and I absolutely miss the interaction of students. But what I miss also is that Rowan Avenue really felt like a community. I was fortunate enough there to work 16 years of my career before becoming an officer and people who would go in from the district and um and outside community members would speak to how

005Rowan felt like a family. I know that this is not unique to Rowan Avenue Elementary. Um, and I know that because I'm very fortunate like you are that you get to go and visit multiple sites and you know what that feeling is like upon visiting a school. But what I came across here from in 24th Street Elementary is really something remarkable. This school has been without fifth grade for far too long under a law and a stature that is no longer in place. Furthermore, the students that are greatly affect the great the most affected and the greatest affected are students with special needs, which to me is a real problem that we need to find a real solution for. So when you listen to the people that will be speaking today, but especially the educators

006who have devoted their life and extra time and energy to make sure that 24th Street Elementary is the thriving school that it is. I hope that you listen with the intent and the open mind to find a solution within the next few weeks because what we want and what we're demanding is that fifth grade be restored at 24th Street Elementary come August of 2025. And now I see my time to Miss Almos. Good afternoon. My name is Marili Almos. I am the UTLA chair and special education teacher at 24th Street Elementary. I am invisible. According to Prop 39, I along with five other special education teachers and 70 plus students are invisible. We are invisible on paper because Prop 39 is overallocating space, our public school space to a private charter school who has less

007enrollment. However, we 24th Street Elementary are a new set of community, a new set of staff, a new set of teachers who deserve the return of fifth grade. It's been 12 years too long. Parent Empowerment Act is no longer valid. However, today I am not invisible. The visibility behind me speaks clearly. We demand our fifth grade back because special education is being affected. We are not being counted on paper. Therefore, we are losing space on our own public school because six classes are not being counted for. Therefore, stating that the private charter school gets more space, 52% to be exact, and 48 for the public USD school. I am here asking, demanding, let us be visible on paper. give us fifth grade back. Thank you. I am Hrien Carter from 24th Street Elementary School. Have

008been there since 2008. So she pretty much said most of what I would say. So let me start with this. We have over 485 students at our school, but we don't get credit for that. Like she said, they are invisible on paper because based on Proposition 39, it's written that we're not counting those special education teachers. And if you if you go to it and read it, you will see it. There are classes, those special ed classes and PALS are not included in the number, which inadvertently gives the charter school more percentage than what they deserve. So, we're being squeezed into a small little box. We've already share the campus with the EEC, Crown Preparatory Academy, and our school, but we have six classes that are not being counted. That means teachers are not being

009counted. They're being excluded. So, it appears that CPA has more space than what we have, and that's not the case. So, we're losing services for our students. We're losing space, extracurricular activities, and that's not fair. And it's 10 more than 10 years is too much and and it's a it's too much and our students shouldn't have to deal with that anymore. We've earned the right to have our fifth grade back and we should have it. We've shown it in our test scores. We've shown it in our ability to have our staff round up where they know that we're here for our students, but we are not working for the charter. and you're putting us in a position where it appears we're working for the charter. LUSD pays us, not the charter school. I yield. Thank

010you. So, our demands are clear. We expect fifth grade to return to 24th Street in the upcoming school year. And we also urged the committee to find a solution to make sure that special ed students and classes and educators are counted in future forecasts for all colloccated schools. Thank you. Thank you very much. Um and thank you for all the families that are here present. Um before I move on to public comment, I want to acknowledge my colleague. Uh board member Ortiz Franklin is here. She's with us remotely, so she just joined us. So, hello. Thank you. Glad to be here. Yes. Uh, so now we'll move on to public comment. We'll take a few calls from public comment. Go ahead. Okay. So, folks, I'll call on who are signed up to be in person

011to give comment in person and then when the time comes, we can also call on folks who are speaking remotely. So, uh, Condisa Baltazar, are you here? Conda, come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. And then after Condisa is Lizth Ortiz and then Yosephina Gintroisa and Lisette are going to speak together if that's okay. Thank you. Good. Good afternoon members of the LD board. My name is Lazar Ortiz and I'm Kalisar and we're speaking to you today as students of math and science college prep graduating class of 2025. We want to begin by expressing our deep gratitude to all of you for making our educational journey possible through the past LUSD and charter schools like STEM prep provided to students. We are here to represent not just ourselves but our

012entire graduating class many of whom have attended both LUSD schools and STEM prep schools. We want to thank the board for giving us the opportunity to thrive in such a diverse and supportive educational environment that has devolved our career dreams. STEM prep has three schools including Crown Prep Academy, also known as CP and Math and Science College Prep or MSP. In light of some recent comments made by speakers, we'd like to take a moment to speak as students. We are here today to make to talk to you mostly about our experiences attending a co-located campus of 24th Street and Count Prep Academy. Having access to these schools along with me MCP provided us with a variety of educational tools and opportunities not just for us but for our siblings, parents and other family members. For

013many of us, this isn't just a school. It's a place where we have found direction, support, and real sense of belonging. At 214 Street, I found a community filled with loving staff who are dedicated to my overall growth and development and discovered a new found a newfound pride and love for my school. Coming to Crown Prep Academy as a fifth grader, I became increasingly involved in my community through clubs and special programs provided to students. My curiosity was centered on STEM because of the STEM experiences and classes offered to me. This will help bridge the gap between marginalized communities, and advanced STEM education. 24th Street was my foundation. It was where I learned to love school. CBA is where I discovered my passion for STEM, and through early access to STEM opportunities, attentive educators, and

014the installment of core values, I was able to thrive. As a student who lived right across the street from 24th Street, having that easy access to school made it much easier for my family. Even if it wasn't geological locations that brought people to 24th Street, uh having one campus devoted to high quality education for TK to 8th grade made 24th Street and CPA experiences desirable for many. CPA was a fun experience and I value uh that I was able to participate in after school programs, STEM competitions, and classes like robotics and medical detectives. Seeing 20 seeing how 21st year is treating CPA is truly heartbreaking for me and those who have gone through similar educational opportunities as me because my experience on the campus were much more than more of a community where everyone has

015committed to helping all the students. We were shared we were shared students and I hope uh we can get back to that one day. Speaking on behalf of our classmates, I'm proud to say that 100% of us have been accepted into a 4-year university with 70% of us pursuing STEM majors. I, for example, will be attending UCLA, majoring in computer science. And I will be attending UC Davis, majoring animal science, which has been a fostered uh interest of mine since elementary school. These opportunities would not have been possible without the excellent education we received through both LUSD and STEM Prep, who work together cooperatively. Having the ability to participate in so many educational opportunities spanning from TK to 12 has made us who we are today. Through LUSD and STEM pep schools collectively, we've been

016able to develop into the people speaking to you today. So once again, thank you LUSD for the opportunities and contributions that made my education and the education of my peers so impactful. We appreciate everything you do for us as Eagles and Knights. We hope this dispute between 24th Street and CBA is peacefully resolved so more kids like us can have the opportunities we had. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Yosephina Cano, come on up. And then after Yosphina is Lady Lea, no, Lady Cabra. Okay, we're going to pass out these translation headsets for those of you who do not speak Spanish. So, while Miss uh Cano is speaking Spanish, you'll be able to hear what she's saying uh in English. So, just put your hands up. We'll get you the translation headsets. Uh when

017you put them on, they're automatically activated in on the correct channel. So, all you'll need to do is adjust the volume if you can't hear. So, keep the hands up. And my colleagues are passing out the headsets for you. So that's that's Bert from translations unit. He's passing out these headsets and it was his idea to do this in the first place so that we could do simultaneous translation which we used to do translation in the traditional manner was the person would speak in Spanish and we'd have a phys translator physically present who would then repeat the words um and uh Mr. Bert our colleague came up with this. So I think good afternoon. My name is Josephina. I am representing Ascot uh schools proudly. I am a parent of charter schools aspect. I am

018next to Miss Basquez Ayala who is whom she is one of the coordinators the organizers them. She manages everything within our organization. and I am here to tell you about my big experience within with the charter school specifically with ESPART. For me and my family, they've saved our lives. I have children with special needs who have autism. One is with level three, one is level two. And initially I had them at the district schools, but with the district schools they separate the children and as part we don't do that. we include them in the same classrooms and I've seen a difference within my children a very big base and that has been for them and I am not saying one school is better than the other but it's just simply the teaching and my experience

019in the schools it was more gratifying and more helpful for my child my children in this case I think about the children's future not my not just my children there are many generations that are to come And it is not good to instead of fighting for one school and the other we should unite because the educ we need to give an education where the government doesn't control us and in the future how are we going to elect our future representatives if we don't count with that education now we are going through a something very hard with the new administration. Therefore we need to unite. We need to become one. We need whether the school is big small everything it has to do with education. There is a no more or no less when with education.

020We need to work together and focus so that the resources come effectively to us and we can unite in we need schools that are complete. Thank you for your time. Thank you uh Lady Cabra. Good afternoon. I am here in representation in representation of uh parents and families that couldn't be here. I want to say that as a parent um a mother of a family, we are asking for fifth grade to return. Not just that, but as part of the council that we have at the schools, we are asking for space. We don't want to deal with the day that maybe you're they're available, a classroom is available for our children so that we or we can have a meeting. We want our space as the previous parent said this. We want a school that's

021complete. We want our own space. We want our own children to feel comfortable. We don't want them to be with so tight with others. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh Andrea Hernandez, can you lower the microphone so we can There you go. And I even have a You don't need a stool. Just remember to speak up other so we can hear your words. Firstly, it is important that fourth grade students get a chance to exper to experience 24th Street Elementary School before moving schools. Secondly, we we are the only school in LA USD who doesn't have fifth grade, and we will be thankful if you fight for fifth grade with us. Finally, our school is great, but Crown Prep has promised us they will make our school better, but they but they have

022not done that in years. Also, having a middle school on our campus would be unsafe because older kids will bring unacceptable items onto campus. We are too young to be exposed to to more mature minds. Soon we will be grateful to at least try to get fifth grade back. We all must do our best to bring fifth grade back to 24th Street. Thank you for your time. Andrea Hernandez, are you here? Andrea Hernandez? No. Um, let's see. Rosie Arez. All right. So, I wasn't quite clear who Andrea. Okay. Hello everyone. My name is Anna Cruz and I am in the and I am in fourth grade in the gifted class at 21st Street Elementary. What I love about 24 is that all the teachers teach in a way that most students understand and how teachers

023take their time for everyone to learn. The staff and students are exemplary. Teachers work hard to get their students ready for test and make sure no one is left behind because in a class everyone is a family. The teachers are great because they make sure everyone is included. We should have our fifth grade back because we lost an important grade level. Firstly, a student should have more time in one school, especially if that student is struggling or if they're having challenges in academic learning. Moving to another school for fifth grade can be a a very big emotional adjustment. Students can succeed even more if they have one more year at in fifth grade at my school. Secondly, in case you didn't know, special education students are not counted by LUSD. Everyone is supposed to be

024treated fairly. And to the special students, this is very sad and unfair. We need a space for back for fifth grade and for all our special students. Lastly, moving to another school for fifth grade can be a very big emotional adjustment. If a student is very attached to their school, don't you think it would be a heartbreak to leave all their friends after fourth grade? It's sad when you have to say goodbye and it it leaves a mark on a student. For that reason, give us back our fifth grade. Not only for the school's sake, but for the children's sake. As a student, I am feeling this now. And it is a very bad feeling. But it's even worse knowing I'm supposed to leave. I'm supposed to spend my fifth grade years with my friends,

025but it won't be here. We need our fifth grade back for students to continue to strive. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh Rosie, time, but I'll have you come up with somebody else. Okay. There's only two there was only 10 seconds left. Is Rosie here? So, so is Ros is Rosie? I'm just So, I'm not sure. Um, just a quick comment on how our public comment works is folks sign up, they give us their name, and then we call on their name, and that person comes on up. So, um, I'm not sure on behalf of his parent. Don't know. to come on up and explain it to me because I I just so I know what's going on. Speaking on behalf of his parent and is your is the parent is Rosie. Rosie.

026Okay, that makes perfect sense to me. So So mom or dad got on there, signed on. Okay. And then so I just need to be clear for our records because we like to keep keep track of who who says what. So young man, the floor is yours. You have two minutes. Thank you so much. Okay. Thank you. Good afternoon, members of Los Angeles Unified School District, staff, parents, and community members. I am here to ask to bring fifth grade back to 24th Street Elementary. My name is Grace. I am currently in the fourth grade. I am proud to be an Eagle and at and autistic. 24th Street made me feel safe, welcomed, and helped me grow. From needing special classes, speech, OT, therapy to now not needing any of these services. They helped me, but

027next year I don't get to stay. I have to leave after fourth grade. That makes me feel sad and worried. I am not ready to leave without fifth grade. I have to leave for I have to leave for another school for fifth grade, then another school for sixth to eighth grade. I learn best when things stay the same. I need I need I need to get ready for big challenges like middle school. If I get to stay one more year, I can learn more, grow more, and be ready and be ready to leave when it's the time. Please give us fifth grade back. We deserve it. We're going to take the rest of the time for Thank you for Thank you for your time. Thanks. We were just asking if we could take the rest

028of his time for uh for He was going to give the rest of his time to another student speaker. Okay. Uh there's 40 seconds. 40 seconds. She can do it. Okay. Hello, my name is Eileen and I am in fourth grade. I am also a gifted student. In my opinion, I would like for Fifth 24th Street to have a fifth grade. First, it can be stressful for parents to find a new and good school for fifth grade. Since the school year is almost going to end, parents stress about what school send their children to and what schools would be good for them. Having fifth grade here would relieve their stress. Additionally, I would love the opportunity to properly graduate elementary school at 24th Street. Since 24th Street Elementary has only up to fourth grade, fourth

029graders have to graduate elementary school but can't properly because they still have fifth grade left. Most of our students go to another elementary school and graduate in fifth grade again. Lastly, it would help students grow. Since 24th Street teachers help students grow, having a fifth grade here would help students reach far beyond their stretch growth and what they are capable of. Also, it would help students understand more clearly what they are learning. We must get our fifth grade back. It is important. Thank you. Thank you for your time, Nancy Hernandez. calling for Mildrid. I think it's Good afternoon. My name is Mildred Hernandez name and I am a fourth grade student at 20 here at 24th Street Elementary. There are many reasons I love 24th Street. I love it because the teachers and staff staff

030treat us with respect and equality. I also love it because the teachers teach us well. We have clubs like coding, chess, and young storytellers. And we have garden classes. In my opinion, I believe that 21st Street Elementary should school should have fifth grade because if we don't, it can affect kids and it can be difficult for parents to find new schools. Firstly, not having fifth grade can affect kids. For instance, some kids could feel uncomfortable at a new school and this can affect their emotions. Secondly, it can be difficult for parents to find new schools because most schools stop at fifth grade and kids would only be in that be in that school for a year and the other schools start from sixth grade and up. In conclusion, I believe that 24th Street Elementary School

031should have fifth grade. LD must require fifth grade at 24th Street Elementary. Thank you for your time. All right. Jennifer Viea. Jennifer Vetta. There's Jennifer Viea. And there's Jennifer Ventura. Okay. Ventura. Oh, is Va here? Let's do Jennifer Ventura. pop in there and then let them sort it out, please. We're on a bit of a time time crunch. Thank you so much. You have two minutes to speak. Good afternoon. My name is Jennifer Benthura and I'm a proud parent of a kindergarten student that attends 24th Street Elementary School. I'm here today to respectfully ask for your support to reinstate fifth grade at our school. My son Nicholas absolutely loves his school. It's a place where he feels safe, supported, and inspired to learn. As a parent, there's nothing more reassuring than knowing your child is

032striving in a positive educational environment. However, I'm concerned that when the time comes, we may be forced to uproot him before he's ready simply because fifth grade is no longer offered at 24th Street. This change removes a critical year of continuity, stability, and growth for our children and our community. One of LUSD's core principle is providing families with choice. In fact, your choices initiative promotes exactly that, empowering families to select the best path for their children's education. But without that option to complete elementary school through fifth grade at 24th Street, that choice is taken away from us. Our community values stability, equity, and access to quality education. By not offering fifth grade, we are left without a full pathway when which contradicts the goals of choice programs and places an unfair burden on our students

033and families. We are not asking for something extraordinary. We are simply asking for the opportunity to let our children remain in the school they love through the completion of their elementary journey. Reinstating fifth grade would honor LUC's commitment to student success and family choice. We're not asking to get rid of CPA's fifth grade. We're asking for choice as parents. I respectfully urge you to advocate for the reinstatement of fifth grade at 24th Street Elementary School. this upcoming 2025 2026 school year. If it was done quickly 12 years ago, it can be done again. Give our children a complete elementary education at the school they know and love. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Uh Andrea Via Gomez. Hi, my name is Andrea Via Gomez and I I came to speak because I've been personally

034affected with this issue with one of my my oldest that has autism and he had to change schools and right now in the new school because of this same whole change. He's been really affective with a behavioral in his teachers Miss Garrett. Miss Garrett knows my son. My son has never had behavioral issues now that he entered the new school cuz everything changed for him. It completely messed up his schedule and everything. and I think 24th Street because I also have another daughter that has an IEP and right now she just tested for the gifted program without these teachers and I know they need the fifth grade and my daughter's one year in two years she's going to start fifth grade and I want her to stay in the same school cuz she's scared that

035she's going to have to change another school like her brother did thank you thank you for your time Mark EL Mark EVL All right so good evening uh my name is Mr. Esqla. I'm a third grade teacher at 24th Street. Um I've been teaching for about four years. Um I just want to say above all else, um our intention is to serve our students at the school. Um going into this profession, that's something that I kept at the forefront and that's something that I still keep with me today. Um I don't only see that for myself, but I see it throughout all the staff, whether it be TAs, cafeteria staff, or teachers. 24th Street is genuinely a really, really good school. Um, and our intention is truly to serve our students. Um, I want to

036make it clear as well that we're not here because we want to remove CPA from our campus. We simply want our fifth grade back. Um, and we're here to do what's right for our students. As a third grade teacher, I've also uh been given the opportunity to run four different clubs this school year. Um, all clubs I'm running it in my classroom. Um, next year I'll be a fourth grade teacher, so we get to take it on there. Uh we have a lot of supplies, a lot of equipment, um curriculum ready for students. Um but it's unfortunate that they're only able to go up to fourth grade for it. Um and actually Grayson, he was one of our students, um in the class as well. It's their clubs where we give them opportunities, real world

037experience for engineering, um it may be math, science, so they could explore their interests. uh we want to reinstate fifth grade so that we can have more time with our students. At the end of the day, I see my classroom as a family and we say that all the time and as members of our family, it is hard to let them go for fourth grade. Seeing them nervous, some of them are are young. Um they're scared, they're worried going on into fifth grade, then going on into sixth. I know what is in the best interest for them is to stay within our school with the staff that they know, make sure they mature, they're ready for fifth grade, and then move on to middle school. Um, so that's something that we are here to ask

038for the reinstating of fifth grade for next school year. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Okay, we have two more inerson speakers. Alandra Viaorta, Alandra V, good afternoon. Uh, unfortunately, Landre couldn't be here, so I'll be speaking. I just like to thank you to give me this opportunity. Uh, my name is Ian L. um, Grayson's All's father. Yes. And, um, I'm very proud of him. I'm very proud he goes to 24th Elementary. Not only that, Grayson is very determined as a fourth grader. He's eager and he's wanting to learn. It's very important. I I feel it is very important for stability, inclusion, and continuity for these children's education. While Grayson has started school here at 24th Elementary, he faced many challenges like communication difficulties, trouble with transition, and sensory overload. And he struggled with

039a sense of belonging. He began his education needing a lot of support. Today, Grayson has progressed to this point where he needs very little. I forgot to mention he is autistic. This school has been a miracle to my family and Grayson. 24th Elementary is more than just a school for Grayson. It's a home in a safe place where teachers and faculty know him and know how to connect with him without words falling apart. So, we have been informed that 24th Elementary will not have fifth grade. And I stand here today for Grayson and for all the children who are in fourth grade for 24th Elementary to please bring fifth grade back to 24th Elementary. They deserve it. The kids deserve it. They are being hurt in the long run for this. And I please urge

040the members, the board, people that make these decisions, please bring fifth grade back to 24th Elementary. Thank you. Thank you for your time. And the final inperson speaker is Charmaina Awayan. Are you here Charmaina? [Music] Um, good day everyone. Um, I'm Charmaina and I'm a proud parent to my Raya. I am um, today I speak for her. Because on the e test report that Ellie that um K prep academy sent to Luc, they purposely excluded her class her she goes to one of the artore classes in 24th Street um 24th Street Elementary School so that they can get majority of our location space. The thing that I don't get is I I I believe in school choice because my daughter, my older one benefited from that, but not at the expense of our most vulnerable

041community. Um why is it my question is why is it that kids like my Raya have to prove their worth to be included and to fight for their right? I want to use I use it. I knew my voice. I want to play. You won you. Okay. Thank you. So, please make it make sense that why is it that CPA was able to use and exploit Prop 39 to exclude her class to to for their benefit. Um I'm so sorry, hold on. Wait, hold on. Okay. on the EAS report that count prepper academy submitted to Luc for the next school year. CPA had 22 classes and 24th Street Elementary with 20 classes giving them majority of our location space. But in truth and reality, we have 26 teaching stations. CPA purposefully excluded two PALS classes

042and four oddcore classes which one of those classes my Rya belongs to. which means my child her friends teachers and aids are all invisible on paper. CPA used that prop in a for benefit that they don't have to count spots. Why is it kids like Mariah always have to fight for their right to access education? Why make it make sense? Why do they have to prove their worth that they belong and that they matter? Make it make sense. I believe in school choice but not the expense of the most vulnerable members of our school community. Thank you. Thank you for your time. That concludes public comment for in-person folks. And I believe we're going to transition to the other portions of the meeting. Yes. Yes. Um thank you to all the speakers for participating and

043contributing um to dialogue. Um we'll now transition into the first presentation. Our first presentation today provides an update on the 2526 Proposition 39 collocation cycle. Um, as some of you might know, Proposition 39 collocation continues to be a significant area of oversight and also engagement from both our um, LUZ district schools and also charter schools. We want to ensure this process remains transparent, equitable, responsive uh, to the needs of all of the school communities. So joining us are Miss Mara Wilmont, interim director of charter schools division and Miss Janette Bordon, operations manager. So um hello. Yeah, come on ahead. I'm going to pop in really fast. For those folks who are online waiting to speak remotely, we're going to still hear you. We're just going to hear you at the at the end of the

044meeting. So if you're hanging on, don't do not despair. We have not we have not forgotten you. So yes, thank you for the clarification. We'll we'll continue with public comment um at the end of the la last presentation. So yes, the floor is yours. Thank you. Great. Thank you. Uh thank you charter committee and good afternoon to everyone. I'm Mara Wilmont, interim director of the charter schools division and I would like to introduce Janette Bordon, charter schools operation manager who will be doing the presentation today. Thank you Mara and uh good afternoon. pleased to be here today to provide an update on Proposition 39 for the 2526 school year. So, first um just a quick refresher on our regulatory timeline. Um Prop 39 is uh set forth in state law and regulations and um the

045regulations have a timeline that we follow each year um which commences in November when Prop 39 facilities requests are received from charter schools to the district. Um and then we go through a series of steps throughout the year which uh ends now in May when the charter schools either accept or decline um the offers that they've received from the district. Um and so today's uh update is going to provide you the latest on kind of where things landed this year with Prop 39. Um and so we'll continue with that. Um so in preparation for uh the 2526 school year, our office in the charter schools division has collaborated with regions uh to review the status of various charter school facilities requests um in conjunction with the district's space inventory um to provide final recommendations uh

046for charter schools that have submitted legally sufficient facilities requests. Um and that includes those that may be at multiple sites. Um this spring and and this winter, we worked with schools to uh select the specific spaces that would be offered to charter schools and identify any campus configurations that may need to be uh reworked or reconfigured to support optimal site operations. Um communication has taken place with respective board offices and school communities as appropriate. So as of May 1st, so that's the time when charter schools uh respond to the final offers from the district. Um so this slide gives us a a snapshot from May 1 and uh there were 38 facilities requests received for the 2526 school year. So those were received back in November. On May 1st, um the status was that one

047charter school had withdrawn their facilities request, one had an ineligible facilities request, 24 accepted their final offer, one declined the final offer, and at that time there were 11 signed alternative agreements uh for space in the 2526 school year. And no charter schools responded uh late or or failed to respond to their final offer this year. Um since that time of May 1st uh over the last month there have been a couple more alternative agreements. And so on the next slide um we have a breakdown for you um that's updated even since May 1st. Um so what you see here is uh what we're looking at for 2526. Um we're looking at 41 co-locations. Um you'll see the breakdown by both board district and region. Um there are 35 charter schools um that would be

048coll-located um at 40 sites um which is a total of 41 collocations. Um there's one uh school listed on the board district list that's listed twice because it's a multi-sight within board district 3 and board district 6. And so you see it counted twice there compared with the region count which is 35. Um so of those 41 collocations for 2526 as of today none are new collocations. Um and um the the arrangements for each of the the 41 are as follows. 22 are no change. So they would be in the same spaces that they were in in the current school year. Four have projected growth and 15 are projected reductions. Uh there are six multi-sight um collocations for the 2526 school year and um we are continuing to assess different alternative agreement concepts that are

049either proposed by the charter schools or by the district. Um and so there may be additional updates that will continue um as we go into the summer. Um now just to take a step back and give kind of an overview of um how Prop 39 has evolved over time in the district. Um you can see here that um we've had a steady decline in Prop 39 collocations over time. Um back in the 1516 school year um we had 101 facilities requests uh compared with only 38 requests for the 2526 school year. So that's a reduction of about 62% since the peak. Um then the collocations. So facilities requests are the requests that come in as opposed to the collocations which are the ones that actually happen. Um the peak there was in the 2018-19 school

050district when there were 72 collocations and that has uh gone down to 41 um which is a decrease of about 43%. This is a little additional information on those numbers that I just shared. Um the number of seats provided um also was at its peak in the 1718 school year when there were about 23,000 in district seats through the Prop 39 program. Um whereas the projection for the 2526 school year is 9,090. So a very significant decrease in the number of seats via Prop 39 um to the tune of about 61%. So some next steps for 2526 um the charter schools division is continuing to support regions um in communicating with school sites with the principles and um school communities as to the next steps in the collocation process. Um staff is taking um undertaking

051preparations to get campuses ready where there are changes. Um that follows the the board's action on May 13th with the Prop 39 facilities renovation effort. Um so that will be continuing throughout the summer. Um just last week we had an operations meeting uh for colllocated district and charter school administrators uh where information was shared with both the charter school and the district about uh district policies that are applicable to charter schools. Um best practices for successful collocation. Um we discussed shared use agreement negotiations which are ongoing now and um shared use agreement uh discussions take place and are to be uh concluded before the summer recess in order to ensure that we have smooth operations at the start of the new school year. Um so that's something we're actively working on now um with the

052schools and um and that's part of our operational planning to make sure that we can start off the new school year smoothly. Um we also discussed at that operations meeting safe school plan integration which is a key part of ensuring the safety and smooth operations of the the campus. Um charter schools then have um that have accepted offers or have an executed alt agreement are granted access to occupy the school site 10 days prior to their first day of instruction. Some may also have summer occupancy via um summer occupancy amendments to their facilities use agreements. And last, um, we wanted to provide an update to the committee and the public on overallocation. Um, over to date over one, uh, 11.4 million of overallocation reimbursements have been redirected back to 69 different district host sites. Um,

053so that would be those are funds that um, charter schools reimbursed the district when they were overallocated space in a given school year. Um and pursuant to the the board policy um that most of that money goes right back to the district host site. Um at present all active charter schools are current on their payments to the district for overallocation. Um and just for context in last school year there were seven charter schools determined to be overallocated space. Um we will be determining what schools may have been overallocated in the current school year, the 2425 school year. um at the conclusion of the school year. And for any school that is determined to have been overallocated, they will receive an invoice from the district no later than August 15th pursuant to the board's direction. And

054that concludes our presentation. Happy to take questions um that you may have. Thank you for that. I appreciate that. Um, I want to go back to public comment just because I know we have members here um who spoke who may not be aware of of what public how public comment works. Just um just wanted to let you know that due to laws that ensure fairness and public meetings precludes us the board members are here in the days from responding directly to public comments. although we hear you and we took notes. Uh since um so I just want want to make sure that the parents here and and the teachers understand that you know you make public comment but we're not um because of laws we don't really interact with those that made public comments. Just

055to make that clear so you know we were not intentionally not responding back to you all. So I just wanted to say that. So thank you. Um now back to the presentation. I wanted to open it to my board member, Miss Tanya Ortiz Franklin, if you have any questions you may want to ask. Um, I'm still thinking, but I I feel like I'm pretty clear on what's been shared. Um, so in a minute, if I have any, I'll let you know. I don't have any right now. Okay, great. Thank you. U, just quick question for on um on the May uh May 1st update, the requests, the the table that you have here. I don't have the page number. I don't see that p Oh, page four. There it is. Very tiny. Page four. So,

056the one that was in ineligible facilities requests, what what what made the school ineligible? What were the circumstances that would make a school ineligible? So, when a charter school submits a facilities request to the district on or before November 1st, we assess that um for uh you know, compliance with the legal requirements. Um and in this case, there was a charter school that did not have an operative charter um before November 1st, which is a requirement. Um and so uh that that's why that one was ineligible. And for and I I do appreciate you um with the the graph over time the prop go. So what what act what would you attribute to the decrease in uh collocation requests or applications? Sure. That's a great question. Um I I think that we have declining enrollment

057throughout the district um throughout the city. So that's um certainly a factor that's involved. Um, I would also suggest that there are uh varying facilities plans that evolve over time for charter schools. Um, sometimes that might involve a charter school um pursuing a private site facility. Um, and so a charter school that may have previously been in a Prop 39 arrangement u may have elected to move off of the public facility and go to a private facility and then other charter schools may have closed over time as well. and um on page nine. So um for your ongoing um conversations with our schools and the charters that are collocated, what are some of the best practices that um that have been shared for successful collocation? What what is that? Great question. Um so the the

058best practices we've we've talked with the administrators of both uh our district schools and charter schools where they have collocations and some of the things that we hear the most are um you know coming at conversations presuming best intentions um with a great communication plan. So, we find that our collocations that are the most um effective or the the that run the smoothest are the ones where there's a regular schedule of meetings, open lines of communication, um shared calendars, um ways that they're uh able to proactively and reactively deal with issues that may occur on the campus. Um and really what that traces back to is communication. And last question uh for the charter schools I think there were six charter schools that colllocated in multiple district sites. What systems of support or coordination are

059in place to ensure a consistent and highly quality high quality experience for students and staff across these campuses? What I know it's it varies but what are sort of trends that you see to help to to support them? Uh it it does vary and each charter school is able to determine um it its own administrative processes to uh facilitate that. Um sometimes a charter school might have multiple administrators. Other times they may have um administrative design that are able to help assist at the other colllocated site when the primary administrator may not be there. Um but but that's probably the the main thing I would I would note today. Thank you, board vice president. Uh, Miss Bordon, thank you for your presentation. Maybe for the public's awareness, could you share, uh, thanks to the board's

060leadership and request regarding some of the information that's made public through the updated charter schools division website, uh, where the public can go to access certain pieces of information. If you could walk through a little bit of that, please. Sure. So on our uh charter schools division website um it's been newly redesigned this year and it has a lot of public information um on all things charter schools not just prop 39 um but there is in the information clearing house there is a specific place where u members of the public can go um to see details about the facilities requests received by charter schools uh the preliminary proposals that are issued from the district to the charter schools as well as the final offers. Um, we also put a copy of all of the alternative

061agreements on the website as well for members of the public. Um, another topic that you can find on our website is overallocation information. So, you'll see um a summary of uh the payments that have been made and the amounts that are um due to the district. It's updated um every quarter. Um and so you know following the issuance of the invoices this summer by August 15th there'll be an update on um the 2425 overallocation that people are able to locate um pretty pretty quickly. Thank you. Yes. And and I also want to thank um your staff that deals with the the reimbursements um or paying of the overallocation fees because it has I see the decrease now. I think it's only like 2.7 that's still left and that's a big reduction compared to how it

062was before. I know that there's consistent um you know monitoring that you know the their the payments are being made on on a regular basis and so I do appreciate that the money's coming back to the schools and in our district. The last question um was was on page 10 on the overallocation. So for the 2324 there were seven charters determined to be overallocated. When was this determined for the seven charter schools and when and how was it determined? since it was two years ago. So, um, pursuant to the state regulations, um, that's where where all of the, uh, directions for the district on how to determine which charter schools are overallocated, um, is is in the state regulations. Um what it asks us to do is to look at the uh P2 reporting aortionment

063reporting that the charter school does which happens um at the end of the school year and um use a uh a formula that the state has set forth to determine when a charter school is overallocated space. And then using that formula we first determine if they are overallocated. And if they are then it gives us a formula on how much they must reimburse the district. and it's the charter school's obligation to reimburse the district. We take that extra step of issuing a letter and an invoice to ensure that there's clarity. Um and and then we we follow up on that and and ensure that all amounts are paid. So this was determined recently and No. So for 2324, we were able to do that last summer. Last summer. Okay. Yes. And so that's the most

064recent year where we've collected overallocation funds. for the current 2425 school year. We're in the process of collecting the P2 reporting um and then our team will evaluate which schools are overallocated and then do that that work this summer. Was conducted over the summer? Yes. And board vice president, I'd like to take this opportunity also to acknowledge in addition to the charter schools division, there's colleagues from the accounting office, real estate and office of general counsel that collaborate in this effort. Uh, so a lot of uh team effort to make sure that we're we're consistent on this. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. That's all my questions. So I don't think Miss Ortiz Franklin has any. So we will move on. Sorry. We'll move on to the next presentation um which is Anima

065Watts College Preparatory Academy uh part of the Green Dot Public Schools. So while they're coming up forward um this is a charter school spotlight which highlights innovation student success um at different charter schools and today we will hear from Animo Watts and the principal is Oya Delhi. Yes, come forward. And I know we have an alumni, Karen Sanchez, and a current 12th grade student, Mariana Liddell, who will also be presenting. Hi, welcome. Hi. Thank you. Uh, good afternoon to the LA USD board charter school committee and thank you for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Ephe Oadel and I have the honor of serving as principal of Animo Watts College Preparatory Academy. Animo Watts is part of the Green Dot Public Schools network which includes 18 schools serving communities across Los Angeles. At

066Animo Watts and across Green Dot, our success is built on the strength of our people. That includes our unionized teachers and counselors who are deeply committed to equity, rigor, and the well-being of all students. It also includes our unionized classified staff whose dedication ensures that our school runs safely, smoothly, and with care. We believe in empowering all educators because we know that when adults are supported and respected, students thrive. At Animo Watts, we are also allin on academics and we are deeply committed to helping every student succeed. We set high expectations and provide universal, targeted, and individualized support. We hold all students accountable, not just because we want them to do well, but because we believe in what they are capable of achieving. We meet every student where they are, and we work every day

067to ensure their success both inside and outside the classroom. Can we go to the next slide? There's a little cursor down there and then I think if you push the arrow and the Okay, perfect. Thank you. Thank you. Uh, since I've had the pleasure of leading this school, we've seen measurable academic growth. Our English proficiency has increased 14 percentage points and is above the state's average proficiency level. Our math proficiency has increased 11 percentage points and counting. That kind of shift doesn't happen on its own. It happens through transformative teaching, clear systems, and a relentless belief in what our students can achieve. We've expanded our course offerings to prepare students for the world that they will eventually go on to lead. From computer science to American Sign Language to our partnership with UCLA's MESA program,

068our students are gaining real world skills and exposure to college level learning experiences. We invest in a culture that is rooted in joy, accountability, and deep community connection, which has led to a 0% suspension rate and 89% parent satisfaction, among other successes. Animo Watts is a school where students are known, challenged, and cared for. A place where academic growth and personal development go hand in hand. Given the diverse attributes and needs of our student population, we've built a student first school model centered on wraparound care that helps students grow academically, socially, and emotionally. This has resulted in incredibly strong academic results for all students. According to core student growth percentiles, our scholars are growing more than 99% of students statewide in English and more than 92% of students statewide in math. Our belief in the

069limitless potential of all students is also evident in our sustained success in proficiency results for ELA. We've invested time and resources in providing differentiated coaching supports for teachers, fostering a culture of collaboration, and also strengthening their individual teacher practice and pedagogy. We've expanded course offering for students, increasing access to AP courses and culturally sustaining literacy based electives such as Latinx and African-American literature. That same belief has yielded notable growth in math as well. Whether it's the intensified support provided to select nth grade students through high impact tutoring or the development of a pathway towards upper level mathematics that includes dual enrollment computer science classes through Southwest College or increasing our access to AP pre-calculus. All math teachers at Watts are committed to ensuring that all students see math as a subject area that is relevant

070to their everyday lives and that they can succeed in and master. Something that I wish more people knew is that even though we're a small school, our students have access to a very rich set of experiences. We've designed our program to maximize what's possible both in terms of academic opportunity and personal growth. We're intentional. We're nimble. And we make every opportunity count. Animo Watts offers cutting edge programs including STEM pathways and Project Lead the Way, which provides scholars with expanded career exposure opportunities through innovative coursework and hands-on learning. And we're proud to have consistently high graduation rates with a 98% cohort graduation rate in 2024. I'm also excited to share that 69% of the class of 2024 graduated A throughG ready, which is 17 percentage points higher than the state of California, which was at

07152%. This year, Animal Watts seniors have earned acceptances to the University of Chicago, Mount St. Mary, UCLA, Accidental, Chapman University, as well as a variety of H.B.CU, Cal States, and UC's. Additionally, this class has amassed thousands of dollars worth of scholarships from organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Women in Entertainment, Dell Scholars, and Zeta 5 Beta Sorority Incorporated. At Animo Watts, we believe in preparing students not just for college, but also for leadership in life. Our college and career indicator rate is 10 percentage points higher than the state and over half of our scholars will have completed a dual enrollment course before they graduate which allows them to earn college credit and practical work skills while still in high school. And we don't do this work alone. We work together with partners

072across the education sector and beyond to develop holistic support for students, extended learning opportunities, and meaningful community engagement. As a California Community Schools grant recipient, we collaborate with dozens of partners because we want to ensure that our scholars and families receive widespread support from robust community focused service providers as well. In this collective action and work, we know that we are stronger together than apart. We appreciate the years of partnership with LUSD and we look forward to collaborating with the district and meeting our shared goals for students across the city. But more important than the numbers are the incredible students who bring the school to life. in just a moment. Mariana Liddell, a Gates Millennium Scholar, saludiatoran of the class of 2025, and soon to be freshman at Howard University, and Karen Sanchez, an alumni

073from the class of 2024, will share their experiences with you. Thank you for this opportunity to share a small glimpse of our school and for investing collectively in schools that put students and families at the center of everything we do. Okay. Hi everyone. My name is Mariana Liddell and I'm a proud senior at Animal Watts College Preparatory Academy. Um, before I came to Animal Watts, I saw school as something I just had to get through. It felt like a routine of assignments and grades. But when I got to Watts, I realized school could be more. I found a place where I wasn't just seen as a student, but al as a whole person with a voice, goals, and a future worth investing in. At Watts, I've grown in so many ways. Of course, I learned

074a lot in the classroom, but I've also learned about more about myself. I've discovered how to speak up, how to lead, and how to think deeply about the world around me. And I didn't figure that out alone. My teachers and staff have been there every step of the way, showing up, encouraging me, and reminding me that I matter. There was a time where I was struggling not with class but with life. Balancing school, sports, and everything else felt overwhelming. I felt like I was falling behind in more ways than one. What made the difference was that I wasn't alone. My coaches checked in on me. My teachers gave me space when I needed it and supported me me when I asked for it. They saw I was going through something and didn't ignore it. They

075reminded me that my wellbeing mattered just as much as my academics. That is what makes Animal Watts different. It's a place that sees the full picture of who you are and helps you grow through every part of it. What I appreciate most about Watts is that they do more than talk about preparing us for the future. They actually do it. I've taken classes that challenged me. Whether it was an AP course or dual enrollment classes, I also always felt supported. That support helped me believe in myself and my potential. And because of that, I now get to attend my dream school, Howard University, as a gate scholar. The community at Watts is something special. People know your name. Teacher act teachers ask how you are doing and truly listen. This is a sense of belonging

076that makes you feel like you matter every single day. Because of Animal Watts, I found my voice and today I'm I am proud to use it to represent a school that has changed my life. A school that supports every part of who we are, our learning, our well-being, and our dreams. Thank you for letting me share my story and thank you for supporting a school that helps students like me turn big dreams big dreams into reality. Thank you. [Applause] Good evening everyone. Uh my name is Karen Sanchez and I'm an alumni from Annual Watts College Preparatory Academy. I am currently attending Chapman University and being part of Annual Watts has been one of the most defining experience of my life. When I first enrolled, I thought it would just be another school. But I quickly

077realized that it was a place where people truly cared not just about our grades, but about us as people as learners and as leaders. Animat is a school where the phrase whole child actually means something. Real support are in place. From our counselors checking in on us academically and learning about our interests to teachers who willingly give up their time outside of class to talk and support us. There are community events that bring us together like family. I've never felt just as a number here. It's simply impossible. I felt seen, known, and supported. My story at annual watch changed my life by giving me that support and visibility. I was always a driven student, but being part of this school pushed me to even be more proactive. What made me so joyful and committed to

078school was knowing that administration wanted to be my best academically, emotionally, and physically. One day, my counselor encouraged me to apply to a program that supported women entertainment. I had no idea what to expect, but because of that program, my family doesn't have to support me financially or worry about debt. I earned a full full rice scholarship to my college. To say the teachers and administration did not shape my journey at Animal Watts would be a complete lie. I took classes that challenged me, join clubs, and created clubs that gave me a voice and access programs that helped me realize college shouldn't shouldn't just be a dream, but a goal within reach. I developed real skills, writing, collaboration, leadership, and public speaking. These things should never stop being built because we never stop learning. Throughout

079my time at Annual Watts, what made me the biggest impact was not just the curriculum, but it was also the people. The connections I built opened doors to internships and job opportunities. This culture we share, educating, uplifting, and enjoying each other. This school may be small in size, but it was a big impact. I believe that students like me deserve to be empowered. I become a stronger and more confident version of myself because of this place. I'm proud to represent a school that shows what's possible when you lead with care and purpose. I'm especially proud of representing a school that pushed me to venture beyond my comfort zones and experiences that have now led me to study and work in different countries. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my story and thank

080you for supporting me at a school at Animal Watts like me to succeed. Thank you. [Applause] Thank you very much um Animo Wats for sharing um helping us understand more your school and sharing some of the experiences from your students current and past as well. Um I will open it up to any comments from my board member, Miss Ortiz Franklin. If you have any Thank you. Um I really appreciate getting to go first because I was so excited to um get to invite you all to come present and you know I think that's one of the opportunities of the original idea of charter schools was to share some best practices and learn with each other and every time I come to your school I'm just so impressed with the level of student discourse with the

081collegegoing culture and as you heard from scholars today um the real college preparation that comes um at Animat. So thank you and kudos for all of your great work. Um, I guess one specific question on your slide that I would love for you to help us understand a bit more because I I've seen Green Dot do it, but I don't think we do it um in LA Unified quite yet. This um description about the core student growth percentiles, you know, being in the 99 and 92nd percentile sounds amazing. Um, and it's not exactly the the way that we have looked at data here. Um, yeah, thanks for going back to the slide. This one right here. Perfect. Um, so could you just share a little bit more about like what this means? Like how how

082you got this data like right and if we lean on the green dot team that's great too like you I can hop up here. Absolutely. Hello my name is Michael Garner. I'm vice president of technology at Green Dot. Just figured I'd uh add a little context here. Please. Yeah. Great. So, I'm going to read off of the core's website just so I'm not butchering anything, but um CDE and state board of education recognizes core academic growth model, also known as SGP, uh as a valid measure of school's impact on student achievement. So, um the academic growth model measures how students progress in their learning from one year to the next. And the model compares each student's actual achievement in in um their peer group and their peer group is defined by the students prior achievement.

083So we're looking at students from one grade level how they actually performed their scale score and how they performed the following year. And let's just say all students in sixth grade who had a 2561 on ELA. all of those students. We looked at those students or not we did uh core does this uh in seventh grade and rank them from one to 100. So 50 is kind of the average level of growth meaning that that school has achieved about average growth compared to the rest of the state cohort. And there's over a million student students excuse me in uh the in the data set for core and actually LUSD was and actually still is a member of core. uh recently I think um LUSD decided to remove the student level data from core SGP based

084on just data privacy but is still an active member of the collaborative. Um so really what we're looking at is uh anywhere between 31 and 70 is considered average growth and so core has designated that as a proxy for one year of growth or average. Uh anything above 50 though we really see as growing faster than the average school within the state. And so a growth of 99 really just means that that school is having an impact on its students. Um growing students faster than 99% of other schools in the in the state within the population that core serves. Um I appreciate that. Very helpful. Um and I've seen it for a couple other green dot schools. So, um, so glad you could, um, share that for Watts. Um, I guess then my only other

085question for the school, um, this was really helpful to see, you know, an overview of all of your successes. Um, something I think a lot about, um, as it relates to the great student outcomes you're seeing is like the adult learning that contributes to that. Um, so I wonder if you could just share a little bit about like how you all do professional learning at your school. Um, what does like planning time look like? who you know does coaching or you know who's involved in in learning if any of your classified staff members are um because I imagine it is very much a team effort and a lot of time um so if you could just help us understand a little bit more how your adults get to learn. Yeah. So we have professional development

086and collaboration um once a week professional development once a week and collaboration once a week and we cycle through different PD units. So we have uh instructional PD units where teachers learn instructional best practices um specifically around uh planning for really high quality lessons and then implementing um research-based best practices around like student discourse um group structures in the classroom, different things like that. So they cycle through. We also have um school culture PDs where we talk about the importance of restorative practices, building relationships with students, um culturally sustaining pedigogy, things like that. And then we try to commit to teacher prep time at least once a month which is giving them the time to just be prepared to deliver high quality instruction to students. Um so they have that time in their classrooms. Sometimes

087we'll give a focus whether it's grading if it's around midterms or um if it's getting their next unit prepared if we're going into the next quarter. So we'll give them a focus but that's their planning time. We also have districtwide PD. So we have quarterly all green dot days where they get to collaborate with teachers who teach the same content across other schools in the district and that's run by our curriculum specialists who also provide coaching um in a tiered support system based on levels of experience. So newer teachers might receive more uh intensified coaching. Veteran teachers maybe they're new to the curriculum might receive different levels of support. And all of those kind of work together to create uh scope and sequence of adult learning. One thing we've also prioritized with uh some of

088the resources that we've had in the last few years is sending teachers to other schools to learn best practices. So, we've sent teachers to uh different states through some of the grants that we've been able to receive to learn and observe schools that are doing really great work having similar outcomes serving similar populations. So, we've invested in a number of outside PDs as well. That sounds amazing. I feel like I'd love that list of schools that you're visiting. Um, but thank you all so so much for presenting. Thank you to the scholars for sharing your stories. Um, it really contextualizes for us, you know, what the impact means for an individual. So, uh, congrats on your individual success too um, in college and um, looking forward to many many more of your peers having uh,

089great success stories as well. Um, I'll turn it back to Dr. Rivas. I'm sure you have some questions and thoughts, but thank you all for being here. Yes. Thank you, Mr. Franklin um help me understand uh how you work with your English learners and I don't know if the core um growth is also looks at the different subgroups particularly English learners I know that there's at least from from um CDE's website approximately 71 English learners 13% of your population um but it looks like there's been a decrease in in u growth for English learners. Yeah. So, we do have a variety of programmatic supports uh that's afforded to them. They have their uh sheltered instruction that's specifically focused on language acquisition throughout the day. Those are integrated into our English courses and for upper grade

090levels and our advisory courses. We have a bilingual aid who follows students throughout the day to provide support so that for their core content they can remain in classes with their peers, English learners and English speaking. and the bilingual aid provides that differentiated support as well. We've been really looking closely at the data and how our population has shifted over time. So in previous years, we might not have had as many students who are newer to the country or students who are duly identified with learning disabilities. So we've really tried to be responsive in our programs to the individual needs of the classes that uh that that we're getting yeartoear. I will say uh based on our ELPAC data which we're still still coming in but I anticipate that we'll be back um trending upward

091because of our response to that dip that you mentioned and does the core um student growth percentiles also look at English learners or it just looks at generally all all of the the students I believe. All right. Yes. And also for SPE students with special needs? Yes. All student groups with um with 20 or more students within a pre-cohort and postcohort are included. So, because there's only 11th graders testing at Anime Watts, there weren't enough uh to receive an SGP for English learners or students with disabilities this this current year. So, not for this current year, right? So, there's less than 20 students who were who have uh who are 11th graders that tested last year. Oh, so it's only 11th grade. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. because that's the only um grade level that is testing.

092Thanks. And um student your students with special needs, what are what um different you know students that you serve? Yeah, so we are have a full inclusion model. We've really leaned into co-eing practices. So we have five co-eing pairs across multiple grade levels and content areas. So based on data analysis and looking at students IEPs, we identify um to the fullest extent possible where we can provide all of their services integrated throughout the day. So we don't this year we don't have uh special day classes or separate learning settings. We have multiple adults in multiple classrooms. So we have co-eing pairs in English 9, 10, and 11. We have co-taught algebra 2. Um and those teachers we provide additional coaching. They're they're pulled out uh periodically for full co-planning days where they work with a

093coach to analyze student outcomes and develop uh responses to the data based on different co-eing practices whether it's parallel teaching or stations or blended learning. So we really support them to be responsive to the the data of the individual needs on their case load and students are fully included with their uh with their peers throughout the school day and we just push all the supports into the classroom. And one more if I may for students with disabilities for the 23 24 school year uh students with disabilities received a 99 percentile for ELA core SGP and an 88 percentile for math. Thank you. And your community school um help us understand uh what other aspects of of the community school model do you integrate apart from the partnerships. So we this are this was our first

094year um and we're really excited about the progress that we've made. We took a lot of data. We conducted a needs assessment survey with multiple stakeholder groups to identify what they wanted to see come out of this grant and this opportunity. So, our coordinator has spent most of the year identifying partners to either come in to provide services directly to students, create opportunities, um career day, uh workshops, substance abuse programs, mental health supports, just whatever the students are asking for, we try to go find an organization that can come in and provide that. We brought a music uh club to the school through the through the grants. We brought um teens exploring technology for students who are interested in more te uh STEM and tech opportunities. We've also taken students out to field trips. We

095have a group of students who are interested in the medical field visiting city of hope tomorrow actually. So we really just tried to identify what are the gaps in our program and how can we leverage that partnership to fill those gaps. We also through the grant we work with children's institute to provide mental health services and social emotional services um and ensure that basic needs are met for families who have more severe needs than others and those services are are available not just to the student but to the whole family as well. And your collaborative leadership and practices um what does that look like? How does that function with the administrators? Um well it just says collaborative leadership and practices. um that your programming provides holistic support to students and pillars integrated student and it

096mentions um collaborative leadership and practices. So I just wanted to know what I believe that's speaking to our work with our site reps and uh the different ways that we leverage um the union as well as like teacher leaders and um teacher committee members to make decisions about how we move forward with the school. So we use collaborative decision making to identify what are the interests of all stakeholders and how can we make more progress towards our goals. So we have an instructional leadership team that I meet with twice a month. We have a school culture team which is comprised of teachers and uh counselors. We have a grade level leaders who do a lot of the work around multi-tered systems of supports. And we have regular cycles of feedback with our entire staff as

097well, whether it's through surveys or listening sessions to just gain more information about how our decisions are impacting them, what they would like to see, and we make adjustments to our strategic plan based on the feedback that we get. Great. Well, thank you. Do you have any questions, Mr. Ros? You actually asked my question on the community school. So, but I would like to thank you for the information you shared and certainly uh your your student uh Miss Liddell and her achievement. Congratulations as well as Miss Sanchez as well. So, all the best. Thank you. Thank you so much. I appreciate you. Thank you for coming. [Applause] So now, uh, we'll return to the rest of, um, the remaining public comment to hear, um, what they have to tell us. Yeah. Go ahead. All right.

098Just a couple folks left. We have, uh, Dea Tramble, you came here in person. I had you listed as remote, but as a Okay, Dea, not coming. All right, Dea, are you here? One last call for sure. No. Okay. No, DEA. Um, let's see. Uh, Daniel Hernandez, are you online? No. Daniel Hernandez online. No, Daniel Hernandez in the room. Okay, let's try. Um, Casey Coenda, I think. Not here. Not Casey Coenda. All right. Isabelle, someone simply by the name of Isabelle to speak remotely. Also not here. Uh, Laura Weissbecker. also not online and not here. These are folks who signed up to speak remotely. And we have uh Mr. David Tokovsky on the line. Mr. David Tokowski, please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Thank

099you. And welcome to the new executive director of strategy um and the committee. I will hope that in a sense that that role as a strategic person will help solve some of the um going forward uh from the the past decades where things have not necessarily been um to the liking of all folks uh from the Prop 39 uh to um individual cases like the Myiramar or Garcia High School that sits right next to the Bodri building has been uh abandoned by Commamino Novo and uh over $50 million of public funds went into the land and the building of that building and it sits empty and now the district LA Unified is paying the rent to the state has a a rid of mandate from a superior court to uh do something with the property

100and hopefully the strategic team can do something. Similarly, the 24th street uh you know a a a pair of schools with well over 400 kids uh should be something glorious not something problematic in an era of declining enrollment and we should be uh looking at the collocation process and maybe it it's it's uh required by law but there may be better solutions and policy with public space. Um over the last h 100red years LA Unified uh has uh taken public land taken land private land and made it for public use. And we should be using this public use uh in the most thoughtful and creative ways from from the chair of this committee's efforts on greening and parks uh to uh cultural affairs to senior uh uh to recreation of various sorts. The the public

101land is at the heart of this society. Uh it started in the Boston Commons and the word commons meant that the land was held by the people in common for various uses and it was the pl the meeting place to fight the British and their uh attempts to colonize the Boston people. So LA Unified has tremendous public space. It needs to be strategically put to use and the old battles of collocations and the the the old buildings of the Myiramar. We need to have a new vision and that should not just be as a Yeah, this should not just be about closing or or combining schools. It should be about creating new opportunities for public use. Okay, we've got Isabelle signed on just now. Isabelle, please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have

102two minutes to speak once you begin. Isabelle. Isabelle, please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Hi. Good afternoon. My name is Isa. Thank you for my comment and I am here to speak about Aspire Antonio Maria Luga Academy in the city of Huntington Park. Uh for many years I was afraid to enroll my son at a charter school because they had always given us bad uh reputation recommendations uh from certain groups that don't want us to leave the public schools. My experience with this school has been fantastic. My son is doing a great job. And what I like the most about this place is that parents are really part of the team. They take us in account to make decisions. They open the doors of

103the schools. And we are very welcome to be volunteers at the school. I would like for members of the board. Uh we would like for you to visit the charter schools the mo so that you can see how we're they're working. I haven't seen that you uh you put on your social media that you visit charter schools and instead of making negative comments not specifically I'm not referring myself to you but other schools that put charter schools down we would like for them to visit see how they work and many parents are happy to have this options for our children to to attend these schools and they're not our own home schools sometimes we obligated to enroll them so therefore miss Rosio Mr. Miss Tanya, I would like for you to visit our schools and

104to be part of our community and we would like for you to see that parents support. Uh we would like for the school to continue teaching our students. Thank you and have a great day. Thank you for your time. And Daniel Hernandez just showed up. So Mr. Hernandez, please press star six. Can you hear me? Yeah, please go ahead. Sweet. Um I'll go ahead now. Hey everyone, my name is Daniel Hernandez. I'm a triilingual junior at Dartmouth College, double majoring in data science and Chinese. And the reason I can open in Mandarin today confidently and fluently is because of public education. Um, you know, I'm a product of L USD and charter schools at its core. Um, I want to say this clearly. I think charter school students are public school students, too. And I

105think that distinction gets lost sometimes, but I think it really matters. um the support, the structure and the the opportunity I got came from both. I started learning Mandarin at City Terrace Elementary School, part of a dual enrollment program. Um and from that point on, I was learning math, science, um all of it in Mandarin, uh starting in kindergarten. And it really shaped the way I think, how I process complex problems, how I interact globally. Um and you know, my teachers never gave up on me there. You know, they stayed after school, worked with me one-on-one, and pushed me even when I couldn't get it. Um, and you know, I stuck with that Mandarin cohort all the way through Seno Middle School, uh, till 8th grade. And that consistency was really important for me, uh,

106not just academically, but socially, um, you know, it taught me how to navigate difficult problems. Um, and, you know, how to, you know, stay accountable. Um, when I got to high school, uh, Alliance Lightman Levine, a public charter, that school really changed everything for me. There were times freshman year, I wish I could live at that school. the the smaller class sizes were the reason I could focus and I wasn't getting distracted or lost in the back of a crowded room. You know, my teachers really saw me and uh they knew when something was off or you know when they needed to push me or when they needed to check in and that environment truly was built for growth. It you know it wasn't necessarily for test scores but rather for people and um you

107know I didn't feel like a number you know I felt like I was someone worth investing in. And you know, I'm really happy to say that, you know, now I'm at Dartmouth and this summer I'll be in Dubai working at a hedge fund as an investment analyst intern. Um, and I'm not saying that to brag, but more importantly to say that the reason that I'm able to do that is because I learned Mandarin in public school and um, now I can navigate global finance. And that pipeline isn't just rare. It's it's truly a testament to the power of uh, public education when it's done right. So, you know, I'm standing here today and speaking to you all. Definitely because public schools both traditional and charter didn't just prepare me, you know, they really propelled me.

108Thank you. Thank you for your time. That concludes public comment. Thank you, Mr. McClean. And thank you to all our public speakers here present and also remotely. Um, as we come to a close today's last charter school committee meeting for the 2425 school year, I want to take a moment to reflect and express my deep appreciation. Uh, to my colleagues, Miss uh, Tanya Ortiz Franklin, um, and also to your staff and your team, thank you for your ongoing engagement throughout the year, your thoughtful questions, and your commitment to holding the space for dialogue, accountability, and improvement overall. And to the public, thank you for showing up, for speaking out, and staying connected. Your input is essential to building a more equitable and transparent public school system. The this committee exists to ensure that the charter

109schools authorized by LUSD meet high standards, operate responsibly, and serve students well. And as we look ahead to next school year, I remain committed to continuing this work with integrity, purpose, and focus on student success and wellness. I hope all of you enjoy a safe and restful summer and I look forward to reconvening with renewed energy and shared resolve and thank you again for your time, your partnership and your presence here today. Have a beautiful summer. Thank you so much. [Music]