001Good morning. Uh I Good morning. I see um seven of our 11 board members are present in person today and an eighth is on the way. Uh and we will have member Escobedo and member Orosco Gonzalez participating from a remote location. So consistent with the laws governing remote participation, member Escobedo, there you are. Please confirm the following. Uh would you confirm that you are present? >> Yes, I am. >> You confirm that there's no other adults in the room from where you are participating from remotely. >> I confirm no one. No one here. >> Member Rosco Gonzalez, please confirm that you're present. >> Yes, I am here. >> See you. Uh confirm that there's no other adult in the room from where you are participating remotely. No one else is here. >> All right. Terrific.
002Thank you. Welcome. Uh we are going to start this morning by reopening uh item 11 which is the study session on California's differentiated assistance and statewide system of support. As a reminder, this item is information only. Uh and um we're going to reopen for board discussion. Uh as a reminder, yesterday afternoon we had several presentations including presentations from Dr. Erica Torres and Cindy Kazanis from the Department of Education, Jason Willis presenting on the CCE statewide system of support working group recommendations, and Dr. Antonio Castro, superintendent of the Ventur Unified School District. In addition to the written public comment we received, we heard public comment from individuals in person and over the phone. And given the time constraints and the need for the board to take up other items of business yesterday, following public comment on
003this item, we continued item 11 to this morning. So we can take up board discussion in light of the presentations and public comment we heard yesterday. So with that I reopen this item for the board discussion. Go back in your memory. uh differentiated assistance and the questions that we have on the table for us are questions about what are the um kinds of um criteria that we think will be important. what are the principles on which we want differentiated assistance uh to be designed. Uh and uh we heard from um as I said a lot of stakeholders, interest holders as well as um uh the folks who had been in the CCE working group uh about some of the recommendations they came up with. Um there was I'm wondering if we want to revisit those
004but the I think most of you remember them and we have them in our records. Member Olen. >> Good morning everyone. Um so if we had folks from yesterday here with us this might have been a clarifying question. Um but instead perhaps I'll pose it to us. >> We do have folks here from the department. I see >> this is from um the Oh, and Heather Huff is here from the um uh one of the authors of the CCE working group. So, >> that's actually the that's what I was um gonna ask about. So, maybe >> want to come up, Heather. >> Thank you for waving. I couldn't see you all that way in the back. >> Not on. >> Good morning. Thanks for being here today on day two. Yes. >> So, I was
005interested in um there's a slide in the deck um that is called evolving indicator, excuse me, evolving indicators to reflect work on the ground and it's the one with the pyramid with the prioritized indicica indicators, the leading indicators and the high quality system indicators. Um, and I wondered if you could just explain the idea of that and some examples of what might go where. I didn't I was Yeah. So we can better understand that. >> Yeah. And I want to step back just a little bit too to talk about the intent of that pyramid and the reason why the prioritization for math and ELA or academic outcomes specifically came about. So in the working group there was a very strong sense that while whole child measures are important what they wanted what district and county
006folks in the working group really wanted was to be able to focus DA on academic outcomes. So that conversation led us to the prioritization in the indicators. Um why that pyramid is important is because nobody in the working group wants to remove whole child indicators. Keeping that vision for whole child education is really important. But there's different uses that we can have for data. So as we think about building and refining our data infrastructure, having at the bottom of that pyramid a much broader set of indicators that helps us understand system health, that helps us understand student well-being. At the top of that though is indicators that will produce indic the the um that will prompt intervention and our working group recommended that those be just focused on academic outcomes. Can I ask a followup?
007So would the and maybe this is outside the scope of the working group. Would the um the work of assistance then focus solely on math and ELA or would it or would Yeah, I guess that's >> no. And this is why um when Jason Willis was up here, he was talking about how all of these recommendations need to fit together. A key aspect of the CCE working group recommendations is the implementation of a systemic review. So that when you are triggered into differentiated assistance, every district gets the same review that looks at your whole system. So what we heard right now is if you're identified, let's say for chronic absenteeism, someone comes in and says, "Okay, let's just fix chronic absenteeism when what might be happening is a much deeper systemic problem." And that's true
008with academics, too. If your students aren't learning how to read, we have no idea why that is. It could be a really wide range of things that are underlying that problem. So the systemic review would look at workforce health. It would look at the kinds of instructional materials that you use. It would look at chronic absenteeism. It would look at so at social determinants that might be underlying problems that students are bringing into school. So the work that you do as a result of differentiated assistance is very comprehensive, but the indicators that are saying you should now get attention are based on academics. >> Thank you. that really helps. >> I know that member Escobedo wants to add in. I do want to just take a moment since we're talking about systemic review to say
009to dive a little deeper on that for a second. Uh because it is something some other states have done as part of their school improvement processes and um it's also something that essentially the superintendent from Ventura uh mentioned as well that they had really essentially done their own systemic review as part of their uh path forward. Uh I wondered whether there were other um features of that that were offered by the working group that you would want to hold up in terms of how it was con conceptualized um in their >> as a working group. We do dove pretty deeply into the inspectorate model that's been implemented in England. They've been implementing this for many many years and have a very deep um understanding of how it's used in that cont. And we also drew
010fairly heavily from the thick map process. So one thing to note is that there are lots of tools for understanding district performance that are used across the state just not consistently. So different entities use different tools. Some county offices use tools. CCE has a comprehensive review that they use for DTA. So we wouldn't be starting from scratch. we would be pulling together and implementing in a systematic way things that are already in place. But some of the key elements from that review of systems in other places and tools within our state is that um it needs to be a consistent tool that is broadly bought into and constructed. So everyone in the field should be able to look at this tool and say yes this is what we want to see in a healthy school
011district that is operating healthy schools and healthy meaning these are places where educators are supported where there are sufficient resources to support the needs that students have. So, it's not a it's not a one-sizefits-all at all, but there are elements in that we should see in high functioning schools and districts. And so, a key aspect that we've talked about within the tool itself is make kind of what's tight and what's loose. What are the things that we know we need to see and what are the where are the places where we want where we're okay seeing variation. Um the other piece is that we know that building capacity to do this kind of system review would be would be a a big a heavy lift in a lot of places. So we're drawing from both
012what they do in England and what we do in FICMAT here in California where the people doing those systemic reviews are experts from statewide. So we're not asking every county to build that full level of expertise to be able to do that systemic review. But the reviews itself are kind of all hands on deck to bring that expertise and make a plan for what high quality support would look like in that district. >> Thank you. That's And just to remind folks when we heard earlier from AIR about states that were doing different kinds of reviews. Massachusetts is one of the states that does a sort of what's called a school quality review. Uh there was a time actually that they took this up in the 90s when the Her Majesty's inspectorate had people running around
013the country here in California and Illinois and New York and creating something called a school quality review that's very similar to the inspectorate model. So some states have continued to do that. We can look more at them if we decide that that's a piece that we want to take up. Vermont, Massachusetts. Um Advanced Ed is an accrediting body. They do this for districts in some parts of the country as well. So, thank you. It's very helpful. I want to get to member Escobedo and then Vice President Glover Woods and then member Yoshimoto Tarry. Yes. I want to uplift recommendation 3.1 which was you know I I I know it's connected to trustee Olsen's pyramid question is really refining those quantitative identification measures to focus on the highest priority outcomes and I also think it's important
014I think through the fake map process you do some of that is you the importance of marrying the quantitative ative those few quantitative measures with some qualitative measures especially in in in being able to understand culture and climate of the organization. I think it's very healthy to really look looking at the those qual qualitative aspects that may may need to to improve because you have to you know typically when you look at these qualitative measures you you're able to identify root causes at a much deeper way. >> Yeah. Um what was next? Member Vice President Glover Woods and then member Yoshimotari. >> Good morning. Um there are a couple of things swimming around in my head right now. And um as we talk about differentiated assistance I I see two aspects of it. The identification
015and then the support that's provided. >> Heather, you can go ahead and get comfortable. I appreciate >> Heather. Thank you so very much. And uh what what I do realize is that as we had adopted the dashboard principles, as we had um have looked at different things, we've also added additional we've added an additional student group to the system. Uh we're having conversation around uh what role other indicators such as science growth may play on the dashboard. So, as we continue to add, um, without refining what the current criteria is, which I know is the point of this conversation, I think what we'll we end up with is what we're faced with right now. We have a lot of districts that fall in, they jump in, they jump out. Um, so providing the support, be
016it through a systemic review and getting down to more root cause and things along that line, we can't even get there because there's so many eleas that are identified. So um um I I guess my wondering is for a conversation is um how we may want to get into that what I would consider to be the first step which is the identification. Are there things that we have um agreed to as a board as it relates to the weight of indicators as it relates to um the year the year for identification one year two-year things along that line that we need to discuss and then go into the support aspect or do we dialogue about both of those together? So I I think I'm asking more questions than adding discussion. President Darling Hammond, but I
017um I tend to be kind of linear in my thinking. So like first let's talk about the identification part and then we can talk about what other things need to happen second into the identification. >> We can come back and we do not have to make decisions today but we can certainly talk about some of those things. Um, I do want to hear from members who want to raise concerns and then we can uh make our way through them. I would just note that on the question of identification, we're encouraged by the trailer bill uh that came out in January to be thinking about a three-year cycle uh rather than an annual in-n-out which, you know, to align that with um LCAP. Uh and that would be one piece of a of a puzzle to
018um you know mediate the prior strategy of in and out every year. Um so there there are some and we've talked about the the need for a longer term cycle for for districts that are identified. Uh but I think we can come back to this question about identification uh after we see what else is on folks folks minds. member Yoshima Tarry. >> Hi, good morning everybody. >> Uh so I have three three sort of questions and comments on this one. Um one I noticed in the part of the working group there were two uh superintendents from eleas. So thank you for including including their voice. I think about maximizing voices of superintendent and people working in districts in this process because they're the recipients of the DA or the DTA. And I think that you
019know the the needs of the 20 largest school districts in the state, 20 is a arbitrary number. Um and the 20 smallest are vastly different. Um, and so I wonder when we think about allocating dollars into the DA system based on ADA. Um, for example, in a county, there could be one large urban district that's larger than all the rest of the smaller districts combined. And >> hypothetically, and I'm not just talking about LA. I mean, I think there's others right across the state where that's that's the case as well. Um, some near here. And I I think that the because of that and the the size, the urbanity, the rural nature, the relationships with the county offices and the differentiated support system, the statewide system support system is vastly different um because of that.
020And and so I wonder how in the long-term vision of the new DA system will account for that. um that differentiation of need. Uh and I I have recently heard a particular district asking um if they have choice in the in who provides differentiated assistance to them. Um if it if you know I think the the default is the county office of education. Um and sometimes there's local politics and other dynamics that happen. um are there other options within our state differentiated support to get that DA um a lead agency CCE for example or GEO lead that's the first point um the the second point is I often wonder who the audience of DA is and the reason I say that is from a local perspective when we were doing a deep dive analysis of
021who was providing professional development to teachers in our LEA it it was not coherent at the beginning. Sometimes um teachers were getting professional development from their obviously from their school site. Uh sometimes it was from their family of schools, their feeder pattern. Sometimes it was from their regional office. Sometimes it was from the big district office. Sometimes it was from the county office and sometimes it was from institutes of higher education vendors. it and it actually added complexity to the system and created a lack of coherence for the teachers themselves and the principles that were leading schools. So a larger question I would pose is when we think about differentiated assistance and creating change that we want to see in the classroom and at the school level because that's where the students spend their day.
022How do how do we think carefully about who is our direct audience for that differentiated assistance so that we're not layering and layering upon um the teachers and the principles at the school site and everybody around them. Um, and then my third point is related, but it's it's I think there was something in the report that talked about not having um often that there are perpetual and deep barriers that that the differentiated assistance and the statewide system of support don't always can't always get to. Um so when we think about the quality of instruction and instructional delivery in the classroom, how do we ensure that we are growing the capacity uh so that because we've always had bright spots in the state and in every school there's always bright spots and in every district, right?
023So, but how do we overall raise the the level of what's happening across the board for all students so that it's not always the students furthest from opportunity or the schools from furthest from opportunity that aren't, you know, that that we're able to get to that kind of support uh that meets the need across the board. So, those three points. I'd just like to add to that last one that this is where the incentive review of some sort comes in because you could be in a district where there's so much churn of teachers that actually you know teacher retention is a key element because every time that somebody leaves their achievement goes down. Another place it might be a stable teaching force that doesn't have the um access to professional development etc. But you really
024being able to back up and take a look at what's going on is is going to be really key to that designation of the right kind of support and then the right kind of uh policy. Um I want to be sure that others who have thoughts have a chance to get them in. I we could take some moments um to um Vice President Gloverwood's point to to talk about what what thoughts you're having on this question of both identification and and um support. Uh we heard we heard a lot just to raise up what we've been hearing from the field and particularly from the superintendent yesterday was so um clear on the importance of the growth model being part of the uh identification process as well as the you know uh progress monitoring uh that
025that goes on. Uh I think we've heard that from other conversations and other um testimony over the last months as well. Um, I think the one of the questions that came up was the question about, you know, do we want to uh think about using the entire dashboard of indicators as we do now or zeroing in and that was a point of contention on the working group and it was a point of contention here in the room yesterday. Um, so I think those are some of the questions. uh there's been suggestion that in addition to looking at uh the performance of different subgroups that we also look at the performance of an all students group because of the fact that small subgroups don't rise up uh to a level of visibility. Um so there are
026a number of kinds of um identification principles. I don't think we need to be trying at this juncture to get to the rules so to speak but a set of principles that if you have thoughts about would be good to start to um just at least name them. Gabriella. Okay. Member Oros Gonzalez. >> Good morning everyone. just one thing that uh resonated during this discussion yesterday and today and thank you a member Yoshimura Atari um you actually touched on a few points that I was thinking um and it's just the idea of ensuring that we target support and don't overwhelm districts by pulling in too many at one time. So with limited capacity, it becomes difficult for counties and partners to dive deeper and provide the type of support districts need in order to improve.
027As a teacher in the classroom, I always viewed improvement as a journey. So tying the support cycle to the ELCAP planning cycle may allow districts to have the stabil stability they need to implement a strategy, assess its effectiveness, and to continue to grow their work to produce better results for students. So going forward, I also hope that the system continues to emphasize student subgroup outcomes and opportunity gaps while also aligning with California's vision for student success. So in the end, we just know that this system is working by seeing the impact on instruction and student opportunities within the classroom and throughout the state. I really appreciated all the department and all the partners who came out and um and presented yesterday. I think it was very helpful to to see this item better. Thank you.
028Great. Others member Lewis, you look like you're ready to lean in. Okay. >> One of the first points that I had written down, uh, Vice President Glover Woods had already has already mentioned it and that was to really look at the identif identification process was coming from a large district where a lot of schools are identified and then you develop your LCAP and for working on those for how you're going to approve the student outcomes. I really support uh looking at the identification to line up with the as stated in the trailer bill and we've already discussed. I think that's very important because as soon as you write the plan as it exists now and you start the implementation, you know, the the identification just comes right uh quickly after that. So, I think in
029order to give districts the time they need to really implement plans and really see what's working, make adjustments to plans, I think the three-year cycle really follows into it. as far as um limiting the number of indicators or or just zeroing in on I think the intent of the dashboard was to look at all the aspects of of the student engagement and what they're involved in and u all measures and I think we should be careful about maybe limiting those but giving schools every opportunity to show growth in the multiple measures. We heard a lot of that in the commentary yesterday. Also, one of the other things that um strikes me about that is that quite often those are uh canaries in the gold mine, if you will, that those are important measures in and
030of themselves. And um we found in the learning policy institute did a study of community schools that in community schools the um movement they made on chronic absenteeism which was stronger than similar schools were able to make was especially predictive of gains in English language arts and math. But if you hadn't been paying attention to the chronic absenteeism, you might not have gotten to the to the other gains. So I think there are, you know, reasons to want to and I think the same thing can be true around suspension rates and other indicators. Yes, member Patilo Branson, welcome. >> Thank you. >> Sorry for a >> parking issue this morning. Um I I think some of this has been named before, but I'll just reiterate one of the um the clear points at least that
031pops for me, and that's just the importance of uh continuing to lift up the equity guard rails and the subgroup um work um looking at subgroup performance and making sure that that continues to be a factor for identification. I think um the second point that I I and I'm sort of formulating this in real time a little bit but part of of I what I have started to hear from some districts and this aligns a little bit with what board member Yoshimoto Tari was describing earlier is that sometimes there is a struggle to actually um develop a coherent plan when there are too many options. and in the the formulation of California as a local control state where the the stateto-lo um lines of respect are are always I think sort of top of mind.
032Um sometimes choice looks like respect and sometimes so many choices I takes a form of overwhelm. Um and so as we think about what a next iteration of um differentiated assistance might look like, especially related to things like PD where there are so many um formulations of how that could look. Um I I almost wonder if there's a a space to develop more preferred guidelines rather than the every here's a very lengthy list of things that are approved that meet the standards that are eligible and that that certainly I think should still be on the table but for smaller districts or for districts that are dealing with so many other things sometimes I think it's helpful to have a um a pick list that is um more tightly aligned or that is flagged for if
033you are looking to work on the following challenges in third to fifth grade um math or um ELA in middle school or whatever whatever the trigger is that got you into differentiated assistance. if if there's a way to actually make it a little to prevet uh the options and supports and recommendations a little bit more um so that people are not overwhelmed by the the sheer um number of choices and that might be made easier by the design of the um review process that we've just talked about. Yeah. Yes, Vice President Gloverwood. Then member Oaken, you're leaning in. Were you gonna You don't have to. I thought you were wanting to be called on. Vice President Gloverwoods. >> Thank you. And again, I I keep keep in mind that we're not making decisions right now.
034I have to keep telling myself that part. Uh but uh just to kind of frame some thoughts and ideas around the identification or what we call eligibility uh for differentiated assistance. Uh, I went back to I believe it was slide 17 from the CDE presentation yesterday that laid out our current criteria for eligibility or identification. And uh one of my wonderings uh is might we need to look at um some iterations around the the different methods meaning that for example with method two it's the performance on local indicators in two or more priority areas and I I think I've stated from the seat before but I'll say again I I I always wonder about the rigor of our local indicator performance as it relates to accountability because it requires And if I'm incorrect, I know
035Cindy, please pop up and correct me. Um, it requires basically that the LEA utilize a tool and that they report that the findings to their board. And if they've done that, then they've met. Um, it doesn't really have anything to um tie into the actual content of what may have come out from the the tool itself. as far as um if they've met in a certain area. So, it's more about a reporting than not. So, I I lift that up as we think of uh criteria around the line of should the local indicators still be considered as um criteria for eligibility for differentiated assistance. The other thought as I'm thinking uh relates to the fact that our our identification or eligibility is tied into two or more of the state priority areas, not necessarily the
036state indicators. So we you we could see and we we've seen an LEA that might um meet the um whatever the the description is for eligibility in language arts and math, but that's one priority area. So they may have may be read, let's just say, in language arts and read in language arts and math, but if those are the only areas outside of and I'm really kind of um I think taking our criteria, I'm I'm not getting into the specifics of it, but the point that I'm making is that's one priority area. So you could have an LEA that is red on the dashboard in language arts, in math, and still not be eligible for differentiated assistance. So my my wondering is as we think of multiple measures because I'm I'm not proposing we go
037back to NCLB and only look at language arts and math. Should we consider priority areas or should we consider more so the indicators and the state indicators as the first first jump in if you will for eligibility or identification for differentiated assistance. When you say the state indicators, are you talking about our dashboard indicators? >> I'm Yes, I'm talking about our dashboard indicators. Uh particularly the state lo not the local indicators but the dashboard indicators. I am still I do still wonder if every single ind state indicator should count for eligibility but again using that lens of multiple measures um it may be worth considering. I think I would rather kind of see a full list and have a conversation around that. U and and also and I'll also want to just kind of lift
038up what's already been said on the important importance of including student group performance as well. Um and I'm kind of peaked with that idea of the all student group for our smaller um >> that would be in addition to not in lie of I would think. >> Right. So that that's kind of where my thoughts are right now. >> Um just to recall for us, I think that we're trying to get to the growth model being on the list of state indicators that would be used in that way. Um and that is one that we might want to consider would be in addition to what is currently on the dashboard. Other thoughts for that people have? Well, I think we've got we've gotten a lot of good input. We've gotten a lot of uh useful
039Oh, member Oaken, you're looking like you want to speak. >> I can I can I ask a question back to the core working group again? Thank you. >> Thank you. I was I was just reflecting on um what member Yoshim Yoshimotari said about um about bigs versus smalls. Um, and I'm sort of adding on the layer of charter schools which um serve as their own LEA and so they are the smallest of smalls in some ways. I mean, some of them are. Um, I was wondering if the group looked at all at uh considered their needs um as part of the as part of your process. >> A great question. We were really focused on school districts for this round. So we did not work on charter school DA in this working group. We did
040talk with um as part of the working group we had about six representatives of school districts ranging from single singles to large and also interviewed a lot of them as well. Um and have the same number in our design group currently but yeah not not charter schools. >> Thank you. Yeah, I just I I was thinking about the um the accreditation process through Wasque that charter that schools secondary schools do and that was one of my models for the um my mental models for what you're describing as a sort of systemic look. Um is that is that a appropriate mental model even if it's not one we're thinking about just as I'm getting my head around it? >> Absolutely. Wasque was also a model for us although you know our system is built around districts
041so it needs to include something that looks across schools not necessarily just at one school >> right except in the except in the case of charter schools >> okay thank you >> and I mentioned earlier the advanced ed model uh which is an accredititation body and they've figured out how to look at districts as well as schools so there are places that are you know designing systems like Yeah. All right. Oh, member Rodriguez, >> I will uh dovetail on the designing systems. Um good morning everyone. So, listening to this rich conversation and playing back some of the um the uh you know profile of a learner that we looked at yesterday. uh and thinking about systemically uh is looking at the systems that our schools are in sometimes, you know, with the 50inute class time,
042for example, at a high school, right? Or during the day with all of the uh outside forces that teachers and schools don't have any control over. And so we really need to rethink how what our schools look like. And I think having a model of different type of schools and and helping right you know with the um with our DA look showing what this model would look like because I think like when teachers take surveys for example or or students take surveys the survey asks them specific questions about whether it's school climate um our school uh you know we were looking at the school climate survey from last year and like 90% of our students are bored and so and they're bored because we're not Tik Tok dancing in front of them, right? Which is
043what I mean that they're they're used to being constantly stimulated. And so I I would love to have a survey but that actually shows a model like how how does what you're doing compared to this? Um so that they they know I'm bored. That's like the most common thing when I do my check-ins in the morning when the students come in. Bored. Bored is always the biggest on the word cloud. Okay. And then I tell them, you know, embrace boredom. And then we'll, you know, work work over that. Um, and and so I I think that there that that we need to think about how we word certain questions and what we have in mind for what this looks like uh ultimately for what we want our schools and our students and our families because
044we can't forget that partnership which is essential for learning and uh and also parents are overwhelmed right now. there's there's a lot happening um right and and with the for example the wraparound school model the community schools where we can actually support our parents um so that they don't feel overwhelmed and and you know they can support the kids at home. So thank you. >> Okay. This is going to be the last word on this and we're going to move forward. We're doing okay on our time today. I just want >> what Ida said. Um, board member Rodriguez, we were we were just chatting on the way over here because she was telling me about her students and um, I think that the one of the things that we should attend to is that we
045don't collect that level of data at the state, how the rapport that students feel, the safety they feel. We collect it and in surveys um, and in some cases we do, but we don't usually use it for DA. And I think that the as we think about DA, we really need to think about root cause analysis because there's a number of reasons why ELA for example might not be where we want it to be. Uh but it might not be in the data that we collect. So we we you know talk about ST standards, frameworks, new curricula um but I think adaptive school um training uh the ability to Shane Saphir talks about map sat uh street and satellite level data. So we collect the satellite level data but how do we help leaders collect
046that street level data that tells like how excited are students to be at school? What are how challenged are they to be at school? How are we helping leaders use that level of data so that when we walk into every single classroom, we see kids that are engaged uh in project based learning and in things that are really rigorous and uh the required depth of complex in depth and complexity. So I think it's a conversation also about the data that we collect and how do we which part of the system collects which part kind of data to drive the change closest to the classroom that we want to see. And I this for me this just keeps getting me back to this the quality of that school review that that review process because you can
047get to a variety of kinds of data um and help people in the district uh as we heard from the Ventura superintendent yesterday uh look differently at what's going on in their own school. So it's obviously the the there's there's a threepart process that we're really envisioning. One is some form of identification which we're evolving. One is some form of diagnostic analysis to get to more of a root cause and then the third is whatever the support system needs to be. And I think that middle layer has been quite variable in our system. there has not always been um a way to look deeply and thoughtfully at the root cause. Not not that it doesn't happen, but it does not happen with regularity. And because people are in and out every year, there's not time
048for, you know, that kind of thoughtfulness. I remember Yes, Vice President Glover Woods, last word. Last word and I will be very quick and and uh thank you President Darling Hammond for what you said as far as the root cause analysis and it happening um in places maybe not um in in um a consistent way throughout the system which is where those reviews come in. But I do want to lift up I know as being part of a county office and a lot of the work that was done around improvement science that part of that DA support has been going to root cause analysis utilizing various tools to to do that. Um and I think what we're talking about I love that idea of more systemic review. I think um being able to have something
049in place that really makes it standard across the system can be very beneficial. Uh, but I just wanted to lift up again that it does happen and I know county offices have spent a lot of time in training as well as reaching out and working with their LEAs that are identified for differentiated assistance in that space. All right, with that we're going to move along to the next item. Thank you very much. And when we come back in May, we'll have more to say about uh about this and have some um conversation structured for us. Uh, now we're going to put up the public comment slide. Thank you. And we're going to take up waiver consent items W1 through W8. Uh, sorry. Are we all right over there? No, we're coming up to waiver items
050one through eight. Um, and we will open the phone line for public comment on waiver items one through eight. And we'll ask for in-person public comment. Those who want to call in, please use the phone number and the participant access code on the slide. Is there any public comment in the room? >> Apologies. Can you give us one minute? We are double checking. Okay. There is no public comment in the room. >> And is there any public comment on the phone? >> There are a few callers in the queue. And just as a reminder, this is public comment for waiverss 1 through 8. Um, caller ending in 5644, please state your name and affiliation for the record. You have one minute. Your time starts now. >> Good morning. Um, yes, my name is Peggy Ooa.
051I am a youth outreach worker for Santa Barbara Unified. Um, I'm calling in to urge the state board of education to deny the olive grove I'm sorry renewal petition. >> I'm sorry. Sorry. We're currently taking public comment for waiverss 1 through eight. Uh, that is item >> my mistake. >> That's fine. Please call back when we take that item. Thank you. >> Next caller ending in 4128. Please state your name and affiliation for the record. You have one minute. Your time starts now. probably also for the next item. >> Next caller ending in 8299. You may begin. >> Hi, my name is Michelle Edmond and my son uh Tanner is a 16-year-old student at Olive Grove Charter School. I'm calling professional >> taking public comment for waiverss 1 through eight. Please call back during the
052Olive Grove item. Thank you. Next caller ending in 9138, you may start your public comment. This concludes public comment for waiverss 1 through eight. >> They're much less interesting than the next item. All right. Uh given that there's no further public comment, I'd like to ask for a motion on waiverss one through eight to adopt the CDE recommendation. Do I have a motion? Uh, member Oaken and do I have a second? Vice President Glover Woods. Thank you. Oh, no. Member GK gets the second. Yeah. Um, with that we need to call the role. >> Member Otari. >> Yes. >> Member Rodriguez. >> I'll abstain. >> Member Phil Brownson. >> Yes. >> Member Rosco Gonzalez. >> Yes. >> Member Olen. >> Yes. >> Member Lewis. >> Yes. >> Vice President Clever Woods. >> Yes. >> Member
053Esco. Yes. >> Don Hammond. >> Yes. >> Member GK. >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> All right. Now we're moving on to item 14. Item 14 is a public hearing regarding the petition for the renewal of a charter school authorized by the California State Board of Education consideration of Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara. Uh the department recommends that we approve the charter schools renewal petition for a term of five years. Uh and the item will be and if we approve the renewal petition, we must in a separate motion designate either the district or the county as the chartering authority. The item will be presented by Rick Reyes. Rick, you may begin. >> Good morning, President Darling Hammond, Vice President Glover Woods, members of the board, and chief deputy superintendent and executive director Allen. Good to
054see you all again. Um, I am still Rick Reyes, director of the charter schools division at the CDE, here to present item 14 this time, the renewal petition for Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara, which is currently authorized by the SBE. Um, here's another slide of abbreviations and acronyms. Again, most of them you'll be familiar with and most of them were also in yesterday's presentation. This is a denovo review. Uh so we are looking at the petition and the program of the school, not reviewing the process the district went through um or their findings. And so today you have um not quite as much um potential decisions to make as yesterday, just either one or two. um you to approve or deny the charter schools renewal and then if approving designate the district or the county
055as the chartering authority. As a summary of the issue, in July 2018, the state board granted the petition to establish Olive Grove Charter School Santa Barbara. Um, this is a non-classroom based school and Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara is a is one of four Olive Grove charter schools in a network um in Santa Barbara County. It was approved for a 5-year term and then with pandemic related extensions that term was extended until this June um coming up in October of 2025. Olive Grove petitioned their local district Santa Barbara Unified for renewal and that renewal was denied by a vote of 3 to2 and subsequently the school submitted their appeal to the state board. The district denied the renewal, citing the following findings um under education code. That the charter school has failed to meet or
056make sufficient progress toward meeting standards that provide a benefit to pupils. That closure of the charter school is in the best interest of pupils and um that the district had given greater weight to academic performance. Our recommendation is that the board approve the charter school's renewal for a term of five years beginning July 1st, 2026 through July 30th, 2031. The dashboard data for the school places the charter school in the middle performance category for renewal. The school does have local assessment verified data that indicates students are making one year's progress for each year in school. And the local climate survey as part of the dashboard local indicators reflects a positive school experience for both students and parents. At the February ACCS meeting, the ACCS moved CDE's proposed recommendation and that passed with a vote of
0575 to one. Standard review is similar to yesterday's. It's denovo and we're looking at whether the petition and the program are consistent with sound educational practice and the interests of the community. Again, we have the three performance categories set out in statute. There's criteria laid out for meeting the uh being placed in the high category or the low category. Schools that don't meet either of those are then placed into the middle category. Um and that is where Olive Grove category. We do want to note that the charter school did qualify as a DOS school when it opened. Um and through the 2021 year and then after a small shift in the students population, they no longer hit the 70% threshold to qualify as a DOS school. For the performance categories, it's the same criteria that
058we went over yesterday, but again, Olive Grove does not meet either of those. And so, they are a middle category school. For middle category schools, we consider their performance on the dashboard state and local indicators both schoolwide and for student groups, and provide greater weight to academic performance. The board may deny renewal of a middle performing charter school if it finds all three of the following. Uh that the charter school failed to meet or make sufficient progress toward meeting standards that provide benefits to the pupils of the school. That closure of the charter school is in the best interest of pupils. And if applicable, that the SB's decision provided greater weight to performance on measures of academic performance. You'll see those mirror the district's findings. There is also statute also gives another um denial sim
059uh the same as what applied yesterday. However, it does require the 30-day notice to cure which has not been issued here. In reviewing this petition, we looked at the last three years of dashboard data and the school uh is pretty small. It was 74 students as of the census day of last school year. And so most of the indicators don't have a performance color. Uh mo they do have status numbers so we'll include those. And there's no data for the English learner progress indicators or growth indicators. So, you won't see those on here. Here we have the last three years of ELA and math um scores. These are the average scores, the average distance from standard. ELA on the top, math on the bottom, uh laid out next to the statewide average distance from standard.
060We do note that they are um lower than the statewide averages and both are decreasing for the last uh the last three years. Here's the college and career indicator numbers representing the percentage of students considered prepared for college or career. For science, we just have the two years of data here. the school's performing lower than the statewide average, a little closer than some of the other indicators we've looked at, and we do see a small climb coming into 2025. Here are the school's chronic absenteeism numbers. It is a K12 school, so these represent K8 um kindergarten through 8ighth grade chronic absenteeism for students who are absent for 10% or more of their days enrolled. for graduation rate in 2023, they did have a performance color. So, we do include that alongside um the percentages for
061the past three years. And because I did mention that that the school was previously DOSS, I will note that these are the the cohort graduation rates, not the one-year graduation rates that we might see if it were still a DOS school. Here are the school suspension rate numbers. to see that they have not suspended um students in the last three years. For their local indicators on the local climate survey, the school submitted their results from the California Healthy Kids survey. You'll see 69.3% of students responded that they have caring relationships with the from the adults in the school. 65.7% um feel connected to the school and 84.7% responded that teachers treat students fairly. With parent responses, you'll see the vast majority of parents believe the school has adults who really care about the students, that
062the school promotes parental involvement, and the school treats all students with respect. These were included in the narrative section of the local indicators. So, I do want to acknowledge that this is uh self-reported by the school. For a local growth assessment, the school uses STAR assessments by Renaissance Learning um which is um on the on what was the approved list of verified data sources approved by the board. The parts of statute related to verified data sunset on this past July or January 1st. So verified data is no longer required to be part of the board's consideration. Um we do include it in case you find it helpful and relevant. because three months ago it would have been required and you you did approve the list. So um here it is for your consideration but again
063it is no longer legally required to be part of your consideration. Star assessments uses student growth percentile to represent uh one year's growth or the students growth relative to that one year. It compares each individual student's growth to students in the same grade with similar achievement history on star assessments nationwide. According to Renaissance Learning Incorporated, the target growth to represent one year's typical growth is between 35 and 65 SGP. uh with greater than 65 representing more than one year's growth and less than 35 uh representing less. Here are the schoolwide numbers for 2425 for Olive Grove. You do want to uh the participation rate for this year was 78%. The schoolwide average SGP for reading was 62 and 47 for math which does fall in the range um for to be considered one year's growth
064and 71% of the students tested uh individual students tested met the growth target for reading and 59% of students in math. Right. Looking at specific grade levels, all 10 of the grade levels tested either met or exceeded the target in either reading or math. And five of the 10 grade levels met or exceeded the target in both. And looking at numerically significant student groups, four out of the five groups met or exceeded the target in reading. Um the there was one group that came close but didn't quite make it. And let's the petition did not include student group data u for math. We wanted to talk a little bit about their multi-tered systems of support. Um in part because we believe that is part of why the families are that have chosen this school why
065they have chosen this school and also acknowledging the low dashboard performance. We wanted to look at what is the school doing in order to address those outcomes. So for their universal supports for tier one, they are targeting specifically English and math uh for their instruction and they have expanded their in-person instruction. Um as a non-classroom based school, it's a hybrid model where there is um onampus um support and teaching going on in addition to remote or online learning. So they've expanded their inperson instruction including universal optional office hours and tutoring to address to address learning needs. They meet at least weekly with their teacher and administer benchmark assessments three times per year and they focus on developing communication lines with the parents early on when the student enrolls to address academic or behavioral concerns. In
066tier two, they convene an SST meeting and establish an eight-week intervention action plan um focusing on universal design for learning PR principles and setting up progress monitoring. A lot of those optional supports in tier one then become required for tier 2, uh including additional mandatory office hours and using I Ready for additional um intervention support. And then all of those teacher check-ins become more frequent. They develop organizational scaffolds for students, organizers, planners, and if applicable um connect students to uh the school counseling. If a student uh moves into tier three, they conven another SST meeting and develop a new 8week intensive action plan. It will require formal tutoring, daily attendance at their learning center, uh, and creation of an individual individualized work completion plan. And they begin requiring meetings with the teacher daily. And if
067applicable, initiate referrals to outside counseling or community support services looking to serve the whole child. Um they are providing additional resources and connecting with community resources targeting uh and prioritizing socioeconomically disadvantaged students. They partner with community organizations to provide counseling, health care, and other basic needs such as meals, internet, and transportation. and they have a dedicated family support liaison who connects with families with school and community resources. Looking at the school's fiscal sustainability, we looked at all the the same elements that you saw us review yesterday for Bayoint. Here are their enrollment projections through the 2030 31 school year. And we see those look reasonable with small uh projected increases in enrollment. Their current fiscal position based on their most recent audit report which received an unqualified status they had an end fund balance of
068a little over $214,000 which is 15% of their total expenditures. Their projected figures for this year based on their first interim report projects an ending fund balance of a little over $200,000 which is 14.07% of their total expenditures. And as a reminder, our recommends a minimum of 5%. So looking at all of those numbers and their multi-year projections which forecast operating surpluses and increase in reserves, we concluded that the school is fiscally sustainable. Again, uh same story as yesterday. Uh the school has been under the SBE's authority since 2018 when it opened with the CDE charter schools division conducting oversight on the board's behalf and the school has been in good standing throughout that time. There was one letter of concern issued in June 2021 regarding the charter school's EL plan which was not fully
069compliant. Uh the school responded with revisions aligning the plan to the California EL roadmap resolving CDE's concern and we've had no we have no outstanding concerns and so over the course of the term we've found the charter to be in compliance with its charter and theou between the board and the charter. The petition does include reasonably comprehensive descriptions of the 15 elements required by education code. So just a quick summary of our review. Uh the performance on the school dashboard places them in the middle performing category. And we note that the majority of the resorts on dashboard indicators are below statewide averages, some of them significantly below. The school's verified data does demonstrate one year's academic progress schoolwide and across most grade levels in mo in both reading and math. and the local climate survey
070reflects positive school experiences for both students and parents. Thinking back to the findings that would be required for denial, um in reviewing all of this data, we did not reach the conclusion that closure of the school would be in the best interest of pupils. And so in conclusion, uh the school meets the criteria under statute to be renewed. Um, and our review again did not indicate that closure of the charter school was in the best interest of pupils. And therefore, we recommend that the board approve the charter school's renewal petition for a term of 5 years beginning July 1st, 2026 and ending June 30th, 2031. We will be here if you have any questions for us and believe the school is ready to present next. >> Um, if we have clarifying questions, should we ask
071them now or um after the presentations? I'm just checking on appropriateness. Is it okay if we ask clarifying questions? You mentioned that the school had been a DAS school. Can you uh give us more information about the student body of the school and when the um transition from DOS to non-ds you know happened, etc. >> Um we actually don't have the data. The school didn't apply. they saw their own numbers weren't going to meet the 70% threshold. So we actually don't have the data from the year that they the first year that they >> were not a DOS school. But when did that transition happen then? >> In 2021. So they were DOSs in the 2020 2021 school year >> and I'm sure 202122 they didn't apply. So they didn't have DOSS status then. >>
072Thank you. Any other clarifying questions? Seeing none, thank you so much Rick. We appreciate it. I'm going to open the public hearing at this moment at 9:40 a.m. Uh we will hear first from the representatives for the petitioner Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara. They will have up to 10 minutes to make their presentation and then following that presentation, we will hear from the representatives of Santa Barbara Unified School District. Should they choose to make a presentation, they will have up to 10 minutes to make their presentation. After the presentation, we will open up the phone line for public comment from individuals who are not part of either presentation. Petitioners, you may begin. You have 10 minutes to present. >> Good morning, President Darling Hammond, members of the state board of education, CDE staff, and members
073of the public. I am Meg Ridman, and I serve as the superintendent for the Olive Grove charter schools. This is my colleague Lisa O'Shea who serves as the site director for Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara. Thank you for this opportunity to present to you information about our school in support of our charter renewal. >> Uh oh, we're having a crisis. Please stop the clock. Can you stop the clock for a second? There's >> on the way. Stop the clock. We use this. Oh, we go. There we go. Okay. Thank you. Crisis averted. Olive Grove has been serving students and families in Santa Barbara County for 25 years. Since 2018, Olive Grove has operated as a family of four schools, including Olive Grove Santa Barbara. established as such following the Shasta Anderson decision which required separate
074charters for all four of our learning center locations through an engaged and interactive process. The three other Olive Grove schools were successfully renewed this fall by their local districts each for a term five-year term. Each of our schools is distinct, but they share the same organizational principles, philosophy, and methodology. Our school is classified as middle performing by the CDE and importantly the CDE and ACCS both recommend approval of the renewal for a 5-year term. Olive Grove offers a highly interactive independent study program with wraparound support. We are a flexbased school serving students in TK through 12 utilizing a blended learning approach which includes includes online curriculum paired with in-person support. Our mission focuses on strong support systems, interactive curriculum, and helping students excel as excel as independent learners. Our core values are partnership, compassion, engagement,
075and empowerment. While each core value is important, partnership is a key component. The relationship between parents and guardians, students, credentialed teachers, and the support team is critical to what makes our model effective. Families choose Olive Grove for a multitude of reasons. We serve students whose needs may not be entirely met in a traditional school setting, including those with health or safety concerns, those with anxiety who are being bullied or have medical needs, families in transition who may be relocating or in transitional housing or pregnant and parenting. This also includes learners who require flexibility for personal, family, or professional goals such as to accommodate their work schedules, those who are caregivers or athletes and actors. We also serve learners who may be credit deficient or unable to make it to school for some period of time.
076Often these students wish to return to their home district but need something different for a period of time. We serve students through our hybrid model. Students engage in independent learning within meeting weekly with their advisor teacher. Our learning center is open daily for students. There are uh on-site science labs, classes, art and music workshops, plus field trips and other interactive experiences. Our A throughG approved curriculum is challenging and this year we have three new CTE pathways for our students. We have a hybrid EL program which meets twice weekly, once in person and once virtually combined with targeted independent practice at home. We are proud of our wraparound support systems. Our MTSS framework includes tier one through three interventions ranging from standard support to tutoring to intensive one-on-one counseling. We're a member of the El Dorado
077Charter SULPA uh and provide a full complement of special education services and supports and we offer comprehensive mental health support including access to our counselors. So let's turn now to look more closely at the numbers behind who we serve. This chart represents total census day enrollment for three school years. You'll see enrollment is rising. In 2526, census day enrollment was at 84 and it's continued to rise. As of last week, we were at 87 with 20 students on a wait list. When looking at enrollment by student group over three years, you can see that the percent of our socioeconomically disadvantaged and those of the percent of our students with disabilities has declined while our English learners have held steady. Looking at enrollment over by grades span over three years, you can see that we primarily
078support high school. In this slide, grades 9 to 10 and 11 and 12 are broken out so that you can see that typically 11th and 12th graders make up the majority of our population. In this current school year, 56% of our students are in 11th or 12th grade. Contiguous enrollment data is another key piece to understanding who we serve. The majority of our students are in their first year with us, averaging about 58% firstear students over the last three school years. It's important to note that last school year, a year where our CASP scores declined, 71% of our 11th graders were in their first year with us and our stability rate is quite low relative to our county. This indicates that our students have a high degree of transiency, often coming to the school specifically
079for the short term, where we may provide a safety net, aligning with that previous assertion that many of our students return to their district schools when they are ready. Here's a synopsis of the feedback from our annual survey data showing high levels of parent and guardian, student, and staff satisfaction regarding safety and support. Parents report strong school safety, positive communication, and valued partnership. Students appreciate the flexibility, the supportive teachers, and report feeling safe and accepted. Staff are collaborative. They feel valued and supportive. And 100% of our teachers are fully credentialed and appropriately assigned for independent study. We did include our verified data in our petition and we include mention of it here as the petition was submitted and considered by the district ahead of the sun setting date for its required use. These star renaissance
080results demonstrate that we meet the threshold for one year's academic progress for each year students are enrolled. It is important to clearly state that we do not engage in any kind of selective testing and we have improved our participation rates year-over-year. We actually switched from Renaissance to I Ready this school year for our benchmark assessments and I'm pleased to report that our overall winter participation rates show great progress. 93% of our students tested in reading and 94% in math. This slide shows the fall to winter growth for our first through 8th grade students. These percentages reflect those who have already met year-end typical and stretch goals. For high school students, we can look at their placement on the I Ready benchmark relative to grade level results to see progress. At a glance, you can see
081an increase in those blue sections from fall to winter in both reading and math. Our high mobility impacts metrics on the dashboard. With so many firstear enrollments, particularly in 11th grade, averages are a reflection of the level at which students arrive. often with serious credit deficiencies and academic gaps. And it's also important to note that while we underperform the state on many metrics, we actually outperform the district's alternative high school when looking at average distances from standards and CASP participation rates. We do have work to do when it comes to our dashboard account accountability measures and public facing metrics and we are addressing this through academic interventions and enhanced programming. This year our students took the interim CASP assessment in the fall and we've implemented strategic interventions in ELA and math based on the CASP
082performance task and we anticipate very positive results this year. Also, an analysis of de data demonstrates that sustained enrollment improves achievement. Students enrolled with us for two or more years show improved average distances from standard compared to our firstear students. And we see this in both ELA and in math. In conclusion, Olive Grove meets charter renewal criteria and renewal is certainly in the best interests of our students. Under the authorization of this board and working closely with the CDE since 2018, we've cultivated a positive, productive relationship. We are middle performing for three consecutive years. We are fiscally sound and our internal data shows a positive growth trajectory. Renewal ensures our Santa Barbara families keep a vital flexible education option and it protects personalized learning pathways that meet the critical needs of our students. On behalf
083of the Olive Grove School community, we thank the state board members for your time and consideration and we respectfully urge you to act upon the CDEs and ACCS's recommendation and vote to renew our charter. Thank you. We leave you with a few quotations from our 2026 graduate survey. >> Thank you to read those. Will we hear from uh representatives of the Santa Barbara Unified District? There they are. Okay, perfect. >> Okay, great. Thank you. >> Okay, welcome. You have 10 minutes to present. >> Thank you. Um, my name is Steve Vens. I am the chief operations officer for Santa Barbara Unified School District and, uh, good morning, President Darling Hammond, and board members, and of course the public. Um, I'm here to represent the community regarding our decision to not renew uh the charter school.
084Uh, I want to bring up three specific key topics that, uh, we want to address with you in particular. Of course, the first one does have to do with the the uh data dashboard that you see with the ELA and math, how it was um decreasing over time. But the point that we want to focus on in particular is the verified data that came from STAR. Uh what you'll notice that was provided from the report from CDE are the all the categories where students either met or were not tested or exceeded in the the topics as well as the you'll notice with the next slide with just in reading they identified uh the various student groups that exceeded met or not exceeded. What we want to point out particular is something that was brought up
085by the state board in partic uh regarding actually use of verified data. It has to do with the participation rate. You'll notice in particular that the participation rate for 23 24 school year was just above 40% and then you're looking at the participation rate at um almost 80% the following year 2425. So that was the first key point that we wanted to bring up in terms of looking and using verified data to measure the success of the school and going back to why we went back to using the California dashboard data because we did check through the ESPback system and we saw that they were they did meet that 95% threshold of participation. The second thing is that they are identified as a middle performing charter school and the concern that we had was and
086what made it problematic for us as a charter renewal is that um they're re they're meeting that standard based upon there are no color indicators for those key um parts of the dashboard. So that automatically makes them a middle charter or middle performing charter school. And we find that problematic and maybe that's not just with us probably other school districts as well. And I appreciated the um the differentiated assistant conversation that you're having regarding like how to drill down to best help our schools and school districts. So thank you for that. Continue to work on that. Along with that is just to identify that we have within our school district we have four charter schools. We renewed three of them within the past two years. And by the way, we're a basic aid or now
087it's community funded school district. So just to let you know um that's where our school district stands in terms of finances. Uh we just refor um we just sorry we renewed Peabody Charter uh elementary. They're a middle school uh or not middle but middle performing school as you could see as their performance standards and again they show like they have 800 students. So that you can actually see with their color performance uh indicator where they stand. The last thing I wanted to point out, the third thing again also ties to another charter school that we just renewed, uh, high performing charter school, and their school is set up similar to it's actually a hybrid. You'll see that they have a school that has students attending. They're uh TK8. They have school, they have those students
088who are attending and they also have that distance learning model. So, it's separated into two components. So, if we end up do or if you end up um not renewing their charter, students who are doing that distance learning and needing that component, they could actually go to or they could sign up for Santa Barbara charter. Um and again, we just renewed their charter this year. So, those are the three elements we wanted to talk about the verified data. we wanted to bring up in terms of like the like middle performing charter school identification and then we also wanted to point out where they can go as an alternative location. Um and with that being said again we request that you affirm the denial. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh at this point we'll open the
089phone line for public comment. Uh public comment is limited to one minute and is for people who are not part of either presentation. Members of the public wishing to provide comment may do so by calling the telephone number and using the access code provided on the slide that is now shown. Um we encourage you to please state your name and affiliation for the record. Uh are there any speakers signed up to provide public comment in person? There are six speakers signed up for in-person public comment. Will the following please line up at the microphone in the back? Bridget Bobitz, Iette Martinez, Steven Seaffort, Nicholas Watson, Angela Steagle, and Cassie Manchini. You have one minute. I don't think this it's not on. We start. Good morning. Bridget Bobitz with the Santa Barbara County Education Office. We
090believe it would best serve Olive Grove Santa Barbara students for Santa Barbara Unified to serve as the authorizer for three reasons. First, they serve the same students in the same geographic area. Beginning this July, three other Santa Barbara County districts will authorize Olive Grove schools and are developing to strengthen coordination and collaboration for students. We believe the same opportunity exists here. Second, authorizing the charter would give the district direct oversight, something it has not had while the state board served as authorizer. A five-year term could help both organizations build a stronger working relationship that benefits students. Third, as a basic aid district, SB Unified will transfer inloo property tax revenues for charter students regardless of the authorizer. So serving in that role reinforces local accountability. We recognize the strong student- centered leadership at both Olive
091Grove and SB Unified and see an opportunity for them to build a mutually beneficial partnership. >> Good morning, ladies and gentlemen of the board. My name is Evette Martinez and I'm a board member at Olive Grove, but primarily and most importantly, I'm a parent to a 10th grade student. I'm not here to talk about data or test scores or academics. I'm here to talk to you about how Olive Grove makes my son feel. When I asked my son how Olive Grove makes him feel, he said, "Supported, welcomed, and safe." Three years ago, I made the best decision to enroll my son at Olive Grove Charter School. If Olive Grove were to be shut down, you wouldn't be shutting down a school. you'd be shutting down a community and you'd be shutting down a space that
092makes my son feel safe. I'm here to advocate for Olive Grove to continue to exist so that my son and other students can continue to thrive and grow. All I want as a parent is for my child to feel safe and supported supported and Olive Grove Charter School gives him that. Thank you. >> Good morning. My name is Steven Ciphert and I'm a teacher and adviser at Olive Grove Charter School. Couple things I would like you to consider is that all of our teachers and adviserss are California credential teachers with many years of experience. Uh we are accredited. Um and despite being independent study students are not left to their own uh devices. Uh we provide required weekly check-ins with California credentialed teachers and adviserss. Probably my favorite part is developing that one-on-one relationship with
093all the students that I have. Uh we have certificated guidance counselors. We have California credentialed and experienced special education teachers. Uh we have amazing full-time tutors at every center that can help one-on-one with um all subjects. And I'll just leave it at that. Thanks for your time. >> Good morning, President Darling Hammond and members of the board. I'm Nicholas Watson speaking on behalf of the California Charter Schools Association. We support the renewal of Olive Grove charter with the designation of Santa Barbara County as the chartering authority. Olive Grove is a middle performing charter school that has met all the standards required for renewal. Olive Grove enrolls students that are frequently behind when they arrive um but achieve real growth uh as long as they stay with the school. It's also important to note that Olive
094Grove is significantly outperforming the district school these students would otherwise attend. Uh we ask that you vote in favor of renewal for Olive Grove Charter School. Thank you. >> Angela Steagel, classroom teacher representing the California Teachers Association. CTA has significant concerns with this renewal and urges the SBE to deny renewal. This is not a recommendation we take lightly. Ed code requires the authorizer to provide weight to performance on measurements of academic performance and determining whether to grant a charter renewal. However, the staff report gives greater weight to the local climate survey into invalid alternative data. In 2025, the charter school had a roughly 4% proficiency in math on the CASP and only 13.3% of students were considered college or career ready. Over the last three years, they have been below the statewide graduation rate. Only
095reason they were not treated as low performing egg code was due to low enrollment. Additionally, the participation rate for the two years presented falls far short of the required 95% participation and it is unclear whether these disqualifying rates were able to be validated. It is also unclear why these data points were considered to demonstrate academic growth when they do not meet the criteria set forth by this body. Thank you. >> Good morning. Cassie Mancini here on behalf of the California School Employees Association. CSEA2 respectfully urges the SB to deny the Olive Grove charter renewal. By every dashboard metric, this school is failing its students. Over the past three years, while the state made gains in student outcomes on ELA and math assessments and in graduation grades, Olive Grove fell further behind. Like CTA, CSEA would
096also appreciate some discussion today as to why the STAR assessment data was presented in this item when the data does not meet the SBE's thresholds um to be considered ver verified data. We would also question which students were excluded from the STAR assessments and what issues their exclusion is masking. Students at Olive Grove would fare far better better at other non-classroom based programs serving Santa Barbara County. Thank you. >> This concludes public comment in the room. Thank you. Um caller ending in 6254, please state your name and affiliation for the record. You have one minute. Your time starts now. Hi, my name is Doris McI and I've had two children who have attended Olive Grove. Currently, I have a high schooler who is absolutely flourishing academically, socially, and emotionally. I really feel like this has
097everything to do with Olive Grove and its many attributes. I do want to mention that um and an alternative that was just mentioned, Santa Barbara Charter School as an alternative uh school has a weight list and a lottery system. I know this because my children previously attended there. It's very difficult to get a spot. So, I I don't see that as a real viable alternative. In any event, both of my children have absolutely thrived at Olive Grove academically, socially, and emotionally. I am calling to express my full support of renewing the charter. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 9432, you may start your public comment. >> Hello. Uh my name is Greg McY and I'll just finish the sentence that uh the previous caller started that uh Santa Barbara Charter School does
098not have a high school. Anyhow, my call goes uh I'm calling in support of Olive Grove Santa Barbara petition for renewal. I have an 11th grader at the school and he's been able to pursue his passions for mountain biking, endurance riding, and bike packing while meeting all academic high school requirements. In addition, he's been able to work 16 hours per week at a bike shop where he has honed his skills as a bike mechanic to the point where he is a trusted and often sought out resource for the Santa Barbara Mike Club for bike troubleshooting and repairs. My child would not have been able to pursue and excel at these outside of school endeavors if he had if he attended any other high school in Santa Barbara. My child will graduate from high school this
099year, one year early. I strongly feel that Olive Grove should remain an option for students in the future in our community with strong passion. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 6615. Please begin. >> Good morning members of the California State Board of Education. My name is Alexandra Woodf and I'm speaking today as a proud parent in support of charter renewal for Olive Grove charter school. In addition to being a parent, I'm actively serve our community as president for the teen center, a a park commissioner for Santa Barbara County third district, a board member for the theater and path to achievement. I also serve as a chair for the youth force pipeline in Santa Barbara County. Because of Olive Group, I have personally seen what my daughter has been able to accomplish. She has the
100opportunity to participate in internships starting at the age of 14 and is on track to finish high school a year early and has become an active me member of our community advocating for issues that matter to her peers. She is also also currently under review for admission to UCSB for the summer program. We should also remember that olive growth is not just serving individual students. It's providing a critical education option for families across Santa Barbara County. The school meets where they're they are the students are nurtures their growth and empowers them to succeed academically in their communities as much as everyone else has mentioned other schools. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 3484. Please begin. >> Hi, my name is Carson Sanchez. I'm a student at Olive Grove Charter School and I urge you
101to approve the charter renewal request because in my personal experience with Olive Grove. I would say that it was one of the best schools I've been due I've been to due to the fact that it has guitar lessons and the good art lessons. My favorite thing is the Inerson labs personally um which for me are super useful so I can one learn about whatever they're teaching. Like for example, this last one was about lizard evolution or how to use math percent um to figure out populations and also just help me socialize with other students that come to Oliver charter school. But I'll be honest, I am so much more happier here than I was at regular high school because I there, I'll be honest, I had a 1.0 GPA, but now here I actually have
102a 3.2 um two GPA. Um, that's all I have. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 7042. Please begin. >> Good morning. My name is Leah Lepen and I am teaching and support teaching and learning support coordinator for Olive Grove charter schools as well as a secondary science teacher. I've been working for Olive Grove for eight years and have witnessed countless students get their academics and mental health back on track by enrolling in our program. The story closest to my own heart is my son. He's 13 years old and in seventh grade. Last year in the classroom, he was really struggling with distracting behaviors and task avoidance and unsurprisingly showing little academic progress. This year, he has shown dramatic improvement in his ability to learn and mature in a less chaotic environment. By lowering the
103volume of school life and being surrounded by caring and supporting teachers and administrators, he's now demonstrating his true potential in ways that are unique for his situation, but to me also feel very familiar. This is the growth our staff has the privilege of seeing in our students every day. As an Olive Growth teacher, a member of school leadership, and as a parent, I hope Olive Grove Santa Barbara will continue to be an option for students and families in the years to come and appreciate your consideration and support. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 8299, please begin. >> Good morning. My name is Michelle Ebban and my 16-year-old son is a junior in his third year with Olive Grove Charter School. I strongly support the renewal of this charter school. Tanner is a
104paid professional polo player and Olive Grove's flexibility has been essential to his success. Olive Groves Grove allows him to balance academics with a demanding international training and competition schedule. Each year he spends September to December training in Argentina. January to April playing on a high gold team at the Elorado Polo Club in India, California and April to September playing at the Santa Barbara Polo Club. He competes in tournaments in Colombia, Chile, Argent, and Argentina with the best youth players in the world. He now speaks fluent Spanish and continues to thrive academically while representing the United States as one of the country's top youth polo players. The support and guidance from all of Grove's staff have been exceptional and have allowed my son the opportunity to pursue its professional polo goals. The school is a true
105asset to the Santa Barbara community. Thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 6910, please begin. >> Hello, my name is Ray McI. I am calling in support of the renewal for the Olive Grove Charter School. I am a junior at Olive Grove charter right now. This is my second year at Olive Grove. My time here has been very helpful for both my learning and overall well-being. Olive Grove allows me to have a flexible schedule. Because I am an athlete and work part-time, this flexibility makes it much easier for me to manage my day-to-day life. Olive Grove also allows me to work at my own pace, which is something I struggled with heavily in a traditional school setting. The teachers at Olive Grove are great. Whenever I need help
106with an assignment, I can email them and receive a quick response or I can meet in person one- on-one for any help I need on assignments. The academic support that Olive Grove offers is very impressive and helps students succeed and reach their full potential. Olive Grove is a very important place for the Santa Barbara community. Please renew the Olive Grove charter. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 8945. Please begin. >> This is Suzanne Kulie from the Charter Schools Development Center. Good morning. We support the staff recommendation to renew the charter. Regarding verified data, just a reminder that the state board adopted verified data criteria give flexibility on the 95% participation rate. If there is evidence that selection bias has not occurred, in other words, if the participation rate issues are not due
107to excluding select students. So, I think the school spoke to that. Um, dashboard academic indicators are much less relevant at a school like this, a former DAP school. Um, mostly serving students for a shorter term and with more diverse needs than at typical schools. The students just often aren't entering into those academic metrics. Um, in the same way, a lot of their baselines due to where they were before, whatever. Um, regarding best interest of students, the school has a weight list and builds an important community need. And I think um kind of giving those students that range of choices is as a public good that should be valued. Thank you so much. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 0624. Please begin. >> Good morning ladies and gentlemen. My name is Evelyn Ruiz. I would
108like to advocate the significant impact and support Olive Group offers to our community of students and parents. The one-on-one educational and emotional success supports is nothing to be compared to the Santa Barbara Unified District and class inter instructions. In educational terms, some students learn inside a big school environment. Others do not. That is the case of my son Pablo who is a fifth grader and needs the one-on-one support inside the learning center for special education intervention intervention three times a week along with occupational therapy tutoring and guitar lessons. My daughter Mia, an eighth grader, receives ELD and T and tutoring in person two times a week. Please take in consideration our community of students at Olive Grove for renewal. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 0010. Please begin. >> Good morning members
109of the board. My name is Christy Clay and I'm a special education teacher at Alro Charter School Santa Barbara. I am calling today because I would like to advocate for our students in special education. They come to us as a transition period. They come to us to stay until graduation and every step in between. Oliver is more than a school for these students and their families. It is more like a safe space, a sanctuary. I've worked with many students who have come to us from other places, other schools for a variety of reasons. Some are social anxiety, some are for bullying, some just needed a smaller space and we were able to give that to them. These students are bright. They are capable. And they just want to be somewhere where they feel safe, supported,
110and where they can get their academic and sometimes their social, emotional needs met. Sometimes they come to us completely shut down. They come to us because they were nervous to be in these large environments. They wouldn't go to school because it was too much for a variety of reasons. >> But here at Olive Grove, I've watched these same students transform and be wonderful. Thank you. Next caller ending in 8767. Please begin. >> Good morning. My name is David Ziban. I am the director of special education at all four learning centers at Olive Grove charter schools. Um our program serves a diverse population of students with disabilities including autism, specific learning disability, other health impairment, speech and language impairment, and emotional disturbance. uh many of the students who come to us have struggled both academically and
111socially in traditional school settings. We no longer live in a world where the traditional method of teaching is effective, where one teacher gives direct instruction to a room of 30 students. What truly sets our program apart is our ability to implement each student's IEP in the way it was generally intended with consistency, with integrity, and this personalized approach that meets the students where they are academically. Our flexible model allows for this kind of tailed support that students with disabilities often need to thrive. Our education specialists are highly qualified and credential and passionate about ensuring that every student receives the support they deserve. We thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 6428, please begin. >> Good morning. My name is Axen Palasios and I am the director of enrollment
112at Olive Grove. Prior to being at Olive Grove, I worked in the guidance department at a local high school for 10 years. I worked closely with students whose academic, social, and personal needs were not fully met in a traditional classroom setting. Students learn differently, and many thrive when given flexibility, individualized pacing, and personalized support. At Olive Grove Charter School, students are supported at every stage and empowered to take ownership of their education. For many students, this kind of learning environment is essential to staying on track to graduate and moving forward in life with confidence. For these reasons, I strongly support the renewal of Olive Grove Charter School. Its continued operation ensures that students in our community have access to educational options that recognize and supports diverse learning needs. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller
113ending in 3609, please begin. >> Good morning, state board members. Jeff Rice, founder >> dropped. Next caller ending in 8902. Please begin. >> My name is Soa, enomen and record specialist at Olive Grove Charter School. I'm calling in official support for the renewal of Olive Grove. Renewing renewing its charter will allow the school to continue supporting families and students in our community who benefit from this flexible and supportive approach to education. Thank you. Thank you. Next caller ending in 9977, you may begin. >> Hello, my name is Jacob Hall and I'm calling in support of All of Grove's charter renewal. All of Grove provides a safe and supportive learning environment for students who are unable to find success in traditional schools. This work is important. This work matters. This work should continue. I urge the
114board to approve all of Broo's petition for renewal so our Santa Barbara Learning Center may continue to serve the students and families in our community. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 9435. Please begin. >> Hello, my name is Eva Worth, director at the Santa Maria campus. I am calling to support for you to support and renew our charter. At the heart of Olive Grove are our weekly one-on-one meetings between every student and their teacher. Every child feels seen, supported, and on track. These relationships allow us to build personalized schedules to help each child meet their individual goals. Olive Grove helps students graduate early, balance real life responsibilities, cross the finish line when other paths couldn't get them there, including students that are fifth and sixth year graduates, which are not included in
115our graduation rate. Please vote yes to renew our charter. These kids deserve a school built for them. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 8408, please begin. Hello, my name is Allison Cherro and I'm a teacher at Olive Grove Charter School, Santa Barbara. Our school is a great asset to the community because together with our surrounding districts, we help students find their best academic success. We often have students come to us because something in the traditional setting is not working. We create a safe space. We build them up and then they either decide to stay with us at Olive Grove or go back to the traditional setting. We are an essential option for so many students. I urge you to approve the renewal of Olive Grove Charter Santa Barbara. Thank you. >> Thank
116you. Next caller ending in 7598. Please begin your public comment. >> Good morning. My name is Mickey Gakkine and I'm an academic adviser at Olive Grove Charter School. Every day I work with students who need a different kind of learning environment and Olive Grove provides an opportunity for students who might otherwise disengage from school or even drop out. One of my students recently shared, "Olive Grove gave me a second chance to actually enjoy learning and finish school. I strongly support the renewal of Olive Grove Charter School to offer this important option for students and family. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 7486, please begin. >> Hello, my name is Curtis Swizo and I'm the EOD coordinator for Olive Grove Charter Schools. I'm calling in support of the charter renewal for Olive Grove
117Santa Barbara. It seems that the Santa Barbara School District misunderstood our designated ELD program. Their review claimed that we only use Lexia reading intervention as our EOD program. In reality, Lexi is one of a component of a broader 5day a week curriculum that tests skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. My team and I provide a grade level designated ELD program that is asset oriented and responsive to the individual needs of our students. Over the past four years, the designated ELD program has consistently improved our curriculum and processes. This last year, one-third of our EEL students qualified for the reclassification. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 1117. You may begin. >> Hello, my name is Lena Ramos. I'm in 11th grade at Olive Grove Charter in Santa Barbara. Olive Grove means a
118lot to me because it was the first school that allowed me to work at my pace and my understanding and take as much time as I needed which I was never able to receive at any public school. I also suffer from a lot of physical illnesses which make it hard for me to participate in school or even just get up in the morning to go which the at home service means very much to me and I'm able to work whenever I can and it allows me to go to doctor's appointments without interrupting school or losing any valuable learning time. My brother also went to Olive Grove before me and it greatly helped him with his social anxiety. All of means a lot to me and it's one of the first schools that actually made me
119enjoy learning. Happy to go and happy to open my computer and learn the lesson. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 7740. You may begin. >> Hello, my name is Sophia Gonz. I am a 12th grade student at Olive Grove and I want to say that I love Olive Grove and I have met many of my friends and amazing and welcoming teachers. I have had many learning opportunities and extracurricular like art and guitar. I always feel seen and heard and safe here. And because of them, because of the flexibility this school gives me, I was able to care for my elderly hospice dog who unfortunately passed away last year in his last moment. So I thank them for that flexibility and I want to ask you to please consider us for renewal. Thank
120you. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 2700, please begin. Good morning. My name is S Moz and I'm in 11th grade at Olive Girl Charter School. I'm writing in support of the renewal of our school. Olive Girl has helped me a lot academically and created a safe place for me to ask questions where I feel heard along with being able to communicate one-on-one. The staff and advisers have supported me a lot and are quick to answer any questions I have and making learning fun. I enjoy attending the Inerson art class and I have made friends along with the inerson science class. I have been able to take cosmetology class where I learn about the field. The English learning development classes have helped me improve my English. Olive Grove is a supportive community where students
121feel welcome and encouraged to succeed. I respectfully ask that you support the renewal of Olive Grove Charter School. Thank >> you. Next caller ending in 6254, please begin. Next caller ending in 0271, please begin. >> Good morning. My name is Kristen Morrison. I am the director of the Olive Grove charter school learning center in LMPoke and I'm here today to speak in strong support of the charter renewal for Olive Grove charter Santa Barbara. I have had the privilege of being a part of this incredible school community for the past 20 years. I am deeply proud of the work we do. I would not have devoted a large portion of my career to this organization if I thought we weren't working that we weren't making a difference one student, one family at a time. Olive Grove
122is not just another school option. It is the place where the child feels safe, seen, supported, and able to succeed. I have been witness to many aha moments. I I have watched students who struggled in traditional classrooms discover self-confidence, develop a love of learning, and achieve goals they once thought were out of reach. I'm incredibly proud of the work I have done for the last two good decades here at Olive Grove and to see the lasting impact it continues to have on our students throughout our community. >> We thankfully ask that you support renewal. >> Thank you. Next caller ending in 3609. Please start your public comment. >> Good morning state board members. Jeff Rice, founder and director of A+, representing a total of 119 flex-based personalized learning public schools, serving more than 128,000 students
123in California, calling in strong support of Olive Grove's charter renewal appeal. Olive Grove Charter School is a longtime member in good standing with A+ and I can personally attest to their strong commitment to integrity, accountability, academic progress, and compliance. We appreciate the CDE's analysis and recommendation that verifies that Olive Grove meets the requirements for a five-year middle track renewal based on its verified data results and its positive history under SBE oversight, particularly given the school's small enrollment size and high mobility and transitory nature of a majority of its high school student population. I respectfully request that you support the recommendations of of both the CDE and the ACCS and approve Olive Grove Charter School's renewal. Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you. Next caller ending in 5982, you may begin. >> Good morning.
124This is Susan Sullivan. I'm one of the special education teachers at all of Grove Charter School and I'm calling in support of renewing all of Grove Charter School. I've watched students who once felt disconnected from school begin to rebuild confidence, re-engage with learning, and make real progress towards their goals. That happens because of the individualized support, strong teacher student relationships, and the unique model Algo provides. Many of the students I serve struggle with significant mental health challenges that make attending a traditional in-person school setting extremely difficult and sometimes impossible. Also provides them with a flexible, supportive environment where they can continue their education while focusing on their well-being. For many of my students, the school is not just an alternative. It's the only place where they feel safe, supported, and able to succeed. I respectfully
125urge you to renew Olive Grove so that these students have this option continue to have access to it. Thank you. Thank you. Next caller ending in 9138. You may begin. >> Hello, my name is Mia Losano. I'm an eighth grader at Olive Grow. I wanted to speak about the 101 support I get from teachers, tutors, and all the environments at Olive Grow. I feel safe and I have time to learn on my own speed. I am inspired to continue my education. Thank you so much. Thank you callers. This concludes public comment for item number 14. >> Thank you very much. Uh given that there's no other public comment, I hereby close the public hearing at 10:29 a.m. and we'll now begin board discussion. I want to note that we will lose two of our members
126at 11:00 uh who have to leave. So I want to be sure that we move expeditiously so we could get to a vote before then. Um, I want to ask our liaison, Vice President Glover Woods and member Oaken if they'd like to make some initial comments. >> Thank you. Thank you very much. And thank you to all of the callers and all of the presenters. Uh, board, I just lift up a couple of points for consideration as we uh make a decision on related to this item. Um one again just to re um reiterate that CDE's denovo review has resulted in the school being designated in the middle performing category and also the department has indicated that the school has been in good standing during the years um oversight has been provided by CDE on
127behalf of the state board. Um I also um want to lift up the um the information that we've received as it relates to the data. Um and um one point that I want to just kind of pull out from the documentation we had within our item is that uh when we look at a comparison data between Olive Grove Santa Barbara and uh the district's independent study program which we didn't see uh any data from in the presentations I believe it's Alta Vista the comparison data shows that Olive Grove Santa Barbara students are performing higher than students that are um enrolled at that particular district school where um some are assuming they would be enrolled should this school not uh renewal not happen. Um the last point I would make is that if our board should
128decide not to renew the charter, we do need to provide um written findings as to why closure of the school would be in the best interest of the pupils. So, um, again, just keeping both of those points in mind. Um, and may may I make one more point related to the authorizer or should I hold on that? President Darling Hammond, >> feel free. >> Okay. uh if the board should decide to renew the charter and uh a decision needs to be made related to the authorizer. I know we've heard from uh Santa Barbara County Office of Education affirming that u they felt the relationship uh the authorizing relationship should be with the district. However, the county office hasn't indicated that they're unable to provide oversight for the charter. And I think that's important to keep
129in mind as well. We typically uh past practice has been to uh be in consultation with the petitioner regarding who the authorizer would be and the petitioners indicated they would like uh Santa Barbara County Office of Education. Thank you, >> member Olen. >> Thank you. Um first, thanks for the presentations. Um it was it's always uplifting to hear students and families and staff members who love their school so much. um and who can happily um articulate the difference that the school has made for them. Um I just um just a couple of notes in um to follow up on Cynthia. Um we've heard just want to reiterate that Olive Grove serves a unique student population. And so students who are in and out of school, students who need flexibility, um students who benefit from a
130personalized approach with extra supports. Um just two specific details about their student population that stand out to me. Um one is that more than half of their students are in their first year at Olive Grove and two that more than half of their students are in 11th or 12th grade. Um, as we know at the high school level, um, CASP testing is only in 11th grade and it's intended to be a cumulative test. And so, um, for students who are, uh, have not been enrolled, uh, for more than a year at Olive Grove, um, I think it's I appreciate that we have other measures to look at to understand the impact that Olive Grove is having on the students. Um, just also wanted to reiterate that both CDE and the Advisory Committee on Charter Schools
131recommend renewal of this school because it meets the statutoily I think that's the way you say that determined requirements for renewal. Um, and because they determined that renewal is in the best interest of the students. Um, clearly the students and families agree with this. Um, we heard this really loud and clear in public comment. Um, and that's all I have for now. Thank you. I look forward to our discussion. All right. Uh, opening the floor for discussion. I can also take a motion. Yes, member GK. >> Yes. I just wanted to uplift um all the students who made a public um public comment testifying about not how not only their academics but their well-being improved um due to being able to attend this school that generally met their needs. And I know that there was
132a presentation that mentioned of um an alternative school um Peabody charter school that the students would go to. But I worry I think other public commenters also pointed out that um especially considering that OCGS is more than 50% of their students are juniors and seniors that they wouldn't be able to actually attend that school because their grade levels is not within that. Um, and you know, especially considering um, as someone mentioned that it's a former Dash school, I think that should also be taken into consideration when looking at their dashboard results. >> Thank you. Yes, there was a also comment that there was a waiting list at both the uh, alternative charter school and at this school. So, there's clearly a felt need for um, the individualized supports. Do I have a motion to um
133Yes, Vice President Glover Woods, >> I move that we approve the Olive Grove Santa Barbara renewal petition with any technical amendments that uh we may have outlined in the item for a term of five years. Uh and that would begin July 1, through June 30, 2031. >> Thank you. Uh second Member GK. Thank you. Let's do a roll call. >> Member Yoshima Mottowi. >> Yes. >> Member Rodriguez, >> yes. >> Member Patil Bronson, >> yes. >> Member Rosco Gonzalez, >> no. >> Member Ulen, >> yes. >> Member Lewis, >> yes. >> Vice President Glover Woods, >> yes. >> Member Esco, >> yes. >> President Darl, >> yes. Member GK. >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> Okay. And now we do need to take up another motion to designate either the district or the county as
134the charter school chartering authority. Do I have a motion on that? Vice President Glover Woods. >> I move uh to designate Santa Barbara Board of Education as the chartering authority for Olive Grove Santa Barbara. >> Second. Yeah, let's get the word county in that motion. >> I'll restate. I move to designate Santa Barbara County Board of Education to serve as the chartering authority for all of Gro Santa Barbara. >> Second. Somebody said second. >> Okay. >> Member from >> Thank you. >> Member from Otari. >> Yes. >> Member Rodriguez. >> Yes. >> Member Patilla Brownson. >> Yes. >> Member Rosco Gonzalez. Yes, >> member Olen. >> Yes, >> member Lewis. >> Yes, >> Vice President Glover Woods. >> Yes, >> member Esco. >> Yes, >> President Darling Hammond. >> Yes, >> member GK. Me. >>
135Motion carries. >> All right. Thank you very much. Um, congratulations to the school members and we will take a 15minute break at this time and reconvene at oh I have to do higher level math 1053. Say 1055 and like really live it up here. All right. Uh we are reopening item one to take action on the preliminary report of actions draft January 2026 meeting minutes and to report on our liaison assignments. Um, first we're going to take action on the preliminary report of actions and minutes for the January 2026 meeting. Are there any speakers signed up to provide public comment in person? >> There is no public comment in the room. >> I think we need to. Yes, we have the phone line open. If there is any public comment on the phone, please use
136the phone number and dial the access code shown here. Yes, you're giving me a sign something's happening. >> Okay, she's on. >> There are no callers in the queue. >> And there are no callers in the queue. Um, so with that, I'm going to ask if I have a motion to adopt the meeting minutes. Yes, member Rodriguez. >> I move to >> All right. Is there a second? >> Thank you, Member Lewis. Uh, Brooks, could you call the role? >> Member Yoshima, >> yes. >> Member Rodriguez, >> yes. >> Member Tilla Bronson, >> yes. >> Member Rosco Gonzalez, >> yes. >> Member Olen, >> yes. >> Member Lewis, >> yes. >> Vice President Glover Woods, >> yes. >> President Darling Hammond, >> yes. >> Member GK, >> yes. >> Motion carries. >> Thank you. Um,
137now we're going to invite uh state board members to report on on their liaison activities that are not related to any items on our March agenda. Uh, and I'm going to call on uh, Vice President Glover Wards first because she has to leave us a little bit early and then we'll move through the rest of the list. >> Thank you, President Darlingham. And I have two reports that I will share with you. One is from the CCE and the other will be from the IQC. Um, as it relates to the CCE, just wanted the board to know that the governing board of CCE met in February and we had a a very uh robust conversation related to direct technical assistance and the various dilemmas associated with providing support from multiple agencies as they support um
138eleas. So, it was a great dovetail uh with what we had our conversation about today. Also, the CCE advisory council that is composed of 22 superintendent across the state met on February 27th to to the to discuss the secondary redesign pilot and identified additional challenges for local districts who are attempting to redesign and have a strong desire to redesign their secondary experience. Um and lastly related to CCE just wanted to let you know that there will be an open door learning session hosted related to the ecosystem of care toolkit and that will take place uh well it has taken place. So um that took place and that concludes my report for CCE. Moving on to the IQC. The IQC uh had its first meeting in January and it was a two-day meeting. The first day
139consisted of the annual orientation where uh CD staff uh again just did a phenomenal job. Uh Dr. Torres and his Seaffort staff and others just did a phenomenal job engaging the commissioners on a variety of activities. The second day consisted of various business items including the swearing in of the three new commissioners that we appointed in November and they also conducted their annual elections for uh executive committee chairs and vice chairs. So, there will not be an IQC meeting in March, but the commissioners do plan to do a whole lot because, as you know, the ELD instructional materials follow-up adoption process has begun. And the first big task will be that all of the facilitators will be in uh Sacramento in April for their instructional materials reviewer training. And uh I will provide you additional
140information in May. So, thank you very much though. That concludes both reports. Thank you very much. Uh I'm going to move to member Yoshi Otari. >> Thank you. Um I'll be reporting on three of my four less on duty since we've already mentioned that it's civic education week. I'm not going to report on that. Uh first community schools. Uh I just wanted to share that the there's been the webinar series the coherence and sustainability webinar series that's been phenomenal. uh the CDE and the state tech transformational assistance center has been working with partners to braid and blend uh funding sources to sh help all of the schools and the grantees in the district uh understand how to have a a long-term look at how community schools could continue to support our schools. Um there there
141are calls for proposals now for the annual summit open. So please check out the ESTAC website if you're interested in submitting a proposal for to talk about capacity building strategies and what that looks like. The entire community school effort has been a a really positive example of how state community uh county offices and eleas are working together to build capacity together in a coordinated fashion. Uh secondly for our special education our ad advisory commission um I just wanted to share one that we had the idea celebration of the 50th 50 years of IDA at the last meeting and there were um fantastic talks and stories shared about their experiences and just to remember at this time that that law opened the door to opportunity for millions of students uh and transformed med educational experiences for
142families uh in this country um being told from their child could not attend school to being able to sit at the table to discuss to have an IEP uh with a voice and a plan. So thank you to all to CDE to partner organizations families and students who came together on that day. It was a wonderful celebration. Uh there was also the AXI impact award given uh and it was awarded to RO inclusion at Sagas Union School District which exemplifies inclusive practices. And I wanted to also acknowledge the two runner ups um the structured therapeutic therapeutic education program from Santa Monica Malibu Union District Unified School District and Project Search from Baldwin Park Unified School District. Uh all three programs demonstrated what's possible when districts, educators, and community partners work together to create inclusive systems
143that expand opportunities for students with disabilities. And the final item from that meeting was the supporting innovative practices. There was a PACE report done recently that showed that over the past five years, SIP grantees have increased the share of students with disabilities learning in general education classrooms at a rate six times higher than the national average and 13 times higher than the state average. So, uh please I'd encourage everyone to to look at for that for that pace report. Uh finally for multilingual learners, I just wanted to share that it is seal of literacy season. We had 75,000 students earn that state seal last year um representing about 1300 schools. So there are more places throughout our state where we have multilingual students uh which connects to our conversation yesterday. And um San Diego County
144Office of Ed is having their summit on uh April 22nd if anybody's interested in the World Language and Global Competence Day um event. And then finally, Dr. Escobedto and I would just like to take a moment to honor Dr. Lori Olsen for her contributions to California multilingual learners. Uh I hope you're either listening or able to watch this recording. Dr. Olsen. Uh Lori, it's been truly a privilege to take a moment uh today to recognize you and the extraordinary impact that you've had on students across California. For decades, you have been a visionary educator, researcher, and advocate whose work has changed the way our state thinks about multilingual learners. And you know what California does, so goes the nation. Your leadership has shel helped shape the English learner roadmap which gave California a powerful vision
145that multilingual learners should not only gain English proficiency but should also thrive academically and develop while developing the gift of multiple languages. You have also been a tireless champion of biiteracy. The California State Seal of Iiteracy, which you helped inspire, has now recognized more than half a million students in more than 80 languages, which began as an idea rooted in equity and possibility, has become it has now become a movement that has spread across the nation. Your work has shed light on the needs of long-term English learners throughout through your book, Reparable Harm, Reparable Harm, excuse me, and your continued advocacy. You helped our state confront barriers that too many students faced and pushed us to do better. Lori, it's one of those rare It is rare that one person's work shapes policy, practice, and
146mindset all at once. But your work has done exactly that. Because of you, California sees multilingualism not as a challenge to overcome, but as a strength to celebrate. So on behalf of the state board of education, all the students and families in California, thank you for your extraordinary leadership, your scholarship, and your unwavering commitment to multilingual learners. Your legacy will continue to shape this state for generations. Thank you. >> Thank you so much and really appreciate your recognizing um Lori Member Rodriguez. >> Thank you, President Darlene Hammond. Um, so I have a couple of updates. Uh, CTC and uh the CTE um, uh, QuapJack meeting tomorrow. Uh, at the February 2026 Commission on Teacher Credentiing meeting, commissioners spent time discussing ways California is working to strengthen our educator pipeline. Much of the conversation focused on
147teacher residency programs and other efforts designed to recruit, prepare, and retain teachers, especially in areas where schools are experiencing shortages. The governor's proposed budget includes 250 million to expand teacher residency grants, which allow teacher candidates to complete their preparation through year-long clinical experiences alongside experienced mentor teachers. These programs are also seen as an important strategy for diversifying the teacher workforce and building long-term stability in our profession. Commissioners also talked about the importance of strengthening the overall educator pipeline by focusing recruitment and retention efforts in high need areas such as special education, bilingual education, and STEM. There were updates on how preparation programs are implementing state requirements and continuing to strengthen clinical training, particularly in the light of the commission's recent work to update the teacher performance assessments pass rates to support continuous improvement for preparation
148programs. Commissioners approved moving forward with regulations for long-term substitutes uh in general education classrooms. Commissioners also emphasized the need to support a more diverse educator workforce that reflects California's student population and discussed how residency programs and other state investments can help improve teacher retention and create a more stable educator workforce over time. Uh, additionally, as SB liaison for uh, career technical education, I have an update on CTE and the work of our California Workforce Pathways Joint Advisory Committee. QuapJack, as we're known as, um, as the committee is is known, brings together members of the state board of education and the board of governors of the California Community Colleges. Together, we focus on uh coordinating, strengthening, and expanding career technical education programs and workforce pathways across the state. QuapJack will meet tomorrow, March 13th. The meeting
149will be held as a video conference with an option for the public to attend in person. The agenda includes updates on several CTE grant programs including Perkins, the career technical uh education incentive grant and uh K12 strong workforce program overview of the CIG metrics cradle to career information session and briefing on the midcycle modifications to the workforce innovation and opportunity act state plan that the state board approved at this meeting. For any interested in more information on tomorrow's meeting and the ongoing work of QuapJack, please visit the California Department of Education's website. Thank you so much. That concludes my update. >> Thank you. Um, member Patillo Brownson, >> I have to say as I listened to your report, I had sudden acronym envy. Quack check is just >> Okay. All right. Um, also with a
150very cool acronym, CC CSSA, the California Summer School for the Arts, is pleased to announce that uh for this upcoming summer experience um it will be a new partnership with Calpali Pomona. Um for many years the summer experience has been at Cal Arts um in the Valencia area and uh for this uh first time it will now be at Calp Poly Pomona starting July 4th to August 1st um for the the latest uh summer installment. What is also super exciting is there is a new pathway in addition uh to the traditional ones around architecture and environmental design uh both as a function of uh student demand um and the alignment with uh professional competencies um and a new recruitment phase of bringing in uh teaching staff uh to bring uh young high school students into
151the space of architecture and environmental design. This is in addition of course to um the ongoing bodies of work around animation, dance, film, music, theater, visual arts and writing. Um and so we are very excited to launch that work. Uh we have been in process with interviewing new faculty um for the summer. um and all of all of the it's summer seems far away for all of the adults but I think uh for for the students who have applied uh some time ago I think it's it is rapidly approaching. Uh my other committee assignment um is on early learning. Um and I wanted to flag uh one of the recent meetings with the UPK, the universal preschool um research design team which is convened by the department of ed. Um and there is ongoing research
152um around the impact of obviously transitional kindergarten within the traditional K12 system but also the state preschool program um which is the both the feeder pattern um as well as uh really the the close cousin um of our um K12 system or TK12 system. Uh some of the key takeaways from recent research um is looking at the impact and learning growth for three and four year olds in the state preschool program finding that um under the uh DRDP uh the desired results development profile which is uh the early learning assessment um and progress monitoring system uh that three-year-olds are progressing um by at least one level from uh and and this is interesting gi Given our conversation about language uh for different uh ways to describe growth um exploring later uh to building earlier um
153are the the uh categories of growth um and learning uh around um the developmental profile. Uh four-year-olds also continue to progress um from one level in the tracking period from October to April um and show slightly higher rates of growth. Um, I'll note also that the four-year-olds uh that are um being monitored in this space uh represent some part day, some full day. Um some students uh young children who both attend TK as well as CSP programs uh in the latter part of the day. Um but all to say um in the same way that our TK12 world is looking at how do we actually ensure that there's progress that um our youngest learners are actually having the full benefit um our our um sister agencies in the early learning world are also um engaged
154in similar um projects. And that concludes my report. >> Thank you um member Rosco Gonzalez. Thank you. As the assessment committee lays on, I'd like to briefly share highlights from a recent webinar I attended on May 6 on authentic authentic task for learning and assessments in science or atlas which is part of the cast innovations project supporting California science assessment system. A few big takeaways from the seminar from the webinar. First were Cass's work on performance task is helping shift the traditional mindset of using tasks as assessments at the end of instruction to using them as entry points for learning. Increasingly, teachers are beginning units with a phenomenonbased task to identify what students know and think about upfront and then returning to that task after several weeks of instruction to see how student thinking has
155developed. Panelists also discuss how these tasks provide teachers with information they can use to inform instruction. tasks that ask students to develop models, explanations, and evidence-based reasoning can help teachers see into students thinking and understand how students are grappling with scientific phenomena. Lastly, I was encouraged by the potential of Atlas to support capacity building amongst teachers. Many elementary school teachers have told us that they don't feel confident in teaching science, especially science that is aligned to um next generation science standards. Giving teachers access to these tasks and student works examples will help teachers learn how to create opportunities for students to think like scientists, solve real world problems and discuss their ideas with others and build build that confidence. So, um, Cass will continue working to straighten these ties between instruction and assessment by develop
156developing tasks that allow students to engage in three-dimensional science learning while investigating real world phenomena. It really was an outstanding session filled with resources for classroom teachers and I hope there's more in the upcoming months that teachers can participate to build that confidence. Is that it? >> Okay. Just wanted to be I didn't want to touch off if you >> Yes. Sorry. >> Member Alen. >> Good morning and thank you. Um I am going to report on both my roles as environmental literacy liaison and artificial intelligence um liaison. So, the first is um I just want to add my congratulations to the schools in the state, 26 schools, 12 school districts, and one county office of education who were honored with the 2026 California Green Ribbon School Award. Um the Green Ribbons Award um reflect
157the best of what is possible um in terms of educational stewardship in our schools. Um and um there were five honores who got a sort of extra special um award. They were green achievers. Um, and they are a they were able to blip to bend blend, excuse me, resource conservation, health promotion, environmental literacy. Um, but this is an important award in our state for schools and districts and counties that are really taking their efforts at environmental conservativeship um, seriously. Um, also on the environmental literacy front, I just wanted to um put out there a note that um there is a proposal moving through the legislature um to potentially add a state seal of climate literacy um which in all our conversations about the importance of state seals I thought was interesting to note for us.
158More on that as it may perhaps happen. Um, and then I'll turn my attention now to AI. Um, which there's so much going on all the time in the world of AI. Um, keeping me busy and keeping all us educators and students on our toes and parents. Um, so I'll talk quickly about three different groups that I've been um participating with. One is the California Department of Education AI work group um which has a couple of important deliverables. The first one is be on or before January 1st 2026 which has already happened um to develop guidance for eleas and charter schools on the safe um use of artificial intelligence and education. Um the working group which is comprised of educators um across the state um published that um guidance before January 1st and now it
159has turned its attention to the second deliverable which is to develop a model policy for eleas and charter schools regarding the safe and effective use of artificial intelligence in ways that benefit and do not negatively impact pupils and educators. So that work is in progress. Um I am also participating in a NASBY AI um advisory group um which brings together state board members from across the country who are playing a similar role um related to AI. Um and in that group we typically share the types of guidance um and the sort of framing philosophies of each state board around the use of AI in school. Um things like um protection of students privacy and safety. Um things like promoting innovation. um preparing the workforce for the 21st century in a um so we typically are
160looking at how we're doing that in different states. Um in our most recent meeting we also had a presentation from Barry Tabin who is a senior legislative director with the National Conference of State Legislators. Um he was describing the potential conflict between the um executive order on AI that was signed earlier this year um with state efforts um and talking about how um states what types of things states in in working to protect their students and also promote innovation um can do to stay in in out of trouble with that executive order. Um, and then the third group in regards to AI that I just want to give a quick update about is the Governor's Innovation Council, which is a group that brings together um, state leaders and um, researchers and industry experts from across
161the state to look at really how we in California can both um, encourage innovation and ensure the safety and um success of our of our constituents here in the state. So I'm working specifically on areas related to schools which may not be surprising. Um and the two projects just to give you a really high level look at two projects that that group is working on. Um, one is to publish a statewide resource um, that's a clearing house for California leas on safe and effective procurement and use of AI in schools with a focus on mitigating risks such as deep fake porn tech facilitated gender-based violence, cyber bullying and mental health risks. So, it's really um looking at what are the resources that are out there um that support the safe um and effective use of
162AI in schools. And then the second project I'll just give you a quick overview of is um we're working to develop working with UCLA and the department of public health to develop a youth digital citizenship and literacy curriculum and pilot. Um, so basically there's a lot of talk about the importance of digital literacy um, and what that looks like and this is an this is creating some model curriculum and a pilot with certain schools to bring that forward. And that's my report. >> Excellent. Member Lewis, >> I'm the liaison for the IQC, the California subject matter project and Vice President Glover Woods has already given the report for the IQC and I have no report for the California subject matter project this month. >> Okay. Well, thank you. That's very succinct. Um, I'll just uh
163follow up by um also recognizing Lori Olsen uh at this time. She um was uh the founding director for the SBRO Early uh academic learning language PK through3 initiative, the SEAL initiative as it is known that has done wonderful work across the state. Um, I used her one of her early books, Made in America, uh, immigrants in US schools with student teachers in the STEP program for many years as a way to introduce them to the, uh, real realities in high schools uh, teaching uh, secondary um, candidates uh, that many were encountering. And it really brought home the lived experience of of students and their making their way through high school raising up the policy issues and the practice issues that the uh prospective teachers would need to deal with. Um and she's of course
164authored many other books and and educated so many people in the state to the uh realities of English learners and the needs and the solutions to a lot of our our challenges. She was co-chair of our English learner roadmap um development which has been an enormously helpful tool for us in California uh founding board member and ongoing board member of Cal Calgifornians together whom we hear from at most of our board meetings and whom uh who keep a close eye on our progress as a state and supporting that. So, I just want to also recognize Lori and thank her for all of the um amazing service to California and its students. And I have given the rest of my report earlier on. Oh, yes. Vanessa, I'm so sorry. You will be the last and final
165word for us in this meeting. Thank you. I just wanted to give a shout out to California Senate Youth Delegates Cindy Chen and Gabrielle Listana who were here at our January board meeting and are currently in Washington DC to celebrate um Washington week. Um I also wanted to give updates about CAS. Um, in January they completed their student advisory board on legislation and education conference in Sacramento where they gave proposals to the Senate education committee. And in July, specifically July 27th to July 30th, um they'll be having a summer camp at UC Santa Barbara um with a theme ignite the future. That was all >> terrific. Thank you so very much. And now uh we are ready to take up public comment, general public comment uh on any matter not included in the printed agenda.
166Uh and the public comment slide is up. If you want to make general public comment, you can use the phone number and the participant access code on this slide. Uh is there any general public comment in the room? >> There is one person signed up for inperson public comment. Angela Steagle, please come up to the microphone in the back. You have one minute. I think it's good. Hey, good deal. My name is Angela Steagel and I'm a classroom teacher representing the California Teachers Association. I'm also a local chapter president and I've been on my local's bargaining team for well over two decades. The current process for adopting standards and criteria for school district budgets is woefully outdated. California requires school districts to submit proposed budgets to their county offices of education for review at the
167start of each fiscal year. SBE has established standards and criteria for this process, which include reviewing key financial indicators and multi-year commitments. California is one of only six states that requires districts to project their budgets three years into the future. CTA is concerned that some school districts are manipulating this process to claim financial hardship in order to stockpile education funds into reserves and avoid investing in students and educators. We would like to see the SBE revisit these standards or criteria for school district budgets to ensure that today's dollars are being spent on today's students. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. Is there any other public comment on the phone? >> Uh there are no callers in the queue. >> All right. Uh, I there therefore hereby adjourn our March 2026 state board meeting at
16810:27 a.m. See you in 11:27. Thank you. >> Spring forward. >> Thank you very much and we will see you in May. Yay.