[00:00:03]
>> I'D LIKE TO CALL THIS REGULAR BOARD MEETING TO ORDER AT
[I. OPEN SESSION]
05:15 P.M. HELEN, CAN YOU CALL THE ROLL, PLEASE?>> GRANT. ABSENT. HARDEN. ABSENT. MEHTA.
>> NUS BOARD MEETINGS ARE LIVE-STREAMED AND RECORDED AT THE DIRECTION OF THE BOARD.
LIVE STREAM IS AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING ON THE DISTRICT WEBSITE, AND RECORDINGS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING THE NEXT DAY AFTER THE BOARD MEETING.
THOSE IN ATTENDANCE SHOULD EXPECT THAT RECORDINGS WILL CAPTURE ALL ACTIVITY AND DISCUSSIONS BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER MEETINGS.
THE BOARD WILL BE GOING INTO CLOSED SESSION FOR ONE AGENDA ITEM TONIGHT TO DISCUSS GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54957, PUBLIC EMPLOYEE DISCIPLINE DISMISSAL RELEASE.
IS THERE ANYONE LOOKING TO MAKE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE CLOSED SESSION AGENDA ITEM THIS EVENING? SEEING AND HEARING NONE, THE BOARD WILL BE GOING INTO CLOSED SESSION,
[V. CLOSED SESSION]
AND WE WILL RESUME AND OPEN AT APPROXIMATELY 5:45 P.M. OR SHORTLY THEREAFTER.WE ARE RECONVENING THE OPEN SESSION AT EXACTLY 5:45 P.M.
[VI. RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION]
HELEN, CAN YOU CALL THE ROLL, PLEASE?>> EXCELLENT. STUDENT BOARD MEMBER, LEESHA, WOULD YOU LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE, PLEASE?
>> NO ACTION WAS TAKEN IN CLOSED SESSION THIS EVENING.
BEFORE WE MOVE ON, JUST A REMINDER FOR THOSE IN ATTENDANCE THAT, IN ACCORDANCE WITH BOARD BY LAW IN 9323 MEETING CONDUCT, INDIVIDUALS WISHING TO ADDRESS THE BOARD MUST SUBMIT A COMPLETED PUBLIC COMMENT CARD PRIOR TO THE CONSIDERATION OF THE ITEM AND NO LATER THAN THE FIRST ACTION ITEM ON THE AGENDA.
INDIVIDUALS WILL BE ALLOWED TWO MINUTES TO ADDRESS THE BOARD, AND THE BOARD SHALL LIMIT THE TOTAL TIME FOR PUBLIC INPUT ON EACH ITEM TO 20 MINUTES.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE FILE A PUBLIC COMMENT CARD AND HAND IT TO STAFF MEMBER AT THE TABLE JUST OUTSIDE OF THE BOARD ROOM.
AT THE CONCLUSION OF OUR MEETING, WE ASK MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO REFRAIN FROM APPROACHING THE DAIS TO ALLOW BOARD MEMBERS WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO GATHER THEIR BELONGINGS, SIGN DOCUMENTS, AND SECURE ANY CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.
BOARD MEMBERS MAY MAKE THEMSELVES AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC BY STEPPING DOWN FROM THE DAIS AND ENTERING THE AREA FOR AUDIENCE SEATING.
WITH THAT, I AM LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA.
[X. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA]
WE ARE NOW MOVING ON TO ITEM 11 A. CELEBRATIONS.
[XI.a. Staff Recognition: Start of Schools Above & Beyond]
WE ARE NOW VERY EXCITED TO RECOGNIZE SEVERAL OF OUR CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES FOR THE AMAZING WORK THAT YOU GUYS ALWAYS DO, BUT ESPECIALLY IN GETTING OUR SCHOOLS READY FOR THE START OF THE YEAR.I WILL TURN IT OVER TO DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT ANGELA HERRERA.
>> THANK YOU SO MUCH. TRUSTEE, SUPERINTENDENT CASTILLO.
WE ARE PLEASED TO RECOGNIZE SEVERAL OF OUR CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES WHO HAVE PROVIDED EXCEPTIONAL SUPPORT THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT AS WE'VE PREPARED FOR THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
EACH OF THESE INDIVIDUALS WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND, AND WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THEIR SERVICE TO NATOMAS UNIFIED.
I LOOK FORWARD TO JOINING WITH YOU AND CELEBRATING THEM TONIGHT.
ONE THING BEFORE I MOVE FORWARD WITH DESCRIBING EACH OF THEM IS, WE HAVE AMAZING EMPLOYEES IN THIS DISTRICT, OVERALL, AND EVERY DAY THEY'RE COMING TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS.
TALKING ABOUT THESE EMPLOYEES TONIGHT, I DON'T THINK IT ADEQUATELY READING A LITTLE PARAGRAPH, I DON'T THINK ADEQUATELY CONVEYS THE HEIGHTS AND DEPTHS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO HELP US HAVE A SUCCESSFUL START OF THE YEAR.
THINGS LIKE ADDITIONAL HOURS, ADDITIONAL DAYS, IMPACTING STUDENTS AT EVERY SCHOOL SITE.
WHILE THESE ARE BRIEF STATEMENTS, I HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND THE HEART OF IT IS THEY REALLY ARE GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND, AND IT IS SO EVIDENT THAT THERE'S A RECOGNITION OF THEIR ROLES AND HOW THEY IMPACT STUDENTS DIRECTLY, BECAUSE I KNOW SOMETIMES THAT CAN BE A CHALLENGE, IS HOW IS WHAT I'M DOING IMPACTING STUDENTS.
FIRST, I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE KRISTIE CONNOR, WHO IS A LIBRARY MEDIA TECHNICIAN, ASK HER TO COME UP.
[APPLAUSE] I'M GOING TO ASK ALL OF YOU TO COME UP.
KRISTIE ACTUALLY HAS BEEN FILLING IN A ROLE FOR US FOR SEVERAL MONTHS NOW.
[00:05:07]
WHAT SHE HAS DONE HAS CREATED AN EFFICIENT SYSTEM FOR DISTRIBUTING OUR EARLY LITERACY MATERIALS FOR OUR TEACHERS.SHE'S PERSONALLY SUPPORTED DELIVERY TO SCHOOL SITES.
SHE'S HELPED ORGANIZE FAMILY LITERACY EVENTS WITH COMMUNITY PARTNERS, AND HER ONGOING EFFORTS CONTINUE TO ENSURE TEACHERS AND STUDENTS HAVE THE RESOURCES AND THE OPPORTUNITIES THEY NEED FOR EARLY LITERACY SUCCESS.
I WILL SAY I'VE BEEN IN MEETINGS WITH HER WHERE SHE'S NOT AFRAID TO SPEAK UP TO A BUNCH OF LEADERS AND SAY, HEY, THIS IS WHAT WE NEED, AND WE NEED IT NOW.
APPRECIATIVE OF YOU AND THE WORK THAT YOU'VE BEEN DOING.
[APPLAUSE] NEXT IS GABRIEL GONZALEZ.
HE'S A WAREHOUSE AND TEXTBOOK SPECIALIST 3.
[APPLAUSE] GABRIEL IS RECOGNIZED FOR HIS DEDICATION TO STUDENTS' ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND HIS PROACTIVE SUPPORT OF SCHOOL SITES.
HE CREATED A DETAILED INVENTORY SYSTEM FOR OUR RD 180 MATERIALS.
HE REALLOCATED RESOURCES ACROSS SCHOOLS, AND HE PERSONALLY DELIVERED NEEDED MATERIALS TO ENSURE BANNON CREEK TEACHERS COULD BEGIN INSTRUCTION WITHOUT DELAY.
HIS EFFICIENCY AND COMMITMENT DIRECTLY SUPPORTED BOTH IMMEDIATE CLASSROOM NEEDS AND LONG-TERM PLANNING FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR. THANK YOU.
[APPLAUSE] NEXT, WE HAVE SETH SANDERS.
[APPLAUSE] THIS SUMMER, SETH WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND TO SUPPORT THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE, AS WELL.
HE HELPED ARTS PACK AND PREPARE TEACHER MATERIALS.
HE TRACKED AND LABELED MULTIPLE VENDOR SHIPMENTS AND ASSISTED THE LIBRARY MEDIA TECHS WITH INVENTORY.
HIS ORGANIZATION AND TEAMWORK ENSURED MATERIALS WERE DELIVERED TO SITES ON TIME AND READY FOR THE FIRST STAY OF SCHOOL. THANK YOU.
[APPLAUSE] I WILL ALSO SAY FOR THE THREE OF THESE INDIVIDUALS.
I WAS ALWAYS AMAZED. I FELT LIKE THEY WERE AT MULTIPLE PLACES AT ONCE.
I'D BE SOMEWHERE AND THEY'D BE THERE IN THE WORK, AND THEN I WOULD GO SOMEWHERE ELSE AND THEY WERE ALREADY THERE AT THE OTHER PLACE DOING THE WORK.
I COULD NOT FIGURE OUT HOW THEY GOT TO SO MANY PLACES AT ONCE.
NEXT, I'M VERY PROUD TO RECOGNIZE OUR GROUNDS TEAM.
LOUIS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME UP WITH ME? [APPLAUSE] THIS IS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, LOUIS WALTER, THAT OVERSEES MAINTENANCE AND OFFS, AND SO THAT ENCOMPASSES OUR GROUNDS TEAM.
HE'S UP HERE WITH ME TO RECOGNIZE THEM TONIGHT.
THIS IS A DEDICATED GROUP OF STAFF WHO WORKED TIRELESSLY TO KEEP OUR LANDSCAPES, OUR IRRIGATION SYSTEMS, AND THE PLAY FIELDS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION.
OVER THE SUMMER, DURING THE HOTTEST OF DAYS, THIS TEAM ENSURED OUR PLAYING FIELDS REMAIN GREEN AND WELCOMING, ALL CAREFULLY CONSERVING WATER WHEREVER POSSIBLE.
THEIR COMMITMENT AND HARD WORK WERE ESPECIALLY EVIDENT AS THEY PREPARED THE CAMPUSES FOR THE START OF SCHOOL.
MAKING SURE THE GROUNDS WERE READY FOR STUDENT STAFF AND FAMILIES.
PLEASE JOIN ME IN THANKING OUR GROUNDS TEAM FOR THEIR OUTSTANDING SERVICE AND DEDICATION OF OUR OUTDOOR SPACES.
[APPLAUSE] I HAVE LOUIS WITH ME.
I'M ALSO GOING TO ASK OUR COORDINATORS, WHITE DOST AND JASON MADURI, TO COME UP.
THEN I'M GOING TO ANNOUNCE OUR GROUNDS TEAM, OBVIOUSLY, NOT ALL OF THEM COULD BE HERE TONIGHT, BUT WE'RE GOING TO NAME ALL OF THEM.
I WANT TO START WITH THOSE THAT I KNOW FOR SURE I HEAR. JERRY TILLINGHA [APPLAUSE] ED MARINA. [APPLAUSE] THEN JUNIOR LATIGO REYES.
[APPLAUSE] THEN, IF ANY OF THE OTHERS THAT I NAME HAVE COME TONIGHT AND WE MISSED YOU COMING IN THE DOOR, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO COME UP.
[00:10:02]
BUT BERNARD HAMILTON, [APPLAUSE] EMMANUEL MARQUEZ SOTO, [APPLAUSE] CHRISTIAN MOLINA, [APPLAUSE] BEN SONIC, [APPLAUSE] RUBY ROCHILIO [APPLAUSE] JOHN FULLY, [APPLAUSE] MICHAEL KUTA, [APPLAUSE] ERIC RAMOS, [APPLAUSE] AND LAZARO HERNANDEZ.[APPLAUSE] THEN OUR GROUNDS TEAM TOMORROW, THEY'RE GOING TO BE ALSO RECOGNIZED WITH A SPECIAL LUNCHEON.
I WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES AND GIVE EVERYBODY A ROUND OF APPLAUSE.
[APPLAUSE] THEN I'M GOING TO ASK ALL OF THEM TO COME BACK UP SO THAT WE CAN DO A PHOTO WITH. OH, SORRY.
>> NOW, ALL THE CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES, IF YOU DON'T MIND COMING UP, WE'LL DO A GROUP PICTURE. THANK YOU.
>> ONCE AGAIN, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES THAT WERE RECOGNIZED TODAY AND ALL THE CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES IN THIS DISTRICT FOR THEIR TIRELESS WORK EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR.
WITH THAT, WE WILL MOVE ON TO COMMUNICATIONS,
[XII.a. Student Board Member]
AND AS ALWAYS, WE WILL START WITH STUDENT BOARD MEMBER ANALISA.>> GOOD EVENING, PRESIDENT GRANT, TRUSTEE, SUPERINTENDENT GIT.
DISCOVERY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ARE ON TRACK TOWARDS GRADUATION.
ATTENDANCE REMAINS 90% REPRESENTING AN IMPROVEMENT OVER LAST YEAR.
THANK YOU TO OUR PARENTS WHO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT DHS THROUGH THE PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND SCHOOL-SIDE COUNCIL. WE ARE GRATEFUL.
UPCOMING EVENTS INCLUDE SEL LESSONS AND ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS IN NUTRITION AND PROPER EATING. GO BULLDOGS.
INTERCOM TIGERS ARE GROWLING THROUGH SEPTEMBER WITH STUDENTS ATTENDING. I'M SORRY.
THE NSD AND HBCU COLLEGE FAIRS LAST WEEK.
NINTH-GRADE STUDENTS JOINED IN A LINK GREW BLOCK, CONTINUING TO FOCUS ON CONNECTION AND ENGAGEMENT ON CAMPUS.
STUDENTS IN THEIR ILS PROGRAM JOINED FRIENDS FROM NATOMAS HIGH SCHOOL TO ENJOY A RECENT COMMUNITY-BASED FIELD TRIP TO NORTH NATOMAS REGIONAL PARK.
STUDENTS ARE BEGINNING PREPARATIONS FOR THE UPCOMING HOMECOMING GAME AND SHOW ON OCTOBER 10.
THE STUDENT JUNGLE SECTION CONTINUES TO ROAR WITH A RECENT RED, WHITE, AND BLUE THEME TO HONOR THOSE WHO HAVE SERVED IN THE US MILITARY OR AS FIRST RESPONDERS, GOAT TIGERS.
LEEWARD GREEN ACADEMY HAD AN INCREDIBLE WEEK OF ATHLETICS,
[00:15:01]
SCHOOL SPIRIT, AND RE-CELEBRATIONS.THEIR VOLLEYBALL TEAM SECURED TWO EXCITING WINS, AND THEIR GIRLS' FLAG FOOTBALL TEAM EARNED ITS FIRST BIG WIN IN THE SEASON.
THE LGA STAFF JOINED IN THE FUN WITH A SECRET SPIRIT WEEK, SHOWING OFF THEMES, OUTFITS, AND MODELING SCHOOL PRIDE FOR THEIR STUDENTS.
BEYOND THIS FIELD, COURT, AND CLASSROOMS, WE'RE ALSO CELEBRATING STUDENTS WHO LIVE OUT THEIR CORE VALUES OF RESPECT, OWNERSHIP, ACCEPTANCE, AND RESILIENCE BY REWARDING THEM WITH PLENTY OF LION, WAY TO GO LIONS.
THERE WAS A LOT OF ACTIVITY HAPPENING THIS MONTH AT NATOMAS HIGH.
THEY WERE EXCITED TO SEE AN INCREASED NUMBER OF FAMILIES AT THEIR BACK-TO-SCHOOL NIGHT.
THE CLASS OF 2026 HELD AN AGE OF BLEE FUNDRAISER TO STUDENTS TO HELP COVER THE COST OF THE SENIOR FIELD TRIP.
LAST THURSDAY, STUDENTS ALSO ATTENDED THE UC HBCU RECRUITMENT FAIR, WHERE MANY RECEIVED AN ON-SPOT ADMISSIONS.
THE ATHLETICS WOMAN'S FLET FOOTBALL TEAM IS BOASTING A TWO-TO-ONE RECORD IN LEAGUE PLAY.
OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS, THOMAS MIDDLE HAS BEEN BUSY BUILDING COMMUNITY AND ENGAGEMENT FOR ITS PANTHERS.
THEY KICKED OFF ATTENDANCE AWARENESS MONTH WITH A RALLY LED BY MISS BYRD AND THE LEADERSHIP TEAM, WHICH ALSO CELEBRATED THE MONTH OF THE CROSS COUNTRY, VOLLEYBALL, AND FOOTBALL SEASONS.
THEIR PANTHER PBIS STORE AND AT LUNCH WAS A BIG SUCCESS, GIVING STUDENTS RECOGNITION FOR SHOWING THEIR CLAW AND SUPPORTING A POSITIVE SCHOOL CULTURE.
THIS MONTH, THEY ARE PREPARING FOR THEIR FIRST FUN FRIDAY WITH ACTIVITIES LED BY LEADERSHIP AND STAFF TO KEEP STUDENTS CONNECTED AND ENGAGED.
WE'VE ALSO STARTED INTRODUCING LUNCHTIME ACTIVITIES TO PROVIDE POSITIVE OUTLETS AND SHRINK IN OUR CAMPUS CLIMATE.
>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH, VERY COMPREHENSIVE AS ALWAYS.
WITH THAT, MOVING ON TO BOARD MEMBERS WITH TRUSTEE MORA.
[XII.b. Board Members]
>> WELL, FIRST, THANK YOU, STUDENT BOARD MEMBER ALICIA, FOR YOUR REPORT.
I ALWAYS LEARNED SO MUCH ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH STUDENTS.
I ALSO FIRST WANT TO, AGAIN, CONGRATULATE ALL OF OUR AWARDEES FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO A GOOD START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
I ALSO WANT TO RE-EMPHASIZE SOMETHING THAT WE CELEBRATED AT THE LAST BOARD MEETING, WHICH IS HAPPY HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH.
I THINK I'VE MENTIONED IT BEFORE, BUT I WANT TO MENTION IT AGAIN: BOTH OF MY PARENTS ARE FROM JALISCO, MEXICO, AND IF YOU KNOW ME, YOU KNOW I LIKE TO TALK.
THEY DO, TOO. I GOT IT FROM THEM.
I'VE GOTTEN TO KNOW A LOT ABOUT THEIR LIVES: IMMIGRATING TO THE US, THE UPS, THE DOWNS.
BUT REALLY, JUST OVERALL, WHAT THEIR OPTIMISM IS ABOUT CONTINUING TO BE PROUD OF WHERE THEY'RE FROM, BUT THEN CHOOSING TO BE AMERICANS AND CHOOSING TO PARTICIPATE IN THE WORLD AROUND THEM.
SO I JUST WANTED TO JUST REALLY BRIEFLY ADD THAT TO HAPPY HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH, BECAUSE AS I MENTIONED IN THE LAST MEETING, THERE'S A LOT HAPPENING RIGHT NOW AFFECTING THE HISPANIC AND LATINO COMMUNITY, AND I THINK THAT THAT'S WORTH ACKNOWLEDGING.
THEN I ALSO WANT TO GIVE A COUPLE OF THANK-YOUS.
THE FIRST ONE IS TO RICK MESSER AND HIS TEAM, AND ALSO TIFFANY BAILEY IN THE SUPERINTENDENT'S OFFICE FOR HELPING ME TO DO A STUDY SESSION WITH THE SAFETY AND SAFE SCHOOLS TEAM.
I CAN SEE WHY THEY CALL THE OFFICE THE COMMAND CENTER NOW.
IT REALLY IS QUITE THE OPERATION, AND IF YOU ALL HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO SEE IT, I'LL JUST QUICKLY SAY THE CENTRALIZATION, THE SYSTEMS THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT, AND THE REALLY NOTICEABLE CARE FOR HOLISTIC SAFETY, REALLY IS EVIDENT, AND I'M GLAD TO HAVE HAD A CHANCE TO SEE THAT, AND ALSO SEE MORE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT A DAY IN THE LIFE OF SOMEONE IN THE SAFETY TEAM LOOKS LIKE.
WE GOT TO REALLY QUICKLY SEE WHAT ONE OF OUR SAFETY TEAM MEMBERS WAS UP TO AT A SCHOOL SITE, AND SO I'M SOMEONE THAT LEARNS BY SEEING, AND THAT WAS DEFINITELY NOT ONLY APPRECIATED, BUT REALLY HELPFUL.
THE OTHER THANK-YOU THAT I HAVE IS FOR EVERYONE ALLOWING ME TO ATTEND THE CALIFORNIA LATINO SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE.
I HAVE GONE AHEAD AND SHARED MY NOTES WITH MY COLLEAGUES.
I DEFINITELY WANT TO PASS THAT INFORMATION ALONG.
BUT I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I TOOK AWAY FROM THAT LEARNING EXPERIENCE.
ONE OF IT WAS GETTING A LOT OF REALLY GOOD INFORMATION ABOUT TOPICS LIKE HOW MATH INSTRUCTIONAL FRAMEWORK CAN BE INCLUSIVE OF ENGLISH LEARNERS AND MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS.
[00:20:01]
SIMILARLY, HOW OTHER INITIATIVES GOING ON IN THE DISTRICT AND AT SCHOOL SITES CAN ACCOMPLISH THE SAME THING.LASTLY, WHAT I'LL HIGHLIGHT IS HOW TO SUPPORT STUDENTS AND FAMILIES THAT COME FROM VARIOUS LATINO IMMIGRANT BACKGROUNDS AND COMMUNITIES.
THERE WERE A LOT OF REALLY INTERESTING PIECES OF DATA AND DIFFERENT EXAMPLES OF WHAT'S WORKING.
BUT FOR THE SAKE OF TIME, I JUST WANT TO KEEP IT TO THOSE MORE BROADER THINGS, BUT REALLY JUST HAVE A CHANCE TO SHARE WITH EVERYONE WHAT I TOOK AWAY FROM THAT.
WITH THAT, I WILL CONCLUDE MY BOARD REPORT. THANK YOU.
>> THANK YOU, TRUSTEE MORA. TRUSTEE HARDEN.
I JUST WANTED TO ALSO SAY CONGRATULATIONS TO THE AWARDEES, AND TO REMIND EVERYBODY THAT SEPTEMBER IS NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION MONTH, AND IF ANYONE IS EVER IN CRISIS, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO CALL OR TEXT 988 24 HOURS A DAY. THANK YOU.
>> THANK YOU, TRUSTEE HARDEN. MOVING ON TO MYSELF.
I WAS THINKING ABOUT THIS THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND, ESPECIALLY TODAY.
TODAY MARKS THE SECOND DAY OF ROSH HASHANAH, THE JEWISH NEW YEAR.
IT'S A TIME OF SELF CONTEMPLATION.
AS WE START THE YEAR, OUR CUSTOM GREETING IS, I WISH EVERYONE OBVIOUSLY A HAPPY NEW YEAR AND A HAPPY AND A SWEET NEW YEAR.
IT'S ALWAYS FIND THAT ROSH HASHANAH TENDS TO COINCIDE MORE OR LESS WITH THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, DEPENDING ON HOW THE LUNAR CALENDAR WORKS SO APPROPRIATE, I THINK.
IN THAT LIGHT, I FIRST WANT TO WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY AND A SWEET NEW YEAR, AND I HOPE THAT TRULY THIS UPCOMING YEAR, THIS ENTIRE SCHOOL YEAR IS A HEALTHY AND HAPPY ONE FOR EVERYONE.
TO THAT END, I DID ALSO WANT TO MAKE A REQUEST TO FOLKS.
EVERY MONTH WE HAVE SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS, AS EVERYONE KNOWS, THESE ARE NOT PUBLIC MEETINGS, BUT THESE ARE MEETINGS IN PUBLIC, WHERE THE PUBLIC GETS TO SEE THE BOARD AT WORK.
THERE'S NO SECRET BACKROOM DEALS, EVERYTHING HAPPENS IN OPEN.
THE PUBLIC DOES HAVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT.
WE ABSOLUTELY VALUE THE SUPPORT OF THE PUBLIC, WE VALUE THEIR INPUT AT THESE MEETINGS, BUT WE ALSO VALUE THEIR INPUT AT ANY OTHER TIME, THROUGH E-MAIL, THROUGH PHONE CALL.
I WOULD JUST ASK FOR ANYONE THAT'S MAKING PUBLIC COMMENT TO THINK ABOUT WHAT IS YOUR OBJECTIVE? IS YOUR OBJECTIVE TO AFFECT CHANGE, TO BE SUPPORTIVE, TO FIND WAYS TO IMPROVE THINGS, OR IS YOUR OBJECTIVE TO SCORE POLITICAL POINTS, OR TO CRITICIZE OR ATTACK AN INDIVIDUAL? WE'VE SEEN EXTREMES IN OUR SOCIETY, ESPECIALLY OVER THE LAST YEAR.
WE'VE SEEN POLITICAL VIOLENCE, NOT JUST IN THE ASSASSINATIONS AND ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATIONS OF INDIVIDUALS, BUT ALSO OTHER TYPES OF VIOLENCE, INCLUDING VERBAL VIOLENCE.
SO MY PLEA FOR THIS NEW YEAR IS NOT TO STIFLE FREE SPEECH BY ANY STRETCH OF THE IMAGINATION, BUT TO ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO WORK TOGETHER TO LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION, FOR MUTUAL RESPECT, NOT JUST WITH THE PEOPLE WE AGREE WITH, BUT ESPECIALLY WITH THE ONES WITH WHOM WE DO NOT ALWAYS AGREE.
TO THINK ABOUT IS THE WAY THAT WE'RE ACTING AND THE WAY THAT WE'RE BEHAVING, TRULY THE MOST PRODUCTIVE THING THAT WE COULD BE DOING, EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM RIGHT NOW IS HERE BECAUSE WE WANT TO DO BETTER FOR OUR KIDS.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ALL HAVE ACCESS TO A HIGH-QUALITY, FREE, COMPREHENSIVE PUBLIC EDUCATION.
THAT IS MY PLEA FOR THIS NEW YEAR.
>> THANK YOU. I'M NOT GOING TO BE BRIEF, SORRY.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE AWARDEES, BUT I HAVE A SPECIAL STORY FOR KRISTIE.
IN 2017, OUR KIDS WERE TOGETHER IN KINDER, AND MS. OTIS WAS TRYING TO TEACH US ABOUT SEASONS.
KRISTIE AND KRISTIE'S HUSBAND DROVE DOWN TO NEVADA, RENO, GOT ICE IN BUCKETS, SO THE KIDS IN THE CLASSROOM CAN MAKE SNOWMAN AND PLAY WITH IT AND UNDERSTAND THE SEASONS.
THAT IS ONE THING AS A PARENT VOLUNTEER WITH HER.
I'VE KNOWN SHE GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND.
I WANTED TO MAKE SURE YOU GUYS KNOW ABOUT THAT PART TOO.
I ATTENDED THE PVS PTA MEETING, AND IT WAS AMAZING BECAUSE THEY WERE ABLE TO HAVE AROUND 30 PARENTS DO FINGERPRINTING AND THE TB SCREENING.
NOT THE TB SCREENING, BUT IF THE TB SCREENING WAS DONE.
THANK YOU TO DOUG'S TEAM, KATHY PHILLIP, AND AILEE WASHINGTON, AND ANTHONY FOR COORDINATING THAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO AND VISIT BANNON CREEK AND TWO RIVERS WITH MS. GERALD.
MS. GERALD, THANK YOU FOR TAKING ME AROUND TO THOSE CLASSROOMS. I WAS ABLE TO ATTEND NP3 TREASURE RUN YESTERDAY WITH THE ELEMENTARY STUDENTS,
[00:25:03]
AND THAT WAS A BLAST. THANK YOU.>> THANK YOU, TRUSTEE MEHTA. SUPERINTENDENT CASTILLO.
[XII.c. Superintendent]
ONE IS, AS SUPERINTENDENT, WE OFTEN GET NOTIFICATIONS FROM TONY THURMOND'S OFFICE AT CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, AND WE REVIEW THOSE IN OUR CABINET MEETINGS TO MAKE SURE WE'RE UP TO DATE WITH THE MOST RECENT.
SO THE ONE THAT WE WERE REVIEWING WAS NEW LEGISLATION AND GUIDANCE AROUND IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT AND RAPID RESPONSE TOOLKIT.
WE WERE REVIEWING THAT AND LOOKING THROUGH THAT, WHEN ONE OF THE TEAM MEMBERS SAID, "HEY, WHEN YOU CLICK ON THIS LINK, GO LOOK AT NUMBER 4." SO WE CLICKED ON THE LINK, AND WE LOOKED AT NUMBER 4, AND IT TALKS ABOUT CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY BILL AB 699 THAT WAS PASSED IN 2017.
THEN PRIOR TO THAT, AND THEN IN RESPONSE, AB 699, WHERE CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICTS PASSED SAFE HAVEN RESOLUTIONS INTENDED TO MAKE FAMILIES AND STUDENTS FEEL SAFE AT SCHOOL AND TO COMMUNICATE TO STAFF STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES THAT ALL STUDENTS HAVE A RIGHT TO ATTEND SCHOOL REGARDLESS OF THEIR IMMIGRATION STATUS.
SEE EXAMPLE, NATOMAS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT RESOLUTION, RIGHT ON THE CDE WEB PAGE.
I THINK IT WAS HEATHER THAT CAUGHT THAT.
WE WERE LIKE, "WOW, WE DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE WERE THE EXAMPLE," BUT THAT WAS VERY PROUD TO SEE THAT.
I THOUGHT THAT WOULD BE GOOD TO SHARE.
TWO STUDENT THINGS THAT HAPPENED RECENTLY IS INTERCOM PUBLIC SAFETY DID THEIR 9/11 STAIR CLIMB AGAIN ON SEPTEMBER 11 AND TO SEE THE KIDS CLIMBING THE STAIRCASES IN ALL OF THEIR FIREFIGHTER GEAR.
IN REMEMBRANCE BECAUSE YOU THINK THESE STUDENTS WEREN'T BORN WHEN THAT HAPPENED, BUT STILL DOING THAT RECOGNITION.
THEN, AS WAS MENTIONED, THE COLLEGE FAIR FOR OUR STUDENTS AND HAVING A NICE TURNOUT OF KIDS COMING AND HEARING ABOUT OPPORTUNITIES, AND ESPECIALLY CELEBRATING OUR SAC STATE GUARANTEED ADMISSION.
I WAS ABLE TO GO ON A SITE VISIT TO H. ALLEN HIGHT, AND IT WAS A GREAT MORNING.
I WENT TO SEVERAL CLASSROOMS. I ALWAYS HAVE SO MUCH FUN SEEING THE KIDS.
ONE OF THE LITTLE GIRLS WAS WORKING ON A BUILDING THINKING CLASSROOM MATH STRATEGY, AND SHE SAID, "CAN I SHOW YOU WHAT I'M DOING?" I SAID, "ABSOLUTELY." SHE TOOK ME BY THE HAND AND WALKED ME ACROSS THE CLASSROOM TO HER CHART WHERE HER GROUP WAS WORKING AND WAS EXPLAINING HER THINKING AND STRATEGIES THAT SHE WAS DOING.
IN SEVERAL OF THE CLASSROOMS, I SAW THE TEACHERS USING THE EARLY LITERACY STRATEGIES, AND IT WAS SO GREAT TO SEE THE KIDS.
YOU COULD TELL THEY WERE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE ROUTINES AND FOLLOWING THEM.
KUDOS TO THE STAFF OUT AT H. ALLEN HIGHT THAT ARE WORKING REALLY HARD OUT THERE.
WE HAD OUR FIRST SUPERINTENDENT'S PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING.
I WANT TO THANK BOTH THE ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY GROUPS.
THEY WERE PARENTS WHO OFFERED VERY INSIGHTFUL FEEDBACK, BOTH CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM AND KUDOS.
THESE PARENTS HAVE A VESTED INTEREST IN PARTNERING TO MAKE OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT THE BEST THEY CAN BE, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO A GREAT YEAR WITH THEM.
ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS IS I GOT TO GO TO OUR FIRST STUDENT VOICES MEETING, WHICH HAS STUDENTS FROM ALL OF OUR HIGH SCHOOLS, AND THANK YOU TO OUR CAFE TEAM THAT ORGANIZES THAT.
IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, BECAUSE WE GET TO HEAR DIRECTLY FROM OUR STUDENTS, THE THINGS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THEM.
THEY HELP SHARE INFORMATION WITH OUR EIGHTH GRADERS ABOUT WHAT TO EXPECT IN HIGH SCHOOL AND HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF IT.
AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, I ALWAYS HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THEM AND I ASK THEM, "WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT WE DO REALLY WELL AND YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE WE KEEP DOING THEM AND NOT STOPPING?" I ASKED THEM, "WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE COULD DO BETTER TO MAKE YOUR SCHOOL EXPERIENCES BETTER?" THEN I ASKED THEM, "WHAT COOL EVENTS ARE HAPPENING THAT I SHOULD BE SURE NOT TO MISS?" THEN I WRITE THOSE DOWN.
SO I WAS HEARING THERE WAS A MUSICAL COMING UP AND SOME ATHLETIC EVENTS.
IT WAS REALLY FUN TO TALK TO THE KIDS AND JUST GROUND IN THE WORK THAT WE DO EVERY DAY, AND THIS IS WHY WE DO IT IS FOR OUR STUDENTS. REALLY ENJOYED THAT.
I MET WITH NTA LEADERSHIP THIS WEEK.
THEN THIS MORNING, WE HAD OUR DISTRICT LEADERSHIP MEETING, WHICH WAS VERY ENJOYABLE.
WE HAD A LARGE GROUP IN HERE, AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WILDLY IMPORTANT GOALS AND REALLY FOCUSING ON WHAT'S IMPORTANT IN THE DISTRICT AND NOT ONLY PLANNING A STRATEGY, BUT HAVING A WAY TO EXECUTE THAT STRATEGY.
FINALLY, TOMORROW IS OUR EIGHTH GRADE CTE SHOWCASE.
LOOKING FORWARD TO OUR EIGHTH GRADERS GETTING TO ATTEND THIS EVENT TO SEE WHAT CTE OPPORTUNITIES WE HAVE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL, AND IT'S ALWAYS A GREAT EVENT.
THAT IS MY REPORT FOR TONIGHT.
>> THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT, AND I APPRECIATE THE UPLIFTING COMMENTS, THEY'RE MAKING ME NOSTALGIC.
I REMEMBER WHEN WE PASSED THE FIRST SAFE HAVEN RESOLUTION IN THIS DISTRICT,
[00:30:04]
AND WE WERE ONE OF THE EARLY DISTRICTS TO ADOPT, NOT JUST IN THE AREA, BUT IN THE STATE. THANK YOU FOR THAT.IT'S NICE TO SEE THE STATE RECOGNIZING THAT AS WELL.
WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR NOW.
[XIII. CONSENT ITEMS]
I BELIEVE WE HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THE CONSENT CALENDAR.AS A REMINDER, PUBLIC COMMENTS MUST BE ON THE SPECIFIC AGENDA ITEM.
SO WE HAVE FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE CERTIFICATIONS OF SIGNATURES, AMANDA HADAJI.
APOLOGIES IF I SAID IT INCORRECTLY. HOPEFUL I GOT IT.
EXCELLENT. YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES.
HELEN, WE'LL START THE CLOCK AS SOON AS YOU START.
>> THANK YOU. HELLO, EVERYBODY.
I JUST HAD A COMMENT TO BRING SOME THOUGHTS TO MIND.
I SAW THAT WE WERE GIVING CONSENT ITEMS FOR SIGNATURES TO SPEND MONEY ON BEHALF OF THE DISTRICT, AND I JUST WANTED TO ASK IF THOSE ASSIGNEES THAT WE ARE CONSENTING TO HAVE A DIRECT UNDERSTANDING OF SITES AND CLASSROOM NEEDS? DO THEY KNOW THE STUDENTS? DO THEY KNOW THE TEACHERS? ARE THEY COMMUNICATING RECIPROCALLY WITH THE PEOPLE WHO BEAR THE BURDEN OF THE CHOICES WHERE THE FINANCES ARE GOING, AND ARE THEY IN CONTACT MONTHLY, QUARTERLY, ANNUALLY? IS THE RIGHT HAND TALKING TO THE LEFT? THAT'S FINE. THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS FOR THAT ONE.
>> THANK YOU SO MUCH. BEING NO OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR?
>> TRUSTEE HARDEN, SECONDED BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.
[XIV.a. Early Literacy Initiative Update with Context Slides]
MOVING ON TO ITEM 14, BOARD REPORT: EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE UPDATE.WE HAVE TWO PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM.
SO WE'LL DO THE PUBLIC COMMENTS BEFORE A BRIEF PRESENTATION.
FIRST, WE HAVE JENNIFER SUSA. AMANDA, YOU'RE NEXT.
>> GOOD EVENING, TRUSTEES AND NEIGHBORS, SHANA TOVA.
I'M SO GLAD TO BE HERE TO SPEAK TO YOU TONIGHT ABOUT THE EARLY LEARNING INITIATIVE.
MY BIGGEST CONCERN IS THIS STILL IS NOT BEING EXTENDED TO OUR CHILDREN IN SDC CLASSROOMS. JUST BECAUSE A CHILD IS SEVERELY DISABLED, IT DOESN'T MEAN THEY CAN'T LEARN TO READ.
IN FACT, THERE ARE SOME CHILDREN IN OUR SDC CLASSES WHO ARE READING BEYOND THE LEVEL OF THE GRADE THAT THEY'RE AT.
THE TOSA MODEL IS REALLY A FAILED MODEL, AND IT HAS BEEN FOR A VERY LONG TIME.
ON PAPER, IT LOOKS PROMISING, BUT IN PRACTICE, EACH TOSA IS RESPONSIBLE FOR SERVING AND TRAINING TEACHERS TO OVER 750 STUDENTS.
NO MATTER HOW SKILLED THEY ARE, THE RATIO MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO DELIVER CONSISTENT, INDIVIDUALIZED, AND EVIDENCE-BASED READING INSTRUCTION THAT THE CHILDREN ACTUALLY NEED.
AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS CONTINUE TO HAVE THE LOWEST LITERACY ACHIEVEMENT IN THIS DISTRICT, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE THE HIGHEST RATE OF ABSENTEEISM, SUSPENSIONS, AND EXPULSIONS.
I DON'T SEE ANY EVIDENCE IN THIS REPORT, AS I READ IT FRIDAY AFTERNOON OF INCLUSIVE AND EQUITABLE PRACTICES THAT DIRECTLY ADDRESS THE [INAUDIBLE] OUR AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS FACE.
WITHOUT EQUITY AT THE CENTER, THE LITERACY GAP WILL PERSIST.
IT HAS ONLY GOTTEN WORSE OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS.
I HEARD COMMENTS TONIGHT ABOUT BEING KIND AND THINKING ABOUT YOUR END GOAL.
MY END GOAL IS TO SERVE ALL CHILDREN IN NATOMAS UNIFIED WITH RESPECT AND DIGNITY, WITH EQUITY AND INCLUSION.
IF WE'RE SERIOUS ABOUT READING SUCCESS, WE NEED SUPPLEMENTAL TEACHERS AND NOT TOSA'S.
WE NEED SMALLER CASELOADS FOR THE STUDENTS THAT NEED TO BE EDUCATED ONE-ON-ONE OR IN SMALL GROUP.
WE NEED EDUCATORS THAT CAN BE EMBEDDED IN CLASSROOMS WORKING WITH STUDENTS, NOT TRAINING TEACHERS.
THIS INITIATIVE RISKS BEING ANOTHER GLOSSY PLAN THAT LOOKS GOOD IN PRESENTATIONS AND THAT COMMUNICATES TOXIC POSITIVITY TO BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE UNAWARE OF WHAT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING IN THE DISTRICT.
>> HELLO AGAIN. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, I AM AN SDC TEACHER AT NATOMAS PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
I READ THE AGENDA, AND I JUST FELT UNAPPRECIATED WHEN IT SAID HOW EXCITED WE ARE THAT ALL K-2 TEACHERS RECEIVED ALL OF THEIR MANIPULATIVES AND ARE AT THE END OF PHASE 1.
I HAVEN'T RECEIVED ANY MANIPULATIVES.
[00:35:02]
I WAS TOLD TO ASK A GENE TEACHER IF I COULD PEEK IN WHILE THEY'RE GETTING COACHING AS MY COACHING.I HAVE A STUDENT THAT I DID THE DIBELS ON TODAY.
ONE OF THE FEW WHO CAN ACTUALLY ACCESS THAT, BUT I'M MANDATED TO DO ALL OF THEM.
HE SCORED ABOVE GRADE LEVEL IN HIS DIBELS.
I CAN'T PROVIDE THE SAME INSTRUCTION THAT THE OTHER KIDS ARE GETTING BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION EITHER.
I AM FRUSTRATED WITH DIBELS BECAUSE IT'S NOT ACCESSIBLE TO NON VERBAL STUDENTS.
HALF OF MY STUDENTS EITHER DON'T SPEAK AT ALL, OR THEY HAVE TO USE AAC COMMUNICATORS, OR THEY ARE ONLY ABLE TO COMMUNICATE WITH GESTURES.
THEY CAN ONLY RESPOND RECEPTIVELY, MEANING WHICH ONE IS A, WHICH ONE IS B. YOU TOUCH IT.
DIBELS DOESN'T WORK WITH THOSE.
I HAVE TO PRAY AND HOPE THAT THEIR PARENTS ARE GOING TO EXEMPT THEM FROM THIS TEST.
BUT I'M NOT GOING TO CALL THEM AND BE LIKE, LISTEN, YOUR KID CAN'T ACCESS THIS BECAUSE THAT'S NOT WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO BE DOING.
HEY, DO YOU GUYS WANT TO EXEMPT THEM OR NOT.
HERE I AM TWO DAYS LEFT, AND THEY'RE LIKE, HEY, YOU HAVE TO FINISH THIS.
MY STUDENTS LITERALLY SIT DOWN AND CAN'T LOOK AT IT, LET ALONE ACCESS IT.
I IMAGINE IT'S NOT ACCESSIBLE TO MANY ENGLISH LEARNERS, AND AS A PERSON WITH ADHD, I COULDN'T HAVE ACCESSED IT BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY ON THERE.
>> WITH THAT, I WILL ASK ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT, TONYA GERALD FOR WHAT I UNDERSTAND, IS A BRIEF PRESENTATION WITH SOME CONTEXT SLIDES.
>> AGAIN, THE FULL REPORT IS AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE.
>> THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT CASTILLO, BOARD OF TRUSTEES, BOARD AND COMMUNITY.
I'M REALLY HAPPY TO BE HERE TONIGHT, BUT IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE SOME OF THE EARLY LITERACY TEAM WHO'S HERE AND DOING HARD WORK.
I WANT TO CALL OUT OUR DIRECTOR AMANDA GARCIA AND OUR COORDINATOR KRISTEN MARTIN. [INAUDIBLE]
>> TONYA CAN YOU MAKE SURE TO USE THE MICROPHONE SO EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU. THANK YOU.
>> AMANDA GARCIA, YOU WANT TO JOIN ME UP HERE.
KRISTEN MARTIN, YOU WANT TO JUST STAND BRIEFLY AND BE RECOGNIZED FOR ALL OF YOUR EFFORTS. THANK YOU.
[APPLAUSE] THIS EVENING, WE'RE HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.
AS WE KNOW FROM RESEARCH, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE INTERVENE EARLY.
THE REASON WE'RE HERE THIS EVENING IS WE ARE CURRENTLY STILL IN CYCLE 1 OF THE FIVE CYCLES.
WE'LL BE BACK MANY TIMES THIS YEAR TO PROVIDE UPDATED DATA, AND WE'RE REALLY PLEASED TO BE HERE TONIGHT TO TALK ABOUT THE INITIAL WORK WE'RE DOING AND HOW THAT WORK HAS BEEN PUT TOGETHER.
LITERACY AND THE WORK DONE IN CLASSROOMS, OF COURSE, TOUCHES MANY GOALS.
OUR FOCUS THIS EVENING IS ON GOAL 1 AND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT.
TONIGHT, WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS WE WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.
WHAT ARE THE COMPONENTS? WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE COMPONENTS OF LITERACY, AND WE'LL DO A QUICK REMINDER ABOUT THOSE.
WE'LL DO A VERY BRIEF OVERVIEW OF SOME OF THE PD THAT'S BEEN PROVIDED.
WE'LL TALK ABOUT RESOURCES AND SUPPORTS.
WHAT DO THE TK-2 CLASSROOMS USE FOR SYSTEMATIC INSTRUCTION? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SOME OF THE MODELS AND HOW WE'RE TRYING TO PROVIDE A REPOSITORY OF RESOURCES FOR STAFF AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE WITH THE SUPPORT OF SOME OF THE TEACHERS IN OUR DISTRICT.
TALK ABOUT THE COACHING CYCLES, AND YOU SHOULD HAVE A LARGE MAP SHEET OR PLACEMAT OF THE COACHING CYCLES IN FRONT OF YOU.
WE LOOKED AT THAT PREVIOUSLY WHEN WE WERE DEVELOPING THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE, BUT WE'RE GOING TO GO OVER IT A LITTLE MORE IN DEPTH THIS EVENING.
WE'LL TALK ABOUT DIBBLES, OUR READING DIFFICULTIES SCREENER.
THAT'S ONE OF THE COMMON ASSESSMENTS WE USE AMONG OTHER COMMON ASSESSMENTS.
THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT ONE OF THE KEY COMPONENTS AND THE PARENT AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT, AND WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THOSE PIECES AND OUR COLLABORATION WITH FAMILIES AS WELL AS CAFE.
AN OVERVIEW OF EARLY LITERACY IS MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE GROUNDED IN THE CONTEXT OF WHAT THIS INITIATIVE IS REALLY ABOUT.
THIS IS FOCUSING ON HIGH QUALITY LITERACY INSTRUCTION TO OUR STUDENTS IN GRADES TK-2ND GRADE.
NOW, THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT WE AREN'T ATTENDING TO INTERVENTION IN OTHER GRADES AND OTHER TOOLS THAT WE'RE USING, OTHER WORK THAT WE'RE DOING AT SITES.
IT ALSO DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT LEAVES OUT PRESCHOOL.
FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE BEEN INVITED AND ARE PART OF WHAT
[00:40:03]
THE SDC PRESCHOOL AT HEIGHT IS WORKING ON IN THEIR ROOM RELATED TO EARLY LITERACY AS WELL.BUT IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT THIS WORK IS GROUNDED IN THE SCIENCE OF READING.
THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING IS PART OF A TEAM WITH MISS GARCIA, MISS MARTIN, AS WELL AS OUR TEACHERS ON SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT.
WE'RE ALSO PARTNERING WITH SACK COUNTY REDS AND THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE HAVE WORK FOR OUR TOSAS AS WELL, BECAUSE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE HIGHLY REFLECTIVE OF THEIR WORK AS WE MONITOR THEIR WORK, THE WAY WE'RE GOING TO MONITOR ASSESSMENTS.
WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT.
THIS IS A LONG TERM INVESTMENT.
LIKE I SAID, WE ARE CURRENTLY IN CYCLE 1 OF CYCLE 5.
BUT TONIGHT, WHAT WE'LL TALK ABOUT IS SOME PARTS OF OUR COMMON ASSESSMENTS, SOME PD, AND WHAT THE COACHING CYCLES LOOK LIKE.
JUST A REMINDER, WE'VE SEEN THIS A FEW TIMES TOGETHER, BUT THESE ARE THE COMPONENTS OF EARLY LITERACY.
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR HERE IS AN UNDERSTANDING OF THAT THERE ARE PILLARS, AND WE WILL COACH AROUND THOSE PILLARS AND PROVIDE INSTRUCTIONAL ROUTINES AND RESOURCES TO SUPPORT THE INSTRUCTION HERE.
WHAT WE'RE DOING INSIDE OF THIS MODEL IS SUPPORTING TEACHER CAPACITY, AS WELL AS ADDRESSING HOW DO WE INCREASE THE OVERALL INSTRUCTION AT ALL SITES TO BE SYSTEMATIC INSTRUCTION? THIS IS ABOUT VERY EXPLICIT AND INTENTIONAL INSTRUCTION.
THESE ARE THE PILLARS THAT WE ARE COACHING ON AND THAT WE'VE BUILT THOSE COACHING CYCLES IN FRONT OF YOU WITH THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE.
AMANDA'S GOING TO JUMP IN AND TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE EARLY LITERACY PD THAT STARTED.
BUT JUST AS A QUICK REMINDER, WE ARE CURRENTLY IN CYCLE 1, SO MUCH MORE TO COME THROUGH ALL THE CYCLES, AS WELL AS OUR STAFF DEVELOPMENT EARLY RELEASE DAYS COMING IN OCTOBER, OUR PD DAY IN NOVEMBER, AND MORE TO COME. GO AHEAD, AMANDA.
>> AS WE TALKED ABOUT, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR TEACHERS IS A KEY COMPONENT OF THIS EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.
BUT PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR EARLY LITERACY TOSAS AND SITE ADMINISTRATORS AND DISTRICT LEADERS WHO ARE LEADING THIS EARLY LITERACY WORK IS ALSO PART OF THIS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENT.
WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS REVIEW SOME OF THE COACHING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THAT IS IN PLACE FOR THOSE EARLY LITERACY TOSAS TO BUILD OUR INTERNAL COACHING CAPACITY IN ORDER TO SUSTAIN OUR EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE OVER TIME.
IN THE SUMMER, THE EARLY LITERACY TOSAS, SOME SITE ADMINISTRATORS AT OUR EARLY LITERACY MODEL SITES, AS WELL AS SOME DISTRICT LEADERS LEADING THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE ATTENDED THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE.
AT THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE, WE REALLY WENT OVER THE SCIENCE OF READING AND INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES THAT SUPPORT EARLY LITERACY INSTRUCTION FOR OUR EARLIEST LEARNERS.
THE LEARNING FROM THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE WAS USED TO CREATE THESE COACHING CYCLES, AS WELL AS DEVELOP THE MODEL CLASSROOMS. IN ADDITION TO THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE, THE TOSAS, COORDINATOR, AND SOME DISTRICT LEADERS ARE PARTICIPATING IN A YEAR LONG COHORT WITH THE SACRAMENTO COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION.
IN THIS COHORT, IT IS APPLICATION OF THE SCIENCE OF READING RESEARCH, BUT IT ALSO PROVIDES OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO COLLABORATE WITH EARLY LITERACY COACHES IN OTHER DISTRICTS WITHIN OUR AREA.
THIS COHORT ACTUALLY MEETS ONCE PER MONTH.
THERE'S A PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ELEMENT INCLUDED AS WELL AS THAT COLLABORATION PIECE THAT'S EMBEDDED WITHIN THAT EARLY LITERACY COHORT.
THEN LEVERAGE LEARNING IS WORKING WITH OUR EARLY LITERACY TOSAS ON SCHOOL SITE CAMPUSES.
LEVERAGE LEARNING IS PROVIDING THAT ONE ON ONE COACHING FOR THE TOSAS.
THEY'RE GOING IN, THEY'RE OBSERVING THE COACHING AND THE CO TEACHING THAT'S TAKING PLACE IN THE CLASSROOM.
THEN THEY'RE PROVIDING FEEDBACK TO THE TOSA ON WHAT ARE THEIR NEXT STEPS TO GROW AS AN EARLY LITERACY COACH.
BUT ALSO WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TO HAVE COACHING CONVERSATIONS, AND WHAT DOES A SUSTAINABLE CO TEACHING MODEL LOOK LIKE? IN ADDITION TO PROVIDING THAT IN CLASSROOM COACHING, LEVERAGE LEARNING IS ALSO GOING TO BE PROVIDING SUPPORT DURING TOSA COLLABORATION WEEKS AND PROVIDING FEEDBACK ON THE COACHING CYCLES, AND WHAT OUR NEXT STEPS NEED TO BE IN PROVIDING THAT SUPPORT FOR TEACHERS WITHIN THE CLASSROOM AS WE MOVE THROUGH THE CYCLES.
>> SOMETHING THAT THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE AND SACK COUNTY REDS HAVE REALLY BEEN CLEAR ABOUT IS THAT THE GREATEST GROWTH AND MOVEMENT HAPPENS IN THOSE CO TEACHING CYCLES.
IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT SO THAT PEOPLE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRACTICE WITH THEIR STUDENTS INSIDE OF THE INSTRUCTIONAL ROUTINES.
THERE IS ALSO THAT PRACTICE GOING ON WITH OUR TOSA.
SOME OF OUR TEACHERS HAVE COLLABORATED,
[00:45:01]
AND OUR TOSAS WILL THEN BE DOING A LESSON STUDY WHERE THEY'RE DOING THE LESSON IN FRONT OF THE CLASSROOM AND GETTING FEEDBACK FROM THE OTHER TOSAS, BECAUSE WE WANT THEM TO BE HIGHLY REFLECTIVE OF THEIR OWN PRACTICES AS COACHES AS WELL.>> AUGUST 12 PRE-SERVICE DAY WAS DEDICATED TO EARLY LITERACY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL OF OUR TK-2 TEACHERS IN ADDITION TO OUR TK INSTRUCTIONAL AIDS.
NOW, ANY TEACHERS IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH SECOND GRADE AND KINDERGARTEN AIDES WHO HAD NOT ATTENDED A DIBELS TRAINING, THEY WERE PROVIDED A DIBELS TRAINING ON AUGUST 12TH.
IN THIS EARLY LITERACY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR TEACHERS FOR PRE SERVICE, WE REALLY FOCUSED ON THE SCIENCE OF READING RESEARCH.
A LOT OF THAT LEARNING THAT WE GOT FROM THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE WAS SHARED WITH OUR TEACHERS IN THIS PD SESSION.
WE ALSO REVIEWED THE ESSENTIAL LITERACY PILLARS.
THAT'S THE PHONEMIC AWARENESS, PHONICS, FLUENCY, COMPREHENSION, AND VOCABULARY.
THE TEACHERS HAD AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT EACH OF THESE PILLARS ARE AND WHAT REINFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES FOR EACH OF THESE PILLARS LOOK LIKE.
THOSE REINFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES WERE MODELED FOR TEACHERS IN THIS PD DAY.
IN ADDITION, THE TOSAS AND OUR EARLY LITERACY COORDINATOR REVIEWED THE COACHING CYCLES WITH THE TEACHERS TO GIVE THEM AN IDEA ON WHAT TO EXPECT AND REALLY WHAT A CO TEACHING MODEL FOR THESE CYCLES WAS GOING TO LOOK LIKE.
THEY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO PLAN IN THE AFTERNOON WITH THEIR TOSAS FOR THESE COACHING CYCLES.
THEN TOSAS AND THE COORDINATOR SHARED A LITERACY RESOURCE BANK WITH TEACHERS.
THIS INCLUDED RESOURCES FOR SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS THAT THEY'RE USING ON THEIR CAMPUS.
THIS INCLUDES UFLI OR HEGGERTY BRIDGE TO READING.
THEN REVIEWING WHAT LITERACY INSTRUCTION METRICS SHOULD LOOK LIKE.
>> LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE RESOURCES AND SUPPORTS.
AMANDA, DO YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE ADDITIONAL MATERIALS?
>> YES. MATERIALS TO SUPPORT EARLY LITERACY INSTRUCTION HAVE BEEN PURCHASED FOR ALL TK-2 CLASSROOMS, AND A MAJORITY OF THE MATERIALS THAT HAVE ARRIVED HAVE ALREADY BEEN DELIVERED.
WE DO HAVE SOME MATERIALS THAT WE'RE STILL WAITING TO BE RECEIVED GIVEN THE QUANTITY OF THE MATERIALS THAT WE ORDERED.
WE HAVE TEACHERS TRACKING THIS UP UNTIL SEPTEMBER 26TH.
THEY'LL PROVIDE THE LIST TO US OF WHAT THEY'RE STILL MISSING, AND THEN WE'LL BE ABLE TO SUPPLY WHATEVER MATERIALS HAD NOT BEEN DELIVERED TO THEM YET.
WE HAVE ALSO PLACED AN ORDER FOR EARLY LITERACY MATERIALS FOR SDC AND RSP TEACHERS, AND WE DO EXPECT THOSE MATERIALS TO START ARRIVING WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS.
THE MATERIALS THAT ARE INCLUDED THAT WE HAVE PURCHASED, CULTURAL RESPONSIVE BOOKS TO REALLY BUILD THOSE CLASSROOM LIBRARIES AND PROVIDE A LOT OF CHOICES FOR TEACHERS WHEN TEACHING INTERACTIVE READ ALOUDS, ALPHABET TILES AND MAGNETS THAT THEY CAN USE DIRECTLY WITH THE HEGGERTY BRIDGE TO READING OR THE UFLI.
COMPOSITION WRITING BOOKS, PRIMARY JOURNALS, LEVELED READING BOOKS, PHONICS GAMES, AND PUZZLES.
REALLY A LOT OF THESE MATERIALS ARE INTENDED FOR TEACHERS TO BE ABLE TO CREATE A MORE LITERACY RICH CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT.
THESE MATERIALS CAN BE USED IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
THEY CAN BE USED TO CREATE LITERACY STATIONS IN THEIR CLASSROOM FOR SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION.
THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS THAT THESE MATERIALS CAN BE USED WITHIN THE CLASSROOM.
IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT WE DID ORDER SPECIFIC MATERIALS THAT SUPPORT EARLY LITERACY INSTRUCTION IN A DUAL IMMERSION MODEL FOR HAS, AND THE LAST OF THOSE MATERIALS WERE DELIVERED TO HAS TODAY.
>> IN ADDITION TO RESOURCES LIKE THE LEVELED READERS, DECODABLES, WHITE BOARDS, WE ALSO WANT LEARNING SPACES WHERE PARTICULARLY NEW TEACHERS CAN GO AND LOOK AT WHAT DOES IT REALLY LOOK LIKE TO HAVE AN EARLY LITERACY MODEL CLASSROOM.
WHY WOULD WE WANT TO DO THAT? WELL, ONE OF THE PIECES IS, WHAT IS THE EXPERIENCE THAT A STUDENT HAS IN A PRINT RICH ENVIRONMENT? WHAT DO OUR EARLIEST AND EMERGING READERS NEED INSIDE THEIR SPACES? WHAT WE ARE DOING IS BUILDING OUT SOMETHING CALLED OUR KNOWLEDGE BASE, WHICH IS LIKE A REPOSITORY OR A WEBSITE.
ONE OF THE TYPES OF TOOLS THAT WILL BE POSTED THERE ARE VIEWS OF THE EARLY LITERACY MODEL CLASSROOM.
THIS IS A STILL OF WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF YOU TOOK A PICTURE, BUT WE HAVE A TOOL WHERE WHEN YOU GO INTO
[00:50:02]
THIS TEACHER'S CLASSROOM AND YOU LOOK THIS UP ON OUR WEBSITE, YOU CAN GO A COMPLETE 360 OF THE ROOM AND SCAN, AND THEN YOU CAN CLICK ON THESE INTERACTIVE FEATURES, AND THEY'LL OPEN UP AND HELP YOU UNDERSTAND, WELL, I DON'T HAVE SOMETHING IN MY ROOM THAT IS A LEARNING EXPERIENCE CHART.WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE? WHY WOULD I USE IT? ONE OF THE PIECES THAT WE WANT ALL OF OUR ROOMS TO HAVE IS OVER HERE? THIS WOULD BE CALLED THE SOUND WALL.
I DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS.
YOU CAN LOOK AT A SOUND WALL, YOU CAN SEE SOME MORE EXAMPLES, AND YOU CAN GET THE FEEL FOR WHAT MODEL CLASSROOMS LOOK LIKE.
THEN WE'RE ALSO WORKING TO HOLD SOME OF OUR PD SESSIONS FOR TEACHERS AND SOME OF OUR COACHING CYCLES INSIDE MODEL CLASSROOMS. I JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU SOME OF THE TYPES OF RESOURCES THAT WE'RE PROVIDING.
>> TURN IT OFF AND ON. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY TO BOTHER YOU.
>> LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE COACHING CYCLES.
YOU HAVE THE LARGER PRINTOUT, SO YOU CAN SEE WHAT THOSE CYCLES LOOK LIKE, AND AS A REMINDER, WE ARE JUST COMING TO THE END OF CYCLE 1 CURRENTLY.
BUT AMANDA TO TALK TO YOU ALE BIT ABOUT THE CYCLES AND WHY THEY'RE A GRADUAL RELEASE MODEL.
>> ALL TK-2 TEACHERS ARE RECEIVING COACHING FROM TOSAS ON EACH PILLAR OF LITERACY, AND RSP AND SDC TEACHERS CAN PARTNER WITH A GEN ED TEACHER AT THEIR SITE, OBSERVE THE TOSA WHEN THEY'RE MODELING THAT LESSON, AND THEY CAN CO TEACH THAT LESSON WITH THE GEN ED TEACHER THAT THEY HAVE CHOSEN AT THEIR SCHOOL SITE.
EACH CYCLE IS SIX WEEKS IN LENGTH, AND IT FOCUSES ON 1-2 OF THE LITERACY PILLARS.
THEN IT ALSO FOCUSES ON A SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONAL ROUTINE.
IT'S THE SAME INSTRUCTIONAL ROUTINE ACROSS ALL SCHOOL SITES, BUT IT VARIES SLIGHTLY BY GRADE LEVEL TK-2.
THEN ALL OF THE SUPPLIES THAT ARE NEEDED FOR THESE COACHING CYCLES ARE PROVIDED TO TEACHERS.
HOW THIS COACHING MODEL WORKS? IS THE FIRST TWO WEEKS.
THE TEACHER IS JUST OBSERVING THE TOSA.
THE TOSA IS TEACHING 100% OF THE LESSON, AND THE TEACHER IS THERE TO WATCH, TAKE NOTES, OBSERVE, THINK ABOUT ANY QUESTIONS THAT THEY HAVE BEFORE THEY PREPARE FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF THE CYCLE.
IN WEEKS 3 AND 4, THE TOSAS AND THE TEACHERS ARE ACTUALLY CO TEACHING THE LESSON.
THE TOSA WILL TEACH PART OF THE LESSON, THE TEACHER WILL TEACH THE OTHER PART, AND IT COULD LOOK DIFFERENT DEPENDING ON THE CLASSROOM.
MAYBE THE TOSA DOES THE FIRST HALF, THE TEACHER DOES THE SECOND HALF, OR MAYBE THEY'RE GOING BACK AND FORTH THROUGHOUT THE LESSON.
IT REALLY DEPENDS ON WHAT MODEL WORKS BEST FOR THE TEACHER AND WHERE THEY FEEL THEY NEED THE MOST SUPPORT WITH IMPLEMENTING THIS INSTRUCTIONAL ROUTINE.
IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS OF THE CYCLE, TEACHERS WILL ACTUALLY TEACH THE LESSON, AND THE TOSA WILL BE IN THERE TO OBSERVE AND PROVIDE FEEDBACK.
THAT COULD BE FEEDBACK IN REAL TIME.
MAYBE IF A TEACHER NEEDS A LITTLE BIT OF SUPPORT DURING THE LESSON, THE TOSA COULD PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF THAT CO TEACHING IN THE MOMENT, OR MAYBE IT'S JUST PROVIDING FEEDBACK AFTER THE LESSON.
AGAIN, THAT'S FLEXIBLE DEPENDING ON THE NEED OF THE TEACHER, AND HOW THEY HAVE WORKED OUT THE PLANNING FOR THAT CYCLE.
THIS IS AN OVERVIEW OF ALL FIVE CYCLES.
YOU CAN SEE IT'S BROKEN DOWN BY GRADE LEVEL AND EACH GRADE LEVEL FOCUSES ON 1-2 SPECIFIC LITERACY PILLARS PER CYCLE.
WE WILL FINISH CYCLE 1 THIS WEEK ON SEPTEMBER 26, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT A MAJORITY OF THE GRADE LEVELS ARE FOCUSING ON PHONEMIC AWARENESS AND PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS IN CYCLE 1.
THAT'S BECAUSE IN THOSE EARLY GRADES, WE REALLY WANT TO START WITH THOSE FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY SKILLS, AND THEN YOU CAN SEE AS WE GO ON THROUGH THE CYCLES, SOME OF THEM ARE COMBINED LIKE VOCABULARY AND COMPREHENSION, FOR EXAMPLE.
THESE ARE LITERACY PILLARS THAT CAN OFTEN BE TAUGHT TOGETHER, AND SO YOU'LL SEE THAT SOME OF THOSE ARE COMBINED AS WE GO THROUGH THE CYCLES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
>> DIBELS IS OUR READING DIFFICULTY SCREENER.
WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT WHEN WE PROVIDED CONTEXT ABOUT HAVING COMMON ASSESSMENTS.
THIS IS ONE OF THE COMMON ASSESSMENTS.
THERE ARE ALSO EMBEDDED ASSESSMENTS IN THE PROGRAMS THAT OUR TEACHERS ARE USING, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU FLY, AND TRUSTEE MEHTA HAD AN OPPORTUNITY, FOR EXAMPLE, LAST WEEK TO SEE A YOU FLY ASSESSMENT,
[00:55:01]
WHERE THE STUDENTS WERE WORKING ON THE PILLAR OF PHONEMIC AWARENESS, BUT STARTING TO ASSESS ON THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF THAT PHONEMIC AWARENESS AND MOVE INTO THE ASSESSMENT, AND THAT IS IN ALL OF THE PROGRAMS. BUT TONIGHT, WE JUST WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT DIBELS AND WHAT THE WINDOWS WILL BE FOR DIBELS, AND THEN A LITTLE BIT OF A PREVIEW BECAUSE WE'LL BE BACK WITH MORE DIBELS DATA OF WHAT INFORMATION FAMILIES WILL GET BASED ON THE SCREEN.>> THE SCREENER IS ADMINISTERED THREE TIMES PER YEAR IN KINDERGARTEN, 1ST GRADE, AND 2ND GRADE.
FAMILIES DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO OPT OUT OF THE SCREENER IF THEY CHOOSE, AND THEY DID RECEIVE A LETTER BEFORE THE TESTING WINDOW OPENED LETTING THEM KNOW THAT THEY HAD THE OPTION TO OPT OUT.
AS OF RIGHT NOW, LESS THAN 1% OF FAMILIES HAVE CHOSEN TO OPT OUT OF THE READING SCREENER.
CURRENTLY, WE HAVE SIX OPT OUT FORMS THAT HAVE BEEN TURNED IN AND ARE ON FILE.
THE WINDOWS FOR THE ASSESSMENT, AS WE SAID EARLIER, THIS WINDOW IS SEPTEMBER 8 TO SEPTEMBER 26.
WE WILL BE FINISHING UP TESTING FOR WINDOW 1 AT THE END OF THIS WEEK.
OUR NEXT WINDOW WILL BE MID YEAR, SO IT WILL OPEN FEBRUARY 10 AND RUN THROUGH FEBRUARY 27, AND THEN OUR END OF YEAR DIBELS ASSESSMENT WILL BE APRIL 27 TO MAY 15.
>> ONE OF THE PIECES THAT YOU'LL SEE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS AFTER THE FIRST WINDOW IS HOW WE'RE USING THAT DATA TO SET OUR TARGETS.
WHAT IS IT THAT WE WANT TO SEE AS A GROWTH TARGET ON OUR DIBELS ASSESSMENT? THAT'LL BE SOMETHING THAT WE LOOK AT AS WE MOVE ACROSS THE YEAR.
>> THIS SLIDE JUST GIVES YOU AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE DIBELS ASSESSMENT LOOKS LIKE.
THERE ARE SIX DIFFERENT SUB TESTS, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT NOT EVERY SUB TEST IS GIVEN AT EACH GRADE LEVEL.
YOU'LL SEE THAT THE FIRST FOUR SUB TESTS ARE GIVEN IN KINDERGARTEN, BUT THE LAST TWO ARE NOT GIVEN IN KINDERGARTEN BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT AT THAT LEVEL YET, WHERE WE'RE GOING TO REALLY START TESTING THEIR READING COMPREHENSION FOR A READING DIFFICULTY SCREENER.
THEN PARENTS WILL RECEIVE A REPORT WITH STUDENT RESULTS WITHIN 45 DAYS OF THE SCREENER.
THIS IS A SCREENSHOT OF WHAT THE PARENT REPORT LOOKS LIKE IN THE IN-CLASS PLATFORM.
AN IN-CLASS IS THAT ONLINE PLATFORM WHERE TEACHERS ARE GIVING THE DIBELS ASSESSMENT, AND ALL OF THE PARENT LETTERS AND STUDENT DATA IS HOUSED.
THE REPORT WILL PROVIDE FOR FAMILIES AND OVERVIEW AND SKILLS REVIEW, AS WELL AS ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES FOR STUDENTS IN ORDER TO SUPPORT THEIR LEARNING IN THAT SPECIFIC AREA.
AMPLIFY, WHICH IS OUR PARTNER WHO CREATES DIBELS, THEY HAVE ACTUALLY CREATED A PAGE FOR PARENTS.
AFTER THEY GET THEIR DIBELS RESULTS, THEY CAN GO TO THIS PAGE WITH AMPLIFY AND IT WILL GIVE THEM VERY SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES THAT THEY CAN DO AT HOME TO SUPPORT STUDENTS IN AREAS WHERE THEY MAY HAVE SCORED LOWER.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE REPORT SHOWS THAT STUDENTS NEED EXTRA SUPPORT AND PHONICS, THERE ARE 47 DIFFERENT PHONICS ACTIVITIES THAT FAMILIES CAN DO AT HOME WITH THEIR STUDENTS.
THAT RESOURCE, ALONG WITH OTHER FAMILY RESOURCES TO SUPPORT EARLY LITERACY DEVELOPMENT AT HOME IS LINKED IN OUR FAMILY TOOLKIT ON THE NUSD WEBSITE.
>> I DO WANT TO CALL OUT A SPECIAL THANKS TO DIEDRE AND CAFE BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN REALLY GOOD PARTNERS FOR US, PARTICULARLY KRISTIN AND AMANDA ON DEVELOPING OUR FAMILY TOOLKIT, AND WHAT OUR WEB PAGE WILL OFFER IN THE RESOURCES, AND YOU'LL GET TO SEE A LITTLE PREVIEW OF THAT, BUT THANK YOU TO DIEDRE AND CAFE.
>> WHILE THIS REPORT IS GOING TO BE IMPORTANT FOR PARENTS, IT'S ALSO GOING TO BE IMPORTANT FOR OUR TEACHERS AS WELL.
TEACHERS WILL ANALYZE THE RESULTS OF THIS REPORT, AND THEY'LL BE ABLE TO USE THIS TO DIFFERENTIATE THEIR INSTRUCTION FOR DIFFERENTIATED SMALL GROUPS, BUT ALSO PLAN FOR TARGETED INTERVENTIONS.
THEN THIS REPORT WILL ACTUALLY BREAK OUT FOR TEACHERS, SPECIFIC FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY SKILLS THAT EACH STUDENT NEEDS EXTRA HELP WITH, AND THIS DATA WILL ALSO SUPPORT US WITH ONGOING PD AND COACHING WITH THE TOSAS, AND THEN THE MCLASS PLATFORM ACTUALLY PROVIDES ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS.
ONCE THEY SEE WHAT THEIR RESULTS ARE, IT WILL ACTUALLY GIVE THEM RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESOURCES THAT THEY COULD USE TO SUPPORT SPECIFIC GROUPS OF STUDENTS BASED ON WHAT THEIR DATA IS SHOWING THEM.
>> SOMETHING THAT I THINK IS REALLY IMPORTANT HERE IS THAT OUR SITE PRINCIPALS AND ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS ARE ALSO RECEIVING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COACHING ON THIS WORK FROM AMANDA AND KRISTIN AND ATOSIS.
[01:00:02]
FOR EXAMPLE, KRISTIN AND MARTIN LED A SESSION YESTERDAY WITH ALL OF OUR PRINCIPALS ABOUT HOW TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE AND WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TO LOOK FOR THESE CYCLES IN CLASSROOMS. THAT WILL BE ONGOING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COACHING OF OUR SITE ADMINISTRATORS AS WELL.I WANT TO TALK JUST A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PARENT AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT THIS EVENING.
WE KNOW THAT IT'S GOING TO BE REALLY CRITICAL THAT OUR FAMILIES ARE PARTNERS IN EARLY LITERACY.
WE HAVE A FEW RESOURCES WE WANT TO SHARE.
WITH THOSE RESOURCES, WE HAVE GUIDANCE FOR OUR FAMILIES ON HOW THEY CAN SUPPORT FOUNDATIONAL READING SKILLS AT HOME.
LIKE I TALKED ABOUT, WE HAVE A MONTHLY FEATURED BOOK SELECTION THAT OUR SITES RECEIVE AND DIEDRE PARTNERS WITH US ON THAT AS WELL AS KRISTIE CONNOR.
WE'RE MAKING THESE AVAILABLE IN OUR CLASSROOMS AND OUR PUBLIC LIBRARIES, AND THEN AMANDA PARTNERS WITH CAFE SO THAT THERE ARE TAKE HOME ACTIVITIES THAT PARENTS CAN USE TIED TO THOSE BOOKS, SO WHAT KINDS OF QUESTIONS CAN I ASK.
WHAT KIND OF GAMES CAN I PLAY BASED ON THE PILLARS AND THOSE BOOKS.
THOSE BOOKS ARE LINKED TO OUR WORK THROUGH E-2 AS WELL.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE BOOKS ARE VERY REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT OUR COMMUNITY AND STUDENTS LOOK LIKE AS WELL.
THEN I WANT TO SHOW AN ADDITIONAL PIECE.
IN ADDITION TO SOME OF THE ONLINE RESOURCES, THERE ARE OTHER HIGHLIGHTS LIKE WE JUST HAD KRINA TALAMANTAS READ A BOOK, AND WE SHARED THAT OUT, BUT WE ALSO HAVE STUDENTS INVOLVED.
HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF OUR MONTHLY READING TIP BY ONE OF OUR STUDENTS.
>> HI. MY NAME IS ANSHIKA, AND I'M A STUDENT AT THE NATOMAS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.
I'M BACK TO SHARE READING TIP NUMBER 5.
LET YOUR CHILDREN SEE YOU READING BOOKS, NEWSPAPERS, OR EVEN MAGAZINES.
>> AGAIN, THANKS TO DIEDRE AND HER TEAM FOR ENSURING THAT WE HAVE MULTIPLE WAYS THAT OUR FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY CAN ENGAGE WITH OUR RESOURCES.
OUR SCHOOLS WILL ALSO BE HOSTING ADDITIONAL LITERACY EVENTS FOR FAMILIES, AND THEN DIEDRE IS WORKING WITH CAFE ABOUT HOSTED AUTHORS NIGHTS AS WELL.
THAT CONCLUDES THE PRESENTATION FOR THIS EVENING, BUT AMANDA AND I ARE AVAILABLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS.
>> EXCELLENT. COLLEAGUES? QUESTIONS?
>> THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU FOR TAKING ME LAST FRIDAY.
I LOVED VISITING BOTH THE SCHOOLS.
TO OF US MS. AYER'S CLASS WAS MY FAVORITE BECAUSE THEY WERE KINDERGARTNERS.
MY QUESTION IS THAT WE HAVE THREE TOSAS RIGHT NOW.
>> ACTUALLY, RIGHT NOW IN EARLY LITERACY, WE HAVE FOUR BECAUSE MS. MARTIN ALSO SERVES AS A TOSA IN ADDITION TO THE OTHER THREE.
>> IF THE PROGRAM, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S GOING GREAT.
DO WE HAVE A PLAN TO INCREASE THE TOSAS, SO THAT THIS INITIATIVE CAN BE ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYBODY IN ALL THE SCHOOLS IN THE DISTRICT?
>> THAT'S A REALLY GOOD QUESTION.
RIGHT NOW, THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE IS IN ALL OF OUR TK-6, TK-8 SITES, AND IT IS SOMETHING THAT, OF COURSE, WE WILL MONITOR, JUST LIKE WE'RE GOING TO MONITOR THE STUDENT DATA AND THE PRINCIPAL COACHING AND THE ASSESSMENT, WE ARE DEFINITELY GOING TO MONITOR HOW OUR COACHES ARE DOING, WHAT IS THEIR WORKLOAD, WHAT IS THEIR EFFICACY, AND THAT WILL BE SOMETHING THAT WE MONITOR THROUGHOUT THIS YEAR, AND IT COULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE COME BACK TO YOU AND DISCUSS.
>> IS THERE A POSSIBILITY THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO USE OUR OWN TEACHERS TO WORK IN THIS INITIATIVE AS WELL?
>> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. ALL OF OUR TOSAS, IN FACT, I THINK YOU PROBABLY REMEMBER AT THE BOARD MEETING LAST MONTH RECOGNIZING SOME OF THEM AS THE TEACHERS OF THE YEAR AT THEIR SCHOOL SITES, BUT WE HAVE WAYS ALREADY THIS YEAR THAT WE'RE UTILIZING TEACHERS.
FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAD A TEACHER FROM ONE OF OUR SITES GO OVER TO ANOTHER SITE AND HELP A TEACHER SET UP THEIR ROOM SO THAT IT WAS A MODEL CLASSROOM.
WE'VE HAD TEACHERS THAT HAVE HOSTED PD IN THEIR ROOM AND HAD WALK THROUGHS IN THEIR ROOM SO THAT PEOPLE COULD LOOK AT THEIR INSTRUCTION AND LOOK AT THEIR CLASSROOM.
WE HAVE TEACHERS WHO WILL BE HOSTING OUR TOSAS WHEN THEY GO IN AND DO A LESSON STUDY TO CRITIQUE EACH OTHER'S LESSONS INSIDE THE ROOM.
WE'RE TRYING TO INCREASE STAFF CAPACITY IN A VARIETY OF WAYS.
[01:05:04]
>> THEN IT'S NOT RELATED TO THIS, BUT DO WE HAVE ANY DATA TO COMPARE THAT HOW WE ARE DOING IN OUR NEIGHBORING DISTRICT IN THE READING LEVEL?
WHEN WE SELECTED OUR READING SCREENER, THERE WERE FOUR OPTIONS IN CALIFORNIA.
REALLY, THERE WERE NOT A FULL FLOUR OPTIONS FOR NUSD BECAUSE ONE OF THEM WAS NOT AVAILABLE IN SPANISH.
AT THE TIME, ONE WAS STILL TESTING THEIR KINDERGARTEN, AND WE KNEW THAT WE WANTED TO OFFER IT ALL THE WAY FROM KINDER FIRST AND SECOND.
WE WILL BE ABLE TO LOOK AT OUR DATA AND COMPARE THE DATA TO THAT NORMED ASSESSMENT, BUT THERE MAY BE A NEIGHBORING DISTRICT THAT CHOSE A DIFFERENT READING SCREENER.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO COMPARE OUR GROWTH OVER TIME, AND THAT IS WHY THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE IS SO IMPORTANT THAT IT IS SUSTAINED BECAUSE WE ARE INTERVENING EARLY, AND WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IS MEASURE IT WITH SEVERAL ASSESSMENTS.
BUT REMEMBER THAT THESE STUDENTS DO NOT TAKE THE STATE CASE TEST.
>> A SECOND. ONE LAST QUESTION AND IT'S A PARENT QUESTION.
YOU WERE DISCUSSING THAT THE PARENTS WILL GET THE REPORT IN 45 DAYS.
HOW ABOUT THE PARENTS WHOSE FIRST LANGUAGE IS NOT ENGLISH? WOULD THE TEACHERS HELP THEM UNDERSTAND THAT HOW THE REPORT IS, WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, AND WHAT RESOURCES THEY CAN USE?
>> YEAH. THE NICE PART IS IS THAT THE REPORTS ARE AVAILABLE IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES, BUT WE ARE ENCLOSING OUR REPORT INSIDE OUR STUDENT SUCCESS GUIDE, WHICH IS AVAILABLE IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES AS WELL.
WE'RE NOT JUST SENDING HOME THE REPORT ON ITS OWN.
>> THANK YOU. I HAD SOME QUESTIONS THAT WERE SIMILAR, SO NOW I HAVE LESS QUESTIONS.
[LAUGHTER] LET ME FIRST START WITH A COMMENT THAT I APPRECIATE THE COORDINATED EFFORT THAT THIS IS, THE OPPORTUNITY IT PROVIDES FOR CONSISTENCY, AND SO I'M HOPING TO SEE HOW THAT YIELDS POSITIVE OUTCOMES.
I HAD HEARD FROM FROM A SITE LEADER, JUST HOW WELCOME IT WAS FOR THEM TO BE ABLE TO POINT TO THE INITIATIVE AND SAY, THIS IS WHY WE'RE DOING WHAT WE'RE DOING, AND THIS IS THE RATIONALE BEHIND IT.
I KNOW THAT IT'S WELCOME IN THAT SENSE FROM SOME OF THE FOLKS ACROSS THE DISTRICT.
ACTUALLY, I HAVE A FOLLOW UP QUESTION TO HOW MATERIALS THAT ARE SENT HOME WILL BE CULTURALLY AWARE AND HAVE CULTURAL COMPETENCY.
I JUST HEARD WHAT YOU HAD MENTIONED ABOUT REPORTS BEING IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES.
SOME OF THE FAMILY TOOLKITS AND OTHER KIND OF TANGIBLE HELPFUL MATERIALS, ARE THOSE ALSO GOING TO BE AVAILABLE IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES OR WHETHER THAT IS THE CASE OR NOT, WHAT OTHER EXAMPLES I JUST I HEARD YOU MENTION THE E-2 INITIATIVE.
WHAT OTHER EXAMPLES ARE THERE WHERE THAT TIES INTO THAT AND THERE'S AN ABILITY FOR FAMILIES FROM DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS TO DO THOSE ACTIVITIES AT HOME?
>> THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. THE WORK THAT WE ARE PARTNERING WITH WITH CAFE, WE'RE MAKING SURE THAT THE BOOKS THAT WE'RE CHOOSING FOR CLASSROOM AND SCHOOL LIBRARIES ARE IN LINE WITH HOW WE'VE BEEN SELECTING OUR REPRESENTATIVE MATERIALS.
WE FEEL REALLY LUCKY TO WORK IN A DISTRICT THAT CONTINUES TO SUPPORT THE EQUITY AND INCLUSION THROUGH MATERIALS.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, I WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE ALSO AWARE THAT EVEN THOUGH WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AN ELA INSTRUCTIONAL BLOCK HERE.
>> WE ARE WORKING WITH OUR MULTILINGUAL LEARNER DEPARTMENT, AND THIS DOES NOT SUPPLANT THE DEDICATED WIN TIME THAT ALSO SUPPORTS ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT.
I WANT TO BE REALLY CLEAR TOO THAT THIS IS NOT IN PLACE OF WIN, IT'S IN ADDITION TO, SO THIS IS ABOUT THE SYSTEMATIC INSTRUCTION.
THAT PIECE IS STILL IN PLACE AS WELL REGARDING LANGUAGES AND LANGUAGE LEARNERS, BUT THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING IS REALLY FOCUSING ON HOW DO THE REPORTS AND OUR STUDENT SUCCESS GUIDE? HOW IS THAT ABLE TO BE TRANSLATED? I THINK WE'LL HAVE TO DO SOME ADDITIONAL WORK ON OUR WEB PAGE BECAUSE RIGHT NOW, OUR WEB PAGE IS NOT IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES.
THAT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT WE COULD LOOK OUT.
THAT REALLY SEGUES PERFECTLY TO SUPPORTING MULTILINGUAL STUDENTS.
I NOTED THAT YOU HAD MENTIONED THAT HEREDIA-ARRIAGA SCHOOL, ALSO KNOWN AS HAS, WOULD BE GETTING MATERIALS THAT ARE MORE SPECIFIC TO SUPPORT THEIR DUAL IMMERSIONS, BUT I DID HEAR THAT.
[01:10:01]
BUT ARE THERE OTHER WAYS THAT YOU MULTILINGUAL ENGLISH LEARNER, AND I KNOW THERE'S THE ENGLISH LEARNER MASTER PLAN.MAYBE ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, BECAUSE IF I'M WONDERING, I'M SURE OTHERS ARE WONDERING AS WELL.
>> THAT'S GREAT. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PARTS IS THAT OUR ENGLISH LEARNER MASTER PLAN IS ALIGNED TO OUR INSTRUCTIONAL FRAMEWORK, AND OUR INSTRUCTIONAL FRAMEWORK IS ALIGNED TO OUR ENGLISH LEARNER MASTER PLAN.
BOTH OF THOSE ARE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS FOR THIS EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.
I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE REALLY CLEAR WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THAT THAT OUR EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE IS ALIGNED TO THE INSTRUCTIONAL FRAMEWORK IN THE EL MASTER PLAN, SO THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT JUST TO BE ABLE TO REITERATE THAT THIS IS IN ADDITION TO WIND TIME.
THE WAY WE ARE WORKING TO MAXIMIZE THE ELA INSTRUCTIONAL BLOCK IS NOT SUPPLANTING THE DEDICATED WIND TIME, WHATEVER I NEED TIME, WHERE THERE'S DEDICATED OR PROTECTED ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT.
THEN I WOULD JUST SAY THIS ABOUT THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE IS THAT GROUNDED.
THE SCIENCE OF READING IS REALLY ABOUT SYSTEMATIC INSTRUCTION IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT, AND THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY PIECES, AND WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT THAT WE INTERVENE EARLY.
BUT WE STILL DO HAVE MULTIPLE APPROACHES, AND WE ALSO STILL DO HAVE OUR MULTILINGUAL LEARNER SUPPORTS AND THAT TEAMWORK AS WELL.
>> I WANT TO BE CONSCIOUS THAT THERE'S MORE QUESTIONS FROM MY COLLEAGUES, BUT I THINK THIS MIGHT BE A SHORT QUESTION.
FOR THE DIBELS READING SCREENER, THERE WAS A MENTION ABOUT THERE BEING SOME OPT-OUTS, NOT A LOT.
WHAT WOULD BE AN EXAMPLE OF WHY OR HOW SOMEONE COULD OPT OUT? JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT.
>> THAT'S A REALLY GREAT EXAMPLE.
THE QUESTION THAT YOU'RE ASKING IS IMPORTANT.
A FAMILY MAY OPT OUT BECAUSE THEY ALREADY KNOW THEIR STUDENT HAS A READING DIFFICULTY.
THAT COULD BE A CHOICE OF WHY THEY'VE OPTED OUT.
THEY COULD OPT OUT BECAUSE THEY'RE DOING SOMETHING AT HOME ON THEIR OWN, AND THEY FEEL LIKE THEY KNOW THEIR STUDENTS' READING LEVEL.
IT COULD BE SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS THEY FEEL THAT THEIR STUDENT DOESN'T NEED TO TAKE THE ASSESSMENT, AND THEY'RE REALLY COMFORTABLE WITH READING ACTIVITIES AT HOME.
BUT FOR THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WE HAVE K-12, WE CURRENTLY HAVE ON FILE ONLY SIX OPT-OUTS.
>> THANK YOU. HOW MANY HOURS ARE REQUIRED FOR THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR THE TOSAS TO BEGIN THEIR COACHING? IS THERE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF HOURS?
>> NO, THERE IS NOT A MINIMUM REQUIREMENT FOR ANYONE TO START COACHING AS A TEACHER ON SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT BECAUSE IT'S NOT A DESIGNATED CERTIFICATE.
WHEN WE WERE TALKING A FEW YEARS AGO, WE DID A LOT OF WORK ON ARE THEIR READING SPECIALISTS, AND AT THAT TIME, THERE WAS ONE PERSON LEFT IN OUR DISTRICT, THEY'VE SINCE RETIRED THAT HAD A READING SPECIALIST CREDENTIAL.
THERE ARE NOT THOSE SAME DESIGNATIONS, BUT IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE PEOPLE WHO CURRENTLY ARE TOSAS, IN ADDITION TO BEING SOME OF THE DESIGNATED TEACHERS OF THE YEAR DO ALSO HAVE GRADUATE DEGREES IN LITERACY.
THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE.
>> HAVE ANSWERED MY NEXT QUESTION. ALL OF THEM DO?
>> I THINK ONE IS IN PROGRESS, BUT YES, IN ADDITION TO OUR SUPERINTENDENT.
>> NOW, THAT'S AMAZING, THAT'S EXCITING.
HOW ARE WE ABLE TO EVALUATE THEIR COACHING CYCLES, THEIR COACHING STYLES, AND GETTING THE FEEDBACK?
>> THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE FELT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT IS THAT WE DO HAVE AN EXTERNAL COACH WHO IS OBSERVING THEM AND GIVING THEM FEEDBACK AND GROWTH GOALS, AND WATCHING THEIR OWN STYLE, AND THEN LISTENING TO THEIR COACHING CONVERSATIONS AND GROWING THEM AS COACHES.
IN ADDITION TO THAT COACH, IT'S ABOUT BEING PARTNERS IN THE SA COUNTY REDS AS WELL AND DOING WORK INSIDE THAT CONSORTIUM.
THEN, IN ADDITION TO THAT, IT IS THE PD WITH THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE.
WHAT ARE THOSE MEASURES LOOK LIKE? SOME OF THOSE MEASURES ARE AROUND ARE WE'RE SEEING GROWTH BASED ON THE CLASSROOMS THAT THEY'RE COACHING IN? WHEN WE SURVEY THE TEACHERS, WHAT WILL OUR TEACHERS TELL US ABOUT? HERE'S WHAT I NEED MORE OF, HERE'S WHAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND.
WHAT ARE YOU FEELING YOU NEED MORE SUPPORT IN,
[01:15:01]
AND WHERE ARE YOU NOT GETTING ENOUGH SUPPORT? WE NEED TO HAVE MULTIPLE MEASURES OF WHY AND HOW, AND IN WHAT WAYS WE CAN IMPROVE, AND WE'LL DO THAT OF THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE HOLISTICALLY AS WELL.WE WANT TO LOOK AT STUDENT DATA, WE WANT TO LOOK AT TEACHER DATA, WE WANT TO LOOK AT TOSA DATA, AND WE WANT TO SEE HOW ALL OF THOSE METRICS ARE MOVING FORWARD.
THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT AS WE LOOK AT THIS AS A LONG-TERM PLAN.
>> DEFINITELY. I KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, IT'S TOO EARLY FOR US TO KNOW WHETHER OR NOT THIS IS GOING TO WORK BECAUSE WE'RE JUST IN CYCLE 1, BUT I HOPE TO BE A BELIEVER.
>> THAT CAN BE REALLY INTERESTING.
SOMETHING THAT WE TALKED ABOUT WITH THE CAFE, IS A PART OF A PLAN WHERE WE TALKED ABOUT LITERACY CHAMPIONS AND REACHING OUT TO SOME OF OUR FAMILIES TO BE LITERACY CHAMPIONS.
THAT'S ONE PIECE THAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IS HOW DO WE PROVIDE ADDITIONAL COACHING AND SUPPORT SO THAT OUR FAMILIES KNOW WHAT IT IS THEY'RE LOOKING AT AND HOW TO EVALUATE THE WORK AND ASSESSMENT RESULTS THAT THEIR STUDENTS ARE GETTING.
BUT I DON'T KNOW IF A FAMILY WOULD NECESSARILY EVER SEE, LIKE THE TOSA DOING THE COACHING.
I THINK THEY COULD IF THEY WERE VOLUNTEERING, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE GET FAMILY FEEDBACK ON THE LITERACY NIGHTS.
WE'VE ALWAYS DONE FAMILY FEEDBACK ON THE LITERACY NIGHTS.
I THINK IT WOULD BE REALLY INTERESTING.
THE TOOL THAT AMANDA AND DIEDRE WORK ON TOGETHER.
I THINK IT WOULD BE REALLY GREAT TO SEE HOW THOSE TOOL KITS ARE HELPFUL.
OF COURSE, DIEDRE IS ALWAYS SO AMAZING ABOUT THE METRICS ON HOW MANY HITS DO YOU GET ON A WEBSITE, WHICH WEB PAGES ARE VISITED.
THOSE PIECES ARE THE METRICS WE'RE STARTING TO LOOK AT NOW, BUT I THINK THAT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTION, TRUSTEE HARDEN.
>> THANK YOU FOR THAT. THEN I JUST LIKE TO KNOW.
I JUST HAVE AN ISSUE. WE'RE GETTING READY TO GO INTO CYCLE 2.
HERE WE ARE, WE ONLY HAVE SIX WAS THE NUMBER THAT HAVE OPTED OUT.
>> WE HAVE SIX FAMILIES WHO OPTED OUT.
>> SIX FAMILIES THAT HAVE OPTED OUT.
OUR SPED FAMILIES HAVE NOT BEEN GIVEN THE CORRECT MATERIALS TO MOVE FORWARD.
WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE NOT READY.
[APPLAUSE] WHAT CAN WE DO TO PUSH THIS BACK FOR THEM? I HAVE A HUGE PROBLEM, SO I'M HOPING THAT THIS IS THE LAST TIME THAT SPED GETS THEIR STUFF LAST BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW THEY EXIST [APPLAUSE].
IN THE SAME WAY, EVERYBODY ELSE EVERYBODY KNOWS SPED IS MY BABY, AND TO THINK THAT THEY'RE NOT HAVING WHAT THEY NEED WHEN THEY NEED IT, AND I KNOW I'VE BEEN IN THOSE CLASSROOMS. TO IMAGINE THAT THEM TAKING THESE TESTS RIGHT NOW, IT'S MORTIFYING FOR THE STUDENTS TO HAVE TO SIT THERE, THE TEACHERS AND THE FAMILIES TO HAVE TO GET THOSE RESULTS INHERIT.
IT'S JUST AN UNFAIR SITUATION, SO WE NEED TO FIGURE SOMETHING OUT.
>> ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE BEEN DOING IS WORKING WITH THAT.
>> I DO WANT TO CLARIFY THAT THIS READING SCREENER THAT WE ARE GIVING IS A REQUIREMENT OF THE STATE.
WITH STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, THE TIMELINES, THE OPT-OUTS, THOSE ARE NOT THINGS THAT NATOMAS UNIFIED CREATED.
THOSE WERE THINGS THAT COME WITH THE STATE.
JUST LIKE WITH CSP AND OPT-OUTS, AND REQUIREMENTS FOR THE TEST.
THIS IS A NEW REQUIREMENT THAT JUST STARTED THIS YEAR.
I ALSO WANTED TO MAKE A COMMENT THAT WHEN WE CREATED THIS EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE, AND PART OF THE REASON WORKING WITH THE NATIONAL LITERACY INSTITUTE IS THAT WE WANTED EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING TO BE BASED ON RESEARCH, NOT JUST THINGS THAT PEOPLE THINK ARE WORK, BUT HAVE RESEARCH BEHIND THEM.
ALSO, WITH OUR TOSA, THE COACHING MODEL AND HOW THE TOSAS ARE FUNCTIONING THIS YEAR ARE FUNDAMENTALLY DIFFERENT THAN HOW IT HAS BEEN IN PRIOR YEARS.
AGAIN, THIS WAS FROM LOOKING AT RESEARCH ON COACHING AND HOW COACHING IS DIFFERENT THAN JUST BEING A TOSA.
ALL OF THESE THINGS WERE VERY INTENTIONAL, STUDYING THE RESEARCH, LOOKING AT THAT, TALKING TO THE EXPERTS, BUILDING IT AS PART OF PD.
IT DOESN'T MEAN AS WE GO THAT WE WON'T LEARN THINGS AND GET BETTER AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
WE WANT TO LOOK AT DATA, WE WANT TO SEE HOW IT'S GOING.
WE ARE COMMITTED TO OUR STUDENT SUCCESS, AND WE ARE DOING IT IN A WAY THAT IS VERY INTENTIONAL AND EXPLICIT, AND BASED ON RESEARCH.
I JUST WANTED TO ADD THAT, AND I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT OUR TEAM HAS DONE, BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN A TREMENDOUS EFFORT, AND A LOT OF TIME AND THOUGHT PUT INTO IT.
I DO APPRECIATE TRUSTEES' QUESTIONS.
I THINK THESE ARE THINGS THAT PEOPLE ARE WONDERING AND WANT TO LEARN ABOUT, AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR WAYS TO GET BETTER, TO GET FEEDBACK, AND TO MONITOR OUR PROGRESS AS WE GO.
>> THANK YOU. BUT I STILL WANT TO SEE IT IN EVERY CLASSROOM.
THAT TEACHER JUST SAID THAT SHE HAS A STUDENT THAT CAN READ, AND HE DOESN'T HAVE IT IN THERE.
[01:20:01]
>> WE ARE WORKING BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION, WE DEFINITELY WANT THEM TO HAVE ACCESS TO THE CURRICULUM THAT IS APPROPRIATE FOR STUDENTS AND MATCHES THEIR IEPS.
THAT'S WHY THOSE THINGS HAVE BEEN ORDERED AND MAKING SURE TRAINING IS AVAILABLE WHERE APPROPRIATE, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THE PACING MAY BE DIFFERENT FOR SOME OF OUR STUDENTS, NOT ALL OF OUR STUDENTS, WHETHER SPECIAL ED OR GENERAL ED.
NOT EVERY STUDENT LEARNS AT THE SAME PACE, BUT WE KNOW THAT THEY CAN ALL LEARN, AND SO WE ARE COMMITTED TO HAVING THE MATERIALS AVAILABLE TO THEM AND GIVING THEM THE APPROPRIATE TIME THAT THEY NEED TO IMPLEMENT THOSE MATERIALS.
>> GOT A COUPLE OF QUICK QUESTIONS, BUT FIRST, I WANT TO ALSO CHECK AND SAY, ANALISA, YOU ARE OUR STUDENT VOICE, SO FEEL FREE IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, MAKE SURE TO LET ME KNOW.
DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TONIGHT? BUT YOUR VOICE IS A VALUABLE VOICE, SO DON'T HESITATE TO ASK QUESTIONS OR MAKE COMMENTS WHEN NECESSARY.
TONY, AMANDA, FIRST, THANK YOU.
IT'S FUN, IT'S LIKE THIS WAS THE BRIEF CONTEXT SLIDE PRESENTATION, WHY I LOVE THE STUFF COMING OUT OF YOUR SHOP.
THAT'S WHERE THE DATA JUNKIES GO TO REALLY JUST LIVE, BUT ON THAT NOTE, A COUPLE OF CONTEXTUAL THOUGHTS.
WE KNOW THE STATISTICS, TO SEE THE EFFORT FOCUSING ON TK THROUGH TWO, BECAUSE WE KNOW IF A STUDENT IS NOT READING AT GRADE LEVEL BY THIRD GRADE, IT'S ONE OF THE INDICATIVE YEARS.
IF THEY'RE NOT READING GRADE LEVEL BY THE END OF THIRD GRADE, THEY'RE MORE LIKELY TO END UP AS INCARCERATED OR PREGNANT THAN THEY ARE TO GRADUATE HIGH SCHOOL.
THOSE ARE THE REALITIES, THOSE NUMBERS HAVE NOT CHANGED.
THE NUMBERS THAT HAVE CHANGED, AND WE'VE SEEN THIS, THAT EVEN IN THE YEARS LEADING UP TO THE PANDEMIC NATIONALLY, READING AND LITERACY SCORES WERE ON THE DECLINE, AND THEY JUST TOOK A PRECIPITOUS DROP WITH THE PANDEMIC-INDUCED LEARNING LOSS.
THEN, WHILE THE NUMBERS IN OUR DISTRICT ARE NOT UNIQUE TO OUR DISTRICT, LOCALLY, STATEWIDE, NATIONALLY, THE NUMBERS HAVE BEEN GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.
BUT FOCUSING ON OUR DISTRICT, THE NUMBERS ARE NOT WHERE WE WANT THEM TO BE, AND THEY GET EVEN WORSE WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR SUBGROUPS, ESPECIALLY OUR STUDENTS OF COLOR.
WITH THAT CONTEXT, FIRST, THANK YOU.
I'M GLAD TO SEE THIS EFFORT GOING IN.
I THINK PROBABLY OUR GOALS WOULD BE TO HAVE ALL OF OUR STUDENTS READING AT GRADE LEVEL BY THIRD GRADE.
THAT IS THE GOAL OF THE DISTRICT.
LIKE DR. CASTILLO SAID, WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO CREATE CONDITIONS WHERE WE UNDERSTAND THAT ALL STUDENTS CAN LEARN, AND SOMETIMES IT'S IN DIFFERENT WAYS AND AT DIFFERENT TIMES.
BUT THE GOAL IS ALWAYS THAT WE ARE INCREASING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT, AND WE'RE ALSO INCREASING THE CAPACITY OF OUR STAFF SO THAT THEY ARE ABLE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY.
THAT WOULD BE WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE, AND THAT WE WOULD HAVE A SUSTAINED INITIATIVE THAT CONTINUES TO SEE STUDENTS MOVE THROUGH GRADE LEVELS WITH AT, OR ABOVE GRADE LEVEL READING PROFICIENCY BASED ON EVIDENCE-BASED INSTRUCTION.
>> THANK YOU FOR THAT. WOULD I BE CORRECT IN MY ASSUMPTION THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO CREATE THIS DATA BY SITE, BY SUBGROUP, BY GRADE LEVEL?
>> I GUESS ONE OF THE THINGS I'D LIKE TO REQUEST, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THIS LONGITUDINALLY, OBVIOUSLY, LOOKING AT CYCLE 1 IS NOT GOING TO BE INDICATIVE OF THE SUCCESS OF THE PROGRAM, CYCLE 1 OF YEAR 1.
BUT AS WE'RE TRACKING THIS INFORMATION, IF THERE'S A WAY TO PRESENT THE DATA TO US LONGITUDINALLY.
WE'RE NOT JUST SEEING HERE'S WHERE WE STARTED, BUT WE GET TO SEE THE INFORMATION PRESENTED TO US, THE SAME WAY THAT TYPICALLY DATA IS BROKEN OUT FOR US, BY SUBGROUP, BY SIDE, BY GRADE LEVEL.
BUT A BAR CHART OR A LINE GRAPH IS SOMETHING THAT SHOWS WHAT'S WORKING, SO WE CAN SEE THAT MOMENT IN TIME, BUT IN CONTEXT.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE EXTREMELY HELPFUL AS WE'RE MONITORING THIS.
>> THE OTHER THING I WOULD, IF POSSIBLE, THAT I'D LOVE TO SEE ADDED INTO THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS WE TALK ABOUT, MAYBE NOT FREQUENTLY ENOUGH, BUT EVERY YEAR, WE ARE A VERY TRANSIENT DISTRICT.
STUDENTS MOVE AROUND, THEY MOVE INTO THE DISTRICT, THEY MOVE OUT OF THE DISTRICT.
AS WE'RE TRACKING STUDENTS' LONG-TERM GRADES, FROM THIS YEAR'S TK, OUR NEXT YEAR KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS, NOT ALL OF OUR K STUDENTS WILL HAVE BEEN HERE FOR TK.
IF WE CAN SEGREGATE OUT THE STUDENTS THAT WERE WITH
[01:25:01]
THE DISTRICT VERSUS THOSE THAT CAME INTO THE DISTRICT.I THINK THAT WOULD ALSO BE A STRONGER INDICATOR OF WHETHER THE PROGRAMS ARE WORKING BECAUSE IF WE HAVE AN INFLUX OF NEW STUDENTS TO THE DISTRICT IN SECOND GRADE, THAT DIDN'T COME FROM A DISTRICT THAT HAD THIS PROGRAM, IT COULD POTENTIALLY BRING THE SCORES DOWN AND GIVE US A FALSE NEGATIVE FROM WHAT A PROGRAM THAT'S OTHERWISE BEING SUCCESSFUL OR VICE VERSA IS A CASE.
>> THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS.
THIS IS A VITAL PROGRAM FOR THE DISTRICT.
>> WITH THAT, WE WILL BE MOVING ON TO ACTION ITEMS.
[XV.a. Ratify an Agreement Between the District and California Teachers Association (CTA) Regarding Release Time Pursuant to Education Code 44987]
ITEM 15A IS RATIFY AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE DISTRICT AND CTA REGARDING RELEASE TIME PURSUANT TO ECO 44987.ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? NO PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM.
WITH THAT, I'LL LOOK FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE.
>> MOVED BY TRUSTEE HARDEN, SECONDED BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.
>> MOTION CARRIES 5 0, MOVING ON TO ITEM B,
[XV.b. Approve a Declaration of Need for Fu ly Qualified Educators]
APPROVE A DECLARATION OF NEED FOR FULLY QUALIFIED EDUCATORS.WE DO HAVE THREE PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD, OR IF WHO WANT, I'LL DO PUBLIC COMMENTS.
ON THIS ONE, I HAVE THREE COMMENTS.
WE CALL THEM IN ORDERS. WE HAVE MISS.
SUSA, MISS HIDAJI, AND MISS FATIMA RODRIGUEZ.
>> AS ALWAYS, [INAUDIBLE], WILL RUN THE CLOCK WHEN YOU START.
>> GOOD EVENING. OUT OF THE 26 CURRENT VACANCIES, 10 ARE IN SPECIAL EDUCATION.
THAT'S ALMOST 40% OF THE UNFILLED POSITIONS.
THESE VACANCIES ARE CONCENTRATED IN THE VERY CLASSROOMS SERVING OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS.
THERE'S A TOXIC CULTURE IN OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT.
PARENTS SEE IT, AND STAFF SEE IT.
MORE THAN 70 TEACHERS LEFT NUSD LAST YEAR, MOST RESIGNING TO TAKE JOBS IN OTHER DISTRICTS WITH BETTER PAY AND MORE RESPECT, 10% IS OUR TURNOVER RATE.
THE STATEWIDE TURNOVER RATE IS 6%.
TEACHERS OF COLOR OFTEN START HERE, PARTICULARLY AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN, BUT THEY DON'T STAY IN EDUCATION.
WHEN I'VE REACHED OUT TO MY FRIENDS THAT HAVE LEFT, I'VE ASKED THEM WHY.
THEY DON'T FEEL RESPECTED AS WOMEN OF COLOR. I WONDER WHY.
WHILE OUR INTERNS ARE MEANT TO BE AN EMERGENCY MEASURE, NATOMAS THIS YEAR HAS 18 INTERNS.
IT'S BECOME A PERMANENT CRUTCH.
THIS IS A DIRECT RESULT OF TOXIC CULTURE, LOW PAY, POOR BENEFITS, AND POOR WORKING CONDITIONS.
WHILE BOARD MEMBERS READ OTHER REPORTS OR IGNORE ME, I COME UP HERE TO SAY, WE NEED TO STOP PITTING SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENTS AGAINST GENERAL EDUCATION PARENTS.
MANY OF US ARE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN IN BOTH PROGRAMS. IDA HAS NEVER BEEN FULLY FUNDED, AND IT'S TIME TO STOP BLAMING THAT DECADES-OLD PRACTICE AND MOVE FORWARD WITH SOLUTIONS FROM OUR BUDGETS.
MY SPECIAL EDUCATION CHILDREN DESERVE A PIECE OF EVERY PIE BECAUSE THEY BRING THEIR OWN MONEY WITH THEM.
ONE SOLUTION THAT'S EASILY ATTAINABLE AND IMMEDIATELY EFFECTIVE, PLACE EVERY CREDENTIAL DISTRICT OFFICE LEADER FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT TO DIRECTORS AND COORDINATORS, INTO THESE SDC CLASSROOMS UNTIL THE VACANCIES ARE FILLED.
THEY CAN DO THEIR DO DUTIES ON THE WEEKENDS AND IN THE EVENINGS, JUST LIKE TEACHERS, PREP GRADE, AND MAKE PHONE CALLS IN THOSE OFF HOURS.
WE CANNOT KEEP LOSING TEACHERS. LEAVING CLASS [OVERLAPPING].
>> YOUR TIME IS UP. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] MR. DAGI.
>> [BACKGROUND] I THOUGHT THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO START WHEN I STARTED.
>> WILL YOU RESTART THAT, PLEASE? THANK YOU.
WE ARE WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT. DID EVERYBODY KNOW THAT? THE TEACHERS ARE WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT? WE'VE GOT TO STAY PUT, LIKE, WE CALL IT AN IP WHEN A PARENT WON'T SIGN BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT IN AGREEMENT.
WHERE'S A CONTRACT? IF WE DON'T HAVE A CONTRACT, NOBODY'S COMING HERE.
EVERYBODY SAW WHAT SAC CITY JUST GOT 8.5% THIS YEAR AND NEXT YEAR, FULLY PAID BENEFITS.
FIFTEEN TEACHERS LEFT IN TOVAS PARK LAST YEAR, BECAUSE IT'S NOT SAFE.
IT'S TOXIC, AND BECAUSE WE'RE NOT PAID ENOUGH AND THEY CAN GO GET A JOB NEXT DOOR.
[01:30:04]
IT'S TWO BLOCKS DOWN.I REALIZE THAT THERE IS AN EDUCATOR CRISIS EVERYWHERE RIGHT NOW.
THERE IS REASON FOR AN INTERN.
I BEGAN MY CAREER AS AN INTERN.
LET ME TELL YOU THAT WAS NOT THE WAY TO START A MOD SEVERE EDUCATIONAL CAREER.
IT WAS FIRE BY TRIAL, TRIAL BY FIRE.
I THANK GOD THAT I WAS ABLE TO OVERCOME IT, BUT I DON'T KNOW MANY OF THE PEOPLE IN MY COHORT WHO DID.
HERE I AM STILL ASKING FOR TRAINING.
THEN WE'RE THOUGHT OF AS SECOND PLACE.
I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS ABOUT ASKING FOR SPED TO BE INCLUDED WITH EVERYBODY AND NOT AS A, MAYBE WE SHOULD GIVE THEM SOME, TOO.
YOU WANT TO HIRE MORE INTERNS.
GO AHEAD. YOU'RE JUST GOING TO KEEP FAILING.
THE LITERACY IS NOT GOING TO WORK WITH A BUNCH OF INTERNS WHO AREN'T GOING TO STICK AROUND BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT GETTING PAID ENOUGH.
THE BEHAVIORS AREN'T GOING TO GET BETTER BECAUSE THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO HANDLE THE BEHAVIORS.
THE CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH ISN'T GOING TO GET BETTER BECAUSE THESE PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE HAVING THEIR OWN MENTAL HEALTH CRISES, LIKE I DID MY FIRST YEAR OF INTERNSHIP.
>> THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] RODRIGUEZ.
I'M A MOTHER OF A CHILD WHO'S AUTISTIC.
HE'S BEEN IN THE NATOMAS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR 11 YEARS.
YEAR AFTER YEAR, I FIND THE NEED OF QUALIFIED TEACHERS.
TEACHERS WHO DON'T HAVE ANY TRAINING WHEN IT COMES TO KIDS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
EVERY YEAR, THERE IS MORE AND MORE KIDS WITH AUTISM.
I'M GOING TO TALK ON AUTISM BECAUSE THAT'S MY BIGGEST PROBLEM.
SOMETIMES THEY NEED TO STEAM, TEACHERS DO NOT UNDERSTAND, THEY NEED TO MAKE NOISES, THEY NEED TO MOVE, THEY NEED TO.
THERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT THEY NEED TO DO TO STEM TO FEEL THEIR BELIEF BECAUSE THEY GET ANXIOUS FOR WHATEVER REASON.
WE REALLY NEED TEACHERS TO GET TRAINING.
THERE IS TRAINING IN EVERY SINGLE ISSUE, INCLUSIVITY, YOU NAME IT.
EVERY SINGLE ISSUE, TEACHERS HAVE TRAINING, BUT NEVER KIDS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
I REALLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO FIND SPECIALISTS TO TRAIN EVERYONE WHO HAS TO DO WITH OUR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS AND WHATEVER NEED THEY HAVE.
WE ALSO NEED REPRESENTATION HERE AT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
WE NEED TO BE HEARD. YOU GUYS NEED TO UNDERSTAND OUR CONCERNS.
THE THINGS THAT WE GO THROUGH EVERY YEAR.
BULLYING, THE LACK OF SERVICES, THE LACK OF ACTIVITIES AFTER SCHOOL.
I CAN HAVE MY SON PARTICIPATING IN THE COURTS BECAUSE THERE IS NOBODY TO PROTECT HIM OR MAKE SURE HE'S NOT BEEN BULLIED, BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN SUFFERING FROM BULLYING YEAR AFTER YEAR SINCE HE WAS THREE YEARS OLD.
HE'S BEEN ATTACKED. HE'S BEEN HEARD IN CLASS, OUTSIDE THE CLASS, EVERYWHERE.
WE REALLY NEED TEACHERS TO BE TRAINED.
ANYBODY WHO'S PART OF THE SCHOOL, INCLUDING, I BELIEVE, YOU GUYS, WILL BENEFIT ALSO FROM SOME TRAINING AND LISTENING TO US TO THE THINGS THAT WE GO THROUGH EVERY DAY.
I JUST WANT TO REMIND EVERYONE THAT OUR KIDS ARE PROTECTED AND INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES, FOR REHABILITATION, AND AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES.
I THINK IT'S TIME FOR PEOPLE TO BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR.
>> ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM FROM TRUSTEES? WITH THAT, LOOKING FOR A MOTION.
MOVE TO PROOF. MOVED BY TRUSTEE MORA.
>> I'M SORRY, AND I COULDN'T HEAR.
>> MOTION CARRIES 4-0, ONE ABSTENTION. THANK YOU.
[XV.c. Approve the LEAP Academy Expanded Learning Opportunity Program (ELO-P) 3-Year Plan Renewal]
APPROVE THE LEAP ACADEMY EXPANDED LEARNING OPPORTUNITY ELOP, THREE-YEAR PLAN RENEWAL.QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, COLLEAGUES? I WILL JUST SAY, GLAD TO SEE THIS BEING BROUGHT FORWARD.
I WOULD JUST SAY GOING IN THE FUTURE, ESPECIALLY AS RESOURCES MIGHT BECOME AVAILABLE.
I'D SAY I WOULD LOVE TO SEE US LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND LEAP OR A LEAP-TYPE PROGRAM,
[01:35:01]
ESPECIALLY FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO LEAP CANNOT ACCOMMODATE OR CANNOT ALWAYS ACCOMMODATE CURRENTLY.WITH THAT, LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE IMC.
>> MOVED BY TRUSTEE HARDEN, SECONDED BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.
LET'S RE-ESTABLISH A ROLE, PLEASE, HELEN.
[XV.d. Approve Lease-Leaseback Delivery Method for Heredia-Arriaga Expansion]
APPROVED LEASE-BACK DELIVERY FOR THE HEREDIA ARIAGA EXPANSION.ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THIS? SEEING AND HEARING NONE, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE?
>> MOVED BY TRUSTEE HARDEN, SECONDED BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.
WITHOUT OBJECTION, I'LL SUBSTITUTE A PRIOR UNANIMOUS ROLL CALL.
SEEING HEARING NONE, MOTION CARRIES 50, MOVING ON TO ITEM E,
[XV.e. Approve Resolution No. 25-35 Designating the Week of October 12-18, 2025 as Week of 2 the School Administrator]
APPROVED RESOLUTION 25-35, DESIGNATING THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 12- 18TH AS WEEK OF THE SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR.CAN I GET A SECOND? IT DOESN'T MATTER.
YOU CAN DO IT WITH WHOEVER SECONDS.
WITHOUT OBJECTION, I'LL SUBSTITUTE A PRIOR UNANIMOUS ROLL CALL.
[XV.f. Approve Nomination(s) for CSBA Director-at-Large, American Indian]
APPROVED NOMINATIONS FOR A CSBA DIRECTOR AT LARGE, AMERICAN INDIAN.I'LL BE LOOKING, TRUSTEE MORA.
DO YOU HAVE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS ITEM?
>> I DO. I WOULD LIKE TO RECOMMEND THAT WE NOMINATE CHRISTINA CAMERON OTERO FROM THE NEEDLES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT, WHO IS THE INCUMBENT IN THE ROLE OF CSBA DIRECTOR AT LARGE AMERICAN INDIAN, TO CONTINUE IN THAT ROLE. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION.
>> MOVED BY TRUSTEE MORA, SECONDED BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.
LET'S TAKE A ROLE ON THIS ONE, PLEASE, HELEN.
EXCELLENT. MOVING ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT TONIGHT.
[XVI. PUBLIC COMMENTS]
AT THIS TIME, I HAVE THREE PUBLIC COMMENT CARDS FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA.THE BOARD WILL HEAR FROM THESE SPEAKERS ONLY AND ENSURE THE MEETING IS CONDUCTED IN AN ORDERLY AND EFFICIENT MANNER IN ACCORDANCE WITH BOARD BY LAW 9323.
THE THREE IN ORDER WILL BE SHARON THURMAN, LACY.
I'M GOING TO APOLOGIZE IF I CAN'T QUITE READ THE NAME.
I THINK IT IS LACY JOHNSON, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG WHEN YOU CAN UP, AND THEN RICKY MORENO.
I'M HERE WITH COLLEAGUES FROM THE NATOMAS BLACK PARENT UNITED GROUP, WHO REPRESENT DIFFERENT CATEGORIES OF PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
WE ARE HERE TO SAY, THANK YOU.
THANK YOU FOR A YEAR WHERE CONCESSIONS WERE MADE IN THE VERY CATEGORIES THAT WE DEEMED TO BE SO IMPORTANT.
THOSE CATEGORIES BEING READING, SPECIAL EDUCATION, AND SAFETY.
THE FACT THAT OUR SCHOOLS ARE NOW CLOSED CAMPUSES WHERE PARENTS CAN COME IN AS VISITORS AND ESCORT THEIR CHILDREN TO SCHOOL, WE KNOW THAT THIS BOARD WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS THE STANDARD OUR KIDS HAVE, AND WE THANK YOU.
THE FACT THAT OUR SUPERINTENDENT RECOGNIZED THAT THE READING DEFICIENCIES FOR OUR AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS WILL BE ADDRESSED, WE THANK YOU.
THE FACT THAT OUR WONDERFUL TEACHERS DON'T HAVE A CONTRACT.
WE KNOW THAT YOU'LL BE LISTENING AND YOU'LL MAKE SURE THAT THAT HAPPENS BECAUSE THIS IS A TYPE OF BOARD THAT LISTENS AND FINDS SOLUTIONS.
UNDER YOUR CURRENT PRESIDENT, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE SPECIAL HAVE RECEIVE AN EMPLOYEE NAMED SABRINA JACKSON, SERVE AS THE LIAISON FOR OUR PARENTS WHO NEED HELP.
WE THANK YOU. NBPU IS ABOUT SOLUTIONS.
WE HAVE BEEN FROM THE BEGINNING.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH YOU, AND WE APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT WE CAN INVITE YOU TO OUR MONTHLY MEETINGS ON THE SECOND MONDAY OF EACH MONTH AT 6:30.
WE APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT, AS A BOARD UNDER YOUR CURRENT PRESIDENT, YOU'VE MADE PROGRESS.
IS EVERYTHING 100% OF WHAT WE WANTED, WHAT YOU WANTED? NO, BUT THAT IS THE NATURE OF NEGOTIATIONS.
FOR THAT MATTER, WE SAY, THANK YOU.
MY CLOCK SAYS I HAVE A LITTLE MORE TIME. THANK YOU.
>> THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] NEXT SPEAKER IS LACY.
AGAIN, I THINK IT'S JOHNSON, BUT I APOLOGIZE IF I'M MISREADING.
[01:40:01]
>> SORRY, MY HANDWRITING IS SO BAD.
>> DID I GET IT RIGHT, OR WAS I OFF?
>> SORRY, MY HANDWRITING IS SO BAD. IT IS JOHNSON.
>> GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS LACY JOHNSON, AND I AM A STUDENT AT MCGEORGE SCHOOL OF LAW, ATTENDING THIS MEETING AS A PART OF A SCHOOL PROJECT.
I'M HERE TONIGHT TO SPEAK ABOUT THE RECENTLY REVISED POLICY 5,141.5 ON STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH.
I WANT TO COMMEND THE BOARD FOR ADOPTING THIS POLICY, WHICH CONTINUES TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS HAVE CRITICAL ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, PREVENTION STRATEGIES, AND CLEAR PROTOCOLS FOR COUNSELING AND REFERRALS.
I ESPECIALLY APPRECIATE THE REQUIREMENT FOR ALL CERTIFICATED EMPLOYEES SERVING GRADES SEVEN THROUGH 12 TO PARTICIPATE ANNUALLY IN CULTURAL COMPETENCY TRAINING TO SUPPORT LGBTQ PLUS STUDENTS, WITH DOCUMENTATION MAINTAINED TO ENSURE ACCOUNTABILITY.
I ALSO WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE PROVISION REQUIRING MENTAL HEALTH POSTERS TO BE PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED IN ENGLISH AND ANY OTHER PRIMARY LANGUAGE SPOKEN BY 15% OR MORE OF STUDENTS, AND FOR ENSURING THESE RESOURCES ARE ACCESSIBLE BOTH IN SCHOOL AND ONLINE.
THIS DEMONSTRATES A STRONG DEDICATION TO CREATING A SAFE, INCLUSIVE, AND SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT WHERE ALL STUDENTS CAN THRIVE ACADEMICALLY AND PERSONALLY.
POLICIES LIKE THIS NOT ONLY SUPPORT STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH BUT ALSO STRENGTHEN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE BY EQUIPPING STAFF WITH THE SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE TO RESPOND TO STUDENTS' DIVERSE NEEDS.
THE DISTRICT IS SETTING AN EXAMPLE FOR HOW SCHOOLS CAN PROACTIVELY PROMOTE WELL-BEING AND EQUITY.
THANK YOU FOR PRIORITIZING OUR STUDENTS' MENTAL HEALTH.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
>> THANK YOU. BEFORE I MOVE ON TO THE LAST PUBLIC COMMENT, SUPERINTENDENT, WE HAVE TWO PEOPLE MAKE COMMENTS TONIGHT REGARDING THE CONTRACTS WITH THE TEACHERS.
I WONDER IF WE COULD JUST ASK STAFF TO CIRCLE BACK WITH BOTH OF THOSE ON THE STATUS OF THAT.
I BELIEVE WE'RE STILL WAITING, AND WE CAN'T DISCUSS THIS BUT THE FACT THAT THE DISTRICT HAD MADE AN OFFER AND WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR A COUNTER.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR STAFF BE ABLE TO CIRCLE BACK.
WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR LAST PUBLIC COMMENT OF THE EVENING, RICKY MORENO.
>> EVENING. MY NAME IS RICKY MORENO.
I'M ALSO A LAW STUDENT AT MCGEORGE FOR THE SAME REASON THAT LACY IS HERE.
BUT I'D LIKE TO USE MY TIME TO COMMEND THE BOARD ON ITS BOARD POLICY AND REGULATION 5,145.13 REGARDING ITS RESPONSE TO IMMIGRATION.
IT'S NO SECRET THAT COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE FACING RAPID CHANGES IN FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS AND THE ENFORCEMENT OF THESE IMMIGRATION LAWS IN LOCAL COMMUNITIES.
THE DISTRICT'S BOARD POLICIES AND REGULATIONS WERE BOTH RECENTLY REVISED ON JUNE 25, LIKE MANY OTHER POLICIES.
I THINK THAT IN ITSELF IS IMPORTANT AND SHOULD BE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE DISTRICT PRIORITIZE REVISITING THIS POLICY AND KEEPING IT UP TO DATE AND MAINTAINED, AND RELEVANT TO THE CURRENT SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CLIMATE.
SCHOOLS SHOULD ALWAYS BE A SAFE AND WELCOMING ENVIRONMENT FOR STUDENTS, AND I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE DISTRICT IS CONTINUING TO DO THAT AND PROVIDE THAT FOR STUDENTS HERE IN THE DISTRICT.
THANK YOU FOR PRIORITIZING THE SAFETY AND WELLNESS OF STUDENTS, AND FOR GIVING THIS ISSUE THE PROPER WEIGHT AND ATTENTION THAT IT DESERVES.
ON SEPTEMBER 20, IN ADDITION TO ANY OTHER LEGISLATIVE CHANGES, THE GOVERNOR APPROVED AB 49, WHICH, AMONG OTHER THINGS, PROHIBITS SCHOOL OFFICIALS AND LAS FROM ALLOWING AN OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE FOR IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT TO BE ALLOWED ONTO A SCHOOL SITE WITHOUT A PERMIT WITHOUT A WARRANT, OR A COURT ORDER.
I WAS PLEASED TO FIND THAT THE DISTRICT'S BOARD POLICY ALREADY IMPLEMENTS A LOT OF THOSE SAFEGUARDS THAT AB 49 INTRODUCES.
AS I SAID BEFORE, WITH THE LAWS RAPIDLY CHANGING.
I DO HOPE THAT THE BOARD CONTINUES TO CONTINUE ITS TRADITION OF KEEPING UP WITH THE NEW LEGISLATIVE CHANGES, AND JUST CONTINUING TO REVISE THE POLICIES AND REGULATIONS AS NEEDED, AND CONTINUING TO SERVE THE STUDENTS OF THE COMMUNITY AS YOU ALREADY ARE. THANK YOU.
>> THANK YOU, MR. MERINO. WE APPRECIATE THE ONGOING PARTNERSHIP WITH MCGEORGE IN THIS DISTRICT.
HOPE TO SEE YOU GUYS MAYBE TEACHING HERE IN THE DISTRICT SOMEDAY.
WITH THAT, NO OTHER ITEMS ON THE AGENDA, NO MORE PUBLIC COMMENTS.
THIS MEETING WILL BE ADJOURNED AT 7:28.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.