Jun 24, 2026 Board Meetings

[00:00:01]

ALL RIGHT. I WOULD LIKE TO CALL THIS REGULAR BOARD MEETING TO ORDER AT 5:15 P.M..

[I. OPEN SESSION]

PRESENT. HARDEN. PRESENT. META. PRESENT. PRESENT.

ALL RIGHT, WE HAVE A QUORUM. AND USD BOARD MEETINGS ARE LIVE STREAMED AND RECORDED AT DIRECTION OF THE BOARD.

THE LIVE STREAM IS AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING ONLINE, AND THE RECORDINGS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING THE DAY AFTER THE BOARD MEETING. THOSE IN ATTENDANCE SHOULD EXPECT THAT THE RECORDINGS WILL CAPTURE ALL ACTIVITY AND DISCUSSIONS BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER THE MEETING. THIS EVENING, THE BOARD WILL BE GOING INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS ONE STIPULATED EXPULSION.

[V. CLOSED SESSION]

IN THE MESSAGE. ALL RIGHT. WE ARE RECONVENING OPEN SESSION AT 5:26 P.M..

[VI. RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION]

PRESENT, PRESENT. PRESENT. PRESENT. ALL RIGHT.

I'M GOING TO ASK MISS BROWN TO LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE.

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.

ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

ALL RIGHT. THERE IS NO ACTION TAKEN IN CLOSED SESSION THIS EVENING.

BEFORE WE MOVE ON, JUST A REMINDER FOR THOSE IN ATTENDANCE THAT IN ACCORDANCE WITH BOARD BYLAW 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'D LIKE TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE FILL OUT A PUBLIC COMMENT CARD AND HAND IT TO THE STAFF MEMBER AT THE TABLE OUTSIDE OF THE BOARD MEETING ROOM ON THE RIGHT.

AT THE CONCLUSION OF OUR MEETING, WE ASKED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO REFRAIN FROM APPROACHING THE DAIS TO PROVIDE BOARD MEMBERS WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO GATHER THEIR BELONGINGS, SIGN DOCUMENTS, AND SECURE ANY CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.

BOARD MEMBERS CAN ALSO MAKE THEMSELVES AVAILABLE BY STEPPING DOWN FROM THE DAIS AND ENTERING THE AREA FOR AUDIENCE SEATING. ALL RIGHT, THAT WAS A MOUTHFUL. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA?

[X. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA]

HELEN, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. I GRANT AYE.

HARDEN I MEHTA I MAURA. AYE. ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO.

NEXT UP COMMUNICATIONS. BOARD MEMBERS. TRUSTEE.

[XI. a. Board Members]

I WANTED TO SAY HAPPY SUMMER TO THOSE WHO CELEBRATE AND HAPPY SUMMER SCHOOL TO THOSE WHO PARTICIPATE.

I THOUGHT IT WAS. I THOUGHT IT RHYMED. SOME AND THEN SOME TRUSTEE ACTIVITIES FROM THESE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS THAT I WANT TO SHARE INCLUDE STOPPING BY THE NATOMAS CHAMBER AND, AND DISTRICT PARTNERSHIP ON HAVING A YOUTH WORKFORCE PROGRAM SO THAT HIGH SCHOOLERS FROM ALL OF OUR HIGH SCHOOLS CAN GET TRAINING, DIFFERENT INSIGHTS AND SOME PRACTICE INTERVIEWING FOR THEIR FIRST JOB AND WHATEVER INDUSTRY THEY GO INTO.

I HAD A CHANCE TO SERVE AS A GUEST JUDGE MOCK INTERVIEW JUDGE.

AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE CAN BE REALLY PROUD OF OUR STUDENTS.

THEY DID REALLY WELL. BUT ALSO THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS PROVIDES THEM THE OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY REFINE THEIR SKILLS BEFORE THEY IT GO BEFORE EMPLOYERS TO, YOU KNOW, TO DO THIS.

I HAD A THE LAST THING THAT I WANT TO REPORT AS PART OF MY BOARD REPORT IS I HAD A CONVERSATION WITH SOME TEACHERS ABOUT OUR EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.

AND AS TRUSTEE IS ONE OF OUR BIGGEST ROLES IS TO ENGAGE WITH STAKEHOLDERS.

I THINK SOMETIMES WE UNDERREPORT WHAT OUR DIFFERENT ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITIES ARE.

I WANTED TO SHARE THAT AS PART OF THIS BOARD REPORT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU, TRUSTEE MOORE. TRUSTEE HARDIN, I WILL SAY NO REPORT, BUT IF WE WERE TO TALK ABOUT ALL THE ENGAGEMENT THAT WE GIVE, WE WOULD BE HERE UNTIL MIDNIGHT. BE HERE FOREVER.

ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT, I GUESS I'LL GO. ONE THING TO REPORT.

I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO STOP BY H. ALLEN HITE TO VISIT THE PURE GEMS GYMNASTICS PROGRAM.

MADE A GOOD FOOL OF MYSELF AND ENDED UP SAW MORE SO THAN I EXPECTED.

OKAY TRUSTEE, I DON'T SEE HOW I COULD BEAT THAT.

NO REPORT TONIGHT. THAT'S TOUGH. TRUSTEE MAYOR.

HAPPY SUMMER TO EVERYBODY AND I HOPE EVERYBODY WOULD HAVE GOOD VACATION AFTER THIS BOARD MEETING.

JUST ONE THING TO REPORT THAT I AM COLLABORATING WITH CHAMBER ON A WRITING AND JOURNALISM SUMMER PROGRAM FOR INCOMING EIGHTH GRADERS TO INCOMING 11TH GRADERS.

[00:05:06]

THANK YOU. TRUSTEE MR. CASTILLO, GOOD EVENING.

[XI. b. Superintendent]

THIS YEAR, OUR LITERACY SCORES FOR OUR GRADES K-2 STUDENTS GREW BY JUST OVER 10% THIS YEAR.

WHILE THERE'S STILL A LOT OF WORK TO DO, I'M PROUD OF THIS GROWTH DURING THAT FIRST YEAR.

THANK YOU TO OUR DEDICATED TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AROUND THE SCIENCE OF READING, AND IMPLEMENTED THESE NEW PRACTICES IN THEIR CLASSROOM AS A PART OF THE INITIATIVE.

WE'RE ALSO EXCITED TO HAVE THE AMERICORPS SUPPORT US WITH HIGH DOSE TUTORING TO SUPPORT OUR SCHOOL SCHOLARS IN MOST NEED OF SUPPORT.

THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING, AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING CONTINUED GROWTH AS WE ADD THIRD GRADE NEXT YEAR.

BEFORE SPEAKING ABOUT THE BUDGET UP FOR APPROVAL TONIGHT, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE WORK OF OUR TEAM WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THIS PROCESS.

DEVELOPING A DISTRICT BUDGET IS NOT SIMPLY ABOUT BALANCING NUMBERS.

IT'S ABOUT ALIGNING OUR FINANCIAL RESOURCES WITH OUR PRIORITIES AND ENSURING WE CAN THAT WE CONTINUE TO DELIVER OUR COMMITMENT TO STUDENTS, FAMILIES AND EMPLOYEES BOTH TODAY AND INTO THE FUTURE.

THE GOVERNOR'S MAY REVISION BROUGHT WELCOME NEWS FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS ACROSS CALIFORNIA.

AT THE SAME TIME, THIS DOES NOT CHANGE OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO PLAN CAREFULLY AND RESPONSIBLY.

WE MUST CONTINUE TO ALIGN ONGOING EXPENDITURES WITH ONGOING REVENUES.

ACCOUNT FOR NEW STATE MANDATES. PLAN FOR RISING EMPLOYEE BENEFIT COSTS AND MAINTAIN RESERVES THAT PROTECT THE DISTRICT FROM ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY AND FUNDING VOLATILITY. TO SUPPORT OUR COMMITMENTS, THE DISTRICT HAS IDENTIFIED APPROXIMATELY $8.2 MILLION IN REDUCTIONS AND OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES.

THESE ACTIONS INCLUDE REDUCING ED, CENTER ADMINISTRATOR STAFFING AND OPERATING BUDGETS, ADJUSTMENTS TO SOME PROGRAMS AND CONTRACTS, SHIFTS TO ONE TIME FUNDING WHERE APPROPRIATE, AND DELAYS AND OTHER OPERATIONAL COSTS.

IN ADDITION TO STRONG INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES AND RESPONSIBLE FISCAL STEWARDSHIP, SAFE, MODERN AND WELL MAINTAINED SCHOOLS ARE ALSO ESSENTIAL TO STUDENT SUCCESS.

NATOMAS UNIFIED HAS IDENTIFIED OVER $1 BILLION IN LONG TERM FACILITY NEEDS.

THIS INCLUDES MODERNIZATION OF AGING CLASSROOMS, IMPROVING ACCESSIBILITY AND SAFETY, BUILDING NEW SCHOOLS AND RELIEVING OVERCROWDING, IMPROVING ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND EXPANDING SPECIAL EDUCATION RESOURCES.

TODAY MARKS AN IMPORTANT STEP IN THE PROCESS TO SECURE THAT FUNDING BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES, VOTING ON A SCHOOL BOARD MEASURE FOR THE NOVEMBER BALLOT.

FISCAL STEWARDSHIP HAS AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE AN ESSENTIAL CORNERSTONE OF PRESERVING THE FUTURE OF NATOMAS UNIFIED.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING THIS VALUABLE WORK OF PUTTING STUDENTS FIRST AND PROVIDING THE RESOURCES THEY NEED TO THRIVE.

I HOPE EVERYONE ENJOYS SOME TIME THIS SUMMER FOR REST AND RELAXATION.

THAT IS MY REPORT FOR THIS EVENING. ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. NEXT UP, WE HAVE OUR CONSENT CALENDAR.

[XII. CONSENT ITEMS]

SECOND THAT MOTION. SECOND BY TRUSTEE HARDEN.

HELEN, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT A PARDON.

I I MORA I I MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. ALL RIGHT.

NEXT UP WE HAVE A PRESENTATION ON THE BOND POLLING RESULTS.

[XIII.a. Present Bond Polling Results]

THANK YOU, PRESIDENT GRANT TRUSTEES SUPERINTENDENT CASTILLO.

TONIGHT, VERY PLEASED TO HAVE CURT BELLO HERE WITH FM THREE WHO CONDUCTED OUR RESEARCH.

AND HE'S GOING TO SHARE THE SURVEY THAT WAS CONDUCTED OF LIKELY VOTERS FOR NOVEMBER.

SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT. CURT AND I DON'T HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT THAT I'VE RECEIVED, SO WE'LL JUST GO AHEAD WITH THE PRESENTATION.

OKAY. WELCOME BACK. THANK YOU. THANKS, DOUG. IT HAS HAPPENED TO BE BACK.

CURT BELLO FM THREE RESEARCH. WE'VE CONDUCTED SOME RESEARCH FOR YOUR COMMUNITY IN THE PAST.

SO WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH THE RESULTS OF THE MOST RECENT SURVEY WE CONDUCTED.

ALL RIGHT. OKAY. SO I'M GOING TO TAKE ME A HALF SECOND TO GET USED TO LOOKING UP WHILE I WANT TO LOOK AT YOUR FACES.

BUT IF YOU'RE LOOKING UP HERE. SO THE RESEARCH WE CONDUCTED WAS WRAPPED UP AT THE END OF MAY.

SO IT'S ONLY A LITTLE OVER, YOU KNOW, AROUND A MONTH ISH OLD.

WE DID A LITTLE OVER 400 INTERVIEWS, WHICH IS PRETTY STANDARD FOR SURVEYS OF THIS NATURE IN THE COMMUNITY OF YOUR SIZE.

IT GIVES US A MARGIN OF SAMPLING ERROR OF 5% FOR QUESTIONS ASKED FOR THE FULL SAMPLE, AND 7% FOR THOSE ASKED OF A HALF SAMPLE.

[00:10:05]

SO HALF WILL GET ONE VERSION WILL GET THE OTHER.

IT'S ALSO A NEAT WAY TO SHOVE MORE QUESTIONS INTO A SURVEY.

THE METHODOLOGY WE USE IS PRETTY STANDARD, ONE WE'VE DONE FOR YOUR DISTRICT IN THE PAST, WHICH IS DUAL MODE. SO SOME PHONE INTERVIEWS, SOME ONLINE INTERVIEWS, AND ALL THESE ARE NOT WITH RESIDENTS OR EVEN ADULTS OR EVEN REGISTERED VOTERS, BUT THOSE WHO ARE LIKELY TO VOTE THIS COMING NOVEMBER.

SO THIS IS A SUBSET OF OF THE ELECTORATE HERE IN THE COMMUNITY.

WE OFFER THE INTERVIEWS IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH AND A COUPLE OF PLACES HERE, MOSTLY LOOKING AT THE VOTE COMPARISONS, WE HAVE SOME TRACKING DATA THAT WE'LL GO THROUGH AS WELL.

ALL RIGHT. SO THE FIRST COUPLE OF SLIDES HERE ARE MORE SORT OF THE MOOD OF THE ELECTORATE, THE LENS THROUGH WHICH VOTERS MIGHT BE ASKED TO CONTEMPLATE A MEASURE.

A COUPLE QUESTIONS HERE. THEY'RE NOT AS IMPORTANT AS THE OVERALL HOW PEOPLE REACT TO A POTENTIAL MEASURE.

BUT IT'S HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND OUR VOTERS OPTIMISTIC, PESSIMISTIC, THOSE SORT OF THINGS.

SO RIGHT OUT THE GATE, WE ASKED THIS OLD GALLUP QUESTION RIGHT DIRECTION, WRONG TRACK.

AND THIS IS BROADLY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THINGS IN YOUR AREA.

SO KIND OF THE GENERAL, YOU KNOW, WHERE THEY LIVE.

WE'RE NOT THIS IS NOT ABOUT THE DISTRICT SPECIFICALLY. AND THE 44% FEEL LIKE THINGS ARE HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

37 IN THE RIGHT TRACK. SORRY. WRONG TRACK. TILTING A LITTLE MORE POSITIVE, I WOULD SAY.

AND PLENTY OF PLACES IN CALIFORNIA WHEN I'M DOING RESEARCH, THIS IS REALLY FLIPPED AND QUITE NEGATIVE.

SO THE FACT THAT THIS IS A LITTLE MORE POSITIVE AND A LITTLE MORE OPTIMISTIC IS, IS A LITTLE KIND OF REFRESHING FOR ME.

SO THE ELECTORATE HERE IS FEELING MORE POSITIVE THAN NEGATIVE.

A COUPLE QUESTIONS THAT WE'VE, WE ASKED HERE ABOUT JUST PERCEPTIONS ABOUT THE DISTRICT AND THE SCALE WE USED HERE IS EXCELLENT, GOOD, FAIR AND POOR. AND A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO DON'T HAVE A LOT OF TOUCH POINTS WITH THE SCHOOLS WOULD SAY, I DON'T KNOW. SO THE OVERALL QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED I'M GOING TO THE MIDDLE ONE FIRST.

SO 46%, ALMOST HALF SAID EXCELLENT OR GOOD. VERY FEW VOTERS HAD POURED ABOUT 1 IN 5 WERE LIKE, I'M NOT REALLY SURE. THE CONDITION OF THE BUILDINGS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A BOND MEASURE.

SO WHAT THOSE PERCEPTIONS ARE IS IMPORTANT. AND THAT ABOUT 55% SAID THAT THEY, THEIR PERCEPTION OF THE BUILDINGS IS MORE POSITIVE THAN NEGATIVE THERE. SO BUT IT'S NOT A STRONGLY HELD PERCEPTION.

ONLY 9% FEEL LIKE THE BUILDINGS ARE EXCELLENT.

THEY'RE LIKE, OH, THEY'RE OKAY. OR THEY'RE IN THAT FAIR CATEGORY.

AND THEN THE LAST ROW THERE IS ABOUT THE DISTRICT'S FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, AND WE ALWAYS SEE A LOT OF TENTATIVE RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS LIKE THIS.

SO DON'T BE YOU SHOULDN'T THROW YOU OFF AT ALL ABOUT EVEN NUMBERS.

ISH SAID EXCELLENT OR GOOD OR YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW.

AND THEN SOME OF THAT FAIR AND POOR CATEGORY IN THE MIDDLE.

BUT AGAIN, YOU KNOW, JUST GETTING A LITTLE BIT OF A SENSE OF A LOT OF FOLKS DON'T REALLY HAVE A STRONGLY HELD OPINION, ABOUT 30%. I COULDN'T EVEN SAY ONE WAY OR ANOTHER HOW THE DISTRICT'S MANAGING THEIR FINANCES IS HELPFUL TO REMEMBER WHEN WE'RE ASKING THEM TO CONTEMPLATE A BOND MEASURE.

IN TERMS OF GENERAL IMPRESSIONS OF YOUR DISTRICT BY MORE THAN A 2 TO 1 RATIO, VOTERS HOLD A FAVORABLE TO UNFAVORABLE IMPRESSION.

SO 53 TO 24 AND ANOTHER CHUNK AROUND THAT ONE QUARTER RANGE THAT I DON'T REALLY HAVE AN OPINION ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.

WHAT'S, WHAT'S A LITTLE ENCOURAGING HERE IS THAT THERE'S MORE INTENSITY ON THE FAVORABLE SIDE.

SO 18% SAID THEY HOLD THE DISTRICT IN A VERY FAVORABLE POINT OF VIEW TO ONLY LESS THAN 1 IN 10, AN 8%, VERY UNFAVORABLE. AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION HERE OF THESE CONTEXTUAL QUESTIONS, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT WHICH IS IS THERE A PERCEIVED NEED FOR FUNDING? AND THIS IS LIKE A, YOU KNOW, BROADLY ABOUT ADDITIONAL NEED FOR FUNDING FOR CLASSROOMS AND FACILITIES.

WE'RE NOT GETTING INTO THE REAL SPECIFICS ABOUT HOW THAT FUNDING MIGHT BE GENERATED OR MORE DETAILS HOW IT MIGHT BE SPENT.

BUT JUST DO THE VOTERS HAVE A GUT SENSE? YEAH, I THINK THE DISTRICT NEEDS MORE FUNDS.

AND WE'VE SEEN HISTORICALLY A PRETTY TIGHT CORRELATION BETWEEN THOSE WHO FEEL LIKE THAT IS AN APPRECIABLE NEED FOR FUNDING THAT GREATER SOME NEED NUMBER AND A YES VOTE.

SO WE'RE LOOKING HERE AT 63% IN THAT GREATER SOME NEED CATEGORY.

SO WITHOUT IF I HADN'T EVEN SHOWN YOU THE NEXT SLIDES, I'D SAY THAT'S A GOOD STARTING SPOT.

YOU DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO CONVINCE AS MANY PEOPLE ABOUT THE NEED FOR FUNDING.

IF WE SEE THAT NUMBER BELOW THE VOTE THRESHOLD, THEN THAT'S LIKE, OKAY, THERE'S AN ADDITIONAL HURDLE THAT HAS TO BE CROSSED BEFORE YOU CAN REALLY LOOK TO THE VOTERS TO PASS A REVENUE MEASURE.

ONLY ONE IN LESS THAN 1 IN 5 DON'T THINK YOU HAVE AN APPRECIABLE NEED.

THAT 18% NUMBER IS PRETTY SMALL. SO THIS IS ONE OF THOSE ARE OKAY.

A LITTLE SENSE THAT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A TAILWIND HERE.

SO LET'S GET TO THAT MEASURE. HERE'S THE HYPOTHETICAL LANGUAGE THAT WE WE TESTED IT BORROWED FROM LANGUAGE THAT WE'VE TESTED AND YOU'VE USED IN THE PAST.

[00:15:02]

AND SO THIS IS A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT WITH THE STAFF AND THE CONSULTING TEAM TO WRITE THIS LANGUAGE FOR A $300 MILLION BOND MEASURE.

WE GO OVER THINGS THAT THE MONEY COULD BE SPENT ON, YOU KNOW, BAKING, MAKING REPAIRS, ADDRESSING SOME CRITICAL NEEDS IN THE CLASSROOM, SAFE PLACES TO PLAY, AND THEN SOME LANGUAGE THAT GIVES YOU A LITTLE FLEXIBILITY TO SPEND MONEY BASED UPON WHAT IS SPECIFICALLY DELINEATED IN YOUR SPENDING PLAN.

YOU CAN'T PUT ALL THAT INTO 75 WORDS. SO LET'S GET TO IT.

SO WE PRESENTED THIS LANGUAGE. EITHER SOMEONE READ IT ON THE PHONE, THEY HEARD IT, OR THEY WERE READING ON THEIR PHONE OR ON THEIR TABLET OR ON THEIR COMPUTER. AND THEN WE ASK THEM, HOW WILL YOU VOTE YES OR NO? AND THE INITIAL VOTE, THERE WAS 57% SAID YES.

ABOUT A QUARTER SAID NO. 17% SAID, OOPS, I DON'T KNOW.

I'M ON THE FENCE. WE LIKE TO PUSH PEOPLE A LITTLE BIT FOR TWO REASONS.

ONE, THOSE YES AND NO VOTES. WE PUSH THEM TO SEE IF THERE ARE DEFINITELY OR PROBABLY YES OR DEFINITELY OR PROBABLY NO.

WE WANT TO GET A SENSE OF THE INTENSITY OF THAT SUPPORT OR OPPOSITION.

AND THEN FOR THOSE WHO ARE INITIALLY ON THE FENCE, WE REALIZE WE'RE CATCHING SOMEBODY IN MAY OF A NOVEMBER ELECTIONS, NOT SOMETHING THEY'VE THOUGHT ABOUT. THEY MIGHT SAY, I DON'T KNOW, IS THERE A DEFAULT? BUT THEY MAY HAVE A LEANING ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.

SO WE PUSH THOSE. ARE YOU LEANING TO A YES OR NO? AND THEN THAT GIVES US WHAT WE LIKE TO LOOK AT IS LIKE OUR THREE FLAVORS OF YES.

AND THREE FLAVORS OF NO WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS OF INTENSITY HERE.

AND YOU'LL SEE HERE THAT THE INITIAL VOTE HERE WITHOUT ANY BACKGROUND, WITHOUT US EXPLAINING NEEDS OR TALKING ABOUT YOUR FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT OF PAST BONDS, 64% OF THE RESPONDENTS SAID THAT THEY WOULD VOTE YES, 29% SAID NO, AND LESS THAN 1 IN 10 WERE ON THE FENCE REALLY AT THE END.

SO THIS IS AFTER BEING ASKED TWICE. ONLY 7% ARE LIKE, YEAH, I DON'T REALLY KNOW.

SO THE INITIAL OUT THE GATE YES VOTE IS AT 57, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE POINTS ABOVE THAT VOTE THRESHOLD OF 55% MARGIN OF ERROR.

BUT WHEN WE PUT THOSE LEANERS IN THERE, WE GET TO THAT 64% NUMBER, WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY A MUCH MORE FAVORABLE NUMBER.

BUT IT REQUIRES SOME OF THOSE FOLKS WHOSE INITIAL REACTION IS TO, TO HOLD BACK A BIT.

THE NEXT COUPLE SLIDES HERE ARE JUST THE WAYS IN WHICH FUNDS FROM A BOND COULD BE SPENT.

AND SOME OF THEM ARE KIND OF SPECIFIC, AND SOME OF THEM ARE A LITTLE MORE KIND OF THE BENEFITS OF THOSE EXPENDITURES, RIGHT? BUT THEY'RE HELPING US TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT VOTERS PRIORITIES WOULD BE FOR A MEASURE.

AND THESE ARE PRESENTED IN RANDOM ORDER. AND MANY OF THESE WERE THEY USED THAT SPLIT SAMPLING TECHNIQUE.

SO THE MARGIN OF ERROR HERE FOR A LOT OF THESE IS ABOUT 7%.

WE ARE LOOKING AT HOW IMPORTANT THEY ARE TO THE RESPONDENTS.

AND THE SCALE IS EXTREMELY, VERY SOMEWHAT OR NOT TOO IMPORTANT.

SO NOT TOO IMPORTANT IS ORANGE BARS. AND THAT'S THE I DON'T REALLY THINK THAT SHOULD BE A PRIORITY.

BASICALLY EVERYTHING ON THESE COUPLE SLIDES HERE WILL BE AT LEAST SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT BY VIRTUALLY ALL THE RESPONDENTS OF THE SURVEY.

SO WE HAVE A SCALE THAT HAS A COUPLE OF DATA POINTS.

ON THE ONE SIDE, THE EXTREMELY AND VERY IMPORTANT SIDE, WE WANT TO LOOK AT THOSE INTENSE REACTIONS.

AND THOSE ARE THE DARKER BLUE BARS. WE'VE SUMMARIZED THAT ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE AND SORTED BY IT.

SO WE CAN LOOK AT THIS BY TOTAL EXTREMELY, VERY IMPORTANT.

AND WE CAN ZERO IN ON THOSE DARK BLUE BARS TOO.

AND LOOK FOR WHAT GENERATED A REALLY INTENSE REACTIONS ABOVE THAT DASHED RED LINE IS KIND OF A BENEFIT.

A BIGGER BENEFIT OF A BOND. IT'S NOT A SPECIFIC SPENDING CATEGORY, BUT IT'S REALLY HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND THAT VOTERS THOUGHT THE MOST IMPORTANT SORT OF OUTCOME OF A BOND WOULD BE CONTINUING TO PROVIDE QUALITY EDUCATION.

IT IS THAT ULTIMATE OUTCOME OF WHAT YOU'RE DOING HERE AS A DISTRICT THAT THEY REALLY, REALLY VALUE THE MOST SORT OF THE UMBRELLA UNDER WHICH EVERYTHING FALLS BELOW THAT LINE.

ON THE SLIDE, WE HAVE A FEW OTHER ITEMS THAT FOUR OUT OF FIVE RESPONDENTS SAID WERE EITHER EXTREMELY OR VERY IMPORTANT.

A COUPLE OF THESE WERE LIKE REAL NUTS AND BOLTS FIXING OLD ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS OR HVAC SYSTEMS, JUST REAL TANGIBLE THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE. AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT REPAIRING THEM.

A FEW ITEMS HERE REGARDING SAFETY, WHICH IS OVERALL SCHOOL SAFETY OR SAFE PLACES FOR CHILDREN TO PLAY.

THOSE GENERATED SOME PRETTY HIGH LEVELS OF INTENSITY AND THEN ADA ACCESSIBILITY HERE AS WELL.

SO THOSE WERE SOME OF THE TOP TOP PRIORITIES THERE.

MOVING DOWN THIS LIST AGAIN, EVERYTHING ON THIS SLIDE IS SEEN AS AT LEAST SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT BY NINE OUT OF TEN AND EXTREMELY OR VERY IMPORTANT BY TWO THIRDS OR MORE. THE DARK BLUE BARS GET A LITTLE SMALLER, FEWER IN THE 40S.

NOTHING LIKE THAT 60% WE SAW AT THE VERY TOP.

BUT THESE ARE ALL THINGS THAT VOTERS REALLY DO STILL VALUE.

AND THIS IS WHERE WE GET INTO MAYBE A FEW DIFFERENT VARIATIONS OF REPAIRS, RIGHT?

[00:20:04]

WE TALKED ABOUT SAFE PLAY AREAS FOR CHILDREN FOR CHILDREN TO PLAY IN A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT.

BUT WE ALSO STARTED TO SEE IN THIS SECOND SLIDE SOME OF THE MORE DIRECT EDUCATIONAL OUTCOME INVESTMENTS, RIGHT? AGING SCIENCE LABS AGING, JUST STEM CLASSROOMS MEETING MODERN STANDARDS AND HANDS ON TRAINING FACILITIES. AND THOSE WERE THINGS NOW.

SO THE FIRST TIER WAS REPAIRS, SAFETY, OVERALL EDUCATION, AND THE RIGHT KIND OF BEHIND THAT, WE STARTED GETTING INTO THE CLASSROOM OUTCOMES AND EDUCATION.

OVER THE COURSE OF THE SURVEY WE ASKED, HEY, YOU MIGHT WANT TO HEAR SOME RATIONALES FOR VOTING.

YES, HERE'S SOME RATIONALES FOR VOTING NO, JUST TO GET A LITTLE SENSE OF IF SUPPORT STARTS OFF AT A REAL HIGH LEVEL, DOES IT MOVE AROUND A WHOLE LOT? AND WAS, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF STUFF AROUND, YOU KNOW, BASIC REPAIRS, CAREER TRAINING, THE GOOD FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT YOU'VE HAD FOR HIS DISTRICT, ALL THOSE DIFFERENT THINGS.

NOW, HOW MIGHT YOU VOTE, VOTE ON THIS MEASURE? AND THEN WE CAME BACK AND SAID, COST OF LIVING IS TOO HIGH.

JUST GOING TO WASTE ITS MONEY. WE HAVE LOTS OF BONDS.

WE'RE STILL PAYING OFF NOW. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO VOTE? AND THROWING ALL THAT STUFF AGAINST THE WALL DIDN'T REALLY CHANGE OPINIONS A WHOLE LOT, WHICH IS INTERESTING.

BASICALLY IT WENT UP TWO POINTS AND CAME DOWN THREE POINTS.

SO NOT A LOT OF CHANGES THERE IN THE OVERALL SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION, WHICH SUGGESTS THAT VOTERS KIND OF HEARD THE BOND, READ THE BOND, CAME TO A CONCLUSION AND KIND OF STUCK TO IT, REGARDLESS OF WHAT WE WERE PRESENTING TO THEM, WHICH SHOULD LEND ITSELF TO A, YOU KNOW, THIS IS MODELING A, AN UNREALISTIC SCENARIO WHERE EVERY SINGLE VOTER GETS EVERY SINGLE ARGUMENT.

AND THAT'S JUST NOT GOING TO HAPPEN IN THE REAL WORLD. BUT IN THAT CASE, WHERE THERE'S NOT A LOT OF FLUIDITY, AND WE OFTEN SEE SOME UPS AND DOWNS OVER THE COURSE OF A SURVEY, BUT THIS VOTE LOOKED PRETTY CONSISTENT.

NOW, COULD THAT BE MASKING SOMETHING UNDER THE SURFACE? MAYBE IT'S OH, 64, 46663. BUT WOW, THERE'S SOME INTENSITY CHANGES GOING ON.

SO LET'S LOOK AT THE FIRST VOTE IN JUST THE LAST VOTE AND LOOK AT THE DEFINITELY PROBABLES AND LEANERS.

AND ACTUALLY THERE'S NOT A LOT OF CHANGE THERE EITHER THE, YOU KNOW, A FEW MORE POINTS THAN THE DEFINITELY, YES, A FEW MORE POINTS THAN THE DEFINITELY NO.

SO PEOPLE GOT MODESTLY MORE ENTRENCHED IN THEIR POSITIONS, BUT THERE WASN'T A WHOLESALE CHANGE OF INTENSITY HAPPENING UNDER THE SURFACE THERE.

I WILL JUST NOTE THAT IN BOTH CASES, THE INITIAL GUT REACTIONS TO THESE MEASURES WAS, YOU KNOW, 57%. YES, 56%. YES. SO, YOU KNOW, THOSE FOLKS WHO ARE LEANING YES, ARE REALLY WHAT'S NEEDED TO GIVE YOU THAT MORE COMFORTABLE MARGIN ABOVE 55%. AND HEAR A WHOLE LOT OF NUMBERS HERE IN A PRETTY DENSE TABLE.

BUT WE HAVE CONDUCTED SOME RESEARCH FOR YOU IN THE PAST FOR MEASURES THAT YOU ENDED UP PUTTING ON THE BALLOT.

AND THEN IN 2024, YOU DID NOT PUT SOMETHING ON THE BALLOT, BUT THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL JUST TO GET A SENSE OF THE DIFFERENT DATA POINTS THAT WE HAVE IN THIS SURVEY TO KIND OF COMPARE THEM TO PAST ONES.

SO BACK IN THE 2014 EFFORTS, YOU SEE SUPPORT WAS KIND OF IN THAT, YOU KNOW, ALL THE WAY UP AT 69.

IT STARTED OFF PRETTY HIGH AND KIND OF WENT DOWN A COUPLE POINTS.

AND THEN THE ACTUAL RESULTS OF MEASURE J WAS THAT THE NO VOTE KIND OF STAYED STEADY, AND THOSE UNDECIDED VOTERS MOVED TO THE YES SIDE, AND THERE WERE VERY FEW OF THEM. 2018 A LITTLE, A LITTLE SORT OF DIFFERENT, STARTED OFF LOWER, ACTUALLY WENT UP HIGH AND KIND OF ENDED UP AT A GOOD SPOT.

AND AGAIN, YOU SAW THAT FINAL VOTE FOR MEASURE L LOOKING A LITTLE BIT LIKE THE HIGH WATER MARK OF SUPPORT IN 2024.

THERE WERE SOME DIFFERENT UNDERLYING DYNAMICS AND PERCEPTIONS OF THE DISTRICT IN THE SURVEY AND MAYBE A LITTLE MORE UNSETTLED ELECTORATE, BUT SUPPORT FOR THE MEASURE KIND OF HAD A LITTLE MORE OF A START, YOU KNOW, LOW 60S GO UP AND COME DOWN, WHICH KIND OF LOOKS SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT HERE. RIGHT? SOMETHING KIND OF MAYBE A FEW POINTS HIGHER, MORE MID 60S UP AND DOWN.

BUT THAT SORT OF DYNAMIC WHERE WE'VE ASKED YOU KNOW, FOR DIFFERENT SURVEYS, DATA POINTS WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE BOTH KIND OF IN THAT SPRING TIME FRAME. AND YOU'LL SEE THAT SUPPORT IS GENERALLY, WITH ONE EXCEPTION, THE FIRST VOTE IN THAT 2018 SURVEY IS PRETTY MUCH ALWAYS SOMEWHERE IN THE 60S. SO AGAIN, SOME ADDITIONAL, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF THESE SURVEYS AND BALLOT MEASURES WERE PRE-PANDEMIC, THE WORLD WAS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO TAKE THOSE WITH A GRAIN OF SALT, BUT THOSE DATA POINTS MIGHT BE HELPFUL FOR YOUR OWN CONTEMPLATION HERE TONIGHT.

AND SO THAT JUST GETS US TO JUST A COUPLE CONCLUSIONS HERE.

YOU KNOW, YOU'RE IN BETTER SHAPE THAN MAYBE YOU WERE IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. SOME OF THE DYNAMICS, PARTICULARLY THE PERCEIVED NEED FOR FUNDING THAT LOOKS LIKE LOOKS PRETTY

[00:25:01]

SO AGAIN, SOME POSITIVE DATA POINTS HERE. AND YOU KNOW, I JUST WENT THROUGH SOME OF THE RATIONALES FOR A MEASURE AND VARIOUS OTHER DATA POINTS HERE. BUT YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW THESE RESULTS, PARTICULARLY GIVEN YOUR PAST HISTORY, SUGGEST SOMETHING IS VIABLE FOR THIS NOVEMBER.

A MEASURE OF THIS OF THIS NATURE HERE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE ASKED TO DISCUSS HERE IN A FEW MINUTES HERE.

SO HAPPY TO DO THAT. I AM GIVING LOTS OF PRESENTATIONS.

AND, AND I WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT THIS THAT ARE MUCH MORE SOBERING UP AND DOWN THE STATE HERE.

SO THESE ARE POSITIVE RESULTS. I THINK YOU SHOULD BE, I'M HAPPY TO PRESENT THEM.

SO HOPEFULLY YOU'RE HAPPY TO SEE THE POSITIVE RESULTS HERE TONIGHT. ALL RIGHT.

ALL RIGHT. I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. SO TALK TO ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE 400 AND LEVEL 11, THE SAMPLE SIZE HERE ARE THESE HOMEOWNERS. IS IT A REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE OF NATOMAS.

IS IT DIVERSE. YEAH. SO IT IS A I DON'T HAVE THOSE NUMBERS OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD.

BUT WHAT WE DO IS WE FIRST START WITH THE VOTER FILE.

SO WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT RESIDENTS, WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT LIKE PARENTS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT EITHER.

WE'LL LOOK AT THE VOTER FILE AND WE LOOK AT PEOPLE'S PAST VOTE HISTORIES, AND WE COME UP WITH A MODEL THAT SAYS, OKAY, THEY'RE LIKELY TO VOTE THIS NOVEMBER. AND IN CALIFORNIA GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION.

SO IT GETS A LITTLE NARROW. BUT FROM THAT, WE'RE ABLE TO GENERATE SOME SOME INFORMATION ABOUT PARTY AND AGE, GEOGRAPHY, WHERE THEY LIVE. AND WE LOOK AT VARIOUS OTHER FACTORS THAT COME UP WITH QUOTAS BY ETHNICITY AND EDUCATION AS WELL.

THOSE ARE KEY ONES. JUST THE POLLSTER NERDY PART.

THOSE WHO TAKE ONLINE SURVEYS ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY NOW TO HAVE FOUR YEAR COLLEGE DEGREES THAN NOT.

AND SO YOU HAVE TO KIND OF CALIBRATE FOR THAT A LITTLE BIT TOO. SURE.

YEAH. OKAY. MY SECOND QUESTION IS ON I'M NOT SURE WHAT PAGE THIS IS, BUT IT SAYS SUPPORT HEALTH STUDY OVER THE COURSE OF THE SURVEY.

IT'S THE ONE WITH THAT HEADER. SOME OF THE EXAMPLES THAT, WE KNOW FOR ANY BOND MEASURE OR ANY INITIATIVE, THE BIGGEST STRUGGLE THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE IS OPPOSITION, RIGHT? IF A WELL-FUNDED OPPOSITION OR SOMEONE WHO IS VERY POLITICALLY SAVVY COMES AND HAS A SUSTAINED OPPOSITION CAMPAIGN, THEN WE COULD SEE SOME OF THESE NUMBERS DROP.

BUT THE QUESTIONS AREN'T GOING TO BE LIKE, HEY, WHAT IF THERE'S ADMINISTRATIVE WASTE? RIGHT? IF I'M A CAMPAIGN EXPERT, I'M GOING TO SAY, HEY, GAS PRICES ARE $8 A GALLON AND ENERGY COSTS ARE HIGH.

HAVE THOSE TYPE OF QUESTIONS BEEN STRESS TEST IN THIS SURVEY? THOSE ARE EXACTLY THE ONES WE READ IN THE AS THE NEGATIVES. THOSE ARE THE LIKE GAS PRICES ARE TOO HIGH.

HOUSING COSTS ARE TOO HIGH. WE CAN'T AFFORD THIS RIGHT NOW. WE CAN'T AFFORD ANOTHER TAX. WE DID ALL THOSE SORT OF THINGS.

I APPRECIATE THAT VERY MUCH. ALL RIGHT. OUR LAST QUESTION FOR ME IS AND YOU SAID THESE WERE KIND OF LIKE AUXILIARY WASN'T THE WORD.

BUT ON THE ONE, TWO, THREE ON THE FOURTH SLIDE, YOU KNOW, THE THREE FLAVORS.

YEAH, IT SAYS 44%. YES. VOTERS ARE MORE OPTIMISTIC.

THAT ONE. THANK YOU. 44% THINK THE REGION IS.

SIRI HAS A LOT OF OPINIONS TONIGHT. OKAY. NO.

YOU'RE GOOD. I'M MESSING AROUND. SO 44% THINK THE REGION IS HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

DO WE KNOW WHAT THIS IS? VERY FUNNY. DO WE KNOW WHAT WHAT IS DEFINING THOSE PERCEPTIONS AS REGION? IS IT LIKE COUNTY GOVERNMENT? IS IT CITY GOVERNMENT? IS IT STATE GOVERNMENT BECAUSE BY THE CAPITAL.

YEAH. THE WAY WE ASKED THIS QUESTION, LITERALLY THE LANGUAGE THIS IS ITALICIZED IS WHAT WE ASKED.

AND WE ASKED THIS QUESTION FOR TWO REASONS. OKAY.

THE FIRST ONE IS JUST A GENERAL VIBES CHECK. ARE YOU FEELING OPTIMISTIC OR PESSIMISTIC WITHOUT NARROWING IN ON A SPECIFIC ENTITY? OPEN ENDED IN A SENSE. OKAY. WELL, IT'S NOT OPEN ENDED. IT'S WE GIVE THEM A COUPLE CHOICES, BUT IT'S ALSO A GOOD WARM UP QUESTION PRACTICALLY INTO A SURVEY.

IT'S NOT. HEY, WE JUST CAUGHT YOU. HERE'S 75.

WE'RE ABOUT LANGUAGE. HOW YOU VOTE ON IT. WE KIND OF LIKE, ALL RIGHT, HOW ARE YOU FEELING? RIGHT DIRECTION ON TRACK. GET YOU INTO THE CADENCE OF THE SURVEY AND THEN THEY TAKE IT. IF THERE'S A LOT OF PESSIMISM NATIONALLY, WE FIND THAT TRICKLES DOWN SOMETIMES AND PUSHES THESE NUMBERS DOWN. OKAY. BUT YEAH, SO ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, PRETTY GOOD THEN.

YES, I AM. YES, I'VE GIVEN PLENTY OF THESE WHERE THE ORANGE SLICES AT MORE THAN 50%.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. YEAH. GOOD POLL. THANK YOU.

TRUSTEES. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? QUESTIONS. THANK YOU.

PRESIDENT. COOL. TRUSTEE MORE. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND I'M GLAD THAT THESE ARE FROM MAY OF THIS YEAR.

IT GIVES US, I THINK, A BETTER PICTURE. I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS.

MY FIRST QUESTION IS FOR, FOR THE PRIORITY AREAS THAT THAT WERE ASKED WERE PEOPLE ABLE TO LEAVE ANY BLANK

[00:30:03]

YEAH, THEY COULD SAY THEY DON'T KNOW BASICALLY THAT.

OR IF THEY SKIP IT, THEY COULD SKIP IT TOO. AND THAT'S THAT GRAY BAR, WHICH IS VERY, VERY SMALL FOR MOST OF THESE THINGS.

THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE'RE NOT ASKING. WE'RE JUST SAYING, HOW IMPORTANT ARE THEY TO YOU? IT'S PRETTY EASY TO GIVE A RESPONSE TO THAT VERSUS MAYBE OTHER QUESTIONS LIKE, WELL, I DON'T REALLY HAVE AN OPINION ABOUT THE DISTRICT BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE ANY KIDS IN THERE. AND MAYBE I SAY, I DON'T KNOW. RIGHT.

JUST CURIOUS. AND ANOTHER QUESTION OF SOMETHING I'M CURIOUS ABOUT IS FOR THE POLLING MARGIN OF ERROR.

WHAT IS THE INDUSTRY, THE STANDARD IN YOUR INDUSTRY FOR THE MARGIN OF ERROR? YEAH. I MEAN, FOR, YOU KNOW, I WOULD SAY FOR VIRTUALLY EVERY SORT OF MEDIUM TO SIZE COMMUNITY, WE TRY TO DO ABOUT 400 INTERVIEWS. WHAT WE DID HERE, GET INTO THAT 5% MARGIN OF SAMPLING ERROR IS KIND OF THE, THE, THE BENCHMARK. NOW YOU DO A BIGGER COUNTYWIDE SURVEY, WE MAYBE GET UP TO 600 INTERVIEWS STATEWIDE.

WE START GETTING 801,000 INTERVIEWS, BUT YOU'LL SEE A LOT OF THE.

IF YOU PROBABLY JUST SAW SOME POLLS ABOUT THE GOVERNOR'S RACE.

AND THOSE ARE PROBABLY A LOT OF SURVEYS IN THE LIKE 1000 INTERVIEW RANGE FOR THE ENTIRE STATE OF CALIFORNIA.

SO 400 IS PRETTY MUCH WHAT WE EXPECT. I LOOK FOR IN A COMMUNITY THIS SIZE, IT SOUNDS.

IT'S PRETTY. THE MARGIN OF ERROR HERE IS PRETTY CLOSE TO WHAT IT USUALLY WOULD BE.

IT'S NOT INCREDIBLY HIGH. INCREDIBLY HIGH. NO, NO.

5%. WE GET TO 5%. WE FEEL PRETTY COMFORTABLE.

OKAY. THANK YOU. THERE'S ALSO A DIMINISHING RETURN. YOU DO 5000 INTERVIEWS.

THE MARGIN OF ERROR IS ONLY YOU ONLY SAVE A COUPLE POINTS OFF ACTUALLY, THE MARGIN OF ERROR.

ALSO A 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL. RIGHT. SO PRETTY GOOD STUFF.

OKAY. TRUSTEE AGAIN, THANK YOU. VERY, VERY COMPREHENSIVE.

NOT QUITE SURE THE BEST WAY TO ASK THIS QUESTION, BUT SUBSEQUENT TO THIS POLL, OUR ONE OF THE LARGER DISTRICTS IN THE AREA HAS ANNOUNCED THAT THEY'RE STRONGLY CONSIDERING A PARCEL TAX FOR OPERATIONAL FUNDS.

DO YOU THINK THERE WAS ANY AND I KNOW THAT WAS SUBSEQUENT TO THIS POLL.

BUT FIRST, DO YOU THINK FOR THE PEOPLE RESPONDING TO THIS THAT IT WAS MADE CLEAR THIS WAS FOR FACILITIES AND FACILITIES ONLY CANNOT BE USED FOR EXPENSES? WELL, LET'S GO TO THE LANGUAGE WE HAD HERE. THIS IS THE LANGUAGE WE USED.

AND SO IT TALKS ABOUT FOR REPAIRING, CONSTRUCTING, ACQUIRING CLASSROOMS, FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT.

AND IT CLARIFIES THAT NO MONEY CAN BE USED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE SALARIES. IT DOESN'T TALK ABOUT OPERATIONAL COSTS. AND WE DIDN'T NECESSARILY CLARIFY THAT.

BUT BOND MEASURES ARE MORE UNDERSTOOD ENTITY THAT PAYS FOR PHYSICAL THINGS.

SO I'M LESS CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. I WOULD NORMALLY AGREE WITH YOU IF IT WEREN'T FOR THE FACT THAT WE MIGHT BE SEEING THE LARGEST DISTRICT IN THE AREA, PUTTING A PARCEL TAX ON THE BALLOT, WHICH WILL BE GETTING A LOT OF NEWS.

AND IT'S KIND OF INTERESTING, LIKE INTERESTING.

FAMILIES IN THE DISTRICT KNOW THAT THEIR KIDS GO TO THE NATOMAS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.

RESIDENTS OF NATOMAS MAY NOT NECESSARILY KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NATOMAS UNIFIED, TWIN RIVERS, SAC CITY. AT LEAST THEY'RE PRETTY SURE THEY DON'T GO TO ELK GROVE, BUT YOU NEVER KNOW.

YEAH. NO SHADE THOUGH, RIGHT. SO I JUST KNOW SO I JUST WONDER ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT LEVEL OF FROM A COMMS PERSPECTIVE, NOISE MIGHT DO IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, THE OPINIONS WITH REGARD TO A FACILITIES BOND IN NATOMAS WHEN YOU'RE HEARING THAT? I MEAN, THERE'S GOING TO BE LEAKAGE FROM THE STORIES THAT ARE ABOUT MAYBE SOME OF THE OTHER FOLKS ON THE TEAM MIGHT BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO THIS BETTER THAN I, BUT I WOULD WAGER TO SAY THAT IN 2014 AND 2018, THERE WERE PROBABLY ALSO OTHER MEASURES ON THE BALLOT THAT WERE OF A NATURE AND YOU WERE ABLE TO PASS SOMETHING, THEN IT IS KIND OF JUST THE NATURE OF THE BEAST THESE DAYS THAT THERE'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE MULTIPLE MEASURES ON AND COMMUNICATIONS ARE OVERLAPPING, AND PARTICULARLY WITH WHEN THERE WAS MORE PEOPLE MAKING PHONE CALLS AND KNOCKING ON DOORS A LITTLE MORE TARGETED.

NOW ONLINE PEOPLE'S FEES ARE GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, COVERED WITH A BUNCH OF STUFF ON DIFFERENT MEASURES.

SO I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY JUST SORT OF HOW THAT WORKS THESE DAYS.

AND I'M LESS CONCERNED ABOUT IT. GREAT. THANK YOU.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. TRUSTEE SIRI, HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? NO. OKAY. I HAVE TO SAY SORRY TO YOU GUYS AND TO THE PUBLIC AND TO THIS.

YES. I'M SORRY. ALL RIGHT, NO PROBLEM. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANKS. ALL RIGHT. NEXT UP, WE HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING EVALUATING REAL PROPERTY IN ACCORDANCE WITH SITE SELECTION STANDARDS,

[XIV. a. Evaluating Real Property in Accordance with Site Selection Standards, Paso Verde School]

[00:35:01]

WE ARE LOOKING AT EXCHANGING LAND WITH A DEVELOPER THAT'S RIGHT NEXT TO PASO VERDE.

IT'S UNUSABLE LAND FOR US. WE CAN'T USE IT FOR SCHOOL PURPOSES.

IN EXCHANGE FOR A PIECE OF LAND THAT WE CAN USE FOR SPORTS FIELDS.

NO BUILDINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT ARE EXPECTED TO GO ON THIS.

SO THIS IS JUST PART OF THE PROCESS WE NEED TO GO THROUGH WITH SEQUA DECLARING IT'S EXEMPT FROM THE SEQUEL PROCESS.

I'VE DONE A STUDY WITH THE AERONAUTICAL SURVEY AND THEY'VE CLEARED IT.

CDC HAS CLEARED IT AND IT WAS CLEARED PREVIOUSLY ALSO, BUT CLEARED.

SO THIS IS JUST THE NEXT STEP. ALL RIGHT. TRUSTEES.

IS THERE A MOTION TO CLOSE? ALL RIGHT. MOVE TO CLOSE BY.

TRUSTEE. MAURA. SECOND. SECOND BY TRUSTEE DOSAGE.

ELAINE, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? DOZIC.

I GRANT A PARDON. MATTA I MAURA, I. ALL RIGHT.

HEARING IS NOW CLOSED. ALL RIGHT, NEXT UP, WE HAVE OUR ACTION ITEMS.

[XV.a. Present and Approve Resolution No. 26-24 Ordering a School Bond Election, and Authorizing Necessary Actions in Connection Therewith]

ORDERING A SCHOOL BOND ELECTION AND AUTHORIZING NECESSARY ACTIONS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH.

THANK YOU, PRESIDENT GRANT. WITH ME TONIGHT I HAVE LORI RANIERI.

SHE'S BACK. IT'S BEEN, I DON'T KNOW, A COUPLE OF MONTHS SINCE WE TALKED ABOUT THE REFINANCE OF THE SUCCESSFUL REFINANCE OF THE SCHOOL BONDS AND TONIGHT SHE'S HERE TO TALK ABOUT POTENTIAL BOND MEASURE FOR THE NOVEMBER BALLOT.

AND THEN WE HAVE AN ASSOCIATED ACTION ITEM FOR THE APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION, WHICH ALLOWS STAFF TO MOVE FORWARD WITH TAKING THE ACTIONS NECESSARY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. SO, LORI. YES.

THANK YOU. JUST BROUGHT MY OTHER COMPUTER. I'M READY FOR QUESTIONS.

BUT THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME BACK. IT IS ALWAYS A PLEASURE.

JUST SUCH A PROFESSIONAL EFFORT BY EVERYONE FROM THE PEOPLE AT THE DOOR, ALL THE WAY TO ALL THE WORK LEADING UP TO THE MEETING.

WE REALLY APPRECIATE BEING PART OF YOUR TEAM. AND AS A REMINDER, BECAUSE YOU'RE A MEMBER OF OF GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SERVICES JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY, THE DISTRICT HAS COMMITTED TO BEING GUIDED BY FINANCE, BEST PRACTICES, ETHICS AND TRANSPARENCY.

AND WE'LL BE TOUCHING ON THAT IN THE PRESENTATION.

SO DO I NEED TO DO SOMETHING TO CENTER THAT BETTER? I'M NOT SURE IF IT'S ME OR WE JUST HAVE TO. THERE WE GO.

OKAY, SO THIS IS THE LANGUAGE THAT MR. BARLOW WAS GOING OVER.

IT WAS IN THE SURVEY. IT'S IN THE RESOLUTION THAT'S BEFORE YOU.

AND IF THE BOARD APPROVES MOVING FORWARD WITH A MEASURE IN NOVEMBER, THIS IS THE ACTUAL QUESTION THAT PEOPLE WILL SEE IN THEIR BALLOT. AND SO YOU CAN SEE THAT IT MENTIONS ALL THE DIFFERENT FACILITIES NEEDS AND TALKS ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF BONDS, 300 MILLION, AND THE PROJECTED MAXIMUM TAX RATE OF $60 PER 100,000.

IT ALSO EMPHASIZES, IMPORTANTLY THE OVERSIGHT SPECIAL DISCLOSURES, AUDITS NO MONEY FOR ADMINISTRATIVE SALARIES AND CITIZENS OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. SO THAT'S THOSE ARE ALL GOOD THINGS.

IT ALSO TALKS ABOUT THE FACILITIES PROJECT. THERE ARE FOUR CATEGORIES SCHOOL, RENOVATION, REPAIR AND UPGRADES, HEALTH, SAFETY, SECURITY AND ACCESSIBILITY, ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND BUILDING SYSTEMS, CLASSROOM EXPANSION, AND NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

THIS IS IMPORTANT NOT ONLY SO THAT THE VOTERS KNOW WHAT THEY'RE APPROVING THE MONEY BE SPENT ON, BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS THAT AUDITING AND CITIZENS OVERSIGHT AFTER THE FACT THAT DOUBLE CHECKS AND MAKE SURE THAT WE SPENT THE MONEY THE WAY THE VOTERS APPROVED.

SO THIS THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT LANGUAGE AND A LOT OF THOUGHT, AS YOU KNOW, HAS GONE INTO THIS.

SO THE NEXT THING IS THE ESTIMATED FINANCIAL PLAN.

IF THE VOTERS AUTHORIZE $300 MILLION IN BONDS, WE DON'T ISSUE THEM ALL AT ONCE.

WE HAVE A JUST IN TIME FUNDING MODEL, MEANING, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE PAY TAXES FROM THE MOMENT YOU START BORROWING THE MONEY UNTIL IT'S PAID BACK. SO WE DON'T WANT TO DO IT TOO EARLY. WE WANT TO DO IT JUST IN TIME SO THAT THEY GET THE VALUE.

SO THIS IS WOULD BE SPENT OVER OR WOULD BE ASSESSED OVER SEVEN YEARS AND YOU KNOW, TAKE 10 TO 15 YEARS TO SPEND. THE NEXT THING I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS REALLY THE FISCAL STEWARDSHIP THAT THE DISTRICT HAS.

THIS CHART IS SO ASTOUNDING THAT MR. ASKED ME TO GO OVER IT WITH HIM TWICE, BECAUSE AT THE TOP, THERE'S A LINE SHOWING WHAT THE PROJECTED TAX RATES WERE GOING TO BE ON THE FIVE MEASURES THAT WE'VE HAD HISTORICALLY.

[00:40:04]

AND YOU MIGHT SAY, WELL, WHY, WHEN WE REALLY OVERPERFORM THE BUDGET, WHEN I SAY OVERPERFORM, THAT MEANS WE UNDER EXPEND, RIGHT? WE THE TAXES ARE A THIRD OF WHAT WE EXPECTED THEM TO BE.

AND WHY IS THAT? ONE IS THAT WE'VE HAD STRONG TAX BASE GROWTH FOR A LONG TIME.

BUT REMEMBER, WE ALSO HAD A BUILDING MORATORIUM.

SO AT ONE TIME. SO WE COULDN'T ALWAYS ASSUME THAT THE TAX BASE GROWTH WOULD BE AS STRONG AS IT HAS BEEN.

BUT VERY IMPORTANTLY IS THE DISTRICT'S COMMITMENT TO FISCAL STEWARDSHIP.

I CANNOT EMPHASIZE THAT ENOUGH. AND YOU MAY REMEMBER I NOTED MR. OR IT SEEMS LIKE SEVERAL MONTHS, BUT IT WAS JUST MAY 13TH THAT WE WERE HERE, AND WE TALKED ABOUT THE FACT THAT THE DISTRICT HAS REDUCED THE COST TO TAXPAYERS OF THE EXISTING BONDS BY $56 MILLION. AND I JUST WANT TO EMPHASIZE, IF YOU WERE A BUSINESS COMING INTO THE DISTRICT AND SAYING, WE'RE GOING TO PRODUCE $56 MILLION OF ECONOMIC VALUE TO TAXPAYERS, YOU MIGHT GET A TICKER TAPE PARADE.

SO THIS IS THIS IS THE WAY THAT NATOMAS DOES THINGS WITH A LOT OF ATTENTION TO DETAIL AND TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT.

AND THERE'S NO REQUIREMENT THAT YOU GO OUT AND SAVE MONEY FOR TAXPAYERS.

THESE ARE THINGS THAT THE DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION AND THE BOARD HAVE COMMITTED TO, AND WE'VE DONE OVER AND OVER AGAIN TO TO THE TAXPAYERS BENEFIT.

AND SO WHAT WE'RE ASKING OH, LET ME SAY A COUPLE MORE THINGS.

TWO OF OUR MEASURES WILL BE PAID OFF ON AUGUST 1ST OF THIS YEAR.

SO WE'VE HAD FIVE HISTORICAL MEASURES. TWO WILL BE PAID OFF AUGUST 1ST.

A THIRD WILL BE PAID OFF WITHIN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.

SO WE'LL ONLY HAVE TWO MEASURES OUTSTANDING. SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF CAPITALIZATION AND COMMITMENT TO FACILITIES, IT'S REALLY FROM A FINANCIAL PERSPECTIVE, JUST THE RIGHT TIME FOR THAT REINVESTMENT IN OUR FACILITIES BECAUSE WE'RE PAYING OFF THE DEBT AND WE CONTINUE TO HAVE NEEDS TO FUND US. LET ME THINK ABOUT. NO, I THINK THOSE ARE ALL THE POINTS I WANTED TO MAKE.

WAS THERE ANYTHING ELSE? OKAY, SO HERE'S OUR REQUESTED BOARD ACTION AND I'LL BE GLAD TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

TRUSTEES. TRUSTEE MORA. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.

FOR THE PURPOSES OF HAVING FULL INFORMATION FOR OURSELVES AND ANYONE LISTENING, CAN YOU REMIND US WHAT OUR BOND RATING IS AND HOW THAT COMPARES ACROSS THE STATE AND REALLY, I GUESS, ACROSS THE NATION. SO THAT'S WHY I BROUGHT THIS UP HERE SO THAT I WOULD NOT MAKE A MISTAKE AND NOT GIVE YOU THE RIGHT INFORMATION, BECAUSE AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, I'M LOOKING AT AT RATINGS ALL DAY LONG.

SO GIVE ME ONE SECOND TO JUST PULL IT UP ON MY SCREEN, IF YOU DON'T MIND.

WHILE YOU'RE POINTING THAT OUT, BUT CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THE FED'S GOING TO DO OVER THE NEXT 6 TO 12 MONTHS? THAT WOULD BE GREAT AS WELL. WELL, I WILL SAY THAT WE WATCH IT VERY CLOSELY. AND IT WAS INTERESTING. THERE WAS SOME NEWS THAT WE ALL PAY A LOT OF ATTENTION TO, WHICH IS WHAT GOES ON WITH THE FED CHAIR AND THE PAST FED CHAIR PASSED AWAY AND THEY TALKED A LOT ABOUT HIS POLICIES.

AND THAT WAS KIND OF EARLY IN MY CAREER. AND I WAS THINKING ABOUT HOW, HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED IN TERMS OF WHAT THE FED CHAIR DOES.

OKAY. SO THANK YOU. DOUG FOUND IT FAST. MR. FOUND IT FASTER THAN I DID.

SO WE'RE DOUBLE A TWO, WHICH IS FANTASTIC. WE'RE IN THE DOUBLE A CATEGORY THAT'S THE SECOND HIGHEST CATEGORY.

TRIPLE A IS THE HIGHEST CATEGORY. AND AS YOU'LL RECALL FROM OUR BIDDING, WHEN WE DID THE REFINANCING BONDS, WE HAD INTEREST FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY IN OUR BONDS, AND WE WOULD EXPECT THAT TO CONTINUE.

THANK YOU. HE FOUND IT FASTER. I CAN'T TALK AND TYPE AT THE SAME TIME.

GOOD STUFF. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION QUESTIONS? TRUSTEES COMMENTS? WELL THANK YOU. AND THERE'S A REQUESTED ACTION.

I'M SO SORRY BECAUSE WE LOOKED AT THAT DOUBLE A RATING.

IT REMINDED ME TO MAKE A VERY IMPORTANT POINT, WHICH IS FROM AN ECONOMICS PERSPECTIVE, VOTING A SCHOOL BOND IS AN INCREDIBLE WAY TO INVEST IN YOUR OWN PROPERTY VALUE. IF YOU OWN PROPERTY IN NATOMAS, WHETHER YOU HAVE CHILDREN IN SCHOOL OR NOT, WHETHER YOU ARE, YOU KNOW, WORRIED ABOUT TAXES OR NOT, YOUR PROPERTY VALUE WILL SHOW NOT JUST THE INVESTMENT IN SCHOOL FACILITIES, BUT BELIEVE IT OR NOT, STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT UPON PASSAGE OF A BOND MEASURE, PROPERTY VALUES REACT POSITIVELY TO THAT.

SO THIS IS A TREMENDOUS. I THINK OF IT AS A TREMENDOUS INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY.

AND WHEN PEOPLE ASK ME HOW I VOTE, I. SINCE I KNOW THAT I ALWAYS VOTE IN FAVOR OF SCHOOL BONDS.

THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. WELL, TO ME, ONE OF THE THINGS TO LOOK AT IS THE LANGUAGE IS FAIR.

WHEN I LOOK AT THE BOND MEASURE LANGUAGE I THINK WE HAVE A PRETTY COMPETENT PLAN IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE WE'RE SAVING TAXPAYER DOLLARS WERE NECESSARY.

AND WE NEED IT, RIGHT. WE HAVE A LOT OF STUFF THAT WE NEED TO ACCOMPLISH.

[00:45:03]

SECOND. ALL RIGHT. AND THERE'S A SECOND. ANY DISCUSSION? TRUSTEE. I ECHO EXACTLY. I MEAN, WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO IS THIS IS THE TOOL THAT DISTRICTS HAVE AT THEIR DISPOSAL, THE ONLY GUARANTEED SOURCE OF FUNDING FOR ALL THE THINGS WE SAW LISTED THERE, WHETHER IT'S ACQUIRING OR BUILDING NEW SCHOOLS FOR OVERCROWDING, SECURING, ENSURING SAFETY, ENSURING OUR CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATION PATHWAYS HAVE THE ADEQUATE FACILITIES.

THIS IS THE ONLY VEHICLE. AND YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE ALWAYS UPFRONT ABOUT THESE THINGS.

YEAH. THE ONLY WAY TO DO IT IS BY INCREASING PROPERTY TAX.

BUT WE'RE TALKING A MODEST YOU KNOW, I THINK IT WAS $60 PER $100,000 OF ASSESSED VALUE.

SO ANOTHER $300 A YEAR ON A HALF $1 MILLION HOME IF I DID THAT MATH.

RIGHT. SO IN THE SCHEME OF THINGS, A MEASURED APPROACH AND YOU GUYS KNOW ME, I'M NOT A BIG TAX GUY, BUT I'M NOT A I'M NOT A TALKING HEAD EITHER. RIGHT? IF WE NEED IT, WE NEED IT. YOU KNOW, I'M A HOMEOWNER, SO I'LL BE PARTICIPATING IN THAT AS WELL.

AND YOU KNOW, I WANT SAFE AND SECURE FACILITIES AND SCHOOLS FOR OUR KIDS TOO.

SO. ALL RIGHT, SO THERE'S A MOTION AND THERE'S A SECOND.

HELENE, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT I HARDIN I I MORA I.

ALL RIGHT, THAT MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. NEXT UP, ACTION ITEM B APPROVED THE 2026 2027 LOCAL CONTROL ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN.

[XV. b. Approve the 2026-27 Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP)]

ALL RIGHT. THE FIRST COMMENT I HAVE IS FROM JILL TOUR.

GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. AFTER COMPARING THE BOARD APPROVED 2025 2026 LCAP WITH THE PROPOSED 2026 2027 LCAP. I'M A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT THE TRAJECTORY OF OUR DISTRICT.

THE DISTRICT'S BUDGET CONTINUES TO GROW. TOTAL PROJECTED REVENUE HAS INCREASED FROM APPROXIMATELY 198.8 MILLION TO MORE THAN 217 MILLION.

THE TOTAL PLAN EXPENDITURES HAVE INCREASED FROM TO 206 MILLION TO MORE THAN 228 MILLION.

YET THE OUTCOMES THAT MATTER THE MOST TO FAMILIES ARE NOT IMPROVING AT THE SAME PACE COMPARED TO LAST YEAR'S LCAP.

THE PROPOSED PLAN SHOWS TROUBLING TRENDS. COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS HAS DECLINED FROM GREEN TO ORANGE.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS AND MATH CONTINUE TO PERFORM AT ORANGE LEVELS.

CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM REMAINS HIGH. ENGLISH LEARNER PROGRESS HAS DROPPED FROM GREEN TO YELLOW AND BLACK.

STUDENTS WHO MAKE UP APPROXIMATELY 21% OF THIS DISTRICT, CONTINUE TO EXPERIENCE SOME OF THE LARGEST ACADEMIC DISPARITIES, WITH NEARLY 69% BELOW STANDARD IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS AND MORE THAN 80% BELOW STANDARD IN MATH.

SO AT THE SAME TIME, THE DISTRICT CONTINUES TO INVEST IN AP, IB, CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATION, DUAL ENROLLMENT, AND AND I THINK THOSE PROGRAMS ARE GREAT.

BUT ARE THEY WORTHWHILE PROGRAMS IF SO MANY OF OUR STUDENTS ARE NOT AT GRADE LEVEL AND ARE NOT DOING WELL.

SO THE QUESTION THIS BOARD SHOULD BE ASKING IS NOT WHETHER THESE PROGRAMS EXIST.

THE QUESTION IS, WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE THAT THESE INVESTMENTS ARE PRODUCING MEASURABLE IMPROVEMENTS IN STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT OVERALL? WHERE IS THE ANALYSIS SHOWING THAT SHOWING WHICH STRATEGIES ARE ACCELERATING OUTCOMES? WHICH PROGRAMS ARE DEMONSTRATING A MEANINGFUL RETURN ON INVESTMENT? AND JUST AS IMPORTANTLY, WHICH STRATEGIES ARE NOT WORKING AND SHOULD BE REPLACED OR DISCONTINUED? GOOD GOVERNANCE REQUIRES MORE THAN APPROVING ANOTHER YEAR'S BUDGET.

IT REQUIRES EVALUATING RESULTS. I DON'T KNOW.

I'M NOT CONFIDENT IF YOU GUYS ARE ACTUALLY EVALUATING THE RESULTS OF THESE PROGRAMS. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. I HAVE MISS SHARON THURMAN.

GOOD EVENING. GOOD HOT SUMMER EVENING. REGARDING EL CAP, I SIMPLY WOULD LIKE OUR BOARD TO ASK THE QUESTIONS OF OUR STAFF. WERE THERE ADEQUATE? WERE THERE AN ADEQUATE NUMBER OF CURRENT PARENTS IN ATTENDANCE? IN ESSENCE, IF AN AUDIT WERE DONE, WOULD WE BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE EL CAP PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE? SECONDLY, I'D LIKE YOU TO ASK THE STAFF HOW WILL WE BE ADVISED OF THE RESULTS THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR, RATHER THAN JUST AT THE ANNUAL ASSESSMENT? AND FINALLY, I'D ASK OUR BOARD TO INQUIRE OF OUR SUPERINTENDENT.

[00:50:10]

THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT.

GOOD EVENING. NEIGHBORS. AS ONE OF THE MOST DIVERSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN THE NATION, NATOMAS HAS AN INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME A MODEL FOR AUTHENTIC FAMILY PARTNERSHIP, INCLUDING PEOPLE WHO ARE OFTEN MARGINALIZED. WE CAN CHOOSE TO PULL FAMILIES IN RATHER THAN BOX THEM OUT.

AND WE CAN DO THAT THROUGH THE LCAP. TOO MANY FAMILIES CONTINUE TO REPORT FEELING DISMISSED OR TALKED AT RATHER THAN TALKED WITH DURING LCAP MEETINGS.

SOME QUICKLY RESIGN, WHICH HAS BEEN ONE OF THE PROBLEMS WITH OUR ATTENDANCE.

IT WOULD REQUIRE SIGNIFICANT SHIFTS TO COLLABORATE.

IT MEANS BRINGING BACK MEANINGFUL IN-PERSON OPPORTUNITIES FOR LCAP FEEDBACK, NOT JUST THE ONLINE DECISION TREE, WHICH ISN'T EVEN REALLY CLEAR THAT IT IS LCAP WHEN IT'S SENT OUT TO PARENTS AND TEACHERS.

THERE'S A VERY SMALL GROUP OF PARTICIPANTS WHO HAVE STAYED AROUND FOR AN EXTREMELY LONG TIME ON EL CAP.

THERE'S NO ROTATION OF LEADERSHIP, AND MEMBERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES ARE SENT OUT VIA TEXT, BUT NOT EVERYONE'S ON PARENTS SQUARE, AND SOMETIMES PARENT SQUARE IS QUITE OVERWHELMING.

I FIRST CAME TO THIS BOARD AS A VERY FRUSTRATED PARENT ADVOCATING FOR MY CHILDREN.

I OFTEN FELT ISOLATED AND UNHEARD, AND ACTUALLY I WAS ISOLATED AND UNHEARD BY THIS DISTRICT, BY THE REGIONAL CENTER, BY THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.

BUT SOMETHING HAS CHANGED NOW. MORE FAMILIES ARE FINDING ONE ANOTHER.

MORE PARENTS ARE STEPPING INTO LEADERSHIP, AND THERE'S A REAL ENERGY IN RESTARTING PTAS AND THE VERY FIRST OF ITS KIND IN THE AREA, THE SPECIAL EDUCATION PTA. I'D LIKE TO SEE US TOGETHER, COLLABORATE MORE AND CREATE SPACES WHERE PARENTS ARE WELCOMED AND VALUED.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE PUBLIC COMMENT.

BOARD MEMBERS QUESTIONS? THERE'S NO PRESENTATION.

NO. OKAY. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS. MOTION. SO WE WENT OVER THE LCAP AT OUR LAST MEETING, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY.

IT'S A TWO MEETING PROCESS UNLESS MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OVER THE ONES WE ASKED AT OUR PRIOR MEETING, I WOULD MOVE APPROVAL. I'LL SECOND THAT. WOULD JUST ACKNOWLEDGING THE COMMENTS.

RIGHT. WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO, AND I THINK THE LCAP IS A MAP.

I'VE NEVER SEEN AN LCAP WITH ALL GREEN. I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT. RIGHT. IT'S WORK IN PROGRESS. SO LOOKING FORWARD TO THOSE PARTNERSHIPS THAT THE LAST SPEAKER JUST MENTIONED.

SO THERE'S A MOTION AND THERE'S A SECOND TRUSTEE MOORE HAS A COMMENT.

I'LL KEEP IT. I'LL KEEP MY COMMENT BRIEF. AND IT'S IN NO WAY MEANT TO BE ALL ENCOMPASSING OF ALL OF THE CONCERNS THAT WE HEAR.

BUT I AGREE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT TAKES PLACE.

THERE'S A LOT OF FEEDBACK THAT I THINK THIS BOARD TAKES REALLY SERIOUSLY.

AND THERE ARE SHIFTS TO WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THE LCAP FROM YEAR TO YEAR BASED ON THE FEEDBACK THAT WE HEAR.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S IB THAT WITH THE IB PROGRAM, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SHIFTS TO WHERE IT WHICH SCHOOLS IT'S, IT'S BEING OFFERED AT. AND THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE.

I SAID AS, AS A DISCLAIMER, THIS IS NOT MEANT TO BE ALL ENCOMPASSING OF ALL THE WORK THAT TAKES PLACE ACROSS THE DISTRICT, BUT I THINK THAT YOU KNOW, THAT THESE PLANS ARE, ARE ARE PLANS THAT HAPPEN WITH THE INPUT OF THE COMMUNITY. AND SO THE DISTRICT TAKES THAT AND WELL, REALLY IT'S THE BOARD, RIGHT? THE BOARD TAKES THAT REALLY SERIOUSLY. AND I CAN'T EMPHASIZE THAT ENOUGH.

YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S A STATEMENT ON THIS DAIS FOR ME, BUT I HOPE THAT PEOPLE SEE THAT.

AND WE CAN ALWAYS HAVE EITHER YOU KNOW, SOMEONE KIND OF GO INTO SOME OF THOSE THINGS MORE IN DEPTH, RECOGNIZING THAT THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM FOR MORE COLLABORATION TO MAKE SURE THAT THINGS AREN'T BEING MISSED AND CONTINUE IMPROVING BECAUSE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S JUST ALWAYS GOING TO BE THE CASE. I APPRECIATE THOSE COMMENTS.

AND I'LL JUST ADD TO THAT. YOU KNOW, THE COMMENT ABOUT MAKING ADJUSTMENTS.

ABSOLUTELY. I'M OPEN TO THAT. RIGHT. IT'S NOT A PERFECT PROCESS.

AND I THINK WE TRY TO PIVOT PRETTY WELL AS A DISTRICT.

ALSO, THESE AREN'T THE ONLY CONVERSATIONS I'M HAVING. I KNOW FOR MANY OF US AS TRUSTEES YOU KNOW, IT SEEMS LIKE IF YOU'RE WATCHING ON TV, WE'RE JUST TALKING TO ONE PERSON.

YOU KNOW, I'M ALSO A PARENT AND I ALSO GO TO SCHOOL SITES AND I HAVE TO PICK UP MY DAUGHTER, AND I CAN'T EVEN GET TO THE EDGE OF THE STREET BEFORE I'M HAVING 20 TO 30 CONVERSATIONS. RIGHT. AND SO I JUST KEEP AN OPEN POSTURE.

I'M HOPING FOR MORE SUCCESS THIS YEAR. SOME OF THESE NUMBERS DO SHOCK THE CONSCIENCE, RIGHT? BUT, YOU KNOW, I CAN'T PASS OUT AT THE DAIS EVERY TIME THERE'S A CHALLENGE, RIGHT? I HAVE TO BE STEADFAST AND LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY ON THOSE THINGS. SO VERY QUICKLY,

[00:55:07]

WE UNDERSTAND. WE'RE HUMAN. IT'S DEFINITELY A WORK IN PROGRESS.

WE SEE IT. WE'RE TRYING TO DO BETTER. WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED SO MUCH, BUT WE HAVE SO MUCH WORK TO DO.

BUT WITH EVERYBODY OUT HERE, IF YOU'RE WILLING TO HELP WITH US, WE'LL MAKE IT HAPPEN.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. TOTALLY ECHOING TO EVERYBODY WHAT THEY'RE SAYING.

AND I PIGGYBACKING ON WHAT TRUSTEE HARDIN WAS SAYING, THAT YES, WE ARE ALWAYS OPEN TO CONVERSATIONS, ALWAYS OPEN, NOT JUST HERE. WE CAN TALK TO YOU WHEN YOU'RE MAKING A PUBLIC COMMENT, BUT YES, PLEASE EMAIL AND WE'LL BE HAPPY TO TALK TO YOU.

ALL RIGHT. I'M GOING TO CALL THE ROLL. I GRANT HARDIN I MORA I.

ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. ACTION ITEM C APPROVED.

[XV. c. Approve Resolution No. 26-25 to Commit General Fund Balance in the 2026-2027 Budget]

OR IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK.

THANK STAFF FOR THEIR WORK. I THINK WE GOT A PRETTY SOLID BUDGET, BUT A BOARD MANDATED RESERVE THAT'S DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM LIKE 22% TO LIKE 15. YEAH. AND THEN MAYBE A LITTLE FURTHER IN THE FUTURE IF WE'RE NOT CAREFUL HERE.

SO THAT'S ACTIVE FEEDBACK BEING APPLIED AS THE COMMUNITY HAS REQUESTED.

SO I WILL MOVE APPROVAL. SECOND. DEBATE DISCUSSION.

COMMENTS, QUESTIONS. HELENE, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT A PARDON. I I I I. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO ACTION ITEM D APPROVE THE DISTRICT'S 2026

[XV. d. Approve the District’s 2026-2027 Budget]

GOOD EVENING AGAIN. ONCE AGAIN, THE DISTRICT IS PRESENTING A BUDGET THAT SHOWS NATOMAS UNIFIED IS FINANCIALLY STABLE.

SO THE ISSUE IS NOT WHETHER NUSD HAS MONEY. THE ISSUE IS HOW NUSD CHOOSES TO PRIORITIZE THAT MONEY.

YEAR AFTER YEAR, WE SEE THE SAME PATTERN. THE DISTRICT PROJECTS CAUTION, MAINTAINS LARGE RESERVES, AND THEN ASKS FAMILIES AND EDUCATORS TO ACCEPT STAFFING SHORTAGES, DELAYED SUPPORT, UNMET STUDENT NEEDS.

AS IF THESE ARE UNAVOIDABLE. THEY ARE NOT UNAVOIDABLE.

THEY ARE BUDGET CHOICES. THIS PROPOSED BUDGET SAYS IT IS A ROADMAP FOR SUPPORTING STUDENT SUCCESS, BUT A BUDGET THAT PRESERVES MILLIONS IN RESERVES WHILE STUDENTS NEED STRONGER LITERACY, SUPPORTS SPECIAL EDUCATION, STAFFING, MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, INSTRUCTIONAL AIDES AND STABLE EDUCATORS IS NOT FULLY ALIGNED WITH STUDENT SUCCESS.

BUDGETS ARE NOT JUST FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS, THEY ARE GOVERNANCE DOCUMENTS.

THEY SHOW WHAT THIS BOARD VALUES. I'M ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT TRANSPARENCY.

THE PUBLIC SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DIG TO UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH IS BEING HELD IN RESERVES, HOW MUCH IS BEING SPENT DIRECTLY ON STUDENT SERVICES, AND WHY CERTAIN STAFFING NEEDS REMAIN UNRESOLVED.

THE BOARD SHOULD REQUIRE A CLEAR EXPLANATION OF RESERVE LEVELS, STAFFING VACANCIES, LCAP IMPLEMENTATION GAPS AND HOW THIS BUDGET DIRECTLY RESPONDS TO DECLINING ACADEMIC OUTCOMES. FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY MATTERS, LET'S BE CLEAR.

BUT FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY WITHOUT EDUCATIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY IS NOT ENOUGH.

I URGE THIS BOARD TO STOP APPROVING BUDGETS THAT PROTECT RESERVES MORE CLEARLY THAN THEY PROTECT CLASSROOM STABILITY, ALIGN THE MONEY WITH STUDENT NEEDS, ALIGN THE BUDGET WITH THE THEORY OF ACTION, AND SHOW THIS COMMUNITY THAT STUDENT SUCCESS IS MORE THAN JUST A SLOGAN.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. I WANT TO GO BACK IN THE WAY BACK WIND MACHINE ONLY TWO YEARS AGO.

RESPOND GENERALLY. AND I RESPECT EVERY COMMENT THAT COMES BEFORE THIS BOARD.

TRUST ME. I THINK WE'VE MADE A LOT OF GOVERNANCE CHANGES THAT SHOW THAT RESPECT, RIGHT? WE EVEN MOTION FOR ADDITIONAL TIME FOR PEOPLE TO MAKE THEIR POINT. BUT I DO HAVE AN OPINION.

I DO HAVE A PERSPECTIVE. I DON'T ALWAYS SHARE IT.

I'M USUALLY VERY QUIET. SKIP BOARD REPORTS BECAUSE I THINK IT'S ABOUT THE ACTION RATHER THAN THE SPEAKING.

TWO YEARS AGO. IN TERMS OF THE CYCLICAL NATURE OF THIS BUDGET, I MADE A CHALLENGE TO A MEMBER OF THIS COMMUNITY WHO WON'T SAY WHO SAID, HEY, SHOW UP, SHOW UP MORE. BRING FOLKS. AND TRUST ME, THINGS HAPPEN WHEN PEOPLE MOVE.

AND AS A RESULT OF THAT, WE MADE $10 MILLION IN COMMITMENTS.

IT'S SPECIFIC ACTIONS TO THE BLACK COMMUNITY.

IT WAS PART OF, I WAS PART OF THAT. I WAS PROUD TO BE A PART OF THAT.

AND SO I'M JUST GOING TO CONTINUE THAT SAME ACTION, RIGHT? IT WASN'T BUSINESS AS USUAL. WE MADE A WHOLE LIST.

WE MET, WE HAD MEETINGS, WE HAD WORKSHOPS. WE HAD COMMUNITY MEMBERS COME IN.

I REMEMBER THOSE THINGS INTIMATELY. AND I WAS A PART OF THOSE THINGS.

[01:00:01]

SCOTT, WERE YOU HERE? WERE YOU MADE YOUR WAY BACK? TWO YEARS AGO? YEAH. YOU WERE HERE. MAN, I'M GETTING OLD. BUT IN ANY EVENT THAT'S HOW I PREFER TO DO BUDGETING.

I THINK BUDGETING IS A QUANTITATIVE ACTION PLAN.

IT'S ALSO A REFLECTION OF YOUR VALUES. AND SO MY VALUE AND MY COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY IS, HEY, COME TALK TO ME. RIGHT? I HAVE LOTS OF OPEN CONVERSATIONS WITH FOLKS AND WE GET STUFF DONE, RIGHT. BUT THAT'S NOT THE FLASHY STUFF THAT MAKES THE NEWS. THE STUFF THAT MAKES THE NEWS IS ALL THE DISCONTENT AND ALL THE ANGER AND ALL THE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE PROBLEMS, RIGHT? BUT YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO CHALLENGE THE MEDIA, COME COVER THE POSITIVE STUFF ONCE IN A WHILE, BECAUSE I THINK WE DO HAVE A PRETTY SOLID BUDGET AND UNPRECEDENTED ACCESS TO TRUSTEES.

I WAS HERE. I'VE BEEN HERE FOR A DECADE. I WAS HERE AND I'M GONNA SAY THIS WHEN I, I KNOW THAT PEOPLE WERE ENCOURAGED NOT TO TALK DIRECTLY TO THEIR TRUSTEES.

I THINK TRUSTEE ALSO WAS HERE WHEN THAT WAS THE CASE.

AND HE WAS VERY INFLUENTIAL IN TERMS OF CHANGING OUR GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE, RIGHT? SCOTT WAS ONE OF THE FEW TRUSTEES. HEY, WE'VE GOT TO CHANGE THE WAY WE DO THINGS BECAUSE PEOPLE AREN'T HURT. AND PEOPLE THINK THE BOARD IS A PART OF THE DISTRICT. AND IN A SENSE, AND WE'RE NOT WE'RE NOT ELECTED OFFICIALS. SO I'M SO PROUD OF THE CULTURE THAT WE HAVE WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME EXPRESS THEIR OPINION AND NOT FEEL LIKE THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE RETALIATION AND BE ON A TEXT MESSAGE BASIS WITH THEIR BOARD MEMBERS.

INSTAGRAM. I GET IT ON FACEBOOK MESSENGER, RIGHT? I GET IT ON SLACK. MAN, SOMETIMES I'M AT HOME WATCHING TV AND I HAVE MY TV CONNECTED TO MY PHONE AND TRUSTEE GRANT, YOU KNOW, SO I JUST, I'M OPEN FOR THAT. BUT WE HAVE MADE ACTIONS AND WE DO RESPOND AND WE'RE REALLY FLEXIBLE.

AND I HOPE WHOEVER IS ELECTED IN BOTH OF THESE AREAS WILL CONTINUE IN THAT TRADITION.

SO WITH THAT, I'M COMFORTABLE MOVING APPROVAL OF THE BUDGET UNLESS THERE'S COMMENTS OR SECONDS OR ANY OTHER QUESTIONS HERE.

WELL, I WILL SECOND THAT. I HAVE A COMMENT THOUGH. SURE. SO THIS IS THE ONLY SPACE THAT WE HAVE THAT I HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS THIS AS A FOLLOW UP REALLY TO OUR LAST MEETING WHERE WE DISCUSSED THE BUDGET AND WE AND WE HEARD MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHY, YOU KNOW, RISING SPECIAL EDUCATION COSTS AND INADEQUATE SPECIAL EDUCATION FUNDING COMING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, STATE GOVERNMENT. THIS IS GOING TO SOUND REALLY DRAMATIC, I GUESS, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT THIS BOARD ADOPT A RESOLUTION DIRECTED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ASKING FOR ADEQUATE FUNDING FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION.

GRANTED, THAT I THINK, GRANTED THAT THAT'S A IT'S AN ADVOCACY.

I, I DON'T WANT IT TO BE, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT'S AIRY.

I JUST THINK THAT ONE OF THE BIGGEST TOOLS THAT WE HAVE AT OUR DISPOSAL IS TO BE ADVOCATES, WHETHER IT'S PHYSICALLY TRAVELING TO D.C. OR PHYSICALLY MEETING WITH OUR REPRESENTATIVES.

BUT I THINK GIVEN THE TIMES THAT WE ARE IN AND THE DIRE URGENCY THAT WE ARE IN, THAT WOULD BE A NEXT STEP THAT WE SHOULD TAKE.

I WOULD SUPPORT THAT. SO THERE'S A MOTION AND THERE'S A SECOND TRUSTEE DOSSETT.

THANK YOU. I WANT TO QUIBBLE WITH ONE THING THAT YOU SAID.

I BELIEVE YOUR QUOTE WAS THIS IS A PRETTY SOLID BUDGET.

I THINK THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY SOLID BUDGET.

AT A TIME WHEN DISTRICTS THROUGHOUT THE STATE ARE STRUGGLING TO PAY THEIR BILLS, AT A TIME WHEN ONE OF OUR NEIGHBORING DISTRICTS IS STRUGGLING SO MUCH THAT THEY'RE CONSIDERING A FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT PARCEL TAX INCREASE JUST TO PROVIDE SOME OPERATING CAPITAL, NOT TO GET NOT TO NOT HAVE TO DO LAYOFFS, BUT TO MITIGATE THE LAYOFFS AND THE REDUCTION IN STAFFING AND PROGRAM.

THE FACT THAT WE HAVE A BALANCED BUDGET, THE FACT THAT WE HAVE A AA BOND RATING THAT'S GOING TO MAKE OUR ABILITY TO BORROW FUNDS TO DO BONDS FOR FACILITIES CONSTRUCTION SO MUCH MORE CHEAPER THAN THEY WOULD OTHERWISE BE. THAT GAVE US THE ABILITY TO BASICALLY PUT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS BACK IN THE TAXPAYERS POCKETS BY REFINANCING OUR BONDS.

IT'S BECAUSE OF THE EXTRAORDINARILY SOLID BUDGETING THAT WE HAVE DONE HERE.

AND I'LL AGREE WITH THE COMMENTS THAT WE'VE HEARD ON THE DAIS AS WELL FROM THE PUBLIC.

WE'VE GOT WORK TO DO. WE DON'T HIDE FROM THAT.

BUT THIS BUDGET IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY SOLID, BALANCED, RESPONSIBLE BUDGET, AND I'LL BE PROUD TO CAST MY VOTE FOR IT AS SOON AS I STOP TALKING. ALL RIGHT, SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.

EILEEN, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT I HARDIN I I MAURA I.

ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. ACTION ITEM E APPROVED.

[XV. e. Approve Resolution No. 26-26 Evaluating Real Property in Accordance With School Site Selection Standards; Determining the Project is Exempt from the California Environmental Act; and Approving the Filing of a Notice of Exemption]

DETERMINING THE PROJECT IS EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL ACT AND APPROVING A FILING PROVING THE FILING OF A NOTICE OF EXEMPTION.

ALL RIGHT. MOVE. APPROVAL. MOVED BY TRUSTEE DOCCHECK, SECOND BY TRUSTEE MEHTA.

THERE'S NOT AN OBJECTION. WE CAN SUBSTITUTE THE PRIOR UNANIMOUS ROLL CALL VOTE.

ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. ACTION ITEM F APPROVED.

[XV. f. Approve New/Revised Management Job Descriptions and Non-monetary Restructure of Related Salary Schedules]

[01:05:03]

I DO HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM FROM A TOUR.

GOOD EVENING AGAIN. SO I WAS DIGGING THROUGH THIS DOCUMENT ON PAGE 92.

THERE IS A POSITION CALLED THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF SAFETY AND OPERATIONS.

READ THROUGH IT. I SUPPORT STRENGTHENING SCHOOL SAFETY, BUT I ALSO BELIEVE MAJOR ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES REQUIRE TRANSPARENCY, SOUND GOVERNANCE, AND PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY. THE DISTRICT HAS PROPOSED AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF SAFETY OPERATIONS POSITION.

WILL THIS REPLACE THE RETIRED ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT AND RESULT IN A COST SAVINGS.

IF THIS IS TRUE, THEN I RESPECTFULLY ASK THE BOARD TO PROVIDE THE PUBLIC WITH EVIDENCE.

IS THIS A REORGANIZATION OR ARE WE CREATING ANOTHER EXECUTIVE POSITION? PLEASE PROVIDE A SIDE BY SIDE COMPARISON OF THE FORMER ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT AND THE PROPOSED EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.

JOB DESCRIPTIONS. THE COMMUNITY DESERVES TO UNDERSTAND WHAT HAS CHANGED, WHAT RESPONSIBILITIES HAVE BEEN REMOVED OR REASSIGNED, AND HOW THIS RESTRUCTURING WILL IMPROVE SERVICES FOR STUDENTS.

IF THIS CHANGE CREATES COST SAVINGS, WHERE IS THE FISCAL ANALYSIS? PLEASE SHOW THE SALARY AND THE BENEFITS OF THE FORMER ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT.

THE PROPOSED EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THE PROJECTED ANNUAL SAVINGS, AND ANY ADDITIONAL STAFFING CHANGES THAT SUPPORT THOSE SAVINGS.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, HOW WILL SUCCESS BE MEASURED? WHAT MEASURABLE IMPROVEMENTS IN SCHOOL SAFETY, VIOLENCE PREVENTION.

STUDENT STUDENT CONTACT. STUDENT CLIMATE OR STUDENT CONNECTEDNESS OR STUDENT WELL-BEING SHOULD FAMILIES EXPECT.

I'M ALSO CONCERNED THAT THE PROPOSED DESCRIPTION CONTAINS ALMOST NO LANGUAGE ABOUT PARENT ENGAGEMENT, STUDENT VOICE, FAMILY PARTNERSHIPS, COMMUNITY ADVISORY PROCESSES OR TRANSPARENCY REPORTING FOR DISTRICT PROMOTING A COMMUNITY CENTERED APPROACH TO SCHOOL SAFETY.

THESE OMISSIONS ARE SIGNIFICANT. THE POSITION APPEARS DESIGNED PRIMARILY AROUND INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION AND OPERATIONAL SECURITY, RATHER THAN AUTHENTIC COLLABORATION WITH THE FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES OUR SCHOOLS SERVE.

I ALSO ASK THAT THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS BE OPEN, COMPETITIVE AND TRANSPARENT.

PUBLIC TRUST DEPENDS ON HIRING PROCESSES BASED ON QUALIFICATIONS AND MERIT, FREE FROM ANY APPEARANCE OF FAVORITISM.

THANK YOU SO MUCH. OKAY. TRUSTEES. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS. MOVE. APPROVAL. ALL RIGHT. MOVED BY TRUSTEE DOCCHECK.

SECOND. SECOND BY TRUSTEE MAURA. ELAINE, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? DOCCHECK. GRANT HARDIN ABSTAIN MATA I MORA I ALL RIGHT.

MOTION CARRIES 4011. OBSESSION. ALL RIGHT. ACTION ITEM G APPROVED THE DECLARATION OF NEED FOR FULLY QUALIFIED

[XV. g. Approve a Declaration of Need for Fu ly Qualified Educators]

GOOD EVENING AGAIN. I CAME LAST YEAR AND SPOKE ON THIS AND IT WAS A VERY DIFFERENT VIBE FOR ME.

I WAS REALLY UPSET. HAD JUST BEEN THROUGH THE HARDEST YEAR IN OUR FAMILY'S LIFE BECAUSE MY DAUGHTER WENT WITHOUT A SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR, AND SHE HAD TREMENDOUS REGRESSION. WE HAD A DRY WALL REPAIR GUY ON SPEED TEXT, AND BECAUSE HER DISSATISFACTION AT SCHOOL WAS BEING BROUGHT INTO THE HOME AND SHE WAS PUTTING HOLES INTO WALLS, SHE REGRESSED WITH HER LANGUAGE. IT HAD A HUGE IMPACT ON US AND AS A FAMILY.

ONE OF MY CHILDREN MOVED OUT AT THAT TIME BECAUSE HE WAS AN ADULT AND HE COULDN'T HANDLE IT ANYMORE.

IT WAS, AND I WAS UPSET, UNDERSTANDABLY. IT WAS HAVING A HUGE IMPACT ON US, AND IT WAS MY PERCEPTION THAT NOT MUCH WAS BEING DONE.

BUT I SPOKE WITH TRUSTEE HARDIN AND I SPOKE WITH TRUSTEE GRANT, AND THEY BOTH TOLD ME, HOLD ON, WE'RE WORKING ON THINGS. THERE'S STUFF COMING.

PLEASE GIVE US TIME. SO THE NEED FOR TEACHERS SHOWS TEN VACANCIES AGAIN IN SPECIAL EDUCATION.

IT REALLY FILLS ME WITH TREPIDATION. NOT HAVING EXPERIENCED FULLY CREDENTIALED TEACHERS WITH OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENT POPULATION IS REALLY DANGEROUS. IT'S WHEN CHILDREN DIE AND IT'S WHEN TEACHERS AND PRINCIPALS GET ARRESTED.

SO WE DID LAUNCH THE SPECIAL EDUCATION AND SPECIAL EDUCATION PTA.

NOT ALL THE OFFICERS COULD BE HERE TONIGHT, BUT WE DO WANT TO WORK WITH YOU ON ANYTHING WE CAN COLLABORATE ON.

AND SATURDAY, I'VE ALREADY GIVEN YOU THE FLIER, BUT WE'RE HAVING THE FRIENDS AND FAMILY DISABILITY PRIDE PICNIC BECAUSE DISABILITY IS NOT SHAMEFUL. AND MY DAUGHTER HAS NEVER BEEN ASHAMED TO BE AUTISTIC.

SO WE'D LOVE TO SEE YOU THERE. AND THERE ARE SOME OTHER SPECIAL GUESTS JOINING US.

[01:10:02]

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. TRUSTEES. QUESTIONS. COMMENTS? THANK YOU. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL AWARE THAT THERE IS A SPECIAL EDUCATION CRISIS ON FINDING TEACHERS.

THIS IS JUST NOT AN ANONYMOUS THING. THIS IS JUST A CALIFORNIA THING.

SO I BELIEVE THAT WE ARE WORKING HARD, AND I KNOW I'M PUSHING FOR IT TO ENSURE THAT WE GET THESE VACANCIES DONE, BUT IT IS DIFFICULT. SO IF YOU GUYS KNOW OF ANY SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS THAT WOULD LOVE TO COME OVER TO THIS DISTRICT YOU KNOW, HAVE THEM APPLY IF THEY THINK THAT THEY'RE APPLYING AND NOT GETTING HEARD.

TELL THEM TO CALL ME AND NOT THAT I HAVE ANY POOL, BUT WE WANT TO FILL THE POSITIONS.

THANK YOU. IS THAT A MOTION? NOT REALLY. OKAY.

NO, THAT IS NOT A MOTION. ALL RIGHT. I WILL I WILL MAKE A MOTION, BUT I'LL JUST IF I COULD, AND I DON'T KNOW IF I SHOULD DIRECT THE SUPERINTENDENT TO YOU OR TO TO ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT TO ANGELA.

JUST BECAUSE WE'VE HEARD COMMENTS IN THE PAST AND I JUST WANT TO KIND OF PUT MAKE SURE THAT THE TRUTH IS HEARD HERE THIS EVENING.

THE REASON THAT WE HAVE THIS AGENDA ITEM IS BECAUSE THERE ARE POSITIONS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FILL BUT CANNOT CORRECT.

THAT'S CORRECT. AND THAT THERE IS NO, FOR LACK OF A BETTER PHRASE, NO SLOW ROLLING OR INTENTIONALITY TO THE VACANCIES THAT WE'RE NOT PURPOSELY TRYING TO KEEP. POSITIONS WERE AGGRESSIVELY TRYING TO FILL EVERY SINGLE VACANCY THAT WE HAVE IN THE DISTRICT.

THAT'S CORRECT. AND TO TRUSTEE HARDEN'S POINT, THIS CHALLENGE IS EXACERBATED BY A NATIONWIDE SHORTAGE OF TEACHERS IN GENERAL.

THAT SHORTAGE IS EVEN WORSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT SPECIAL EDUCATION, BUT ALSO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT SECONDARY MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHERS, THAT THAT'S BEEN AN ALTRUISM SINCE I FIRST CAME ON THE BOARD IN 2012, AND THE SITUATION HAS NOT GOTTEN ANY BETTER.

SO WITH THAT CONTEXT AND WITH MY PLEA, PLEASE CONTINUE DOING EVERYTHING YOU DO TO TRY AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERY STUDENT IN EVERY CLASSROOM HAS A FULLY QUALIFIED TEACHER IN THE CLASSROOM, BECAUSE OUR TEACHERS ARE ONE OF OUR MOST VALUABLE RESOURCES HERE.

WITH THAT, I MOVE APPROVAL OF THIS ITEM. ALL RIGHT.

THERE IS A MOTION. THANK YOU, TRUSTEE, FOR THAT HELPFUL CONTEXT.

I'LL SECOND. SECOND BY TRUSTEE MEHTA. ELAINE, COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL.

I GRANT A HARDEN A MEHTA I MORA I. ALL RIGHT.

THAT MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. ALL RIGHT. ACTION ITEM H APPROVE THE THIRD AMENDMENT TO EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT WITH SUPERINTENDENT DOCTOR ROBIN CASTILLO.

[XV. h. Approve Third Amendment to Employment Agreement with Superintendent Dr. Robyn Casti lo]

A FEW PUBLIC COMMENTS. WE'LL START WITH JESSICA ROMAN.

GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. I COME HERE AS A PARENT OF THREE NATOMAS UNIFIED STUDENTS.

I'M CONCERNED THAT THIS ITEM IS ON THE AGENDA, GIVEN THAT IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING IT WAS TRIGGERED BY AN EVALUATION DONE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT'S WORK. THAT INFORMATION HAS NOT BEEN MADE PUBLIC TO ME.

I'M NOT SURE WHY IT WAS FOUND SATISFACTORY OR NOT.

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT RUBRIC OR MEASURES WERE USED.

SO I'M CONCERNED THAT THIS JUST SEEMS TO BE A RUBBER STAMP TO GIVE HER ANOTHER YEAR.

WE JUST GOT THROUGH. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE ALL FORGOTTEN ALREADY A REALLY LENGTHY AND TERRIBLE STRIKE EARLIER THIS YEAR IN WHICH OUR TEACHERS WERE WERE TOLD TIME AND TIME AGAIN THERE WASN'T ENOUGH MONEY FOR THEIR SALARIES. THERE WASN'T THIS, THERE WASN'T THAT. AND NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN THERE'S MONEY TO EXTEND STIPENDS.

THERE'S CONTRACTS THAT CAN BE EXTENDED A YEAR.

AND I GO BACK TO THE LACK OF TRANSPARENCY IN THIS DISTRICT.

YOU ALL TALK A VERY GOOD GAME ABOUT WANTING CONTACT WITH PARENTS.

I'VE REACHED OUT TO MOST OF YOU AND BEEN IGNORED CONTINUOUSLY.

MICAH, I'VE TEXTED YOU AND BEEN IGNORED AND IN RETURN HAD RUMORS SPREAD ABOUT ME.

SCOTT, I'VE EMAILED YOU SEVERAL TIMES AND NEVER GOTTEN A RESPONSE, EXCEPT WHEN I GOT A REALLY RUDE ONE ABOUT IMPLYING THAT I HAD NEVER READ THE THING I WAS ASKING ABOUT. SO I'M NOT SURE HOW WE BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN THIS IDEA THAT YOU GUYS ARE TELLING US WE WANT PARENT INVOLVEMENT, AND THEN WHEN WE TRY, YOU SHUT US DOWN AND YOU COME AT US WITH MEASURES LIKE THIS WHERE IT SEEMS VERY SHADOWY AND BEHIND CLOSED DOORS THAT YOU'RE DOING THIS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SUMMER WHEN NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE PAYING ATTENTION.

I GET THAT YOU'RE SAYING, WELL, IT'S ONLY EXTENDING IN A YEAR, THEN WHY DO IT AT ALL? IT HAS A REALLY BAD PERCEPTION WHEN YOU CONSIDER THAT THERE ARE TWO SEATS COMING UP FOR ELECTION THIS NOVEMBER. SO WHY ARE WE DOING THIS NOW? WHY NOT WAIT UNTIL NOVEMBER AND SEE WHAT THE BOARD LOOKS LIKE THEN? AND AGAIN, I AM NOT AWARE OF ANY. I HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING TO JUSTIFY EXTENDING THE CONTRACT.

[01:15:02]

ALL RIGHT, I HAVE JOANNA DAVIS.

GOOD EVENING. I'M HERE TO SPEAK AGAINST THE AMENDMENT TO THE SUPERINTENDENT'S EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT AS WELL.

I JUST WANT TO REMIND YOU THAT THE BOARD DEMANDED AN INDEPENDENT AND FACT FINDING.

DURING THE TEACHER NEGOTIATIONS, YOU INSISTED UPON A THIRD, NEUTRAL THIRD PARTY TO REVIEW ALL OF THE FACTS.

YET WHEN IT CAME TO EVALUATING THE SUPERINTENDENT, THE BOARD CONDUCTED AN EVALUATION ITSELF BEHIND CLOSED DOORS WITH NO INDEPENDENT REVIEW.

NO PUBLIC RECORDS. NO SCORES. HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT THAT WAS BASED ON? TWO WEEKS LATER, AFTER THAT, YOU'RE BEING ASKED TO EXTEND HER CONTRACT.

BASED ON THESE CLOSED DOORS EVALUATIONS THE PUBLIC HAS.

HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT SATISFACTORY IS? HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT IT'S BASED ON? THE THIS EXTENDED COMMITMENT I FEEL LIKE DESERVES A TO THIS MAGNITUDE DESERVES DAYLIGHT TO IT. THE PUBLIC DESERVES TRANSPARENCY AND GET JUSTIFICATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY FROM THE BOARD OF WHY IT'S WHY IT'S BEING GIVEN.

GRANT PRESIDENT GRANT, I TALKED TO YOU DURING THE STRIKES AND YOU TOLD ME WE TALKED PERSONALLY AND YOU TOLD ME.

THAT YOU WERE GOING TO WORK ON REBUILDING TRUST WITH TRANSPARENCY WITH THE COMMUNITY AND PARENTS, THAT THAT HAS BEEN BROKEN IN LIGHT OF MANY THINGS THIS PAST FEW YEARS.

SO I'M ASKING YOU TONIGHT, AT WHAT POINT DOES THAT WORK THAT YOU PROMISED ME? IS IT GOING TO BEGIN? SO I URGE THE BOARD TO TABLE THIS ITEM UNTIL THE PUBLIC CAN HAVE A MEANINGFUL REVIEW OF IT.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. LATER.

GOOD EVENING. I JUST WANT TO ECHO THE SENTIMENTS OF THE OTHER PARENTS.

STABILITY MATTERS, RIGHT? IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO US FOR US TO HAVE STABLE LEADERSHIP.

HOWEVER MEANINGFUL. AND I KNOW THAT MEANINGFUL CHANGE TAKES TIME.

YOU HAVEN'T BEEN HERE THAT LONG. DOCTOR CASTILLO, HOWEVER, THE EXTENSION IS A MAJOR GOVERNANCE DECISION, AND IT SHOULD BE TREATED AS ONE, NOT JUST ROUTINE.

SO THE SUPERINTENDENT HAS TREMENDOUS, ENORMOUS RESPONSIBILITY AND USD IS FACING MAJOR CONCERNS.

AND IF THE BOARD IS SATISFIED WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT'S PERFORMANCE, THEN THE BOARD SHOULD CLEARLY EXPLAIN WHAT OUTCOMES SUPPORT THAT CONCLUSION. WHAT MEASURABLE PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE? WHAT GOALS MUST BE MET MOVING FORWARD? MOST IMPORTANTLY, HOW WILL THE BOARD HOLD THE SUPERINTENDENT ACCOUNTABLE IF CONDITIONS DO NOT IMPROVE? IS THERE A RUBRIC ATTACHED TO THIS APPROVAL RATING AND MOVE TO EXTEND THE SUPERINTENDENT'S CONTRACT? PLEASE SHARE THIS INFORMATION IF YOU HAVE IT, BECAUSE AS THEY'RE SAYING, THIS IS A MAJOR TRANSPARENCY ISSUE.

IF YOU'RE TRYING TO BUILD TRUST, THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO DO IT.

A CONTRACT EXTENSION MUST BE DIRECTLY TIED TO CLEAR, ENFORCEABLE ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES.

IT SHOULD INCLUDE SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE BENCHMARKS TIED TO STUDENT OUTCOMES, STAFFING STABILITY, SCHOOL SAFETY, SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, AND OVERALL SCHOOL CLIMATE WITHOUT DEFINED EXPECTATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES.

AN EXTENSION RISK SIGNALING THAT PERFORMANCE IS NOT MEANINGFULLY EVALUATED.

THE DISTRICT'S THEORY OF ACTION SAYS. BUDGETS, POLICIES AND STAFF ACTIONS SHOULD DRIVE STUDENT SUCCESS.

IF THAT IS TRUE, THEN THIS CONTRACT EXTENSION MUST BE GROUNDED IN TRANSPARENT, MEASURABLE GOALS AND CLEAR FRAMEWORK FOR ACCOUNTABILITY THAT THE PUBLIC CAN SEE AND UNDERSTAND. I URGE THE BOARD NOT TO APPROVE THIS AMENDMENT WITHOUT CLEAR PERFORMANCE GOALS AND STRONG TRANSPARENCY, TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES IN PLACE.

THANK YOU. THAT'S WHAT I HAVE TO TAKE. CATHERINE MORASH.

[01:20:03]

I'M A MEMBER OF THE NATOMAS TEACHERS ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE BOARD, AND I'M HERE TO ASK, WHY ARE WE EXTENDING THE SUPERINTENDENT'S CONTRACT TO 2030 TONIGHT WHEN IT DOESN'T EXPIRE UNTIL 2029? THE 2025 CALIFORNIA SCHOOL BOARD DASHBOARD TELLS A CLEAR STORY.

MATH SCORES HAVE FALLEN EVERY SINGLE YEAR SINCE 2019 FROM 53 POINTS BELOW STANDARD TO 80 POINTS BELOW STANDARD.

NOT ONE STUDENT GROUP SCORES AT OR ABOVE STANDARD IN MATH, ELA HAS ALSO DECLINED EVERY YEAR, NOW 45 POINTS BELOW THE STANDARD, WHILE THE STATE AVERAGE IMPROVED BY FIVE POINTS THIS YEAR, 1 IN 5 OF OUR STUDENTS, 22.7% IS CHRONICALLY ABSENT.

OUR SUSPENSION RATE IS MORE THAN DOUBLE THE STATE AVERAGE.

TONIGHT, THE BOARD ALSO APPROVED AN LCAP BUDGET OF $228 MILLION FOR NEXT YEAR.

I WANT TO BE CLEAR I SUPPORT EVERY DOLLAR GOING TO TEACHERS, COUNSELORS, AIDES, STAFF MATERIALS THAT ARE IN THE CLASSROOM FOR THE KIDS EVERY DAY.

WHAT I QUESTION IS THE GROWING SHARE GOING TO THE DISTRICT OFFICE, ADMINISTRATION AND OUTSIDE CONTRACTS OVERHEAD THAT EXPANDS WHILE OUTCOMES DECLINE.

THE DATA IS IN FRONT OF YOU. THIS BOARD HAS AN OPPORTUNITY TONIGHT TO SEND A CLEAR MESSAGE THAT RESULTS MATTER, THAT PROGRESS MUST COME BEFORE THE REWARD THAT OUR STUDENTS NEEDS COME BEFORE ADMINISTRATIVE CONVENIENCE.

THE SUPERINTENDENT'S CONTRACT IS GOOD UNTIL 2029.

THERE IS NO URGENCY HERE. NO EMERGENCY, NO REASON THIS CANNOT WAIT.

TABLE THIS EXTENSION UNTIL THE DATA SHOWS OUR KIDS ARE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. I HAVE MISS SHARON THURMAN.

SOME PUBLIC CONVERSATIONS ARE VERY HARD TO HAVE.

THIS IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THEM. THE CURRENT SUPERINTENDENT, ONE OF THE NICEST PEOPLE I KNOW.

BUT APPARENTLY, BASED ON WHAT WE'VE HEARD, BASED ON THREE YEARS BASED ON OUR CHILDREN'S ELA AND MATH SCORES NOT IMPROVING BASED ON HAVING SOME OF THE SAME TOXIC PERSONALITIES IN LEADERSHIP REMAIN OR BE MOVED TO A DIFFERENT POSITION WHEN A WONDERFULLY VALID LIST OF PARENTS NAMES ON A PETITION WAS SUBMITTED TO BOTH THE BOARD AND THE SUPERINTENDENT.

IT IS VERY DIFFICULT AND TWO THINGS CAN BE TRUE AT ONCE.

A PERSON CAN BE A VERY FINE INDIVIDUAL, BUT NOT AN APPROPRIATE LEADER FOR NATOMAS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.

IN THE CORPORATE WORLD, YOU DO NOT GET AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE A DECLINE IN OUTCOMES.

WHY DO WE NOT HAVE THAT SAME STANDARD FOR THE MOST PRECIOUS JEWELS IN OUR STEWARDSHIP, THAT IS, OUR CHILDREN AND THE TEACHERS. WE HAVE GONE THROUGH A HORRIBLE STRIKE AND THE LEVEL OF GOODWILL THAT WAS LOST IN THAT PROCESS IS STILL FELT.

I HAVEN'T HEARD OR SEEN AN APOLOGY FROM ANY OF THE ADULTS.

I DID, HOWEVER, I WAS INSPIRED LAST MEETING WHEN I HEARD OUR PRESIDENT STATE THAT THERE WERE THREE STUDENTS HE HAD INSPIRED TO DO BETTER. ONE OF THEM DID NOT AND HE WAS NOT ABLE TO LEAVE THE REWARD, IF YOU WILL, FOR THAT STUDENT. I AM IMPLORING OUR WONDERFUL TRUSTEES TO HEAR THE COMMUNITY.

THE SIGNAL THAT IS BEING SENT BY THE EXTENSION IS NOT ONE OR.

IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO IT, THEN SHOW US WHAT THE STANDARDS ARE THAT YOU'RE REQUIRING.

BY 2030, OUR STUDENTS SHOULD BE READING AT GRADE LEVEL.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. JAN SOUSA.

WELL, WHEN I GOT THE AGENDA ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON FIRST I WAS LIKE, WHY ISN'T IT COMING OUT ON FRIDAY? AND THEN I REMEMBER WE HAD A GREAT HOLIDAY FOR JUNETEENTH.

BUT I WAS GRATIFIED TO LEARN THAT DOCTOR CASTILLO INTENDS TO REMAIN WITH THE DISTRICT THROUGH 2030.

IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR US TO HAVE STABILITY.

AND WHEN DOCTOR CASTILLO TOOK OVER, THOSE CHILDREN ARE JUST STARTING TESTING AND JUST WE'RE JUST GOING TO SEE THEIR SCORES.

HOWEVER, THE THING THAT'S GOING TO MAKE THE MOST DIFFERENCE IS THE EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE.

AND NOW I UNDERSTAND THAT'S ALSO INCLUDING THIRD GRADE, WHICH IS REALLY IMPORTANT.

WE'VE SEEN CHANGES IN SPECIAL EDUCATION LEADERSHIP.

THE GEMS PROGRAM HAS BEEN PRESERVED AT NATOMAS HIGH SCHOOL FOR BLACK AND BROWN GIRLS FREEDOM SCHOOL CONTINUES.

WE HAVE AN AMAZING AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM GRANT THAT SERVES WAY MORE CHILDREN THAN I'VE SEEN IN MOST DISTRICTS.

[01:25:06]

ONE REASON I WAS SO UPSET A YEAR AGO IS BECAUSE IT STARTED TO LOOK LIKE DOCTOR CASTILLO WAS COMING HERE TO MAKE A NAME FOR HERSELF AND RETIRE AT THE TOP OF HER SALARY, BUT I'M HAPPY TO SEE SHE WANTS TO STAY AND THAT SHE WANTS TO WORK TOGETHER WITH US.

AS SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN TEACHING READING PROFESSIONALLY SINCE 1992, BUT REALLY SINCE I WAS SIX YEARS OLD AND WOULD TELL OTHER CHILDREN TO STOP BECAUSE THERE WAS A PERIOD THERE. WE'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK WITH THE EARLY LITERACY AND INCLUDING THIRD GRADE IS GREAT.

THE ONLY TWEAK I WISH WE HAD IS SOMETHING FOR THE CHILDREN.

FOURTH THROUGH 12TH GRADE WHO MISSED CRUCIAL INSTRUCTION.

THEY WE NEED A LOT OF HELP THERE. AND IN FACT, I WAS IN AN IEP WITH A MOM WHO'S REALLY WORRIED ABOUT HER SON BECAUSE HE'S JUST MISSING ALL THE INTERVENTIONS. BUT THERE'S MORE PROGRESS TO BE DONE.

CONTINUED POSITIVE CHANGES IN NATOMAS AND I HOPE THIS MEASURE PASSES.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. TRUSTEES. THIS IS OUR TIME TO DISCUSS.

I GUESS I'LL GO AHEAD AND START FIRST. MISS ROMAN I HEARD FROM YOU IN VERY UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES FOR OUR FIRST COMMUNICATION I WILL I WOULD JUST LIKE TO FINISH. I DIDN'T INTERRUPT YOU. I LOOK FORWARD TO BUILDING A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU OUTSIDE OF EXTREMELY UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES.

MISS DAVIS, YOU'RE RIGHT. THERE'S A LOT OF STUFF THAT I SAID THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

I WANT TO BACK THOSE THINGS UP. I DON'T THINK IT HAPPENS AT ONE MEETING.

I THINK IT HAPPENS OVER TIME. BUT I WANT TO ANSWER SOME OF THE QUESTIONS.

WE EVALUATE THE SUPERINTENDENT IN CLOSED SESSION BECAUSE THE SUPERINTENDENT IS OUR ONE EMPLOYEE AND THE STATE LAW GOVERNS THAT.

AND SO AS MUCH AS I'D LIKE TO HAVE FANTASTIC CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WITH OUR SUPERINTENDENT.

THE LAW SIMPLY PREVENTS US FROM DOING SO. THE REASON WE HAVE THIS ACCOUNTABILITY, HOW WE HAVE ACCOUNTABILITY IS TO BOARD MEMBER EXPRESS VALUES FOR THE CANDIDATES THAT ARE IN THE OFFICE. I MEAN THAT ARE RUNNING FOR OFFICE. YOU'RE GOING TO BE ASKED THAT QUESTION IN THE COMMUNITY TOO. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO HOLD THE SUPERINTENDENT ACCOUNTABLE? AND THEN YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE ALL THOSE THINGS THAT YOU SAID ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL, AND YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE THEM BEHIND THAT CLOSED DOOR AND EXPRESS THEM IN A NEW, UNIQUE WAYS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. SO I JUST WANTED TO PROVIDE SOME CONTEXT FOR THAT.

I'M NOT A FAN OF DOING ANYTHING BEHIND CLOSED DOORS OR HAVING SECRET MEETINGS.

I INVITE EVERYONE TO MY HOUSE. ROBIN IS VERY FAMILIAR WITH MY OPINIONS.

TRUST ME, ONE OF THE PRIVILEGES OF MY LIFE HAS BEEN TO BE BOARD PRESIDENT FOR TWO YEARS, AND TO HAVE VERY FORCEFUL AND SOMETIMES FORCEFUL BACK CONVERSATIONS COMING THIS WAY.

SHE SITS QUIET BECAUSE SHE'S HUMBLE. BUT THE REALITY IS WE CLOSE THAT DOOR, AND WE HAVE A LOT OF ARGUMENTS THAT WOULD MAKE FOR VERY INTERESTING TV.

OKAY. BUT I WILL SHARE SOME OF THE REASONS WHY I DO SUPPORT ROBIN.

AND AGAIN, THIS IS BORNE OUT OF MY DECADE OF EXPERIENCE ON THE BOARD. I'M NOT JUST TALKING A GOOD GAME. I CAME HERE AND YOU SIT OVER THERE IN THE FAR CORNER BECAUSE JUST THE WAY WE DID GOVERNANCE WAS SO INTERESTING AND COLLABORATION WAS REALLY TOUGH.

I REMEMBER THE TIME WE HAD TO HAVE A CIVILITY POLICY LAYING AT THE BOARD DAIS BECAUSE BOARD MEMBERS, AND IT WAS JUST SO WEIRD AND WE JUST DIDN'T REALLY RESPECT EACH OTHER.

AND I KNOW IT'S LIKE TO HAVE BE ON WHAT I PERCEIVE TO BE NOT A FUNCTION IN GOVERNANCE TEAM.

AND SO WHEN I LOOK AT ROBYN, I LOOK AT THE SUPERINTENDENT, I, HERE'S YOUR OPINION IS PROACTIVE, DOESN'T GET EGO. IT'S NOT FROM WHAT I CAN SEE, NOT CREATING PTSD.

ADDRESSES OUR CABINET WITH RESPECT IS ALWAYS WILLING TO MEET WITH SOMEBODY.

AND I KNOW THAT THE RESULTS THAT WE ARE SAYING THAT SHE'S ACCOUNTABLE FOR WHICH SHE IS WHICH WE ARE, I'M ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE TWO. THEY SHOCKED THE CONSCIENCE. BUT JUST WITHIN A YEAR'S TIME WE'VE HAD AND THESE ARE MAJOR INITIATIVES, RIGHT? I THINK THIS BOARD IS SO FLEXIBLE SOMETIMES THAT WE JUST FORGET, LIKE, THESE THINGS ARE HAPPENING AND THEY'RE ROLLING AND THEY'RE HAPPENING. I JUST WANT TO PROVIDE CONTEXT. OKAY. SPECIAL EDUCATION AUDIT.

I REMEMBER MEETING WITH A PARTICULAR CONSTITUENT A MIDDLE OF LAST YEAR.

I SAID, OKAY, WE'LL DO THAT. WE'LL TRY TO GET IT DONE. AND AGAIN, WHAT'S UNIQUE ABOUT GOVERNANCE AGAIN IS THAT WE CAN'T HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH MORE THAN ONE PERSON. SO PEOPLE HAVE THEIR FAVORITE TRUSTEE, I GUESS, AND THEY'LL PICK THAT TRUSTEE AND THAT TRUSTEE CAN TALK TO ONLY ONE OTHER PERSON.

AND THEN WE HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO UNIQUELY SOLVE THOSE PROBLEMS IN HERE.

THIS IS WHERE WE HAVE OUR CONVERSATION HERE IN THE BOARD MEETING.

SO WITHIN A YEAR, WE HAVE A SPECIAL EDUCATION REVIEW COMING UP INSTANTLY, MAYBE TWO MONTHS AFTER THE GENERAL ELECTION IN 2024, WE HAVE A PARENT LIAISON FOR SPECIAL POPULATIONS.

SOMEONE CAME TO ME EARLIER THIS YEAR AND SAID, HEY, WE NEED A MILD MOD PROGRAM.

AND I HAD THE PRIVILEGE AND OPPORTUNITY OF WALKING CAMPUSES WITH OUR NTA PRESIDENT.

[01:30:01]

SHE DISCOURAGED ME FROM DOING THAT. SHE SAYS, GO.

YOU GO REACH YOUR OWN CONCLUSIONS. THERE WAS A TIME IN THIS DISTRICT WHERE A BOARD MEMBER WOULD GO, HEY, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO ASK WE'D LIKE TO GO WITH YOU. WE'D LIKE TO ESCORT YOU THAT, THAT THAT THAT HAS HAPPENED.

OKAY. HEY, GO. GO FIGURE IT OUT. BRING BACK TO ME WHAT YOU'RE SEEING, AND WE'LL WRESTLE OVER THOSE THINGS.

WE HAVE HIRED A NEW ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT. THERE HAVE BEEN ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES WITH RESPECT TO OUR STAFF.

AT A HUMAN RESOURCES LEVEL, THERE WERE CHANGES THAT OCCURRED THROUGH THE STRIKE.

YOU KNOW, I'M NOT THE TRUSTEE THAT LOOKED AT THE STRIKE AND SAID, HEY, THAT WAS THE WORST THING ON THE PLANET. HEY, I'M ACTUALLY A FAN OF SCALE DISRUPTION.

I THINK THERE HAS TO BE DISRUPTION IN SYSTEMS SOMETIMES FOR THERE TO BE PROGRESS. I THOUGHT THE STRIKE WAS UNAVOIDABLE. I MEAN, IT WAS AVOIDABLE IF YOU ASKED FOR MY 100% OPINION.

BUT WE WORKED THROUGH THAT. WE WORKED THROUGH THAT BEHIND CLOSED DOORS BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT'S REQUIRED. AND WE CAME OUT WITH A DEAL THAT WAS BETTER THAN THE FACT FINDING REPORT, WRITE A COUPLE PERCENTAGES UP AND LOOK, IT TOOK SEVEN DAYS.

HEY, MAN, NEGOTIATIONS ARE HARD. THEY'RE TOUGH.

THEY'RE REALLY HARD THINGS TO DO. BUT I THINK WE'RE BETTER FOR THOSE NEGOTIATIONS. AND AS BOARD PRESIDENT, I HAD THE DISTINCT PRIVILEGE OF BEING IN THE ROOM WITH ROBIN WHEN THOSE THINGS WERE HAPPENING.

AND I DON'T WANT TO GET TOO FAR BEFORE I START REVEALING HOW EVERYTHING IS DONE.

BUT I WAS THERE AND I KNOW WHAT THOSE THINGS LOOKED LIKE.

AND THOSE WERE SOME OF THE HARDEST DAYS OF MY LIFE.

I DIDN'T SIT BACK DURING THE STRIKE AND ROBIN DIDN'T SIT BACK DURING THE STRIKE. AND OH, THIS IS GREAT. LIKE, WHO WANTS TO STRIKE? NOBODY WANTS THAT. THERE'S AN EARLY LITERACY INITIATIVE. IT DOES NEED SOME TWEAKING. ABSOLUTELY.

THAT'S BASED ON THE SCIENCE OF READING. I'M THE FIRST TRUSTEE TO ADMIT I'M NOT AN EDUCATOR.

I'M A BANKER. OKAY, SO I TALK A LOT ABOUT MONEY.

AND I ALSO TALK ABOUT CULTURE BECAUSE I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD THE TEAM. AND AS PRESIDENT FOR TWO YEARS, I GET A SPECIAL MEETING THAT OTHER TRUSTEES DON'T GET.

I GET A CABINET MEETING ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS.

OKAY, I'VE SEEN SHIFTS IN THIS CABINET. I SEE HOW THEY REACT.

I SEE HOW THEY WORK AS A TEAM. I SEE HOW THEY LISTEN.

I SEE HOW WHEN EVERYONE IS SAYING, HEY, THESE FOLKS DON'T WALK.

SCHOOL SITES. SEE, THE NEXT DAY THEY'RE AT SCHOOL SITES.

I SAY, HEY, YOU GUYS NEED TO WALK SCHOOL SITES, RIGHT? AND THEY WALK SCHOOL SITES. SO I'M JUST SPEAKING FROM PRIVILEGE OF WHY I SUPPORT ROBIN.

I COULD GO THROUGH A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF EVERY SINGLE EVALUATIVE THING THAT WE TALKED TO HER ABOUT.

BUT THE REALITY IS IT HAS TO HAPPEN BACK THERE BECAUSE SHE'S OUR ONE EMPLOYEE.

SO THAT'S THE LAW. IF YOU WANT TO CHANGE THE LAW, I'LL BE THE FIRST TO WALK DOWN TO THE STATE LEGISLATURE WITH YOU AND GET IT DONE.

I WILL I WILL GO WITH YOU. I USED TO WORK IN THE BUILDING. I STILL HAVE A LOT OF CONNECTIONS TO THOSE FOLKS, BUT IT'S A VERY, VERY TOUGH THING.

AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION I WANTED TO ANSWER IN TERMS OF WHAT MICAH BELIEVES I WANT TO SPEAK FOR MY FELLOW TRUSTEES IS THAT WE ARE IN AN INTERESTING YEAR AND WE HAVE A BOND AND WE DO HAVE AN ELECTION AND WE DO NEED SOME STABILITY.

WE DO THINGS DO CHANGE. RIGHT. AND ONE OF THE BIGGEST SURE SIGNS OF WHERE PEOPLE ARE PICKING THEIR DISTRICT.

I WENT THROUGH A WHOLE SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH PROCESS.

OKAY. IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE THAT, THEN MAYBE YOU SHOULD ASK ABOUT THAT PROCESS. I'LL SAY THIS.

I DON'T THINK THIS IS VIOLENT AT ALL. THERE ARE SOME BAD CANDIDATES, OKAY.

LIKE BAD, LIKE, WOW, I SHOULD, I MIGHT JUST TAKE THIS OFF AND RESIGN AND RUN FOR SUPERINTENDENT, YOU KNOW? AND SO I'M CONFIDENT IN THE PERSON THAT I HELPED PICK.

AND I WANT TO GIVE HER A CHANCE TO FINISH THE JOB.

OKAY. THAT'S NOT OPEN ENDED. THAT'S NOT OPEN ENDED FOR ANY OF OUR CABINET MEMBERS.

THAT'S NOT OPEN ENDED FOR OUR SUPERINTENDENT. SHE KNOWS THAT. I'VE SAID THAT DIRECTLY TO HER FACE. ROBIN, IT'S NOT OPEN ENDED, BUT I LIKE YOU. I HOPE YOU'LL STAY. I THINK YOU'VE DONE SOME GOOD STUFF. AND SO SHE SHE WILL HAVE MY SUPPORT TONIGHT.

ALL RIGHT. TRUSTEE. I WILL ECHO EVERYTHING THAT YOU SAID, AND I JUST I DON'T USUALLY RESPOND TO PUBLIC COMMENTS, BUT AND I DON'T WANT TO RESPOND TO ANY SPECIFICALLY, BUT GENERALLY WE'VE HEARD ON MORE THAN ONE OCCASION TONIGHT AND IN THE PAST, THESE. AND I'VE SAID BEFORE ALSO THAT I FEEL WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO SPEAK TRUTH FROM THIS DAIS.

AND IF WE HEAR UNTRUTHS, WE NEED TO CLARIFY THEM.

SO WE'RE NOT LEAVING THEM OUT THERE. AND IN THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE AND A COUPLE OTHERS, WE'VE BEEN ACCUSED OF DOING SECRET THINGS BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. I THINK IT'S IRONIC THAT THAT ACCUSATION HAS BEEN LEVELED IN A PUBLIC MEETING WHEN WE'RE DISCUSSING THE EXACT ITEM THAT WE'RE PREPARING TO VOTE ON IN PUBLIC AT A MEETING WHERE THE PUBLIC HAS THE ABILITY TO MAKE PUBLIC COMMENT, WHICH THEY WOULD NOT HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO IN A CORPORATE BODY THAT DOESN'T ALLOW THIS KIND OF MEETING IN PUBLIC TO HAPPEN WITH PUBLIC COMMENT.

SO I FIND THAT SOMEWHERE BETWEEN UNTRUTHFUL AND IRONIC THAT WE'RE DOING THIS PUBLIC MEETING AND WE'RE SPECIFICALLY HAVING THIS CONVERSATION WHERE YOU GET TO SHARE THE THINGS THAT YOU DID JUST SHARE AS PART OF THE TRANSPARENCY.

LIKEWISE, THE TRANSPARENCY THAT THE SUPERINTENDENT AND STAFF HAVE SHOWN IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE BUDGET,

[01:35:02]

SO TO SAY THAT THESE THINGS ARE BEING DONE IN PUBLIC IS SIMPLY A GROSS MISCHARACTERIZATION.

WITH THAT, I ECHO YOUR COMMENTS, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THE SUPERINTENDENT HAVING A LONG AND SUCCESSFUL TENURE HERE IN THE DISTRICT.

TRUSTEE MEHTA I'M THE STILL A FRESHMAN ON THIS BOARD, AND I.

IT'S ONLY ME WHO JUST HAD TWO YEARS OF WORKING EXPERIENCE WITH ROBIN.

AND WHAT I HAVE SEEN IS THERE ARE CHANGES THAT I HAVE SEEN WITHIN TWO YEARS THAT HAVE HAPPENED AND THEY ARE HAPPENING AND THEY ARE.

WE ARE MOVING TOWARDS POSITIVE DIRECTION. BUT WHEN IT COMES THAT WE NEED TO DO MORE IN OUR CLASSROOMS, MORE FOR OUR TEACHERS, MORE FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

YES. NOT DENYING THAT. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I KNOW THAT ROBIN IS A VERY OPEN PERSON, VERY OPEN TO FEEDBACK, VERY OPEN TO COLLABORATE. AND THIS IS NOT WHAT I'M SAYING.

I HAVE MET WITH TEACHERS, I'VE MET WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS ON VARIOUS OCCASIONS, AND I KNOW THAT THEY HAVE GIVEN THIS FEEDBACK TO ME AS WELL ABOUT ROBIN.

SO IT'S NOT JUST ME WHO'S SAYING THAT, BUT IT'S ALSO OUTSIDE IN THE COMMUNITY.

SHE'S VISIBLE, SHE'S THERE. EVERYBODY SAYS, YEAH, YOU SHOULD GO TO THE SCHOOLS.

AND THAT'S NOT IT. THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT HAPPEN BEHIND THE CLOSED DOORS, WHICH PRESIDENT GRANT HAS ALREADY TOLD THE CABINET MEETINGS THAT THINGS HAVE CHANGED.

THEY ARE CHANGING, AND I REALLY FEEL HONORED TO WORK WITH YOU, ROBIN.

TRUSTEE HARDEN YOUR LIGHTS ON. IT IS ON. AND I TURNED IT OFF BECAUSE I STARTED FLIPPING MY PAPERS, AND I KNOW THAT IT'S GOING TO BE IRRITATING TO THE PUBLIC. SO I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU FOR LETTING IT BE KNOWN HOW IT'S THE STATE, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S NOT JUST US. BECAUSE WHAT'S FUNNY IS I'VE BEEN LIVING IN THIS DISTRICT FOR LIKE 25 YEARS AND I'VE COME FOR AT LEAST LIKE THE LAST 20.

I USED TO BE OUT IN THE AUDIENCE AND I CAN COUNT ON LIKE FIVE FINGERS HOW MANY TIMES PEOPLE WERE TO SAY, WELL, WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE FORMER SUPERINTENDENT STUFF.

SO TO SAY THAT SHE'S ONLY BEEN GIVEN THIS AMOUNT OF TIME AND THEN FEEL LIKE WE'RE HIDING SOMETHING, WE'RE NOT. WE JUST HAVE TO BE ETHICAL. THERE'S SOME THINGS WE CAN'T SHARE.

NOW YOU GUYS UNDERSTAND WHY I WAS ALWAYS HERE AND SITTING THERE.

I WAS SEEN BUT NEVER HEARD. AND THAT WAS KIND OF THE SAME THING FOR THE BOARD MEMBERS TOO, BECAUSE THINGS ARE DIFFERENT NOW. YOU GUYS MAY NOT BELIEVE IT, BUT IT IS NOW FRESH AIR WITHIN THIS BUILDING, WITHIN THOSE SCHOOLS, WITHIN EVERYTHING. DO WE HAVE ROOM FOR CHANGE AND GROWTH? YEAH. SHE'S HUMAN. WE'RE ALL HUMAN. IT'S JUST CAN WE ALL WORK ON TRANSPARENCY? EVERY SINGLE PERSON CAN BE MORE TRANSPARENT, BUT WE DO WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO DO AND WHAT WE'RE ALLOWED TO DO.

WE'RE NEVER GOING TO. I HATE TO SAY THAT WE'RE ALWAYS GOING TO SHARE THE DIRTY DATA, BECAUSE THAT'S FROM WAY BACK WHEN, BUT WE'RE HERE TO SHARE IT. BUT WE HAVE TO BE CAREFUL WHAT WE DO, AND WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE DOING IT, YOU KNOW, CORRECTLY. ARE THERE THINGS THAT NEED TO BE CHANGED? FOR SURE. BUT THERE'S BEEN SOME GOOD STUFF DONE.

I WAS A PART OF THAT SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH, AND I WILL ECHO WHAT PRESIDENT GRANT SAID.

LIKE, MAN, THERE WERE SOME SUCKY PEOPLE OUT THERE AND WE DID THE DUE.

AND I'M SORRY FOR ALL YOU GUYS THAT MIGHT BE WATCHING THAT WERE THERE.

BUT YEAH. AND THEN TO SAY WE GO BEYOND, I MEAN, I'M NOT THROWING MY NEIGHBOR UNDER THE BUS, BUT THEY JUST HIRED A NEW TRUSTEE AND THEY DIDN'T TALK TO THE PUBLIC.

I MEAN, A NEW SUPERINTENDENT, THEY DIDN'T HAVE HALF OF THE STUFF WE DO TO GET THE PEOPLE INVOLVED.

SO WE WE REACHED OUT LIKE WAY MORE THAN OBVIOUSLY WE HAD TO DO.

SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MAKING PEOPLE FEEL WELCOME.

YOU GUYS ARE ALL ENTITLED TO YOUR OPINION. WE ALL HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH HER CONSTANTLY.

SO SHE DOES. LISTEN. DOES SHE HAVE TO FOLLOW IT ALL? NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT. YOU KNOW, THERE'S A COUPLE THINGS THAT I WANT HER TO DO THAT SHE HASN'T DONE YET, BUT SHE'S HUMAN. SO LET'S JUST MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BEING KIND.

THANK YOU. TRUSTEE MORA. OKAY, WELL, I THINK I'M THE LAST TRUSTEE TO COMMENT, AND I WANT AND I DO WANT TO KEEP IT ON THE BRIEF SIDE.

AND LET ME I DIDN'T WRITE DOWN WHAT I WAS, WHAT THE COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I WANT TO TOUCH ON.

SO LET ME SEE IF I CAN TRUST MYSELF TO REMEMBER.

FIRST OF ALL, THERE ARE CONFIDENTIALITY THINGS RELATED TO PERSONNEL ITEMS. THERE ALWAYS HAVE BEEN. AND THAT REMAINS TRUE TODAY FOR REASONS THAT HAVE BEEN MENTIONED.

I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I CLARIFY TOO, THAT THERE WE DID AS ONE OF THE TRUSTEES THAT WAS PART OF HIRING A NEW SUPERINTENDENT.

THERE WERE STRONG CANDIDATES THAT WERE IN THAT POOL.

AND I JUST THINK THAT THAT NEEDS TO BE SAID. YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S BEEN AN EMPHASIS ON, ON, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER PART OF THAT. BUT AGAIN, YOU KNOW THAT THESE ARE PERSONNEL MATTERS.

I WANT TO SAY FOR ME, THIS IS ABOUT TRUST IN LEADERSHIP, AND I'M GOING TO GET MYSELF INTO SOME BEEF AND IT'S FINE.

AND IT'S NOT WITH ANYONE HERE. I DON'T THINK IT'S WITH REALLY WITH WITH WITH THINGS LIKE THE CASP,

[01:40:06]

RIGHT. BUT I JUST THINK IT'S NECESSARY. SO THAT'S A GENUINE DEEP SIGH BEFORE I SAY WHAT I'M GOING TO SAY, SOMETIMES I DON'T THINK IT'S SO CLEAR TO FOLKS OUTSIDE OF EDUCATION, AND I DON'T WANT TO SAY THAT I'M AN EXPERT IN EDUCATION, BUT I DO WORK IN THE EDUCATION FIELD. IF YOU.

THERE ARE THERE ARE ASPECTS OF STANDARDIZED TESTING AND THINGS LIKE THE CASP THAT CAN BE MISLEADING, IN MY OPINION. IF YOU HAVE. IF YOU GROW BY A CERTAIN AMOUNT IN ONE AREA AND THE STATE DEEMS THAT IT'S NOT ENOUGH AND YOU'RE STILL, YOU KNOW, PROGRESSING, YOU CAN ACTUALLY GO DOWN A COLOR.

AND I FEEL CONFIDENT SAYING THAT THAT'S, YOU KNOW, HOW THAT WORKS.

SO THAT'S JUST ONE THE, THE REASON THAT I SAY THAT IS BECAUSE I HEAR A LOT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, FOUR YEARS AGO TO THIS DAY, I AGREE WITH, WITH ANY SENTIMENT ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY AND DATA ACCOUNTABILITY AND ACHIEVEMENT, STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND ALL OF THOSE THINGS.

I REALLY, MY, PERHAPS ONE OF MY BIGGEST GOAL HOPES IS THAT FOLKS WILL LOOK AT ALL OF THE DATA, LIKE THE DISTRICT PROGRESS REPORT THAT GETS UPDATED IN REAL TIME OTHER PROGRESS REPORTS THAT EXIST, OTHER, YOU KNOW, WAYS OF MEASURING ACHIEVEMENT IN THE DISTRICT THAT WE HAVE.

JUST BECAUSE THERE ARE, THERE'S SO MUCH, THERE CAN BE MORE TO UNPACK IN SOME OF THESE WAYS OF MEASURING CERTAIN THINGS.

AND I ALSO DON'T MEAN FOR THIS TO SOUND, YOU KNOW, LIKE GRANDSTANDING OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT THERE IS SO MUCH THERE TO, YOU KNOW, TO THOSE THINGS THAT I HOPE FOLKS WILL LOOK AT BECAUSE IT CAN ALSO SHOW A MORE ACCURATE PICTURE FOR WHAT OUR CURRENT LEADERSHIP YOU KNOW, IS ACHIEVING FOR OUR STUDENTS.

AND I JUST THINK THAT THAT NEEDS TO BE SAID. AND LIKE I SAID, I GUESS NOW MY, SOME OF MY, MY OPINION AND CRITICISMS ON, ON THINGS LIKE THE DASHBOARD ARE, ARE, YOU KNOW, ARE OUT THERE NOW, BUT I HOPE PEOPLE WILL INDULGE ME AND, AND JUST, YOU KNOW, AND REALLY THE, THE, THE CONTINUOUS LOOKING AT EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE TO US. AND THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT GOES INTO MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THOSE THINGS AVAILABLE TO US.

AND I WILL ALSO BE SUPPORTING THIS BECAUSE OF THE REASONS THAT I'VE MENTIONED AND THE TRUST IN LEADERSHIP.

ALL RIGHT. TRUSTEE HARDEN, I'LL BE SO BRIEF. SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE CLEAR.

WHEN I WAS SAYING LIKE THE SUCKY CANDIDATES, BECAUSE WE'RE ALL ENTITLED TO OUR OPINIONS, BUT I THINK 90% OF THE PEOPLE WERE TERRIBLE AND I. BUT I DO NOT WANT ANYONE TO THINK BECAUSE WE HAD INTERNAL CANDIDATES TO THAT WERE FABULOUS FOR IT.

SO WE GOT THE BEST PERSON, AND I'M GOING TO SAY THIS FOR ME, I WAS WILLING TO DIE TO GET HER AND KEEP THE OTHER PERSON.

IF WE IF I COULDN'T HAVE THAT. SO THAT LETS YOU GUYS KNOW THAT WE DID GET THE, YOU KNOW, CREAM OF THE CROP.

BUT YES, SO THANK YOU WITH THE PRESIDENT ENTERTAIN A MOTION.

SURE. I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE APPROVAL OF THE THIRD AGREEMENT TO EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT.

SUPERINTENDENT ROBIN, I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION.

ELAINE, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT I HARDIN I MEHTA I MAURA I AND I DIDN'T MEAN THE DASHBOARD.

SORRY. I THINK I HAD SAID MISSPOKEN ABOUT WITH CALLING IT SOMETHING ELSE, BUT I LET THE RECORD REFLECT THAT.

ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES FIVE ZERO. CONGRATULATIONS.

ROBIN. WELCOME BACK. ALL RIGHT. LAST ACTION ITEM.

[XV. i. Consideration of Approval for Board Members' Remuneration Effective July 1, 2026 in accordance with Ed Code Section 35120 and AB 1390]

WE'LL TAKE ONE FROM JESSICA ROMAN FIRST.

HELLO AGAIN. I WOULD LIKE TO CLARIFY, JUST FOR THE RECORD, THAT THAT WAS NOT OUR FIRST INTERACTION, MR. GRANT. MY FIRST INTERACTION WITH THE ENTIRE BOARD WAS WHEN I WAS DESPERATELY REQUESTING HELP FOR MY SON WITH HIS IEP, WHEN HE HAD BEEN SUSPENDED TEN TIMES FROM TC.

AND EVERY PERSON ON THIS BOARD IGNORED ME. WHICH IS WHY I WONDER WHY YOU ALL ARE CONSIDERING A RAISE FOR YOURSELVES WHEN YOU JUST GAVE YOURSELVES ONE ABOUT A MONTH AGO, AFTER THE FIRST STRIKE IN OUR DISTRICT'S HISTORY.

WHEN WE HAVE AN EXTREMELY FRACTURED RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THIS BOARD AND THE PARENTS AND TEACHERS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT DESPITE ONCE AGAIN, I WILL RESTATE ALL OF YOUR POSTURING ABOUT WANTING TO LISTEN.

I HAVE RECEIPTS, I HAVE WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION THAT SHOWS YOU DON'T IN REFERENCE TO OUR LAST POINT, I'M NOT SAYING DOCTOR CASTILLO DOESN'T DESERVE AN EXTENSION. I'M JUST SAYING THIS IS ON REMUNERATION.

OKAY? JUST PLEASE KEEP IT GERMANE. I'M JUST. IT'S JUST BOARD RULES SO WE CAN GIVE HER 10S BACK JUST TO KEEP IT GERMANE.

[01:45:07]

I'VE BEEN IGNORED TIME AND TIME AGAIN. SO I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW THAT KIND OF BEHAVIOR JUSTIFIES AN INCREASE IN THE MONIES THAT YOU ALL RECEIVE.

AND ALSO WHY THAT'S JUSTIFIED CONSIDERING WE HAD THE FIRST STRIKE IN OUR DISTRICT'S HISTORY THIS YEAR THAT YOU ALL REMAIN SILENT ON WHEN WE WERE BEGGING FOR HELP, WHEN TEACHERS AND PARENTS WERE ON PICKET LINES DAY IN AND DAY OUT.

THAT ENDED THE WAY IT DID. AND TO BRING UP ANOTHER POINT.

NOBODY'S APOLOGIZED FOR IT. YOU GUYS TALK A GOOD GAME ABOUT WANTING TO COLLABORATE WITH PARENTS, AND THEN WE COME HERE AND WE SPEAK AND WE POUR OUR HEARTS OUT AND YOU BRUSH US OFF AND YOU CAST US ASIDE AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN.

THAT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS.

I'VE HAD TO THIS BOARD. SO I'D LIKE YOU TO THINK ABOUT THAT.

INSTEAD OF JUST RUBBER STAMPING AND DOING WHAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO ANYWAY, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT IT FEELS LIKE AS A PARENT IN THIS DISTRICT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. AND THEN JOANNA DAVIS.

GOOD EVENING. I JUST WANTED TO BRING UP THAT DURING THE TEACHER NEGOTIATIONS, THIS DISTRICT PUBLISHED MATERIALS WARNING FAMILIES THAT GIVING TEACHERS WHAT THEY ASKED FOR WOULD CAUSE DEVASTATING CUTS.

YOU WERE THEY USED FEAR. TO SHAPE PUBLIC OPINION WHILE APPROVING RAISES FOR THE SUPERINTENDENT.

FOR THIS. AND ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENTS. THEN WHEN IT CAME TIME TO ACTUALLY RATIFY THEIR CONTRACT, YOU GUYS CANCELED THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED WEDNESDAY MEETING AND CALLED FOR THE SPECIAL MEETING ON A FRIDAY AT 730 IN THE MORNING.

SHORT NOTICE. PEOPLE WERE WORKING, TRYING TO GET THEIR KIDS TO SCHOOL.

COULDN'T ATTEND DURING THAT MEETING FOR A LOW ATTENDANCE AGENDA.

YOU VOTED TO GIVE YOURSELVES UP $1,000 A MONTH.

GIVE YOURSELF A RAISE TO $1,000 A MONTH. TONIGHT, JUST THREE MONTHS LATER, ALMOST THREE MONTHS LATER YOU'RE BACK TO DOUBLING IT AGAIN.

AGAIN IN A SUMMER MEETING, LOW ATTENDANCE BOARD MEETING WHEN MOST PEOPLE AREN'T PAYING ATTENTION.

MY PROBLEM IS WITH THIS, AND WHAT I'VE PREVIOUSLY JUST SPOKE ABOUT IS TRANSPARENCY.

I'M NOT SAYING THAT PEOPLE HERE DON'T DESERVE IT.

I'M TALKING ABOUT HOW YOU GUYS ARE PRESENTING IT WHEN YOU'RE PRESENTING IT.

THIS IS ABOUT THE WAY THAT YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING TO THE PUBLIC AND THE WAY THAT IT LOOKS TO US.

SO I'M LIKE, I ASKED FOR THIS IS WHAT I ASKED FOR FOR MY LAST TALK, ASKED FOR THIS ONE TO POSTPONE IT, NOT SAYING NOT DO IT, BUT POSTPONE IT BECAUSE I'LL GIVE YOU 10S.

GO AHEAD. BECAUSE THE PUBLIC LIKE THE WAY THAT IT LOOKS, LOOKS SHADY, THE WAY THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING IT.

OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. OKAY. I'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF TALKING TONIGHT AND I'M HOPEFULLY I'M NOT GOING TO TALK THIS MUCH FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR.

ALL RIGHT. SO CONTEXT IS IMPORTANT. IN JANUARY OF THIS YEAR, WE HAD A BOARD MEETING WHERE THIS FIRST CAME UP IN THE DISTRICT PRESENTED TO THE BOARD, HEY, THERE'S A NEW STATE LAW THAT SAYS WE RECOGNIZE THAT THE ROLE OF A TRUSTEE HAS EXPANDED SIGNIFICANTLY QUITE CONSIDERABLY.

AND SO WOULD YOU GUYS LIKE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS LAW BY RAISING THE RATE TO WHICH TRUSTEES ARE PAID? AT THE TIME, THERE WAS BOARD DIRECTION GIVEN SAID, NO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO THAT RIGHT NOW BECAUSE WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, THERE'S A SOME INTERESTING NEGOTIATIONS GOING ON.

OKAY. AND I THINK THAT WAS A PRETTY SMART DECISION.

OKAY. SO AGAIN, I'M AGING MYSELF HERE. THE BOARD SALARY FOR AS LONG AS I'VE BEEN ON THE BOARD, HAS BEEN ROUGHLY AROUND $369 AFTER TAXES. OKAY, WE HAVE A LOT OF SPECIAL BOARD MEETINGS, MANY BOARD MEETINGS.

YOU'RE REQUIRED TO BE COMPETENT. YOU'RE REQUIRED TO SHOW UP. YOU'RE REQUIRED. YOU'RE NOT REQUIRED. YOU COULD BE A BAD TRUSTEE AND NOT HAVE COMMUNITY MEETINGS. YOU SHOULD HAVE COMMUNITY MEETINGS. YOU SHOULD BE RESPONSIVE TO CONSTITUENTS. AND NOW WE HAVE TRUSTEE AREAS.

EACH ONE OF US HAS ROUGHLY ABOUT 20,000 CONSTITUENTS.

WE SHARE ONE, CHRISTINA HUTH, WHO TRIES TO KEEP US IN ORDER AND LIKE, HEY, CHRISTINA, WHAT'S THIS? WHAT'S THAT? I WOULD SAY ON AVERAGE, MAYBE I GET MAYBE 10 OR 11 CONSTITUENT AFFAIRS ISSUES A DAY.

[01:50:08]

AND AFTER THE STRIKE I'LL TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS AS PRESIDENT.

OKAY. THIS IS ME. BELIEVE IT OR NOT, WE ARE ALL NOT AVAILABLE AT THE SAME TIME ALL THE TIME, ESPECIALLY FOR DIFFERENT BOARD MEETINGS. AND SO WE WANTED TO GIVE NTA A TIME TO RATIFY THE AGREEMENT THAT THEY HAD JUST PASSED.

RIGHT. BECAUSE WE REACHED AN AGREEMENT, THEY HAVE TO TAKE IT TO THEIR MEMBERS TO VOTE ON. AND THAT TOOK 24 HOURS.

OKAY. TWO, TWO DAYS. OKAY. AND SO THEN AS PRESIDENT, I GO OUT, I REACH OUT TO CHRISTINA, I REACH OUT TO ROBIN AND SAY, HEY, ONE OF THE DULY ELECTED POWERS THAT I HAVE IS A BOARD PRESIDENT IS TO CALL A SPECIAL BOARD MEETING.

IN MY HEART, I PROBABLY WE COULD HAVE WAITED TILL THE NEXT BOARD MEETING.

OKAY. BUT IN MY HEART, IT'S LIKE, HEY, WE JUST HAD A HELL OF A STRIKE.

PEOPLE ARE TIRED. I WANT THIS TO TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY.

WE COULD HAVE WAITED TILL THE NEXT BOARD MEETING. OKAY, SO THAT'S PART ONE OF IT.

PART TWO OF IT IS, I'M SORRY, TRUSTEE GRANT, JUST I THINK YOU NEED TO DRIVE THAT POINT HOME.

WE COULD NOT HAVE THE WEDNESDAY BOARD MEETING BECAUSE, WELL, WE COULD HAVE HAD A MEETING, BUT WE COULD NOT HAVE RATIFIED THE AGREEMENT. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN POINTLESS BECAUSE THE TEACHERS HAD YET TO.

TEACHERS HAVE NOT RATIFIED THE AGREEMENT, THE AGREEMENT THEMSELVES. AND THE EARLIEST WE COULD DO IT WHEN WE SAID, WELL, LET'S MAKE SURE. LET'S GIVE THEM TO THURSDAY, WHICH MEANT LET'S HAVE THE MEETING ON FRIDAY. AND I BELIEVE ONE OF THE REASONS THE MEETING WAS SCHEDULED FOR FRIDAY MORNING IS A LOT OF US HAVE JOBS THAT WE FULL TIME JOBS THAT WE HAVE TO GET TO, AND THAT HAVING THE MORNING MEETING ALLOWED US TO HAVE THE MEETING AND STILL GET TO WORK SOMEWHAT.

OKAY, SO GUYS, LET ME JUST FINISH AND I'LL GIVE YOU YOUR TIME.

ALL RIGHT. I'M TRYING TO TAKE THE BLAME HERE AND YOU GUYS WON'T LET ME TAKE THE BLAME. IT'S VERY INTERESTING. NO, NO, BUT I'M BOARD PRESIDENT. AND YOU KNOW, WE TALK ABOUT APPRECIATE YOU. WE TALK ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY AND APOLOGIES. AND SO I APOLOGIZE FOR THE PUBLIC PERCEPTION ON THAT.

IN MY HEAD, IT MAKES BETTER SENSE TO WE JUST HAD A MEETING A WEEK BEFORE WHERE THERE WERE DRUMS AND SOMEONE JUMPED IN AND ALMOST YOU GUYS DIDN'T SEE THIS.

IT WASN'T ON CAMERA AND TRIED TO ATTACK THE BOARD MEMBERS. AND SO WE MANAGED THAT MEETING WITHOUT KICKING A SINGLE PERSON OUT OTHER THAN THE PERSON THAT TRIED TO ATTACK BOARD MEMBER. SO IN MY HEAD, I SAID, HEY, WE NEED A COOLING OFF DAY.

LET THEM RATIFY. WE'LL COME BACK. AND THEN AT THE SAME TIME, WE'LL HANDLE BOARD MEMBER COMPENSATION AS WELL.

OKAY. FORGIVE ME. IT'S NOT SOME ELABORATE RUSE TO TO HIDE AN EXTRA $400.

THAT'S WEIRD. SO WHAT WE DID AT THE TIME, WELL, WHAT I MOTIONED WAS AT THE TIME WAS LIKE, HEY, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AT THE TIME, IT WAS LIKE EXTRA 40,000.

OKAY. SO WE SAID, HEY, FOR THE BOARD, FOR ALL FIVE OF US, 40,000, WE'LL COME BACK IF REVENUES ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE DECENT AND IN SHAPE THAN THEY HAVE BEEN, THEN WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER MEETING. OKAY.

I'VE HAD OTHER TRUSTEES AND OTHER DISTRICTS. SO.

MICAH, YOU'RE DUMB. YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST RIPPED THE BAND-AID OFF AND DID ALL THE 2000 AT ONCE, AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN OVER FOR THE SUMMER. I SAID, WELL, THAT'S NOT TRANSPARENT. THEY'RE ALREADY SAYING THAT WE'RE DOING MACHIAVELLIAN THINGS, SO WE'LL COME BACK AND WE'LL HAVE THIS DISCUSSION HERE. OKAY. I COULD HAVE MOTIONED TO DO THE WHOLE THING AT ONCE, AND I DIDN'T DO THAT.

AND, YOU KNOW, I GOT HEARD DIFFERENT OPINIONS ABOUT THE REASON FOR NOT DOING THAT.

OKAY. SO THIS IS $60,000 WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE FOR FIVE PEOPLE.

OKAY. I'VE GIVEN TEN YEARS OF SERVICE TO THIS DISTRICT, AND IT'S COST ME WAY MORE MONEY THAN THAT.

OKAY. SO FOR ME, IT'S NOT EVEN ABOUT THAT. IT'S ABOUT YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE TO BE INDEPENDENTLY WEALTHY TO RUN FOR SCHOOL BOARD.

RIGHT. TO ME, WE'RE SETTING THE STANDARD OF WHAT ARE WE GOING TO PAY PUBLIC SERVANTS? AND I GET THAT PEOPLE DON'T LIKE PUBLIC SERVANTS TO BE PAID.

I GET THAT, ALL RIGHT? I USED TO BE ONE OF THEM. LIKE, DRAIN THE SWAMP, TAX EVERYBODY OR TAX THE RICH.

THROW OUT THE. AND IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW WHAT YOU GET. AND YOU START MEETING PEOPLE AND YOU REALIZE YOU NEED PEOPLE TO DO THINGS. SO WE DO.

AND I HOPE YOU FEEL LIKE WE DO NEED BOARD MEMBERS THAT HAVE OVERSIGHT.

SO THAT'S MY REASON IT'S NOT TO PERSONALLY ENRICH MYSELF.

I, I, I VOTED NO ON THE RAISES SO MANY TIMES WHEN IT WAS $20.

OKAY. THE REASON I'M GOING TO SUPPORT IT TONIGHT IS BECAUSE I REALIZE THAT ACTION AND YOU GROW, IT KIND OF DEFLATES YOUR ABILITY TO KEEP UP WITH PACE.

SO I'VE TRIED TO RECRUIT FOR MY OWN POSITION.

I'VE TRIED TO GIVE THIS POSITION AWAY. TALK TO ME. HEY, WHY DON'T YOU RUN THE NEXT ELECTION? I'LL SUPPORT YOU. PEOPLE ARE LIKE, OKAY, GREAT. SO HOW MUCH IS IT WORTH A MONTH? $400 A MONTH. REALLY? ADIOS. OKAY, SO I'VE HAD THAT EXPERIENCE. I'M NOT TRYING TO ENRICH MYSELF.

I'M VERY BLESSED. THERE WAS YEARS WE HAD RAISES, AND YOU CAN LOOK IT UP.

YOU COULD PRAY THIS. I REJECTED THE RAISE. I SAID, HEY, WE GOT $20.

I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THAT. SO I THINK WE CAN BE EASY.

I DON'T THINK IT'S IT'S NOT MACHIAVELLIAN. I APOLOGIZE IF IT COMES OUT THAT WAY.

THERE'S REASONS. WE DID HAVE THREE NOW FOUR BOARD MEETINGS ON THIS ITEM.

SO I WILL MOVE APPROVAL. NO ONE HAS TO SUPPORT IT.

I'M NOT MAD IF BOARD MEMBERS DON'T SUPPORT IT. WE HAVE BOARD MEMBERS ALL OVER THE PLACE WITH THIS. I WAS IN THAT CROWD, BUT I ALSO REALIZED LIKE, HEY, IT DOES REQUIRE A LOT.

IT IS A BIGGER JOB THAN MOST PEOPLE UNDERSTAND.

AND FOR THOSE WHO HAVE SPENT TIME WITH ME AND MANY HOURS WITH ME AND SQUEEZING IN MEETINGS BETWEEN MY REAL JOB,

[01:55:05]

HEY, I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT I'M IT'S FOR ME, IT'S MORE ABOUT SETTING WHAT THE RATE IS GOING TO BE. AND GUESS WHAT? OUR DISTRICT'S NOT GOING TO GROW ANYTIME SOON. SO THIS IS GOING TO BE THE LAST TIME THIS IS GOING TO COME UP FOR MAYBE A DECADE.

OKAY. SO IT'S BASED ON A FORMULA OF STUDENTS AND TIME AND ALL THOSE THINGS.

SO THIS IS GOING TO BE IT. AND SO SHOULD WE SET IT RIGHT TO ME IS THE QUESTION.

AGAIN WE GOT CANDIDATES OUT THERE. YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE GOING TO CAMPAIGN SAY WE DON'T DESERVE IT, THEN I WOULD EXPECT YOU TO NOT TAKE IT WHEN YOU GET HERE. OKAY.

SO AND I WILL BE FOLLOWING UP TO MAKE SURE THAT'S THE CASE.

I WILL ASK YOU AT THE DESK TO YOUR FACE. DID YOU REJECT THE RAISE? BECAUSE IT HAPPENED TO ME. AND I SAID, YEAH, I REJECTED THE $20.

SO I WILL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE IT. FOR THE PURPOSES OF DISCUSSION.

I'LL WE'LL MOVE ON TO TRUSTEE. I WILL SECOND THE MOTION.

I WANT TO ECHO YOUR COMMENTS AND PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL CLARITY AND RESTATEMENT, AS IS MY CUSTOM.

YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. WHEN WE HAD OUR JANUARY MEETING, WE AS A BOARD ALL CONSENSUS, IT WAS NOT THE RIGHT TIME UNTIL WE CONCLUDED NEGOTIATIONS BEFORE WE EVEN CONSIDER ANY ADDITIONAL INCREASES TO, TO THE STIPEND FOR BOARD MEMBERS.

WHEN WE DID VOTE, WE ALREADY DISCUSSED WHY THE MEETING WAS HELD ON A FRIDAY MORNING INSTEAD OF A WEDNESDAY AFTER THE STRIKE WAS ENDED AND WE HAD REACHED AN AGREEMENT.

AND YEAH, AND AT THAT MEETING, YOU SPECIFICALLY SAID, TO YOUR POINT, LET'S COME BACK INSTEAD OF DOING THE WHOLE RAISE.

NOW LET'S DO SOME OF IT NOW. BUT LET'S COME BACK IN JUNE AFTER WE SEE THE MAY REVISE, AFTER WE SEE WHAT THE PROJECTIONS ARE, AFTER WE SEE THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE GOING TO APPROVE, TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS ISN'T GOING TO CAUSE ANY PHYSICAL HARM TO THE DISTRICT.

THE INCREASE THAT IS BEING DISCUSSED TONIGHT OR POTENTIALLY BEING VOTED ON MOMENTARILY IS BASICALLY A TOTAL OF LESS THAN A THIRD OF THE FULL COST OF A SINGLE TEACHER IN THE DISTRICT.

IT'S LIKE IF WE DID, IF IF THE TRUSTEES DIDN'T GET A PENNY, WE COULD BASICALLY HAVE ONE TEACHER.

IT'S LIKE ONE POSITION, WHICH BY THE WAY, WE HAVE VACANCIES.

THAT'S NOT REALLY THE ISSUE. IT'S INCONSEQUENTIAL TO THE DISTRICT'S BUDGET.

BUT I THINK YOU BROUGHT UP SOME VERY VALID POINTS ABOUT WHY IT'S CONSEQUENTIAL TO ATTRACTING THE TYPES OF CANDIDATES FOR OUR SEATS THAT DON'T HAVE TO BE INDEPENDENTLY WEALTHY TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD TO DO THIS JOB THE WAY IT NEEDS TO BE DONE.

SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. PRESIDENT GRANT YOUR LEADERSHIP ON THIS. NO PROBLEM. TRUSTEE HARDEN, SO YOUR KEY WORD, WHAT I TOOK FROM IT ALL WAS THE STATE LAW.

SO IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT PRESIDENT GRANT MADE UP, BUT ALSO JUST WE'RE SAYING THAT WE DON'T DESERVE THIS BECAUSE OF, YOU KNOW, OH, WE DIDN'T DO THIS AND THAT. BUT IF WE REALLY LOOK AT AND I'M THAT ONE TRUSTEE THAT JUST SAYS WHAT I PROBABLY SHOULDN'T SAY.

SO IF WE WERE LOOKING AT IT AND TEACHERS GET PAID REGARDLESS.

I'VE HEARD SO MANY PEOPLE SAY HOW BAD OUR NUMBERS ARE.

IT'S NOT ALL ABOUT US. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE MOORE.

YOUR LIGHTS ON. THAT'S WHY I'M SORRY. YEAH. NO, SORRY. I WAS JUST PROCESSING.

OH, SORRY. THE PREVIOUS JUST ALL THE COMMENTS.

I HAD TO TAKE MY TIME. JUST LISTENING TO MY COLLEAGUES.

BUT THANK YOU FOR CHECKING ON ME. I WANTED TO SAY THAT IT LOOKED.

I THINK ONE THING THAT'S CLEAR TO ME IS THAT WE ALL, FOR ALL OF US, WE AGREE ON THE MERIT, ALTHOUGH AT WHATEVER GIVEN TIME IT IS THAT WE VOTE ON REMUNERATION GOING, YOU KNOW, GOING BACK TO PREVIOUS YEARS.

IT'S REALLY THE, THE TIMING, THE TIME, YOU KNOW, THE CONTEXT OF THE CURRENT TIME THAT, YOU KNOW, FOR WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO, FOR HOW WE VOTE, NOT THE MERIT.

AND I THINK THAT THAT MUCH HAS BECOME CLEAR. SO I WILL REALLY JUST LEAVE IT AT THAT.

ALL RIGHT. THERE'S A MOTION. THERE'S A SECOND.

COULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? I GRANT A PARDON.

NO, I MORRA. NO. ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES. THREE TWO.

THANK YOU GUYS. ALL RIGHT. NO BEEF. SEE? WE'RE ALIVE.

ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. LAST UP. I HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT.

[XVI. PUBLIC COMMENTS]

AND TO ENSURE THAT THE MEETING IS CONDUCTED IN AN ORDERLY, EFFICIENT FASHION. OKAY, SO FIRST UP, I HAVE A TOUR ON THE EARLY START FAMILY ACADEMY.

GOOD EVENING AGAIN. I JUST WANTED TO COME AND SAY THAT ON JUNE 12TH, WE LAUNCHED FORMALLY LAUNCHED THE EARLY START FAMILY ACADEMY AT NORTH NATOMAS JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION. IT WAS WONDERFUL.

[02:00:03]

BUT IT WAS GREAT. WE ENGAGED WITH PARENTS IN THE COMMUNITY.

WE HAD FREE BOOKS FOR CHILDREN. WE DID STORYTIME.

WE DID ACTIVITIES, WE DID MUSIC, WE DID PAINTING AND SO MANY THINGS.

SO WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT LAUNCHING THIS CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE LITERACY FOCUSED ACADEMY THAT WILL NOT ONLY GIVE OUR STUDENTS MORE ACTIVITIES AND MORE THINGS TO DO, BUT ALSO TO ENCOURAGE PARENTS TO TAKE LITERACY SERIOUSLY AND ALSO FOR PARENTS TO KNOW THAT LITERACY IS NOT IS NOT JUST ONE WAY LITERACY CAN BE MUSIC LITERACY CAN BE DANCING.

LITERACY CAN LITERALLY BE KARAOKE. MY DAUGHTER LOVES KARAOKE AND SHE LEARNED TO READ VERY WELL BY, YOU KNOW, DOING KARAOKE. SO LITERACY IS MANY THINGS.

AND SO WE IN THE FUTURE, WE'LL CONTINUE TO INVITE ALL OUR BOARD MEMBERS TO ATTEND AND SEE OUR CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE LITERACY CURRICULUM.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. HANG OUT BECAUSE YOU GOT A COUPLE MORE.

OKAY. ALL RIGHT. SO THE NEXT TOPIC IS THE COMMUNITY PARENT MEETING WITH TRUSTEE MEHTA.

OKAY, GREAT. YES. SO FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO SAY TO THE PARENTS OUT HERE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHOWING UP TONIGHT.

I KNOW IT'S HARD. I KNOW YOU HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO DO, BUT THANK YOU FOR COMING AND STAYING HERE AND PROVIDING YOUR PUBLIC COMMENT.

I WANT TO SAY THAT THE BOARD THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ASKING QUESTIONS AND BEING INQUISITIVE AND HOLDING HOLDING THE BOARD ACCOUNTABLE AND BEING UNKIND. I DON'T THINK I HEARD ANY UNKIND COMMENTS TONIGHT AT ALL.

SO PLEASE PARENTS KEEP SHOWING UP, KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS.

PLEASE KEEP ENGAGING. TRUSTEE MEHTA I WAS SO HAPPY WHEN I HEARD YOU SAY YES.

SEND US AN EMAIL. WE'D LOVE TO TALK WITH YOU.

I SENT YOU AN EMAIL TWO DAYS AGO. WE WOULD LOVE TO TALK WITH YOU.

SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU.

WE'VE HAD GREAT CONVERSATIONS WITH PRESIDENT GRANT WITH TRUSTEE HARDIN.

I'VE HAD GREAT CONVERSATIONS WITH TRUSTEE MORA.

SO WE'RE LOOKING TO HEAR FROM YOU AS WELL. NO PROBLEM.

YOU COULD JUST LET ME KNOW. I'M SCHEDULING AND I'LL GET BACK TO YOU. BUT WE'RE WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO HEAR FROM YOU.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. ONE MORE FROM YOU. SCHOOL SAFETY COUNCIL.

AWESOME. SO OUR SCHOOL SAFETY COUNCIL I WAS HERE A FEW WEEKS AGO WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THIS.

I'M HERE AGAIN. A COMMUNITY MEMBER REACHED OUT TO ME THIS TIME.

THEY DID FORWARD THE EMAIL TO ME THAT THEY RECEIVED A RESPONSE FROM SUPERINTENDENT CASTILLO.

AND I WAS DISAPPOINTED. I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED.

THE DISTRICT HAS REPEATEDLY STATED THAT IT WANTS A COMMUNITY CENTERED APPROACH TO SCHOOL SAFETY. BUT I HAVE TO ASK, WHERE IS THE COMMUNITY? A MEMBER OF NATOMAS BLACK PARENTS UNITED SUBMITTED A RESPECTFUL REQUEST TO SERVE ON THE NEWLY FORMED SCHOOL SAFETY COUNCIL.

SHE WAS TOLD NO THAT THE COUNCIL WAS ALREADY FULL AND THAT SHE COULD INSTEAD PARTICIPATE IN FOCUS GROUPS SOMETIME IN THE FALL.

NOW THAT RESPONSE RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT TRANSPARENCY, REPRESENTATION AND GOVERNANCE.

IF THE COUNCIL WAS INTENTIONALLY DESIGNED TO REPRESENT ALL STAKEHOLDER GROUPS, THEN THE COMMUNITY DESERVES TO KNOW ITS COMPOSITION.

HOW MANY PARENTS ARE ON THE COUNCIL? HOW MANY STUDENTS? HOW MANY COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE NOT DISTRICT EMPLOYEES? HOW MANY DISTRICT EMPLOYEES OR ADMINISTRATORS? HOW MANY MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL ARE IN LAW ENFORCEMENT OR LAW ENFORCEMENT ADJACENT? HOW MANY MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL REPRESENT COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS THAT SERVE OUR STUDENTS? HOW MANY MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS, FAITH BASED ORGANIZATIONS? ALL OF THAT. SO HOW WERE THE MEMBERS SELECTED? WAS IT JUST LIKE A PICK AND CHOOSE? ALL OF THAT.

SO I'M JUST SAYING, IF WE'RE TRULY DOING A COMMUNITY CENTERED APPROACH, AND THE COMMUNITY AND PARENTS ARE COMING TO THE DISTRICT SAYING, WE WANT TO PARTICIPATE. IT JUST KIND OF LOOKS BAD WHEN YOU TELL THEM, NO, YOU CAN'T PARTICIPATE, IT'S TOO LATE OR WE'RE FULL. WE HAVE ENOUGH PEOPLE.

I HOPE THAT WHEN WE DO THE FOCUS GROUPS IN THE FALL, THAT MORE PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WILL BE ENCOURAGED TO COME AND ATTEND, BECAUSE I KNOW I WILL TELL THEM TO. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

ALL RIGHT. I BELIEVE THIS NEXT COMMENT IS FROM ELIZA.

ELIZA. DID I GET THAT RIGHT? ELIZA, I'M SO SORRY.

ALL RIGHT. GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. MY NAME IS ELIZA.

THIS IS ACTUALLY MY VERY FIRST TIME HERE, SO THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TONIGHT.

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY I'M HERE. I AM A PARENT LEADER, AND I AM A PARENT AND CAREGIVER OF A CHILD WITH AUTISM THAT AT ONE POINT IN TIME AND ADDITIONAL DISABILITIES.

SO WHAT I'M HERE TODAY TONIGHT IS TO SHARE WITH YOU MY COMMUNITY PROJECT.

[02:05:04]

AND MY CHILD HAS AUTISM. MY FIRST WALK WAS THIS PAST SUNDAY AND I HAD A GOOD TURNOUT.

SOME GOOD LEADERS WERE PRESENT, PRESENT, AND I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE ALL OF YOU GUYS TO COME AND WALK.

THIS IS. AUTISM IS JUST NOT ONE MONTH A YEAR AS WE USUALLY CELEBRATE APRIL.

I WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUR NATOMAS SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOLS ACTUALLY CELEBRATE AUTISM DURING THE MONTH OF APRIL.

THAT IS A PROCLAMATION THAT GOVERNOR NEWSOM ACTUALLY BROUGHT TO LIGHT IN 2025.

AND AND STATED THAT. SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTUALLY BRING THAT FORWARD AS WELL.

I DIDN'T SEE IT THIS YEAR. SO I WELCOME THE BOARD TO IMPLEMENT THAT NEXT YEAR.

BUT AUTISM IS NOT JUST ABOUT ONE DAY A MONTH.

IT'S 365 DAYS A YEAR. SO PLEASE COME AND JOIN ME.

I WILL BE HAVING THIS WALK ONCE A MONTH. IN ADDITION TO THAT, I'M HERE ON BEHALF OF THE NATOMAS SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENT ASSOCIATION, AND WE WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT TO YOU A RESOLUTION IN HONOR OF DISABILITY PRIDE MONTH.

SO I WILL BE PASSING THIS OUT TO ALL OF YOU GUYS THAT DIRECTION.

THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TONIGHT. ALL RIGHT.

LAST PUBLIC COMMENT I HAVE IS FROM JEN SOUZA.

GOOD EVENING AGAIN. SO WHEN GOING THROUGH THE LCAP, I WAS I STOPPED ON THE THE PORTION WHERE I WAS TALKING ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO FUND SOME THINGS FOR ELLS. AND IT STRUCK ME THAT IF A CHILD STARTS SCHOOL IN KINDERGARTEN IN N USD, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THEY RECLASSIFY BY SECOND GRADE.

THE TESTS THAT WE USE RIGHT NOW CHANGES DRAMATICALLY AND STAYS THE SAME FROM THIRD TO FIFTH GRADE.

SO CLASSIFICATION CELEBRATIONS, IN MY OPINION, SHOULD REALLY BE CHANGED TO INDIVIDUAL SCHOOLS INSTEAD OF A CENTRAL CELEBRATION.

THAT PROBABLY MADE SENSE WHEN WE WERE A REALLY SMALL DISTRICT. AND I KNOW WE'VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR A LONG TIME, BUT RECLASSIFICATION IS AN EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENT.

AND EVERY TEACHER WHO HAS TAUGHT THAT CHILD IS SO PROUD.

I WOULD LIKE THIS TO BE HAPPENING DURING THE DAY.

SO ALSO THEIR CLASSMATES CAN SEE IT BECAUSE THERE'S SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY AND SPECIAL ABOUT BECOMING MULTILINGUAL AND ELEVATING THAT EXPERIENCE FOR THE ENTIRE SCHOOL COMMUNITY DURING THE DAY WHEN CLASSMATES CAN BE THERE, I THINK WOULD ELEVATE THE EXPERIENCE AND HOPEFULLY INSPIRE THE YOUNGER KIDS.

I'D LIKE TO SEE US PUT MORE EMPHASIS ON RECLASSIFICATION BY SECOND GRADE.

MAKE SURE EVERY TEACHER AND EVERY PARENT UNDERSTANDS THAT. I KNOW WE'RE MOVING IN THAT DIRECTION, BUT I SOMETIMES IN MY EXPERIENCE AS AND THIS IS REALLY ONE OF THE FIRST TIMES I WAS SPEAKING TO YOU AS A TEACHER, EVEN THOUGH HELENE ALWAYS PUTS ME DOWN AS A PARENT AND TEACHER. I'VE ALWAYS SPOKEN HERE AS A PARENT, BUT THIS IS REALLY THE FIRST TIME AS A TEACHER. SOMETIMES I'M NOT SURE. TEACHERS, LIKE SOMETIMES TEACHERS WILL SAY TO ME, WELL, WHAT DOES RECLASSIFICATION MEAN? OR WHAT DOES IT MEAN? I THINK WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A KNOWLEDGE GAP, AND THE EARLY LITERACY IS REALLY GOING TO HELP WITH RECLASSIFYING OUR STUDENTS.

THE TEST IS A LITTLE STRANGE. EVEN IOS HAVE TROUBLE PASSING IT SOMETIMES, BUT EVERYONE'S GOAL SHOULD BE TO SUPPORT AS MANY STUDENTS AS POSSIBLE.

RECLASSIFYING BY SECOND GRADE. THAT'S GOING TO MAKE THEIR ACADEMIC FUTURE SO MUCH STRONGER.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. I DON'T SEE ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS, SO I WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING AT 734. THANK YOU. SOUNDS GOOD. LET'S MOVE ON.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.