Good morning. Welcome. The time is now 10:01 a.m. on April 13th, 2026. Welcome to this special meeting of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education, including close session items. I'm going to take role. Miss Newell
>> present. >> Dr. Rivas >> present. >> Mr. Melvin >> here. >> Miss Ggo, Miss Gomez, uh, Mr. Ortiz Franklin >> present. >> And board president Schmelson >> present. >> Present. Okay, we have a quorum. I am going to read through the purpose and
authority for the close session today. Uh then we will take item specific public comment on the close session items and then the board will recess into close session under tab one conference with labor negotiators pursuant to government code section 54957.6
um conference with labor negotiators negotiators Dr. Murphy. The employee organizations are Associated Administrators of Los Angeles. Teamsters 2010, California School Employees Association, Los Angeles County Building and Construction Trades Council, Los Angeles School Police Association, Los
Angeles School Police Management Association, Service Employees International Union, SEIU, Local 99, Teamsters, United Teachers Los Angeles, and District Represented Employees and Contract Management Personnel.
Under tab two, personnel pursuant to government code section 54957, public employment inspector general will be discussed. Okay, we'll go to public comment. As usual, I will call on the folks who are listed as speaking in person and then we will transition to
those who are speaking remotely. The first speaker today is Maria Louisa Palma. I see you're out there. Please come on down. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. and then Danna Guen and then Juan Mangandhi. All right, welcome Miss Palma. You have two minutes to speak once you begin. Let
me get that timer set up. >> Okay, two minutes is yours. You know what? Let's start that all over again. I'm sorry about that. Okay, please go ahead. >> Good morning. Well, information on the
financial condition of the district. Goodness, who knew that that would be important for bargaining and messaging on behalf of the district? Hm. Did anybody know that? So, I just keep wondering, can you afford the raises that have already been negotiated or
will we still see potential teacher layoffs next year to be continued? Right? So, aside from the structural deficit of course that's been talked about here at June of 2025, your audited financial statements show an unrestricted net position of negative
11.4 billion. Unfunded liabilities $7.1 billion. unfunded other post-employment benefits, the dreaded OPE 8.2 billion dollars. And yet I never hear you discuss that here in open meetings other than Miss Tanya
Ortiz Franklin brought that up a couple of times. A curious thing happened uh Miss D'Vorah in the back row. There was a meeting last week uh for parents with Reclaim Our Schools LA last Thursday. Parents were told,
we wonder how this got out or if it's true. We don't know. Pay attention, please. This one's important. They were told, parents, that they were going to be protesting tomorrow on behalf of UTLA at the homes, your homes of Miss Newell,
Mr. Mr. Melvin, and Miss Ortiz Franklin because there had been votes against UTLA. And so meaning that the rest of the three of you had voted in accordance with UTLA. I don't know if this is true. You probably all know if this is true,
but how did this information get out? This was told to parents. Okay, so whether or not it's true, you all know where are your leaks? Are closed sessions maintained as closed sessions? We wonder. Please figure that out
because the rest of us in the public don't have that information that you're privy to. But apparently UTLA is sharing that out there. >> Thank you for your time. Da Guen, come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Miss Dian is going to speak, Miss Guen is going to speak in Spanish. So if you'd like to hear what she's saying in English, please put your
hands up and we will get you these translation headsets. Okay, gracias. >> Good morning, members of the board. My name is Diana Gillian and I represent the parent network for school safety and
we would really like for you to come to an agreement even though we think that you've already come to one beforehand but the students don't have to suffer or you don't have to put them on the negotiating table.
And the principles and the teachers really would be interested in our children. they would not put them as something to exchange with and that is what's happening and just like Miss Palma said here
UTLA wants to control everything and we were reviewing in those negotiations if they had something for parents if they had included something that oh we want parents to be trained or we want them to be informed about their rights nothing nothing absolutely is for parents and
yet they want us to support them. They want us to oh you are very important part of this or what did they do? They just blame us about their poor poor instruction that they give to the students. They want us parents to give them the instruction when they're not
even to advocate so that parents know their rights. And that is what's happening that the teachers and I don't say individually teachers but the uh UTLA the teacher union because we know that the district does
have very good teachers engaged with the students but we're talking about many of those that do not do their jobs and that we have come here to report their poor performance and their contracts are protecting them. They're pro you're protecting people that are not doing their job and that is your job to
improve education so that those teachers that are not giving instruction to our student that they do it that do not blame us as parents because a student doesn't pay attention because they have a phone. No, it is your policies that are doing this. Many parents are complaining about girls what they wear.
And Miss Rosio Divas when in one of your uh schools when they wanted to change the dress code you said no no no don't change that even though parents wanted to when it is good to have an appropriate uh uh close uh because
you're there you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Mr. Mandi is going to speak in Spanish. So, if you do not already have translation headsets and would like to listen, please put your hands up and we'll get you one. Okay. >> Good morning. One of the things that I always ask myself, what is all these
employees doing here? Seriously, they're always here and they're almost like a photograph. Them and us is what uh breathe life into this auditorium. But the matter here is that what we're doing
is bread today but hunger tomorrow. We are spending funds that tells all about political corruption or a corruption in the administration of the taxes that we all uh pay for you to
do your job. And I asked myself, each one of you, are you executing the work that you were elected for, or are each one of you taking our people to uh somewhere where we don't want to be? I was at Franklin
and I was able to see today that Miss Rosio, this goes for you of what the safeties measures are not the school police but is ex gang members ex uh people that used to be in jail that is in Ed Green that is a private
organization that does not have responsibilities because the also Mr. There cannot be a agency of with about safety because it goes against the protocols for LA Unifi. And we also had children that are in those same grid
programs that when I went into the restroom, they smell like marijuana because I know that smell and I know that smell of a skunk. I know how to distinguish between the two. And those types of people are what were bringing in you, Mr. Operations. You needed to review this. So today our safety is in
the hands of organizations that work with second opportunity. And I'm not against everything that is out to give second opportunity to people. I am against the political and abusive use of people like Miss Rosio who are creating this jointly with the uh council member
uh from district 1 and we just get the scraps in the schools for the parents. >> The next inerson speaker is Monica Arzola. I see you here. Monica, please come on up. And then after Miss Arzola is David Tokovski Monica. >> Good morning. My name is Monica Rasola.
I am a mother of two children in the district and I am here I have said right that we do not need to increase salary to teachers because they have not done a good job. But now we know here that
we're you guys are all for um increasing their salary and the um leader of the city uh also is advocating even though the city is also backwards. There's um assaults, there's robberies and she says
she's worried. Um they don't worry about the homeless being outside of our schools living there and the students couldn't even cross the street because homeless was there. It took two years for the homeless to be gone from Hollywood High School. For two years
they were in encampments there and now they say that now you are interested to increase the salary but the t children no they're not interested in their safety uh their well-being but there she is the mayor. all of the union uh
meddling so that they increase teacher salaries but the unions they don't even increase their own employees uh salaries that everyone's concerned about teachers because there is money but they're not concerned about students and this about
the union they always want to do it in April their uh strikes and it's it's kind of funny their strikes because why in April because those are testing so that they don't see that they haven't been doing a
good job and then they blame the strike for it and that the students are doing poorly. That is a trap and I still ask that you don't increase salaries but now you've already decided because now you are mostly of you are for the unions and there's people that are with them. So
it's so sad that you don't really care about students because the ones that are affected are the students. We have not seen anything academically. I see 2% is enough. >> Thank you for your time. David Tokowski, come on down. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin.
with respect to negotiations. Obviously, we knew since January when the governor contradicted the legislative analyst numbers that tremendous revenues were coming into the state of California. In fact, the amount of money in January, February, March, and December uh has has
exceeded $10 billion above what the governor said. So, that is tremendous progress. We hope it can maintain itself with respect to today on the inspector general which is about waste, fraud and abuse. Um and uh it's important to
distinguish waste, fraud and abuse from just political advocacy. So it would behoove this district to respond to these allegations of $10 billion of contracts and to put out specifics whether or not there is such an amount of money. And if there are problems
beyond waste, fraud, and abuse, it's communications and then the public integrity. And the the district attorney uh maintains a website that anybody who's making complaints about uh particular aspects of of Brown Act, they can register their complaints right on that website. Hopefully this week,
you've also scheduled, Mr. Superintendent and board leadership, a trip to Sacramento. There are still significant weeks in front of us with significant revenue that you can advocate to assist this district and other districts particularly the cost of
living adjustment is at a statutory level and can be raised even though you have gotten advice that it can it can be raised beyond the statutory and of course the biggest item is the 5.6 billion which is legally due to school districts. Those should be advocated strongly as well as facilities for the 0
to threeyear-old so you can convert some of your emptier spaces in declining enrollment for the issues that Miss Gomez and others are working on as well as special education. Finally, two critiques. Class size in 11th and 12th grade reduction is the most cynical instructional thing I've ever heard in
my life. In 13th grade, kids have a 100 to one. I had in 14th grade I had a class of 800 to1. You should be reducing fifth and sixth grade in core subjects. And finally, that table, that table must be affected by the content of those
courses, not the number of roles there are. >> Appreciate it. Uh, the next speaker is calling in. Karina Lopez, are you on the line? Karina Lopez, I see you're on the line. Please press star six to unmute yourself and you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Karina Lopez.
My name is and my comment is thank you for the opportunity and good morning everyone. Yes. So the comment is related to directly with the absolute disagreement
against the teacher strike. Why is it that teachers do have that possibility and that intention and why does the school police when they guarantee the wellness, credibility and the life of every single one of the
students, it is hypocritical all this behavior. It is a uh open hypocrisy that we're allowing for all of this abuse on behalf of the UTLA union. It is sad how they're
taking advantage in consequence or with the destruction of education because they are causing a a criminal act because we are taking away the opportunities of all students. If this
if we cannot get to an agreement as we can, please because the district should ensure that the students are safe within the classrooms in how they can improve their academic achievement. Putting uh safety cameras
within the classroom. It is critical. It is vital. It is necessary. Just like the school police has body cams, it should be inside the classrooms as well. It is very important. We don't want any more abusive teachers inside of the classrooms. Thank you.
>> Thank you for your time. And the next caller is Maria Daisy Ortiz. I see you're on the line. Maria Daisy Ortiz, please press star six to unmute yourself. And you'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Maria Daisy Ortizucha. >> Good morning everybody. My name is Maria
Desi Ortiz. And first of all, I want to say that I'm in agreement with all of my colleagues that have spoken. And really right now, it is be a very great impact, academic impact for students if the district has the obligation
to look after the interest of our students. And just like you say, put children first. But in these negotiations, you are putting the economical interest of adult people because the teachers say that they can't pay an apartment for one bedroom and
that is why they need an increase. But within those negotiations, you are not talking about increasing academic achievement of students because that is the future really. Right now, the district should make a very strong
clause so that the union does not take advantage and abuse and use our students to be able to have uh salary increases when they don't increase the results and they just blame the weather, the parents, everything, the dog, and
everybody else. the mayor, she should go after all the problems that she has with homelessness because all of these issues that happen about homelessness, it is because a school district, Los Angeles Unified School
District is not working for our children. Where do you think that they take our students with these kinds of actions that they are themselves homeless again? Because all those homeless people that are in the streets went through LA Unified and that is
called negligence and incompetency. We need to stop using our students for your political interest and economical uh interest. Give results so that you earn that increase. Be it for our children, for their safety, for their
academic achievement and for their welfare. Thank you and have a beautiful day. >> Thank you for your time. The next speaker is identified uh remotely only as concerned parent. I do not have you on the line. Concerned parent, are you in the room? No concerned parent in the room. Uh
Marcela Garcia, you're signed up to speak remotely. Uh but I do not have you signed in. Are you in the room, Marcela Garcia? Nope. Okay, that concludes tab one. Now going on to tab two. Personnel. Um Jeremiah, are you in the room? Jeremiah.
Jeremiah is not in the room. All right. Isel Gonzalez, I see you're here. Come on up. You'll have two minutes to speak once you begin. Miss Gonzalez is going to speak in Spanish. So if Espan in Spanish. So if you would like to hear what she's saying
in English as she's speaking in Spanish, please put your hands up and we'll get you a translation headset. Okay. Gracias. On March 5th, I went to a meeting of the board of education uh board district 5 meeting with Miss Carla Grego at the
Maces at school messes. I'm not sure this meeting was called listening to families planning for success. beautiful topic but when I asked a very basic question they did not know the answer to
it and up to until today I have not receive a response I don't know what the response is but just like there just like you're sitting there you did not hear what other parents said Miss Carla right
it is good that you came here so you asked this question and know the answer for the principles that you oversee in the district. When how are going to notify or in what way are families going to be
informed when a student changes their name or gender identity in schools? Will you answer this now? I hope that you do because I need that answer in my school.
Just like the uh secretary of education Selinda Mcman, she said the students do not belong to the state, they belong to families. And or in English that you understand, I want as a parent from the district, I
want an explanation about what you called out safe school a clear overview a concise explanation about what does that ID means when that
many workers carry in the school many of them uh uh display it as an achievement I want that answer as soon as possible for schools for parents in my school please >> thank you for your time >> okay we have one more speaker you in the
I do not have you online, Barbara Walker. Okay, that concludes comment on the two items. The the time is now 10:23 and the board is going to recess into closed session. Thank you.