Valerie Bachelor, Patrice Berry. Let's get started. Welcome to the August 27 Oakland Unified School Board District meeting. Call to order at 04:00. And, mister Raichstar, can we have a roll call to establish quorum, please? Student director Simmons. Student director Smith. Director Latta. Present. Director Williams? Present, sir. Director Hutchinson? Director Berry? Present. Director Thompson? Vice president Dashper? Here. President Brohart? Here. Quorum present. And mister Hollis,
can we have an interpretation check, please? Yes, madam president. For tonight's meeting, we have three languages available for live interpretation. They are Cantonese, Arabic, and Spanish. We also have a translation Closed Captions feature available on Zoom that you can use by clicking the Closed Caption icon on your Zoom Taskbar. With that, we will move on to Announcements for Live Interpretation. We will start with Cantonese. I will lower all hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language that's being announced at this time, which is Cantonese. And I will ask mister Yuan if he can come off mute and give the
interpretation announcement for Cantonese. Thank you, mister Yuen. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Cantonese interpretation. Seeing no hands, we will now start with Cantonese interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Arabic, I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language that's being announced at this time, which is Arabic, and I'll ask mister Turek if he can come off mute and, make the interpretation announcement for Arabic. Hello, Tarek. One moment. How about I can hear you now. There it is. Okay. We got you. If you can, start back over, mister Turek, please.
Thank you, everyone. Arabic announcement is over. Thank you, mister Turek. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Arabic interpretation. Seeing no hands, we will not start with Arabic interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Spanish. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language being announced at this time, which is Spanish. And I will ask miss Vargas if she can come off on mute and give the interpretation announcement for Spanish. Of course. Thank you. The Spanish announcement is done. Thank you, Ms. Vargas. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised with Spanish interpretation. Seeing no hands,
we will not start with any interpretation at this time. That concludes the first, interpretation announcement for this evening. We will have more later on in this meeting, and I will pass it to mister Rickstrom. Madam President, the availability of interpretation services has been announcement has been successfully completed for the three major languages that the district is providing that service for. Going over the agenda there. Tonight in closed session we will discuss items D-one 120 five-eighteen 64,
Conference with Labor Negotiators. Under Legal Matters, D-two, 20 five-two thousand and seven, conference with legal counsel, anticipated litigation. D3, 20 five-two 91, conference with legal counsel, anticipated litigation. D4, twenty four-two thousand seven hundred and seventy six, conference with legal counsel, existing litigation. D5 twenty five-two thousand and ninety five, conference with legal counsel, existing litigation. D6 twenty five-two thousand one hundred and thirteen, conference with legal counsel,
anticipated litigation. We will reconvene to public session at 05:30PM. We are now going into closed session. Session. We have public comment. Sorry, not so quick. As you're hearing, public speakers. Yes. For Closed Session, we have Joe Bates and Michelle Jeter. And how many minutes would you like to allocate? Two minutes. Good afternoon, Board members. I'm Joe Bates. I'm the business agent for ASMI. I am here today to bring to your attention, discriminatory practices that are happening in the, Central Kitchen and in the Student Nutrition Nutrition Services Department.
We have an effort by Preston Thomas, who is purposely trying to create a job for promotion that's within our Bargain unit, but he's excluding, our members from being able to apply for the promotion. By doing so, he's trying to create, job liminal qualifications in which he believes our unit members will not be able to obtain. So, in my opinion, the workers are very frustrated about it. They would love to be able to promote and grow within the department.
But his tactics are very clear. And I'm gonna tell you what my experiences are. He is treating the workers as if they're the help. He doesn't believe that they belong in a position in which they can be able to be promotable. He prefers to keep them in service jobs where they're working very hard. And all of these are very hard jobs. They are. But being able to promote gives you an opportunity to be able to look forward. We have long term employees that have been here ten, fifteen, twenty years looking for opportunities to promote.
Currently, we have a contractor. Three years we're going on four years of a contractor in this job. And he's trying to stop our unit members from being able to promote. The other issue is that we have over 30 vacancies. We have some school sites where we have no workers that are here serving food. We have teachers, principals, volunteers that are serving the food because the department has done a poor job in posting our positions to fill them permanently. The department's focus is actually to hire substitute workers.
So I urge you to please take a look into the discriminatory practices that are happening within this Nutrition Services Department. I'll be respectful of your time. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker please. Hello, my name is Michelle Jeter. I am a rep for AFSCME. I'm here to talk about our retro pay. We've been asking and asking when will it be done, when is it when is it gonna get posted, and we have nothing. Lisa Grand Austin, no one responds and we just needed to, we need to understand our contract's been done before school was out.
Here we are, brand new school year. Most of us don't get paid the first month of school because we have to put in that week. So why is it that we can't even get a date of when our retro pay will be posted or what where we at with retro pay? All we're asking is for some communication. During the summertime, we get no communication from employees that are supposed to be working during the summertime. Nothing. So I'm asking to please, please, please have them have a conversation with us. It's easy to have a conversation and say this is the date or this is
what we're looking at. But to get nothing is very disrespectful to people like me who are at this moment need gas. It's that serious. So I came to ask to please make people do their job. If you're a summer employee, if you work during the summertime, you should be able to answer a phone call. So now I have all the union reps calling me, when are we getting our retro pay? When are we getting our when are we and then I call and we get nothing. A conversation, we've had several emails that went out that with no response. These people get paid top dollar
to just respond. I can't make you pay me now, but just to respond to give me that courtesy, I think that should be more than enough. So thank you for hearing me. I really appreciate it. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Thank you all. Thank you all for doing it. My name is. I'm a v c PC chief steward. I got a multiple I'm not gonna I'm gonna try to put a one on one thing. So much going on for this right now. So many untrust that I can it's ridiculous. It's so many things that I've been being praised, but at the same time,
punished. We did over 60 project this year. And clearly, you can see it. One of them, like, I've been this morning at Prescott High School, elementary. We did that project painting myself. We did the lighting. This lighting that you see, we did it. I did it myself, and stuff like that. But on other side, we're being pushed, poked the wrong way, underestimated, underappreciated in so many ways, understuffed, underpaid. I can even I can continue for months about what's going on. The recent one, they wanna use it as a safety, the GPS in our vehicles,
which has nothing to do with the safety. Our vehicles are stored at the P and G yard overnight. Those thefts happen at night, not during the work hours. So they will use that as a excuse to track me and micromanage. They'll be been using so many other in incidents like this. I brought up the safety about my members getting attacked at the school site from the homeless, followed back to the yard, that responds to them. Finally, I got a meeting today. They took two months. They couldn't even answer me per course of the safety. They only know the safety of the students,
not the staff, which is ridiculous. You appreciate the students' safety but also we are working around school site but there is nobody. There is no police for Oakland Unified as it was before. Getting the thefts in our vehicles, we blockade them right away the next day. The problem is this nobody wants to go pick them up because because of reliability. Now they're talking about how we're causing the insurance to go high, the ability to go and see left and right. Just telling you, please pay attention to it. Also, I know my time is out.
This budget provides forty five days. I find so many things that in less in ten years, confidential staff went from 37,000,000 a year to 85,000,000 a year. That's talking about almost a 100 vacancies open up the new positions, but they wanna fire me. They wanna lay me off. They wanna garner that makes 50 barely 50,000 a year. Wanna lay off, but nobody wants to talk about people above us. I'm not pointing fingers, but I'm saying we need to be a fair and square. And we need to be as transparent as possible we can because this been going
out for decades and who long before that? Thank you so much, and thank you. Appreciate you. Thank you. Are there any more public comments? No. That includes public speakers. Thank you. We will now, go into closed session and we'll reconvene at 05:30. Welcome to the August 27 Board of Education meeting. Mr. Raikstra, can we have roll call to establish quorum, please? Yes, ma'am. On the roll call to establish quorum, Okay. Mister Raikstra, can we have roll call to establish quorum, please? Yes, ma'am. If the audience could just sound down. Thank you. Student director Simmons.
Student director Smith. Here. Director Lauter. Present. Director Williams? Present. Director Hutchinson? Present. Director Barry? Present. Director Thompson? Present. Vice President Bachelor? Here. President Brolhard? Here. Quorum, present. Thank you. And, mister Hollis, can we have an interpretation check, please? Yes, madam president. For tonight's meeting, we have three languages available for live interpretation. They are Cantonese, Arabic, and Spanish. We also have a translation closed caption feature available on Zoom that you can use by clicking the closed caption feature on your Zoom taskbar.
With that, we will start with announcements of live interpretation. We will start with Cantonese. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the languages being announced at this time, which is Cantonese. And if you are in the public and need a translation laptop, you can see the gentleman underneath the basketball court on your left for a translation laptop. With that, I I will ask mister Yuan if he can come off the mute and give the translation announcement for Cantonese. Thank you, mister Yuan. Checking the Zoom attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Cantonese interpretation.
Seeing no hands raised, we will not start with Cantonese interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Arabic. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need. The language is being announced, which at this time is Arabic. And if you are in the public and need a translation laptop, you can see the gentleman sitting underneath the basketball court to your left in the public, for a translation laptop. I will ask miss Miriam if she can come off on mute and give the interpretation announcement for Arabic.
Okay. Well, actually, I will ask Tarek, mister Tarek, to come off of mute and give the translation announcement for Arabic. Thank you. Arabic interpretation announcement is over. Thank you, mister Turek. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Arabic interpretation. Seeing no hands on Zoom, we will not start with Arabic interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Spanish. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language that's being announced, which at this time is Spanish.
And if you are in the public and need a translation laptop, you can see the gentleman to your left underneath the basketball court for a translation laptop. And I will ask miss Walker Marquez if she could come off mute and give the announcement or interpretation announcement for Spanish. Of course. The Spanish announcement is done. Thank you, miss Walker Marquez. Checking the attendees on Zoom to see if there's any hands raised with Spanish interpretation. Seeing no hands raised, we will not start with Spanish interpretation or any interpretation at this time.
That concludes our our second, interpretation announcement for this evening. We will have later announcements later on in the evening. And with that, I will pass it to you, Madam President. Thank you. Tonight in closed session, the Board discussed labor matters, D1 number 20 five-eighteen 64, Conference with Labor negotiators. The Board gave direction on this matter, motion by Vice President Bachelor, seconded by President Brochard, with a vote six-zero. Director Hutchinson was absent. On legal matters, item D2, number 20 five-two thousand and seven,
conference with legal counsel anticipated litigation, the board approved a settlement in this matter. Motion by Director Latta, seconded by President Brothard, with a vote of five-zero, abstaining Director Thompson and absent Director Hutchinson. On D3, number twenty five-two thousand and ninety one, conference with legal counsel anticipated litigation, The Board gave direction on this matter. Motion by Director Latta, seconded by Vice President Batchelor, vote six-zero, absent Director Hutchinson. On item D4, number 20 four-two 776,
Conference with Legal Counsel Existing Litigation. The Board gave direction on this matter. Motion by President Brohard, seconded by Vice President Batchelor. Vote four-zero, abstained Director Williams, Director Thompson and absent Director Hutchinson. On item D5, number 20 five-two 95, Conference with Legal Counsel, Existing Litigation. Oh, sorry. The board approved a settlement in this matter. Motion by Director Latta, seconded by, Vice President Batchelor. Vote five to zero. Absent, Director Hutchinson and Director Thompson. On item D6,
number 20 five-two 113, Conference with Legal Counsel Anticipated Litigation, the Board discussed this matter and there was no vote. This is the end of our closed session report. Next on the agenda is modifications to the agenda. Are there any modifications? Director Hutchinson. Yes. Thank you. I'd like to pull L1 and L4 from the General Consent Report and M4 from the Obligation Bonds Consent Report. So L1, L4, and M4. Okay, thank you. Are there any other pulled items?
I would like to make some changes in the agenda. I would like to move Student Report to after J, Public Comment. Then I would like to move the Consent Items, L then M, Consent Items, Facilities P, Comments by Labor Partners but we do have a time sensitive hearing of public hearings beginning at seven, so that may change. And with that, the rest of the agenda continues in order. Okay. We now have, thirty minutes for public comment. Are there any public speakers? Yes, President Brujahard. We have approximately 23 speakers.
First five We can give them one minute each. One minute each. Noted. First five speakers are Trish Billinson, Sheila Haines, Kim Davis, Yam Chin, and Zhiyuan. Those are the first five speakers. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Good evening. Hello. Good evening, everyone. My name is Yan Chen. I I a in Central. I give my time to my coworkers, to speak. Thank you. You can't cede time. Sorry. Hello. My name is Xiao Chen. I'm a IA in International CDC. I give my time to my co worker to speak. Thank you. You cannot cede time.
So it'll be the order the the speakers who signed up? Mr. Hollis, can you wanna call the names? Oh, I'm sorry. Mr. Seichang. Yeah. The the first five speakers are Trish Billingsen, Sheila Haines, Tim Davis, Zhi Liang, and Yam Chen. Those are the first five speakers. Oh, good evening. My name is Jia Liang, and I have been an international CDC instructional assistant for twenty four years. I spent my own time and money to earn a master teacher permit, investing in my skills and my profession. This allowed me to cover classes only during scheduled teacher week.
Instead of being recognized for my efforts, I am regularly asked to cover classes for the whole day when a substitute teacher is not available. I am not probably reimbursed for this work, but it is almost impossible to simply say no. Out of care and concern for the children, I do it. So every day I am in the classroom helping teachers, supporting children, and most importantly, keeping the learning environment safe. This work is demanding. Sometimes children run out of the classroom.
Sometimes they hurt other children, and sometimes they even strikes adults. A few years ago, I was injured while protecting a child, and it took me three months of therapy to recover. We are not babysitters. We are trained professional educators. Classroom cannot function without us. Children cannot cry without our support. This is not recognition. This is not respect. We are we what we need is fair pay, a living wage that truly reflects our skills, our dedication, and our dignity.
Respect must come with action. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Hello. I'm Holly Warren Mordecai. I work at International CDC and I'm the teacher that works with Miss Jeannie and Miss Cindy. And I'm here to tell you the amount of work that they do, I could not do my job if I did not have them. I am not the only teacher in that classroom. They are teachers as well. Our children learn from them. They need them every day. They've created relationships and they learn better because of those relationships. And if either of them were not here and any of these other IAs that
I've worked with and known for decades now, they are teachers as well, and they deserve to be paid and valued and respected. They are not babysitters. They are teachers as well and should be treated that way. Hi. My name is Mallory Johnson. I work at United Nations CDC, and this is my first year with OUSD. I've been in childcare for fifteen years, but now I witnessed firsthand how hard IAs work. Classrooms have can have multiple IEP students and no paras, meaning IAs work twice as hard. In my previous experience,
I was making between 30 and $40 per hour. In this current role as an IA floater for an entire campus, I make $18 per hour. As someone who struggles to pay my rent and relies on food stamps and Medi Cal, and I know I'm not the only one, we need livable wages. Thank you. Hi. Good evening, everybody. Yeah. We're gonna call the next five names, then we're gonna reset the call. Yeah. Hi. Good evening, everybody. One second. We're gonna just call the next five names. So the next five speakers can be Next five speakers are Xiaojing Chen,
Liam Ngo, Morbiel Bernardo, Noah Morales, and Catherine Joseph. Those are the next five speakers. It's okay. I can Yeah. I'm sorry about that. Yeah. Thank you. So my name is Anna Lau. I've been working in school district. I'm a IA and for since 1995. So that means thirty years. But you know how much I got? I got paid? It's not enough $21. And at this few year, I didn't get any with with the IA pay getting didn't get any raising. I know the other department,
they they got, they they get waste of pay, at most every year or a year two times, something like that, But we didn't get any pay, any raise our pay. So that's not fair because we work hard for the kids. We work as more much more work sometimes than the teachers. Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Hi. My name is Yimei Pam, and I work for the IA, instructional assistant. And I just want to speed up to my colleague and myself that we demand
our salary increase. According to the Bay Area invasion, teachers' salary has increased, and we want to treat fairly and equally. Hi. Hi, everybody. This my name is Irene Hong. I'm working OUSD in over twenty five years. I've been treating a service like this respectful because I we all the IAs supporting all the, teachers and students. We work a lot with them and then make them, very safe and comfortable and then, have a good environment. So it seems like it's so unfair pay why living in the Bay Area.
That's why I just wanted to let you guys think about this that have little standards to care us, respect for IA and respect the student. Thanks. My name is Mabel Bernardo. Oh, you can see. Oh, okay. My name is Mabel Bernardo, and I am an Instructional IAs are often the unsung heroes of the classroom. With contributions, they frequently go unrecognized and undercomes compensated. IE staffing is very problematic. When an IE is absent, replacement replacements are rarely provided.
Support is pulled from another classroom, creating disruption rather than relief. And lunch breaks are often shoved around just to cover for students. Today, enrollment has shifted, which has expanded our role. For years, we have served children who were three years old and toilet trained. And we now welcome children under three who are not potty trained. We are now responsible for managing accidents and teaching toddlers fundamental hygiene skills. This is demanding work that requires a lot of patience,
care, and dedication that falls outside the traditional aspect of an IA. The demonstration the this demonstrates an under misunderstanding of what truly makes education effective. Fairly compensating IAs is not just right. It delivers real results, stronger classroom outcomes, better student support, and consistent, stable learning environment. This is not just my story alone. I am speaking on behalf of many IAs who cannot be here because they must
work multiple jobs to survive. We show up and give our hearts to working with children. We ask you to recognize the value of our work. OUSD tells us we are essential workers, but we struggle to pay for essential necessities to live a life of dignity. Next speaker please. Hi. Good evening. My name is Shirley Wang. I'm proud to share as an IA at Laurel's Child Development Center for forty two year. I just show up to work, commit to the preschool children I love.
I teach them how to learn, share, and care for themselves and care for, for their friends. I provide classroom fight and, no. I prevent, classroom fight. Breakup fight, keep order, sanitize, clean, potty train, administrator, inhaler, and surviving feeling with respect to, individual allergy, and I care very much about being a good responsibility employee. I spend my own time and my money to get a teacher permit. Every day of the week,
I am asked to use is to cover for teacher, but we see next to nothing for the extra hour. However, for the help and safe of the children in my care, I continue to do it day after day. After giving so much, I should not have to choose between buying a grocery or paying my PG and E bill. After forty two year, I am pay under $25 an hour.
I a are tired on being exploit exploiters. It's time that we are paid fairly and treating with respect. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Okay. My name is Catherine Joseph, and I serve as the chief steward with SEIU. I'm also an occupational therapist in the special education department where I've had the privilege with working alongside many instructional assistants during my time here at OUSD. I A show up every single day to lift our students towards success.
They make learning accessible so no child is left behind. They deescalate crisis with patience and care. They guide small groups, provide one to one support, and stand by students who need it most. And yet, instead of being honored, they are overlooked. Instead of being lifted up, they are under value. That is not an injustice to IAs. It is an injustice to students as well. When IAs are unsupported, student lose, classroom lose, the promise of equity loses, and that is something the district cannot afford.
Look at this turnout today. IAs know their worth. They know the difference they make, and they are prepared to stand up until this district acknowledges it. Respect is more than kind words. It means paying a livable wage. It means treating IAs with the dignity they deserve. Because when IAs are respected and fairly compensated, students thrive, and every student in OUSD deserves nothing less. Board of directors and our community, your support is essential. Choose to recognize and uplift the people who make equity real in classrooms.
Choose to invest in them with the wages that reflect their value. Respect IAs. Respect students. Respect dignity. Thank you. Next speaker, please. My name is Phoebe Wen. I'm an OT with special education and the vice president of SEAU. As an itinerant therapist, I serve students throughout the district, visiting classrooms and collaborating with hardworking frontline providers. This role has given me the opportunity to see with a wider lens the joy in joyful schools. With this experience, I'm here to speak for respect,
dignity, and decency for all classified, especially the lowest paid. When a person earns a living wage, it says, we see you. We value the work you do. We believe your contribution matters. It means that no one who dedicates their energy, skill, and care should have to experience food and housing insecurity. A wage doesn't mean basic living standards sends it a wage that doesn't meet basic living standards sends a different message that the work is invisible, that the workers' well-being is negotiable,
that dignity is optional. When workers are paid a living wage, they stand taller. They take pride not only in what they do, but how they are treated. The pride flows back into our schools, our community, and our shared future. Board, you are the steward of Oakland's core values. Please. It's not a question whether you have the authority to make change. It's whether you have the will. Thank you. Are there any more speakers? Yes. We have Sheila Haynes that's online. Okay. Thank you. Go ahead, miss Haynes.
Hello. My name is Abby Kalia Scarboro and I am a preschool teacher. And I'm here standing with the IAs and all the other classified professionals. We can't do our job if it wasn't for them. Every day, every day, we're teaming up one and one together to shape our children of Oakland Unified School District. If it wasn't for Miss Nancy, if it wasn't for Miss Ann, who's been here for fifty, fifty years as an IA.
It's beautiful. It's beautiful how we shape our children. We need the parent with the the teacher, with the classified in order to shape our children the way we need them to have the best results for our children. So I stand here and and, hey. We fight together. Right. Okay. We do our lesson plans and things together to shape our classroom. If it wasn't for my IA, I don't know how my class would even last or stand for one day.
Thank you. Good one. We'll now take our online speaker, miss Haynes. Miss Haynes, if you could unmute yourself to speak. Miss Saints, we cannot hear you. Resentes. Next speakers are Jia Liang, Jim Maric, Ben Tapscott, Osalo Lobala and Janelle Harris. A point of clarification before you start the clock. I got here at 04:30 and filled out my cards. Is there any process for order of who fills out cards first? Is there a process? Because I'm listening to your people and names weren't called.
People were just stepping up to the mic. This is true and I if there were yeah. I apologize for that. No, so I'd also like a point of clarification. Are we gonna allow that all night? Or is the Board President going to go by the names that are called and enforce the rules because otherwise it's a huge equity issue, especially as we have a full room. And so we just had, I think, 10 to a dozen speakers come up and speak whose names had And so we're gonna at least need to extend the public comment time to ensure the people who did sign up are able to speak.
But you also didn't even enforce the one minute for the people who spoke. So can we please have an enforcement of the rules or at least equity around how they are enforced? Thank you. Yes, we did. We were calling off names and we didn't know who those speakers were. There was one minute for speaking, but I did allow was public comment for thirty minutes. We do have a time sensitive at seven p. M. We do have to have a public hearing for a Latitude Charter School. So, are there any other speakers who have not spoken, mister Holland? I know. Yes. Sheila Haynes is online now. Should we go
after, miss Solobato. Okay. You called you called miss, Howard and some other people. So can we finish with the names that we'll call, please? Yes. If your name submitted a card and mister Hatton called your name, we can do this until seven. Otherwise, then we have to take a break and come back to it. Understand. Thank you for considering my concern. I wanna thank the superintendent for visiting McClymonds, and I wanna thank her for spending so much time to embrace all of the issues that were discussed. And I wanna thank mister Williams for spending time with us, on Monday.
We identified a number of issues at McClymonds. We do not have working flower extinguishers. Our flow water station outside the cafeteria is not working. We do not have first aid, equipment available. We do not have access to the library, but I think that's being worked on. We have restroom services, but the, adult female restroom is not accessible for males and females on the First Floor sharing the same bathroom. We, we identified that we have two teachers in some classrooms that needs to be fixed. We have a situation where,
the, the the football field is being patched, and the coach is saying that patchwork will not will cause injuries on the fields. I have other concerns. The superintendent wrote down, and we're expecting that we get some results related to the crime. Good evening, board and superintendent. After your visit, I I just want to I'm speaking to formally document the harm that is caused by repeated incidents of staff violence and inappropriate behavior towards parents with within the Oakland Unified School District,
particularly McClimans. I wanna also highlight the district's failure to respond to multiple level one complaints I've submitted since 2023. On Monday, August 25, I was physically assaulted by an after school member who identified herself as the director of the after school program, which you didn't get to visit on your visit. This will be the third incident of a Macliman staff member assaulting me. Apparently, I'm a punching bag. One, the facility administrator engaged in a hostile yelling match with her coworker in a conversation
about me yelling and cussing and calling me names right in front of my son. Two, a paraprofessional threatened me in a SSC meeting in front of the entire faculty, which included our district director and parents. The next day, her granddaughter approached me to cause harm and threatened me in my car. Three, the supposed supposed after school director who was a partner and longtime friend of our current principal at McClimans High School physically assaulted me while yelling at me in my
face to get out of the space that I was in to verify a microwave that my son has to use to heat his food up under his IEP. Violence and intimidation. Parents have been subjected to verbal aggression, physical intimidation, hostile treatment by staff members who are expected to lead by example and protect our children. These incidents have caused emotional trauma, fear, particularly for families advocating for children with disabilities or special education needs.
Staff in position of authority have engaged in retaliatory, dismissive, and aggressive behavior, including public humiliation, exclusion from school spaces, and attempts to silence me and my voice as a parent. The behavior contradicts the ethical standards expected of educators and administrators. These actions have created a hostile environment that discourages parental involvement as you all know because for the past four years,
I have been one of two parents who have shown up to this body. It undermines student support systems and perpetuate systemic inequities. Families already navigating trauma, disability, or just an impacted circumstances are disproportionately attacked. There's more, but I have one minute. So I'll come back. Thank you. Thank you. Coach Tapscott Coach Tapscott, we're gonna continue, and you'll be the first in line, but we do need to do a hearing at 7PM. What what wait. Wait. Wait. The names were already called. We're in the middle of this.
It's 07:00 or later. So I would respectfully ask that we at least allow people to finish their comments. The reason so much time elapsed is because you let everyone speak and you didn't enforce the one minute and is extremely rude and and really disingenuous to stop public comment halfway through because of a hearing when you can allow fifteen more minutes finish public comment, and then the hearing happens. And so there's nothing other than your intent as the president that says you need to cut this off now to have a public hearing.
I'm going to go back to so we can fully listen to our public comments after the public hearing. Right now, since we have so many other new parents and families in our I'd like to do one more interpretation check. Yes. So Excuse me. Before we do that, I'd like to move that we continue public comment on non agenda items for another twenty minutes to at least allow the speakers whose names were called to have their chance to speak. I second. Mr. Raichstra, can we have a roll call vote, please? Yes. On the, motion to extend public comment time for an additional twenty minutes.
Student director Simmons. Student director, Smith. Aye. Director Lawter? No. Director Williams? No. Director Hutchinson? Yes. Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Vice president Bachelor? No. President Brothard? No. Motion is not adopted. Thank you. Can we have the interpretation check, please, mister Holmes? Yes. For tonight, we have three languages available for live interpretation. They are Cantonese, Arabic, and Spanish. I will start with Cantonese. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language that's being announced,
which at this time is Cantonese. And I'll ask mister Yuan to come off on mute and give the interpretation announcement for Cantonese. Thank you, mister Yuen. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Cantonese interpretation. Seeing no hands, we will not start with Cantonese interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Arabic. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language that's being announced, which at this time is Arabic. And I will ask miss Abdi if she can come off mute and give the interpretation announcement for Arabic. Not working at this time.
Arabic announcement, is over. Thank you, mister Turek. Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Arabic interpretation. There are no hands raised on Zoom. We will not start with Arabic interpretation at this time. Moving forward to Spanish. I will lower all attendees' hands on Zoom. Please only raise your hand if you need the language being announced, which at this time is Spanish. And I will ask miss Vargas if she can come up on mute and give the interpretation announcement for Spanish. Thank you. The Spanish announcement is done. Thank you, miss Vargas.
Checking the attendees to see if there's any hands raised for Spanish interpretation. Seeing no hands raised, we will not start with or will have any interpretation at this time. That concludes the third, interpretation announcement for this evening, and I pass it back to you, Madam President. Thank you. Tonight, we have two we have two public hearings. The first one is Latitude Charter School, and the second one is the UAOS, sunshine proposal. So the public hearing for Latitude Charter, school, charter renewal is now open. I believe we have a presentation from Kelly Craig Arnold.
Am I right? Before the presentation begins, I want to remind everyone about that Latitude has a ten minute presentation, and then we'll have public comments and board comments after that. Thank you. Good evening, Board of Directors, Superintendent Sadlers. Good to see you and staff. My name is Larissa Adams, Superintendent of Education for Change. And my name is Lillian Hsu, Principal of Latitude. Our community is proud to be here tonight to request renewal of the Latitude Charter. Next slide, please. Latitude is part of Education for Change, a robust network of six charter schools that collectively serve 2,700
East Oakland students. We're an Oakland grown network that serves traditionally underserved students and has driven accelerated outcomes since 02/2005. We pride ourselves on strong collaboration with our families and our labor partner, CEFC, in service of our students. Together, we strive to realize EFC's collective vision that our students challenge predictable patterns of performance and access to opportunity in this country. Next slide, please. At Latitude, we believe that too many students today don't know why they're learning what they're learning
or how it connects to their future. So our mission at Latitude is to engage students in relevant, real world projects both in and outside of school. Next slide, please. By extending school beyond the walls of a building, our goal is to expand our students' sense of possibility for the future, To give them the opportunity to work with professionals in authentic settings. We are grounded in real world projects that our students find engaging and purposeful. Our students build actual houses that are donated to our unhoused neighbors. They publish books and magazines and record their own podcasts.
And they program Arduino based devices for the blind. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Let's show you what that looks like in a day at Latitude. Next slide and please play our video. I think the Latitude community is a really joyful one, and it's a really collaborative one both in terms of the adult community and in terms of the way that students work together on projects and other endeavors. There's a lot of like diversity in terms of like students' interests, students' passions, kind of like their backgrounds and their families. So the main thing that makes our school unique is the project based nature of
it. Pretty much every single class has a sort of overarching project. Last Last year for computer science, I was a project manager. It was so exciting to me because we were working with an elementary school, and we were helping the kids and making games for them for math. It was just cool learning coding. I really like how we take the ideas that we create in class and bring them into the real world, and it was phenomenal to see the entire class just working together on one big cause. And we always invite parents and friends and family to come out to exhibition and
see the students display the projects that they've been working so hard on. So exhibition night is just a wonderful time that all the the families come, and we can only get to see how hard the kids have been working, and they're very committed and passionate. My internship is my group design. The skills I'm most excited about developing is learning how to do sound production because I feel like this will help me a lot in the future. Not only do they do internships, but I'm very proud to say that they give them them the opportunity to go to colleges, to see colleges.
With what's here and the uniqueness of our son, we knew that this nurturing environment, there is no place I live in here at Latitude. I see a lot of growth with all the students, not just my daughter. And here, they make sure that your student has the APG requirement in order for the particular four year college. At Latitude, we don't think that there's just sort of one path to success. And so I think a big part of our school is really helping each student find what it is that they're passionate about, but then really supporting them to find real tangible connections in terms of experiences,
in terms of mentors, in terms of networks that will really help open those doors for them in terms of that future opportunity. Next slide, please. Next. Thank you. Good evening, board members. My name is Javier Torres. I am so proud to be a former support staff member and teacher, and now dean of instruction. We serve a beautiful and diverse community of learners who come to us from 50 middle schools across the city through a ZIP code based lottery. Our students are predominantly low income, and we serve many students who are English learners and have special needs.
We honor our students' assets and identities and provide the programs and opportunities they need to thrive. Next slide, please. So that's your 10. I thought I started at seven at 07:10. Started at seven here. Okay. Great. Thank you. 27% of our students are English learners, and 100% of them receive integrated support as well as designated ELD. They participate in advisory belonging groups, and our newcomer students engage in additional learning with me in order to create even more access. These opportunities put them on track to create post secondary success.
Thank you. Next slide. My name is Darylyn Davis, and I'm a proud parent of a student with an IEP. Every single year, we've continued to attract more students with neurodiversity, oftentimes through word-of-mouth by families who know how much support they get from their, from the school. In addition to having a strong team of special and general education staff who collaborate to support full inclusion, we also have an innovative special day class where all of our students have access to real world projects and the internships,
but with a wider spectrum of supports. Next slide, please. Powerful learning experiences, extensive services for our school community are possible because we partner with our union, families, and organizations throughout the city and county of Alameda. We are truly a community school. Our partners provide career learning and internship opportunities, mental health services, staff, family, and student leadership opportunities. Next slide, please. Good evening. My name is Eva and I'm a senior at Latitude. Latitude currently places more students in real world internships than any other high school in
Northern California. Every eleventh grader at Latitude gets to do an immersive month long internship where we are at our internship full time Monday through Thursday, and then in our senior year, we get to do a semester or year long internship. Mr. Mike and Mr. Daniel work super hard to help us find mentors who can help us explore our interests and passions. Students at Latitude have interned with mentors in so many different fields. Internships have help us figure out what we want to major in during college, and what careers we want to pursue, and they actually help us develop skills that are outside of the classroom that are applicable in the real world.
Next slide, please. Latitude intentionally develops powerful three way learning partnerships. Students, their families, and staff to ensure that our kids thrive. As a parent, I participate in my child's exhibitions, presentations of learning multiple times throughout the year, and take part in workshops that build my knowledge about college access. I also have the opportunity to lead, to organize other families to engage in civic actions that benefit our entire school community. Good evening. My name is Lisa Kelly, and I'm a proud Latitude teacher and union member.
One of the areas we're really proud of is the strong adult learning community at Latitude, which is leading to increasing teacher retention over time. We take part in a broad range of development opportunities that support us teachers to grow our knowledge and skills. We always launch the year with a staff retreat where we build our shared vision together. We collaborate closely in grade level and content teams and conduct cycles of inquiry throughout the year so that we can address the problems of practice we encounter in instruction. Next slide, please. We know that we have several growth areas, and we tackle them head on as a team.
For example, our English learner progress rates were below expectations in 2023 and 2024. As a team, our whole school focused on English learner needs last year. Our teaching staff engaged in weekly professional development sessions focused on integrating language support across all academic spaces. And as a result, we're seeing remarkable growth in our preliminary 2025 SBEC data. Similarly, our suspension rate had risen in 2024, so our team fine tuned our PBIS structures and restorative practices, which resulted in a major reduction in suspensions last year.
Next slide, please. At Latitude, teachers and staff work super hard to make sure no students slip through the cracks and that we all get the support we need to meet our A G requirements and graduate. Every single day, our teachers offer office hours after school, and the senior teachers give us tons of support on writing our personal statements for our college applications. Latitude outperforms the state in both graduation rates and college and career preparation because the staff and the rate excuse me, and the rates have increased every single year because the staff is always looking for new ways to prepare us for the real world. Next slide, please. We believe that all the things we do at Latitude are really avenues for us
to be able to move toward our future success. Last year, eighty four percent of our seniors were accepted into a four year university, up from eighty one percent in 2024 and seventy eight percent in 2023. Thank you so much for taking the time to hear from us today, and we look forward to answering any questions that may come up for you. Thank you. Thank you. At this time, we'll have we'll have ten minutes for public comment. Are there any speakers for public comment? Yes. We have two to one speakers. First five speakers are Kim Davis, Janera Harris, Christina Overstreet,
Deryland Davis, Kelly Wong, and Angie Pixon. Those are the first five speakers. And would those speakers please line up at the, at the, microphone, please? And we'll give one minute. I'm gonna finish where I left off. The behaviors described in my prior communications constitute violations of civil rights, special education law, and district policy. The absence of accountability sends a very dangerous message that abusive behavior is tolerated within OUSD.
I have thirteen thirteen outstanding complaints. Some of which have been documented with a case number, but not have been in but have not been investigated as the state requires. And some have not even been assigned a number and still have not been followed up on since 2023. These complaints were submitted through the appropriate district channels and documented via email. The lack of response violates OUSD's stated grievance procedures and and further constitutes the erosion
of trust between families and district. Often is later. Next speaker, please. I remember three years ago going into my first day at Latitude having no confidence in who I could possibly be. Back then, I felt so unprepared to speak in front of even a few people, but freshman me would be amazed to see how far I've come. At Latitude, we don't just read from textbooks. We learn through hands on projects and real world connections. I've built everything from a video game to an electronic calendar device and even up to a house. These weren't just class assignments.
They were real solutions I presented at our exhibitions and industry events, and they actually made a difference for the people they were designed for. Suddenly like that, something sparked in me. I wasn't that unprepared girl anymore. I became confident, curious, and passionate about science and technology. Latitude doesn't just prepare students for their future. It makes us believe we can excel. This is why I want you to vote yes to renew Latitude. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. My name is Cawley. I'm a junior at Latitude, and I have been a proud ambassador for my school since my freshman year.
I give tours to new incoming students, families, and educators. We've had teachers travel from India, China, Japan, Germany, and even the entire team from the National Equity Project traveled from Chicago, DC, and New York. Many many people's response is, wow, this school is very different from most schools. Kids are engaged in their projects, working with their peers, but most of the visitors mentioned to us afterward that they'd like to apply some of our school's teachings back home to their own schools as well. Our visitors from China, especially, wanted to capture our unique projects that focus more on what's happening on the world
right now and the skills the school teaches us to grow and create our own change in the world. Every time I tour, I realize more special opportunities our school has to offer and I feel closer and more a part of the school. I'm asking you as a young leader at my school to keep latitude open for the generations after me to learn leadership and create strong communities just like I have. If I did not end up at Latitude, I don't know what my trajectory would be. Vote yes to renew. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening. Again, my name is Eva Alvarez. I'm 16 years old, and I'm a senior at Latitude.
This school means so much to me and my family. I've been an EFC student my whole life. My mom went to protest for L'Isier a few years back, fighting for it to stay open. My older brother went there, I went there, and now I'm hoping my little brother can go there as well. The EFC team believed in me enough to let me skip a grade, and even though I started high school at the age of 13, I never fell out of place. The teachers supported me, they encouraged me, and they made me feel like I belonged. Before coming here, I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. But thanks to all the different trips and internships I've done, I found a sense of direction and purpose. If Latitude closed down,
I worry that my little brother wouldn't have the same opportunities that I had here at school, or the same support system. During my time here, I've made some of the best friends I've ever had in my life, and I've done internships in different places, like a graphic design and marketing studio, and now a cybersecurity company. Doing all these things before even turning 17 is an incredible accomplishment, and I don't think I would have gotten to where I am today if I didn't attend Latitude. Latitude has changed my life, and I hope it can keep changing lives for students like my little brother. This is why I'm asking you to vote yes and renew Latitude's charter. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please.
I have three of you, how can I decide? The name that we'll call, that was Angie Pozon, Dolan Davis and Christina Overstreet. Those are the leftover names that hasn't been spoken yet. Please come up in the order that your name is called. I don't know who you are, so it makes it hard for us to follow that. So if you are one of those three names, if you would come up? Hello, Committee. I'm Christina Overstreet, a parent at Latitude High. I lived in Oakland for thirty years, but I grew up in Petaluma, where at my large high school, I felt invisible. Looking back, it hurts knowing that even though I graduated with great grades,
I didn't have the proper guidance to send me to a four year college. I don't want my children to face those same barriers. At Latitude, it is so different. Latitude makes a real impact. My son graduated with a four point zero GPA and was accepted to 14 colleges. In fact, 81% of his class went on to four year colleges and universities. That proves that Latitude gives students their credentials and the confidence to succeed. But one of the things that stands out to me the most is the community. Diverse and attentive with guidance and smaller class sizes. The teachers care deeply and are definitely shaping futures.
So, thank you for your time and investing in our students. Your support helps ensure every one of our children has a real chance to succeed and build a stronger tomorrow for all of us, our entire community. And for that reason, we're asking you to vote yes and keep our school open. Thank you. Thank you. I already have a hand up. My name is Darylyn Davis and I'm a parent of a student at Latitude who has an IEP. My daughter was diagnosed with autism in the eighth grade. At the end of the eighth grade, and we were just, unsure where we would end up.
We applied to a lot of different, high schools, and she got into most of them like Saint Mary's and Bentley, some of the really great schools that they say are really great. But one thing they were missing was a supportive environment for kids with, learning differences. And as we found Latitude, it was the right fit for us. We weren't sure in the beginning, and she wanted to go to Saint Mary's, but she has never asked about Saint Mary's again. So, and after four years, she's a senior now. She is now public speaking is one of her,
special traits because of latitude and the, the public speaking opportunities that our kids are given. And also the support in the classroom and the way that she learns. She has lot of learning differences, and they have provided all the things that she's needed to succeed. And so now she'll be going on to college, at at the end of the school year. Thank you. Thank you. Next five speakers are Carlos Cambana, Sherry, Stephysia Ekoy Walton, D and D Sellers and Jordan Neal. Those are the next five speakers. Good afternoon or good evening.
My name is Carlos Cabana. This is my thirty sixth year of teaching and my fourteenth in Oakland. At Latitude, I'm charged with being one of the eighth grade ninth grade math teachers. It's a critical role because students come to us with all sorts of insecurities, negative academic, narratives, and outright damage because of their previous math experiences. My job is to use math to help them see that things could be different, that they have an intellectual place in this world. And I can't do that by teaching straight textbook algebra. I need to craft a classroom where each student feels seen and trusted, challenged and supported, and loved.
You'd think that'd be possible and essential at any school, but in my sad experience, it's not. Latitude is a rare place where I'm surrounded by colleagues who also lead with love, who never give up on kids, and who push to empower them. Latitude is a school of hugs, of laughter, and of trust. Latitude is a school where teacher passion and expertise is valued and because of this we can serve kids and their families in the ways they need and deserve. Thank you for your attention. Thank you. Next speaker please. Hi. Good evening. My name is Cherie Adriazola.
I'm the founder and CEO of My Group Design and cofounder of M and M Vibes and Earthscale. I've worked for over twenty years at the intersection of brand strategy, design, multicultural marketing, and storytelling. But my proudest work is mentoring Latitude High School students through real world, high impact internship experiences. Since 02/2022, I've had the privilege of hosting multiple cohorts at Latitude interns excuse me. Cohorts of Latitude interns in fully immersive four week accelerators.
They don't just observe, they lead. They concept, strategize, design, and produce a professional live stream show from scratch. Every role from creative direction to production is real with real outcomes. They build assets, coordinate talent, and manage execution as a team. What makes this model powerful is project based learning. It builds leadership, accountability, and entrepreneurial thinking. The very skills our students need to thrive beyond the classroom. These students don't just gain experience, they leave with confidence and professional portfolio and vision.
Many go to college such as Howard University, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Cal State East Bay, and SF State, just to name a few. Some start businesses, but all of them transform. Thank you. So that the other speakers can come around and learn in twenty minutes. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Hey, board. My name is Stephisha Ekoi Walton, community member and former EFC board member. To finish the previous person's statement, there's a quote I'd like to share with you. Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do, and they will surprise you with their ingenuity. That's what Latitude does. It gives students the space to rise.
Renewing Latitude's charter isn't just about sustaining a school. It's about expanding access to real opportunity for Oakland youth. So I respectfully ask that you vote yes in keeping Latitude High School open. So what I wanna say with the last thirty seconds is that my initial introduction was with the students of the LaunchLab, and I was majorly impressed because they had the opportunity to to design campaign logos for some of the different candidates throughout the city. And I think to engage in that way civically says a lot, and it does a lot for them. Secondly, I help coach volleyball. And what I noticed is that some of the athletes and and students that are
here, they're in the room. So the students at Latitude, they care about what's happening in the classroom, but they're civically engaged. And I think that the show of parents, families, and students in the room is the mark of a great educational space just based on the way that they come out, engage, and they talk about their school in the way that it's centered and rooted in love. So I really pray that y'all renew this school because this school is one that sets a model for what all of Oakland should follow. So thank you. Thank you. Hello. My name is Jordan Neil. I am a junior at Latitude High School. I've been going here since my freshman year,
and I'm a recurring four point o student. The staff here are very helpful, they are very supportive, and they are very mindful. I've never felt once discriminated at this school, even me being a young black male. This school has always helped me to be a part of the community and a part of my my people as well. I'm around more people that I look like. I'm around more people that I can talk like. I'm around more people that can help me build myself up. At this school, even then, I got caught selling snacks at this school, and instead of reprimanding me, suspending me, or sending me away, they actually empathized with me and gave me a job at OFAS,
a summer school program. I was doing this to help my mother's financial system and they helped me a bunch. And, I worked for two summers. I helped my mother, and that's all I ever wanted. I love the way they didn't criminalize me. They didn't suspend me. They didn't see me as some sort of bad person. And this school really makes me feel like it's home, and the people here make me feel like I'm surrounded by people I can be safe with. So my only ask of you is to renew Latitude's funding and vote yes so this people can this place can still be a a place of safety for people of my color and people from many other colors.
Thank you. Hello. My name is Ray. I am a senior, and I am very honored to represent Latitude High School. Today, I wanna talk about how the staff at Latitude has really shaped who I have become and given me a strong sense of belonging. Mister Mike opened up doors for me to lots of opportunities, such as working with kids and landing an internship at a Highland Hospital. These experiences showed me that what I want to do and study and encouraged me to focus more on my future after high school. Mister Torres gave me the chance to be a leader on the football field. When our captain got hurt, I was able to bring my teammates closer and build the discipline and grow as
a leader. Every time I walk into this school, I feel as if I belong. That comfort feeling lets me be myself in class and build a community we all share. It helps people feel as if they can talk to anyone in the school and not feel judged. Latitude as a community is full of diverse students from many different genders, cultures, ethnicities, all learning together. So I please ask you to vote yes to renew Latitude High School. Thank you. Thank you. That concludes the time allotted for public statement. Again, if you weren't didn't get a chance to speak, please feel free to e mail us at our firstname.
Lastnameosd dot org or comments in the Board section. Thank you. We'll now take board comments. There's ten minutes on this, and we have another public hearing that we also have to do right after this. Yes, I did. Yeah. Thank you. For this, they were called first first name first first as they came. And then that's how Mr. Seichal called them. That's how Mr. Seichal called them, so and we did check and I really appreciate latitude. I'm going to move into Board comments now. Director Thompson. Yes, thank you very much President Pearl Hart. I want to say first of all,
thank you Latitude for actually coming out and representing. You did extremely well. But, actually, if I can concretize some of the points that I heard and actually reviewing your literature, it made me feel quite good when I saw the graduation rate so elevated, also the a to g requirements. Because all of us know that individuals have to meet a to g requirements to be eligible for a four year college or a university. And many kids graduate from high school,
and if they don't meet those a to g requirements, they're not allowed to even apply to college. They have to go someplace else in order to get the classes, in order to get ready for a four year college. So that was outstanding. The second thing, I really looked at the English learner rate that has actually increased, And I'm so proud of what you're doing because you're reaching into the community where kids have been traditionally marginalized, and then you're bringing up those kids. You're giving them access to actual educational opportunity.
The third thing that I saw that was very impressive was the suspension rate went down. That means if you look at it from the eyes of the state of California, we know that individuals who are traditionally marginalized have a they are more likely suspended than others. And so when I see the suspension rate go down, that means that invariably, those individuals are not experiencing suspension. So that's very, very good. The fourth thing that I looked the fourth thing that I looked at was the
impressive colleges that you actually, showed that that that kids are going to. And I actually saw one of my a college one of them that I attended was there. So I'm really, really excited about that. Thank you very, very much. I will be voting for you. That's a lot of I actually Thank you, Latitude Community. I have a question. My apologies, cis interpreter. It's okay. So I had the opportunity to visit Latitude last spring and met, some of the folks that are here in the room as well as in the video.
So I want to just say that I do, you know, I saw a lot of the work that you have done in action and, you know, and want to appreciate the kind of way that you are working to intentionally have a diverse student community. I do have a question. It might be for, the school the leadership of the school. I don't know if that's Principal Sue or Ms. Adams. I'll is that I see that you've identified the need in your presentation to recruit, newcomers, unhoused, and foster youth to be more in alignment with the city. I definitely applaud that effort and appreciate that you lifted that up specifically.
But you didn't specify your exact plans. You kind of mentioned expanding some partnerships. So my first question is, can you explain the specific resources that you'll use to expand that recruitment, how you'll support those students when they arrive? And my follow-up question is that because you have a policy of disenrolling students who are chronically absent, I do wonder how that's in conflict. It it's listed as part of your disenrollment policy because you're a school of choice. So you could yeah. So, so I just wanna understand how that overlaps with, you know, trying to support those students when they come.
I can speak to we do not disenroll for chronic absence. We do have a disenrollment policy when, we are not able for weeks on end to get a hold of anybody, in the family, on their emergency card. We've done home visits. We like, we've done all of the steps and a family has literally left town. In those cases, if no if the student and their family are no longer around at their residence, and we cannot get a hold of them, then we do have a rigorous process which includes a hearing and an opportunity for the family to show up, but we do not disenroll for chronic absence.
We actually have a very, intentional and supportive approach to chronic absence where we really partner with families and students to get at the root cause, provide transportation if it is needed, you know, assist with links to community organizations. We deeply feel that it is our role to serve all students. Yeah, that's great. Do you have that written down as your We do. I'm wondering if because I know one of the things that we're asking folks to do this, and I should say, charter organizations to do when they come is just to, if you can provide that written to the board staff. And then how many students have you just enrolled in the,
like, in the last year based on that policy? None. Okay. That's great. And then Yeah. And I'd be happy to provide that. Yeah. That's great. And then, and then, perhaps since I'm out of my time, if you can, give again to the board staff that information about the, specific plan to to recruit those students? Yes. We'd be happy to do that. We will send it to you prior to the, decision hearing and also present at the decision hearing. Okay. Thank you so much. You're welcome. Jeff Williams. Thank you very much, Latitude, for that. Appreciate it. Just visit Latitude just a couple days ago,
and, just want to just want to, thank you. Yes. I did. Yes. I did. Yes. I made a promise to go through there, and I did. But I just wanna had a good conversation with a lot of the young folks who talked about their programs in regards to, the internships and, some of the things they were thinking about as they're graduating. Really good. Just wanna shout out, Trinity and Jude, colleagues, My young man, I I forgot his name though, man. What's your name again? Marley. Marley. Yeah. I had a good conversation with Marley.
Most definitely. Then there's another one about forensics. The young brother was going up and get this. Yes, ma'am. So, thank you, young folks, for having and and, actually, princess Jasmine as well. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I was looking at the California dashboard, and, I see that, your student black population has gone down over the last five years, from 20.3% down to 11. I don't know what's going on and what your plans are to make the environment welcoming. I mean, the young man actually spoke and really gave
gave a, very strong testimony, and I see that, you know, that is, what we're looking for. But I would like to see more of him participate in the school. And so that's one of the things that I'm looking at. It it it draws a bit of concern because we talk about the diversity of our city of Oakland. And we really want our kids to see the diversity at their school and be able to, have, grow up with folks that may not look like them, but live in their community. So that's something of my concern. What are you gonna do to build a welcome environment?
Secondly, you know, I'm always about I'm a teacher, twenty five year teacher, and a strong union member. We're always talking about teacher retention. And looking at your data, it looks like you probably are thinking about it as well. But about a third of your teachers, a third to half of your teachers each year are turning over. Is that true or not? No? Okay. So you do have a a strong retention of your teachers. And so, last year, our retention rate was actually over 70%. In terms of classroom teachers, we only had three brand new teachers last year.
And so and and of those, one of them was to cover maternity leave. And so we've really had really strong teacher retention over time, especially since the pandemic. Thank you for that. Now I'm a get off, but one thing I also like to see is that teachers at the table in any conversation. So I really wanna shout out the young folks who have joined the union. I'm always lifting up teachers to do the work. Can't do it without the teachers. And so I I stand always stand always in, support of my educators being at the table to fight for your living wage and
your health care. This is not, we don't want slave labor. We wanna be part of the conversation. So I will on that basis, I will support Latitude. Doctor. Berry. Plus one on all the celebration. I love is my ethos for anyone who knows me personally. And so I just love to hear that that is foundational to the way that you all move. And it was very apparent in a, how full this room is tonight and in all of the remarks that were shared. And I love it even more when love translates to student outcomes,
which you've made very clear in your data. I would love the public to be able to see and enjoy and appreciate how the outcomes that you celebrated in your presentation tonight, it's not just a certain group of students who are seeing those outcomes, but you can just aggregate the data and see growth among all of all of your students. I did have questions about how you were able to drop suspension. And I I have a lot of how questions because it's in the how that we can actually make notes of where we might wanna make future investments.
And I think about Latitude's contribution to the broader system of public education. And with that kind of information, we're able to sort of improve the district overall. And then the last thing I wanted to say where we go from here is in my when I visit gratitude, I'm excited to not yet. Conversations we can talk about how we're preparing for the next phase of Latitude's work. But thank you so much for showing up the way they all did tonight. Thank you. Director Hutchinson? Director Hutchinson? Director Hutchinson, did you have any questions or comments? No, thank you. I stick to the tradition of no Board comments during the public hearing.
And if there's anything that comes up when the time is right, I will definitely have some questions then. Thank you. Thank you. Director Batsler? Thank you. I appreciate all the folks that came out tonight. I do have some questions for admin if you can come up. And I'm already pre asking if we could do a second round because my questions I think are going to take a minute. So my first set of questions are so Oakland is a Sanctuary City and OUSD is a sanctuary district. What steps are you taking to protect students in these uncertain times? Please describe specific processes and protocols that you all have,
and what challenges You all face with a program that incorporates off-site components like internships? So we have a very detailed protocol that we follow to protect our students. We are also a sanctuary organization, and are strongly committed to protecting our students and their families. We have very detailed protocols that all of our sites follow. All of our office teams have been trained on those protocols to ensure that we cannot have the entry of any ICE agents onto our campus, and that we also have, systems in place to warn families if, ICE is actually viewed in the neighborhood. And so I would be happy to share those with you,
and send you the specific documents and training materials that we've used. And then the second part of my question was around internships. I think one piece that we've really worked on over the last few years is building out the communication system so that we're not just sending students out on internships. There's always a message thread that is between the student, between the mentor, mister Mike, our community partnerships lead, as well as the cohort lead. And so that students are constantly in communication with a group of adults even when they're out in the community. And so with all of those pieces as well as given the kind of changing political pieces, before our students go out on internship this year,
there will also be an in-depth training to help them be able to be responsive to different pieces if they meet ICE agents on the ground as well. And that would be a training both for the organizations that students are gonna be at and the students? I think that's a really good question. I think for sure for our students and then for our staff that work directly with the interns. But, mister Mike and mister Daniel who are here tonight, I think they do a lot of outreach and, workshops for our mentors as well. And so that would be a really strong piece to integrate as well this year. Great. My my next question is also about the internships. So, for EL students and students with disabilities,
what kind of accommodations are needed to provide those students with the opportunities to participate in the internship programs? Yeah. I love that question. And I think that that is the work that's at the heart of our school is, like, what kind of collaboration really needs to happen to make sure that truly all of our students have access. And so I would say that that process actually starts, months before our students even go out on internship. There's opportunities for our, special education department to work really closely with our community partnerships lead and to work really closely with the classroom teachers that know the students the best to be able
to identify potential mentors that would be a really good match. Right? And we actually also have some intern we have some amazing mentors that have been willing to bring their internships on-site as well. And so, it's through a variety of different collaborations, we're able to really match our students to the right mentor. We actually do an on-site mentor matching day on our campus. And during that time, the mentors get a chance to meet the students first with support for our from our education specialists as well. Great. Thank you. Director Burke, can I continue? I have one two more questions. Thank you. If
folks can come back up, I'm going to continue. So I am very concerned about the EL, data, for English language acquisition over time. So, in 2019, it was at 53.8%, but last year it went down to 23.3%. You've identified the need for a formative assessment system, integrated coaching, building family partnerships, and around language development. First, what restructuring have you done to the program and when? And can you explain what future investments look like and when they're gonna happen? Absolutely. I'm I'm really proud to speak to this one because as miss Kelly said,
who is one of our humanities teacher and also teaches targeted ELD, we've really come together as an entire school. All of the teachers here tonight can actually speak to you in nuance about the professional development that we've done. The years prior when we weren't seeing the results that we wanted, we did not have a full time ELD lead. Right? And so that's why we asked Javier Torres. We didn't just hire someone in from the outside, someone who's been with our org for over ten years now and really knows our students, really knows our families. He did the work from the ground up in terms of building out the team. Right?
So we have a really strong team of teachers that he actually meets with. Literally this morning, they had, like, an in-depth meeting, but then also they have professional development time and coaching time to plan together at least two planning periods a week. And then on top of that, they work together to really co construct their curriculum. But that's just for targeted ELD. Not only are we doing that, but we felt it's not just one department that does this work. We need the entire staff to be building their muscle in terms of how do we create access for our multilingual learners. And so that's what it really took as the entire team really came together.
And last year as a school, our mantra was all minds on fire. What does that really look like so that those are not it's not just a catch phrase, but then when we walk into classrooms, we see students from all different backgrounds, with all different language backgrounds, really engaging in academic dialogue, and we're constantly looking and reflecting at what are we not doing in terms of creating those access points. Right? And so it's because of that collective effort together that we really saw a huge shift in the data. So I think the data you were citing was actually from a year back. If you look at the preliminary data that's already coming in this year, both in terms of reclassification rates and SBAC growth for multilingual learners,
there's been a dramatic jump. And that's not because of one person, it's really the entire team that it took. And we know it's not a one year effort, it's going to be a multi year effort and it's part of the ethos of our school. Thank you. And lastly, And lastly, if we could also get suspension data per race, per year, like, over time, that would be helpful. And then a breakdown of newcomer students as well in N1, N2, you know, N3, and then also their, English proficiency throughout a period of time, that would also be helpful. We will provide all of that. Thank you. Thank you.
I have a few questions too. Well, and I did appreciate the visit. The student ambassadors did a great job. Also, I think it was very moving hearing the parents, particularly those of students with IEPs. So, my question is that I forgot to ask when I was there. I wanted to know, one, I know we talked the students talked a little bit about the self contained classes. Could you tell me a little bit about your structure, a little bit more? Do you have self contained classes? How many do you have? And then, kind of parallel you know, going along with that is, are those, educational specialists credentialed in credentialed programs?
But again the student did speak highly of the program, so. Absolutely, we do have a special, day class and, the students are fully integrated in other parts of the day, but particularly for mathematics in particular, they have a designated time where they can really have additional supports, but not just taught in a traditional way. We still are integrating projects and we're still integrating kind of real world experiences as part of that program. And they are fully credentialed teachers as well as supervised from our, what we call them an s three lead, and Ashley is an experienced education specialist herself. In addition to that,
we have paraeducators that push into that classroom, but the teacher who designs the curriculum, who co constructs it with our s three lead is a fully credentialed ed specialist. Thank you. Yes. My next question, it comes up with the SELPA. And I do know that I've done notice from that from my visit that you do offer a number of services. I was wondering, again, and I always ask this question, what would it take to come back into the, Oakland SELPA? Yeah. I think that that is a question we would definitely be willing to sit down and to discuss. We can share, you know, what our experiences have been, and what are some of the the benefits that Edco currently provides us and would
be happy to sit down and discuss that. And then finally, I do wanna thank you for your presentation in that I noticed in your renewal, we had this discussion that, I think often charter charter schools come and back you know, kind of compare themselves to Oakland Schools in ways that are not workable. And I appreciate in your presentation tonight that you spoke about the strengths of your school, what was special to your students, without putting down Oakland Schools. So I appreciate that. I just wanted to express my appreciation for all of you for coming out tonight
and fighting for what you surely deserve. I am so in awe of your student leadership. I truly appreciate all of you guys for being here and the students that spoke up. I am very, very impressed with your college readiness preparation. I think that should be implemented into all of our high schools. Definitely. And I dearly hope that the board makes the right decisions to give you what you need to continue to thrive. So thank you. We need a second round of questions. Okay. With that, thank you. And the public hearing is now closed. The public hearing for UAOS sunshine proposal is now open.
Is there anyone from UAOS here? Are there any public comments for the UAOS sunshine proposal? President Prohart, the President of UAOS has his hand raised on Zoom. Okay. Go ahead, mister Kaufman. Go ahead, Carrie. Alright. Can you guys hear me, or is there still Zoom issues? Can you guys hear me, or are there Zoom issues? We can we can hear you. We're just waiting for the audience to clear, so we can barely hear you. Sorry. Okay. I can wait, like, ten seconds. Yeah. That'd be great. Thank you. If our Latitude students could make their way out so we can hear our speaker
on Zoom. Oops. Go ahead, Carrie. Alright. Thank you very much. My name is Carrie Kaufman. I'm the president of United Administrators of Oakland Schools. Thank you guys so much for this hearing. The United Administrators of Oakland Schools is in their third year, our three year contract right now. As part of our contract, we agreed to two things with the district. First, to form a joint committee on salaries, And second, to reopen on salaries for the third year. We have been engaging in both and we are working on the second one right now on reopening on salaries. The first one was a joint study,
which we are currently still working on with the district. So far, what we have seen is that with including benefits, our administrators, especially our site administrators, are 12 to 20% paid less than the average in the area, including benefits. This is something that we continue to want to address. We are very sober eyed about the situation with the budget with the district. We're also continuously watching the SEIU ongoing, the ongoing, needs for them to settle a contract, which has been well over a year.
However, we need to make sure that we are addressing the concerns that exist in pay discrepancies with our neighboring districts. I appreciate the time and that that is all I really wanted to say. If you guys had any questions, I am always available to speak to you guys. And thank you guys for thank you board members for scheduling times to meet with with me. Thank you very much. Thank you. Yes, President Breauxhall, we for public speakers, we have Janaire Harris, Salo Labala and Vin Tapscott. How many minutes? One minute. Ms. Harris,
Mr. Tapscott? And who is the bottom line, sir? Salo Lobala and Janelle Harris. I'm gonna leave I'm gonna start where I left off. I have tears in my eyes right now because it's bittersweet. On one hand, I'm excited for the young men that I just met that go to Latitude, but I am sickened by all the questions that you and all the enthusiasm you had when they were talking about a school that you don't oversee. You don't oversee them, and then you leave our meeting to go to their meeting.
And then I just got through telling you that three I've been assaulted three times. None of that bothers any of you. Any of you. But it's okay. My tax money goes to this district, and I'm tired of us always being on the bottom. Like, we don't get nothing. We don't have this you jumping off your chair and shaking hands. You ain't never said anything good about us, and you are a board member for OUSD. Shame on you. Shame on you. Okay. This is hard to swallow.
When you've got so much to say about other schools and you've never been to our school. Related to that I've gotta talk about this. You have to look at the the governance of that school, all charter schools. Those self appointed school boards where parents have no voice. You have to look at what is the student achievement plan that they develop and how it's being implemented. You have to look at safety. They talked about safety. This self evaluation cannot be in place. You have to have an independent component to validate what they are saying.
Everything works. Identify your strengths and weaknesses. That has to be a part of it. The school volunteers component. Do all of them get background checks? After school programs. The, the, opportunity for extracurricular activities. That school sits right there by that BART train. And believe me, I've been to one of the elementary schools in front. Every time that pay train pay, it disrupts the systems. Address, do they have cameras after school? Do they have newcomer programs, not just newcomer students, that accurately identify them?
They talked about suspension, but they didn't break it down by race. You congratulated them, but you didn't look at the race demographics. You didn't look at the expulsions. You didn't look at the chronic absenteeism. There's so much that didn't is is not there. They can't we cannot evaluate with self evaluation. One thing about with climates, we don't come here and give you the goody goody picture. We give you the good and the bad. 45 black students. When are we gonna hold charter schools accountable for integration? We've gone through that in the South. So when are we gonna hold charter schools accountable for integration?
350 students, 42 blacks. If it's so great, why aren't they integrate why aren't you holding them accountable to integrate since they're part of Oakland? Now switching subjects, we need a boiler at McClimans High School right now. Right now. We lucked out. Preston Thomas should be fired. He should be fired. 40 schools in nine months, he didn't say anything about it. We want we want that bar back this week so those kids, if we have cold weather,
will have warm water in that school. 17, restrooms, no warm water. 10 classrooms, no warm water, five custodial station, no warm water. Shame on you. Thank you. Are there any more board are there any more public comments? No. That includes public speakers. We're on UAOS right now. Yep. Are there any board We're talking about UAOS. We haven't gone back to public comments yet. Yeah. No problem. Are there any board questions or comments on the UAOS sunshine proposal? Director Smith? I definitely understand all of the people's concerns,
but I definitely feel that when a when a school is coming to us and they're doing right by their students, they should be able to express themselves and express the positive going on, and we should be proud of that. And we should be accepting of the thriving students that we do have, whether they look like you or not. So thank you. Thank you, Director Smith. Thank you, Director Smith. Are there any other comments on the UAOS? Is Carrie still on the line? Oh, that's right. This closes the public hearing for, UAOS Sunshine.
Moving on now to the rest of our public comments, I believe can you read all of the names, please? And as you hear your name Oh, point of clarification, we need to be a lot more specific. We are now returning to public comment on non agenda items, which was put off before midway through. So I know there were multiple names that were called and who didn't have a chance to speak. So please, those of you who are still in attendance, let's make sure that everyone's turn is honored and it's really sad we had to wait like this. Thank you. Thank you, Director Hutchinson. Mister Satchout, can you please call the names? And as you hear your name,
if you could line up in that order, please. Yes. We have Sheila Haines, Ben Tapscott, Jill Merrick, Jia Liang, Ashley Handing, Jack Nelson, Sophia Allgood, Luan Nguyen, Abiglia Scarborough. Those are the speakers that I have for non agenda items. Again, if you could line up in that order, that would be great. Thank you. Mr. Tapscott? What happened to putting the students at the beginning of the agenda so they can get out of here? I heard about it. What what happened? They're still not going early. They have things to do.
And we need to adjust the agenda to accommodate them so they can get out of here. I'm passing this out to show you the damage that this school board has done. They have closed a total of 16 schools in West Oakland, and there are two more if we add Parker and some of the other schools. The fact that they closed seven schools in one part of the city would create a hardship. And the lies that continue to go on, no one ever addresses. Gary Yee said that the air was not healthy at Lakeview.
They moved all the students out. Two years later, I guess the air got healthier by the school, Lake Shore. Now they have a charter school. So when when are the lies gonna stop? The fact that this board, not one of you, called and said, coach, what are BTUs? Why aren't they using the third boiler? Because they weren't heating the building, folks. Turn your water heater down with the cold weather coming and see what happens. Preston Thomas went over and took that boiler away from those children. We want it back,
and we want it back now. Thank you. Next speaker, please. They have no warm water, so they have no heat. Good evening, board members. My name is Sofia Allgood, and my children are in fifth and seventh grade in Oakland. Did you know that only four out of 10 students can read at grade level? This isn't just a statistic. These are our students' future. Last spring, I stood before you with over 50 district and charter parents advocating for one simple but important change, putting students' outcomes on the board agenda for every session.
Tonight, I am back because this issue demands our attention. As parents, we have a fundamental right to transparency. We need honest reporting on how students are performing. We need schools to share data openly so we can partner effectively in our children's education. Here's here's the hard truth. We can't close achievement gaps if we refuse to honestly discuss them. How can we expect to improve outcomes for our black and brown students if we're not consistently talking about the data.
I'm asking the board to commit to two things. One, include student outcome and data on every board member board meeting agenda. Ensure transparent regular reporting to all families. Our students deserve better. Our families deserve transparent transparency. Our community deserves accountability. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening, OUSD board members and superintendent. My name is Luan Nguyen. I'm a Oakland High senior. I'm an Oakland High senior. I am saddened to see the board push back public comment again,
even when you were all given the chance to extend public comment by just a few more minutes. To me, it feels like a breach against student values, and I hope that the board keeps in mind the timeliness and the precedents you all set for the meetings to come. Next, I wanna thank President Brohard, Vice President Bachelor, Director Berry, and Superintendent Sadler for attending in last week's, I'm sorry, for participating in last week's Help a Teacher Out event. It was exciting to see your involvement in the in the event planned by our mayor Barbara Lee's Duke Advisory Council. Following that, I want to reiterate my invitation to the Raise the Bar Awards happening on September
18. Families in Action will be celebrating 18 district schools, including Oakland High and 22 charter schools for their a to g participation black and Latin Latin x Latinx excellence and academic achievement. This is a great opportunity to celebrate our community for the amazing work we are doing. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening, members of the board. I am here tonight because McClymonds High School is in a full blown crisis, and our students cannot wait any longer for a change. We currently have no stable leadership. Our principal is on administrative leave for reasonings that I am ashamed to even speak
out loud about. Our building receives nothing more than surface level patchwork, while the deep deeper issue are deeper issues are ignored. Classrooms have no warm water. Our facilities are falling apart. That is just neglect. It is disrespect to the students and families who walk through those doors every day. Worse still, our children are being denied the most basic needs. We don't have enough food to feed every student. And over 70 of our students with IEPs, students who rely on individualized support to learn are receiving little to none of those
services that are legally guaranteed. These are our most valuable students, and they are being failed in plain sight. I asked, if this was happening at a school across town, would it be allowed to continue? McCliman students are just as worthy, just as capable, and just as deserving as any other student in this district. I urge this board, step in, take action, and make sure our children receive the dignity, the resources, and the education they are entitled to. They cannot and should not be made to wait any longer.
And for Vancedrich, as a board member of District 3 in which McClements reside, can you name five students like you did for latitude? I don't think you can. And we have students that are going to MIT, UCLA, and the same schools that they are attending. Thank you. Yeah. Jack Nelson. Oh, this is our last speaker for public, comment. Go ahead. Jack Nelson, de facto leader of the John Beam Fardella naming of the, the athletic complex. You'll hear about that more later. I I'm gonna take you back on this tonight. I visited the client and said,
Jack, just about a week ago. They got 2,300 students or so at tech. Right? Everybody leaves for lunch, and everybody comes back. There was two guys in the hall, and the principal walked me around. They treated me like a VIP, which I don't know why, but, it's great. It's a great school. You're taking money. You guys would vote on the charter schools. You're taking money away from Tech and Skyline and Casamont Casamont. I've been the ball the ball ball boy and water boy for them for football for the last six years. I'm going down the Crenshaw neighborhood next week to go to the game.
I've left money in my car and my windows open. Nobody's ever taken it. You know why? The kids are great. Kids are great. Remember, you give that money away, that charter school money away, it's ridiculous. I would listen to coach Tab Scott Moore because he's an icon. He's an educator. When he won the championship in 1978, you guys most of you weren't even alive, Nate. Coach Tapscott was an educator and a coach. Willie West sat there and let guys play all the time all day long in the gym. They didn't go to school. This guy's a winner. Listen to them.
Thank you. That concludes, I'm sorry. That concludes public comment. Next up is our student. Oh, I'm sorry, Ms. Haynes. I'm sorry. Miss Haines, if you could unmute yourself to speak. Yes. Go ahead, miss Haines. Miss Haines, can you keep on speaking? We're gonna check, our systems to make sure that the channels are correct. Disability voices. I'm speaking for disabled children that cannot speak for themselves. So if you guys can hear me, I hope there will be a priority to fully fund music and arts education. The needs of my son and countless students are being they're not being fulfilled.
And in his case, going on six years, continuing to learn online, he hasn't been getting the services he's entitled to. For me to have to go through an IEP process just to be approved for music services. With Prop 28 funding and money from grants that was taken, it shouldn't take for an IEP. You wanna talk about inclusion? There's money available for that service. All of that is service here. And I can have that include And I hope that, you know, for the board to somehow make up for this money that was taken urgently because I have to bring to light on the final board meeting right before the break,
commissioner of g one, Edmund Chung. He he urged the board. He suggested that the board focus more on music. Many students, educators, and parents, along with community members, they're following what's going on and happening with music and arts funding. Some have even posted e comments, and I'm not sure why several months ago, the e comments were missing for a long time. But there needs to be more urgent needs and an overall, priority because our students' well-being is very much impacted and still they're suffering.
My son is suffering. They could actually build many other skills and academics through this consistency that music would provide. And so while the district faces these budget challenges, I once again ask that you not take any more funding away from this arts and music because it will only cause more harm. I'm also reminding you that reinforcing the reinforcing the discipline policy doesn't cost money. So we have to get back to a space where we can focus on love for each other and and and ourselves and respect because too much violence is called
starting with verbal attacks. So I'm asking the board to reinforce positive language language right along with music and arts education, keep our students in the most positive spaces. I hope you I hope everyone heard me, and that's it. Thank you, miss Hamish Hamilton. K. Next, we have our student report. Good evening, students, parents, teachers, district staff, our leadership, and our board members. Another warm welcome to our interim superintendent. Thank you all for being here. For today's report, we will be discussing all city council updates and LCAP updates.
So ACC is officially back in session. We had our second meeting. Our we have weekly meetings every Wednesday after school at 03:30. In today's meeting, we went over our visitor schedule, seen who we were gonna be meeting with for the year, made sure our calendar up was updated. We met with our executive director of safety, Nelson Allegra. After that, we brainstormed our work plan for the district's first semester and what events are upcoming, such as our annual ACC overnight youth retreat.
During this retreat, we get a variety of OUSD high schoolers together. They get to learn about what ACC is, learn about different school sites, and they get into liter different leadership positions. At our meeting, we were able to identify new outreach strategies for this amazing event. So now we're gonna go ahead and follow into LCAP updates. The parents student advisory committee, better known as PSAC, had their first meeting of the school year, which was on August 20. Our two LCAP directors had the chance to introduce themselves and further connect with the
people they will be working with this year. They shared the goals that were identified within their PSAC meeting, and the following goals were making information easily accessible and digestible for OUSD youth and how LCFF funds are used in the district. Their second goal is to increase student participation within their PSAC meetings. That's definitely a big one. We've definitely seen a lot of leadership today. Their third goal is to form a better connection with adult decision makers such as our board. And their fourth and final goal is to gain a better understanding of the budget
in its current state and make cost saving recommendations that prioritize our students. So that is our report for tonight. Thank you all for listening. Thank you. Are there any public comments? Yes. For public comment, we have Ben Tapscott, Janae Harris, and Osalo Lobala. Thank you, director Smith. Thank you for your report. I look forward to the student report every meeting. It's really nice to see young leaders like yourself come up here and model how it should be.
So thank you. Next speaker, please. So, on the occasion of Monday going into one of the classrooms, I asked the student classroom if they had any concerns they wanted me to share with the board. And and everybody that spoke was concerned about the quality and quantity of the food. And they also were concerned about the opportunity to have vending machines, at school. And the next day, I went to the cafeteria to look at the food being served.
And these big old guys get little bitty sandwiches, one peep only one fruit. We've got to engage in healthy eating and nutrition, and that that's important to them. And I value whatever is important to them. So I ask that if that's a, a consensus throughout the school district that we need to work on and we got it on the agenda tonight to look at, strategies for nutrition. It's on the agenda. So follow-up on that. And lastly, the safety issue, what happened today,
are you aware of that, darling? What happened to I'm not gonna go into it, but y'all know what happened today. In Minnesota, the shooting, 17 children shot, two dead. Y'all y'all know about it, don't you? Yeah. We we we gotta work on this. And and the the day the day before that in Minnesota, another shooting in Minnesota at a Catholic school. These children were at mass praying. So the safety thing, I'm very concerned about that. Okay? And at my climbing, I think we have some room for improvement around safety.
Next speaker, please. Mister Tapscott? I've asked this question a couple of times about the Office of Equity and the fact that we're what 22%, 25% Black, Why are we 90 some percent suspensions? And has anyone looked at that? Is there some I bet you there's a correlation between, especially black males, not being able to stand up and speak, so it's easier to act up and get sent out. But the office of equity should have that information and what's causing the high rate
of suspensions when it comes to black students. Are you gonna address the problem if you don't know what the problem is? And I think it's probably correlated with them not being able to read or to speak. Thank you. Are there any board comments on the student report? Director Hutchinson? Yes. Thank you. Student director Smith, I I actually wanna apologize on behalf of the board. And, it's really frustrating. I I think it's unacceptable that you weren't able to give your report until after
08:00 tonight. And I think it's unacceptable that the board president changed the order of the agenda in a way that made you have to sit here and wait. And as a practice, as a board, we always have the practice of students go first. And it's not just for you as the student director. I know we're even less likely to have students across the district being able to watch now as well. I think it's unacceptable. I think we saw today how, you know, the rest of the public wasn't allowed to make comments either. And, like we had a chance to speak about before the meeting today,
I really encourage you and do some work organizing students. I know I saw this start at the end of last school year, where at the meeting where we have where the All City Council presents at the end of the year, again, everyone was left down here waiting till after 08:00 with no message, no nothing. It's unacceptable. And, I know that students in Oakland, like I once was myself, when we see and experience things that are unacceptable, we always stand up and do something about it. So I really, appreciate your temperament and how you've handled this job so far,
but please, let's rally up some folks. Because, as a community, and especially as the representative of students, it's unacceptable when you get disrespected in this sort of way, because that means also everyone that you represent is also being disrespected. So I wanted to say something about it. It drives me crazy. There's only so much I could do about it when the majority of the board refuses to recognize it. But thank you, and maybe together, by pushing back a little bit stronger, we can at least make this change going forward. Thanks. Director Latta. Thank you,
director Smith, for, your update, and congratulations on launching the year with ACC. I think, also, congratulations to, I know, director Simmons as well as yourself on the Help a Teach You Out event. And I just want to, say that, certainly, I'm looking forward to the a change in the board policy so that we can be, kind of have it codified that we get to your report sooner than we have historically. And, also, I appreciate I just wanna say the one thing that I noticed in your report is talking about partnering on how we can,
how ACC can lead on student centered budgeting because I think it's no secret that we're going to have to make hard decisions and we're gonna have to make them sooner this year, than we did last year. And I'm, really looking forward to having this additional time, and working with you all, to make sure that not only are we having students give their voice, but that it's actually fundamentally changing how we work as a district and what we actually prioritize instead of,
I think, just, you know, listening and not and doing the same things. So, so anyways, I I look forward to working with you all more. And, and again, congratulations on the launch of the year. Director Williams? Direct director Smith, thank you very much for that. So I just, you know, just wanna thank you for being in tune. I think our ESAT group, our parent student advisory group, is a really powerful group. You know, we hear parents and students come and express their concerns, you know, with the school district. And I I totally always say, please go to PSAC.
And, we got a lot of parents that have spent a lot of their off time from work doing work and students like yourself in that space. That's a representative body in addition to ACC, but our parents are really doing a lot of work, and we want to lift up that work. And I want to thank you for being in those spaces because that's the information that needs to get out, that there are people who really care about our district. We don't hear that enough. Right? We hear folks saying what's wrong with our district? What's wrong with our district? And it's really easy to catch a negative attitude like that.
It's really easy to be toxic about it. I think we need to, like, move with best intentions and good intentions. I think of the good things that you can do first before I try to say you're disappointed, right? And we're all human too, right? We do we are learning every day, so sometimes it's like, Oops, I forgot I didn't get to you, but I'll make sure I will get to you as we come along, right? So when I see parents and I see students who, like, have some concerns, I'm like, hey. There's a couple good groups that we can hit up.
And I will go. Any one of us on the board will be there with you to support you or support the ACC students who choose to be in that space. You will see some real good deliberative, work fighting for our kids every moment of the day. I was in yesterday, I was in there, and I appreciate, director Tara Guard was in, the foster youth. So we're talking about lifting up our foster youth young folks. Right? These conversations don't happen every day. And so the good work that is happening is really happening. It's really happening. And I just I want you to be a part of that to to put
out the good word as well. We're not perfect, so none of us are perfect. So I think that's real. Two, we know that in any relationship, it is about communication. Right? So if we don't get our communication right, then we're constantly off on alignment. So if I do something that harm you or the board does something, talk to us. Let let us find out how we can, you know, restore that, you know, belief that what what needs to be done can be done by adults. And we still are learning as well. So I just wanna put that out there.
We're I would I would love to work with you. Right? I love like, if you got some ideas, I got some for you. I can call the folks from LA students deserve, and we can make that happen. I got some other school board directors around the district I mean, around the Bay Area that's ready to do something. So, give us a chance. Give us a chance. We wanna work with you. We wanna lift you up. We wanna lift all the students up and have your voice at the table. Thank you, sis. Go ahead. And, George. So three things. One, shout out to the student friendly,
board information, particularly around LCAP. That's gonna be board member friendly information. So I look forward to that, and using that and supporting that effort. So let me know how I can support that directly. Two, director Lotta mentioned student centered budgeting, and that was something that I wanted to discuss with you all. I have a few community district five meetings scheduled that I'm scheduling right now for district five. We're gonna be talking about superintendent search, and we're gonna be talking about budget. And often, students are not represented in my community meetings.
And so I, a, wanna pick times where students can be available, and b, wanna partner with you and director Simmons to make sure that students, at least the students represented in my district, know about it and can show up so that they can participate. And then number three, I just wanted to give a shout out for the help a teach you out event. It's very clear that ACC, the mayor's youth advisory council, that y'all have real agency and real power and real vision, and I am so excited to see more and more and more of that, this year. So thank you all for setting that up and supporting director Simmons and and making
something happen on that front. Thank you. Yeah. I wanna just echo the appreciation for the, event on Saturday. I had a really great time getting to know Isabelle, from Oakland Tech. She was in my paper table, and we were talking about, different ways that she's been able to improve different, pathways and how she has chosen a pathway that she wouldn't have thought about, because of the engagement that was done around around pathways to students. So that was, great to hear and I hope she has a great time in her sophomore year, at Tech. I also, we also had a CSBA rep here earlier, and so I wanted to make sure that you knew that,
the California School Board Association is having a meeting in December. Last year, we had students attend the meeting, and this year, we'd love to sponsor you all as well to attend that meeting. And so we'll be working with your adult ally to get that information to them. It's in Sacramento, so it's not as sexy as Disneyland. But it's still sexy, and we can, do some great work there. I will also piggyback on Director Hutchinson's, call to organize, because we do, you know, we have been organizing or we there's been a lot of engagement with the city, but I've also started to do some engagement with the county.
And the county does have some funds that they can levy to support our work around immigration and supporting our students. And so, there is gonna be some pivotal meetings coming up in September that I'd love for students to participate in to make sure that we're advocating for those funds to go towards things that we need as a district. Like, for example, safe passages to get back and forth to school, making sure that our immigrant students and families, get the support that we need. So I'll make sure to get that information to you all and as much as as much participation from ACC around that and other students would be really,
really helpful. I'll just make it short. I appreciate your report and I think the work that you're doing with PSAC is really important work. I look forward to the work on the budget, because again we've been trying to do, you know, I think all of us are working towards a budget that does center our students. And to help a teacher out of it was a lot of fun. So, a lot of hard work. You guys did amazing organizing work for that, and I know as a one time new teacher, I would have really appreciated that kind of work, so I appreciate that work. Thank you. Superintendent Jones. I too just wanna say congratulations on an excellent,
excellent report, director Smith. I've just been super impressed with your, participation. You did come to the board meeting that we had on the superintendent search. I just wanna note that. Also, just your, sorry, your organization and your preparation for the meeting, has just been exemplary and I'm just really proud to that you're one of our students and just the leadership and the questions that you've asked and your engagement in the meeting and communication. So I look forward to continuing to work with you.
I too enjoyed being at the Saturday event, helped a teacher out, was there all day and it was awesome. It was so well planned and thoughtfully done. You even had a there was a debrief, There was preparation for follow-up. It was just, exemplary. So you've been a great model for, just just leadership showing leadership. Those are, we'll have more comments later. Any other board member comments? Alright, so we've already done public comments on this item, so we'll move on to L, which is, consent items minus L1 and L4.
Is there a motion to approve? My motion to approve our consent item L minus L1 and L4. Is there a second? Second. Wonderful. Can we get any public Yes. Public comment on this agenda item? Yes. For public's comment, we have Janelle Harris, Asado Labala, and Ben Tapscott. Great. And we'll do one minute. And Kim Davis. We also have some meaty items coming up as well, which there'll be public comments at. You turn the mic off. Okay. Starting with l 11, which is a strategy to evaluate dietary needs.
The quality and quantity of schools needs a lot of attention. That's l 11. We have several items dealing with nutrition. Our our kitchen at McClements is not finished. The staffing is not sufficient. And like I said before, quality and quantity is is a big issue. L nine. You're replacing pipes with copper pipes. That's how you fix the lead issue. You will replace the you replace the pipes, not these filters that y'all talking about. L 16, soil testing and water testing.
Y'all doing a lot of testing, but you're not doing any remediation, particularly at McClimans. You've done enough testing at McClimans. Do the remediation at the field and fix the field. L 23, newcomer wellness. You give a lot of attention to our newcomer students. Much appreciated. We are not getting attention for wellness for African American students. L 25, culture, program for, Asian girls at Skyline. We have a program at Skyline at, the Climate for African American girls. We have no resources.
That no money for resources. L forty one, training for culture keepers. That's absolutely necessary. This is the last one. Thank you. L forty six, Ruggsdale. Forty hours a week of clinical medical health support. Y'all give a lot of attention to Ruggsdale. You don't give any support of that nature to students at McClymonds. Do whatever you wanna do to help any student, but we expect you to do the same thing for students at McClymonds. Thank you. Next speaker. I'm I wanna talk about, l 64.
L 64, which talks about uniform complaint procedures. I got 13 outstanding formal complaints that I have sent all the way up the chain from the high school superintendent to my district director, to my superintendent who just left, to her chief of staff, anybody that can do something. Some of these are identified and labeled with numbers. Some of them are not. But you don't follow your own policies. This district is ridiculous. Like, this is becoming to lawsuit,
and I have had enough. This is four years and I want all of you to know that I go to law school and I am going to create a lawsuit so deep because I am the document queen. And I promise everything that I outlined, I have documentation for. I've been assaulted three times and no one I don't get a phone call. Are you okay? I don't get nothing, but it's okay because I'm not gonna continue to take it.
Something bad is going to happen because this is what this district allows. If I was a Jewish parent coming up here complaining about 12 students, you will move on it. But, no, you don't want a new move on it here. So I have a list of suggestions that I will be emailing all of you because you need to follow your own policies. Probably, you don't even know half of them. So let me know when you're ready to do something for our parents and our kids. That's why they don't show up.
Thank you, miss Harris. Next public speaker. 2016, I was watching the football practice. Coach is bringing water from his mother's house across the street. I said, coach, what what's going on? He said, coach, the water is no good. We finally got it re copper pipes. You must also use silver solder to make sure that it won't be a problem down the road. The fact that we are supposed to have filters now I looked at one yesterday when the superintendent was over there, and it had a date of May 2024.
That filter should be changed. Rebecca Littlejohn lied when we had a meeting in 2018 and the black parent asked the director, did you know about lead before coach brought it to the public's attention? He said, oh, yeah. We knew about it. What'd you do about it? The fact that I had the date that they said they tested was not the date that they had completed the piping in the cafeteria. So I looked at her and I said, I think you need to check that date.
I think most of you know I don't do computers. She says, oh, coach. I have it here. The lies that are being told, the fact that they're not monitoring what needs to happen, the fact that the district is totally disorganized, in my opinion, when it comes to facilities and safety. Thank you. That boiler out. Still I'm not happy with anybody up there about that. Thank you. Because we have a survey. He lied to you, and he should be fired. Miss Davis, you're online. Go ahead and speak. Miss Davis, if you're online, can you if you would like to speak,
please raise your hand. No. Seems like she is not raising her hand. Okay. Can we go ahead and take a roll call for this item? Board comment. Oh, I apologize. Board comments. Director Hutchinson, go ahead. Yes, thank you. I just wanna point out we went through most of this meeting, got really far behind because, anyone was allowed to comment and everyone was given as much time as they want. And, this selective enforcement of the rules is very telling. You know, I'm not gonna vote for this Consent Report again as I haven't been voting for him for about the last six months because I have a lack of faith in
the board leadership that's supposed to have approval of the items on the agenda. And, I think it's very apparent to anyone who's watched a couple of meetings over these last six months that there's real problems. Real problems. And now, we are in financial crisis. And when you look at tonight's consent report, you couldn't tell that we're in financial crisis, that we don't have enough money to make it through the year, because all these items are still on here. And so why are we now in a position where we'll hear soon, tonight, that we have to cut $10,000,000 to $15,000,000
in spending this year, but we're still encumbering new contracts on this consent report? You know, Coach, welcome back to tonight's meeting. I remember that meeting that you described with Miss Littlejohn, sitting in the McClimans library, And I was really hopeful, really hopeful that we had turned this district around. But, you know, I ran, actually, with you in 2020 on a platform of ending the financial mismanagement of the school board because it had put OUSD in crisis.
And the saddest of ironies, here I am five years later, and I have to again say that same thing. So it's unacceptable what's been happening. It's unacceptable from the community not being able to comment, to the students being forced to wait, to we're in financial crisis, to our superintendent was forced out of here, to we don't have a head of facilities, I can go down the line, to they're replacing football fields when football season starts. We are in serious, serious trouble, you all. And until, as a community, we stand up and demand something else,
it's not going to change. That's why I would never say to a student director, Hey, I know of this group I want you to come meet with. What we need is the students to organize themselves, show up in force as the group. And this letting these folks dictate to us and drive us over the cliff, I'm done with it. It's not gonna happen. And, everyone will be hearing that this school board, this board majority, has until October 8 to come up with a plan to solve our finances. And when they don't, as a community, I expect all of you to be standing there with me,
and we'll have to take the keys to the car back. This is unacceptable, and I apologize to everyone tonight. Doctor Smith? I am very saddened to hear all the issues that are going on at Mac and the repeated comments coming from these dedicated community members. I definitely see that the board is failing our Mac students, and I definitely expect some change to be coming soon, such as support for the IEP students, school beautification, accessible food, and genuine qualified staff. That's what I'm expecting. So I hope that our board takes note of that and that we can actually
get some change done. Thank you. Any other board comments, Director Berry? So, I do one thing that stood out to me about this consent report were the four or five lead related expenses. And so just naming this question for the record, not necessarily for Preston for you to address tonight, but I'm curious if we should expect more of those. And then I'm curious also about the strategy we're deploying to make decisions about what spending will come out of Measure Y and what spending will come through other funding sources.
And then, response to what director Hutchinson said, and I think related to lead abatement, I do think it becomes increasingly dangerous for us to approve, new contracts this school year because cut we all know that there's, like, an imminent, decision making process we're gonna have to navigate related to cuts for 2025 and for next year. And so, I do wanna you know, I don't wanna get in the way of the work that principals and and and educators are counting on. But we do have to very quickly have public conversations about the budget because the
every board meeting, when we come here and we approve contracts, we're basically saying that those expenses are off the table because we can't roll those back. It creates legal exposure, and there's other reasons why we wouldn't wanna do that. And so I think we're gonna have to, I don't know, heed what director Hutchinson said very quickly. Other board comments? Doctor Williams? Yeah. I just, wanna personally, speak to miss, Harris. Just wanna say that I I I am sorry that you had to go through this particular violence,
and it's not acceptable whatsoever. I I I know how hard you work to make things right, at McClements. Not just for McClements, but for all students, all black students. You are coming every morning to greet the students to see what they need. You stand late at night watching the football practices. You've been tutoring. You created a family resource room that, has been moved, taken away. You have dedicated four long years to Machlimus.
And I know that your voice is a voice that speaks to all the parents who are at my clients who have to work, who have to take care of other, of things. And and I'm glad to see that, miss Hanley is also, Handy is most with you as well, standing to support. I know you at the, SSC as well. You've been, participating, really bringing a parent voice to the SSC, both of you. And I know that, a lot of common sense stuff does not happen the way it should. I do my my concern is I've always been told the administrator at the school
will will step up and do the investigation, check some stuff out, and it's not happening, obviously. Anytime a parent is assaulted at a school, there should be a clear line of investigation from bottom to top, and every single person in that, our network superintendent high school superintendent, as well as our general counsel, as well as our superintendent should understand and actually act on that. And so I am sorry that it has not gotten to that particular level, and I appreciate that you're sharing it now because action do need to be taken
immediately in regards to investigating the issue and finding out what actually transpired. There's no we have preached to our young folks, our students, and our school community that violence is not an answer. And so when we have after school staff or whatever is happening is engaging in that okay. After school engaging in such behavior, it has to be looked at. So, I will definitely be sharing that with, those involved. And, also, coach Tapscott,
I I know that you have certain feelings with Preston, but he is the facilities director, and we have to go through him to actually move his. Well, I would like to make sure you're connected with Preston so we can move that issue forward. He's he's the director. He he's the director, and we have to go through. So I just wanna thank you very much. Thank you. Any other board comments on this agenda item, which again is the l consent, minus l one and l four? Seeing none. L one and four. Yes. So if we could take a vote on,
the On the roll call for the approval of the general consent report minus l one and l four. Student director Simmons, absent. Student director Smith, absent. Director Latta? Yes. Director Williams? Yes, sir. Director Hutchinson? Abstain. Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Vice president Bachelor? Yes. President Brohart? Yes. General consent report minus the two items mentioned is approved. So now we'll move on to l one. Director Hutchinson, I believe you pulled this item. Actually, one and four,
can be handled together, but somebody needs to make a motion first. Correct. Is there a motion for L1? I move to consider L1 and L4 together? I second. Thank you. Director Hutchinson, go ahead. So I really wanted to lift these items up because I was, surprised and not very happy. So I wanted to, highlight these two items to your attention, Superintendent Sadler. My understanding was last year, the School Board approved a resolution coauthored by myself and Director Lerma that called for OUSD to take the name Jefferson off of the CDC in any place that it
might be left. It is offensive to many of us, if not all of us in the community, to have any of our buildings still named after a slave owner. And I know that we, we should be in the process of creating a committee to, choose a new name and recommend a new name, but that shouldn't have stopped us from erasing that Jefferson name off of every document indeed that we have in the district. So I wanted to pull these two items to highlight it, and, and I don't expect to ever have to see the Jefferson name attached to any of our facilities going forward.
So if if you could please, help with that and and hopefully, help jump start the renaming process that should be ongoing. And I know that former director, Jorge Lerma, is very interested, and is available to help with that process if needed. But I was I was very upset to see the Jefferson name. So hopefully we can just get that taken care of. Thank you. Any public comment on this agenda item? The item was closed. I will recommend if there's any public speaker that wants to speak on this item or these two items. I see miss Harris.
Go ahead. Oh, thank you, for bringing that to light. I don't always agree with, director Hutchinson, but this time, I do. This is just one more thing, a slap in the face to the black community of Oakland. And Oakland was very much black years ago, but it was you know, we were told where we could go to school, what we could do, which is why my climate is so important to me. 87% African American. 27 African American male teachers. That is unheard of. And this is just one more slap in the face.
It's like, imagine being owned by another person. I couldn't. I couldn't. So, no, I wouldn't send my children to any place that was named after somebody who used to own us. So remove the name, please. Seeing no other public comment for this agenda item, any board comments? Seeing none, can we go ahead and take roll call for this item? Take a vote on this item. I apologize. On the roll call to approve l dot dash one and l dot dash four recorded separately,
Student director Simmons, absent. Student director Smith, absent. Director Thompson? Yes. Director Berry? Yes. Director Hutchinson? Abstain. Director Williams? Yes. Yes. Director Latta? Yes. Vice president Bachelor? Yes. President Breaux Hart? Yes. Motion is adopted. Under five, we'll now give the floor back to President Brohard. We're on m, which is consent items for facilities. Thank you. The agenda item is now m consent, item, concerning facilities minus m four. Do we have public comment?
Okay. Is there a motion? I motion that we approve item n minus, m four. Second. And other public comments? Yes. For public comment, we have Ashley Handy, Janer Harris, Asolo Labala, and Bim Tapscott. Okay. I'm addressing m one McClymonds fire and intrusion alarm testing. This this is outlandish. This is eleven month contract after construction is completed. Okay? So McClimans was supposed to start the remodeling of the building in June.
Nothing has gone on related to the remodeling of the building. The kitchen has started. The majority of the kitchen are the food new food carts, and I don't know what else, but it's not finished. The football field, we have rescheduled and only have two home games. I don't know why we have two home games. But you are putting us at an a disadvantage for our football team because be playing at home is an advantage. Our team is starting off with a disadvantage this whole season because we don't have
a home field advantage. Please. The scoreboard doesn't work. The the speaker system doesn't work. The bathroom has roaches in it, water leaking from the toilets, and you have done nothing with the remodeling that's supposed to have started in June. Nothing. And you're talking about Preston Thomas? Mister Williams? What is he gonna do to expediate getting something started? I asked on Monday, what is the start date? The principal doesn't know when the start date is for remodeling of the school.
It hasn't been given to the principal. Thank you. Next speaker, please. So McClymonds is at two ninety, almost 300 students, and we are working out of the half of a building. We were told last year that we had to go from one side to the other. So like missus Sada said, we got teachers sharing classrooms, which is illegal. We don't have a space for a family resource center, which is necessary. We don't have we don't have a lot of things, but I say all this to say that we we need a date. We need a date.
We need a date. Like, enough is enough. If you're not gonna remodel the school when you say you are, then allow us to use those built those rooms. Because now we got more kids than we did last year. And we're easily gonna fill 650 kids. Believe that. Everybody wants to be a warrior. Everybody. And 290 students in half a building is not acceptable. We have half a building, and we are looking for space every day to put teachers, partners. We can't have any of the resources that we need because we are working at
our library. We can't even use our library. So how are these children supposed to function? Thank you. Next speaker, please. Every time you turn around, somebody's lying. Preston's lying. We had with Tim White 2018 a list, and I've asked this for four or five different years now, the list. And do we have money to cover those projects? There are currently five projects on the board, Oakland High's football field, Roosevelt, and there are three others that I can't think of. Where's Mac? Measure j.
I'm researching measure j because if measure j says what I thought it said to the voters, we may have a lawsuit. The fact that they were saying if this measure is passed, that the funds will be used to remodel McClements High School. We can't even get a scoreboard to work. We can't even get the field fixed. But they've got five new projects, and I keep asking for the list, and do we have funds? So if Measure j turns out to be fraud, I've already talked to the attorney general's office.
I talked to Elihu Harris, the former mayor. He says, coach, you may have a lawsuit. So I would strongly have Preston get over there and start getting some of this work done because he lies all the time. He lied. Are there any more public speakers? All public speakers name as we call. Is she open the card? Yes. Yes. Sorry. Go ahead, miss Handy. I just need to ask tonight, how long are we gonna keep doing this? How long will my climate students be overlooked, ignored, and pushed to the side? I'm standing here because our students cannot stand here for themselves.
Either they're at practice, for football, one of the top football teams in the Bay Area, or they're getting after hours tutoring with the comp ed hours that you guys are providing them because you're not providing IEP services during the day. So how long are we gonna be doing this? What immediate actions are we gonna be doing? We can meet a thousand times, but what are we gonna do? What are you guys gonna do is the real question. Thank you. Mister Braixstra, can we have do you have, mister or director Hutchinson? Yes. I do. You know, I've had a growing level of what started as discomfort and it's now grown to
anger on just really how far behind we are, especially with our work around facilities. So it wasn't just the McClimans field that wasn't done over the summer. Neither was the Oakland High field. So now they're practicing after 05:30PM at Edna Brewer, which is now displacing those students as well. And we're also now just started work on the field at the Cesar Chavez campus, where my partner works and was forced to wear a mask this week because the fumes from the exposed field as they've started to do the work was so overwhelming.
I was I was consensed this weekend. So first, I was shocked to hear a report that there was a fire at the Bunch Campus. Because I seem to remember us as a board in an emergency resolution in June, passing that so all of the portables would be demolished. So because I saw this on the news on Saturday, I drove by there on Sunday. I was shocked to see all the portables still standing there. And so if we were asked to approve an emergency resolution that was then brought
back again at the last meeting and is on the agenda today, but none work was done. And now we still have ongoing fires. And in this consent report, there's stuff about windows and fencing at the Ethel Moore Building. We can't even secure our buildings with the basics now? This is a huge failure. We were supposed to have a lead remediation plan by now. We were supposed to have a master's we were supposed to have the master's facility plan, the list, which is supposed to be done every five years. That was due in the spring. We still haven't seen that. And so,
well, actually, there are other people that are responsible for things and the way things are structured isn't working. And so I don't want to put this on one person. This is a complete failure across the board. And it incenses me to hear school board directors making excuses because the buck has to stop with us. It has to. It has to. And for anyone who's been on the board as long as I have, they should have a working knowledge on how to get things done. Now I have plenty of schools that are having problems with their fixtures, their water fountains that we're working on getting cleared up.
And we need some help and support to move things along. But how our facilities have just lagged behind, how the McClimans project is now two years behind where it should have been, and we saw that at our last Board meeting where one of the contracts had to be extended for two years. By definition, we are behind in not getting work done while our facilities continue to burn because we have no security. Lastly, when I went by there on Sunday, I don't know who it was, but there was somebody hanging from one of the portables looking to see if it was still structurally sound and an open gate.
Now I don't know if that's always how it is, but there was nobody else there at the Bunch campus that had just burned for about the fifth or sixth time, and I seem to be the only one there even looking at it to see what happened. This is a complete failure that is unacceptable. And if we as a Board aren't going to do something, I expect the superintendent to direct staff to do something. And if neither of that works, the time for asking, begging, complaining is long gone. I I'm really asking for everyone to not just come to these meetings,
but start showing up with folks. Coach, this needs to be like back in the day at City Hall where we get the McCliman students to show up and demand that the school board listen. They listen that day when you filled city council or city hall with McCliman students. Director Hutchinson, your time is up. Everyone's time is gonna be up. That's the whole problem. So we have to do better. Please, Superintendent Sadler, these projects are behind, our reports are behind and it is unacceptable for me to watch on the news over the weekend to see another one of our facilities burn that I know there
was a boat to demolish that facility three months ago. Thank you. I do want to clarify one since one of those schools is in my district, which is Oakland High. And the Oakland High principal and I did talk about the field and this is the timeline that she agreed to. I don't know about the situation with Brewer. That's not one of my schools, but I do know about it. Well, Brewer is my school and they're being displaced. And a principal Excuse me, Director Hutchinson, I have the authority to say, yes, do it during the school year instead of doing it during the summer. So if you wanna make an excuse for why your school is like that,
please say that loudly and say it with your chest. I'm sorry, I find there's a woman telling me to talk with my chest a little obsessed a little insulting. I did have that conversation with Jacqueline. Roll call, vote, please. On the motion to adopt the general consent report for general obligation bonds minus item MDotDash4. Excuse me. We're taking a roll call vote. Can you please continue, mister Raikstra? I'm sorry. On the motion to adopt the item as stated, student directors are absent. Director Williams? Yes, sir.
Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Director Hutchinson? Abstain. Director Latta? Yes. Vice president Bachelor? Yes. President Brothard? Yes. Motion's adopted minus M dot dash 4. Okay. On the motion M4 agreement for inspect sorry, Inspector of Record for Construction Antonio Incorporated, Kaiser Development Center Outdoor Learning Environment Project. Director Hutchinson, I believe is there a motion to, approve this? Move to approve item M4. Second.
Public comments. If public comment, this item was pulled, so I would recommend seeing if the public to give the public an opportunity to speak. Is there anyone from the public who would like to speak on item m four? Hang on just a second. K. K. There's no public speaker. Director Hutchinson, would you like to speak to your motion? You know, it's fine. It doesn't bother me. My skin is way too thick and my mom was proud of me. But I will respond every time when I watch the community or other people being disrespected. And from what I heard in closed session, this was another meeting where it was not acceptable the way some directors were treated
and there was a racial context to it. So let's just be clear about a couple of things. So I really wanted to pull this item. For one, it is now a part of my district, but also to highlight a couple of things. And so this is finally the closeout close to the end of, the, the Special Education Early Childhood Hub at the Keizer Campus. And I think it's really important that we highlight this for a couple of reasons. We now have a really good outcome for that campus. If you haven't had a chance to go visit, they have a beautiful outdoor space with an adaptive playground that the county helps support,
and it is really, turning into a benefit for both that neighborhood and OUSD as a whole, becoming our second special education early childhood hub after Burbank. But this is also a cautionary tale, because we had two years of protests when Keizer Elementary was closed. We had just about everything under the sun, including the school police, attacking the community around that project. And one of the reasons why I'm so upset now is, a lot of us worked really hard over the last couple of years to create
a process of community conversation so we as a community could figure out how to change some of our uses for our sites to better uses. We knew that dictating what has to be done is never going to work. But we also knew that if we have conversations with the community, they're gonna want the same thing: the best use for our resources, how do we maximize our scarce resources, and how do we spread those resources using an equity lens. And so Kaiser now has gone from an elementary school that only served,
its students only had 20% in the neighborhood, to now a regional hub that is providing a real service. This is a great thing, but as a District, we still have to figure out how we can make these changes and pivots without causing three years of protests, the anger, a lawsuit that had to be paid out. And so I'm really excited that this project is finally being closed out and close to the end. If you haven't gone and visited, I really encourage everyone to visit. It's, really one of our first adaptive playgrounds that we've built in the district.
But this is the cautionary tale. If we don't do the things the right way, it'll end in ruin and acrimony no matter what. And if we can figure out how to do things the right way, we can actually make things better and add on for our communities. So thank you. Are there any other board comments? Yes. On the roll Thank you. On the roll call, to dot m dot dash four. The student directors are absent. Director Thompson? Yes. Director Berry? Yes. Director Hutchinson? Yes. Director Williams?
Yes. Director Latta? Absent. Okay. Vice president Bachelor? Yes. And President Prohart? Yes. Motion is adopted. Thank you. We now have item p, which is comments from our labor partners, and each union is given five minutes. Are there any Hi. Good evening, board. Trish Bellinson, SEIU chapter president. Tonight, you heard from several of our bargaining unit instructional assistants, also referred to as instructional aids or commonly known as IAs. I wanted to uplift the fact that IAs are some of the lowest paid workers in the SEIU bargaining unit,
most of whom work in our CDCs, caring for our youngest students, providing essential childcare and foundational support in the development of their education in OUSD. We know this work can be challenging and oftentimes goes unrecognized as CDCs are adjacent to the typical TK through 12 learning track, which often gets more, shine than those, who work in early childhood education. A remarkable number of IAs have informed us that they have been asked to take on duties outside of their job description. SEIU will not stand for labor exploitation.
This is not only disrespectful. It is a contract violation, and we will continue to inform our members of their rights and encourage, them to file a grievance if needed. And they are indeed contract violations. As I mentioned, these are some of our bargaining units, the lowest paid workers who earn less than $25 per hour. Does it seem fair that an OUSD employee who helped enrich countless student lives over a forty year span receives $20.60 an hour? We sure don't think so. And I'm gonna presume that you don't think so either as you know firsthand what
it costs to live in the Bay Area. On top of poverty wages, many of our IAs work two to three jobs and for some, those who live in their households take on two to three jobs in addition to that just to make their ends meet. A significant number of IAs have reported not having reliable transportation. They're behind on their utility bills, and are experiencing food insecurity. It's time that OUSD respects all in house workers and ensures livable wages, and OUSD can start by securing measure measure C funding to provide a $25 minimum
wage to some of our lowest paid workers, RIAs. Our bargaining team has been at the table for five months now without any noteworthy movement from OUSD. Has the board been kept informed throughout this process? I hope the board is asking those with authority to negotiate on behalf of OUSD. What will it take to reach a TAA with SCIU? Thank you. Thank you. Are there any other labor representatives? Thank you. With that, we will move on to, excuse me, Item, R, Unfinished Business. And I believe the first item is forty five day revision.
And miss Grant Dawson, you have a presentation? We need a motion to adopt this. I move the adoption of r one, our forty five day budget division. Is there a second? Second. Thank you. Go ahead. Sorry. You got your say? Okay. Sorry. Sorry. Okay. Good evening. I know the hour is getting late, and, don't want you to have to make a motion on behalf of this report to extend your meeting. So we're gonna go through, briefly the forty five day revise. We're doing a forty five day revise, and we provided a couple slides here to share why. We had a lot of business that we took care of at the very June,
and, that was going to affect the budget. And so we wanted to make sure that we were able to have a snap of what the budget would look like with those changes prior to us getting to first interim, which is not until December. And they, were primarily due to not necessarily the state budget changes, but our local changes, which included, the reversal of the, caps on particular kinds of, expenditures in our services and operating expenditure expenditures object codes, and we also had two salary agreements that were approved with Teamsters and AFSCME.
And so as noted here, what happens at the end of the year when these things happen is we have to carry over this activity into the new year, which can make it pretty challenging in the timing of how we, get things done in addition to what fiscal year the expense hit. So we were able to get the Teamsters retroactive payment, and the new salary schedules done for 2425 and 2526. For AFSCME, the new salary schedules are complete, and so, therefore, compensation for employees with the new salary schedule is is being completed.
But the retroactive payment, again, back to the crossover of the fixed school year, it's very challenging for us to do that with our system, and we saw that there were some discrepancies that we wanted to make sure that we cleared before we remitted, payment. And so, we projected that we should be complete with this review by September 15. But, again, we really just need to get in a different rhythm or wherewithal so we can finish all these things within the fiscal year and not have to, as we have the last three years, continue to do this in June.
It also adds heavy burden onto the board as well because because the June agenda is super thick with all of this activity. So that takes a collective effort, for us to do, those things as well as the partnership with the county because the county also has to review our a b 1,200. And doing all those things by the June is really, really challenging, for for the whole system. So we've done those things. So when we talk about the action item of reversing the alternative budget adjustments, this just shows you that at adoption, we moved, $67,000,000
into the two object codes that we told you that we created. We created those object codes so that we can easily navigate and move, things, around if necessary. And so now when you look at the revised budget, it's zero because those costs have been returned to their original requested, object codes. And you likely have not received any phone calls from anyone because of that. We talked about the federal funding. There was a moment for about twenty three days that, we received notification that there was gonna be a freeze on federal funding.
And although this was eventually reversed with thanks to, our, state legislative bodies and and our, district attorneys and others who pull together, to to do this, along with other states, we should still expect that there may be other adjustments that will happen in the future. So when that happens, in this example, what would have happened if they said we're not going to provide you with the cash? It meant that if we continue to provide services with those resources, we would have to figure out how to pay for it because no revenue was
coming in. And so with that, we averted it this time, but we definitely were preparing, for what may occur as a result. The main things that we wanna share with the twenty forty five day revise, with the adjustments noted and some still to come, is that when you look at where we projected we were gonna be, in June with 28,000,000 with our estimated actuals, so we're looking at the 2526 budget, but we're closing the '24, '25 year first. So we ended the year as of this moment.
We'll be back well, to you in two weeks with the unaudited actuals, the final numbers, with 26,000,000. And that looks like, wow. We did really great projecting and landing very close to where we projected we were gonna be. And numerically, we did. However, when you look at the unrestricted general fund, as we've shared and I share in another slide, there are multiple resources and unrestricted and restricted resources. What we've been sharing is that the base is the resource that is in trouble,
and it's been in trouble for many years. We have done a lot of work to breathe life back into it and to get it where it should be to be able to support not only additional expenditures, but also our reserve. But we're heading in the opposite direction. We were heading in the opposite direction last year, and are continuing to head in that direction. So the way we ended up balancing and having a beginning fund balance that looks, stronger, still not as strong as we'd like. We've shared with you a budget adoption that we already saw the projection we were gonna lose $2,000,000,
in average daily attendance because our attendance, numbers actually decline. We also saw an increase above budget projections, in our contribution, to, our special education programs. That means we have more expenditures that we are expending, and we need to see how that affects the entire district and what those needs are. The reduction in consulting spending is what helped offset that increase that we didn't expect. So meaning, we spent 9,000,000 less in one resource, but spent 10,000,000 more plus had a loss in revenue.
And so that's where you're seeing that net change, are those increases and decreases that ultimately look like we're about $2,200,000 off from where we were check projected to be. This report is the report that we, provide in every financial report to show you by resource, and I've highlighted Quad Zero. When we were adopting the budget, we were projecting that our ending fund balance would be 21,800,000.0. Based on where we were as of the adoption of this report, you can see now that we're less than 6,000,000.
And so the principal message here is that when you're looking at the unrestricted general fund and it says, oh, we have a total at the bottom of 58,000,000, we're supposed to pay our reserve from that quad zero, the four zero number. If our reserve on average is 26 to 28,000,000, do we have enough in quad 0 to pay the reserve? No. So we can report that we can cover the reserve, but we're using other resources to pay for it. And that's what the concern has been. So I'm gonna jump to this slide to show this is where we continue to
show the decline in the general fund. I don't know where my number is on the other side. They got lost. Maybe it's because it's, how large it is. But when you if you look over the red number, they're not aligned quite quite right. The red number, that 5,800,000.0, that matches this report that we shared with you. So we've continued to decline. When I arrived in 1920, we were at negative 6,000,000, which means we were worser, which is not a word, but it sounds real good in this moment. We were worser in our fund balance. And we you can see we did the work to improve the balance so that
we can cover our reserves, and now we're going in the opposite direction. We don't have a way to make that up. There's no additional revenue that's coming in to to, support the restoration of those resources. And so that's why when we begin to look at 2425, we're looking at a beginning balance of 58,000,000 in the unrestricted general fund. And then you can see that if we were to make the reserve of 28,000,000, which is 3% of all of our expenditures in unrestricted and restricted,
we'd be negative 9,000,000. That's the problem. And so because of how 2425 is shaping up, it's worser. It just accelerated where we were projecting that we were going to be and didn't need to be. I think I wanna point out another thing that's easy to see on this chart, but you can also see the detail. And these individuals, reports are in the back of of the financial report as well. If you look at the restricted side so I think this is the other misnomer. Last year, we heard a lot of, look at how much your fund balance is.
You guys got all this money, and you're not spending which is not not standard as far as looking at school district budgets. But look at the restricted side. We had a have a projected beginning balance of 201,000,000. Based on how much we're gonna spend, which you could see it here as well as the previous detail report, we'll have 113,000,000 remaining if we spend all of the resources. Again, we're closing, so there's resources that we didn't spend this year that will carry over. But that's what we've been sharing.
Our balances in all of our resources are declining. And some of the restricted resources are ongoing. Absolutely. But there's many that have a sunset date. And because we've moved so many expenditures into those resources that, like, it's tight. We're spending down those resources faster. There is no way to avoid making reductions somewhere if you're going to be solvent. The only other way is then to say, yeah. We don't wanna do it. We don't wanna make reductions. And so will somebody provide us additional revenue?
That's a different conversation to have. That's where state takeover and receivership and another loan come into play. We've all talked about that $100,000,000 loan and that 20,000,000 of that was interest. So we've lived that life, but that's this is the precursor to that. And so with that, you see the details of 2526 budget and how it's shaping up with the changes that we've made and more, to come. We've also included, some carryover. So what we do at the end of the year is for resources that aren't spent that we need to put into the new budget,
we do that also. So we put $3,500,000 of carryover in object $43.94 for ASME, to cover the retroactive for Teamsters and AskMe the retroactive payment that's due to them as well as the next two years of the agreement. So that's how we're making sure that money we reserved last year moves forward to make good on, those agreements. We have additional transportation contracts that were requested that weren't part of the adopted budget. Again, the district doesn't provide home traditional home to school transportation.
The majority of it is for our, students with exceptional needs in addition to, supporting other programs, that require transportation services. We also have, a one time $1,800,000 that we've moved over. This is to help continue with the facility work, playgrounds, and other areas for resources that Eat, Learn, and Play, doesn't pay for. We use one time resources to help support that so that all of our schools can see that beautiful face lift, a playground and other, investments that we wanted to make. And so, again, we talked about if we really were gonna make our 3% reserve,
we'd be negative. So the district can make, and likely by the time we get to the, first interim, we, like we did at adoption, may not have a 3% reserve. It may be two or two point something, but likely not three. And so with that being said, it means that we will not be meeting the board policy for the 3%, but we are meeting the state requirement based on where our enrollment is of 2%. Okay? So from a state perspective, we're compliant. From a board perspective, we're not. Okay. So this is another slide that we really wanted to provide back to really focusing
on the base. So this pie chart just shows you what the 2526 budget looks like as of this moment or as of at least when we publish this. And what's important to the story is is that the blue portion of the circle is all certificated position. It doesn't distinct between certificated management, nonmanagement because they all fall into the 1,000 object codes. The orange is classified. The gray are benefits. So the other high advocacy of making sure that the district pays a 100% of
health benefits, we've done that. Right? We've consistently done that. I don't care what we have been accused of not doing or what we've been accused of trying to assert. Done that. Evidence. You'll see it in 2425 too, when we close, similar data. You can't make up, and the base is essentially saying if you're a school district, that means you're a community that has children, and the children live in your community. Therefore, you must have school. And, therefore, based on the size of the school Cool. And then the number of students in the community,
that's what you're building. And that's from when Oakland was an infant city to how it's grown. All the schools have been populated based on the growth and changes of a city. So what we've done is in the base, which is, again, your primary area of funding, we're spending the majority of our resources, not only in positions and compensation, which we should. We're a people business. But we also have a program that as we shared, we need to talk more about what the needs are.
If there's a reason for the district to look at infrastructure and reduction, We have more students that need additional support that require additional investments and that what color is that? Gold color that where it looks, on the screen now. That amount is 110,000,000. It actually, at the end of 2425, was a 132,000,000. We use one time money to offset that contribution. We talked about that that in attachment c, we would have to use some one time resources just to balance the $25.26
budget. So that number is really more like $1.32. But if you look at the 85,000,000 plus the 41,000,000, that's near the same amount of money in just the salaries alone. So if you don't look at what programmatically and who we're serving and what those investments look like, you don't have additional resources to offset that. That's what has been desired or asked for. We've gotten to the point that, we've reached this place of we understand that we think clearly about what we what
you don't want to do. Right? But you still have to come up with a way forward, and what will you do? So we're opening up the door to have the conversation about what keeps getting raised, brought up, threatened, you know, stated. We need to do something, and the money is in central budgets. We had some awkwardness last year in talking about it, but I'm asking as I did last year that we have a a way forward if you wanna talk about it, if you wanna look at it, if you wanna do something about it, then let's do it.
And let's talk through it, and let's talk about it. Because the ways we've done before have created different degrees of harm and crisis and conflict, and that's not what we're here here for nor is that what what we want for you as a board nor this community. So if if we can work on how do we start addressing that, This particular slide shows you and there's so much richness to this slide because it has a annual year. It starts with the thirteen, fourteen year, and that is the second year we started receiving LCFF.
It's the first year that the LCAP, was required for our school districts. And so if you walk through each year, you look at the blue and the red line, there was a level of parity between you should have more. The blue line is k 12 schools. You should have more staff at your schools. That's the business that we're in in education. But you had support staff. Right? That's either immediate support staff and facilities and nutrition and other areas. And there was this parity between the number of staff in those first three years.
Then you begin to see the blue line go up and the red line go down. Now that was during the administration that said, well, you know, we really wanna start reflecting who actually is working at a school site, and we wanna want you to code it so that it shows that they're at a school site. And so when you see that drop, it's not necessarily that we, reduce that many positions. It means that we start coding differently. But you can see that that net change, we actually increased the blue line by 200 more FTE. These are all FTEs. And the blue line kept rising.
So when the district has asked, this is pre your term on the board. Don't cut school sites. Make the reductions that you have to make furthest away from school sites. If you flip this 90 degrees, this is a magnum wine bottle that we have created in the staffing strategy. We've done that. And you can also see these other lines, the purple line correlates to the blue line because that's your site administration. And you can see the numbers change of how many, you know, site we have. So you have your principals, your sense of principals, and other management that's responsible for the school site.
The district has made good on maintaining that theory of action. And what I've said during the two by twos this week is that when the district when it went under receivership, two thousand two, two thousand one, we knew early warnings. When we went there, I don't know if somebody thought that there was this magic box that they passed from board to board to board that said, when the emergency happens, open this box and it'll give you the clues on what to do next. There was never a plan of how we were gonna maintain that.
And if you look at the very bottom row, it shows you the loss of 5,000 student ADA. We're gonna add enrollment to this, graph as well, But we've lost 5,000 students in ADA. That means that we've had a reduction in enrollment as well. And that blue line and the purple line are indicative of an enrollment. The red line also has positions that have ratios based on enrollment. And our theory of action has been, yep. We understand enrollment and attendance is going down, but don't change that number. Make sure we maintain.
And what we're saying to you is $6,000,000 projected to be in the bank, like, we really can't. Like, we really can't. So this is just more components of, you know, working on central budgets. This slide shows, by, salary investment amount, again, by year. Right? You see where the areas of focus are? That's what the boards have asked for, and we did it. And you also see that tension with that red line because historically, when we've made central cuts, that's where you can see it in addition to that other wine bottle.
We've cut other positions in order to afford positions at school sites. So we did it. Last, this is a a slide by bargaining unit. When you're looking at the last year and you see the blue line go down and the red line go up, so we've made some changes recently about, again, where positions sit. So for instance, the Stip Stoves, for 2526, we moved those under talent where before they were at school sites. But, yes, school sites did make some reductions to staffing as well over time because, again, our revenue is going down.
We also changed the supplemental allocation. We also created a staffing model for every school that included a teacher on special assignments, reading literacy tutor tutors. And for elementary schools, we also added, positions for noon duty. Right? And so you remember that strategy. But this tells the story about what we've done over time. So if you wanna talk about confidential, that's that purple line. It won't solve your problem, but we could talk about it, and we can definitely work on the schedule. If you wanna talk about what we need to do in changing other managerial,
that we could talk about that too. If you wanna talk about reducing or adjusting services, we could talk about it, and we should talk about it. But we need to do it in a way that, right, voices can be heard, and we have enough time for the staff to come back with based on what you're recommending. This is what it would look like so we can stay on task, and the board has received. We'll provide it, at the unaudited actuals, the budget development calendar so that we can stay on task and make sure that whatever we're gonna do,
we continue to be compliant. We aren't under receivership anymore. No one's sending us extra emails about make sure you do, did you do, we're checking your board agenda, can we talk before your board meeting. None of that's happening now. It's on you. It's on us. And so how do we best show our community that we're modeling those components based on all of the the pain and the threshold that, you know, we've gone through? I mean, I think I wanna say one more thing. You sitting on this board, the majority of you did not live through the experience of more money coming in
those early years from 1314 on. You didn't. Part of you came during the pandemic when there was pandemic response money. And then as I've shared with president Brohart and director of Bachelor, you came in the middle of that. The money was allocated, but starting to decline. And then, of course, we have our two newest board members. You came when, like, yeah. It's not there's no more money coming. So with that, you all have an array of experience of when you came on board, but this situation started well before you were seated.
The so you don't have the same luxuries, if you will, as other boards did. It's just a timing thing. It has nothing to do with your names or or or or your reason for serving. It's timing. And so at this point, we need to figure out how we're going to get there because there is no additional funding coming that is going to allow us to maintain, those lines and to balance, you know, the support that's needed for all schools. So with that, this just shows the timeline, from where we are now. We'll be back in a couple of weeks, like I said,
with the not at the actuals, and then, working with the board to hear, you know, what your direction is. And then by December, we'll be at first interim, and, also, we'll see what modeling that we have in play. We have several, you know, strategies that the the board I mean, the staff has presented over time, for the board to be able to reference. And so we look for your direction as I turn, the mic back over to president Brohard, for board deliberation and what the board is seeking, and how the board seeks to move forward. Thank you. And thank you for the two by two's this week as well.
Is there any public comment? Yes. President Brujah. We have four public speakers. Respectfully, can we have Board comment first so we can have the Board weigh in and the community can hear that before the public comment, please? Is there any objection to Board? Okay. Alright, we will start with Board comment. As we go into this Board comment, I want to think a lot about, my two by two and I think something I think Troy is out there. I think a question that he posed during our two by two really made me think a lot about how to,
start the discussion of giving direction, which I think is really what we're being asked to do here. And he asked, first, what were the things that you that are off the table for you for cuts or for adjustments? And then the second part of that question is what things would you look at that you could make adjustments to? And I thought that was a really good way to kind of frame that question rather than, I think we often have discussions, with lots of ideas, but I think by first giving the direction that says what are things that are
off the table for us. And I think this would allow the finance team to bring back scenarios with that because I'm gonna guess that there are things that we would like to see off the table that may not be workable in the information that, Ms. Grant Dawson has given us. I'm gonna also ask my board colleagues to refrain from being personal in this conversation. I think it's a very heated conversation, it's an emotional conversation. We all feel different ways about things we hold that we don't want to see cut or things that we do.
But I think what our real as we format our comments, I think, one, think about the things first that are off the table for you for being cut. And then, I think the second thing to really keep in mind is, in our discussion, how are we giving direction to the Budget Department? Because I think that is really the ask of Ms. Grant Dawson and staff is what is it the Board wants to see in this budget. So, I'm going to ask people first to think about what are the things that, for them, are 100% off the,
table for them. And again, let's keep this on our topic of budget and not personal. So with that, I will start with anyone who would like to. Sure. I'll jump in. That was a very interesting framing to put on the fact that we're now in Financial Crisis. And for my first time on the School Board, I'm looking at having to make mid year cuts in spending, which for anyone who was around and involved from 2015 to 2019, knows that that is the biggest thing that we fought against year after year.
Years where I don't want to go over the things that were cut at the last minute. So we have to be really clear as a Board that this is a self inflicted crisis. We were here in June at budget adoption. We were told that there was only $300,000 above the reserve. Miss Grant Dawson said it was probable that we'd have to go back to mid year cuts. And this is because last school year, not only was our superintendent forced out, but we had the ill fated alternative budget solutions that the board majority passed and
then had to repeal two months later. And so now in one year, there's been a hole busted in our finances. Where it's hard to even remember and recognize that we just left receivership in June because everyone acknowledged we had finally figured out how to do this. And so, I don't think what was just said was said nearly, strongly enough. I really appreciate the, the letter that, Superintendent Sadler sent to the board in the weekly message on August 15, which said the forty five day revision will come to the board on August 27
and the unaudited actuals on September 10. A budget development timeline will be provided in next week's message, which we also receive the following week. One key time frame to have in mind is that staff will need clear direction by October by the October 8 board meeting regarding the board's desired strategy for budget adjustments. So that means the superintendent has told the Board that we have until October 8 to direct staff. Now that wasn't high on the agenda today as a as a special order of
the day or a public hearing. There hasn't been a special meeting scheduled to address it. So President Brohard, this is your responsibility as Board President. What is gonna be the process for this Board over the next six weeks to be able to give recommendations to staff by October 8. Because I the way I read it is this is a firm deadline. And I know this board has not ever directed staff in that sort of way. So what is going to be the mechanism that we as a board over the next six weeks are able to direct staff? Because if we don't do this by October 8,
we will be out of time. And if we are out of time, then we're gonna be taken over by the county. And for some of us, it's just a question of are we gonna ask them to take us over or are we gonna push back and remain in full local control? So president Brohard, the question rests with you. What are you gonna do for the board to allow us to recommend to staff by October 8? My last thing is because I made years worth of recommendations. We have plans on the books, but everyone ignored it and didn't carry through with those votes. So I know this board by a series of four to three votes won't listen
to me. I've watched them not listen to director Thompson or director Berry either. So I wanna know what you're gonna do and your board majority is gonna do to direct staff in the next six weeks because otherwise, it's a complete failure. And if we fail in our fundamental duty to manage our finances, then we need to go. So I'll be waiting for a response, President Brohard, because you told everyone you'd reach out to me, and I haven't heard from you in months. Go ahead, Director Thompson. Thank you, President Brohard. And thank you very much, miss Grant Dawson. I think it was a very it was a very candid conversation,
and I have to be honest. It made me hearken back to several months ago when I talked about an onion and peeling an onion and actually getting to the core. It made me think of that, and it made me think of the decisions that we have to make, the priorities that we have to actually select because I I feel we're in a position and and I'm not gonna repeat the letter that, doctor Sadler sent. I'm not gonna repeat that. I think that's really important, but it's we're at a position where we have to,
no, I can't use that kind of language. We have to actually do something. And because we're not because I I can say that because we didn't make decisions in the past, we're now at this point. Now we're at the point of no turning around. Something has to be done. So I thank you for that, presentation because it actually highlights the importance of what we as board members, all seven of us,
things that we have to do. I I think we have to not I think. I know. We have to make a decision and not be swayed by individuals who are speaking in our ear. We have to think about our responsibility as board members and think about how we have to keep this district afloat. So if I were to talk about something that's off the table, I probably would not say that I wanna take anything off the table right now
because we're at a dire point, I think. A dire point that if we don't watch out, we're going to sink again. And if we sink, we're going to be in a situation that we did not enjoy these past twenty years. And I like the I have to be honest. I like the forward thinking of individuals with whom you've worked because you're able to craft out, a way to actually take a whole year payment. Well, I mean,
pay this off a year in advance. Mhmm. So I I just wanna say I appreciate your thinking. I appreciate the times. Time after time after time you stood there, and you gave us instruction. And many times, we fail to actually follow through. I'm imploring that you not give up on us because I think we as a group, we're gonna work together in order to see through or or see it through what you have told us. Mhmm. Thank you.
And I think I better stop there because my time is up. Director Lottie. So, yes. I wanna thank you, miss Grant Dawson, and I see mister Christmas in the audience, and, your, team for, what I know has been a lot of work. I think to get to your question, President Brohard, for what's, well, let me take one step back. I wanna I just wanna echo director Thompson and I think what a lot of, what I have heard from, you know, our parents and students and staff, which is we can work together. I do have faith that we will come together,
in and come up with some clear direction and a solution. What I do think is off the table, and I'll say for me, I think it's off the table to go back into receivership. It's off the table to go bankrupt. I don't think that this I think I have faith that we will come up with solutions. So that's my first thing. My second thing is that any decisions that we make have to center our parents and our students. We I will say that also, though, means that in some ways nothing is off the table because I think as we've
heard from, you know, the Climates community, and I'll say from my own self, like, I have kids at Prescott, I have kids at West Oakland Middle, I've been to, you know, all the school I mean, I've been around to the District one schools and elsewhere. And I think there's a lot of things in the district that don't work for people. I don't think that continuing to run any program to run you know, to have any, system in place, I don't think that it is a good decision to keep it going just because it's already there. I do think having some out of the box thinking, having some creative thinking,
and, you know, I think one thing that I've heard you say, Miss Grant Gassen, and I've heard other people say is that, you know, we're meant to be a unified school district. That part of the charge of being a unified school district is to provide a certain level of education to every student in this district, no matter where they go to school. And we have practices in our district that are, that are in place that cut against that. And we are a district of independent schools a lot of times And, and I do think that we need to do something different.
I will say that, you know and I am really unapologetic as a parent in this district and I that we do need to think about every single student and that that's who we need to fight for and who we need to think about. And that does mean that we as adults owe it to our community to get together and come up with a plan. Thank you, president Brohart. Appreciate that. Thank you very much, miss Grant Dawson, for for the presentation. Yeah. I mean, I I feel the the stress. But when the way I look at it is I've been sitting here on this
board for five years now, and I think you mentioned it. That magic box that we had has been passed down every single year from every board majority to us today. And, you know, I think we really have to realize the times that we're in because our board came to be with a $100,000,000 deficit that they had to cut. I mean, straight up. Here you go. Here's the here's the box. You open it up, and it says says cut $100,000,000. And that was a struggle. Mhmm. And now the magic is given another gift.
Cut another x number of millions of dollars. And I think, you know, actually, we have the right board to do that. I think we actually have the right board to make those decisions, to actually, start to take it down because it didn't happen to previous boards. We have no choice but to make it happen. So I believe this is the one that's gonna make it happen. And so I look forward to those conversations, and they're hard. And, you know, people will come out, but what we have to keep our focus on is resources for our students. Right? We wanna make sure we have,
safe, stable schools. Number one, off the bat. Number two, we wanna make sure that our kids are getting the resources that they deserve. I mean, that should be a priority because and, previously, there was a lot of great vendor great little project here and a project there. They were spending more money when, actually, those resources should have been going to the school sites. More software reading programs to assess kids instead of actually investing in teachers to do special ed programs,
to be in the schools at the school sites. We didn't do that. What we tend to do is we pay parents off to go to a non public school. And we should actually look at how we our program we should evaluate our programs to see what is working and what is not working. Right? And we and then see how that actually is supporting our kids. We have not done that yet to have those real conversations. There's a lot of bluster that comes out of here. Oh, y'all terrible. Y'all this,
y'all that. But, really, if we're trying to make something happen, we're gonna look at programs and do evaluation. We're gonna make sure our students get the resources they deserve. We need to own up to investing in those, programs that work. And our parents are asking for that support in various schools like my climate. So we should really focus in on that. Lastly, I just wanna say this. Put this on the record. Our teachers have been our teachers and classifies have been the lowest paid teachers in the Bay Area. Whenever you see that chart,
they've been the lowest. We finally are bringing them up to, to parity and and our administrators. And we have to keep our focus on that. Thank you very much. Absolutely. And buy buy one more boiler. Director Barry, we got one more boiler in this place. Use a 100 Director Williams. Director Barry. Thank well, we're about to buy one. We're going to. Thank you. Director Berry, you have the floor. Lisa Grant Dawson, as always, I appreciate you so much. I think I was sick,
and I couldn't talk the last time you presented in June at some point. And I was asking all my questions, virtually. So I appreciate being right in front of you, and I appreciate the two by two earlier this week. I'm gonna try my best to answer your questions, but I wanna first give my immediate reactions today. So the first reaction, and this is something I appreciated from what I heard during the two by two, like an insight is that the district has fundamentally changed. We have more special education students by proportion than we've had. We're a sanctuary school district that needs us to live up to that.
Like, we we have no formal investment in that infrastructure. And you mentioned earlier that we have no money no new money coming in. And I actually think it might get worse than that because we the federal government previewed for us exactly what they intend to do at some point again. And so we have to get ready for that. And I heard two, two things from you that we need to do in order to respond to the moment. That's increase revenue and that's reduce cost. And so I'm hoping that from all this,
like, get ready, I'm ready energy I'm hearing on the board, that we think about both those things. And we've had some conversations about ADA and and and absenteeism and how we might be able to generate revenue by getting better at those practices. But I think there's an abundance more that we can be getting at. The other thing that I'm leaving with is that implementing attachment a, b, c, d like solutions is not a sustainable budget development practice nor does it have, like, the rigor, right, that OUSD deserves. We're gonna have to do something fundamentally different in this budget development process.
And I'm saying this as someone who went back to attachment c to look for ideas for 2627, and I all the ideas are not gonna be there. You mentioned infrastructure changes, and we have to take those seriously. And then to your question about what's off the table, I feel urgency to go to community and to get community ready for changes, which is something we also discussed during the two by two. And so far, in my community, I'm not hearing strong ideological opposition to anything. But a community is frustrated. They do not trust us.
And I think as we do budget development with community, we have to make it plain that there is going to be I think it's okay to own that there's gonna be some mistakes. And, you know, in the process of negotiating trade off, everyone's not going to be happy. And so I'm hoping that we can have a district wide community engagement process that isn't about trying to appease our community and tell them that we're perfect and we finally get it because we we do not. This is going to be a learning process.
Dang nabbit. And I also think that because so much information and considerations have to be at the table, this has to move swiftly. So I don't know what everybody is doing, but I'm hoping that as a part of this process, we can share what community meetings that we're having with each other. And we can engage each other's communities in the process because I'm not sure how we'll be able to stack hands on this on top of the superintendent's thirst and some of the other priorities that we have. Thank you. So I will be going over my time because I have questions and I have statements.
So, a couple questions. So I saw in the twenty four-twenty five school year, there was a $17,000,000 drop in federal funding. Can you talk a little bit about what that was? Say it again? In the twenty four-twenty five school year, there was a $17,000,000 drop in funding. Can you talk a little bit about where that came from and why? Can we go to the slide? So are you looking on slide 15? Yes. Yes. Okay. And so slide 15, thank you, for the partnership. So we're looking at the first section a,
and you said a reduction in revenue is 17,000,000. K. So the way we've shared about if we can make it, yeah, put it on slideshow. Thank you. So we're looking at the second line, a two federal revenue. And so the comparison is the middle column, b two, was 67,000,000. I'm rounding. And then, when you go to twenty four twenty five actuals as of the date of this, report, it was $4,900,000,950,000,000. So for federal revenue, federal revenue is deferred.
And so we've talked about what that means is that you can only report and reflect for revenue what you spent. So we only spent 49,000,000 in revenue and expenditures, so we can only reflect 49,000,000 in revenue. That means that the rest and when you look at first interim, first interim always includes carryover. So all of a sudden, you see the budgets change like, wow. Why did it go up? Because we've been awarded those resources. We didn't spend them all in '24,
'25, so we carry them over into '20, '5, '26. So that's what that means when you're seeing a drop like that. That we not that we lost it. We didn't spend it all. Thank you. You're welcome. There was also, I forget which slide it's in now, but there's also a $20,000,000 drop for 2526 in other state monies. Can you talk a little bit about why Mhmm. That's projection? So wait, which one? Other state revenue the sixteenth? Did you say 16? For 2526, and it's '25. 2526. Go back. Let's see.
Okay. So we are on slide 17. Okay. And so your question again is Why the $20,000,000 drop in other state revenue for 2526? $20,000,000 drop. I'm not seeing a drop. You're on slide 17? Yes. Yeah. One more slide. Is that the slide you're on or the Yes. Which one? The one before? This one. This one. Right? I believe the yeah. Where's this other revenue? So there's other state revenue, which is a three. Mhmm. So the difference, in revenue so there's no change in unrestricted. But in a three four, restricted,
there's only a half a million dollar change, 469,000. 17 records. I have to go back to my notes and take a look at that. Okay. My next question is about the Measure c implementation. I know that we voted on certain, certain remedies. What were we able to actually accomplish with that? And has everything been implemented? For Measure c? For Attachment c. I apologize. Oh, Attachment c. So the answer to that question is for all that we could implement that was on c because there were some things that we know that we did not implement and we would need to continue to work through.
So not all, a, is the answer number two. So we had a $95,000,000 deficit, and then we shared that we used $15,000,000 from, partial tax balances back to some of those one time solutions. So what that means is that, yes, we were able to cover the deficit, and then at the end of the year, right, when we had some expenses that came back in, that also impacted why we didn't need our full 3% reserve. The answer is yes with some that we're still, walking through. One of them for instance is, some of the two way twos we were able to share about the,
copier implementation. So some of the work we were gonna do in the spring to work on some of the implementation, we didn't get to do, because we were working on, another project with you. And so with that being said, we have begin to implement that. So for instance, that memo is going out, but the summary of that as an example is we spent $360,000 on copier maintenance based on what we're pulling from our historical expenses. We have 125 purchase orders that we do per year for $360,000
with six different topping machine brands and 10 vendors. What that what that reeks of is inefficiency and how much time where our procurement department sites are spending on just doing that. So what we're sending out as far as the solution and what we brought central was, we will have 10 purchase orders. And we're not currently reducing any vendors, but we need to do an RFP so that for the services, we have streamlined rates because the rates were also all over the place.
And we have one school that out of the 360,000, their cost is 9% of the total. And and and that means that back to that independence of entering into agreement. So just as a brief example, those are steps that we're still taking to move on many of those other areas of efficiencies. So that will be, you know, a continued project. But as a small in the sense of numbers, but big in a sense of efficiency and time, for what we really need to focus on. Can we just really focus on, hey. If the school site needs to get their copy replaced,
just call the number and get it, you know, replay or fixed. We will talk about replacement as phase two, because we do have a number of machines, and we do need to provide equity as it relates to the type of machines that we have, throughout all of our schools and not have schools rely on what monies they have or what PTA support they have to support a copier. That is what the district should do for all of its schools. So as an example, that's that piece. But, yes, we were able to meet the financial number, but not in areas that we want to. We don't wanna use the balance from the partial taxes that never was what we
sought to do. So we're still trying to navigate through how we balance, these different areas of concern. And that means, again, where are our expenses gonna be or where are we gonna see some uptick in revenue. Thank you. You're welcome. So I have two, suggestions of more information to provide us and then I'll go then back to your, direct question, President Brodhard, around what's off the table. So, one, I know that every single district across California is seeing well, let me take that back. Most districts in California are seeing a decrease in ADA. And I'm also wondering, as you're in conversation with other CBOs,
if you could bring back to us any other reductions that folks are doing that do not include layoffs, reductions in benefits, and school closures, just so that we can have those in the back of our minds as we're thinking about other ways that we're reducing spending. I would also ask, and this might, include a couple other folks, but trying to figure out creative ways that we can support TCAN enrollment, such as partnering with family childcare providers, and also tapping into Measure C dollars. Because again, seeing those numbers, I think our facilities meeting of like 500 students and more being on a waitlist,
that I think, is a good revenue source that we need to figure out how to tap into. So for me, what's off the table is our labour contracts. I think, unless they are negotiated changes, I'm very concerned about the, costly litigation that it leads us to and the disruption in services to our families and students. I also, as the facilities chair, want to take off the table the deferred maintenance budget. I think we do need to increase that seeing as how so many of our school sites are in so much need, of maintenance, and seeing how that department has been, you know, working on a scrap budget with limited staff.
I think we need to boost that instead of cut it. And then as, as we've discussed, you know, we're a sanctuary city and a sanctuary school district. That to me means, the work of the Office of Equity and the programs that are associated with our marginalized students, our Black students, our newcomer students, our LGBTQIA students, and our special education students is really important to me, and I think that that's the type of work that, we need to continue to be doing. So that would be that's it for me. Thank you. I want to address a couple of things. I think my thinking in I know that we do have to do this by
October. And my thinking was to have more of this discussion on the agenda in public so that we could both engage, public comments and have that discussion on the board. I'm open to other solutions to make that happen, and welcome anyone who would like to make any of the suggestions. I guess the reason I I thought about doing this is because for me, the thing that was the first thing that came to mind when Troy asked me that question was I didn't wanna see schools closed. And I think then the next question was, okay, how do you wanna make that happen?
And, you know, again, I I started to think about, you know, I I one of the things I think in giving direction that there are lots of things that I mean, we're all in education. We work with students. We have students in the schools. There are all these things that we would like to see, and I think what we really have to think about are the things that we may not be able to see in this period. And, you know, I started to think about, a couple of things around being a unified school district. I think one of the things I know you and I have talked a lot about is cohesive instruction,
that what is offered at one site is offered throughout the district. So that's what's offered at Skyline is also offered at McClymonds, what's offered at Brewer is also offered at Roosevelt, And that those that that instruction, that those curriculum, curricula, I guess it's plural, that we centralize that. That we can't all have different programs. And there are many different schools with lots of different programs. And again, I mean, we do offer different we have dual enrollment or dual sorry, dual enrollment in, immersion,
and that does have its own set of curriculum. But for those schools that offer dual immersion, if we can centralize what those curriculums are, then we can save money on the purchase of textbooks and on training. I think something else that really also comes to mind is, for me, is the cost of teacher retention. And as we train a new workforce every year, I mean, we train, you know, at least a 100 new teachers, that's a lot of that that's cost for a student for a teacher to be enrolled in a program for a year and not be reelected,
that's an expensive thing. We've helped them with that program and they're not there. But I really started thinking about this thing around what does it mean to be a centralized, unified district and how do we, you know, obviously the Xerox machines, that's kind of the topic of the day, but also I think in terms of contracts that we have, say, after school providers, for example, that we have a list that people can choose from and that we have contracts with those those people, those those LEAs. And that we sorry. But I also think in terms of,
really looking at our jobs and not necessarily for layoffs, but I think we have you know, I've been in the District a long time. And I think there's been a practice of saying we need somebody to do this, so we hire them. And when we don't need that, when that need has been taken care of, we don't repurpose them. So I wanted to be able to look at our restructuring as well. So those were some of the things that I was thinking of. But I think our conversation really has to be what is the direction we are giving our finance team to be able to come
up with a budget. Do we need a second round? Yeah, we'll start again at the end. One of the things that's really essential right now and one of the things that's different for the message that the Board is receiving from the superintendent and the Chief Business Officer is the board is clearly being told it's up to us to give direction by October 8. My first comment was asking what is the plan for how the board's gonna get there? As we can see, as the conversation went around, it turned into something else. You know?
This isn't to wax poetic about job descriptions going forward. We're in financial crisis. We approved a budget that had no money above the reserve, and in forty five days, a third of that reserve has been burned through. We don't have enough money to make it through the end of the school year unless we make immediate spending cuts. The superintendent has clearly told us that she expects direction to be given by October 8. So if this board just wants to go as business as usual and maybe we'll talk about it at an another board meeting,
there's no way then that direction will be given to staff by October 8. There just won't be a way. And I'm not gonna ignore the elephant in the room. We're in this situation because of four three votes and because of the mistreatment myself, director Thompson, and director Berry receive from our colleagues on the board. This isn't a this isn't about working this isn't about working together. This is about having a plan for financial sustainability. This has to do with consequences for the people who ignored those plans, and nobody has anything else to replace it with.
And so everyone has until October 8, it's been made clear. And when our superintendent and our chief business officer tells the board that we have until October 8, that is a firm deadline. And when this board doesn't meet that deadline, when this board again ignores our fiduciary duty, it is going to be essential that somebody steps in. Hopefully that somebody is the community. But if not, somebody has to. Because we've been failed. We shouldn't be in this position, we weren't in this position a year ago. And I'm incensed that nobody has stood up to say anything.
I'm incensed and see, so we get these reactions here, but see, we had three R's plans and all these other things. These folks passed alternative budget adjustments that were caps. And one director in particular talks up here like he hasn't been on the board for the same amount of time as I have. And so you can talk, talk, talk, but ain't nobody done nothing. So you know what we're being told now? We have until October 8. Because some of us brought a historic raise to our teachers, so they're not the lowest paid anymore in 2023, while I was board president.
And how did that contract settle afterwards? How did that contract settle? So this is real easy. It's not even worth arguing about here. I know that people see this in a lot of other places. But I encourage everyone to listen to the statements from myself, director Thompson, and director Berry, and compare that to what we heard from the others. We've been told we have till October 8. And when this board fails on October 8, I need everyone to stand up with me so we make sure they don't take us down the drain with them. Any other board comments of I hear the board comments that I'm supporting.
Can you turn your mic on if you'd like to speak to your comment? Excuse me. Director Berry, did you have something to say? I do. And so, President McGraward, I just wanna state for the record, in the future no. Point of clarification. The director Barry has the thing. Don't tell me no. Don't tell me no. I can keep talking. And so I just want it for the record. When people are rude and disrespectful towards me, nobody says anything. That's fine. But I just want it clear. That's why I act in the same way. Continue. Director Berry. The so, miss Lisa Grant Dawson,
I heard a few ideas thrown out today. So I just wanna state for the record that I think there's one more at least one more step, which is somehow synthesizing what was shared tonight with what was shared during two by twos to make sure there is sort of, like, a comprehensive set of guiding principles for the budget development. And I think in that process, I think I appreciate what you laid out, sort of no layoffs, no school closures. I think it'll be interesting for us to see what the trade offs are.
There's a what does the district look like in that scenario? How do we afford that? Right? And then I also think that when we when we play out those scenarios, we have to understand that we could protect every classroom, but there's, like, a system that has to support all of those incremental decisions. And so it will be very helpful to see, like, what the infrastructure for the district needs to look like in order to support every set of decisions. And then there was a comment about community engagement. I do appreciate that this was scheduled during a regular school board meeting because I
asked for it. But I also think that a 10PM conversation about budget development is not community engagement, and we have to do more than that as a board. And so, hopefully, we can look forward to that. K. Public, is there any public comment? Yes. We have Sheila Haines, Kim Davis, Asawa Lobala, Ashley Handy, Asawa again. Engineer Harris. Your name is Carl. Would you oh, yeah. Thank you. That was very hard to hear. I'm sorry, president. It was very hard to hear, to sit here and watch. For the past four years, I've been coming here.
This board has always been divided from where I'm standing. Always. You have never been able to work together ever. Even the new people that have come on board have inherited this division, which is upsetting. You know? I come here begging every month, pleading, begging, pleading. And my climate is being used at this very moment to make the public think that mister Hutchinson cares about us, which he doesn't. Like, we see through the smoke and mirrors.
I do. But to watch this up here is why we can't get anything done. It's hard. And then you wonder why your staff act like animals. It's awful. We are too top heavy. We have too many directors, superintendents, and high school network people that don't do anything. We have outdated policies that none of you work on that I from where I'm standing, I do a lot of work on policies, and I don't see any of you bringing this to light. We have websites, job descriptions that are all outdated past due,
which is why people get away with everything that they're doing right now. And we have terrible hiring practices. We got people nepotism, people sliding into positions that are not qualified to be in these positions, and we call ourselves a unified school district. No, sir. No, sir. So I you know, I'm asking y'all to work together. Like, you don't have to like each other because I don't like a lot of people. But you gotta work together for the better good. Like, my son told me yesterday that he made a very bad choice coming to this
district. He said I did not have a good experience the four years that I've been in this district. And it made me really sad. Really sad. So, you know, if you can sleep with that, you know, you don't it's it's if you can sleep with that, then everything comes twofold. The universe has a way of paying people back. So remember that. When you're looking at this budget, our budget has always been in crisis. There ain't nothing been good, so we got out of conservatorship. I wasn't for it. I wanted Alameda County to stay watching.
Why? Because my climbers don't get a dollar. So every everybody else counts before us. You allow charter schools to come in here, have a 100 people here, and you got four people sitting here whose children go to the schools that you guys oversee. Hey. But you let them come and go home and go to sleep, but I'm here till 10:00. You guys need to really evaluate what you're doing and how you're doing it. It's not good, and it's awful. And to watch you guys act like this and behave like this is awful.
Pointing fingers, you know, and you add people in here that don't say nothing about nothing. Nothing about nothing. He ain't you don't speak about black children. He don't talk about black nothing. He don't he don't talk about nothing. So to say you did something is not true. Thank you, miss Harris. So I tried two minutes. We'll give everybody two minutes. I tried to look at the document in terms of the total sum adopted, total sum revised. And there were some areas that I think we need to think about.
As it relates to travel and conference expenditures, I see a a a, expenditure that was $5.5.7, million dollars for travel and going and revised to $11,800,000. Board and bus passes. I can't believe you're only spending 22,000 and, revised to 21,000 because y'all have 21 buses going from Skyline. And other schools, you gotta be spending some money, but you never reveal that money.
So what does that say in my head? You're not telling me everything. Then we have conferences, expenses, another place, a lot of money. A little bit of money for textbooks, 26,000 revised to the exact same amount, 26 thousands. Here we have meeting refreshments. Was you were spending $88,000 and just revised to spend a $114,000 for meeting and reflections. Now here's the kicker. Consultants, $1,100,000, revised to spend $3,700,000.
Okay? And then you have out of state travel. Zero revised to spend $20,000. Dues and membership rev 417,000 revised to do we have are we mandated for all of these memberships, or we have options on these memberships? Revised to 679. Legal settlement. I know you gotta spend more than this. 300,000 to 400,000. You might have insurance that covers a lot of those insurance. Payment to parents. What is that? 3,900,000.0
revised to reduced to 3,330,000.00. And that's just some of the areas. So you gotta talk to me and identify specifically and and say we wanna we wanna help children specifically. Number one, tell me how much money y'all spending for all those buses and anything else you're not telling me. Please. I used to tell my team all the time, there's no I in t. I look at this board nine months ago. You gave a superintendent an extension on our contract,
gave her a raise. New board comes in. I didn't ever see an evaluation. It wasn't what you did, in my opinion. It's how you did it. Then you turn around, first act out of this board. Let's take the after school food away. That's where you started. We do not need seven executive directors. We used to have 18, and I kept complaining and complaining and complaining. We were at 1000 Broadway wasting money when we own property. You own Eastmont Mall out there.
Maybe you could consider sale selling that and getting out of some of the restraints we are in. I don't like sitting up here watching all this going back and forth. It doesn't make sense. And we need to get on the right page for our school, for our districts, for our kids. And I don't see it happening. We do not need seven executive directors. We used to have 18. And I kept saying, what what did they do? And they're making a 6 figure income. But we can't feed the kids after school until we come down here and raise
hell. And I need a list from this whoever's over facilities. There are five new projects. Now one of them deals with the climates. We can't even get the scoreboard changed. Thank you. Do we have online speakers? Yes. We have Sheila Haines. Miss Haines, if you can mute yourself to speak. Miss miss Haines, if you're gonna keep on talking, they're trying to locate you. Okay. Let me see another channel. Okay, miss Haynes. Go ahead and unmute yourself from the from, yeah, Sheila Haines. Kim Davis? Okay.
Do we have another online speaker? No. That include, public speakers. Okay. Mister Rickshark, can we have a roll call vote on this? On the roll call to adopt the forty five day budget, revision. Student directors are absent? Director Lauter? Yes. Director Williams? Absent? Okay. Director Hutchinson? No. Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Vice president Bachelor? Yes. And president Brohart? Yes. Motions adopted. Next on the do you wanna make your motion? Yeah. I'd like to make a motion to move r two and r four together.
Can I just the point of clarification, would that be r two and r four taken together and recorded separately? Yes. Second? Thank you. Can I get a point of clarification? Because now we're combining an RFP with a change in board bylaws. There's no reason for it. They don't go together like that. It's two different kinds of functions. And again, it's not how things are supposed to work and there's no sense to it at all. Yeah. Thank you. I'll just provide comment on that. We are running out of time and we have a lot of other time sensitive things to do. And so wanting to move those two forward,
I got a second so we can go ahead and move it forward. I was I talked to the parliamentarian, our legal counsel, and they say that it's possible. So, those are the reasons why I'd like to move them forward together. Then I'd like my time for board comment. Now it's pretty disingenuous at this point. Now that the community is no longer here, we didn't really let them speak. And now we're worried about time. It would have been much quicker to just go through these quickly and we would have been done with it. But the other thing is a really disingenuous way to do things, especially since one of these items is an RFP for a search firm.
Now there was a special meeting to address this last week at a time when three directors said they couldn't even be there. There was a handful of community members and there were more media on the Zoom than even people in attendance. And it was said at that meeting that there was going to be more time to get feedback on what would go into the RFP. Now here we are, the next meeting, and it's just being forced through with a vote. And this really highlights the extreme dysfunction going on with the board. The fact that so much time has been sent on this when an RFP is
literally a two page boiler plate that should have been sent out and the real conversation and discussion happens when people respond to it where we have to choose somebody. And so, to put the way this Board has put focus on certain things and is trying to change the order of the agenda and how meetings happen, when every meeting we show up, it's changed at each meeting and each change seems like the community and the students have to wait till the end. This is just you know, it's amazing that somebody wants to join these items together because they think it'll work
smoother that way. And we have a way of doing things at the school board. There was a history and a tradition. Unfortunately, it's been lost on this new board and it's all coming to a head very, very quickly with our October 8 deadline. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Raikstra. Can we have a roll call on the vote, please? We have to offer public comment, madam president. Is there any public comment? Yes. Public comment for RDOT-one and RDOT-four, Ben Tapscott, Asolo Abala and Janelle Harris. Oh, here's someone with the card. And Alright. That And she one's been done,
mister Saint Joe. Yeah. I'll do dash two and dash four. Alright. Hi. Yeah. It's almost 10:00, and it seems like this is kind of a big change. Right? I mean, it's kind of a big deal to change the process of how these meetings are are held. All the meetings I've come to, a lot of these non agenda items, that's where the community comes and really speaks their mind about things. Right? So it's, you know, pretty apparent pushing it to the end. I mean, it's about now in the meeting that I guess we could expect these non agenda
items to come up in these future meetings. You know, the non agenda items is is where people talked about the, the superintendent, being separated. Right? Because there was there was no other opportunity for that. When we found out that the alternative budget, solutions fiasco was happening, you know, that's when the opportunity was to talk about that. So those things are gonna be talked about at 10:00 at night. Right? I don't know. I mean, there may be very good reason to move these other things up, But I think it bears mentioning and certainly not just pushing through the very end of a meeting when everyone is gone,
that we're gonna make this significant procedural change. I certainly hope that, you know, later on this year, there's gonna be big decisions needing to be made by the sport. We're gonna have community members upset no matter what those decisions are. Those community members shouldn't have to wait till 10:00 at night, to speak. Or or maybe there should I mean, maybe there is a good reason for that. But certainly, I would love to hear, you know, some discussion about it before, that decision gets made. So look forward to that. Thank you. Apologize. So, let's go ahead. Any any other board comments on this item?
Director Berry? Director Berry? I'm just gonna say on for the record what I was whispering. It's it's exactly what you mentioned. I remember hearing when this was heard for the first time, the desire for us to prioritize public comment on non agenda items earlier in the agenda. And that's one change that I don't see reflected in this, the second presentation of this bylaw. So I I was whispering to see if it will be a friendly amendment to make that change because then I would feel more comfortable supporting it since we very
clearly heard that, but we're not sure how to move that forward given that we're discussing two items at the same time. You could, if I may, Madam Vice President, you could make a motion to reposition that from where it's in the draft bylaws to a different position in the draft bylaws. Do you have a place in mind where you wanna put it? Director Berry, do you have a place in mind where you'd like to put it? I do not, but I can look at that quickly. I do wanna say, that I don't think there's a perfect configuration. So I don't think that's what we're trying to achieve. I think whatever gets approved or not approved tonight,
there has to be good faith that on the day of a board meeting, when we see who's in the room, when we see who signed up for public comment, that we make changes live to adjust and be responsive to what we see and hear from community. And I'm gonna look right now at the bylaw. Thank you. And as you're doing that, I would say I agree with you and to the folks in public comment. We are reverting it back to where the agenda was when we first joined the board. This isn't, like, a totally drastic change. This is literally putting students' families first so that we can have those conversations with
those folks, they can get back to what they need to be doing, and then they can continue to join our board meetings virtually if need be to provide further comment and they're able to sign up here. And I do agree with Director Berry's point. This meeting is to conduct business, but it is also a very important space that families and folks in our community can come to speak to all of us about those issues. So balancing those two out, we're never gonna have a perfect system. And I think to, to Director, to President Brohard's credit, as we saw the changes to the agenda,
she's been very adamant about trying to make sure to move things so that students can go first, PSAC can go, and to have those. And it's been, as you all have seen in the public, extremely challenging to keep doing that every single board meeting. So this is our remedy to try to make sure that we can have those comments and those folks speak at the beginning to get that done so that the rest of the business could get done. So Director Berry, did I give you enough time to see where you would like to make that amendment? I would like to propose moving item two,
public comment on non agenda item in between special orders of the day and the student board member's report assuming that Can you designate can you redesignate an alpha? You wanna change it to what alpha? Q two k. That is a q to k and everything else would move down? Yes. With the assumption that student directors would want to hear public comment on non agenda items. Well, we are doing an order. Yeah. So The two of the Whatever whatever gets whatever is adopted in the order, is expected to be the order of the agenda.
And and all of this jumping around that we've been doing, this is designed to remedy that because it's very hard to keep a record of the jump around. It is a friendly amendment to me. Director Latta, is it a friendly amendment to you as a seconder of the motion in the microphone? I would like to, in in I would say no, and I'll say why, if that's okay. I think that one of the challenges that I have with the way that we have set up our non agenda items and, student reports is that it would be a friendly amendment if it were limited and
we had a time certain for the rest of the agenda. Because I do I really struggle with the fact that we have our student board members who put in countless volunteer hours and prepare a report. We have parent you know, we have parent leaders from PSAC who, again, these are they are working they have always been this is not just this year they have always been working parents, students who are on PSAC, foster parents who make the trouble to come here. I mean, I think we all I mean, people online maybe don't see this, but we see them
growing increasingly frustrated as their kids are getting exhausted because they're here for the meeting. And so I think that's my that's my honor the work of our community, it's not that I wanna silence public comment. So I think if we kept it where it was and had a time certain, I that would be friendly. But moving it up before, I I don't support. Okay. So that amendment doesn't Yeah. There's I didn't hear a second to the proposal, so it dies for a lack of a second. So the main motion is back on the floor. Great. Thank you. I saw director Thompson. Do Do you have anything? Okay. Any other floor directors' comments on this agenda item?
So again, for the public, we are talking about R2 and R3. I'm sorry. R2 and R4 together, with separate recorded the votes were recorded separately. So seeing no comment So we were trying to move it as a friendly amendment because I thought it was friendly. The person who seconded it did not think it was friendly. If folks want to include it as an amendment, is there a motion to include it as an amendment? Sounds like Director Berry is making that motion. So is there a second to that motion of making it a friendly making it
an amendment to R2? Sorry, R4. I apologize. It is late. I do not see a second to that amendment for the motion. Point of clarification, can I suggest an alternative, director Berry, which would be a time certain on agenda on public comment on non agenda items? That way the public could plan on when it would come up. Although we could that's actually yeah. I know. I see Jen Graham. Okay. Madam president, that item has to be some place in the order of the agenda,
whether you attach a time certain to it or not. So it's it's meaningless if it's not repositioned. So I I I don't think the purpose is going to be served, that's intended here if you alter it with a time served. Okay. So if you And another comment I I would just make, public comments on nonagenda items is for the public. It is just as critical or probably more critical and is statutorily required at a regular meeting to be offered to the public.
Where you put it in the agenda is up to you. So given that you did not there was not a second to the proposed amendment and there's a proposal and a motion pending on the floor, It is where it is in the agenda. And madam chair, absent that, I would suggest a vote. Thank you, mister Yggstrom. Any other motions or amendments to r two or r four. Alright. Let's go ahead and take a roll call on, r two and r four. Yes. We will record r two and r four separately, and take the vote,
as a joint item. Student directors are absent. Director Latta? Yes. Director Williams? Yes, sir. Director Hutchinson? He's absent. Director, Barry? Abstain. K. Director Thompson? Dane. Vice President Bachelor? Yes. President Brothard? Yes. Motion is adopted. Thank you. We're moving on to, item R3, which is declaring continuing emergency. Is there any public comment? Yes. We have public comment on the floor before comment. Clarification. Do we have to have a motion on the floor now to extend the board
meeting? What time is it? 07:54. Yes. I would like to extend the Board meeting until 11:45. Second. Can we take a roll call vote, please? Who moved it? Okay. On the motion to extend the meeting to 11:45PM, student directors are absent. Director Latta? Yes. Director Williams? Yes, sir. Director Hutchinson is absent. Director Berry? Yes. Okay. Director Thompson? No. Bachelor's and bachelor? Yes. President Rojas? Yes. Meetings extended to 11:45. I'd like to make a motion to move r three forward.
Oh. Second. Technically, correction. It's a motion to adopt. Motion to adopt r three. Second? Is there any public comment? Yes. We have Ashley Handy, Salo Bala, Ben Tapscott, and Janelle Harris. And they are not here. Alright. Mister Raikstra, can we take a roll call on the Yes. Student directors are absent on this. Director Latta? Yes. Director Williams? Yes. Director Hutchinson? Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Did you say yes? Yes. Okay. Thank you. Vice President Bachelor? Yes.
And President Brothard? Yes. Motion is adopted. Thank you. Item s, new business, s one provisional internship permits. Is there any public comment on this? I'd like to make a motion to move S-one and S-two together and record the results separately. Second. Director Thompson seconds. Is there any, can we take a roll call vote, please? No public comment for the record? There's no public comment. Alright. Okay. Student directors are absent. Director Hutchinson is absent. Oh, he's back? Okay. Alright. Sorry. I apologize. Director Lauter?
Yes. Director Williams? Yes, sir. Director Hutchinson? Yes. Director Berry? Yes. Director Thompson? Yes. Vice president Boeschner? Yes. And president Brochard? Yes. Motion is adopted. So on the motion s one and s two, is there any public comment? Oh, it's or intended. Yes. Thank you, president Brochart. I will make this very brief. There is a critical item that I did want reviewed. I have our director, a moment to speak about enrollment. If he could, Jillian could just give a brief report and update on our enrollment,
which is a critical part, critical information that I want the board to have. So just, Killian, if you could give a quick update and then I will review I will review other items in my report, which is available, but I'll review those at another time. Hey, Cleen hey, Killian. If you can start speaking, we'll try to clean you down. Madam superintendent, madam president, we're having technical difficulty with our, panelist speaker. Hey, Cillian. Can you, start talking so I'll try and find you? Good evening. Can you hear me?
Hello? Hello? Hello? Hello? Hello? While we're trying to get, Cillian, I do wanna mention a couple of items that I feel are real critical at this time. I wanna highlight that our clerical staff has been working hard to support families in completing, their confirmations and registration to ensure that we have all additional information we need for emergency contact for our parents and guardians is absolutely critical. I wanna thank our clerical staff for doing that diligent work. In addition to that, our attention attendance specialists who've been working with teachers to make sure our daily attendance
has been achieved. We've achieved 99.6% completion rate of our attendance this year to date. So I really wanna compliment our attendance specialist for that critical work. As you know, attendance is a major focus, and I'd like to thank our staff for that critical work. Hey. Do y'all have any, on the audience? There we go. Yay. I think I think Oh my goodness. I think I woke up my dog. Alright. Thanks for the patience. Sorry for the the Zoom challenges.
Good evening, board. Good evening, superintendent Sadler. Happy to just make a brief, enrollment update, from the executive director of enrollment, Kellyan Betlock. As you see in the superintendent's report, we provided, some updates to the enrollment counts that we had in the last, superintendent's report. One of the patterns that, is probably pretty evident, as you're looking at that is we've seen a decline in our enrollment since the, since the before school started. That,
while it may appear alarming, is a very common pattern that we see, in our schools. It would be ideal if, you know, we had staffing and partnerships with families to do all of the confirming that we needed to do before the school year started, with all of the work that clerical staffs and front office staffs need to do. But often that's work that that doesn't really kind of get underway until we start doing an official counts, and school the school year starts. So,
we start seeing that, those those drops. There is a just kind of an interesting thing to note that our high school enrollment, slightly more stable than our than our elementary enrollment. Usually, those two things are inverted. And so it is it is worth noting that we're currently, you know, on pace to to exceed our enrollment projections, but we are, you know, at the at the kind of August 4 point, we were we were on pace to grow the enrollment for the district relative to the 24,
25 school year, that is not our current pace. And just kind of the the and and just important to note the distinction between those two numbers, right? One is the projected and budgeted enrollment for the district, which is just a critical target always, and the other is just our overall year over year trajectory, right? Like, as a district, are we growing? Are we flat? Are we declining, right? You know? And then, director Hudgens, then we did change the, the formatting a little bit on that final that final comment or the final,
cell, relative to to your to your your feedback. The the the the map is the same, just that it looks a little different. You know, and then in the superintendent's report, as always, highlighting just some of the work of the enrollment marketing team and getting very busy on on social media, in the town sprouts, which highlights our elementary schools, doing a campaign of what's new and having our site leaders, share what's new at all of their schools and speaking directly to the community, in Oak in the Middle, highlighting some of the big things. We had Jeremy Lin, drop by. Brett Hart, just paid a visit,
and shared shared some of his, his insights and then, catching up with some recent Mac alums, at, the link, and they talked about some of the things that, the McLeames community did for them, to help them get ready for college. So happy to answer more questions and dig into these numbers. The day, we've passed the day 10 count, the day 15 count is Friday, and then our last official count is day 20, which comes up after Labor Day. Thanks for the time. Thank you very much for your due diligence and the detailed work that you and your staff has has provided.
I also wanna thank our community school managers who have been working and focusing on attendance as well and the implementation of strategic planning, as well as re reaching out to our parents and partners around getting kids to school. So I just want to acknowledge them this evening. Thank you very much. Are there any board questions? Thank you. And, Killeen, yeah, I appreciate, the information on enrollment, and I'm excited to see, the numbers of high school. Would love to just try to figure out what, if any, trends we're seeing in elementary school that we need to be aware of,
so that we can, increase that enrollment and attendance in that area. I wanted just to take a moment actually to thank Director Sad Superintendent Sadler, on having additional trainings for our staff around ICE protocols, because I had been hearing from different school sites that folks had different experiences. So, making sure that we had two additional non mandatory trainings, but thinking about moving forward if we could have as things progress, as we're seeing potentially things progressing, more, mandatory trainings for our staff,
as well. I also appreciate you partnering or giving the information out around the immigration law and policy for California, education. I know that that's, like, a monthly meeting, really having that be available for all staff so that folks can really keep up to date if they so choose to. And having that information is crucial. I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge and appreciate the amount of events that you included in your, biweekly report. I really appreciate all of that and would just love to get some more information about some of those, like ticketed events.
Some of those need more kind of specifics. So just trying to get that information. And I wanna, ask, invite my board colleagues to join me at Oakland, Pride on September 7. We have a contingency from OUSD. I went last year. It was beautiful. It was amazing. We had teachers, parents, staff, and, students. And it was a really fun, filled afternoon, with both. So thank you again for your report. I just also wanna thank, Superintendent Sadler and, Nicole Knight. I was talking to some other people from other districts, and the work that we're doing around ICE protocols and educating our students and the
getting out the information was, like, so much more developed than, I mean, than some of the other other districts. So as I was talking through some of the things that we had talked with all night, they were like, oh, yeah. We need to think about that too. So I think this really puts our district, at the forefront of protecting our our students and families. So, appreciate you and appreciate, Nicole Knight and the others who have worked on it. Your husband. Thank you. Just a a list of items in in no particular order. I heard of two, elementary schools that had their back to school nights tonight.
It's It's one of those pet peeves that I have. It would be great if, we could get a reminder sent to all of our school sites, to not schedule events at school on regular school board meeting nights. And I just know one in District 4 that had it. It was a new principal that had to reschedule where they originally were. So I don't think there's any intent behind it, but, it would be great to have that reminder. Thank you, Killian. I I noticed the little tweak in how the numbers were presented. I appreciated that. The, Oakland High jazz band has been invited to, play at a warriors game again.
Last year, it it they weren't supported as much as they should have been. And so I've reached out to the folks I know at the Warriors Foundation to try to get them to support that event like they should. And if if I don't get a response back that sounds the right way, I'm gonna be reaching out and asking for help with that. I really appreciated the email back when I asked some questions about contracts with outside providers, and I'm gonna be following up with doctor Aguilera tomorrow just to to get to the bottom of that. I have had a really good time meeting the principals in District 4.
There's still three left that I haven't met with yet, but I really appreciate how strong of a team of site leaders that we have at our District 4 schools. And I've been really impressed with, especially the new principals that I've met so far. I think we have some really good fits this year. I'm really excited about middle school enrollment going up at the middle schools that I represent. Monterra is doing well, it's basically full, so is Brewer. Hillcrest six-eight has recovered from the threat to close that school, and even Bret Hart saw a real tick up in enrollment this year.
And so I'm excited that it feels like the years of investment with Oakland in the middle and some of these other things are really starting to pay off at the middle schools in District 4. And lastly, I really appreciate, your messages to the board that you've been sending. And although it wasn't really lifted up here today like I expected it to be, I really appreciated how you explicitly told the board that we have until October 8 to pass directions for staff on how we're gonna handle this financial situation. And so, I just want I might keep saying it publicly.
I shared it publicly, and I think it really, helps me out as a school board director to get those clear directives coming from the superintendent's office and clearly letting everyone know it is the school board's responsibility to meet that deadline or to fail. So thank you, and and I appreciate just how, I don't wanna use the word responsive because it sounds like I've been breathing down your neck. But I I really appreciate the communication that we've had, and, it's it's been really helpful how you've just kind of shot me back some messages even when I wasn't fully expecting it.
So thank you. Just to I'm gonna keep it really brief. I just wanna appreciate Killian and all the team at Enrollment for, the work that they've done to get students, through the process with immunizations. And I know that there's, you know, there's always it's always a very busy time with, wait lists, and I know that, that they have been working extra hard. I also just wanna shout out our health services team, and, because they've had multiple vaccination sites in partnership with Alameda County Health, and hundreds of students were able to get their immunizations and get enrolled in school to help the 99% attendance.
And so, that also has been, a lot of very difficult work, especially, you know and as a health care provider myself, I really want to appreciate how hard it is to be in a parking lot for an entire day under a tent, trying to, not only get students enrolled in school but also to help, children and their families feel comfortable getting vaccinated in that kind of space. And so I went to, a couple of events and I just want to appreciate all of that work. And, again, despite the federal climate, I think it would be important for us to do some flu flu shot clinics.
We used to have Shoe the Flu. That program is gone, but we still have partnerships with the county because, again, I do think not only is it important for our community, but, again, to, you know, point Doctor. Sadler about attendance, it's also important for, you know, for keeping students, in school so that they can continue with their academics and continue to be a part of the community. So, and then I think the only other thing that I'm, I think looking forward to is, getting, a sense of, kind of from your, superintendent work plan, kind of what the prioritization is and also how we can use that,
superintendent work plan as, as helping to inform the work that not only the board has to do, obviously that's the work that we own, but the work that our whole district has to do in order to, come together, find solutions for our budget to stabilize the district, and and do what's right, on behalf of our students and staff and family. So I appreciate that that's what you lead with, and I'm looking forward to continuing the work. Any other comments? Director Williams. Doctor Sadler, I just wanna, lift you up. I will continue to lift you up. I'm a continue to fight for you. I really believe that, you're bringing something to our board and to our schools that we we definitely need,
which is, this unconditional love of support, of students first, of being able to be a good listener and just, respond without judgment. Like, you are just taking it in and formulating in your mind. But every place I've been with you and seen you in action, you have a great ability to keep folks calm, get folks excited at the same time, but also there's this history that you walk with that, really is grounding.
And so I just wanna thank you for, however the universe has put you here, you you are here, and I just wanna continue to lift you up and support you. Thank you for visiting, Machlimates. You know, we had a great opportunity of going to a number of rooms, going to the cafeteria, talking to the principal, talking to parents who are here, and look forward to that progress to build on that. I think we just need to, make sure our constituents and our families are heard, and you did a really great job being in the space,
listening, understanding. And, just wanna thank you for that that that. It is actually, you know, I think, a first step of growth. There's many challenges, you know, throughout the district, and I'm I know you're very focused on addressing as many as you can, given the time that you have. So I just wanna thank you for that, to be able to engage that particular work. Thank you for your report as well. Killian, I I'm so excited. I just wanna tell you that all the promotion of lifting our district up,
I see it every day, and I'm so excited. Every school in West Oakland has increased. We have more neighborhood families coming to schools instead of trying to go all the way across to the hillside. So they think that it's better in the hillside when, actually, it's much better culturally rich within their own neighborhood. So I just wanna thank you for that promoting. We're having so many new families come in. So, in each in in our three elementaries, our two middle schools, our three high schools, everyone has actually lift themselves up with new families and new students.
So I can't thank you enough. I'm watching your billboards. I'm watching your commercials. I'm watching your social media posts. Thank you very much for keeping us alive and relevant, in the community. Alright. Thank you for your superintendent's report, and thank you, Killian, for that really informative, excuse me, enrollment report. Are there any public comment on the superintendency? Yes. For the public comment, we have Ben Topscott, Asolo Abala, and Janelle Harris. Moving on, I do not have a president's report. I don't know if board members have board reports. Hey. I'm sorry. Doctor Thompson.
Yes. I just want to welcome Justin Davis. Justin Davis is our new principal, at Esperanza. And so I want to welcome him and know that we're going to certainly work with him as much as he would like in order to make sure that his time at Esperanza is successful. I did forget, I was trying to give a shout out to Roosevelt. I went to their back to school night and it was packed. The auditorium was standing room only, so shout out to Roosevelt and to the Roosevelt staff. Next is introduction of new business. Before my comment, just a point of clarification, and I didn't hear anything said before,
but I know on the online agenda, we were going to be it said we were going to be adjourning, in honor of Dan Siegel, and I don't see that on the hard copy here. And also I think it really does a disservice to his memory to do it now in this sort of way when nothing was even said at the start of the meeting and obviously his family wasn't contacted to be a part of it. Well, I know his family very, very well and I've known them my whole life, so I know this is something that they would like to be involved with. So I would like, respectfully,
for it to be postponed so he can be honored in the correct way instead of at 11:45 at night when nobody's even here paying attention. It wasn't announced before so people could show up and it's not even on the hard copy. Thank you for that. So, it is on the copy that is, the fourth page, I believe, of the board, document. And I did reach out On page 76. Thank you. I also did reach out to Dan's wife, Anne, and she was really appreciative that we were, gonna be honoring, Dan in this way.
So I'd like to go back to my board comments then. You know, this isn't so I I was asking for a point of clarification. And I'll And I was answering your question. Well, I asked it I asked it of the president, and, I have time that I would like to spend speaking about Dan during my board comment time. I was just asking a clarification. And so, you know, go ahead. So his wife did, really appreciate, us having this, part of the agenda. She was unable to put something together, for us to read, but she was, again, just really appreciative that we were commemorating him in this way and we were commemorating,
the multiple positions that he held within the district. So, President Broadd, go ahead. We're just gonna finish up with new business and this is the Wait, we're still waiting for Board comments. I thought Director Williams and I was waiting for my Board comments until all of that. Go ahead, Director Hutchinson. You know, I knew I've known Dan Siegel, knew him almost my whole life. And my family and the Siegel's have been connected for a very long time. We suffered a great loss to both the District and to the community. And, although I didn't know Dan in his Free Speech days at Berkeley,
like I said, I've known him almost my whole life. Dan and Ann's son went to my mother's nursery school. My mom helped walk for Dan Siegel in every one of his elections. I was on his advisory committee. I even worked for him as a school board director for a couple of years. And, it's really going to be a big loss here for the community. One of the things that upsets me about what happens at the school board and the district these days is we have a real inability to honor the people that we should be honoring, here at this body and in this room.
And so again, Dan meant a lot to my family, especially to my mother. I wanna send, on behalf of my whole family, condolences to Anne, Mike, and Christopher. We of course will be there for Dan's Memorial. And, you know, as a school board and just as a district, we really need to get back into the habit of honoring lifers, honoring people who put in real work here in the District and served in a variety of ways for decades. And so I personally think Dan deserved a lot more than this for today,
but it's really important to me that I was able to at least say something. And again, my condolences, go to Ann and Mike and Christopher. And, you know, one of the things my mom loves talking about is, Mike Siegel has now passed up my family where, you know, my mom has an Austin City Council member who attended her nursery school. And so, much love to the Siegel's. My family's thoughts and prayers are with them. And, Dan's going to be missed, and he definitely left a legacy, not just in OUSD, not just in the Bay Area,
but worldwide. Thank you, Dan. Director Williams? I just I'm not gonna say too much in in in honor of Dan, but I I do wanna lift up, a a couple CSMs, community service managers in West Oakland. Karina, Castillo from Bunch, thank you for the amazing programs you're putting together. Brian McGee at McClimate, you're killing the game. Thank you for, all that you're doing. I'm always just in awe how much you do for McClimates and how much you've given. Timothy Killins,
Tim from Westlake. Man, you have lifted that school up. And, you know, I I gotta get in and play some some, chess with you, man. Emilio Ortega from, West Oakland Middle School. School looks beautiful. It's been renovated, and, it's such a great you have a great program going on, Emilio. I appreciate you. Madeline Guzman at, Hoover. Food distribution is tomorrow. Just, again, I am overjoyed by the love and commitment that our CSMs have at the school sites that they are. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I'd like to introduce now, the new new business, and these are charter school hearings that we will be having their initial public hearing on 09/25. I'm missing up October and November or in September. That is Aspire College Academy Charter Renewal, Aspire College Academy Material Revision, and, Aspire Golden State College Prep, and Lighthouse Community Charter Public Schools. So again, we'll be having those initial public hearings on a special meeting. I do want to adjourn and I know that no one is here,
but I think, you know, Director Hutchinson, your words, about Dan Siegel were very eloquent. I don't wanna follow those words. But I do think we should, sign for Dan Siegel.