OK, 603, and we are back to open session.
Opening procedures pledge.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America
and to the republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty
and justice for all.
5.2 roll call is that a writer here Amy monster when they dropped when I'm here
Sarah Tallick here and Heidi Hernandez Gaddy present very good 5.3 report out
from closed session during closed session regarding GC number 5 4 9 5 7
pursuant to government code 5 4 9 5 7 1 the board took action in closed session
approve the appointment of Nicole Padawan as Assistant Director Innovation
Technology and Communication for Walnut Creek School District pending release
from San Ramon Valley School District.
Forgot to add the roll call vote was unanimous. Thank you. Okay 5.4 approval of
agenda changes I'll change I'll move approval of the agenda as presented. I have a motion and a second to
approve the agenda as presented all those in favor
motion carries item six consent calendar and move approval of the consent calendar
as presented. I'll second. Okay I have a motion and a second to approve all items on the consent calendar all
All those in favor?
Opposed?
Opposed?
Ascension?
Motion carries.
Item seven, public comments.
No public comments?
Very good.
Item eight, employee organization reports.
WCTA?
And Cam?
That was quick.
That is how we like them.
I don't think I've heard enough of you so fast.
Good evening.
Obviously today, very busy day.
All staff members meeting at Tice Creek
and kicking off our 26-27 school year.
Always kind of a fun part of the year.
Obviously everybody's ready to get back to work
at this point or have already been back to work
and then it's a good way to kick off our school year.
One of the benefits of being a small district
is we can have a day like that where everybody can be
in the same space at least for a little bit.
We don't get very many opportunities to do that
throughout the year.
So a positive teachers are ready to get back to work.
I spoke at the institute today about the Prop 3 that's coming up on the November ballot
and I would just appreciate and urge every one of our stakeholders in our community to
help support us and the support of Prop 3 because it has very huge financial implications
for our district even though we're a small one upwards of almost $700,000 a year if Prop
doesn't pass. Obviously we know all those dollars are very important, you
know as far as jobs or programs that we offer. It also helps relieve some of the
pressure that I'm sure WCEF feels internally on their fundraising because
obviously if we lose almost $700,000 it cuts into the the tremendous amount of
work they do also to help support our programs and our teachers in our schools.
So the next couple weeks and months the reps at each site would be speaking to
our members about the importance of Prop 3 and hopefully getting their support come November
if they would, their voting in general, and then also helping Canvas and our neighborhoods
and local neighborhoods as well in support of CTA.
So obviously a tremendous push here in these next couple months.
So nothing else other than just, you know, we're ready to see students on our campuses
and win on Wednesday morning. It's crazy how fast the summer goes and now we're right on the doorstep.
We look forward to a great year on our campuses.
Good evening everybody. Reporting from CSCA in Carlos and there is an item today like you know
a red classification for one of our class supplies that is in the docket. Other than that over the
summer, CSEA did some shuffling of personnel.
So we are now fully transitioning to our new labor
rep in Cuskalia.
We've had meeting already with John,
and I'm trying to set up like check-ins.
We already have one scheduled for the future.
Very productive, but I feel like it was the first one.
And then we are going to begin negotiations.
we procure the services of a facilitator
from the California State Mediation
and Conciliation Services.
So every third Friday of the month, starting in September,
we will be doing interest-based bargaining negotiations
with this facilitator.
Looking forward to it, and that's it for now.
Thank you.
Item nine report from superintendent.
Thank you.
Thank you, trustees.
Thank you, Mikael and Carlos.
Great job this morning.
And it's been a wonderful meeting with both of you
and your labor reps.
I know it's going to be a productive year,
so I look forward to that.
Congratulations, Nicole.
You're going to be a huge asset for us.
Thank you to my team.
We're nearly fully staffed, which is incredible.
Our buildings are ready for students.
Thank you, Steve, and team for that.
miles back there with the technology, Carmela.
We are ready for kids Wednesday.
There will be some pick-ups, as you know.
Meantime, there's a major mass construction in nine weeks
instead of 10 weeks last year.
We're excited about the ribbon-cutting ceremonies
tomorrow, when it is at 3, while it hides at 4.
And so that'll be exciting.
Also, I wanted to just speak in agreement.
We have met as a Contra Costa superintendent.
And again, our supporting Prop 3, so thank you for bringing that up.
And we'll continue to discuss that at our super tendency level across the state.
So, it's been a wonderful day.
Today was amazing.
What a culture that has been built here.
And then we'll continue to grow, having everyone in one room.
And thank you to my team for making it a great day.
That's all I have.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Point one beginning of the year of professional learning.
Good evening.
It is my pleasure to introduce Nok Nguyen, who has joined the Ed Services team as our
assistant director, and she has just jumped right in, and everyone who works with her
just enjoys her infectious energy, and so she's going to give a presentation about our
beginning of the year professional development.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Good evening, Board.
superintendent. It has really been a wonderful experience just on my first
few weeks in the waterproof school district. One thing that stood out to me
immediately is our deep commitment to supporting educators and creating
conditions for all students to succeed. So I'm here tonight to share with you
some of the things that we have been working on to prepare for the school
year as well as how we will continue to foster a culture of learning, growth, and
continuous improvement. Let's see if I can get this work. Okay so one of our priorities was to
welcome our newest educators to the Wanapri community. We hosted a two-day
new teacher orientation and it was designed to intentionally to help our
newest staff members feel a sense of belonging and providing them with a
chance to get to know the district, the curriculum, the support that are
available for them. Over the course of two days they got to know the curriculum,
technology, the student support that are available but also built relationships
with their colleagues as well as the coaches that will be supporting them
throughout the year. Rather than providing them with a one-size-fits-all
professional learning experience, our wonderful instructional coaches design
the two days that honor the diverse experience and expertise that these new
educators bring with them to our school district. The agenda balance time where
we came together and study as a cohort but also opportunities for them to have
a very personalized learning experience that fits their role, their needs and
their interests. I have been telling everybody I've seen in the last a few
days how much I love the new teacher playlist. This is one of the innovative
resources that the coaches developed, very much like the playlist you see you
use for music. It's a curated collections of say learning modules and resources so
that were introduced to them at the new teacher orientation but they will have
access to these throughout the year. Whether it's classroom management
strategies, technology integration, student support, coaching support, all the
things that are available to them in one place that they can revisit any time
they need it. And to get ready for the school year, we also make time to welcome
all of our site and staff leaders at the leadership retreats. We spent time to
reconnect and build relationships through some friendly competition. Well, I
don't know if I would call them friendly. We did spend a lot of time sharing best
practices. We also spent time looking at student data and engaging in meaningful
conversations where we come together to set goal for the year and plan to welcome our students back.
Our commitment to professional learning doesn't stop once schools start. It continues throughout
the year. All of our staff members have access to a wide variety of opportunities to strengthen
their practice, some of these opportunities are actually in-house led by our own staff
members who are generously sharing their time, expertise, and best practices while others
include coaching, free online learning opportunities, conferences, as well as professional partnerships.
We regularly highlight this opportunity to encourage participation, but also to foster
a culture of continuous improvement.
An example of our professional partnership and our commitment to continuous improvement
is our partnership with SVMI.
Last year, a group of elementary school teachers participated in the lesson study program,
where they came together to plan lessons,
observe each other teaching in each other's classroom,
and engage in conversations that help them reflect
on the student engagement, student thinking,
student learning that really deepened their practice.
I'm happy to share that this year,
the whole math department as WCI will be participating
in the SVMI Lesson Study and a group
of elementary school teachers at Morewood
will be participating in the lab school program.
Again, these are opportunities for them to collaborate,
to learn from one another,
and to deepen their understanding of how students learn.
Earlier this morning, we came together as a district
to celebrate our growth, to reaffirm our shared purpose,
and to build momentum for the year ahead.
We cannot wait to welcome our students and families
back onto our campus.
I have only been here for a short time,
but I can already tell you that I'm
so inspired by the level of commitment, care,
and dedication that define us.
And I am so grateful to be part of a community that
is deeply committed to helping one another,
and growing together,
and that are continuously working
to provide the best learning experiences
for all of our students.
Thank you.
You know, we don't always see the back end.
We see the front part in doing so much behind the scenes work
and we really into the teachers and to help them grow.
really excited to see the continued use and deepening
of the SVMI partnership.
That is really, really great news.
I know that the teachers who participated this past year
really got so much out of it.
And then just really happy to see
how the pattern of growth over years
has become embedded into this professional learning plan
so that it's available and accessible
and we continue not to leave people behind,
but to bring people to where we're at together.
So it's just really that draft is a really great piece
of work to be able to see.
Yeah, and the coaching team, I think we,
as a company, there was a presentation,
they came in, did some real deep dives on examples
of their work, that was really great.
And I would just add that I think we're very fortunate
to still have so many instructional coaches
in our district, and to see all of the great things
they're doing for us year after year.
to our action agenda 11.1 45 day budget revision.
Thank you board of trustees and good evening.
I am here tonight to present the 26 27 45 day revise
and to highlight key budget changes
that have occurred since the original budget
was adopted by the board back in May.
Edco states that school districts have no more than 45 days to publicly present any
changes made to their own budget because of the state's final enacted budget.
The governor signed the state budget on June 29th which would make the 45 day deadline on this 13th.
I am presenting this information so that we are in compliance with the 45 day deadline
and to ask for your consideration in approving the budget information presented tonight.
As an overview, I'll do a brief recap of the budget timeline.
Then I'll present information from the state's enacted budget
and how those changes have impacted our local district
budget.
Then I'll discuss how those changes have impacted
our multi-year projections, as well as provide a detailed table
summarizing the schedule of changes.
And then I'll wrap it up with a look at what
to expect next in the budget cycle.
So this is the budget timeline that
goes to the full budget cycle.
Before I dive into the 45-day revise,
I would like to provide a brief recap
of some of the prior budget events leading up to the 45-day.
The last time the 26-27 original budget was presented
to the board was in mid-May
before the state's May revised budget information
was available.
This means the district's 26-27 original budget
was developed using assumptions
from the governor's January budget proposal.
Since January, there have been changes to the state's budget that have had an impact
on the district's 26-27 budget, and I will be going over those changes in the next couple
of slides.
And so overall, the state budget includes encouraging news for school districts with
increased funding and additional resources in the short term.
However, as a district, we still need to continue planning carefully, monitoring factors such
as enrollment trends, rising operational costs and uncertainty in the states, the full future
outlook. I also want to highlight that while there are budget changes, these changes are
only a light update intended to align our budget assumptions to current state funding.
A more in-depth budget update will be presented at the first interim. That's when we would
have had several months of revenues and expenditures to refine our projections and provide a clear
picture forward. So with that in mind I'll briefly highlight the key funding
changes in the state's enacted budget and what they mean for our district. The
first change we'll see is that the state is funding the 2.87% statutory COLA
along with an additional 1.44% investment in LCFF funding. Together
these provide a 4.31 percent increase to the LCFF based grant rates. However, that 1.44 percent
investment is also tied to a new and ongoing mandated expense for paid pregnancy disability
leave. The paid disability leave would allow up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave for disability
related to pregnancy or pregnancy recovery. The district has seen an average of about five
pregnancies per school year and so we're estimating that cost to be about $150,000
annually and that cost would be to cover the cost of the stuff. Another change impacting schools is
the student support and professional development wealth grant which is which the state is funding
at $930 per ADA equating to 3.3 million in restricted one-time dollars. We want to highlight
that this funding is restricted and one-time, which means one, it will not
count in towards our reserve balances, and two, because this is one-time funding
we want to plan for one-time expenses against these dollars. School districts
are also seeing an increase in special education funding with a base rate
increase from $999 to $1,340, which will be restricted and ongoing. We are
estimating to receive an increase of 1.2 million in revenue from this change.
However for context the special education program receives over 4.5
million in unrestricted general fund contributions. So while this increase in
revenue is a welcomed relief it is not the full funding the program needs. With
that in mind we also want to be thoughtful about how we budget these
additional resources. We're recommending to put 400,000 aside for unanticipated
student placements and transportation costs. As you all know special education
expenses can change quickly throughout the year as students and placements
change and these costs can be significant. Given that unpredictability
we believe we should budget conservatively in this area and ensure we
have the resources available to respond to student needs as they arise. Finally
what was not accounted for in the 26-27 adopted budget was a three percent raise
for WCTA and this raise is being budgeted to cost the district
approximately $965,000. And so this next slide shows the district's multi-year
projections and from all those changes we want to know how do these changes
impact the district reserves and overall the impact of these changes have
improved our reserves in the Permit Year as well as in the Out Years. You'll see
there's a point 60% increase in reserve balances in the current year from the
original budget to the 45-day revise going from the 8.45% to the 9.05% and
we're projecting 10.56% reserve balance in fiscal year 27-28 and 13.71% in fiscal year 28-29.
And while these are improvements, we also want to highlight that these projections do
not include settled raises for CSEA and that other financial circumstances such as the
health benefits MOU expiring at the end of this fiscal year, as well as the parcel tax
not passing should be considered when planning for the future.
This is the schedule of changes summarizing what has changed from the adoption of the
$26.27 budget to the 45 day revised budget.
We went over this information previously
in the major changes slide,
but this segment, the schedule,
summarizes the changes in total
and categorizes the amounts based on their side
of the unrestricted and restricted side of the budget.
And so I'll walk through.
On the unrestricted side of the table,
you will see that revenues have increased
by 1.6 million, approximately,
which is attributable to the increasing COLA and LCFF
investment, accounting for approximately $800,000.
And there's also an increase in unrestricted revenue
from the decrease in contributions
to special education of another $800,000.
Unrestricted expenses have increased by 1.1 million
from the original budget to 45-day revise.
Those expenses are the $150,000 budget
for the paid pregnancy disability leave and $965,000
for the 3% WCTA raise.
On the restricted side of the budget,
you will see that revenues have increased by $3.7 million.
$3.3 million is from the Student Support and Professional
Development Law Grant.
$1.2 million is from the increase in base grant funding
in special education.
And you'll see a reduction in contributions of $800,000,
which is being moved from special education back
to the unrestricted side of the budget.
For restricted expenses, you will
see that we increase budgets by $400,000,
and that is for the $300,000 for NPS student placements
and $100,000 for a special education transportation
cost.
Looking ahead, the next financial report
that will be presented in September
are unaudited actuals.
For unaudited actuals, we will be reviewing
where we landed in revenues and expenses for the 25-26 fiscal year and determining how
much beginning balance we have for this current 26-27 fiscal year.
The next time we will revisit the 26-27 budget will be in December for the first interim
report and the first interim will be a more in-depth budget update because we will have
had several months, again, of actual revenues and expenses to refine our projections.
That concludes the presentation and at the time I would like to open the floor to any
questions you may have.
I have a question about the discretionary block grant.
So its purpose is for professional development and student support.
I don't know if you're the right person to ask about that or I think I know what professional
development is but student support like what usage is you'll qualify for that.
Well I can jump in thank you for that question yes and then you can add it can
be used for any of our English learners or low social economic disadvantage
students it can be used for traditional professional development it can look at
within our strategic plan where there's some one-time costs that can be used to
increase student staff achievement without it creating those ongoing so
So it's really at that beginning phase where we need to work with everyone, all community
partners, their educational professors here, but we do have quite a bit of flexibility
with it, with limited direction about the main direction they're giving us is to make
sure it's not ongoing obligations.
Is there a time limit sometimes?
These block grants require that the funds be spent within a certain way.
I could definitely look into that and get back to you.
Yeah, the 1.44% for LCFF is so interesting
because it's like unrestricted but not.
So what happens if you don't need it all
for its intended purpose in a year?
Does it accrue, can it be utilized in other ways?
You might not have that answer right now,
but I'd be curious just to understand,
given that it's showing up on the unrestricted side,
But it's really earmarked.
What happens if you're not using it for that purpose in it
in the school year?
And maybe you don't know.
That's a really good question, and I
can look that up to confirm.
So it's great to see that the reserves went up.
We're still, at least for this year, under the 10%, though.
It's reassuring to see the increase.
I am very curious about the outer years
and the upcoming decisions and the pieces
that you highlighted already are not
included in the outer years.
So as I do with every board meeting,
I think you've listened almost for a year now shadowing Vince.
So you'll hear me always say that it's important for us
to remember why we have the board resolution
keep within the high the double digit reserves because it may seem like we
have money but it can quickly teeter us so we have to be very conservative
especially that there aren't there it's this is only what has been committed to
you but there are also things that we probably should commit to you that
haven't been expensed so it's nice to see that we're in a good double-digit
reserve in the outer years, but
I'd look forward to looking at the budget for
and one other thing to
Comment on is that you noted that the revision includes the settlement?
For the 3% raise with WCTA, but we haven't completed our negotiations with our CSEA partners
So I guess those numbers will show up in December
I don't think I have much to add but it's good to see they're increasing special education funding and highly underfunded.
It's a relief to under-stripped its size so it's welcomed but you can.
Welcome but still not enough.
Oh it's an action item.
Oh I'm sorry it is an action item. Thank you Sarah.
I move approval of the budget revisions to the Walnut Creek School District 2026-2027 operating budget through June 30th, 2020.
June 30th 2027 okay I have a motion and a second to approve the budget for
revisions to the WCSD 2026 2027 operating budget through June 30th
2027 all those in favor opposed
extension motion carries. Thank you. Okay next item 11.2 CSEA spring 2026
reclassification. Tonight I am bringing forth on behalf of our bargaining units
of the final step in the reclassification process for spring 2022.
Since it's a new year, I'm going to just give you a brief overview of the reclassification
process.
Any CSEA employee can apply to go through the reclassification procedure twice a year,
so they can apply in the fall and they can apply in the spring.
In the spring of 2026, we received one application.
The reclassification committee met together and reviewed the application and came up with
their recommendations.
The recommendations were then moved on to the superintendent for approval.
drafted the MOU together and then the last step is to bring it to the
governing board to approve the outcome of the reclassification committee and as
a reminder the reclassification committee is made up of three members
from CSEA, one member from WCTA, and then two members from management. So tonight I'm
asking to approve that reclassification application. I would like to move
approval of this PSCA chapter 202 MOU for spring brief classification. I'll second. I have a motion and a second to approve the CSDA chapter 202 MOU for spring
2026 brief classification. All those in favor? Opposed? Abstention. Motion carries. Thank you Kelly. I am three
in Lozano Smith Legal Service Agreement.
Thank you.
I'm bringing forward a recommendation to contract
with Lozano Smith who has worked for 35 years
in the state of California.
I have a relationship with them over the last 11 years
in San Ramon Valley Unified School District
where they provide great guidance
and would like to add them as our second legal company
that we can consult as needed.
I'm looking forward to having where they're certainly
certainly enjoyed their briefs and other products over time.
So looking forward to seeing how they can help serve us.
I'd like to move approval of the agreement
for legal services with lasagna's.
I'll second.
I have a motion and a second to approve the agreement
for legal services with lasagna's met.
All those in favor?
Aye.
Opposed?
Abstention?
Motion carries.
Thank you.
Item 11.4, CSBA call for nominations,
directors at large.
write if you are interested. CSBA's seeking directors at large, Hispanic and
Asian Pacific Islander are open from Monday, August 3rd through Friday, October
2nd and if there are spaces open the nomination has to occur by October 2nd
and the application packet has to be completed by November 2nd.
Do not think I'll have any nominees.
No nominees.
on to 11.5 unless anybody else wants to do 11.5 review of governing board assignments
for 2026 2027 tonight tonight when we select who are going to be the school site liaisons
and also the different board hats.
You should have a sheet in front of you
that tells you what the 25, 26 rules were
and open for your discussion on how you'd like
to assign each of you to the rules for this order.
Well, I'd like to throw my hat in the ring for WCI.
I know I'm listed as Tice Creek.
Last year I really just wasn't able to would like it,
which would be totally fine.
Is it a Tice?
And I think I had two last year, I would probably just go one.
Do you have any thoughts?
Sorry.
I'm not sure that I do.
I mean, it's just super proximal to me.
It's been a while since I've been there.
I wouldn't mind being in walking distance from my school side.
Way to the State Union Valley, we're waiting in Parkview.
I think I've done one of these stuff.
I think you've done more with Marwood.
Yeah, I haven't been to BB in a few years.
Valley and Tice Creek. Part of me. Take two this year, you want to take a new one? Board hats,
community curriculum, special education, facility technology, finance, personnel,
and then the additional organizations. Community is usually, the CPC is the PTA. What is that? What's that called, the CPC?
And also, it's WC meetings, right?
No, that's finance.
Oh, it's finance.
The community went, I don't know what cadence they're going to do today.
It was like three times last year, I think.
Maybe.
Ish.
Posita is finance.
Actually, that brings up a good point about whether or not
we should revisit the hats.
And that way, they're currently structured,
because this structure was developed at a time
when many board members did not work outside the home.
And they had...