Members of the public may address the Board on items listed on the closed session agenda. Speakers are limited to three minutes each (Board Bylaw 9323(5)).

This is an opportunity for members of the public to speak to the board on non-agenda items.  Comments on items that are on the agenda will take place during the discussion on that agenda item.  Members of the public may address the Board on matters within the subject matter of its jurisdiction. Please submit a Speaker Card to the Board Secretary prior to the meeting being called to order. Upon recognition by the Board President, please approach the podium. The Board shall take no action or discussion on any item not appearing on the posted agenda, except as authorized by law (BB 9323(2)). Speakers are limited to 3 minutes each (BB 9323(5)). Should a member of the public have comments that pertain to a complaint against an employee of the District, the Board advises that the matter should first be pursued using the appropriate district complaint procedure (BB 9323(6)).

The Board will consider acceptance of the independent audit report and district corrective action for the combined Santa Rosa Elementary and High School districts. The report has been completed by the firm Chavan & Associates, LLP for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019.

Purpose

Independent audits are conducted each year on the district's prior year financial statements and business operations and presented to the Board of Education for acceptance.

These audits are a look at the past year and may contain material findings that must be addressed in the subsequent year.

As required by Education Code 41020, the audit report was filed with the Sonoma County Superintendent of Schools, the State Department of Education, and the State Controller's Office.

Considerations

Reminder: Santa Rosa City Schools was granted an extension for the filing of the 2018-19 Audit Report due to school closures as a result of Public Safety Power Shutoffs and the Kincade Fire. 

The following are some areas of focus from the audit:

• The auditors opinion on the financial statements is unmodified (no exceptions).
• The opinion letter related to Capital Assets is unmodified, upgraded from the prior year modified status.
• Although the opinion letters were not modified, the report issued 5 findings for items that were considered to be deficiencies or material weaknesses on pages 100-106.
• The status of the prior year findings can be found on pages 107-110.

The audit contained the following Five (5) findings. The district plan for corrective action to each finding is listed below with each finding. Each corrective action is implemented and will be used in the ensuing years.

Finding #1 - 2019-001: Capital Assets (20000)

Criteria: Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and Education Code Section 35168 require the District to maintain records that properly account for capital assets. Capital asset records serve as a management tool and have an important bearing on management decisions, such as long-range acquisition and abandonment projections. 

Condition: We noted that there were completed projects still listed as construction in progress and that certain completed projects did not capture the full cost of the asset. Depreciation related to these assets was also unreliable.  The errors noted were immaterial to the financial statements as a whole, but significant enough to be reported as a finding. 

Effect: The District's capital asset balances could incorrectly include or exclude capital projects, buildings, improvements and depreciation related to these asset classes.  In addition, capital assets are incorrectly classified between these categories.  

Cause: The District hired a third party to inventory capital assets, but the reports produced by the inventory company did not include reconciled balances for construction in progress and buildings and improvements.  It appears the District did not have the time needed to review, reconcile and compare the reports provided to internal records.  District staff had expected construction in progress to be included in the reports. 

Recommendation: We recommend the District ensure that internal control procedures are followed throughout the year to adequately track additions, deletions, completion of projects, and accumulated depreciation in the District’s capital asset program.  The District should review the asset valuation that was performed to ensure that it is accurate and that an up-to-date capital asset listing of all assets of $5,000 is maintained throughout each fiscal year. 

Corrective Action Plan: The District agrees with the auditor’s recommendation and will implement policies and procedures during fiscal year 2019-20 to address the causes of the condition(s) noted, including but not limited to reconciling and monitoring the third party capital assets reports.

In the summer of 2019 the district contracted with AssetWorks to overhaul our capital assets inventory and financial statement. Through this work significant progress has been made to bringing our capital assets position into a complete and updated status. We have moved this year into an unmodified opinion for our capital assets financial report from the prior year modified opinion, which is significant. During the audit of our new capital assets inventory and financial statement we completed with AssetWorks, it was found that the four high school track and turf projects needed to move out of construction in progress into completed and the Arts Charter projected needed to be updated for accuracy. We believe these are the only items that need to be addressed but this finding allows us to continue working with the auditor to ensure the capital assets are completely updated, accurate and current.

Finding #2 - 2019-002; 50000 – Allowable Costs/Cost Principles – Supplanting with Title Ill & EIA-LEP

Federal Program Information: 84.365 - Title III, English Learner Student Program 

Federal Grantor Agency: 84.365 – ESEA (ESSA): U.S. Department of Education 

Pass-Through Grantor Agency: 84.365 - Special Education: California Department of Education 

Criteria or Specific Requirements: Pursuant to Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance), Title III funds can only be used to supplement, not supplant federal, state, and local public funds that, in the absence of such availability, would have been expended for programs for English learners and immigrant children and youth, and in no case to supplant such federal, state, and local public funds. 

Condition: During the fiscal year, the District was chosen by the California Department of Education (CDE) to undergo a review of its Tittle III program as part of the CDE’s federal program monitoring (FPM) process. The review resulted in findings related to supplanting with Title III and EIA-LEP federal funds.  The FPM review noted the following requirements that were not met:

1. General fund resources must be used to provide services and programs for English learners, including English language development (ELD) and access to the core curriculum. The provision of such services and programs must not be contingent on the receipt of state or federal supplementary funds.
2. Each LEA must use EIA-LEP carryover funds only to supplement, not supplant federal, state and local public funds. (20 U.S.C. § 6825(9); EC§54025[c]: Castaneda v. Pickard (5th Cir. 1981) 648
   F. 2d 989, 1010, 1012-1013)
3. For LEAs with EIA-LEP carryover, an LEA must utilize no less than 85 percent of those apportionments at school sites for direct services to students. (EC §§ 63000[d], 63001)
4. Each LEA must use Title III funds only to supplement, not supplant federal, state, and local public funds that, in the absence of such availability, would have been expended for programs for English learners and immigrant children and youth and in no case to supplant such federal, state, and local public funds. (20 U.S.C. § 6825(9); Castaneda v. Pickard (5th Cir. 1981) 648 F.2d 989, 1010, 1012-1013)
5. The use of Title Ill funds must meet the following requirements:
   1. An LEA utilizes no less than 98 percent of Title Ill EL apportionments on direct services to English Learners and may not use more than 2 percent of such funds for the administration of this program for a fiscal year. (20 U.S.C. § 6825[b])
   2. An LEA assesses for reasonable Title Ill EL and immigrant alignment with the federal supplement, not supplant requirement. (20 U.S.C. § 6825(9); Castaneda v. Pickard (5th Cir. 1981) 648 F.2d 989, 1010, 1012-1013

Questioned Costs: The net questioned costs related to this finding were $452,471. 

Context: The District should maintain controls to prevent noncompliance with Uniform Guidance or detect and correct noncompliance with Uniform Guidance in a timely manner. 

Effect: The District was not in compliance with Title III supplanting requirements and reversed $452,471 in FY19 expenditures to unearned revenue. As a result of this audit, $452,471 was reclassified from unearned revenue to accounts payable until allowable expenditures are incurred in FY20. 

Cause: The District's grant monitoring controls were ineffective and District staff were not aware of Title III and EIA-LEP supplanting requirements. 

Recommendation: We recommend that the District track federal grants by resource and CFDA and include items such as grant award, amount expended, general ledger account code, grant period, supplanting requirements and other compliance requirements for each grant. This tracker should be shared with pertinent employees in each department and updated routinely during the year.  This can be done as a part of the budgeting process as well.

Corrective Action Plan: The District agrees with the recommendations and will implement the recommended practices to ensure that incurred expenditures are allowable and supplement, rather than supplant federal funds, in order to be in compliance with Uniform Guidance for all federal programs.

Our Student & Family Services, State & Federal Department for the 2019-20 year has modified positions to create a new Coordinator to oversee all Title III spending and this new program organization and oversight will more significantly support compliance.

Finding #3 - 2019-003; 50000 – Internal Controls over Compliance

Federal Program Information: 10.555 & 10553 - Child Nutrition Cluster 

Federal Grantor Agency: 10.555 & 10553 - U.S. Department of Education 

Pass-Through Grantor Agency: 10.555 & 10553 - California Department of Education 

Criteria or Specific Requirements: Management of the District is responsible for establishing and maintaining effective internal control over compliance with the types of compliance requirements pursuant to Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance). 

Condition: We noted the following deficiencies in internal control over compliance:

• The District did not have proper documentation of the preparation and review of the paid lunch equity calculation prior to the school year starting to ensure proper compliance.
• The District did not document the proper review performed over basic claims prepared in the Child Nutrition Information and Payment System (CNIPS) submission. It was also noted that the manual rosters for the two non-district sites the District prepares Basic Claims for had reduced and free student statuses reversed, which resulted in incorrect Basic Claims being submitted for those two sites.
• The District does not have documentation indicating review of site applications by someone knowledgeable about the program.
• During our examination of the Child Nutrition program income, we noted that the contracts with other school districts to provide meals did not agree with amounts charged. We noted that the signed contracts with Mark West Union, Bellevue Union School District, Gavenstein Union School District, Piner-Olivet, and Sebastopol Union did not match the invoicing prices used to actually invoice because new rates were agreed upon without updated contracts.

Questioned Costs: The control deficiencies did not result in any material questioned costs. 

Context: The District should maintain controls to reduce the risk of noncompliance and detect noncompliance with Uniform Guidance or detect and correct noncompliance with Uniform Guidance in a timely manner.

Effect: Insufficient internal controls over federal program compliance increases the risk of noncompliance with Uniform Guidance and the risk that material misstatements may exist in the financial statements. 

Cause: Due to personnel changes, the District did not have sufficient staffing to ensure that controls over compliance were properly designed and operating as designed in relation to the Child Nutrition Program. 

Recommendation: We recommend the District assign specific personnel to monitor the Child Nutrition Program's compliance with uniform guidance, especially in the areas noted to be deficient.  This should be done at regular intervals during the year, not at the end of the year when it may be too late to identify and correct possible noncompliance. 

Corrective Action Plan: The District agrees with the recommendations and will take measures to implement proper internal controls over compliance. 

Our Child Nutrition Services Department for the 2019-20 year hired a new Director and this new leadership will provide guidance, processes, and procedures for compliance.

Finding #4 - 2019-004: Unduplicated Pupil Counts (40000) - Repeat of finding 2018-004

Criteria or Specific Requirements: Supplemental and concentration grant amounts are calculated based on the percentage of "unduplicated pupils" enrolled in the LEA on Census Day (first Wednesday in October). The percentage equals:

• Unduplicated count of pupils who (1) are English learners, (2) meet income or categorical eligibility requirements for free or reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program, or (3) are foster youth. "Unduplicated count" means that each pupil is counted only once even if the pupil meets more than one of these criteria (EC sections 2574(b)(2) and 42238.02(b)(1)).
• Divided by total enrollment in the LEA (EC sections 2574(b)(1) and 42238.02(b)(5)). All pupil counts are based on Fall 1 certified enrollment reported in the CALPADS as of Census Day.

Condition: During our testing of the EL students and the CALPADS reporting, we noted 8 out of 40 students tested were incorrectly classified as EL in CALPADS. During our testing of the FRM students and the CALPADS reporting, several students tested were noted as incorrectly classified as FRM in CALPADS because the correct status in the point of sale system was not loaded to CALPADS in a timely manner. As a result of our testing, we performed additional analytical procedures to test the entire population of FRM students.  The results of our testing for EL and FRM students concluded that a total of 172 students were considered incorrectly listed as “unduplicated pupils” in CALPADS.

Questioned Costs: The dollar impact of this finding is as follows:

Effect: The unduplicated pupil counts reported in the CALPADS 1.17 and 1.18 reports should be adjusted for the following changes as a result of the procedures performed:

No changes to enrollment were identified as a result of testing the unduplicated pupil counts. 

Cause: The District did not properly review uploaded student information from the District’s system to CALPADS to ensure proper classification of EL and FRM status. In addition, the District did not review the CALPADS data for accuracy during the adjustment window annually. 

Recommendation: The District upload student data into CALPADS in a timely manner and review CALPADS to ensure that the data was properly uploaded.  Additionally, we recommend the District review all CALPADS data for accuracy during the adjustment window annually and establish a system of review that provide adequate oversight of this reporting process and ensures appropriate communication between the District Office and various sites. 

Corrective Action Plan: The District agrees with the auditor’s recommendation and will implement policies and procedures during fiscal year 2019-20 to address the causes of the condition(s) noted.

In regards to our FRM student reporting, our Child Nutrition Services Department for the 2019-20 year hired a new Director and this new leadership will provide guidance, processes, and procedures for compliance.
Additionally starting in 2019-20 the district implemented a new cafeteria point of sale computer software program, Titan, that will more effectively support compliance.

Finding #5 - 2019-005; 40000 – After School Education and Safety Program

Criteria: Education Code Section 8484 requires submission of program attendance data. Proper controls should be designed and implemented to ensure that the attendance reported on the semi-annual attendance reports are accurate. 

Condition: During our testing of attendance for the after school education and safety program, we noted that the District was unable to provide written documentation for 37 students listed in attendance for the entire first half of the semi-annual attendance. 

Effect: The District’s controls do not sufficiently limit risk of error related to attendance reporting for the after school education and safety program. There is no financial impact from the conditions noted since the program is not directly funded based upon attendance, however, a reduction in attendance may result in a future grant reduction. After extrapolating the results for the entire year, the total effect on the attendance reported is as follow:

Questioned Costs: None 

Cause: The District does not have proper policies and procedures in place in order to ensure accurate reporting of attendance for the after school education and safety program.  

Recommendation: We recommend that the District establish policies and procedures to ensure that all sites have written support for student attendance. 

Corrective Action Plan: The District agrees with the auditor’s recommendation and has already changed its program service provider beginning fiscal year 2019-20 to address the causes of the condition(s) noted.

For the 2019-20 school year, the district contracted with Boys and Girls Club to perform our ASES program in lieu of Creative Brain that was contracted in 2018-19 in order to have an effectively ran program. 

Board Policy
AR 3460

Education Code
Ed Code 41020

Previous Board History
September 11, 2019 (F.5) Approval of the 2018-19 Unaudited Actuals
January 23, 2019 (F.6) Acceptance of the 2017-18 Independent Audit Report

Finding #1 - 2019-001: Capital Assets (20000):

• No Financial Impact

Finding #2 - 2019-002; 50000 – Allowable Costs/Cost Principles – Supplanting with Title Ill & EIA-LEP:

• No Financial Impact at this time. If these funds are not properly expended in 2019-20 they will be required to be returned to the federal government.

Finding #3 - 2019-003; 50000 – Internal Controls over Compliance:

• No Financial Impact
  

Finding #4 - 2019-004: Unduplicated Pupil Counts (40000):

• The State LCFF supplemental and concentration funding for the Elementary district for 2018-19 will reduce by $29,478 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.
• The State LCFF supplemental funding for the Secondary district for 2018-19 will reduce by $73,432 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.
• The State LCFF supplemental and concentration funding for the Cesar Chavez Language Academy for 2018-19 will reduce by $6,581 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.
• The State LCFF supplemental funding for the Santa Rosa Accelerated Charter for 2018-19 will reduce by $972 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.
• The State LCFF supplemental and concentration funding for the Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts for 2018-19 will reduce by $1,486 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.
• The State LCFF supplemental and concentration funding for the Santa Rosa French-American Charter (SRFACS) for 2018-19 will reduce by $2,458 and be taken out of the 2019-20 allocation.

Finding #5 - 2019-005; 40000 – After School Education and Safety Program:

• No Financial Impact

Accept the 2018-19 Independent Audit Report and corrective action.

The Board will consider approval of the Superintendent's  recommendations for revenue enhancements and expenditure reductions for the Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 for inclusion in the Second Interim Report.

Purpose

In preparation for the 2019-20 Second Interim report that is due by March 15, 2020, a Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 identifying specific revenue enhancements and expenditure reductions has been prepared for the consideration of approval in order to identify some or all of the current $12.9M “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures” as included in the 2019-20 First Interim Report (December 11, 2019 - Item F.4.). 

The proposed expenditure reductions and revenue enhancements included in the Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 are either one-time reductions/enhancements or ongoing reductions/enhancements. Ongoing expenditure reductions or revenue enhancements that are met in the 2nd year of the MYP are compounded in the 3rd year yielding a double reduction for each single reduction item. 

Considerations

The 2019-20 First Interim report Multiyear Projection (MYP), 3-year projection, indicated that after the district met all of its financial obligations, the minimum 3% reserve for economic uncertainty could be met in 2019-20 and 2020-21, but not in 2021-22. Due to this, the MYP included “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures” in the third year (2021-22) of $12.9M allowing Santa Rosa City Schools to self-certify as “Qualified”. 

As part of Assembly Bill 1200, the state legislation outlines the fiscal reporting requirements for every CA school district while providing oversight by their County Office of Education. The Board of Education is required to review the district’s financial condition at the First Interim by December 15, the Second Interim by March 15, and the Third Interim (only required if certified “Qualified” at the Second Interim Report) by May 15. After review, the Board certifies that the district meets one of the following conditions while continuing to maintain a minimum of a 3% reserve for economic uncertainty:

• Positive: the district is able to meet financial obligations for current and two subsequent fiscal years

• Qualified: the district may not meet financial obligations for a current fiscal year or two subsequent fiscal years

• Negative: the district will not meet financial obligations for the remainder of the current fiscal year or one subsequent fiscal year

As a result of certifying “Qualified” at the First Interim Report (December 2019) and acknowledging the need to determine expenditure reductions and/or revenue enhancements at the adoption of the 2019-20 Budget, it was necessary for the District to determine the “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures”. 

In order to determine the “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures”,  the Budget Advisory Committee was reconvened in September 2019 to start the process of identifying reductions and enhancement to submit to the Superintendent for consideration. Upon receiving the Budget Advisory Committee’s recommendations, the Superintendent could take one of the following actions:

1. Accept the Recommendation(s)

2. Modify the Recommendation(s)

3. Not Accept the Recommendation(s)

4. Add a New Recommendation(s)

The recommendations from the Budget Advisory Committee were compiled into the Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 which is submitted, on behalf of the Superintendent, to the Board of Education for consideration of approval for inclusion in the 2019-20 Second Interim report and in the 2020-21 Budget. 

Note: The Superintendent accepted all of the Budget Advisory Committee’s recommended expenditure reductions and revenue enhancements. The Superintendent modified one item that had been tabled by the committee for inclusion in the Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1. 

Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 (FSP-P1)

Details of the FSP-P1 can be found at the following link: https://srcs.link/fsp-p1

Overview:

Summary of Proposed Expenditure Reductions and Revenue Enhancements:

Selected Proposed Expenditure Reductions and Revenue Enhancements:

*These items, if approved, will have the specific details of this transfer included in the 2019-20 Second Interim Report that will be presented to the Board for approval at the March 11, 2020 meeting. 

Budget Advisory Committee (BAC)

The Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) is made up of teachers, administrators, staff, business and community members, parents, and students:

BAC meetings are facilitated by the Deputy Superintendent, Chief Business Official and the Executive Director of Fiscal Services. The current iteration of the BAC started in October of 2017. For the current 2019-20 budget cycle, starting on September 26, 2019, and over seven (7) meetings, members provided feedback, solicited information from their respective stakeholder communities, received information about the overall budget condition and information regarding specific funds and programs. The discussions through this group guided recommendations on revenue enhancements and expenditure reductions to the Superintendent and, ultimately, the Board of Education via this proposed Fiscal Stabilization Plan Part 1.

Since the 2019-20 1st Interim report, the January 2020 Governor’s Budget Proposal has been released with updated education budget projections including a decrease in projected COLA from 3.0% to 2.29%. These changes will be included in the 2019-20 2nd Interim report and the MYP to show additional impact to the needed budget solutions and the current amount needed to restore positive certification.

BAC Meeting Dates (FY 2019-20):

• September 26, 2019

• October 17, 2019

• November 21, 2019

• December 5, 2019

• January 23, 2020

• February 13, 2020

• February 20, 2020

Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 2 (FSP-P2)

FSP-P2 will start after the 2019-20 Second Interim Report. The FSP-P2 will be submitted to the Board of Education by the Superintendent in May 2020. FSP-P2 will also include any reduction in force or reductions in particular kinds of services.

Financial Status

If approved, these expenditure reductions and revenue enhancements will provide the foundation to meet the “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures” total of approximately $12.9MM at the 2019-20 First Interim. Additional information will be provided at the presentation of the 2019-20 Second Interim Report at the March 11 Board meeting. 

It is important to note that beyond the $12.9MM of “Future Unidentified Fiscal Stabilization Measures”, SRCS must also prepare to negotiate with our CSEA employees in the spring of 2020, our SRTA employees in the spring of 2021, uncertain education funding in California, and declining enrollment. The BAC will continue its efforts to identify additional expenditure reductions and revenue enhancements.

Board Policy
BP 3100

Education Code
AB 1200

Previous Board History
January 22, 2020 (I.5) The Governor's Proposed 2020/21 Budget
December 11, 2020 (F.4) First Interim Report with Qualified Certification for Fiscal Year 2019-20

If approved in whole, the Fiscal Stabilization Plan - Part 1 will have an $11,591,445 positive impact to our general fund operating budget. 

The Board will be presented with information about the multiple supports for students and staff in Santa Rosa City Schools.  One of the most important supports is through our Multi-tiered System of Supports (MTSS) and the associated prevention, intervention, and targeted practices.   In addition, the Board will be presented with the proposed waiver for the current graduation requirements and information on our Graduation with an Industry Concentration (Formerly Certificate Specialists).

Purpose

The Board will be presented with an update on the structure of supports for all Santa Rosa City Schools, the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). 

A proposed waiver for students who have failed Math 1 and LOTE more than once will be considered for the 2020-2021 school year.  Information and timelines on graduation with concentration will also be shared with the Board.

Considerations

History:

The School Climate Transformation Grant, also known as BEST Plus, was awarded to Santa Rosa City Schools in the fall of 2014 for $3,622,837. Over the next 5 years, through the fall of 2019, SRCS intentionally blended of Restorative Practices & Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to create the BEST Plus. BEST Plus enhanced and expanded the systems of support for schools by implementing evidence-based, multi-tiered framework for improving behavioral outcomes and learning conditions for all students. 

This has paved the way to set SRCS up for further understanding and developing of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support or MTSS work. The MTSS provides the following  framework: 

Evidenced-based model of schooling

– uses data-based problem-solving

– integrates academic and behavioral instruction and intervention

Integrated instruction and intervention

  – delivered to students in varying intensities (multiple tiers) based on

 student need

Decision-making is “need-driven”

– seeks to ensure that district resources reach the appropriate students (schools)  at the appropriate levels to accelerate the performance of all students to achieve and/or exceed proficiency

This framework is created in a “tiered” approach as follows:

Tier 3: Intensive, Individualized Interventions & Supports.

The most intense (increased time, narrowed focus, reduced group size) instruction and intervention based upon individual student need to be provided in addition to and aligned with Tier 1 & 2 academic and behavior instruction and supports.

Tier 2: Targeted, Supplemental Interventions & Supports.

More targeted instruction/intervention and supplemental support in addition to and aligned with the core academic and behavior curriculum.

Tier 1: Core, Universal Instruction & Supports.

General academic and behavior instruction and support provided to all students in all settings

These supports lead and assist with the new graduation requirements.

In the Spring of 2018, the Board of Education voted to change the graduation requirements by adding a year of Math and Language Other Than English (LOTE). The change was needed to address the disparity of students who are college and career ready in Santa Rosa City Schools were not equal among subgroups. At the time, the data shows the percentage of students who were meeting the a-g requirements were trending down, while the state and county were trending up. Additionally, Superintendent Kitamura brought forward the idea of the “Certificate Specialist” as an additional opportunity for students to achieve the new graduation requirements.

On January 29, 2020 study session the Board directed staff to come back with waiver options.

The Data presented at the stud session showed:

The report will include:

• MTSS: MTSS is a framework to ensure successful educational outcomes for ALL students by using a data-­based problem-solving process to provide and evaluate the e?ectveness of multiple tiers of integrated academic, behavior, and social-emotional instruction/intervention supports matched to student need in alignment with educational standards."

• Waiver:A waiver is a process that intentionally excuses a student from specific graduation requirements based on certain factors.  By waiving Math and/or LOTE course(s), students will remain on track toward graduating with a Santa Rosa City Schools diploma; however by utilizing a waiver, students will not be eligible to apply directly to a CSU or UC college because the “a-g” requirements have not been fulfilled.  A waiver is initiated by specific paperwork that must be completed by a student, the student’s guardian, and school personnel.

• Graduation with Concentration Language:An industry concentration is defined as taking courses that fit under a CDE recognized industry sector.  A student may meet the requirements of an industry concentration in three ways:

1. The student takes a series of 2 or 3 sequential courses that are aligned within a CDE recognized industry sector in a CTE designated pathway.

2. The student takes a series of 2 or 3 sequential courses that are aligned within a CDE recognized industry sector in a school site designated pathway.

3. The student takes, at minimum, 2 non-sequential courses that are aligned within the same CDE recognized industry sector AND completes a component of work readiness.

Next Steps:

• Consult with SRTA and CSEA on the Waiver and Graduation with a Concentration

• Bring Board Policy 6146.1 with the Waiver and Graduation with a Concentration process, forms, applications, and graduation plan template to the Board for approval

• Assess the professional development needs for staff on the supports provided through MTSS, the Waiver and the Graduation with an Industry Concentration process

• College and Career Counselors to develop a series of Parent Academies to educate students and families about the graduation requirements and options.

Board Policy
BP 6146.1

Education Code
Ed Code 51228

Previous Board Activity
January 29, 2020 - Item D.2
November 13, 2019 - Item F.3
May 22, 2019 - Item F.4
June 13, 2018 - Item G.3
April 25, 2018 - Item F.1
April 11, 2018 - Item F.1

The Board will consider their vote for CSBA's 2020 Delegate Assembly Election.

Purpose

As a CSBA member school district, the Santa Rosa City Schools Board is eligible to vote for candidates running for the CSBA Delegate Assembly within our geographical region or subregion.

Consideration

The CSBA Delegate Assembly sets the general policy direction for the association, which represents California's school districts and county offices of education.  CSBA's mission is to provide leadership in setting and implementing the public education agenda and to support school board governance at the district and county levels.  Delegates fulfill a critical governance role by communicating the interest of local boards to CSBA's Board of Directors, Executive Committee, and staff.  Delegates give policy and legislative direction through the adoption of the policy platform every two years and the adoption of other policy statements as needed. They also speak on issues and provide direct advocacy on behalf of the association.  Delegates play important communication and support roles within their regions, and they also elect the association's officers and Board of Directors.  All re-elected and newly elected Delegates will serve two-year terms beginning April 1, 2020 – March 31, 2022.

There is currently one vacancy to be filled in Subregion 3-A.  Two candidates have been nominated: Laurie Fong and Jeremy Brott.   

Previous Board History
2/13/19 (Item F.2)
2/28/18 (Item F.10)
2/22/17 (Item F.3)

Move to direct staff to submit vote for Laurie Fong for the CSBA Delegate Assembly.

The Board will consider adopting Resolution No. 2019/20-052 in support of providing a $15.00 per hour minimum wage for Santa Rosa City Schools employees. 

Purpose and Considerations

As outlined in the resolution, a single wage earner needs more than $15.00 per hour to meet basic needs and that the majority of Santa Rosa City Schools' students, families, and staff reside in the City of Santa Rosa. It is vital that SRCS provides a minimum wage, where legally permissible, in alignment with the City of Santa Rosa. 

If adopted, effective July 1 2020, SRCS will

1. Set the minimum wage equal to the City of Santa Rosa minimum, where legally permissible. 
2. Set the minimum wage of unrepresented employees equal to the City of Santa Rosa minimum wage
3. During the next contract negotiation with each bargaining unit, SRCS will propose that no employee be paid a wage less than the minimum wage established by Board policy. 

The Board will consider approval of revised Board Policy 4151, 4251, and 4351 - Personnel, Employee Compensation to include provisions of maintaining a minimum wage. 

Purpose and Considerations

As outlined in Resolution No. 2019/20-052, a single wage earner needs more than $15.00 per hour to meet basic needs and that the majority of Santa Rosa City Schools' students, families, and staff reside in the City of Santa Rosa. It is vital that SRCS provides a minimum wage, where legally permissible, in alignment with the City of Santa Rosa.  

The Board will consider approval of revised Board Policy 7310 - Naming of Facilities.

 Purpose and Considerations

The purpose is to update the district's policy.  Director Medina is requesting: 1) the language, "No school will be named for a living person," be stricken; change the language, "A citizen advisory committee shall be appointed ..." to "A citizen advisory committee may be appointed ..."; and adding the word "memorial" in paragraph 1b under Memorials. 

Previous Board History
This policy has come before the Board on the following dates:
4/22/15 (Item F-7)
6/10/15 (Item F-13)
1/27/16 (Item F-4)
12/11/19 (G.3)

All consent items are enacted by the Board in one motion, unless a Board member requests that an item be removed and discussed separately.  

The Board will consider approval of absent Board Member(s), if necessary, due to illness, jury duty, or a hardship deemed acceptable by the Board in accordance with Education Code Section 35120.

The Board will consider approval of the personnel transactions submitted. 

Staff is presenting Personnel Transaction items for Board approval.

Approved by vote on consent agenda.

The Board will consider approval of the vendor warrants submitted.  The attached warrant register lists all vendors for the period February 1, 2020, through February 13, 2020, for a total of $3,261,708.20. 

Staff is presenting the Warrant Register List for Board Approval.

Financially significant vendor warrants that highlight the largest check or invoice paid to a particular vendor:

Warrants (Current): February 1, 2020, through February 13, 2020 = $3,261,708.21
Warrants (Total 19/20 Fiscal Year): July 1, 2019, through February 13, 2020 = $53,070,818.70

Approved by vote on consent agenda.

The Board will consider approval of the donations and gifts submitted.

Parents, students, community members, and businesses make donations and give gifts to the schools on a regular basis. Donations come in the form of money, goods, or services. These donations are appreciated and welcomed by the schools and departments.

Donations received since February 12, 2020 = $1,901.89.
District-wide donations year to date = $196,149.83.

Approved by vote on consent agenda.

 The Board will consider approval of the contracts submitted.

Staff is submitting contracts on behalf of schools and departments for specified services to be performed by individuals, contractors or consulting firms.  For fiscal and learning impacts, see the attached summary sheet.

Total value of contracts = $109,000.00

The Board will consider approval of Resolution 2019/20-45 appointing Tim Zalunardo to represent the Santa Rosa City Schools on the Sonoma County Adult Education Consortium Oversight Committee. 

Purpose

The Board will consider appointing Tim Zalunardo to represent Santa Rosa City Schools on the Sonoma County Adult Education Consortium. 

Consideration

The Oversight Committee serves as the governing body for the Sonoma County Adult Education Consortium.  It is comprised of six member agencies that represent four K-12 Districts, the County Office of Education and the Sonoma County Junior College District. Each member district is represented by a manager appointed by their Board of Trustees.

The purpose of the committee is to ensure that each member has a voice in key decisions for the Consortium.  The Oversight Committee provides input and guidance on academic initiatives, consortium policy, and budget.  They also approve the annual plan and operating budget, which is distributed among the service providing agencies. The Committee meets quarterly, twice each fall and spring semester.

The Board will consider approving the 2020-2021 Classified Employees Calendar with 244 workdays which has been negotiated and approved by both parties.

Purpose

Both parties negotiated and agreed to a 2020-2021 Classified Employees Calendar for Classified, Confidential and Supervisory employees.

History: The CSEA calendar had been developed in Human Resources, then shared with CSEA prior to action by the Board. CSEA, SRTA and administrative staff did not share their needs or thinking within one another about how a calendar impacts their unit's work and our ability to best serve students and families. Starting last year, and continuing through to this year, members from all representative groups came together to share this thinking, problem solve, and find creative solutions to calendar issues that impacted our district's mission and vision and the work we do. This collective work resulted in a ratified Instructional Calendar and now a ratified CSEA calendar.

Considerations

There are nine (9) legal holidays and eight (8) local holidays included. The calendar aligns with the student and SRTA instructional calendars previously adopted by the Board. Considerations were made for 10 and 11 month as well as school year employees, alignment with surrounding districts and the community college, and potential waiver days due to fires, or other school closures. CSEA was consulted on the calendar during the joint CSEA/SRTA/SRCS calendar planning committee work on December 11, 2019 and in subsequent CSEA-SRCS bi-monthly collaboration meeting.

The calendar was ratified by CSEA at their meeting on February 11, 2020.

Board Policy
BP 4143 Negotiations/Consultation
BP 6111 School Calendar

California Law
SB 160 - Rodda Act

Previous Board History
5/22/19 E.6
5/23/18 E.6
4/12/17 E.7
4/27/16 E.9
5/13/15 E.6 & E.7

The Board will consider approval of the Field Trip Request form for Maria Carrillo High School's Jazz Choir to participation in the Performance Program on the 2020 Carnival Imagination Cruise, March 12-16, 2020.

Purpose

The Board is being asked to approve the Field Trip Request form for Maria Carrillo High School's Jazz Choir to participation in the Performance Program on the 2020 Carnival Imagination Cruise, March 12-16, 2020. 

The Performance Program on the Carnival Imagination Cruise is the replacement trip for the Jeju Fire Festival in Jeju, South Korea, that MCHS's Jazz Choir had originally planned on attending March 10-17; however, due to the Coronavirus outbreak this trip had to be canceled.  

Considerations

The performing students will have the opportunity to enhance their experience with an adjudicated performance.  They will participate in an educational performance workshop that will be hosted by a highly experienced professional in the genre of their group.  They will also perform on stage during the 3 day cruise from Long Beach to Ensenada, Mexico.  At the end of the trip the students will receive a plaque for their participation and a trophy.

Board Policy

BP 6153.1 School Sponsored Extended Field Trips

Education Code

EC Section 35330 - 35332  ARTICLE 13. Excursions and Field Trips [35330 - 35332]

Previous Board History

February 14, 2018 (Item E-11) Maria Carrillo High School's Jazz Choir and Songbirds Field Trip to Jeju, South Korea

March 9, 2016 (Item E-9) Maria Carrillo High School's Jazz Choir Field Trip to New York City

This will be subsidized through 2 years of performance donations, including transportation, lodging, and associated trip costs. 

The Board will consider approval of Resolution 2019/20-050, authorizing the execution of the Amended Joint Powers Agreement and Bylaws, and adopt separate documents for each programs of the Redwood Empire Schools' Insurance Group (RESIG).

Purpose

Santa Rosa City Schools is a current member of the Redwood Empire Schools Insurance Group (RESIG) Joint Powers Authority (JPA). This resolution and attached documents is presented to the Board as a result of changes to Joint Powers Agreement and Bylaws of RESIG and is required for implementation and for notice of changes. 

Consideration

On December 5, 2019, RESIG's Board of Directors voted unanimously to update the Joint Powers Agreement and Bylaws and to add separate documents for each program (i.e. Workers' Compensation, Property & Liability, Employee Benefits). The last update to RESIG's governing documents was in 2009.

This resolution authorizes the execution of the amended Joint Powers Agreement and Bylaws, and adopts separate documents for each program of the Redwood Empire Schools’ Insurance Group.

These items are presented for informational purposes only.

The following are future board update items:

• Resolution - Women's History Month
• 2nd Interim Report
• ASES Mid-year Eval
• Fir Ridge - 7/11 Report
• School Impact Fees
• Reduction in Force (RIF) Notification; Particular Kinds of Service (PKS)
  

Attached for reference are the Board's Codes of Conduct and Code of Ethics board policy. 

Attached for reference is a list of educational acronyms and abbreviations.