Let’s get into what went down at the May 25th Sacramento City Unified School District Board meeting. Thanks to Mo Kashmiri for this update.
Here's a quick summary:
The Board approved a plan for spending $28.5 million of COVID money from the State (AB 86). However, the District didn't actually do outreach to get input from communities or stakeholders as required by the law. The District stressed it was a sprint because they only found out about it in March, and it needed to be sent to Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) by June 1st. The District basically just used the input they got from the local control and accountability plan (LCAP) survey instead. The plan will probably change/modify as they go along. They claim they want to get more input on the flexible plan.
The Board also heard a report from consultants/architects on a 5-year facilities master plan. The consultant said the District has approximately $3.5 BILLION in needs, and currently has $750 million in bond money to spend. They will be developing a website in August that will rank every school site on where they are and what they need. Clearly we need additional school bonds to ensure our students have the facilities they deserve.
It was disappointing that the Board gave almost no notice about this meeting. The agenda was simply posted at 5pm on the day beforehand. Comments must be made by noon, which limits meaningful community participation and input.