Regular Meeting

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[28] SPEAKER_25: No. Okay, sound good?

[377] Bowen Zhang: Good evening, everyone. Welcome to the November 4th regular meeting of the Newark School Board of Education. Meeting is called to order at 6.01 p.m. Ms. Gutierrez, roll call, please.

[390] SPEAKER_33: Member Marquez. Member Grindel.

[394] Diego Torres: Here.

[395] SPEAKER_33: Member Hill.

[396] Diego Torres: Here.

[397] SPEAKER_33: Vice President Nguyen. Here. President Nguyen.

[400] Bowen Zhang: Here.

[401] SPEAKER_33: All present.

[402] Bowen Zhang: Okay, moving on approval of the agenda. May I get a motion to approve the agenda?

[408] SPEAKER_27: Professor Fong, I move that we approve the agenda.

[412] Bowen Zhang: And can I get a second? I'll second. Okay, motion made by Member Marcus, seconded by Member Grundahl. Member Marcus, how do you vote? Yes. Member Grundahl? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen?

[428] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[429] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes, motion carries unanimously. Before we're going to closed session, any public comments on closed session? No comments, so in closed session, we'll be discussing item 3.2, ratification and approval of TK enrollment, 3.3, public employee discipline dismissal release, 3.4, conference with labor negotiator, NTNCSEA, 3.5, conference with labor negotiators, NEWMA, unrepresented supervisors, and contracted management. 3.6, conference with legal counsel, anticipated litigation. 3.7, conference with legal counsel, existing litigation. 3.8, student expulsion case. And we'll be back to open session around 7. Okay, we'll see you in a bit. Good evening again. We're back to open session. First Pledge of Allegiance. Everyone please stand. Ready, begin. 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. Thank you. Next is report of closed session actions. In item 3.2, ratification and approval of TK enrollment, the board voted unanimously to approve one TK enrollment. Again, 3.2, ratification and approval of TK enrollment, the board voted unanimously to approve one TK enrollment. Moving on to student reports, Superintendent Triplett.

[3985] Mark Triplett: Good evening, board members, community, those watching at home, staff. So yeah, we're delighted to have our student reports tonight, and I believe we are going to be starting from the junior high, and that is Muhammad Lulu and Porvi Sharma.

[4004] SPEAKER_21: Good evening, board members. My name is Muhammad Lulu, the ASB president of Newark Junior High School. I hope you guys have all been having a great day. So this week, we have started our food drive with Newark Love, which ends this Friday. And the great part is that students have been donating canned food items, which are a great help to those in need of some sort of help with food. Now, I'm going to go ahead and pass it on to my fellow student, Courtney Farmer.

[4033] SPEAKER_08: Hi, my name is Mori Sharma, the ASB Vice President of Newark Junior High School. We have been taking pre-orders for the yearbooks at our student store. We are also hosting a social, a winter social that will be ready once we get our COVID safety guidelines approved. And we are also collaborating with PTSA for an art contest. Thank you so much for listening. Have a great night.

[4064] Mark Triplett: Thank you to our junior high school representatives. Next, we have our alternative education representative. Nope. No, we don't. Next, we have a Newark High School representative, Ms. Steina Resendiz-Ortiz.

[4081] SPEAKER_36: Thank you. Good evening, everyone. At Newark Memorial High, a lot has been happening as of recently. Not only did we have our annual trunk or treat of the year, where over 200 students were able to enjoy the Halloween spirit, but the Puente Club hosted a beautiful Dia de los Muertos altar and a Folklorico dance. Additionally, this Friday is our last football game of the year, so definitely come and join if you can. As for previous events at our school, our homecoming week was quite a success with a great outdoors dance and our homecoming royalty being our previous ASB representative, Wahab Salimi, and Kayla Kawazoe, the senior class vice president. With that being said, we are currently hosting a canned food drive where students can win prizes for donating, so definitely pitch in if you can. And if students are interested in playing winter sports, registration is currently open. Last but not least, I would like to give a shout out to the optimistic students of the year, Chance Tabuco and Amber Nolas-Cotores, who will be honored at the optimistic club breakfast. Thank you.

[4145] Bowen Zhang: Thank you for the report. Interestingly speaking, Member Grindel and myself are both in the Optimist Club, and every year we see the scholarship recipient on our annual breakfast, I mean, you know, breakfast event where we awarded our scholarship. Okay, thank you for the student report. Moving on to employee organization, Ms. Gutierrez.

[4166] SPEAKER_33: Today we're only going to get an update from NEWMA, and Ms. Amanda Gulliher is here to provide the update. Ms. Gulliher, you may begin.

[4178] SPEAKER_35: Thank you. Good evening, President June, Board of Trustees, and Executive Cabinet members. On behalf of our NEWMA Board, I want to once again thank our NEWMA team, our NTA team, and our CSCA team members for their continued effort and dedication to keeping our schools safe, healthy, and positively productive. As we're approaching our first report cards, we're looking forward to seeing the growth our students have made as a result of our collaborative efforts. Tonight, I'd also like to highlight some of the work our AXA members are doing. Our members are seeking professional development through AXA Leadership Summit in San Francisco right now this week, and also attending AXA academies to bring more skills to the leadership of NUSD. So very proud of the work our team members are doing. Also, just wanted to let you all know, super important here, Fall is my favorite time of year, and it's my favorite time of year because it's a time of celebration. I've not done the research to back this up, but it's been said that there are 29 holidays between October and January. NUSD is a wonderfully diverse and vibrant community, and it's exciting to share in these holidays with our students, families, and colleagues. Today is Diwali, the festival of lights. The Festival of Lights is celebrated all around the globe by different community and brings a lot of excitement, joy, and prosperity. Diwali holds significance for many people as it symbolizes the victory of good over evil, light over darkness, and happiness over sorrow. So on this day, may the Festival of Lights illuminate your lives with good health and peace. We wish you a happy and prosperous Diwali. Thank you for your time this evening.

[4280] Bowen Zhang: Thank you. Moving on to Staff Spotlight, Superintendent Triplett.

[4288] Mark Triplett: Thank you, President Jeanne. Ms. Gutierrez, can you put up the staff spotlights? So this evening we have a return. This is a unique evening because as we speak, Alameda County Office of Education is celebrating their Teacher of the Year. And we here in Newark have the unusual honor of having two of those Teachers of the Year. Even though we're small, we have dominated Teacher of the Year from this past year because we're so amazing. So you can see on here both Chef Christopher Schrocki, he's technically from Mission Valley ROP, but teaches at Newark full-time, Newark Memorial. And then likewise, we have the amazing Ms. Catherine Sheving, who is in our elementary school at Schilling. And so we, unfortunately, we couldn't be there tonight to honor them because of the board meeting, but Mr. Dulowicz, the director of teaching learning is there in our stead to celebrate with these two outstanding teachers. But we did want to just lift it back up, even though we did mention this in the spring, because this is the final celebration tonight across the county. So congratulations to them both. If you go to the next slide, there we go. And just bear with me for just to speak a little bit about both of them. You can see this is some of their accolades. Chef Christopher Schrocki has been teaching for 12 years after working in professional kitchens for nearly two decades. He treats his students as if they are high-end clients. and aims to embed in them a sense of independence and real-world skills. Schrocky believes in not only just teaching cooking skills, but also how to be successful at whatever his students choose to do in life. And he has been really amazing with the cooking program there at the high school. And then Ms. Sheving. Catherine Cheving has been teaching special education for 34 years and currently leads a special day class for students with mild to moderate needs. She previously worked at both a summer camp for developmentally disabled adults and children, as well as an aid for a resource program. And from there, her desire to teach was born. Cheving tries to uncover what her students need, especially those who haven't made a connection with someone before. So again, we just want to really celebrate. It's with a lot of pride that we have two teachers this year in Alameda County Teacher of the Year Awards. Thank you.

[4447] Bowen Zhang: Thank you, Superintendent. Moving on to public comment on non-agenda items, Ms. Gutierrez.

[4469] SPEAKER_33: The first public comment is from Monica Quiroz. Monica Quiroz. ¿Ya puede hablar? ¿Puede empezar? Señora Quiroz, ¿puede empezar?

[4504] SPEAKER_34: Si estoy lista. Buenas noches Dr. Triplett y miembros de la mesa directiva. Nosotros los representantes de los padres de Newark para mejores escuelas estamos aquí para continuar abordando la falta de respeto y la falta de comunicación que continuamos viendo en todo el distrito para nuestra comunidad latina y nuestra escuela título número uno. Con ese fin, enviamos un correo electrónico a los miembros de la mesa directiva para abordar específicamente lo siguiente. El problema aún continúa de no proporcionar una traducción de documentos importantes o interpretación en reuniones importantes. Es decir, reuniones para padres noche de regreso a la escuela, foros de padres del distrito, reuniones de ELCA y de educación especial, por nombrar algunos. Es espantoso seguir escuchando sus excusas de no, de que no pueden encontrar intérpretes o contratar según a alguien que esté altamente calificado. Tal vez la mesa directiva debería considerar pagar más y también proporcionar capacitación a quienes contrata para que entiendan su papel como intérpretes, traductores. Nos gustaría dar las gracias, estudiante miembros de la mesa directiva, la señorita Resendiz Ortiz, la cual solicitó Que un traductor esté siempre presente en las reuniones de la mesa directiva. Como miembros de los padres de Newark para mejores escuelas, ahora estamos proporcionando nuestra propia interpretación. Cuando uno de nosotros miembros habla para que el 50% de nuestros padres latinos que tienen hijos en NUSD estén también informados y que estemos siendo transparentes. Queremos asegurarnos de que todos nuestros padres escuchen el mensaje, ya que les afecta la educación y el progreso académico de nuestros hijos. Como líderes, deben buscar una solución en lugar de evitar el problema. Tengan en cuenta que ustedes están recibiendo fondos federales y estatales para nuestros estudiantes de segundo idioma, y sin embargo, ustedes están fallando proporcionando los recursos. La sección 48, 985 del Código de Educación establece cuando el 15% o más de los alumnos matriculados en una escuela pública brinda instrucciones en el jardín de infantes o en cualquiera de los grados 1 a 12. Hablan solo idioma primario, que no sea el inglés. Según lo determinado a partir de los datos del censo presentado al Departamento de Educación e Información, la sección 52164, en el año anterior, todos los avisos, informes, declaraciones o registros enviados al padre o tutor de dicho alumno por la escuela o el distrito escolar deberán, además de estar escrito... ¿Ese es el tiempo? Gracias.

[4712] SPEAKER_33: At this point, I will not be translating literally. I will be doing a summary of, translated summary of her comment. Ms. Quiroz says that she is a parent representing the parents of Newark for better schools, and they want better treatment for the Latin community. They want, there is a problem. that they no longer want to hear that the school, there's a problem with translation of important documents in meetings, such as special educations board meetings and additional important meetings in the district. And it's not enough to hear that you cannot provide translation or that you cannot find someone. In that case, you need to start paying more. And we would like to thank student board member, Resendiz Ortiz, who said that, who asked to have translators present at all meetings. As parents, they are providing translation for their own meetings or their own community members because they want families to be informed, and they want all parents to hear the message. Like the leaders that you are, you need to find a solution. You are getting federal funds for students with second language, yet you are not providing enough resources. The Ed Code provides that when 15% or more of the population speaks a second language, you need to provide documentation translated in that language.

[4798] Bowen Zhang: Thank you. Next speaker.

[4809] SPEAKER_33: Next speaker is Elizabeth Guerrero. You may begin.

[4815] SPEAKER_31: Can you hear me? Yes. Okay. Good evening, Dr. Triplett and Board of Trustees. We, the parents representatives of Newark Parents for Better Schools, are here to continue addressing the ongoing disrespect and lack of communication that we continue to see across the district for our Latinx community and for our Title I school. We sent an email to you board members to address the following. The ongoing problem of not providing translation for important documents and interpretation at important meetings. for example, board meetings, back to school nights, district parents forums, LCAP meetings, and to name a few. It is appalling to keep on hearing your excuse that you cannot find interpreters or hire someone who is highly qualified. Perhaps you should consider paying more and also providing training to those who you hire so that they understand their role as interpreters, translators. We would like to thank student board member, Ms. Resendez-Ortiz, who requested for a translator to be onsite at board meetings at the last board meeting. It is also an ongoing problem that you as a board have not directed Dr. Triplett to find a solution. As members of the Newark Parents for Better Schools, We are now providing our own translation when one of our members speak so that our 50% of our Latinos presented that have children in NUSD are also informed and that we are being transparent. We want to make sure all of our parents hear the message as it affects education and academic progress. As leaders, you should be looking into finding a solution rather than avoiding the problem. you are receiving federal funds and state funds for second language learners and yet you are still failing to provide resources. Education for 48, 985 states, when 15% or more of the pupils enrolled in public schools that provided instructions In kindergarten and any grades 1 through 12 speak a single primary language other than English as determined for those census data submitted in the Department of Education, persist of section 52164 in the preceding year. All notices, reports, statements, or records sent to the parents or guardians of any such pupil by the school school district shall in addition begin written English by written in such primary language may respond to either in English or the primary language. Again, most of our schools have more than 20%. Please note that we've also sent you an email as we are following up with the State Department of Education to file a formal complaint. Thank you.

[4988] Bowen Zhang: Thank you. Next speaker.

[4993] SPEAKER_33: Next speaker is Eric Tam. You may begin.

[4997] SPEAKER_20: Hi, board. Last week you talked about transparency and CPRA. I wanted to share as a community member why I use CPRA. Here's a specific example. On September 2nd, Dr. Mr. Merton Sertank, sorry, Merton Sertank presented to the board the air balancing test reports. I asked specifically about the missing CO2 results that are meant to justify the MVPI installation. At that time, Mr. Ralph Caputo said, and I quote, that will be a report in the next board meeting. And then Ms. Dela Cruz then follow up and said, I quote, you're preparing to share with the board in a future board meeting about ionizing devices, not ready for this meeting, end quote. So based on that answer, as a community member, I would expect the CO2 testing was done and just needed to be presented to the board. Yet on September 16th, a forensics analytic consulting contract worth $56,000 was executed for measuring total volatile organic compounds out of each campus using emergency COVID resolution. Finally, October 7th, staff brought forward HVAC phase one and group two bid to the board. Inside that bid, there was $80,000 allocated to reinstall all MBPI units for the new HVACs. Staff's specific recommendation was to approve the bid as presented. So the questions I have would be, did we do the CO2 testing to justify MBPI or not? If so, where are they? Why do we need to contract out VOC to testing if the original scope was to justify MBPI? Did we fail the scope? Why are we approving HVAC reinstallation when the first two results aren't there? Board, your board policy doesn't allow for you to answer public comments. Did you know I tried to email Ms. Dela Cruz and Ms. Lucia and asked nicely for the Cypress report. Ms. Lucia then answered that I should use the CPRA. So I tried working with the district, and they instructed me to use the CPRA, but then Dr. Triplett will then call us out in the board meeting that five people are creating so much work. Board, do you see the problem? Finally, board, the MBPI is the present that keeps giving. $56,000 on top of $364,000 brings it to $420,000. Then you add the $80,000 for reinstallation and the grand total is half a million dollars. Board, didn't you close two schools to save a million dollars? Didn't you last week talk about future employee cuts because we are physically not in a good place? How many jobs can half a million dollars save? This is why transparency and CPRA is urgent. And since I have a little bit more time, Member Phan, I just wanted to say, like as a community member, I feel like I have been very patient. My request, my first two requests are now at 198 days and 215 days. I feel like I've been trying to work with the district. So this is why I'm speaking out and why CPRA and transparency is a goal. Thank you.

[5157] Bowen Zhang: Thank you. Next speaker.

[5161] SPEAKER_33: Those are all the public speakers.

[5165] Bowen Zhang: Moving on to superintendent report, Dr. Triplett.

[5171] Mark Triplett: Thank you, President Chun. Ms. Gutierrez, if you could put up the deck, please. All right, so this evening, go to the next slide, please. The superintendent report, I'm going to report on, give an enrollment update, quick update on COVID-19 positive cases, and then discuss a little bit about the middle school design team, music consolidation, and our IT assessment. Next slide. First, starting with enrollment, so we could go to the next one, please. So this is our current enrollment as of the 4th of November. Sorry, actually, I think that number is incorrect. I think this is the 2nd of November. That's my mistake. So this is our numbers as of the 2nd of November. Ms. Gutierrez, can you go? There you go. And the numbers are holding relatively steady. We are unfortunately still 300 students below our projections. So you see on the left the 122 projections per school. And then the enrollment as of the 2nd of November. And then that's the difference in the final column. So just wanted to continue to update the board on this. It is a concern, and you can see that the numbers do vary by school, but essentially that we are in a situation where we are going to need to be very, make some really hard decisions for next year if these numbers continue to play out. Next slide, please. Switching gears, I wanted to give an update on the COVID-19, our positive case rates. So this is published every week on our website. The good news is you can see on the right side, the number of staff cases has gone down to zero, and that's been true for the last three weeks. Of course, we may have cases that come up because that's just what happens. However, it's really nice to see those numbers so low. In the student cases, we are averaging around four cases per week. And so that has that trend has continued for the last four weeks. And so we're continuing to monitor that. I do think one of the reasons that we're seeing a distinction here is because of vaccination rates. And as we've talked about in here before, our vaccination rate for adults in Newark is very high. And that is true of our our teachers and staff members as well. However, our vaccination rate for students 12 to 17 is low. And so we are going to continue to really advocate for and provide opportunities for students to be vaccinated. And now, as you probably know, the emergency approval has been given for vaccinations for students five years and up. And so we are working with the county to add additional opportunities for students and families to be vaccinated. Next slide, please. Update on the middle school design team. So we did have our first meeting last week, Thursday. It was very fantastic. We currently have 17 members of this team. We're really excited about the people that applied. We have administrators, teachers, counselors, students, parents, and district office folks on the team. And our next meeting is November 10th. And I will continue to share out about the topics and the agenda items that we discuss in those meetings. But we're off to a really great start. Next slide, please. In terms of music consolidation, so these are the items for November and December. We did meet with music families at the end of October last week, I believe, and discussed options for next year for their children. In November, we have actually already completed the enrollment projections for the impacted schools based on the new boundary areas that the board approved. And then we are notifying families this week, actually, of their 2022-23 projected homeschool. And then that'll also include a letter that discusses the options that families have for selecting a school for next year. All of this timeline is extremely early. Normally, we don't do any of these kind of enrollments registration until the spring, but we're really trying to do this in advance for our music families because we really want to be conscious and sensitive to their real desire to be aware of where their child is going to be next year. In December, we will We will meet again with families and discuss any questions they have regarding their enrollment process. And then the deadline for submitting an options letter, that's their options request, will be in December. And our goal is to be able to give placement notices to all of the families that have submitted an options letter before Christmas break, before the winter holidays. Next slide. And then lastly, I wanted to just give an update on IT assessment. If you recall, the board requested that we do an assessment of our technology. And so we have commenced that after a rigorous process of looking into the different organizations that could support us in this assessment. We landed on the one called CITE, which is California IT and Education. They seem to be a really fantastic organization with a lot of experience. We began with an all-staff survey, or they gave an all-staff survey, October 22nd. And then they have been conducting site visits and district interviews yesterday and today. And from all of this information, they're going to generate a report. We hope it, I'm sorry, that should say December, not November. We hope to have that back from them in December. And from that, then we'll share with the board and develop an action plan moving forward to how to continue to really grow and improve our IT services. And that is the superintendent's report for this evening.

[5563] Bowen Zhang: Thank you, Dr. Triplett. Any questions from the board?

[5569] Phuong Nguyen: I do have one. In regards to the music consolidation, were families of the preschoolers also notified?

[5579] Mark Triplett: Yes, the meeting was also for preschool. However, the preschool right now is slated to be at Schilling for the upcoming year. So there isn't the same options process because the plan is for it to be at Schilling.

[5593] Phuong Nguyen: Great. Thank you.

[5597] Bowen Zhang: So would it be possible the next time we get the music consolidation update, we also get some update on the plan for the special act cohort? Because obviously music used to have a big special act location. What would be the strategy about moving around that going forward?

[5615] Mark Triplett: Yes, thank you. So we did present, and we're happy to bring it back to the board, but we did present in the spring the plan for the different disbursement of special ed programs throughout the district. And I'm happy to bring that back. It's been a little bit since we looked at that together. But essentially, that was a plan that started this year in ensuring that we have adequate programs, both mild and moderate, and also moderate severe programs throughout the district. And in schools where the programming is K-6, and so that families don't have to move schools in the middle of their elementary school career just because we no longer have a program for them at that school. So our goal has been to change that, and we implemented that starting this year, and then next year we'll have additional moves that we make based on the music consolidation. So I can bring that back next time. Okay, thank you.

[5676] Bowen Zhang: Moving on to graduate profile, graphic designs, Superintendent Triplett.

[5683] Mark Triplett: All right. Thank you. Can we put up the slides for that, Ms. Gutierrez? Maybe we can pull it up off of the agenda. Sure. While Ms. Gutierrez does that. So if you recall, we did a very extensive engagement process to develop a graduate profile last year that we then shared and got approval from the board on the end of the school year. What we still needed to do was complete the graphic. And so Ms. Gutierrez is going to put that up on the screen. We started with some students who were involved in the process that submitted some really cool designs for what the graphic would look like for this graduate profile document. And I think we shared those with you in the spring. We then took those ideas and then we brought them to a professional designer who has come back with some ideas. new updates to the design. So this original design you see right now was from Guadalupe Angel Morales, 12th grader at Memorial. And can you go to the next one? This is the design that the designer then took and sort of did some modifications to. So that was one option. The next option, this was the original design, again by Guadalupe. And then this was the next version that the graphic designer did. And then lastly, this was the original design. And then this is the one that has become the staff favorite, and we're really feeling really good about, was the second version of that final design. So we're bringing it forth to you tonight to just share that we really are excited about this design. There's a couple different iterations you can see there. Ms. Cortudis is going through. But essentially, we really like this concept of puzzle pieces and the competencies being different pieces that all fit together to really create an articulation of the competencies that we want a graduate to leave Newark Unified with. And if you recall that this process was done with stakeholders from business owners, residents, parents, students, board members, teachers, everybody that we could think of that landed on these six different competencies. Critical thinkers, creative problem solvers, effective communicators, students with integrity, resilience, and empathy. So we're really excited to be finalizing this. And our next step is to think about now how do we build out the plans, K-12, to really build these kind of competencies within our young people. And that's all regarding that. Any questions?

[5870] Bowen Zhang: Thank you, Superintendent. Any questions on the board? Go ahead.

[5876] Phuong Nguyen: I just have a comment on the staff favorite one. If we do decide to choose that one, the puzzle piece for resilience needs to be redone.

[5889] Mark Triplett: Thank you. How did that? Are you good? I remember when. Actually, that was an error earlier on, and I thought we had corrected it, but we did not correct it on this version. Could you go to the next slide, Ms. Gutierrez? Yeah, so we corrected it here, but we missed it on that earlier version. Thank you. So our thought is that we'd use these last three versions, some of them in white, some of them in black, in different ways. So we will definitely go back and correct that missing puzzle piece.

[5919] Phuong Nguyen: Thank you. That's all I have.

[5922] Bowen Zhang: Thank you. I actually also like the staff's favorite. Moving on to expulsion case, 12.1's expulsion case. I move that we approve the expulsion case, number E2122-07. May I get a second? A second. Does the student board member vote on expulsion? Okay. Member Marquez?

[5952] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[5953] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundahl? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen?

[5958] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[5959] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes. Motion carries with five ayes. New Business 13.1, Board Policy 4131 Staff Development. First reading, Superintendent Triplett.

[5969] Mark Triplett: Thank you. So I believe Ms. Ingham-Watters is going to speak to this item.

[5977] SPEAKER_28: Good evening. So this is the first reading of the Attached Board Policy. This is in regards, it's under personnel, but I worked closely with Ms. Pierce-Davis because it has to do with staff development and professional development. The language changes are sanctioned by the California School Board Association. We have reviewed this document for accuracy and made revisions to reflect district practice. So the updates include, including in our board policy, the concepts of student wellbeing, social-emotional development, school climate, meeting the needs of diverse student populations. It also highlights and incorporates staff development in the use of technology, given the changes into tech-based instruction through independent study.

[6037] Bowen Zhang: Any comments from the board to modify for a second reading? Member Hill.

[6046] Aiden Hill: I just have a question. Obviously this is a policy, but have we thought at all about any potential fiscal impacts that might arise from any of these changes?

[6063] SPEAKER_28: No fiscal impact. It would be based on budget for professional development and staff development. This would more or less be some guidelines for the types of staff development that we would want to provide for our educators. But it would be within the established budget for, say, ed services, et cetera.

[6084] Aiden Hill: So we're not, at this point, necessarily increasing the budget for that line item. It's just that these new areas would fall under that.

[6090] SPEAKER_28: That's correct.

[6091] Bowen Zhang: OK, thank you. So I got a follow-up question on professional development. I thought generally the money we got from professional development is Title II funding, which is a federal restricted code, right? Is that right? The Title II funding, I mean, or is that called Number II or Title II? I don't remember the federal money for it.

[6115] Marie dela Cruz: Well, we have budget for professional development in various resources, not just that title funding.

[6120] Bowen Zhang: Okay, I see. Anybody have a suggestion for modification for second reading? Anybody is comfortable with first reading? I move to approve. Motion made by Member Nguyen. Anybody wants to second?

[6145] SPEAKER_27: I second.

[6146] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Marquez. Student Board Member, how do you vote?

[6151] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[6152] Bowen Zhang: Member Marquez? Yes. Member Grundahl?

[6155] Terrence Grindall: Yes.

[6156] Bowen Zhang: Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen?

[6159] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[6160] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes as well. Motion carries with all five ayes. Moving on to 13.2, eliminate excess sick leave element for new manual hires, effective November 5th, 2021. Do we have any public speaker on this item?

[6178] Mark Triplett: Superintendent Triplett. Thank you. I'm going to turn this one over to Ms. Delacruz to speak to this.

[6185] Marie dela Cruz: Thank you, Dr. Triplett. So our NEWMA employees, which is our Newark management employees, currently receive a basic allocation of sick leave of up to 12 days. And in addition to that, they're also granted excess sick leave of 6 to 10 days, depending on their position. And this is because before 1985, there was, the district was in difficult financial times, so the excess sick leave was granted in lieu of a salary increase. But since then, any unused excess sick leave upon retirement results in a penalty to the district. And from 2004 to 2020, the district has already paid $305,000 in excess sick leave penalties. So this item, is recommending that we eliminate the excess sick leave allocation to any new hires effective November 5th. So it reduces the liability and the cost to the district. Anyone, any new employees hired on or before November 5th would be grandfathered in and they'll retain their excess sick leave allocation. So Based on our current employees and excess sick leave that we have on record, the liability at this time is about $160,000, and that will continue to grow every year as excess sick leave is accumulated. And that's with the assumption that all of the current NEWMA employees retire from the district.

[6291] Bowen Zhang: Before I open up to the rest of the board, I really want to thank Superintendent, your team, your staff in particular, our CBO, Ms. Dela Cruz, who tackled this challenge, the problem that has been with our district for more than 35 years. And today, we finally put a stop on this. With that, I will open up to the rest of the board.

[6316] Terrence Grindall: I just concur with President Zhang. and really compliment staff for taking care of this outstanding issue.

[6325] Bowen Zhang: You have no other comment? Anybody ready for a motion? I'll move approval.

[6331] Phuong Nguyen: I'll second.

[6332] Bowen Zhang: Motion made by member Grindel, seconded by member Nguyen. Does student board member vote on this?

[6339] Phuong Nguyen: Personnel item. Personnel.

[6349] Bowen Zhang: Member Marquez, how do you vote? Yes. Member Grundahl, how do you vote? Yes. Member Hill, how do you vote? Yes. Member Nguyen, how do you vote? Yes. My vote is yes as well. Motion carries unanimously. Moving on to 13.3, technology purchase for first five grant. Do we have any public speakers on this item? Superintendent Triplett.

[6376] Mark Triplett: Thank you, President Schoen. So this is a unique opportunity through a first five grant. I'm going to turn it over to Ms. Pierce to speak a little bit about this. And Ms. Dela Cruz is also available to answer any questions.

[6388] Nicole Pierce-Davis: Thank you, Dr. Sheplett. During the time of COVID, we were lucky enough to receive a First 5 grant. This is one-time dollars, and we are looking to create interactive technology centers. These dollars can only be used for our TK, our youngest students. And as we have learned the importance of technology, we really thought that this was a great way to build reading, build skills, and also develop our technology with our youngest students. And so in addition to technology, we're doing some other things, but because of the price, we're bringing this here to you today. If you have any questions, I'm happy to answer them.

[6429] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, I guess I had a prior question that I sort of asked before the board meeting. So I understand this is a one-time money and then the given we only have one quote, and I guess the response is this is a piggyback quote. So going forward, is there a way that we can get a competitive quote on things like this?

[6452] Marie dela Cruz: Yes. So the piggyback contract has already gone through that process. So that's the main purpose that we're able to use a piggybackable contract, because they've already gone through competitive bidding.

[6463] Bowen Zhang: OK. The rest of the board, any other questions?

[6468] Aiden Hill: Member Hill. What kind of ongoing costs do we project to support these?

[6479] Nicole Pierce-Davis: If we choose to replace them, what we are finding is that there would be a cost in about three to five years, generally. That's the life of technology these days. That being said, we could look into some other options at that time. We also are looking for licenses that fit our, again, our youngest students, and we would pilot those. I can't answer that until we see the effectiveness of the programs that we're using. What I can say is that the effectiveness would be evaluated, and if they were not as effective as we would hope, we would not continue to incur those costs. We did consider technology as one way to address these as one-time funds, because we didn't want to put this into personnel or items like that that would be recurring over each year.

[6528] Aiden Hill: But we're not expecting any ongoing, like, IT support costs related to this?

[6533] Nicole Pierce-Davis: Not related to this specifically, other than the typical of there's additional computers that may need services.

[6542] Aiden Hill: OK.

[6548] Bowen Zhang: Student board member.

[6550] SPEAKER_36: I would like to make a comment on how amazing this is, especially for young students who finally get to work with new technology. So truly amazing. Just wish all the students could get it. But thank you.

[6566] Phuong Nguyen: Any other comments? I do have a question. So in terms of programs for the TK, why did you guys decide on spending the money on technology instead of non-technology driven programs for the TK?

[6593] Nicole Pierce-Davis: So this is just one part of the overall grant. We did actually spend the dollars on some other items as well, hands-on manipulatives for students to use, furniture, age-appropriate furniture to really create settings that invite students in to want to engage with the technology, to want to engage with reading materials. So this is just one piece of the overall grant. And as you know, technology can be expensive. And so this was an opportunity to build up our technology without using our own sort of district funds.

[6625] Phuong Nguyen: Great. Thank you.

[6627] Bowen Zhang: Anybody ready to make a motion?

[6630] Phuong Nguyen: I move to approve.

[6634] Bowen Zhang: Motion made by Member Nguyen. Seconded by Member Marquez. Student Board Member, how do you vote?

[6641] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[6642] Bowen Zhang: Member Marquez? Yes. Member Grindel?

[6645] Terrence Grindall: Yes.

[6645] Bowen Zhang: Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen?

[6649] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[6649] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes. Motion carries unanimously. Moving on to organizational of the board, board committee assignment. So I guess this is because we have a new board members and we do have some vacant committee positions. So do keep in mind that likely come next January, we're going to have another annual organization on the board, so chances are we'll be shuffling around this again, if the board wants to, because every year, December or January is the time we elect a committee member for the entire calendar year. Given the offer of departure of former member Martinez, Mission Valley ROP and SELPA don't have alternate anymore. So, and obviously EBIC doesn't have, yeah, so we have We got seven, I guess we got six, seven committee that we need to elect new board members on, at least to fill in for the next two months. So for me personally, I don't want to make a comment. I don't intend to be the representative for both Mission Valley ROP and SELPA at the same time, because both of them, after the pandemic is over, or maybe starting next spring will require in-person meeting, Mission Valley ROP has a monthly meeting on on a Thursday, I believe the second Thursday of every month, and we'll be in person. And the meeting starts at 3.30 p.m., which will require some board member to have the flexible schedule to attend. SELPA also have regular meeting and possibly more often than, not as often as Mission Valley ROP, but as more often than audit committee or liaison committee. So I do not intend to stay on, I can stay on one committee, but not both of them. Any other board member can have any interest of joining other committees?

[6765] SPEAKER_33: Member Zhang, sorry, President Zhang, for clarity purposes, at this point you are the representative for both. Are you saying you are withdrawing one of them, or are you remaining until December?

[6774] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, I can remain until December, but I want to note that we want to tell the rest of the board, the first two, the one on top, that requires you to be in person during working hours. And that's not a once or twice a year committee. Very often, regular periodic meeting.

[6793] SPEAKER_33: If it helps the board members, there is also an attachment with that it gives explanation of each of the committees. And some of them do have already assigned dates. So mission MBROP is the next meetings are December, sorry, Thursday, November 18th, and then Thursday, December 9th. For SELPA, it is November 2nd, just happened. So the next one is January 18th, March 29th, and July 18th. The SELPA meetings are from 9 to 11. Currently, they are virtual. Mission ROP, they start at 3.30, as well. Currently, they are virtual.

[6836] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, so if the board doesn't want to have another annual election come January, then I will be stepping down from one of them today.

[6845] SPEAKER_33: President Zhang, as well, within that same description, I did provide which of the committees that it's best to have the same member's calendar year, and which is the best to have members be a school year. So there may be some that will come up again in December, just because it is best to renew the appointment calendar year.

[6878] Terrence Grindall: I have some interest in the Mission Valley Regional Occupational Center program. However, my primary concern is that Member Marquez has opportunity to be involved in committees that she's interested in. So, although I have some interest, I'd like to defer to what her choices are.

[6896] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, Member Marquez, given you are new, so I guess you have the biggest option to choose which committee you want to serve on.

[6905] SPEAKER_27: Thank you for the consideration. At this time, I'd like to share my interest in SELPA as well as the, well, not BITSA anymore, it's the Induction Advisory. So those are two committees that I'd like to offer representation for.

[6923] Bowen Zhang: Okay. So do you want to be the representative for SELPA or the alternate?

[6930] SPEAKER_33: At this point, President Zhang, it's going to be the alternate.

[6932] SPEAKER_27: I'm the yellow right now.

[6935] SPEAKER_25: Okay.

[6936] Bowen Zhang: Well, the interesting thing is there's no more SELPA meeting for the rest of this year, so.

[6941] SPEAKER_27: So that starts in January. That tells me that it's calendar, sir.

[6947] Bowen Zhang: OK. So you want to be on SELPA and EBIT, actually. Correct. OK, good. Anybody wants to be, anything else you are interested in? We still have quite a bit of vacancy to fill.

[6963] Chery Villa: We do need an alternative.

[6965] SPEAKER_33: For alternate, sorry, for NBRP, that is a requirement based on their bylaws?

[6972] Terrence Grindall: I would like to, as indicated, after deferring to Member Marquez, I am interested in that position.

[6980] Bowen Zhang: Okay, good. So you will be the Vision Valley ROP alternate? Good. So, okay. For the rest of this year, most of the meetings are virtual. So if I happen to not be able to make it, I will let you in virtual. Do keep in mind that this year it is Newark's turn to be president, so if you are an alternate for me, let's say for the November meeting or December meeting, you will be running the meeting.

[7006] SPEAKER_33: Is there interest as an alternate for the Audit Committee?

[7016] Bowen Zhang: So, I think our bylaw says the board president doesn't get to be on the Audit Committee. What about alternate? Not even alternate, right?

[7025] SPEAKER_33: It only talks about the committee, but if you can't, if you are needed... Yeah, so I guess I can't be on the alternate either.

[7033] Bowen Zhang: So that will be either member Grindel and member Marcus to be on that committee. Well, remember, we'll revisit this come January.

[7050] SPEAKER_33: Is there an alternate currently interested?

[7058] Bowen Zhang: Okay, if there's no interest alternate, then we'll just keep that vacant. What about bond and parcel tax committee?

[7065] SPEAKER_33: We need a second member for that one.

[7068] Phuong Nguyen: I will put myself on there.

[7069] Bowen Zhang: Okay, so member Nguyen will be on bond and parcel tax. Anybody wants to be the alternate for bond and parcel tax committee? I can offer myself as the alternate for bond and parcel tax committee. Okay, so the last one is the City Liaison Committee. Anybody wants to be an alternate for that committee? That committee meets roughly four or five times a year. I'll accept. Okay, Member Marcus will be the alternate for the Liaison Committee.

[7103] SPEAKER_33: We do require a motion, so I'm going to review what the board will be making a motion on. It's going to be a motion to approve Member Grindel as the alternate for NVROP. to approve Member Marquez as alternate for SELPA, to approve Member Marquez for the representative for the Newer Teacher Induction Advisory Council. We will leave Audit Committee without an alternate. We will approve, the board will approve Member Vice President Nguyen to be the second representative for the Bond Parcel Tax Committee. President Zhang as the alternate. And finally, the board will approve Member Marquez to be the alternate for the Seated Liaison Committee.

[7152] Bowen Zhang: OK. I will make the motion to approve that. May I get a second?

[7156] Phuong Nguyen: A second.

[7157] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Nguyen. Student board member, how do you vote?

[7162] SPEAKER_36: I thought there was personnel where I couldn't vote.

[7165] Bowen Zhang: This is not really personnel.

[7166] SPEAKER_38: All right.

[7167] Bowen Zhang: Yes. Member Marquez, how do you vote?

[7171] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[7172] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundell? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen? Yes. My vote is yes. Motion carries unanimously. Thank you. Moving on to 14.2, governance handbook amendments. Any public speaker for this item? No. Okay. Given this is requested by Member Grundell, so I will let you start.

[7197] Terrence Grindall: Thank you, President Chang. Our process for rotating our officers, our president and vice president, is, in my opinion, an archaic and undemocratic approach to selecting those officers. I believe we should make the changes as indicated in what was attached to the staff report to remove the rotation and to instead very simply have an election of the officers as a majority of the board. There should be some additional language added to what was in the staff report that indicates that the members would be elected by a majority of the board. I'm sorry, that the officers would be elected by a majority of the board. I believe that for transparency and democracy, we should move away from this archaic rotation system and have a much more upfront and transparent process.

[7262] Bowen Zhang: Any comments from other board? Member Marcus, since last time you weren't here.

[7271] SPEAKER_27: None at this time, sir. Thank you.

[7275] Bowen Zhang: Any other comments from the board? Member Hill?

[7279] Aiden Hill: Yeah, thank you, President Zhang. So I think it's important to add some context as we look at this agenda item. So I think that one thing that's important to understand is that the current process, a round robin process, has been a longstanding protocol here in terms of how we elect our president. And my understanding is I think it's almost two decades. So it's a longstanding protocol. I also would like to point out that we did an extensive review of our governance handbook, including this very item, and we went through two rounds of discussion, including this topic, and we all agreed that it was still appropriate. But I believe that there's something that's changed that's precipitating this request, and I think it's important for us to understand it. So on October 12th in a special meeting, and I was not present at this meeting, Member Grindel leveled a personal attack against me regarding my viewpoints on potential malfeasance as it relates to the appointment process. And literally in that same breath, Member Grindel then proposed this change to how we elect our president. And I think that those two items are connected. And I believe that they, as I look at, there can be one of two or one of two motivations. One is that Member Grindel is unhappy with my, my viewpoints on this, but I don't think that that's a legitimate reason to overturn longstanding policy. I think that that type of approach is something that we see in third world dictatorships like Nicaragua currently where you've got President Ortega who decides that He doesn't like certain viewpoints and certain people that have certain, at least in terms of his opinion, unpopular viewpoints. And so he changes the Constitution. So it could be that there's... So hold on a second. So I believe I've got 10 minutes to speak per Robert's Rules of Order. The second, and so I don't think it's appropriate that we should be changing our protocols because we disagree with people's viewpoints. So that's one possible motivation. The other possible motivation is that currently Member Grindel would potentially benefit from this change. Because we're currently in a rotation system, and so what would, after President John completes his term at the end of this year, it would be, remember when, who would take over? And then I would become Vice President, and then after that, I would become President. And so member Glendale would have to wait. So I'm concerned that, you know, is this being precipitated out of potential political ambition? Again, neither of those I think are justification for overturning a 20 year policy that served the district well. That's my viewpoint.

[7488] Bowen Zhang: Any other comments on the board?

[7491] Terrence Grindall: Yes. So, first of all, my comments in October were not a personal attack, but an attack on, not attack, but a discussion and a criticism of certain professional behavior or lacking in professional behavior from a member. There's no personal attack intended. To have the suggestion that our election for officers be open and democratic, be compared to a dictatorship, is a bit ironic. And all I'm saying, anyone who's elected president needs three votes of the board. And actually, that's true even now. Our board guidelines are confused, and they actually discuss a rotation system, but they also say that for the appointment to take place, there has to be a majority vote. There has to be a vote of the board, and there's nothing binding about the rotation system. I believe that having a rotation system in general, and I have 30 years experience in government, and I believe rotation systems in general are non-democratic and they don't provide for the board being able to elect the officers that they think will be able to serve them best. And I believe that out of openness and transparency, this archaic rotation system should be removed. I would like to see I'd like to see that there'd be a vote on this. If if if the majority of the board doesn't want to make this change, that's perfectly fine. But I really I feel that this that we want to root out non-democratic things whenever we come across them. And as a part of the appointment process, I looked over the guidelines as well, and this popped out. So I would like to see that we have an up or down vote tonight on whether or not we want to make this change and to pursue a more democratic approach. Thank you.

[7623] Phuong Nguyen: OK, member Nguyen. I do see where member Grindel And on page 12, it does say elect president and other officers. And to that, I believe that's where you believe that there's a contradiction in terms of the rotation. And even though there is a rotation, we still have to have a majority of the vote. So I am in agreement that I'm okay with us removing the rotation as long as we do set a term limit in the board policy or governance handbook for the term of the president and vice president so that you can't get voted in over and over again for the term that you're serving as an elected official. So I believe maybe two years?

[7678] Bowen Zhang: Matthew? No, I think you just still keep the one-year term. Once you serve president one year, you're done.

[7683] Terrence Grindall: I mean, you've got to wait for them. I would support that.

[7687] Phuong Nguyen: One-year term. OK.

[7690] Bowen Zhang: Well, I mean, if the whole idea is to make sure any person becomes president of the board will have the support of at least two other board members, that's in certain ways within the spirit of the current protocol. So I guess the one thing that in the current, current, current, current, we don't change anything is let's say if another board member is supposed to be on the rotation to be president and there's a motion and the motion fails, what will happen at that point? So I think we need to resolve that one. What if that one fails?

[7725] Terrence Grindall: And again, just perception's important. The document as it's written creates a sense of conflict. If it's our intention as a board to have an open and democratic election for our officers, then we should say that in our guidebook.

[7739] Bowen Zhang: Well, if you want to obstruct the rotation of the president, I guess the vice president is not in rotation either, right? Is that not true? I mean, the vice president shouldn't be on rotation.

[7753] Terrence Grindall: That is correct.

[7754] SPEAKER_27: That's correct. I was going to ask the same thing and then one item for clarification. I mean, I appreciate the information that's being brought forward because it sheds light and it gives me a different point of view, so I appreciate that. When we speak upon being democratic, I think it's very important because your vote represents your belief versus if it's automatic round robin. And I do find that archaic, so thank you for bringing up the point. My second point would be at this time is when we say term limit, does that mean that if we, or a person's elected president, right, and as well as the vice president, and we say one term down the line, would they be able to run again? Or it would just? So it would not be consecutive, right? So they would have one year, they would need time off, and then at a later time, run for re-election.

[7802] Bowen Zhang: And obviously, I believe that there will be members after serving one year as president,

[7807] SPEAKER_25: We'll probably never want to be president again.

[7812] Terrence Grindall: What a ringing endorsement.

[7817] SPEAKER_27: Thank you for that, sir.

[7822] Bowen Zhang: So any other comment on Member Hill?

[7827] Aiden Hill: So again, my concern is that if we were applying our extensive experience in analyzing this, and we spent three study sessions looking at this, going through the governance handbook, and all of this literally nine months ago, and there was not one mention of it, and now all of a sudden it's appearing, it doesn't really ring true to me. And I think that we ought to think about what our second president John Adams said, which is that we need to be a republic of laws and not of men. And that we shouldn't be changing the rules if we don't like the people who are in office. We ought to be keeping the rules and then working to, again, find alternate candidates to come in. But I think that changing the rules is something that third world dictatorships do, not democratic republics.

[7893] Bowen Zhang: Any other student board member?

[7897] SPEAKER_36: Speaking as a Stenner, Resendez, Ortiz community member, not for the entire student population at Newark Memorial High, I would like to state that, first of all, I see no purpose in bringing very extreme metaphors of dictatorship, such as Nicaragua, where that is a very serious issue compared to our board at Newark Unified School District. And additionally, I would like to bring an idea where not to assume motives of other members, where we as a district should be united, and any personal conflicts should be addressed outside of the meeting, not necessarily during this discussion. And adding on to all of that, by what I am understanding, this is more of a perception of the rule, whether it is a rotation or a democratic vote. So I don't believe it is changing the rule, more of a perception, if that is correct.

[7949] Bowen Zhang: I mean, just like last time I said that even with that rotation list, you need three votes to be president. So somebody needs to make a motion and somebody will need to second that. And then a third member will need to vote yes on the final vote. So I think one of the things that Member Grindel raised that last time when I said I was on the fence, but there is one thing that we need to resolve, which is if we go with this rotation list, somebody made a motion and the motion doesn't pass, what will happen next? Does that mean the board has no president anymore?

[7980] Phuong Nguyen: No, if you would actually instate what member Hill is suggesting, another member would nominate a member to be president. So therefore, he's just taking this whole rotation out of the process and simplifying it by not even considering it, and then we wouldn't have that issue.

[8001] Bowen Zhang: OK.

[8003] Terrence Grindall: Member Chang, I'm ready to make a motion when you're ready to entertain one.

[8006] Bowen Zhang: OK, if you want to make a motion.

[8009] Terrence Grindall: I'd make a motion that we would make the changes as in the attached underlying and highlighted guidelines, I'm sorry, handbook, with the addition of and that there be a maximum one year term of these officers with at least one year in between the, within the, you're writing, you're getting this, Lucia. And that there be at least one year in between. And also to indicate in the section that the, to reiterate that there be an election of the officers by a majority of the board. Both officers, president and vice president.

[8056] SPEAKER_33: Okay. Member Grindle, would your motion be, would your amendment be appropriate if we said The current president cannot be elected consecutively? Or does that not?

[8071] Terrence Grindall: No, no officer would hold the position for more than one year.

[8076] SPEAKER_33: Thank you.

[8078] Bowen Zhang: Motion made by Member Grindel. Anybody wants to second?

[8080] Phuong Nguyen: I'll second.

[8085] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Nguyen. Student board member, how do you vote?

[8089] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[8090] Bowen Zhang: Member Marquez, how do you vote?

[8092] Terrence Grindall: Yes.

[8093] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundahl, how do you vote? Yes. Member Hill, how do you vote? No. Member Nguyen, how do you vote?

[8098] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[8099] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes as well. Motion carries with four ayes. Member Hill voting no. Moving on to 14.3 Board Vacancy Procedures. This is also requested by Member Grundahl, so I will let you start.

[8118] Terrence Grindall: The, our last process for adopting, for appointing a member I believe went, resulted in a really great outcome. However, the process was clunky at best. So, there's some language in the, in our bylaws that creates a perception of a lack of transparency. And I'd like to discuss among the board ways that we can remove that perception. One concern I have is the necessity of having a committee of the board that meets in a non-public meeting and does something that's unclear. It'd be much better if everything involving an appointment was done at a public meeting, or if it's purely administrative, which it appears that that committee usually is, if it's purely administrative, that administrative activity should occur by staff. So that's really the one sort of piece that makes it look as though there's something going on outside of the public eye. And I believe it'd be a better process if we removed the, if we designated everything that had to be in the, had to be done by the committee to the superintendent. And also to really codify that any eligible candidate that applies to be appointed would have a chance to speak to the board, to not create any sense that there'd be a narrowing or an oversight of that, but that our language, our bylaws would make it clear that, as was the case here, every person who wants to apply and meets the minimum qualifications, which are being a Newark resident, being a resident of the district, and being of an appropriate age, if those two things are met, then they have a chance to be talked to the board in public and have their qualifications for appointment considered. So that's really my concern. It's really more about the perception than it is any criticism of what happened in the end. But that's my primary concern.

[8279] Bowen Zhang: So Member Grundahl, I want to clarify. So you are asking for revision on the subcommittee and also the way we approve, the way we select the final appointees?

[8291] Terrence Grindall: No, the way we vet the applications.

[8296] Phuong Nguyen: So right now in the bylaws under provisional appointments, it says when authorized by law to make a provisional appointment to fill a vacancy on the board, the board shall advertise in the local media to solicit candidate applications or nominations. A committee consisting of less than a quorum of the board shall ensure that applicants are eligible for board membership and announce the names of the eligible candidates. The board shall interview the candidate at a public meeting, accept oral or written public input, and select a provisional appointee by a majority vote. So I think that Member Grindel is wanting to strike the committee consisting of less than a quorum of the board that reviews the applicants to make sure that the applicants are eligible.

[8344] Terrence Grindall: That's correct. And substituting the superintendent for that in that task, which is purely administrative.

[8349] Bowen Zhang: OK. Yeah, I guess the history of having a subcommittee that in the past, whatever, 10, 20 years, I guess instead of more than two people, instead of the entire board receive the application at the same time, it's probably to prevent certain Brown Act violation. That's why you got two people, not a quorum to form a subcommittee. So I guess the proposal is to not have a subcommittee at all, just let the superintendent to verify the residency and the age of the applicants, and then it would just, release to the entire board about the application at the same time.

[8382] Terrence Grindall: Indeed. And as is typically done as part of his work, his or her in the future perhaps, the superintendent would work with the board to develop the questions and so on and so forth. But all of this can be done without the creation of a perception of something underhanded.

[8403] Bowen Zhang: Okay. What about a way to approve the person? Because right now, we're using the ranking, right? 1, 2, 3 ranking. I mean, I don't think that's in the bylaw, but.

[8415] Terrence Grindall: No, that's not in the bylaw. It's not in the bylaw. That's traditional. And it's going to be largely up to the direction of whoever is present, I would think. OK.

[8422] Aiden Hill: Member Hill? So I think that we have more than just the committee issue to deal with as it relates to the conducting of the appointment process. And there were lots of holes, and there were lots of drop balls, and there were lots of areas that weren't properly documented. And literally, this should be a procedure that you can follow to the letter, and we don't have it. And I think that here sitting on the board, participating in that process, and I suspect that people out in the community watching, it looked like we were feeling our way towards the end. I didn't see us literally going through a very regimented procedure. And rather than call an audible in this meeting and try to make changes on the fly, what we should be doing is we should be engaging CSBA because this is a standard issue that every board faces and CSBA actually has a document that I believe is over 50 pages that documents how these types of appointment processes should be done. And so I think that we ought to engage CSBA, have a consultant come in, we look at the process through study sessions, and we amend it so that it's robust and it's bulletproof.

[8500] Bowen Zhang: Any other comments? Member Marcus?

[8510] SPEAKER_27: None at this time, sir.

[8515] Bowen Zhang: Anybody ready? So I'm fine with not having the subcommittee. Member Hill?

[8522] Aiden Hill: So I'd like to move that we engage CSBA to take a look at our appointment process and help us draft a new and improved and robust appointment process.

[8534] Bowen Zhang: Any second for this one?

[8537] Terrence Grindall: I'll second that. I'll second that idea.

[8542] Bowen Zhang: I'll second that motion, sir. Student board member, how do you vote?

[8549] SPEAKER_36: Out of curiosity, would this be costing money from the district?

[8553] Bowen Zhang: Yes. I will let the superintendent answer this question.

[8557] Mark Triplett: Yes. Anytime we engage CSBA, there's a cost.

[8561] SPEAKER_36: And do we have that money right now to be calling CSBA?

[8566] Mark Triplett: We do have the money to... I anticipate we could locate the money, but obviously we are in a situation where in the upcoming school year with declining enrollment, we are anticipating that our budget is going to be tight and that we're going to really need to be thoughtful moving forward.

[8585] Bowen Zhang: Well, I do want to make a comment. If we want, if we vote to engage with CSVA, it doesn't need to happen this year or any time in the, you know, it can happen next year. It's not like we're going to immediately start contacting CSBA. So, because I do anticipate that we will not have a vacancy for a while. Unless the experience being the president not only convince a person to not be president. Point of order.

[8612] SPEAKER_33: Point of order, board members. There is a motion on the table that currently started taking a vote. If you want to allow for discussion.

[8621] Terrence Grindall: I'd like some clarification and perhaps withdraw my second. I wanted to have an idea of the amount of cost involved. And if it's unknown, if the maker of the motion would change this to investigate bringing in CSBA, then I could continue to support it.

[8641] Bowen Zhang: So here's my suggestion. How about we get a cost and we just shelve this one today, not doing anything. Let's wait until the cost and then be good, like I said. I mean, realistically speaking, I don't anticipate this happening very soon. So we have time there.

[8656] SPEAKER_27: Participant Chang, I was going to ask if I would be out of order at this time if I request that we table a motion until we investigate the cost of CSBA.

[8664] SPEAKER_33: Point of order again. So at this point, we would need the second withdrawn, the motion withdrawn. So we can table the item.

[8670] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, the second is withdrawn already.

[8671] SPEAKER_33: Not yet. Not officially withdrawn.

[8677] Aiden Hill: Member Hill? So I just have a question. And so this is directed at Ms.dela Cruz. So we engage a number of consultants here on a regular basis. And I believe that we have funds allocated for CSBA as a part of that. Is that correct?

[8700] Marie dela Cruz: Not specifically, just for CSBA. We do have a superintendent budget. We have a CBO budget, so we'd have to look at what the plans are.

[8710] Aiden Hill: But we also probably have a budget for board development, correct?

[8717] Marie dela Cruz: There is a budget for board. The line items, I'd have to double check on that.

[8726] Aiden Hill: OK, because I mean, it's a pretty regular occurrence that the board communicates with CSBA and engages in other things that are board related. So I'm sure that there's a standing budget item that's related to that. So if we could take a look at that, as well as the cost, I think that would be helpful.

[8744] Bowen Zhang: OK, so I guess we table this item.

[8746] SPEAKER_33: Point of order again. At this point, I need a second withdrawn and a motion withdrawn.

[8755] Terrence Grindall: I didn't hear Member Hill withdrawing his motion.

[8758] Mark Triplett: I think you have to withdraw your second first, Member Grindel.

[8761] Terrence Grindall: Someone else could second. You have to ask if there's any other second. Sorry to do Robert's rules, but you have to ask if there's any other second. If not, it dies for lack of a second, and then another motion can be made.

[8773] Mark Triplett: But did you officially withdraw your second? I did. Oh, OK.

[8777] SPEAKER_33: So then at this point, then we need Member Hill's motion withdrawn.

[8781] Aiden Hill: I'm fine to withdraw it if we're going to go and investigate the cause.

[8785] Bowen Zhang: Okay, so moving on to consent calendar personnel items.

[8791] Terrence Grindall: The motion that was made to investigate. Or that we table, however that motion is, needs to be voted on.

[8801] SPEAKER_33: At this point, the board can just provide direction to bring this item back.

[8805] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, I guess the board can just, we'll be providing direction for investigating the cost for CSBA and we'll bring this back.

[8814] Mark Triplett: Just to make sure that the staff is clear. So we will look into the costs. We'll bring that back to the board at a future meeting.

[8823] Bowen Zhang: Okay, moving on to consent calendar, personnel items. I move that we approve 15.2 personnel report, 15.3 MOU between NTA and NUSD to increase in our substitute rates. May I get a second?

[8839] Phuong Nguyen: A second.

[8839] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Nguyen. Member Marcus, how do you vote?

[8843] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[8844] Bowen Zhang: Member Grindel, how do you vote?

[8847] Terrence Grindall: Yes.

[8847] Bowen Zhang: Member Hill, how do you vote? Yes.

[8852] SPEAKER_39: Member Nguyen, how do you vote? Yes.

[8854] Bowen Zhang: My vote is as well. Motion carries unanimously. I guess this time the personnel report is a little bit special, right? So I will let, I guess, Superintendent, can you explain this personnel report? I guess this is the annual special one.

[8870] Mark Triplett: Yes, I'll turn it over to Ms. Ingham-Watters. to talk a little bit about that.

[8876] SPEAKER_28: Yes, good evening. This is a yearly special power report in which it's called tenure role. And so the listed employees are rolling to the next level towards tenure in the district. And so you will notice that there is a list specific to the levels in which they're rolling. So the most important thing to know is we do hire employees as temps, temporary employees. And in late fall, we really identify who the true temps are. And a true temp is someone who is backfilling for a permanent teacher. So for example, we have teachers on special assignment who are guaranteed a place in the classroom if funding runs out for their special assignment. So whoever is backfilling for a TOSA, for example, is a true TEMP. And so we cannot hold anyone at the TEMP status unless it is a true temp placement. The numbers have to match. And so at that time, we will identify that true number and employees will be rolled. And you will see a very special part of this 10-year roll is the list of permanent status. for probationary to teachers. And so upon ratification, we have a number of permanent tenured status moving forward, which is very exciting for them.

[8988] Bowen Zhang: Okay, thank you. Moving on to consent calendar non-personnel items. Any public comment on any items?

[8997] SPEAKER_33: Yes, we would need to pull 16.6 for a public comment.

[9002] Bowen Zhang: Okay, I move that we approve consent calendar.

[9007] Aiden Hill: So I want to post 16.5.

[9013] Bowen Zhang: I move that we approve consent calendar, non-personnel items, 16.2, contracts and purchase order authorized under resolution 2020.21-025. 16.3, resolution 2021.22.10, notice of completion of flooring project. 16.4, Resolution 2021.22.11, State Treasurer LAIF, Signatorial Authorization, 16.7, minutes of the October 12, 2021 Special Meeting of the Board of Education, 16.8, minutes of the October 21, 2021 Regular Meeting of the Board of Education, 16.9, minutes of the October 27, 2021 Special Meeting of the Board of Education. May I get a second?

[9061] SPEAKER_36: I'll second.

[9062] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Nguyen. Student Board Member, how do you vote?

[9067] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[9068] Bowen Zhang: Member Marquez? Yes. Yes. Member Grundell? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen? Yes.

[9076] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[9077] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes as well. Motion carries unanimously. 16.5, Amendment Number 1 and 2 for Gelfand Partner Architectural Newark Junior High School Steel Replacement Project. Superintendent Triplett?

[9094] Mark Triplett: Since it was pulled, is there a question?

[9098] Aiden Hill: Yes, so my challenge with this is this seems to be the project that keeps on giving. in terms of continued cost overruns, continued change orders, and literally this item was before us at the last board meeting, and I don't remember discussing that here we're going to be getting hit with another change order. And so I'm concerned that our project is not under control. And I'd like to know what we're going to do to get it under control. And then I think that we also ought to do basically an autopsy after the fact, once we've finished, to understand what were all the costs that went into this. Because at this point, I do not have an understanding of what all the costs are. And I think that we ought to diagnose what went wrong with the management of this. and how we're gonna prevent this from happening going forward. But can anybody explain to me why this wasn't brought before us at the last meeting when we were asking for a change order before?

[9160] Mark Triplett: So I believe, do we have Mr. Caputo here as well and Ms. Mary?

[9167] Marie dela Cruz: Yes, Mr. Caputo and Ms. Denny is here. But just to give a little bit of background, Change order amendment is not the same as the last change order. The change order that we presented at the last board meeting had to do with the construction contract, and this is the architectural-related amendment.

[9193] Aiden Hill: Amendment so I'll let right but could I could I just clarify right? It's all one apart part of one project, right? And so when we approve a project, right, I think we want to be able to see the total cost We don't want to have death by a thousand cuts And right now it feels like death by a thousand cuts Understood Mr. Caputo or miss Denny, would you like to add any additional comments?

[9224] SPEAKER_22: Yeah, I can share that as indicated in the board prep that on, hang on a second here, I gotta get my glasses on, my apologies. Is that, there are two items here. The first item for $6,120, is an amendment that was shared with the board at the May 6th, 2021 board meeting. This is not part of the subject project. This is part of the solar project that was identified back in May. And it's basically work that's required of the solar project that was brought into this project because it's in the area of the stairs. So it's a concurrent project. The district and the solar contractor got together with the architect and worked out that for DSA's regulatory review process, this is all part of the existing ramps are part of the stair project. So simply we're transferring it from that project to this project. The second item is just for the DSA process for the architect to bring the stairs that was approved by the board at the last meeting through DSA It is $5,000. It was being processed at the time and under review, and it wasn't ready for the board agenda at the last meeting.

[9326] Aiden Hill: Member Hill? So again, I go back to my question, right? So having spent 26 years in project management, that if we're starting to move money back and forth between different projects and folding one project under another, How are we doing any kind of project accounting? How do we know we have any of this under control?

[9352] Mark Triplett: So just to add a little bit more explanation. So when there needed to be a change due to the discovery of the rebar in the stairs, and we needed to make a determination that we had to eliminate, tear out those stairs, and just start from scratch with the We brought that to the board, and the board approved that. And so what we see here is the fact that when there is a need to do this level of change, then we have to re-engage with the architect, because the architect needs to work on the design of that change. So we wouldn't want to move forward without architectural design. Do I have that correct, Ms. Delacruz?

[9398] Aiden Hill: And so again, if it's all connected, why didn't we have a total cost projected to us at the last board meeting? Again, it seems like death by 1,000 cuts. It seems like we're figuring this out as we go rather than having a plan.

[9415] Mark Triplett: Yeah, the two different costs are two different items, different people working on a different aspect of the larger project. So we wouldn't want to bring those together under one agenda item. But we do need to engage with the architects in order to now make sure that we have a well-designed change to these stairs.

[9440] Bowen Zhang: Any other comments on the board?

[9443] Terrence Grindall: I just want to clarify. It's my understanding when you build something rather than repair something, the level of interaction with the state architect's office is much greater, and that you need to have an architect and plans that are approved. Is that a correct assumption?

[9463] Mark Triplett: I think so. Mr. Caputo, do you want to confirm that?

[9467] SPEAKER_22: Yes, that is. And I understand the way that this particular project has evolved, and happy to recap it at an appropriate time. But for the work that they're doing, this is a pretty nominal amount. They've been engaged in this and tried to find a lot of ways to figure out. These were unforeseen conditions. It goes back to the last board meeting and the agenda item that was explained through council to determine the best way to move forward. It is an unusually large change order. That's why it took that special resolution. and the considerations that were brought to the board at that time for the decision that was made. I wish I knew about this at the time of the last board meeting. I could have said that there is another $5,000 for the architect and engineer, but I recognize it. But I did not have that information.

[9531] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, I can see why.

[9532] SPEAKER_22: I think it was under-reviewed by our department and still, you know, negotiating.

[9538] Bowen Zhang: So I'm ready to make a motion. So I move that we approve Amendment Number 1 and 2 for Gelfand Partner Architects to provide architectural services for the steel replacement project at the junior high. May I get a second?

[9551] Terrence Grindall: I'll second.

[9552] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Grundahl. Student Board Member, how do you vote?

[9555] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[9555] Bowen Zhang: Member Marcus? Yes. Member Grundahl?

[9559] Aiden Hill: Yes. Member Hill? I'm voting no because I don't have any confidence that we can see an end to these change orders at this point.

[9568] Bowen Zhang: Member Nguyen, how do you vote?

[9569] Phuong Nguyen: I'm voting yes.

[9571] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes. Motion carries with four ayes. Member Hill descended. Moving on to 16.6, quarterly report on contracts over $10,000 and under $48,750. Ms. Gutierrez?

[9582] SPEAKER_33: Yes, we have a public speaker for this, and it's Cindy Parks. And you may begin.

[9591] Cindy Parks: Good evening. This item was on the last regular meeting agenda. I requested to speak on the item, but it was pulled by Dr. Triplett. The amount of the cover sheet now matches the contract amounts. The cover sheet indicates both contracts had a purchase order date of 7-6-21. Yet the commencement date for the first contract speech pathology group is July 1, 2020, and will be terminated upon completion of the services. The attached addendum states the services are to be completed by June 30th, 2021. The commencement date for Nova Health Therapies contract is March 2nd, 2021, with an expiration date of June 30th, 2021. I searched agendas and was not able to locate either one of these contracts on the 2020-2021 quarterly contract reports. Since these were contracts from last fiscal year with June 30th, 2021 termination or completion dates, why are they just coming to you now? Which leads me to the following. At the October 12th meeting, responding to President Zhang's question about hop, skip, drive contract, Dr. Triplett states, we are continuing to use Zoom. That's the company that we have been using for special education transportation. But they've not had sufficient drivers and sufficient services at this point to meet all of our needs. So this would be a supplement to Zoom. Perhaps It wouldn't qualify for this report because the last time the board ratified a Zoom contract was in October 2020 for $200,000 and it expired June 30th, 2021. It wasn't with the contracts executed under the emergency resolution. So where is the Zoom contract for this fiscal year? Finally in May, I submitted a public records request for the final site $35,000 website design contract executed by Ms. Dela Cruz on August 31st, 2020 and meeting minutes when it was ratified by the board. On June 18, 2021, Ms. Gutierrez provided the contract and on October 22nd, 2021, she provided the board doc links and four dates the contract was ratified. Clearly, the contract was not ratified by the board four times, and I cannot even find one time. How many other contracts exist which have not received your approval or ratification? Page four of your handbook, under shared purpose, it says to keep the district on solid financial base. Further down the page, it says one of the district's goals is financial vitality. You can't ensure those results if you don't provide financial oversight. I hope you will get clarification on the contracts for this item. Follow up on the Zoom contract along with the final site contract, as it does not, as it does include a multi-year commitment and it is a current condition lacks many, the current condition of the website lacks many links provided on the old site. Thank you.

[9780] Bowen Zhang: Bringing back to the board, I actually believe that speaking of the timing that's raised by the public speaker, I believe in the agenda setting, Ms. Dela Cruz, you explained because of the software we're using has some time issues. Can you explain that again regarding the timing, it seems to me?

[9801] Marie dela Cruz: Yes, so our quarterly contracts report is based on when the purchase order is issued. And with these two contracts, Although they were signed in February and March, unfortunately, the POs were processed in July when we were processing the invoice. So, I mean, we have addressed this with our business office so that timely reporting of our contracts would be more close to when these contracts are being signed.

[9835] Bowen Zhang: Okay. Superintendent, can you respond also to the Zoom contract not being present on the report?

[9844] Mark Triplett: Yeah, it's never the intention for the Zoom contract to be present on this quarterly report.

[9852] Aiden Hill: Okay. Member Hill? So if we're having issues with proper reporting, have the auditors been informed of this and are they looking at the internal controls around this? The auditors do test our processes, and this has not come up, but... If we're saying it's a known deficiency, don't we have an obligation to report this and have them take a look at this?

[9881] Phuong Nguyen: I don't think it's a deficiency. I think the way that the report is coming out is that these contracts are paid on these dates, so these quarterly reports are actually coming out correctly. It's just that... when you're asking for contracts that are signed or finalized on a quarterly report, that's different than actually a report that's telling you what the contract is paid out for for the quarter. So this report is correct. It's not that it's not correct. I think there is a discrepancy in terms of what it is that, what report it is that we're asking for in terms of the board.

[9929] Mark Triplett: If I may, just to add to that, so just to be clear, there's no, and nothing inappropriate about the time when contracts are signed. All these contracts have been signed at the right time. It's merely that we have, we've been bringing the quarterly report at the point of the purchase order, and correct me if I'm wrong there, Ms. Delacruz, rather than at the time of the signing. And so we would like to decrease that time so that the board sees them more expeditiously. But there's no wrongdoing that has occurred here. It's merely us now really wanting to shorten the time between the contract signing and the actual presentation to the board. And so we have now put in place mechanisms so that that can occur.

[9980] Bowen Zhang: Anybody ready for a vote?

[9982] Terrence Grindall: I have a quick question. Just so I understand, the contracts are signed properly. The issue is with the timing of the report and flagging it so that it's brought up to the timing to the report. But the contracts are all being signed in a proper, it's just because of because of your software sort of, let's call it flagging process, it's coming to be reported to us, not approved, but reported to us a little bit late. And you're going to address that so it doesn't happen in the future. Is that what I understand?

[10021] Mark Triplett: Yes, it's coming to be reported to you at the time of the purchase order. And so there's nothing wrong with that, but we want to shorten that time so that you see them a little quicker. And so that's the change that we've made.

[10034] Terrence Grindall: Right. I just wanted to say that seeing them was just being informed of them that these are not these are not subject to board approval.

[10041] Bowen Zhang: That's correct. Thank you. OK. I move that we approve the quarterly report on contracts. Member Hill.

[10047] Aiden Hill: I don't think that's correct. So our reviewing them is a part of delegation of authority. And so, and obviously we've changed the signing limits. I hope that our auditors have been informed of this process and that they've done new testing around this, but providing a report that we finally review and basically ratify is a part of the process.

[10073] Mark Triplett: If I just, just a point of clarification, this isn't for ratification. This is merely for the board to receive the report.

[10081] Bowen Zhang: So I move that we receive the quarterly report on contracts. May I get a second?

[10086] Phuong Nguyen: I'll second.

[10088] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by member Nguyen. Student board member, how do you vote?

[10092] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[10093] Bowen Zhang: Member Marcus?

[10094] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[10095] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundahl? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen? Yes. My vote is yes as well. Motion carries unanimously. Obviously, like I said, we still have this lingering issue about this time. Hopefully, we can shorten the time. Moving on to Board of Education Committee Report. Mission Valley ROP, obviously it still shows former member Martinez's name, but we'll have a regular monthly meeting next week for Mission Valley ROP at 3.30 p.m. And this time I think we'll be discussing about certain JPA funding and pass-throughs. So I guess this will be a very, very entertaining meeting going for next week for Mission Valley ROP. SELPA meeting, we had our meeting on Tuesday two days ago in the morning at 9 a.m., and Superintendent and myself, we both attended the meeting virtually, and I guess the main takeaway is that going forward in the next year for special education, we'll all be continuing experiencing fiscal challenges when it comes to funding, primarily due to chronic underfunding from the federal government and from the state government, so stay tuned. Anything from the liaison committee?

[10171] Phuong Nguyen: None at this time.

[10174] Bowen Zhang: EBIC, I guess nothing for EBIC. Audit Committee?

[10178] Aiden Hill: Nothing.

[10180] Bowen Zhang: Bond Parcel Tax Committee, I guess nothing there either. Moving on to a Board of Education request. Student Board Member?

[10191] SPEAKER_36: I do not have any requests at the moment besides my previous requests that have been stated.

[10198] Bowen Zhang: Member Marcus?

[10202] SPEAKER_27: None at this time, sir.

[10203] Bowen Zhang: Member Grindel?

[10206] Terrence Grindall: Nothing, nothing tonight.

[10207] Bowen Zhang: Member Hill? Yes, I have a request. Can you repeat? Yes, I have a request.

[10222] Aiden Hill: So I'd like to make a statement and a request. So fellow board members, on October 12th, at a special board meeting where I was not present, Member Grindel leveled a personal attack against me for my September 16th assertion of various bylaw, education code, and government code violations. I would like to take this opportunity to respond to his statement and make a board request. As the board may recall, on September 16th I brought forward objections to how the board vacancy appointment process was being handled, and what I saw as inappropriate manipulation by Superintendent Triplett, President Zhang, and Executive Assistant Lucia Gutierrez. The board's goal in conducting the appointment process was to have been to promote a level playing field for all candidates and provide complete transparency to all board members and the public as a whole. Instead, Dr. Triplett, President Zhang, and Ms. Gutierrez worked to accomplish the exact opposite. During the September 2nd board meeting, after the initial candidate application due date had passed, I requested that the names of the applicants be released to all board members and the public at large as soon as they were vetted. Executive Assistant Gutierrez incorrectly asserted it should not happen until the agenda is released prior to the vacancy appointment meeting on September 21st. I stated I believe our bylaws required this release, and in subsequent discussions with our former California School Board consultant, Deb Dudley, who has over 13 years of experience serving on school boards in the Lake Tahoe area, as well as six years serving as a governance consultant to school board on behalf of CSBA, she confirmed my understanding. Per bylaw 2111, section 10, which I provided to member Grindel on September 16th, the superintendent is required to provide all board members equal access to information. By disclosing the board applications to President Zhang and Vice President Wang, and failing to disclose that same information to other board members until just before the vacancy appointment meeting, and 16 days after those same applications had been submitted, the superintendent violated this requirement. Contrary to Member Grindel's assertion, these are hardly baseless claims. More importantly, however, the public also had a right to know this information well in advance of the vacancy appointment meeting. Contrary to Member Grindel's claim that these actions had no negative consequences, the failure to disclose this information created an unfair playing field for vacancy applicants. Prior to the disclosure of the names, I had two organizations call me on my personal cell phone, lobbying on behalf of Member Marquez. And my statement, Member Marquez, is not directed at you whatsoever. So I just want you to know that. So but I had to I had two organizations call me on on my personal cell phone lobbying on behalf of Miss member Marquez. I told them it was great. They were exercising their constitutional right to provide input to their elected representatives. But that this was the first I was even hearing that Miss Marquez was a candidate. Unfortunately, failure to disclose applicant names denied other community stakeholders such as NTA and CSCA the same opportunity to provide their input on who would be the best choice to fill the vacancy. Dr. Triplett's and President Zhang's engineering of a process where only select insiders had knowledge about the candidates has left the public and me with grave and legitimate concerns regarding whether this appointment was rigged from the inside. but the above behavior pales in comparison to what transpired immediately after the board approved the closing of the application process on September 2nd. Per information shared by President Zhang, in the September 16th board meeting on September 3rd, staff discovered a board bylaw requirement that public notice be posted in local media regarding the appointment vacancy, which apparently had not been done prior to September 1st. In the September 16th meeting, President Zhang told the board he was informed of this lapse. Per board bylaw 9121 section 4, President Zhang had a duty to immediately inform the board of this lapse and to call a special meeting to discuss and vote on the proper corrective action. and per bylaw 9121 section one, the special, I'm sorry, as well as the Newark governance handbook, the only authority to direct action rests with the board as a whole when seated at a regular or special board meeting. Outside of this meeting, there's no authority. Additionally, per bylaw 2111 section nine, the superintendent was also required to understand that authority in these matters rests solely with the board as a whole. Despite these obligations, however, not only did President Zhang and the superintendent fail to inform the board of this lapse, they took an unlawful unilateral decision to extend the application process. The board was not informed of this unilateral action until four days later on September 7th, and Superintendent Kirkwood's explanation did not cite a failure to publish the public notice, but instead offered the following explanation, quote, in consultation with President Zhang, and in the spirit of providing additional time for possible candidates to apply, we are reopening the board application process until noon, Friday, September 10th, end quote. Contrary to Member Grindel's assertion, these are hardly administrative errors, but at a minimum efforts to subvert Board authority to cover up incompetence and at worst constitute unlawful tampering with our appointment process. Unfortunately, the above misdeeds were aided and abetted by Ms. Gutierrez, who on September 4th, under the name Lucia Gutierrez Neighbor, on the patch website published a fraudulent letter from the NUSD board, extending the board application process to September 10th. Please note that this letter was not addressed as coming from the superintendent or board president who made the unilateral decision to extend this application. Instead, it was represented as coming from the board, who not only hadn't met to discuss and authorize this action, but hadn't even been afforded this action was being taken. At this point, this posting began to move the entire affair into one of potential criminal misconduct. Given that I am not a lawyer, I'm not qualified to state categorically whether these actions constitute criminal fraud, but they do constitute fraud. And so at our September 16th meeting, I reported to the board and the public, Ms. Gutierrez and Dr. Triplett's posting of these fraudulent letters. Now member Grimbel wants to spin my reporting as creating a hostile work environment in the district. In other words, he wants to make it a crime to report a potential crime. I am concerned that his statement may be a prelude to try and further silence and intimidate me as I attempt to discharge my oversight duties as an elected official. Member Grindel's dismissal of my complaint as minor sounds a lot like former Nixon press secretary Ron Ziegler's contention that Watergate was just a third-rate burglary. But I would like to caution the board that we should not dismiss these issues. We have sworn an oath to protect and defend the U.S. and California constitutions and abide by the bylaws and rules which govern the oversight of our district. And when we see unlawful transgressions, our job is not to ignore them, cover them up, or worse yet, aid and abet them. To paraphrase John D. Nixon's former chief legal counsel, there is a cancer growing on the district. And if the cancer is not removed, the board itself may be killed by it. We, the board, can no longer stand idle. We must take action. Based on the above facts, I'm requesting that the board hold a closed session meeting to discuss Dr. Triplett's, President Chong's, and Ms. Gutierrez's interference in the holding of a fair and transparent appointment process, their subversion of board authority, and the commission of fraudulent and possibly illegal acts. I'm also requesting that during this meeting we discuss bringing in independent legal counsel of our own choosing to advise us regarding the appropriate next steps. Thank you for your consideration of the above. And again, just to clarify, I'm asking that we, the board, hold a closed session meeting to discuss this issue, and at that point, determine if we need to bring an independent legal counsel for further advice.

[10736] Bowen Zhang: Anybody want to second the request? Since this, I mean, the statement sort of involved me, I just want to reiterate that I made my explanation on that open board meeting. I don't want to spend time relitigating this issue. but I do want to provide a comment. You know, last year, when during the campaign season, I saw Member Hill and Member Grundahl's campaign signs right next to each other, and both of you serve on the same HOA board in the same neighborhood. So, I think as responsible adults, I think you two probably should sort out some of the, I was very shocked to see the, whatever, you want to say tension or something. Remember, both of you still serve on the same HOA board in your own neighborhood, you are neighbors. Hopefully, as 50-year-old plus adults, you guys can sort out these things. Any second for the request from Member Hill? No second? Member Hill?

[10797] Aiden Hill: So, President Zhang, I just want to clarify. I made very serious charges. I don't think that you should dismiss them by saying that this is a spat between neighbors. I have passed along my statement. I have passed along my supporting documents. I urge you to take this seriously.

[10813] Bowen Zhang: So any second from the board? Student board member.

[10822] SPEAKER_36: I would like to comment that I am unaware of the bylaws, unfortunately. But from my AP Gov class, what I have learned is that presidents do have executive order on these types of decisions, and would like to assume that that is the same thing that happens here on the board. Is it not?

[10843] Bowen Zhang: Well, I guess we'll be back to the request. Anybody want to second Member Hill's request? There wasn't any. There wasn't. So moving on, Member Nguyen.

[10854] Phuong Nguyen: I do have one. One request, I would like to get an update on the solar project at the junior high and the high school, please, and see how it's moving along. And in terms of the stairs, I did drive by them this morning. I believe the back stairs have been completed and the front and the stairs on the left, they just put down the framework for the steps. So progress is being made, and hopefully I believe it's going to be completed soon. So it looks good. Thank you.

[10896] Bowen Zhang: No requests from me. Board of Education recognition announcement. Student board member?

[10904] SPEAKER_36: None at the moment. Thank you.

[10906] Bowen Zhang: Member Marcus?

[10909] SPEAKER_27: I just want to make a quick recognition if that's possible at this time. First and foremost, I wanted to give recognition yesterday for the Promotores graduation that took place at the Silliman Center, the class of 2020 and 2021. And it was really exciting to see the amount of community members that were present, as well as support from, excuse me, as well as the support that was received both from the school district and from the city members. So it was very pleasant to see that. as well as the family members. You can see the pride that was in the room. And I just wanted to give a special recognition to Ms. Eder Rivera. Not only is she employee of the year for the city of Newark, but she was also recognized as a graduate for class of 2020. And furthermore, in going over what we reviewed earlier today, I'd like to recognize senior from the Newark Memorial High School, which was Guadalupe Angel Morales, for the actual work that was applied towards the graphic work that was presented this evening. excellent work. And it's my hope that he has a mentor and that someone's working with him to help him land a career in graphic arts. So I just wanted to give a special recognition to Guadalupe for the work that was presented and turned into the school district.

[10986] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundahl.

[10990] Terrence Grindall: Yes, I want to echo Member Marquez's comments on both counts, on the two main counts. And I also really just want to say happy Diwali to all of our residents and students that celebrate. Earlier in the meeting, there was a much more eloquent description of Diwali than I could provide. So I'm just going to say happy Diwali to everyone.

[11018] Bowen Zhang: Member Hill.

[11021] Aiden Hill: So as a current teacher, every day I see kids back in school and the struggles, but also the successes and the joys that they're experiencing. But it's hard work, especially during the pandemic that we're still living through. And so I just want to give a shout out to all of our students and all of their parents who are supporting them. And also happy Diwali to everybody.

[11046] Bowen Zhang: Member Nguyen.

[11048] Phuong Nguyen: Happy Diwali and congratulations to the Purim Torres class of 2021 and 20. And I just wanted to also say thank you to Ms. Gutierrez. She's also a graduate of the Purim Torres class of 2020. So thank you for all the hard work that you do, not only here, but also in the community. So thank you.

[11073] Bowen Zhang: Yeah, I want to echo the comment from the rest of our board. Happy Diwali. Superintendent Triplett, concluding comments.

[11081] Mark Triplett: Thank you and Board Members Stoll, a lot of mine. Happy Diwali. I also want to recognize this month as Indigenous Peoples Heritage Month and so really thinking about that. The event at the Promotoras was really exceptional and so inspiring to see our citizens being trained and graduating with the positive proactive advocacy skills that are really important. And so we're really looking forward to continuing to work with Promotoras and to make a better place for our students and our community. I also want to just appreciate the Newark Memorial High School leadership class I had a chance to visit today. They were doing really fantastic things, talking about how to continue to build positive culture at the high school. And it's that kind of leadership that's really going to change both our community and the world. And then lastly, just wanted to report out on, I had the honor of going to the National Superintendents Forum this past weekend. I was invited there to present on some of the great things that are happening here in Newark. Had a chance to be meeting with superintendents from all over the country. Really interesting to hear the things that are going on, how similar they are to what's going on here in our own community, and to learn ideas from them. So that was a really great experience and an honor to be representing Newark in that form. That's my appreciation.

[11169] Bowen Zhang: I move we adjourn the meeting. May I get a second?

[11174] SPEAKER_38: I second.

[11175] Bowen Zhang: Seconded by Member Nguyen. Student member, how do you vote?

[11177] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[11178] Bowen Zhang: Member Marcus?

[11179] SPEAKER_38: Yes.

[11180] Bowen Zhang: Member Grundahl? Yes. Member Hill? Yes. Member Nguyen?

[11185] SPEAKER_39: Yes.

[11186] Bowen Zhang: My vote is yes as well. Motion carries unanimously. Meeting is adjourned at 9.01 p.m. Thank you everyone. Good night.

1. CALL TO ORDER

Meeting Practices and Information

Type Information, Procedural IN-PERSON MEETING INFORMATION NUSD has opened its boardroom for in-person meetings and will follow the State's and Alameda County's safety guidelines for public gatherings. Please refrain from attending in-person meetings if you have any of the following symptoms: Loss of taste/smell Difficulty breathing Vomiting Diarrhea Fever Cough Headache Sore Throat Runny Nose

For additional COVID-19 information please go to https://www.newarkunified.org/covid-19 or https://www.acoe.org/guidance

OBSERVE THE BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING Members of the public may observe the meeting via the NUSD YouTube Channel, live transmission on Comcast Channel 26, or in- person at the NUSD Boardroom. Spanish translation will be available via Zoom.

PUBLIC COMMENT The public will have the opportunity to address the Board of Education regarding non-agendized matters and agendized items with a live audio-only comment via Zoom with advance notice requested by email at PUBLICCOMMENT@newarkunified.org, a written comment by submitting a speaking card via email at PUBLICCOMMENT@newarkunified.org, or with live in-person comments by submitting a speaker-card with the Executive Assistant.

Roll Call

Type Procedural

TRUSTEES

President Bowen Zhang Vice President/Clerk Phuong Nguyen Member Aiden Hill Member Terrence Grindall Member Alicia Marquez

STUDENT BOARD MEMBER

Member Estaina Resendiz Ortiz

2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

Approval of the Agenda

Type Action

Recommended It is recommended that the Board of Education approve the agenda for this meeting. Action PURPOSE: Members of the Governance Team may request that the agenda be amended or approved as presented.

Motion & Voting It is recommended that the Board of Education approve the agenda for this meeting.

Motion by Alicia Marquez, second by Terrence Grindall.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez
Not Present at Vote: Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

3. CLOSED SESSION

Public Comment on Closed Session Items

Type Information PURPOSE: The Board of Education encourages the community's participation in its deliberations and has tried to make it convenient to express their views to the Board. If a constituent wishes to address the Board on any agenda item, please fill out a virtual speaker card via email at PUBLICCOMMENT@newarkunified.org.

RATIFICATION AND APPROVAL OF TK ENROLLMENT: (Ed. Code, �� 48000 & 35146)

Type Action, Discussion, Information

PURPOSE:

The Board will review student information for approval of newly registered Transitional Kindergarten students who shall reach age 5 after December 2, 2021. This process will continue on a case by case basis for students who register within the extended window.

BACKGROUND:

Education Code sections 48000 and 48010, and District Administrative Regulation ("AR") 5111, requires the District to enroll any otherwise eligible student who turns age five or six on or before September 1 of a given school year into kindergarten or first grade, as applicable. In addition, if a student turns age five between September 2 and December 2 of a school year, then that student shall be offered an opportunity to enroll in TK. The District may additionally admit younger children to TK "on a case by case basis".

Education Code section 4800 specifically provides as follows: (c)(1)(C) [A] child who will have their fifth birthday between September 2 and December 2 shall be admitted to a transitional kindergarten program maintained by the school district or charter school. (c)(2)(A) In any school year, a school district ... may, at any time during a school year, admit a child to a transitional kindergarten program who will have their fifth birthday after the date specified for the applicable year ... but during that same school year, with the approval of the parent or guardian, subject to the following conditions: (i) The governing board of the school district or the governing body of the charter school determines that the admittance is in the best interests of the child. (ii) The parent or guardian is given information regarding the advantages and disadvantages and any other explanatory information about the effect of this early admittance.

Consistent with the Education Code, the District's AR 5111 provides: On a case-by-case basis, a child who will turn five years old in a given school year may be enrolled in kindergarten or TK at any time during that school year with the approval of the child's parent/guardian, provided that: (Education Code 48000)

1. The parent/guardian is given information regarding the advantages and disadvantages and any other explanatory information about the effect of this early admittance.
2. The Governing Board determines that admittance is in the best interest of the child.

Beginning in the 2022-2023 school year, the birthday cut off will be extended to February 2, and will continue being extended by two months each school year, until the 2025-2026 school year, when any student with a birthday after September 1 must be admitted to TK

PUBLIC EMPLOYEE DISCIPLINE/DISMISSAL/RELEASE (Gov. Code, � 54957, subd. (b)(1))

Type Action, Information, Procedural PURPOSE: Information will be provided by the Superintendent and Executive Director of Human Resources.

CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS (Gov. Code, � 54957.6, subd. (a): Employee Organizations - NTA and CSEA

Type Action, Information, Procedural

PURPOSE: Information may be provided by the agency negotiator, Executive Director of Human Resources. Assistance from the legal firm Dannis, Woliver, Kelley, Attorneys at Law may be provided.

The employee organizations include NTA & CSEA.

CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS (Gov. Code, � 54957.6, subd. (a)): Employee Group - NEWMA, Unrepresented Supervisors, and Contracted Management

Type Action, Information, Procedural PURPOSE: Information may be provided by the agency negotiator, the Executive Director of Human Resources, and the Superintendent. Assistance from legal firm Dannis, Woliver, Kelley, Attorneys at Law may be provided.

The employee organizations include NEWMA, Unrepresented Supervisors, and Contracted Management

CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL � ANTICIPATED LITIGATION Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Gov. Code, � 54956.9, subd. (d)[(2) or (3)]

Type Action, Information, Procedural PURPOSE: Information may be provided regarding significant exposure to litigation pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 54956.9: One case

CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL � EXISTING LITIGATION (Gov. Code, � 54956.9, subd. (d)(1))

Type Action, Information, Procedural PURPOSE: To discuss the following case(s):

Bretz vs Newark Unified School District Keenan Claim # 569505

STUDENT EXPULSION (Ed. Code, � 48918)

Type Information, Procedural PURPOSE:

For the Board to review the Expulsion.

BACKGROUND:

An Expulsion Panel Hearing was held on October 28, 2021. An Expulsion Panel Hearing was conducted in accordance with Board Policy and Administration Regulation 5144.1 and, if applicable 5144.2 for students with disabilities. The administration asks for approval of the recommendation for Case e2122-07. (Ed. Code, � 48918)

Recess to Closed Session

Type Procedural PURPOSE: The Board will recess to Closed Session, and reconvene to Open Session on or about 7:00 p.m.

4. RECONVENE TO OPEN SESSION

Pledge of Allegiance

Type Procedural PURPOSE: The Governance Team will recite the Pledge of Allegiance

5. REPORT OF CLOSED SESSION ACTIONS

Report of Closed Session Actions

Type Action, Procedural PURPOSE: If available, a report of the closed session will be provided by the Board President.

6. STUDENT REPORT

Student Reports from Newark Junior High School, Alternative Education, and Newark Memorial High School

Type Discussion, Information PURPOSE: At regular Board of Education meetings, a spokesperson of each secondary school may make a brief presentation.

Discussion items may include updates, celebrations, and upcoming events.

1. Newark Junior High School - Mohammed Lulu and Poorvi Sharma

2. Alternative Education - Alexis Blanco-Barron

3. Newark Memorial High School - Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

7. EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATIONS

Employee Organizations

Type Information PURPOSE: At regular Board meetings, a single spokesperson of each recognized employee organization (NTA, CSEA, NEWMA) may make a brief presentation.

BACKGROUND: Discussion items are limited to updates, celebrations, and upcoming events.

1. NTA: Sean Abruzzi

2. CSEA: Sue Eustice

3. NEWMA: Vicenta Ditto

8. RECOGNITIONS AND CELEBRATIONS

Staff Spotlight

Type Information PURPOSE: To recognize the wonderful accomplishments of our NUSD Team.

BACKGROUND: The presentation will be provided by the Superintendent.

9. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS

Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items

Type Procedural PURPOSE: The Board of Education encourages the community's participation in its deliberations and has tried to make it convenient to express their views to the Board.

BACKGROUND: Please see the instructions on the link below for public comment information on non-agenda items and agenda items.

http://go.boarddocs.com/ca/nusd/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=C4Q2D4019F40

10. SUPERINTENDENT REPORT

Superintendent Report

Type Information PURPOSE: The superintendent will provide the Board of Education with district information, updates, news, or anything in the jurisdiction of the board or the superintendent.

BACKGROUND: The presentation and information will be provided by the Superintendent

11. STAFF REPORT

Graduate Profile Graphic Designs

Type Information PURPOSE:

Present the renderings created by ImageSetters based on our NUSD student's (Guadalupe Angel Morales) original design to the Board of Education for their comments and feedback.

BACKGROUND:

In 2020-2021, 151 members of the Newark community: students, teachers, administrators, parents, business partners, community partners, university representatives, and the Board of Education collaborated to identify the top six characteristics of a graduate of Newark USD. A high school student, Guadalupe Morales created three visual representations of these characteristics. The six characteristics were approved by the BOE in June 2021. ImageSetters created three professional quality graphics based on Guadalupe's designs.

File Attachments BOE - Graduate Profile Graphics 2021.pdf (2,171 KB)

12. STUDENT EXPULSION

Expulsion Case# e2122-07

Type Action

                       The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the Expulsion Case# e2122-07.

Recommended Action PURPOSE:

For the Board to review the Expulsion.

BACKGROUND:

An Expulsion Panel Hearing was held on October 27, 2021. An Expulsion Panel Hearing was conducted in accordance with Board Policy and Administrative Regulation 5144.1 and, if applicable, 5144.2 for students with disabilities. The administration asks for approval of the recommendation for Case# e2122-07. (Ed Code. � 48918).

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the Expulsion Case# e2122-07.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Terrence Grindall.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez
Abstain: Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

13. NEW BUSINESS

Board Policy 4131 Staff Development (First Reading)

Type Action

Preferred Date Nov 04, 2021

Absolute Date Nov 04, 2021

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the updated Board Policy 4131 Action as presented. PURPOSE:

For the Board to review the updated policy.

BACKGROUND:

This is the first reading for the attached Board Policy. The language is sanctioned by the California School Board Association. The administration has reviewed this document for accuracy and made revisions to reflect district practice.

If any revisions are recommended, the document will be brought back to the Board of Education for a second reading.

File Attachments BP4131 Staff Development NUSD.pdf (325 KB)

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the updated Board Policy 4131 as presented.

Motion by Phuong Nguyen, second by Alicia Marquez.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Eliminate Excess Sick Leave Allotment for NEWMA New Hires Effective November 5, 2021.

Type Action

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves to eliminate the excess sick Action leave allocation to NEWMA new hires effective November 5, 2021, and reduce the liability and cost to the district, as presented. PURPOSE:

To eliminate the excess sick leave allocation to NEWMA (Newark Management) new hires effective November 5, 2021, and reduce the liability and cost to the district.

BACKGROUND:

Current NEWMA employees receive a basic sick leave of up to 12 days per year and, in addition, they are also granted excess sick leave of 6-10 days depending on their position. Pre-1985, the excess sick leave was granted to NEWMA in lieu of a salary increase during difficult financial times. Any unused excess sick leave upon retirement results in a penalty that the district is required to pay. From 2004 to 2020, the district paid $305K in excess sick leave penalties.

The board approval would eliminate the excess sick leave allocation for NEWMA employees hired on or after November 5, 2021. NEWMA employees hired before November 5, 2021, will be "grandfathered" in, and they will retain their excess sick leave allocation. The estimated liability as of October 2021 is about $160K. This estimate would increase each year as additional excess sick leave is accumulated.

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves to eliminate the excess sick leave allocation to NEWMA new hires effective November 5, 2021, and reduce the liability and cost to the district, as presented.

Motion by Terrence Grindall, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez
Abstain: Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Technology Purchase for First 5 Grant

Type Action

Preferred Date Nov 04, 2021

Dollar Amount $74,870.93

Budgeted Yes

Budget Source First 5 Grant

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the purchase of Chromebooks, Action carts, and software programs to set up reading centers and technology stations at each of the TK sites throughout the district. PURPOSE:

Newark Unified intends to utilize the First 5 Grant monies awarded to the district to create a developmentally appropriate reading center and technology station at each of the TK sites throughout the district. Included in the stations will be age- appropriate furniture with reading materials and instructional resources for content areas such as mathematics manipulatives and opportunities for phonics awareness. For the technology station, part of the First 5 Grant monies will include Chromebooks, carts, and age-appropriate software programs for TK students.

BACKGROUND:

In response to Covid-19, the organization First 5 Alameda County (F5AC) established Kindergarten Transition Grants for school districts. These grants are intended to offer needed resources to districts in support of programming for students in this age group. First 5 recognizes that the transition into Kindergarten is a pivotal one and during the current crisis both families and schools are managing unprecedented conditions in order to support student learning at an early age. After applying for the grant, Newark Unified was awarded the First 5 grant by First 5 Alameda County to support students transitioning to Kindergarten.

File Attachments CDW-G Quote.pdf (65 KB)

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the purchase of Chromebooks, carts, and software programs to set up reading centers and technology stations at each of the TK sites throughout the district.

Motion by Phuong Nguyen, second by Alicia Marquez.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

14. ORGANIZATION OF THE BOARD

Board Committee Assignments

Type Action, Discussion, Information

Fiscal Impact No

Recommended The recommendation is to approve the committee members assigned to the NUSD Board Action Committees. PURPOSE:

For the Board to review the Board Committee Assignments and fill any vacancies.

BACKGROUND:

With the resignation of Member Martinez, it left vacancies in some committees. The Board will review the committee assignments and fill any vacancies where needed.

File Attachments Board Committees - Agenda 21-1021.docx.pdf (46 KB)

Board Committees Description.pdf (63 KB)

Motion & Voting The recommendation is to approve the committee members assigned to the NUSD Board Committees.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Governance Handbook Amendments

Type Action, Discussion, Information PURPOSE:

For the Board to review the Governance Team Handbook.

BACKGROUND:

On October 12, 2021, Member Grindall requested to add this item to the agenda to have a discussion and possible action on the board officers process and procedures.

File Attachments NUSD Governance Team Handbook - REVISED April 15, 2021.pdf (349 KB) NUSD Governance Team Handbook - DRAFT Nov 4, 2021.pdf (351 KB)

Motion & Voting Motion to approve the changes on the handbook

Motion by Terrence Grindall, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz
Nay: Aiden Hill

Board Vacancy Procedure

Type Action, Discussion, Information PURPOSE:

For the Board to discuss the NUSD Board Vacancy Procedure.

BACKGROUND:

On October 12, 2021, Member Grindall requested to add this item to the agenda to have a discussion on the process and procedures.

File Attachments

Bylaw 9223 Filling Vacancies.pdf (74 KB)

15. CONSENT AGENDA: PERSONNEL ITEMS

PLACEHOLDER - One Consented Vote

Type Action

Recommended It is recommended that the Board of Education approve, under one consented vote, the Action agenda items under Consent-Personnel, except for agenda items: PURPOSE: (This is specifically a placeholder, and will only be used if multiple agenda items are approved under a consented vote.)

BACKGROUND: Items within the Consent Agenda are considered routine and will be approved, adopted, or ratified by a single motion and action. There will not be a separate discussion of these items; however, any item may be pulled from the Consent Agenda upon the request of any member of the Board and acted upon separately.

Motion & Voting It is recommended that the Board of Education approve, under one consented vote, the agenda items under Consent- Personnel.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez
Abstain: Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Personnel Report

Type Action

Preferred Date Nov 04, 2021

Absolute Date Nov 04, 2021

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education ratifies the personnel report as presented. Action All personnel activities including new hires, changes in status, resignation, leaves, and retirements are routinely submitted to the Board for ratification.

File Attachments HR PAL 11-04-2021.pdf (427 KB)

MOU Between NTA and NUSD to Increase In-House Substitute Rates

Type Action

Absolute Date Nov 04, 2021

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the MOU between NTA and Action NUSD to increase the in-house substitute rates. PURPOSE:

The purpose is to increase the in-house substitute rates for the remainder of the 2021-22 school year to help compensate for missed prep periods.

BACKGROUND:

This year we have experienced a significant increase in the need for substitute teachers, while at the same time experiencing a significant decrease in the substitute pool list. When a substitute cannot be secured, per the Collective Bargaining Agreement with NTA, site administrators first ask for volunteers to in-house substitute. If there are no volunteers, a teacher is assigned to be an in-house substitute based on a rotating schedule. In-house substitutes are currently compensated $40 for their missed prep period. The MOU between NTA and NUSD would increase the rate from $40 to $55 per missed prep period. The District will continue to advertise for and attempt to recruit and hire substitutes, and shall not use the MOU to avoid filling any vacancies.

File Attachments NTA MOU In-House Subs 10.28.2021.pdf (92 KB)

16. CONSENT AGENDA: NON-PERSONNEL ITEMS

PLACEHOLDER - One Consented Vote

Type Action

Recommended It is recommended that the Board of Education approve, under one consented vote, the Action agenda items under Consent Non-Personnel, except for agenda items: PURPOSE: (This is specifically a placeholder, and will only be used if multiple agenda items are approved under a consented vote.)

BACKGROUND: Items within the Consent Agenda are considered routine and will be approved, adopted, or ratified by a single motion and action. There will not be a separate discussion of these items; however, any item may be pulled from the Consent Agenda upon the request of any member of the Board and acted upon separately.

Motion & Voting It is recommended that the Board of Education approve, under one consented vote, the agenda items under Consent Non- Personnel, except for agenda items 16.5 and 16.6:

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Contracts and Purchase Orders Authorized under Resolution 2020.21-025 (Delegate Authority to Procure Necessary Materials, Equipment and Services to

                       Provide Distance and/or In-Person Learning for Staff, Teachers, and Students to
                       Mitigate the Effects of Covid-19)

Type Action

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education accepts the update on costs associated Action with the implementation of Resolution 2020.21-025 (Resolution of the Board of Education of the Newark Unified School District to Delegate Authority to Procure Necessary Materials, Equipment and Services to Provide Distance and/or In-Person Learning for Staff, Teachers, and Students to Mitigate the Effects of Covid-19) PURPOSE:

To update the Board on costs associated with the implementation of Resolution 2020.21-025 (Resolution of the Board of Education of the Newark Unified School District to Delegate Authority to Procure Necessary Materials, Equipment and Services to Provide Distance and/or In-Person Learning for Staff, Teachers, and Students to Mitigate the Effects of Covid-19) from October 1, 2021 through October 31, 2021.

There were no contracts and/or PO's authorized under this resolution for the month of October 2021.

BACKGROUND:

On April 1, 2021, the Newark Unified School District Board approved Resolution 2020.21-025 delegating authority to the Superintendent or designee to procure necessary materials, equipment, and services that are needed to provide distance and/or in-person learning to mitigate the effects of Covid-19. Language in the resolution states "the Superintendent/Designee shall make periodic reports to the Board of Education and the public regarding implementation of this resolution and the costs associated therewith"; requiring the update provided here.

On September 16, 2021, Amended Resolution 2020.21-025 was approved. The amendment extends it to on or around June 30, 2022, and states that updates will be presented at the first Board meeting of each month.

Updates have been provided to the Board June 17, 2021, for contracts and purchase orders between April 2, 2021, and May 31, 2021 October 7, 2021, for contracts and purchase orders between June 1, 2021, and September 30, 2021

VENDOR DATE PO NUMBER DESCRIPTION N/A*

*There are no contracts or purchase orders to report for the period of October 1, 2021, through October 31, 2021.

Resolution 2021.22.10 Notice of Completion of Flooring Project

Type Action

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approve Resolution No. 2021.22.10 and Action authorize the filing of Notices of Completion (NOC) with the County Recorder of Alameda County for flooring work completed by JB Jordan & Associates at Newark Memorial High School, Schilling Elementary and Birch Grove Intermediate. PURPOSE:

To authorize the filing of Notices Of Completion (NOC) with the County Recorder of Alameda County in order to start the 35-day deadline for filing liens. At the end of 35 days, the retention will be released.

BACKGROUND:

The District approved a budget in February 2020 of $1,200,000 from Measure G Bond funds for flooring projects. On August 6, 2020, the Board of Trustees awarded a contract to JB Jordan to install flooring at Newark Memorial High School (NMHS) in the amount of $466,145. On December 17, 2020, the Board of Trustees approved an amendment (Change Order #1) in the amount of $106,470 to include flooring work at Schilling, Birch Grove Intermediate, and NMHS for a total contract amount and final expenditure of $572,615. Savings from the project was reallocated to support the HVAC replacement projects.

Due to COVID-19, some work was deferred to summer 2021. The project was completed on August 11, 2021, and is ready for final acceptance. Staff requests acceptance of the project which will allow filing Notices of Completion with the County and permit the release of retention thirty-five (35) days after approval.

File Attachments Resolution 2020.21.10-NOC for Flooring Projects.pdf (11 KB) NMHS Notice of Completion-Flooring.pdf (73 KB) August Schilling Notice of Completion-Flooring.pdf (72 KB) BGI Notice of Completion-Flooring.pdf (74 KB)

Resolution 2021.22.11 State Treasurer LAIF Signatories Authorization

Type Action

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves Resolution No. 2021.22.11, Action State Treasurer LAIF Signatories Authorization. PURPOSE:

The District currently has funds deposited with the Local Agency Investment Fund (LAIF). Due to the fact that the District has a new Superintendent and Chief Business Official (CBO), it's necessary to update the authorized persons associated with our account in order to conduct transactions relative to these accounts.

BACKGROUND:

The Local Agency Investment Fund (LAIF) is a voluntary program created by statute; began in 1977 as an investment alternative for California's local governments and special districts and continues today under Treasurer Fiona Ma's administration. The LAIF is part of the Pooled Money Investment Account (PMIA). The PMIA began in 1955 and oversight is provided by the Pooled Money Investment Board (PMIB) and an in-house Investment Committee. The PMIB members are State Treasurer Fiona Ma, Director of Finance Keely Martin Bosler, and State Controller Betty Yee.

The last update on the LAIF Signatories Authorization was October 16, 2018. Since then the district has hired a new Superintendent and CBO.

Newark Unified School District has a LAIF balance of $776.48.

File Attachments State Treasurer LAIF Signatories Authorization_Triplett, dela Cruz, Lola.pdf (158 KB) Resolution 2021.22.11 State Treasurer LAIF Signatories Authorization.pdf (65 KB)

Amendment No. 1 and 2 for Gelfand Partner Architects for Newark Junior High School Stair Replacement Project

Type Action

Fiscal Impact Yes

Dollar Amount $11,120.00

Budgeted Yes

Budget Source Fund 25 Capital Facilities Fund

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves Amendment No. 1 and 2 for Action Gelfand Partner Architects to provide architectural services for the Stair Replacement Project at Newark Junior High School. PURPOSE:

To approve Amendment No. 1 and 2 with Gelfand Partners Architects to provide architectural services for the Stair Replacement Project at Newark Junior High School.

BACKGROUND:

The District approved a contract with Gelfand Partner Architects on February 18, 2021 in the amount of $62,110 for the NJHS Stairs project architect services. At the May 6, 2021, Board meeting, an update on the NJHS Stair Project was provided. It included Amendment No. 1 in the amount of $6,120 in the budget. The amendment is to provide design services for the Division of the State Architect (DSA) accessible path of travel requirements to support the Solar Parking Structure Project. The work included a revised ramp design at stairway 1.

On October 7, 2021, the Board approved a change order with the general contractor for the NJHS Stair Replacement Project which is related to the architect's Amendment No. 2. The change order and Amendment No. 2 was due to the unforeseen conditions found at stairways 2 and 3 where steel rebar was exposed which was not in concurrence with the original drawings of the building from the 1960s. This has required Gelfand Partners Architects to perform additional architectural services, including investigations, instructions, and processing the change in scope through DSA for an added service of $5,000, which brings the total contract amount to $73,230.

File Attachments Gelfand Partners Architects_NJH Stairs Ramp Amendment 1_fully executed.pdf (153 KB) Gelfand Partner Architects_NJH Stairs Amendment 2.pdf (158 KB)

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves Amendment No. 1 and 2 for Gelfand Partner Architects to provide architectural services for the Stair Replacement Project at Newark Junior High School.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Terrence Grindall.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz
Nay: Aiden Hill

Quarterly Report on Contracts Over $10,000 and Under $48,350

Type Action

Fiscal Impact Yes

Budgeted Yes

Budget Source General Fund

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education receive the Quarterly Report on Action Contracts. PURPOSE:

These quarterly reports on contracts are submitted to the Board for review.

BACKGROUND:

The Board has requested a report of all contracts for services over $10,000 and under $48,350 (one-half of the current bid limit for purchases of equipment, materials, or supplies, pursuant to Public Contract Code 20111) be reviewed by the Board on a quarterly basis. This report only includes contracts that have not been previously approved by the Board.

Contracts are reported quarterly based on the Purchase Order date. Please note the service period on the attached contracts is from the fiscal year 2020-21. Although the contracts were signed in February and March 2021, the corresponding PO's were not processed until July 2021 when invoices were being processed for payment. The process to ensure a more timely reporting of contracts has been addressed by the Business Office.

File Attachments Quarterly Report on Contracts_11-4-2021.pdf (10 KB) Speech Pathology Group_to Board.pdf (282 KB) NOVA Health Therapies Inc_to the Board.pdf (108 KB)

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education receive the Quarterly Report on Contracts.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

Minutes of the October 12, 2021 Special Meeting of the Board of Education

Type Action, Minutes

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the minutes of October 12, Action 2021, Special Meeting of the Board of Education. PURPOSE: For the board to review and approve the minutes

BACKGROUND: The attached minutes are reflective of the October 12, 2021, Special Meeting of the Board of Education. The meeting may be viewed on the NUSD YouTube Channel HERE

Minutes of the October 21, 2021 Regular Meeting of the Board of Education

Type Action, Minutes

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the minutes of October 21, Action 2021, Regular Meeting of the Board of Education. PURPOSE: For the board to review and approve the minutes

BACKGROUND: The attached minutes are reflective of the October 21, 2021, Regular Meeting of the Board of Education. The meeting may be viewed on the NUSD YouTube Channel HERE

Minutes of the October 27, 2021 Special Meeting of the Board of Education

Type Action, Minutes

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education approves the minutes of October 27, Action 2021, Special Meeting of the Board of Education. PURPOSE: For the board to review and approve the minutes

BACKGROUND: The attached minutes are reflective of the October 27, 2021, Special Meeting of the Board of Education. The meeting may be viewed on the NUSD YouTube Channel HERE.

17. BOARD OF EDUCATION: COMMITTEE REPORTS, REQUESTS, AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Board of Education Committee Reports

Type Information PURPOSE:

The Trustees will provide an update, if available, on the committees of which they are members.

BACKGROUND: Each year the Board of Education members liaise with schools and committees in order to build relationships, hear from staff, students, and families, and act as a conduit for information to and from the schools.

Mission Valley ROP - Elisa Martinez SELPA - Bowen Zhang Newark & NUSD Liaison Committee - Phuong Nguyen & Terrence Grindall Newark Teacher Induction Advisory Council (Formally EBBIC) - Elisa Martinez Audit Committee - Phuong Nguyen & Aiden Hill Bond/Parcel Tax Committee - Elisa Martinez & Terrence Grindall

Board of Education Requests

Type Action, Discussion, Information PURPOSE: This is an opportunity for the Board of Education to suggest items for placement on future agendas and to review Board requests.

Approval from the majority of the Board will be required for direction to be provided to the Superintendent.

BACKGROUND: The following derives directly from the Board approved "Governance Team Handbook"

Authority is Collective, Not Individual: The only authority to direct action rests with the Board as a whole when seated at a regular or special board meeting. Outside of this meeting, there is no authority. A majority Board vote provides direction to the Superintendent. Board members will not undermine the ability of staff to carry out Board direction.

Bringing New Ideas Forward The Board will be open to having "brainstorming" discussions, or study sessions, around any idea that a Trustee may feel merits exploratory consideration. "New Ideas" are defined as any proposal brought forward by a Trustee, at their initiative or at the request of a constituent, which was previously discussed during a board meeting. Trustees will first notify the Board President and Superintendent of their interest in bringing forward a new idea at a board meeting. When initially agendized, the preliminary discussion of a new idea will not require staff research time. Initially, staff will be expected to respond to new ideas based on current knowledge. Only a majority of the Board may direct the Superintendent to conduct research regarding the exploration of a new idea. The Superintendent will decide on the delegation of assignments to District staff. The new idea may be agendized for discussion only. The Board majority will decide if the new idea should be further developed and studied by staff. The Board majority will decide if staff time should be invested in the "fleshing out" of new ideas. Individual Trustees, in the course of interactions with constituents, will be careful not to make or imply the commitment of the full Board to explore or proceed with implementing new ideas.

Board of Education Recognitions and Announcements

Type Information PURPOSE: The Trustees may acknowledge or recognize specific programs, activities, or personnel at this time.

18. SUPERINTENDENT'S CONCLUDING COMMENTS, UPDATES FOR THE BOARD AND FUTURE AGENDA REQUESTS

Superintendent's Concluding Comments, Updates, and Future Agenda Items

                       AGENDA REQUESTS

Type Information PURPOSE: This is an opportunity for the Superintendent to make any concluding comments, updates, agenda requests, or provide information of future meetings.

19. ADJOURNMENT

PLACEHOLDER - Extend Meeting

Type Action

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education extends the meeting to ____P.M. Action PURPOSE:

This is a placeholder, only to be used if the Board adds a motion and action to extend the meeting.

Adjournment

Type Action, Procedural

Recommended The recommendation is that the Board of Education adjourns this meeting. Action PURPOSE: No items will be considered after 10:00 p.m. unless it is determined by a majority of the Board to extend to a specific time.

This action will conclude the meeting.

Motion & Voting The recommendation is that the Board of Education adjourns this meeting.

Motion by Bowen Zhang, second by Phuong Nguyen.
Final Resolution: Motion Carries
Yea: Bowen Zhang, Phuong Nguyen, Terrence Grindall, Aiden Hill, Alicia Marquez, Estaina Resendiz-Ortiz

No minutes available.