This week’s Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District’s school board meeting is business as usual, featuring revisions, updates and discussion items. However, a special commendation for employees bidding adieu to their careers will kick things off.
At the Thursday, June 6 board meeting, the SMMUSD will recognize employees within the district who are retiring. Over 70 retirees will be recognized at a ceremony that will begin at 5:15 p.m. in the Lincoln Middle School cafeteria.
“I join the Board of Education in thanking our large retiree group for their decades of support to our students, schools and sites and wishing them well in their retirement,” Superintendent Dr. Ben Drati said in an email to the Daily Press. “The school district is losing a wealth of knowledge and experience with this group, which we have greatly appreciated and will truly miss.”
Aside from the ceremony, the board will discuss the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP), potentially approving a fiscal and master use agreement between SMMUSD and the Santa Monica Community College District and more.
The 2019-2020 LCAP — the district’s annual goals for all pupils, proposing methods of addressing state and local priorities — will be discussed at the meeting, highlighting progress, needs and performance gaps throughout the district.
Progress noted in a presentation to be shown includes identified student groups — Socio-economically disadvantaged, African American, Hispanic/Latino and homeless/foster youth — scoring higher on English Language Arts tests this year. Needs mentioned include reducing the opportunity gap for these identified student groups, seeking to help boost opportunities, improve test scores and reduce suspensions.
Another item on the agenda dais includes the sharing of facilities between SMMUSD and the Santa Monica Community College District.
The Fiscal and Master Use agreements codify “the processes how we share facilities to support the educational and community programs of both districts. This agreement allows us to continue to share athletic/recreational, performing/cultural and educational facilities,” according to the agenda.
Examples of shared facilities included SMC using Adams Middle School’s softball field and SMMUSD using Corsair Field for Samohi football games. The Master Use Agreement would last ten years upon agreement.
The Fiscal Use Agreement focuses on the Performing Arts Center that will replace John Adams Auditorium, closed in August 2014 due to structural damage and seismic issues. SMC will potentially agree to contribute $20 million to the construction of the Adams Performing Arts Facility and receive up to 36 days of use every year.
The Board of Education will call the meeting to order at 3 p.m. in the Lincoln Middle School library, at which time the board will move to Closed Session. The public meeting will reconvene at 5:15 p.m. in the cafeteria to honor retirees. At 7:30 p.m., open session will resume in the district office board room (1651 16th St.) for the remainder of open session.
angel@smdp.com
