December 4, 2023
The board of trustees conducted their annual organization. Bryan Johnson was elected as board president, Vladimir Ivanovic as vice president, and Vaishali Sirkay as clerk.
A Facility Master Plan for LASD’s nine schools was last completed in 2014 and updated in 2019. New state requirements and the escalation of maintenance costs prompted the board to ask for a new set of plans earlier this year. CAW Architects was hired in October 2023 to complete the new master plan. At this meeting, Brent McClure from CAW Architects described the planning process and presented a timeline with a target completion date of May 2024.
Assistant Superintendent, Mr. Walukiewicz, presented the 1st Interim Financial Report for 2023-24. The district managed to increase their 2022-23 ending balance by $3.1 million by applying for grants and using one-time funds (including the last of the COVID funds). The outlook for future years has also improved thanks to the successful renewal of the parcel tax, which will generate over $3 million in annual revenue for 8 years beginning in 2024. In addition, $1 million from the Art & Music Block Grant was restored by the state budget, and another $1 million in revenue is expected from the CalSHAPE grant to be spent on facilities maintenance. Despite the positive news, the district is still projected to be operating at a deficit unless it can right-size staffing back to pre-COVID levels. Superintendent Sandra McGonagle expressed her desire for staff reductions to result from retirements and relocations rather than layoffs. Multi-year projections now show reserves dropping to 14.5% by 2025-26.
The board voted unanimously to approve a third amendment to its contract with Terraphase Engineering (not to exceed $68,800) to meet state regulatory requirements for construction on the 10th site. After touring a recently constructed building at Sacred Heart School in Menlo Park, the trustees also directed the superintendent’s office to pursue panelized (a.k.a. prefabricated) construction for the 10th site. When compared to traditional stick-built construction, panelized construction is expected to cost less and produce less waste. It also takes less time to complete. By choosing high-quality designs, it can last for 50 years, which is the same life expectancy as stick-built designs.
Covington Elementary School’s newly constructed inclusive playground (for those with disabilities and special needs) has been completed and will be inspected on Tuesday, December 5. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held soon after, and it will be open to the public outside of school hours.
Stella Kam, Observer