San Bernardino City Unified School District MINUTES Minutes of a Regular Meeting of the Board of Education ADOPTED 4/18/06 Community Room Board of Education Building 777 North F Street San Bernardino, California March 21, 2006 5:30 p.m. Present: President Marlin Brown; Vice President Lynda Savage; Board Members Teresa Parra, Judi Penman, Danny Tillman, and Elsa Valdez; Superintendent Arturo Delgado; Deputy Superintendent Judy White; Assistant Superintendents Mel Albiso, Narciso Cardona, Dayton Gilleland, Mohammad Islam, Yolanda Ortega, John Peukert, Paul Shirk, and Harold Vollkommer; and Superintendent’s Assistant Mary Beth Gosnell. Minutes recorded by Administrative Assistant Jennifer Owens. Absent: Board Member Antonio Dupre SESSION ONE - Opening 1.0 - Opening 1.1 - Call to Order President Brown called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. 1.2 - Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag The meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America. Members of the Richardson PREP HI Advanced Orchestra performed the National Anthem. SESSION TWO - Special Presentations 2.0 - Special Presentations 2.1 - City of San Bernardino Special Donation Bill Bryden, Director of Water Utility, City of San Bernardino Water Department, made a $5,000.00 donation to the Highland Environmental Education Coalition which represents the agency’s contribution to a multi-agency Water Education Exhibit. The exhibit will be located in the new Highland Library and Environmental Learning Center. The Cypress Elementary School library will also be located in the Highland Library and Environmental Learning Center as part of a District cooperative agreement with the County Library and the City of Highland. County Librarian Ed Kieczykowski accepted the check on behalf of the Coalition. Board of Education Minutes March 21, 2006 2.2 - Academic Decathlon Special Recognition The Board presented special recognition certificates to Pacific High School’s Team I that placed fifth and Arroyo Valley High School’s team that placed sixth out of 25 teams in the San Bernardino County Academic Decathlon. 2.3 - Scholarship Recognition This item was postponed until the April 4 Board meeting. Board members presented a Certificate of Appreciation to representatives of San Manuel Band of Indians for their donation of a new football stadium at San Gorgonio High School. 2.4 - Outstanding Student Awards Board of Education Outstanding Student Awards were presented to the following students: Cole Elementary School Manuel Buenrostro, Leeann Rice, and Bethany Valero Cypress Elementary School Maribel Barrios, Nancy Inda, and Isaac Partida Urbita Elementary School Laura Carrillo, Jerry Frausto, and Jessica Meraz 2.5 - Chamber of Commerce Recognition Betty Fletcher, Chairperson of the Chamber of Commerce Teacher Recognition Program, presented certificates to the following teachers: Cole Elementary School Patricia Beardsley, James Ferranti, Dana Hadley, Keishia Handy, and Doung Tor Bonnie Oehl Elementary School Katrina Gallegos, and Sandra Schalmo Marlin Brown displayed the plaque he accepted on behalf of the School Board from the California Department of Education and the Middle Grades Alliance. The Board was selected for its outstanding support for middle grades education. 2 Board of Education Minutes March 21, 2006 2.6 - In Recognition of César E. Chávez Upon motion by Member Brown, seconded by Member Tillman, and approved by the affirmative vote of Members Brown, Parra, Penman, Savage, Tillman, and Valdez (Noes: None), the following was adopted: WHEREAS César E. Chávez, a Mexican-American labor leader in California, is one of the heroic figures of the 20th century who led a movement dedicated to improving the lives of farm laborers; and WHEREAS César E. Chávez is a recognized national leader in the fight for civil rights for meaningful social change by peaceful means for Mexican Americans, Latinos, all racial minorities, and women, and under his leadership he mobilized many Latinos to register to vote; and WHEREAS the Board of Education of the San Bernardino City Unified School District recognizes the contributions made by César E. Chávez and designated the new middle school to be named César E. Chávez Middle School in honor of this great man; THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education of the San Bernardino City Unified School District hereby recognizes the contributions and accomplishments of César E. Chávez and encourages all District schools to conduct appropriate activities in observance of his birthday on March 31; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Education encourages all the schools of the District to take this opportunity to express their heartfelt appreciation for César E. Chávez and to honor his legacy as a man of dignity and strength. 2.7 - Resolution Supporting Senate Bill 1580 Upon motion by Member Tillman, seconded by Member Parra, and approved by the affirmative vote of Members Brown, Parra, Penman, Savage, Tillman, and Valdez (Noes: None), the following was adopted: WHEREAS approximately 25 percent of California’s public school students are identified as pupils with limited English proficiency and an even greater percentage of the San Bernardino City Unified School District’s students are so identified; and WHEREAS academic assessment data is critical to the State’s education accountability system and to the ability of school districts to focus resources appropriately to address the academic needs of children; and 3 Board of Education Minutes March 21, 2006 WHEREAS SB 1580, pupil assessment: English language learners: achievement tests: high school exit examination proposes amending Education Code Sections 60640 and 60850 relating to pupil assessment; and WHEREAS No Child Left Behind requires states to test all students in a valid and reliable manner and requires, to the extent practicable, that pupils with limited English proficiency be tested in the language and form most likely to yield accurate data on what they know and can do in academic subject areas; and WHEREAS the intent of SB 1580 is to bring the system of assessing the academic progress of pupils with limited English proficiency into alignment with the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001; and WHEREAS SB 1580 would require a pupil identified as limited English proficient and who is either literate in his or her primary language to take the standards-based achievement test in his or her primary language as soon as the primary language test is available; and WHEREAS SB 1580 would require the State Department of Education to develop by July 1, 2007, a modified version of the California high school exit exam for pupils who are English language learners. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED the Board of Education of the San Bernardino City Unified School District endorses Senate Bill 1580 and directs its Superintendent to send a copy of this resolution to the District’s legislative representatives. Teresa Parra asked that Staff also send a copy of the resolution to the Governor. SESSION THREE - School Showcase 3.0 - School Showcase 3.1 - Richardson PREP HI Under the direction of music teacher Peter Llamas, the Richardson PREP HI Advanced Orchestra performed Pirates of the Caribbean and Momentum. Heather Young provided a solo, and Lily Voon, Skarlleth Uribe, and Sharan Kohli performed a trio. 4 Board of Education Minutes March 21, 2006 SESSION FOUR - Public Hearing 4.0 - Public Hearing 4.1 - Public Hearing Regarding the Consideration and Adoption of a Second Urgency Resolution for an Increase in Statutory School Facility Fees Imposed on New Residential and Commercial/Industrial Construction Pursuant to Education Code Section 17620 and Government Code Section 65995 San Bernardino City Unified School District (“District”) Staff believes that the facts set forth in the fee justification studies entitled, “Residential Development School Fee Justification Study for San Bernardino City Unified School District” and “Commercial/Industrial Development School Fee Justification Study for San Bernardino City Unified School District”(“Studies”), prepared by David Taussig & Associates as of February 2006, are reflective of the average student generation rates, amount of future development and costs of school facilities to accommodate the students generated from such development. Based on the facility cost impacts to the District for the average new home and for commercial/industrial construction as set forth in the Studies, it appears that the District may collect the maximum Statutory School Fees in the amounts of $2.63 per square foot for residential construction within the District and $0.42 per square foot for commercial/industrial construction within the District. President Brown opened the public hearing and asked if anyone wished to comment. Carlos Rodriguez from the Building Industry Association thanked the Board for postponing action two weeks ago. He met with District staff and consultants and would like the District to recalculate its land acquisition costs to match those adopted by the City on March 20. Mr. Rodriguez stated that the increased fees will be passed on to homeowners. Danny Tillman stated developer fees aren’t enough to pay for schools, so the District must charge the maximum amount in order to qualify for Financial Hardship Status. Mr. Tillman added that the market dictates the price of housing, not the fees. Mr. Rodriguez asked that the District ensure the methodology in calculating developer fees is accurate. Pastor Owusu Hodari stated that he is partnering with the Building Industry Association to build low-cost housing and is opposed to the increased fees. Pastor Hodari stated that as a member of the Inland Empire Concerned African American Churches, they are going to keep the price of building a new home reasonable, and the lower fees would minimize the price. They are preparing to build four homes this year and will use the profits to build more. Judi Penman asked how much the District received last year from developer fees. Teresa Parra stated it was less than $3 million. Teresa Parra asked what would happen if the Board didn’t act tonight.