The November School Board Meeting, held on Nov. 20, consisted of many public comments advocating for the Employee Summer Assistant Program and a presentation regarding the 2024 state testing scores.
The meeting began with the trustees reporting on the previous month, with many bidding their goodbyes to Trustee Amy Hanacek and Trustee Michael Parham. Other trustees commented on how the Career and College Advantage courses are one of the district’s best-kept secrets.
Next, was Trustee Hanacek’s comments regarding the end of her 12 years as a part of the board.
At one point, she shared words written by one of her children who graduated from the Capistrano Unified School District, “To our students, you are considered to be the most educated of generations but education alone will not serve you. It will be your fluidity of thought, your creativity, your ideas that will propel you and society. Ideas are increasingly our most precious commodity, the scarcest input in the system of economy and society, but ideas alone will not be sufficient. You must be able to execute those ideas, this will require you to be more nimble, independent and entrepreneurial than past generations.”
Then, came the student speakers, some of which were seniors from Aliso. A group of girls completing a Civic Action Project spoke on wanting an in-person health class to properly educate individuals on suicide intervention.
Then, came the rest of the public speakers, many of whom spoke on the ESAP program they wish to be implemented.
Other speakers thanked Trustee Hanacek for the work she’s put in as a part of the board. One parent noted that she brought stability and unity to the district while straying from politics. Trustee Hanacek was described as a “great ethical role model with class and integrity.”
Another speaker, who has worked for the district for 21 years, spoke on how ESAP will help create a financial bridge for staff who aren’t actively working over the summer.
One other speaker shared, “Please don’t let another year go by without CUSD joining the other highly rated school districts in providing their classified members the ability to take part in this program. Say yes and opt-in to ESAP.”
Other speakers also mentioned that over 400 other districts have already opted into ESAP. The lack of this program has resulted in many families turning to food pantries and other forms of aid over the summer.
Next, the Spring 2024 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress Results were presented. Our district, compared to the state of California and Orange County, was the only one that recovered from the pandemic in terms of scores.
For students who participated in state testing during the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, which does not include juniors, there were hopeful statistics regarding ELA. There was a 22 percent increase in students who met or exceeded standards, and 58.6 percent of students maintained prior levels. For math, there was a 20.2 percent increase in students who met and exceeded standards, and 61 percent maintained prior levels.
The November School Board Meeting was filled with appreciation for the two trustee members who will be replaced in the upcoming school year, and public comments surrounding the importance of the ESAP program.
