May 3, 2017

The May 3, 2017 meeting of the Board of Education began with the following announcements out of Closed Session. 

The Board of Education made the following promotions:

  • Gina Gordon, Teacher on Special Assignment in Special Education, to Principal I/Manager II at Rata High School
  • Kevin Her, Vice Principal I at Norseman Elementary, to Principal II at Norseman Elementary
  • Debbie Duran, Vice Principal I at Webster Elementary, to Principal II at Roeding Elementary
  • Blair Eliason-Sagardia, Vice Principal III at Patiño High School, to Principal IV at Patiño High School

The Board of Education ratified a leave of absence.

Next, Cecilia Borrows and William Morales, parents that have had a positive impact at Aynesworth Elementary, led the Pledge of Allegiance.

The Board of Education approved the minutes from the March 8, 2017 meeting and the March 20, 2017 special meeting.

The Board of Education recognized Fresno Unified School District as the recipient of the Award for Excellence in Financial Management from the Council of the Great City Schools.

The Board of Education adopted a resolution proclaiming May 10, 2017 as National School Nurse Day.

Student Anna Cervantes from Sunnyside High School provided a report to the Board of Education, sharing details of yesterday’s SAB meeting and thanked Board Member Davis for attending and encouraging the students to work hard and believe in themselves.  The students shared some news happening at Sunnyside High School, including that there are 49 valedictorians this year, Sunnyside is currently holding its annual staff appreciation “Wildcat Family Week,” and a secret guerilla art project was recently unveiled on campus. In addition, students from Terronez Middle School shared what activities they participate in and why they love attending Terronez.

Next, Interim Superintendent Nelson provided a brief report to the Board of Education including:

  • Thanking Michael Casserly and Robert Carlson from the Council of Great City Schools for coming all the way from Washington D.C. to personally recognize Fresno Unified and in particular, the fiscal teams that work daily to ensure financial stability. Led by Deputy Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer Ruthie Quinto, Nelson congratulated Ruthie, Jacquie Canfield, Santino Danisi, Kim Kelstrom, Andrew De La Torre, Paul Rosencrans, Steven Shubin and the many folks who make up these remarkable teams.
  • This past Monday, Sunnyside High School students arrived to a uniquely different campus then they left on Friday — complete with larger than life sized portraits of fellow classmates plastered on walls and staircases.  The surprise “Guerilla” art project was a passionate gift of student art that took most of Saturday to complete. Led by photography teacher Tamela Ryatt, students brought the walls of Sunnyside High School to life showing that true art can live anywhere and is often seen in the eyes of one another. Nelson shared a video highlighting the work and added that the video had been viewed more than 76,000 times on social media.
  • Monday also marked an important day for the district’s high school seniors – college commitment day.  Over the last few weeks, our comprehensive and alternative ed. high schools have been hosting “Signing Day” ceremonies, celebrating the many college and universities students will soon call home. The signing day events at each of our high schools have been homegrown efforts, ranging from small intimate ceremonies to larger events in the quad over lunch or as part of a senior awards celebration.  This year, thanks to the suggestion of Trustee Cazares, we provided some additional resources to ensure this monumental moment was forever captured at every school and celebrated on a larger scale. Thank you to Campus Culture Manager Leslie Loewen and the district’s media team for supporting this year’s effort.  Nelson noted there are still a few celebratory signings slated for later this month, but shared a videohighlighting some of the “Signing Day” events that have occurred so far.
  • Interim superintendent went on to speak about two very important events coming up next week – The CTE summit on Tuesday, May 9.   Next Tuesday Fresno Unified, Fresno City College and the office of the Fresno County Superintendent  are inviting community members, business partners, parents and students to join us for our first ever Career Technology Education Summit. Registration begins at 4 p.m. at Duncan Polytechnical High School. Students will provide CTE demonstrations in nursing, therapy and rehabilitation services, construction, welding, manufacturing and automotive.  The formal program begins at 5 p.m. and will include open discussions about future CTE plans, needs and supports.  Advance registration is not mandatory, but we encourage folks to visit the district website at fresnounified.org to learn more and register online. 
  • The second event next week is the Fresno Unified Scholarship Awards dinner on May 10 where 49 deserving seniors will be honored at the Golden Palace Banquet Hall as they receive scholarships totaling $61,000. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.  Nelson thanked district employees and community partners who have donated to the Fresno Unified scholarship fund over the last eight years. Interim superintendent also directed those interested in donating to the fund to the district website to learn more. Nelson then shared a short video featuring County Supervisor Sal Quintero, giving voice to one of the many applications received this year.  

Following Interim Superintendent Nelson’s remarks, the Board of Education took the following actions on the below consent agenda items:

  • Approved personnel list
  • Adopted findings of fact and recommendations of the District Administrative Board
  • Approved award of RFPE20003, Network Equipment for Internal Connections
  • Approved use of Cal Save, Monterey Office of Education Piggyback Contract for Technology Goods and Services
  • Approved grant application to the California Department of Rehabilitation for the We Can Work Grant
  • Ratified change orders for the following project:
    • Bid 16-31, Turner Elementary School new classroom and administration buildings
  • Ratified the filing of a notice of completion for:
    •  Bid 16-30A, Installation of exterior lighting at various sites
  • Ratified purchase orders from February 1, 2017 through February 28, 2017

After the consent agenda, staff made presentations to the Board in the conference/discussion section of the agenda as follows:

  • Presented and approved 2017/18 single plans for student achievement
  • Presented and discussed the 2017/18 Strategic Budget Development with presentations from Career Technical Education and Information Technology.
  • Ratified the 2016/17 Negotiated Collective Bargaining Agreement between Fresno Unified School District and California School Employees Association, Chapter 125, White Collar

Next, the Board of Education received proposed revisions for Board Policies (BP) 0410, 5113, 5141.21, (NEW) 5141.52, 6173, 6174, and (NEW) Exhibit (E) 5113.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Education is Wednesday, May 17, 2017 at 5:30 p.m. at the Fresno Unified Education Center, located at 2309 Tulare St. in Fresno. Complete minutes and agendas are available online at https://go.fresnou.org/board.

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