Ms. Saxon - Wants board to consider shifting HR services to outside vendor the way financial services were shifted. Claiming hostile environment and impacts on employee morale from Martha Monahan's leadership. 

Mr. Friedman -  concerns about return to campus and safety of the current building and whether corners were cut. Concerned about health issues in students and teachers and whether related to the building

Anonymous - concerns about employee morale resulting from how poorly the administration is treating staff and teachers. 

Pemra Ornek - seeking more detailed and transparent reporting of environmental testing and safety

Anonymous - comment regarding all staff meeting led by HR director where she compared leave policy to Don't Ask Don't Tell. Find that to be culturally insensitive 

Anonymous - comment regarding all staff meeting led by HR director where she inappropriately compared teacher leave policy to Don't Ask Don't Tell.

Anonymous - questions about going back on zoom. concerns about transition back to Pali and the lack of preparation when we came to sears. Want to be sure we are really ready before we move back. High stress levels from staying at Sears. Would prefer zoom to staying at Sears or moving back to Pali too soon.  

Owen Fisher - everyone is excited for break. 

Kids are stressed about the Sears building. 

Some chatter about return to zoom.

Freshman election week.

Spirit week is in the works. 

Parents want more substantive and frequent communication. They want updates about the sears building and the return to campus.

Campus mural cleanup - Alums from many years were there. 

Palisades Beautiful - community group including Pali alums helping with beautification in the palisades, gardening and planting around campus 

nothing to report

Dr. Monahan - recognition of the teachers who have been dealing with teaching in the rain and welcoming students into their classrooms for lunch and breaks. 

Minh Ha Ngo - teachers are anxious to get back into their classrooms. Expressed concerns about return to Pali, including classroom assignments and juggling of packing at Sears, preparing for finals, grading finals. 

Report stands at submitted 

Martha wants to make a note of HR positivity - faculty meetings include something called Pali Positivity where they recognize specific staff members 

Semone Leifer & Mr. Golad were recognized this month and she wants the community to know about their contributions

report stands as submitted 

report stands as submitted 

no report 

Dr. Magee is working with LAUSD to set up a meeting about environmental testing and answer community questions. She has been fielding a lot of questions so she wants to make sure people know they are being heard and the answers will be forthcoming.  

The administration is working on recruiting for next year. They have set tour dates starting in January. 

They are also tracking attendance and enrollment info. Will have a detailed analysis for the December board meeting. 

California school dashboard - some of our data is frozen because we are still considered to be in emergency circumstances. 

Our school is continuing to thrive and shine because of the efforts from all our stakeholders. 

Looking forward to spirit week.

Surveys going out to students and staff to see what they want to see when we go back to Pali. 

Also want to understand parent preferences re communication from the school. 

Mr. Friedman & Ms. Tenan-Snow

They sent out a list of questions to all the departments and programs to dig into strengths, weaknesses, alignment, areas of improvement. The committee is now compiling the responses into a spreadsheet. Then will analyze trends and issues in order to present a comprehensive report and recommendations to the board.

Sara Margiotta 

They have had several meetings in November to ensure all the financial information is up to date and complete. 

The major items were 1. additional expenses associated with the track/field repair and the aquatics repairs; and 2. additional costs of remediation that will be covered by insurance.  

Committee approved moving company contract. 

Grade appeal committee has completed its work for this semester. There were 12 appeals, 4 were overturned. Many related to extraordinary circumstances last semester because of the fire. 

Rafael Negroe

1. Enviro Testing and Cleaning 

• LAUSD is still continuing air duct cleaning and enviro testing in A-G buildings, gym, Mercer Hall and the kitchen. 
• Last Friday meeting with LAUSD indicated they are on track to finish the building testing. Building D has been completed and cleared. The gym test results were completed but we don't have the report yet.
• He believes the buildings will be turned over toward the end of December. This will give us less time than ideal to prepare buildings for occupancy. 
• Minh Ha Ngo - asked when can she get into her classroom. Mr. Negroe says OEHS has to authorize access to the buildings. The facilities team has access now but there's no public access for the teachers to go there yet because it's still an active construction zone. OEHS Director conveyed that she wants to ensure safety before any public access. 
• Lisa Cahill - what is the turnover timeline and how has it changed? Is there an anticipated turnover day? Mr. Negroe says there's not a target date from OEHS. Lisa says they should have an idea based on what's left to be done.
• They are still cascading building turnover to the Pali facilities team. We now have access to buildings D, H and M (Mercer and Music) and our facilities team is actively working in those areas. Building B expected this week. 
• Mr. Negroe is available for a board visit to the campus. We need to schedule a date. 
• Owen Fisher - what about gym access and homecoming. Mr. Negroe says he feels confident they will be able to use the gym for it. 
• Jessica - have there been positive results in any areas indicating continuing contamination? Mr. Negroe says there have been some positives in different areas so those rooms have been re-treated. 
• Maggie - timing of public access? Mr. Negroe says late December but the facilities team is doing their preparations and inventory and getting things done in advance of the public turnover date. 
• D was the building closest to the fire and with most contamination concern so it's a great sign that it's been cleared.
• 2. Stadium Project - we are responsible for track and turf. We got quotes to replace those, contracts were approved. Now DSA is requiring more work including ADA accessibility to the stadium. Any project over $220k requires us to invest 10% of that amount in ADA accessibility work. That changed the project for us because we had to engage landscape architects and regular architects for the ADA portion that will be submitted to DSA. That creates added cost to the project for engineering & architecture contracts and testing. These costs are around $160k so far. Will all be covered by insurance. Budget & Finance committee approved. Anticipate track and field completion in January. 
• 3. Campus Transition - Want to engage Corovan moving company for the move back to Pali. This was the more affordable company that provided a bid.  
• Lisa Cahill - What about the damaged flag that is still up on the campus flagpole? Mr. Negroe says they are going to replace the damaged flag but will keep it and display it in a glass frame on campus.
• Lisa - Is anyone maintaining the landscaping on campus? Mr. Negroe says they have not been cutting the grass on campus because don't want to disturb anything that can impact testing. 
• Lisa asks about road conditions and repairs to the streets around Pali- Mr. Negroe does not have information. Questions may need to go through Traci Park's office.
• Report includes chart regarding lease extension and timeline - we have to give landlords a notice by December 17 to say if we are staying through end of March or vacating. 
• The moving company is going to give a quote for demo. Our current demo quote is $680,000. 
• The temporary village - furniture for 11 of them is at already at Pali. LAUSD is going to furnish the remainder. Some of that might be from furniture LAUSD provided for Sears.
• Owen asked about the lease extension and why we would extend to March - Rafael says timing depends on safety and security considerations. 
• Minh Ha Ngo - asked about the Corovan contract and packing of the library where it says N/A - Mr. Negroe needs to follow up about that. Will the company provide boxes and staff will pack? Yes, they have staff to help and will ask teachers their preference, if they want help to pack up or not. Dr. Magee says they are still in preliminary stages and will figure this out. Minh Ha also says teachers are concerned about the timing of the move and finding time to do the packing and moving. Dr. Magee says they are talking with the union reps and will have more specific info soon. Minh Ha would like this guidance by the week after Thanksgiving. Mr. Negroe is meeting with the moving company and will have updates soon. 
• Owen - will we know the situation by December 17 to make the decision to stay or move? Mr. Negroe is hopeful. 

We currently have 7 bus routes, 14 stops, 270 students. 

We will reopen bus signups once we know when we are moving.

If participation does not significantly increase we will have to decide whether to subsidize, increase the prices, or cancel buses. 

He expects participation will increase because there is less public transportation to Pali than Sears since we are so close to metro and bus routes. 

Questions about parking at Pali. Admin needs to know what spaces will be available because some spots will be taken by construction materials. Maggie says there should be more street parking available since so many residents have not come back. ASB collects parking revenue and it's an important source of funds for them. They are planning to have reduced cost passes at pali for people who already paid at Sears and will be regular cost for new purchasers. 

Lisa says we should connect with field rep in Traci Park's office to be proactive about parking and access issues to facilitate a smooth return. She can take the lead on that. 

Katie Pawlik - IB Coordinator since September 

• Reaching out to all stakeholders about the program 
• Program designed to foster intercultural understanding and respect 
• Developing the learner profile - 10 key traits 
• Diploma program - 2 year holistic program for 11th & 12th graders. 6-7 classes each year of standard and/or higher level classes
• internal and external assessments 
• approaches to learning skills
• presently in the process of completing staff training, drafting policies, holding community meetings, putting together advisory boards
• There are benchmarks for setting up the program through this year with first classes planned for fall 2026. Action plan completion this month. Application submission in January 2026. Verification visit May 2026.
• Anticipating cohort of 90 kids. 
• Owen - what is the student outreach and engagement plan? Katie says it has been through Schoology to the 10th graders and through social media and the newsletter to let them know about the info sessions. 
• Academic prerequisites and admission policies are still being worked out. Will have a mandatory info session for students and their families in January to ensure they understand the commitment and requirements. Will have a team of IB leadership group, teachers and counselors to review applications. 
• Minh Ha Ngo - Will there be barriers to participation based on placement levels in math or language? Katie says they are trying to minimize the barriers and use summer classes and other options to help kids participate in this. 
• Amir - how will IB testing be handled? Katie says we would start with an 11th grade cohort who would do their testing in May of their senior year. We anticipate we would administer the tests at our own campus. 
• Amir - What are pros and cons of diploma program versus just offering courses? Katie says our focus will be the diploma program and ensuring kids can complete the requirements. There will be some fluidity to allow non DP students to take one off classes in the IB program.

Amie Whiteley

• Infinite campus training for counseling department
• They are in initial phases of programming for next school year. Preparing for next semester. 
• Creating a webinar for current students to select courses over winter break. 
• Will have a presentation for seniors re cap and gown during pali period. Will have merch for them.
• December 9 - hosting wellness resource fair for students during 4th period and lunch 
• November 19 - info session for students interested in dual enrollment at community colleges 
• study skills added to schedule for 0 and 7 period. 
• credit recovery is ongoing. There are 81 12th graders presently taking classes. Currently enrolling 11th graders, around 120 students. 
• Meeting and making recommendations weekly for students who need additional services. 
• November 12 there was a Pali Period webinar called Managing Unwanted Feelings. Survey went out to staff and feedback from the 13 who responded seems positive. Trying to prepare students for going back to Pali next semester. 
• Pali Academy enrollment is 70 students
• Virtual Academy enrollment is at 257. We are looking to increase to max of 325 as we go back to Pali. We have a waiver but normally enrollment in VA is supposed to be 10% of total enrollment.
• Amir asks about credit recovery courses and what subjects are most common - Randy Tenan- Snow says most of the core courses are included but they are not offering world languages. One elective offered for seniors. 
• Looking at adjustments to classes and class sizes for next semester. 

John Azzizzi 

• Funding protections and Hold Harmless - they met with state reps and admin to discuss funding protections and efforts. 25-26 is funded at same level as last year. $6.3 million support to Pali to cover the shortfall. We are down 531 students (18%) from last year. 
• They are working on additional year funding supports. Hopefully this will be included in the governor's budget in January. FCMAT recommendation is that 26-27 would include 30% of the principal apportionment. 20% special apportionment in 27-28. 10% in 28-29. 
• Our insurance reps are working on a new claim under a $10 mm sub policy for business interruption insurance. We have lost revenue from pool, fields and other permits we usually sell. The rest is Average Daily Attendance (ADA) and enrollment losses to make up the additional $8.2 mm. 
• Maggie asks what the likelihood is that this FCMAT Rec ends up in the state budget - John says it's the same as what was done after the Paradise fire. He says in general their recommendations are adopted so he's optimistic this will happen for us. He says state revenues are also ahead of projections so we have some cushion in the state education budget with the Prop 98 guaranty. 

• We have made adjustments relating to insurance policies; track/field and pool were originally not included in the budget so both the revenues and the costs for these are now in the budget. $2.2 mm additional cost and additional revenue.
• Cost overruns on temporary relocation have been added in as well as decrease in personnel costs, overall expecting to remain at break even.
• Employee retention credit that we applied for - We heard from IRS we will be getting a check in December/January for $1.7 mm for one of the two claims that we put in. This is not included in the budget yet. 
• Enrollment in ADA has slipped a little but we are protected this year. 
• We have healthy cash and reserve balances to support it. 
• Some revenue increases from grants and educational funds and insurance proceeds.
• Adjustments in insurance costs, food services costs.
• Negeen asks if they have reassessed insurance coverage and lessons learned post fire. Insurance coverage - our costs did go up around 15% this year. We are locked in for coverage this year. We have a $100 mm policy which John says is plenty of coverage. The sub-limits are where we have run into pinch points. Dr. Magee says LAUSD has insurance requirements for charter schools.
• John says the appendix to the financial report includes detailed check register and breakdown of costs and spending for transparency.
• Minh Ha asks about overages in the costs. John says it's mostly insurance costs due to the temporary relocation. Some things should be shifted around like the restroom costs and parking costs that should be moved into the insurance bucket. 
• Amir asks about Prop 28 funding - John says Martha and Dr. Magee will go to a seminar about this and we will also pursue a waiver to see if we can spend those amounts on items other than hiring new staff so we can use as much of the funding as possible .
• Negeen asks about fiscal impact of staying at Sears - John says it's $200k per month rent, 12 month contract for toilet rental. Security, parking. These are the major costs. We could use employee retention funds to offset some of these costs if we have to. Minh Ha expressed objection to that. We cannot go past March here regardless. Employee retention funds can be used for lost revenues. 
• Minh Ha asks about buckets of salaries and admin salaries increasing per the report. Dr. Magee says it's from previously unfilled positions rather than salary increases. 

Board members would like to have a board visit to Palisades campus. Trying to find a date that works for the majority of the board. Potentially December 6 at 10 am or December 3 at 3:30 pm.