Quorum established.

Mr. Hussey led Board Members and guests in the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America (USA).

Public Comments include the following:

1. Parent Charne Tunson - Expressed concern about the school's "system" being broken down in the last six or seven years;" stated adult issues come before students' needs and that ECR has lost the vision that keeps kids first; cited concerns for most needy students' (Black males, LGBTQ+, SWDs); stated the school community is bombarded with negativity, adult issues, power struggles, to the extent that students have expressed not wanting to go to school anymore or participate in certain activities.  Implored the Board and administration to advocate for kids. 

2. Student Ava Tibor - Spoke in support of ECR Teacher Billy Ramirez; stated Mr. Ramirez's help and support has resulted in a college scholarship to play soccer; stated that Mr. Ramirez supports all athletics teams; noted that she has participated in a strength training program provided by Mr. Ramirez outside of school with other boys and girls; stated that Mr. Ramirez has helped several other students; stated Mr. Wright has "hurt her" by taking a photo that had been taken of her with Mr. Ramirez and twisting it into something "dirty."  Asked why Mr. Wright did not talk to her or her parents to find out whether she felt safe with Mr. Ramirez. Asked the ECRA Board to come talk to her beyond these two minutes to learn the truth before the Board votes on Mr. Ramirez's job. 

3. Parent Allie Tibor - Spoke in support of ECR Teacher Billy Ramirez; noted she had sent an email the previous Friday and had not received any reply or an acknowledgement; stated that Mr. Wright claimed that her daughter was being "groomed;" stated it took nine (9) months for her and her husband to learn about a photograph and of this allegation; stated the allegation was unfounded and that her child was/is okay; asked what would have happened it that weren't the case and whatever happened to "if you see something, say something," and not just to a third party investigator; noted that she believes that the picture that was taken and used was done so to fulfill another agenda; stated that she has seen the picture and that there was nothing in it that was concerning to her in that is was innocent interaction in full view of other students/staff; stated she is perplexed as to why that picture was the basis for an investigation; stated that the investigation was a waste of money that could have been otherwise used for the betterment of El Camino; stated that under the Board's and Mr. Wright's leadership El Camino has "gone downhill quickly;" claimed weekly fights, plummeting academics, athletics department being slowly "being dismantled," and that there is no athletics field for play or practices; stated El Camino is "no longer the school to attend in the Valley" and that parents are making the decision to take their kids out of their home school and go elsewhere.

4. Parent David Tibor - Spoke in support of ECR Teacher Billy Ramirez; identified himself as Mr. Ramirez's attorney on behalf of Mr. Ramirez's claims against the School/Board/Mr. Wright, and potentially others as information becomes available; noted that a previous speaker (Tunson) had referred to the Board as "Champions," but stated that is not what he's seen; Mr. Tibor shared an anecdote wherein Mr. Ramirez had intervened on behalf of ECR student-athletes of color who played on the Soccer Team and who had been called racial epithets; referred to Mr. Ramirez as a champion; stated that while Mr. Ramirez got in trouble for tweeting about the incident then that had been perpetrated by students from Birmingham CHS, he was at least putting students first; noted that the Board should look into allegations of misconduct ahead of possible termination; noted that Mr. Ramirez had posted something that was admittedly inappropriate (in response to being placed on paid administrative leave); stated that the post didn't go viral as had been alleged, he said.

5. Parent Cheryl Dorries - Expressed concern about allegations in the recently received anonymous letter and requested that the ECR Board conduct its own investigation into the allegations, especially that allegation regarding administration and/or others "feeling helpless."

6. Teacher Karen Evens - Noted that she made a late career move to ECR to experience an independent charter school; noted she has heard rumors and allegations about former board members and employees; noted that we have a lot of work to do to address our school and school culture that must be repaired and that we cannot control the past; noted that ECR is wasting precious time, energy, and resources that need to be directed toward the restoration of academic excellence at El Camino; noted that the Board and Administration must work toward this together; noted that she tells her students that there are only two things in life that you cannot get back, one is time and the other is people, and that we are "wasting one and hurting the other." 

7. Prospective Parent Duncan MacIntosh - Shared his desire to evaluate and observe how this community thought about coming together, how to be considerate and discreet in how to deal with challenges; feels honored to be a part of the community and its "august" high school; hopes that the school community discovers a pathway for everybody to resolve their challenges together, quietly, discreetly, and respectfully; noted that he's trying to implement a valet program over at Hale CMS, noted that he's observed Mr. Wright putting out traffic cones on Valley Circle Blvd.; noted that he looks forward to being a part of the ECR community. 

8. CTE Teacher Robyn Lyon - Shared a successful classroom accomplishment that had occurred earlier in the week at which Mr. Wright and a track and field coach had attended; described a Digital Marketing collaborative project wherein students observed and produced player profiles/websites for various sports teams at ECRCHS; explained the details of the projects and noted that one of her students who had returned to Italy would be joining the class virtually tomorrow to take her final exam and share her project/website based on her work with the water polo team, a testament to global collaboration via technology during the pandemic that also builds student "connectedness." 

Mr. Hussey provided his Executive Director Update, with highlights as follow:

1. Charter-Operated Programs  came by the school today and praised the work being done to support our students with identified special needs; noted that our program will serve as a model for other schools; thanked Mrs. Larew and all of those in the Special Education Department; 

2. Thanked Ms. Hutson and her drama students for their hard work with regard to their "Puffs" play production; noted that they only had five (5) weeks to prepare.

3. WASC visit is Feb. 5th - 8th; they will visit and look at our WASC report and reporting on that.

4. We're in a lawsuit with JUUL regarding vaping marketing; we're part of a class action suit to help combat vaping which is a big problem;  more information to come upon receipt of it;

5. Thanked all stakeholders for a wonderful Fall Semester; acknowledged that we have some things to work on and that the school is moving in a positive direction; wished everyone a healthy and happy holiday season.

Mr. Wood provided his Chief Business Officer Update, with highlights as follow:

1. Financial progress of Cafeteria information is as submitted as part of the board materials and an update will be provided later in the agenda; Cafeteria Manager from Chartwells will provide a presentation later on the agenda, too regarding new initiatives;

2.  Monthly update on enrollment and ADA; we updated this agenda item as we had used the wrong year for last year; we currently have 3467 students; current ADA 3204 for the month; for 3264 on a YTD basis.

3.  Finally, another agenda item, the 1st Interim; executive level of revenue and expenses; looking forward to a surplus of $1.5M to $1.6M this year; 

4.  Due date of Independent audit report; in summary we received a clean opinion on what we are going to report;

5. Our COVID testing agency has overbilled us for $1.2M and we are in process of disputing their bills through LACOE.

Mr. Wright invited Board Committee updates, with a summary of the updates as follows:

1. Ms. Malconian noted that there was no Finance and Investment Committee Meeting during December as there was too little time for the Business Office to prepare reports in the short month; the next meeting is in January.

2. Ms. Malconian noted that there was an Ad Hoc Capitalization Projects committee; saw some beautiful slides for school projects; noted we have money for capitalization projects; we have to work with LAUSD's timelines and we are trying to expedite projects; noted that Football field is a work in process and we are working at the speed of LAUSD; Mr. Wright is in regular contact with Board member Schmerlson and LAUSD on this work.

Mr. Wright noted that the ECRA Board and administration/stakeholders can do different things, painting, etc., and stated that he hopes to have the Football Field completed prior to graduation; provided a possible completion date for some time in May.

Mr. Wright invited Board Members to comment on any matters of desire or concern, with highlights as follows:

Ms. Malconian addressed the matter of the anonymous letter sent; noted that it sickens her that two anonymous letters have been sent and levied brutal, libelous, and cowardly attacks and allegations toward our hardworking administrative directors and executive director; challenged "anonymous" to reveal him/her/themselves and work in collaborative fashion with our hardworking administration for positive change at the school; noted she is a voluntary boardmember with her name here on her name plate; requested that those in attendance pass the message along to anonymous to show your face and do the same because everyone here is working really hard.

Mr. Solkovits added that as an educator for over 30+ years and a father, nothing is more important than the wellbeing of every student on this campus and the quality of education and the experiences they get; stated that he is not here on a power trip and he is here to serve the school community; availed himself via Facebook/Facebook messenger, other; defended the Board's purpose and intentions and noted that his focus is on protecting students and educating them.

Ms. Ibach read an excerpt that highlights support for teachers during this time; "teachers are not perfect, teachers are not machines, teachers make mistakes, teachers need grace..." noted that she believes that maybe the administration and Board need to "step up" and show more support for our teachers; stated that too often we are caught up in investigations, more than one sometimes, when a polite conversation would resolve matters; stated that the Board is here to give guidance and that the most important people in our educational institutions are our teachers because they are the ones teaching our kids and our kids are the ones who deserve that education; we're here to support and we need to hear the teachers, consider their needs, and make it a little easier for them to do their jobs.

Mr. Wright added he believes our teachers are underpaid and sometimes maybe underappreciated; teachers are on the frontlines and they have to deal with multiple personalities and well as their own issues privately; stated that when teachers come to us we have to have thicker skin to understand them; if we can't pay them more money, then we can at least afford to pay them more attention.

Mr. Wood, CBO, provided the November, 2022, Investment Update, with highlights as follows:

Two accounts; one is the OPEB Retirement Trust Investment Account and the other is the General Investment Account for General School Use:

OPEB:

* Started the year with $40.45M in OPEB;

* Through NOV, made $1.1M in contributions; 

* We're sustaining some of the downturns of the market, at least through November; 

* Gains of $747K a 3.7% change

* $22.3M at end of NOV, a 9% change.

Gen. Acct.:

*$6.79M at end of NOV

Total Investments:

$29.1M as of end of NOV.

Mr. Kofahl asked Mr. Wood for the beginning balance in the OPEB account and Mr. Wood responded that the balance was $20,459,000 in the OPEB account at the beginning of the school year; Mr. Wood pointed out the columns and contributions progressing toward the $22.3M balanced as of the end of the NOV, based on the materials attached.

Mr. Wood, CBO, introduced and recognized Food Services Management Company (FSMC) Chartwells' Site Director, Alex, and Chartwells' District Manager, Mr. Raphael Negroe, who presented Chartwells' Food Service Initatives via slide presentation, with highlights as follows:

*  Proud to partner with ECRCHS/Dept. of Nutrition

* Provided an overview of who Chartwells is and what regional support is provided:

* Introduced various Chartwells Regional/National/State/District personnel and positions of support

* Discussed partnership highlights specific to ECRCHS nutrition initiatives/strategies:

* Based on monthly meetings and RFP and rebate processes; scratch cooking is emphasized at ECRCHS

* Nutrition education and marketing; in the Spring, will be partnering with personnel via Sports nutrition; also Discovery Kitchen, and Student Choices, which is a series of choices available via student survey and students may select their favorite recipe/menu choice(s) which will then become available on the menu for that month; 

* Discussed results:

Quarterly Business Review; we went back to July 2022 during which time the number of meals served was low as there was only a small Summer School program;  

August through November were extremely high busy months; Since July 1st, the following numbers of meals have been served through yesterday or the day prior:

* 75,757 Breakfast meals

* 103,729 Lunch meals 

* 8,750 a la carte meals

The meals trend is going in an upward motion, Mr. Negroe noted; he noted that December's decline in meals served is obviously due to December being a shorter month.

The projected number of meals to be served for the entire 2022-2023 academic year is:  

* 125K Breakfasts

* 175K Lunches

* Noted that Chartwells/ECRCHS is on target to meet these targets; noted the kitchen has been able to accomplish current results due to Mr. Wood's support, including securing grants and investments in kitchen equipment, including brand new ovens, brand new skillets, brand new grills, a brand new steamer, and a lot of smaller equipment; these have helped the school's kitchen increase its production; Mr. Negroe also praised the front line kitchen staff's efforts, and expressed appreciation for all staff;  also noted an increase in marketing materials provided by the regional staff; 

noted that there is a lot of opportunity to serve more students and staff; reviewed year over year meals counts from 21-22 and 22-23; noted we have served many more reimbursable meals during the current year to date than we had served last year; it is a 57% increase in meals served year over year; noted the tremendous partnership between Mr. Wood, ECRCHS, and the Chartwells Food Services Management Company; noted that ECRCHS is one of a couple schools in CA who use the badge scan meal pass/pay system, which has expedited food service; added an a la carte cart during meal time and a cart from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. to catch those students who wish to obtain a meal on a "grab and go" basis.

* Discussed what is next: 

* Excited to be in the process of reviewing a proposal by Elite Studio Marketing (part of their marketing department) for the purpose of renovating the kitchen, student cafeteria and staff lounge eating areas; proposed a way of remodeling; once we have the approval, they will begin the design; 

* Intends to add another cart for lunch and hiring extra labor hours due to anticipated increase in meals served; Mr. Negroe noted that we are currently serving only approximately 40% of our student body; it's a great number, but we believe that we can do more;  still that 40% is still considered an "average" result in the State of California. 

* Previewed Discovery Kitchen; introduces students to cooking and recipes per month, based on the seasonality of various fruits and vegetables; will provide education and nutrition information for the students; recipes; noted it's a great way to engage students and inspire them to "taste something different;" the entire year is delineated by the marketing department (showed visual from the slide deck in the materials); 

* Remodel examples/visuals/templates of inviting environments for the kitchen and cafeteria; we're going to provide a customized remodel; 

Mr. Wood reiterated the positive highlights and actions that are in process that have contributed to the 57% increase in meals served and noted Chartwells' and others' efforts; noted that the surplus revenue generated from the cafeteria must stay in the cafeteria and our goal is to expedite improvements with use of funds and if/when projects require LAUSD involvement we will work with them to try to expedite completion.

Ms. Malconian asked about capacity, specifically, whether or not we have the capacity to serve more students, to which Mr. Negroe clarified that the cafeteria is able to serve more students than it is currently serving.  

We can potentially serve more meals with new equipment and arrangement.

Mr. Kofahl asked what the other 60% of students are doing/eating, to which Mr. Negroe noted that students bring lunch, order out, eat off campus, etc.  

Mr. Hussey clarified that ECRCHS does not permit Grub-Hub food deliveries for students, but many juniors and seniors go off campus to eat.

Mr. Wright thanked Mr. Negroe and again acknowledged Alex's efforts in serving students.

This item had not been requested by the employee.  Therefore, no Board Reading of the Statement of Charges Occurred during Open Session. 

Dr. Lowry provided an overview of the rules for going into Closed Session and returning to Open Session. 

Mr. Wright announced that the Board was entering Closed Session at 6:51 p.m.

This item was discussed and voted on, resulting in the termination of one certificated employee for cause.

This item was discussed.

This item was consolidated with item d and discussed.

This item was consolidated with item c and discussed.

Mr. Wright announced that the ECRA Board returned to Open Session at 7:44 p.m.

Mr. Wright reported that the ECRA Board had voted unanimously to dismiss the physical education teacher for cause.

NOTE: The Board noted that this item was not necessary, as it had been combined with and included in the preceding agenda item, VII. C., immediately above.