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

No public comments were received for this meeting.

Mr. Wood presented the CBO Report.

• Federal Special Education Funding (IDEA):
  • Mr. Wood attended a meeting with charter-operated programs under the LD/SD oversight.
  • No expected changes in federal IDEA funding for Special Education programs.
  • Current guidance suggests the program will not be fully funded next year.
  • LASD will follow their lead in budget planning.
• Departmental Budget Process for FY 2025–26:
  • Majority of departmental budgets have been submitted.
  • Budgets are under review, with follow-up expected for clarification or corrections (e.g., misallocated items).
• CalPERS Rate Update:
  • State CalPERS board has approved new employer contribution rates for the next two years.
  • Employer rate is projected to decrease by approximately 0.6%, from nearly 27% to 26.4%.
  • This provides slight relief in multi-year budgeting.

ASB Treasurer Report – Submitted by Angelina Cruz (Read by Mr. Wood)

• Powder Puff Event:
  • One of the largest traditional student events.
  • Gender-role reversed football game with cheerleaders and players selected through applications and interviews.
  • Weekly practices held leading up to the event.
  • Over 630 tickets sold in advance.
  • Spirit Week and ASB-purchased gear enhanced school spirit.
  • Event was a major success.
• Staff Relations Initiatives:
  • ASB members served beverages (coffee, juice, sweet tea) to teachers from a mobile cart.
  • Some teachers received personalized mugs.
  • These efforts fostered stronger student-teacher connections.
• "Pay to Pie" Fundraiser:
  • Highly successful with strong student participation.
  • Event sold out of pies and was well-received by both students and staff.
  • Created a fun, informal environment that encouraged community bonding.
• Additional Notes:
  • ASB continues to be active and is contributing to updates on ASB trust policies.
  • Further comments on ASB trust balances to be addressed in a separate agenda item.
     

Mr. Gregory Wood presented as follows: 

OPEB Trust Account Performance:

• End-of-February 2025 Balance: $32.3 million
• End-of-March 2025 Balance: $31.4 million
• March decline of approximately 3% in value.
• Year began with a balance of $30.8 million.
• Payments to retirees through March totaled $475,000.
• Despite March losses, the account still showed a year-to-date gain of $1 million, or +1.9%.

Recent Decline (Post-March):

• As of the morning of the meeting, the OPEB account had further declined to $30.7 million.
• This drops it slightly below the starting balance for the year.
• Recent market volatility (e.g., tariffs and global events) cited as contributing factors.

Clarifications:

• The drop in investment value is not related to labor actions (e.g., strikes) or increased hiring (e.g., substitute teachers).
• No additional retirements have impacted the fund.
• The OPEB account is a restricted legal trust for retiree benefits and cannot be accessed for general operating expenses.

General Investment Account:

• Separate from the OPEB trust.
• Currently holds $7.1 million.
• These funds can be accessed by the school for operational needs if necessary.

Mr. Wood presented the Financial Update for March 2025.

1. ASB Trust Balances & Club Accounts

• ASB Treasurer Update:
  • Angelina Cruz will continue as ASB Treasurer next school year, ensuring leadership continuity.
• Account Overview:
  • Total trust balances across clubs and school activities: $590,607.
  • Some clubs show small negative balances, with some deficits existing for over a year.
  • Leadership has been asked to:
    • Review all accounts—positive and negative.
    • Investigate whether inactive clubs should be reactivated or formally closed.
    • Ensure no clubs are operating with negative balances.
• Examples Mentioned:
  • Cultural Club: -$7 (suggested that $1/member could resolve it).
  • Falling Whistles: -$376.
  • Humanitas: Questioned for activeness.
  • True Crime Club: Active with $11.81.
  • Proper Paper Bag Club: Active with $14.07.

2. Cafeteria Program & Wellness Policy

• State Audit:
  • The cafeteria program is undergoing a state audit (occurs every ~4 years).
  • Areas reviewed include ingredients, signage, compliance with meal standards, and adherence to the school wellness policy.
• Wellness Policy Issues:
  • The Wellness Policy is outdated and inactive since pre-COVID.
  • State recommends reinstating regular stakeholder meetings (students, parents, staff) and updating the policy.
  • Goal: Improve public communication and stakeholder engagement on student wellness.
• Compliance Findings:
  • Two violations recorded during student meal observations (failure to take required fruit).
  • Financial penalties will result from meal non-compliance.
  • Workers face challenges enforcing meal standards due to volume and student behavior.
• Share Box Use:
  • Encouraged as a way to handle uneaten but required food items (like fruit).
  • Actively used by students; helps reduce waste and improve compliance.

3. Cafeteria Operations & Participation

• Participation Rates:
  • Participation down by 3.15%, which is better than the 8% decline in enrollment, indicating improved performance relative to population.
• Monthly Revenue:
  • Example: March revenue was $174,000.
  • Monthly revenues consistently range from $140,000–$174,000.
• Fund Balance:
  • The cafeteria program has added over $200,000 to its fund balance year-to-date.
• Planned Investments:
  • Full replacement of Point-of-Sale (POS) systems due to aging hardware.
  • Upcoming structural improvements to cafeteria facilities (summer 2025).
  • Continued investment in infrastructure and technology to support food service operations.
• Operational Efficiency:
  • Commended for moving over 3,000 students through meal service in 20 minutes during peak times.
  • Recognized as a model of efficiency and scale.

Mr. Wood gave a detailed discussion for the March 2025 Check Registers. 

General Account Disbursements:

• No paper checks were written; all disbursements were electronic payments.
• Total of $445,000 issued from the general account in March 2025.
• Regular vendors included:
  • CharterSAFE (insurance payments).
  • Schools of California (self-insured health care premiums).

ASB & Trust Account Transactions:

• Total of $30,891 in expenditures from ASB leadership and trust accounts.
• Typical student-related transactions included:
  • Girls basketball and track & field expenditures.
  • ROTC charter trip costing approximately $7,500.
  • Student store purchases and activity supplies.

Special Events & Celebrations:

• Testing celebration purchases included balloons and decorations for students and staff.

Prop 28 & CTE-Funded Purchases:

• Notable expenditures on Career Technical Education (CTE) and VAPA (Visual and Performing Arts):
  • $69,000 industrial router purchased for woodshop through Prop 28 funds.
  • CTE department retreat costs.
  • Culinary program expenses related to a qualifying event in Riverside.

Transparency Notes:

• Detailed breakdowns provided for all entries: vendor, purpose, and funding source.
• Encouraged oversight and accountability for all student and departmental accounts.

Presented by Mr. Gregory Wood

• Credit to Staff:
  • Mr. Wood opened by commending staff for their detailed preparation and reporting of credit card transactions.
• Credit Card Statement Structure:
  • Full detail of monthly credit card activity was presented.
  • Each entry included:
    • Purchase Order (PO) numbers from either the school’s ERP system or NextWeek system.
    • Vendor and purpose of the charge.
    • Cardholder: either Mr. Hussey or Mr. Wood.
    • Requester of the transaction.
    • Charge amount.
    • Funding source: identified as restricted (e.g., grants/trusts) or unrestricted (operational).
• Cardholder Summaries:
  • Mr. Hussey’s card:
    • Total charges: $73,615.45.
    • Included both restricted (e.g., grant/trust) and unrestricted expenditures.
  • Mr. Wood’s card:
    • Total charges: $18,016.80.
    • Followed the same reporting structure.
  • Total for March 2025: $91,630.25 in credit card expenditures.
• Refunds and Adjustments:
  • Some entries reflected temporary deposits or holds later released by the credit card company.
• ROTC Travel Charges:
  • $13,854.05 and $12,809.90 in Southwest Airlines charges noted for ROTC travel.
    • Discrepancy in round-trip totals due to trip cancellation and pending airfare refunds.
  • $12,490.00 for ROTC trip to Florida (larger group).
  • Additional $12,490.00 charge related to ROTC Hawaii trip (smaller group).
• Supporting Documentation:
  • All credit card charges were backed by detailed statements included in the meeting materials.

Mr. Wood presented the 2023-2024 IRS Form 990 (Non-Profit Tax Return.

Background & Purpose:

• The Form 990 is the tax return required for nonprofit organizations.
• This form is based on the annual audit report presented to the Board in December.
• The final filing deadline to the IRS is May 15, with extension applied.
• Purpose of presentation: to allow Board review and comment, as required by IRS regulations.

IRS Compliance Requirement:

• Page 6, Line 11a of the form specifically asks whether the entire governing board has received a copy prior to filing — the reason for this preliminary committee review.

Form Content Highlights:

• Compensation Summary:
  • Lists all highly compensated employees (includes salary and benefits).
  • Noted that Mr. Hussey appears under "Other Reportable Compensation."
  • Mr. Dean Bennett received an additional $6,000 stipend for overseeing a separately financed independent study program, not managed by other directors.
• Board of Directors:
  • All current Board members are listed on the return.
• Top Five Independent Contractors:
  • Lists the five highest-paid vendors/consultants.
  • A correction is pending: one vendor not listed currently should be included, requiring a minor revisionbefore board submission.
  • Once updated, one of the current four listed vendors will drop off.

Filing Timeline & Notes:

• No major changes expected beyond correcting the top vendor listing.
• Any additional minor edits (e.g., typos) may be made prior to final filing.
• Members were asked to direct detailed questions to the full Board meeting, if needed.

Mr. Guinto presented the discussion of the Purchase of the 2025-2026 Incoming Freshmen Devices. 

1. Background & Procurement Strategy

• In early March, an RFP (Request for Proposal) was issued jointly with Birmingham Charter High School.
• Goal: Leverage bulk purchasing power to obtain better pricing for devices.
• Collaboration allows total volume to increase, which improves vendor offers, though each school selects and manages its own purchase.

2. Proposals Received

• Four bids were submitted from four different vendors.
• Evaluation was based on:
  • Cost-effectiveness (including case pricing).
  • Device model generation.
  • Technical specifications.
• Two device generations were considered:
  • Gen 4 (existing standard)
  • Gen 5 (newer model with improved processor and specs).
• Gen 5 was recommended due to better performance at a minimal additional cost (~$4,000 overall difference).

3. Quantity & Cost Estimates

• Total devices requested: 700 units
  • Based on projected enrollment of ~650 freshmen, with a buffer for increased enrollment.
• Estimated total cost: $365,000
  • Funding source: Not from General Fund
    • Will use Learning Recovery (CARES) funds, with ~$2 million available in that fund.

4. Vendor Coordination & Pricing Issues

• After RFP closed, Lenovo (manufacturer) initially indicated pricing may no longer be honored due to new tariffs.
• Mr. Guinto worked directly with Lenovo and the selected vendor.
  • As of the Thursday prior to the meeting, Lenovo confirmed:
    • Pricing will be honored for 90 days (tariff relief window).
    • Once Purchase Order (PO) is received, pricing is locked and guaranteed.
    • If changes occur after PO issuance, the vendor/manufacturer absorbs cost increases.

5. Recommendation Process

• Mr. Guinto recommends approval to move the item to the Full Board.
• Committee approval does not authorize the purchase—only positions the recommendation for final Board vote.
• No current backup plan in place with alternative manufacturers due to market similarities and pricing structures.