Superintendent's Friday Update
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Hello Alta Loma School District,
Happy Friday, and welcome to a three-day weekend for many of you. February never seems to have enough days... and with two long weekends coming up for our schools there is a lot of important work being done by students and staff at a fast pace!
In recognition of the short weeks ahead, we'll be sharing updates from our school sites a bit differently the next three Fridays. Today you'll see our west side elementary schools highlighted (Alta Loma, Carnelian, Jasper, and Stork.) Next Friday, you will find updates for the east side elementary schools (Banyan, Deer Canyon, Hermosa and Victoria Groves.) Then on February 25, you'll see our junior high schools represented.
Please see below for our Top Three Updates for the week:
- LCAP Advisory Committee Update
- ALSD Citizens' Bond Oversite Committee Update
- Current K-12 COVID-19 Requirements
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LCAP ADVISORY COMMITTEE UPDATE
from Associate Superintendent Chris Deegan
I would like to thank all of the members of our Local Control & Accountability Plan (LCAP) Advisory Committee who met together on February 9th. This broad and diverse team of educational partners is made up of approximately 35 individuals representing parents, guardians, teachers, staff and administrators.
The time that these members generously give to look at community input, identify needs or opportunities of growth, share ideas and feedback, and monitor our progress is always appreciated. This collective work is imperative in helping to ensure that we are meeting the needs of all of our students. There was particular interest in expanded learning opportunities and enrichment as we begin to look at plans for the spring, summer and the 2022-2023 school year. This collaboration and partnership always helps us to enhance the lives of all of our students in ALSD!
ALSD CITIZENS' BOND OVERSITE COMMITTEE
from Associate Superintendent Eric Hart
The Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) held a meeting on Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at Jasper Elementary School. The main purpose of the CBOC is to ensure that expenditures made from local bond proceeds meet the legal requirements as outlined in the ballot language presented to the public at the time of the bond election. In addition, the CBOC duties include reviewing the Annual Performance and Financial Audit Report prepared by an independent public accounting firm, inspect the school facilities where bond funds were used to ensure work performed, and provide an Annual Report detailing the committees’ work, which is presented to the Board of Trustees of the school district at a public Board meeting.
At the meeting on February 9, 2022 the CBOC was given a site tour of the recently modernized Jasper Elementary School. The tour included classrooms and the multipurpose room, to allow the CBOC to inspect the upgrades to the site done as part of the recently completed modernization project. The CBOC also received the most recent Annual Performance and Financial Audit Report and reviewed up to date expenditure information for all sites and projects using Measure H Bond funds, which is prepared by an independent financial advisor from KeyAnalytics. The next meeting of the CBOC will be held in May at Carnelian Elementary School, with the specifics about the actual date and time to be determined.
CURRENT K-12 COVID-19 REQUIREMENTS
This statement recognizes that “the state is continuing to work with education, public health, and community leaders to update masking requirements at schools to adapt to changing conditions and ensure the safety of kids, teachers, and staff.”
The California indoor masking requirement for public settings will expire after February 15. On that date, general masking guidance will revert to the previous guidance, which requires masking for unvaccinated individuals in all indoor public settings and requires masking for all individuals regardless of vaccination status in higher-risk settings like public transit and congregate living.
As of today, however, there have been no changes to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) requirements for K-12 school settings. Mandatory public health directives for schools continue to require students and staff to wear face coverings while indoors.
As guidance and directives evolve, we will continue to provide you with timely updates. We thank you for your continued support of the efforts of faculty and staff as they maintain focus on providing an excellent educational experience for all ALSD students.
A more detailed COVID-19 update continues to run at the bottom of this letter.
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Wishing you a nice weekend ahead!
My best to you,
Karen Hendricks
Superintendent
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Board of Trustees Meeting
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022 - This Board of Trustees Regular Meeting will begin at 5PM for Closed Session. Open Session will begin at 6PM. The Board of Trustees may return to Closed Session at the conclusion of the Open Session Meeting if it is necessary in order to complete those agenda items.
The meeting will be held at the District Support Center (DSC), located at 9390 Base Line Road, Alta Loma. In-person attendance requirements: All persons attending the meeting will be required to wear a face covering for the entire Board Meeting and review the health screening questions prior to entering the meeting location.
For your convenience, below is a list of some of the Regular Open Session Agenda Items
- Trustee Reports
- Staff Reports, including STEM Showcase, COVID Update, Trustee Appointment Process, Staffing Update
- General Functions (of the Board of Trustees)
- Trustees will take Action to elect candidates for the California School Boards Association (CSBA) Delegate Assembly, Subregion 16B
- Trustees will have a 1st Reading of amended Board Bylaws 9220 (Governing Board Elections) and 9320 (Meetings and Notices)
Other Important Dates
- Monday, February 14: President Lincoln's Birthday - School Holiday
- Wednesday, February 16: Special Board of Trustees Meeting, Time TBD
- Wednesday, February 16: Board of Trustees Meeting, 5:00 PM Closed Session, 6:00 PM Open Session
- Monday, February 21: Presidents' Day - School Holiday
- Friday, February 25: End of Trimester II
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Great Things Happening At Our Schools:
Spotlight on West Side Elementary Schools!
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From Principal Dolly Bentley:
Once a month, students in the GATE program participate in an after school GATE Activity Day. They have done several different projects this year such as: Stop Motion Animation, Engineering Catapults, and 3D Art with cardboard. A big thank you to our GATE Coordinators, Mrs. Flexen and Mrs. Carpenter, for dedicating their time to develop a program that is inspiring our young learners to stretch their minds and challenge themselves!
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From Interim Principal Sue Geddes:
Our lucky 2nd graders in Ms. Large’s classroom won a drawing to have a virtual session with a real author! Keila V. Dawson, author of The King Cake Baby, read her story and shared insights with our Cardinals. The story was a twist on The Gingerbread Man and touched on the culture and local color of New Orleans and its people. Our Cardinals asked many great questions at the end of the reading and had a new appreciation of what being an author is all about.
We are also preparing for the upcoming Festival of the Arts. Our display paper is ready and waiting to be filled with colorful Cardinal art samples.
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From Principal Curtis Quanstrom:
The Jasper Student Council has been working hard all year long to make this year special. Under the direction of Mrs. Bon and Mrs. Sifuentes, these students have done some amazing things.
This group of young leaders are responsible for Socktober, Operation Community Cares, Spirit Days, Candy Grams, and Kindness Week. They are always looking for opportunities to support a good cause and create fun memories for everyone on the campus. These Champions have a positive impact on everything they are involved in.
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From Principal Guadalupe Berzunza:
Stork Superstars have been “Super” busy this week. Several of our classrooms participated in World Read Aloud Day as well as in Game Day. The second-grade team: Ms. Thoits, Ms. Knickerbocker and Ms. Guith had their classes share some of their favorite books with their peers as well as with our TOSA Tamara and our wonderful Board member Mrs. Sandie Oerly. Mrs. Knickerbocker’s class had the unique opportunity to share their favorite books via Zoom with their pen pal class in another state (Ohio). Stork Superstars are fortunate to have the support of our Board of Trustees and our District personnel as they continue to achieve their academic goals.
Our Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Flores, worked with her class as they created games that allowed the students to learn, explore and practice many of the skills they have been working on all year long. Our kinder students are fortunate to have amazing teachers who work daily to ensure that their Superstars are learning to count, read and write in a manner which is fun and enjoyable.
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Ongoing Updates from Your COVID-19 Safety and Information Team:
Over the past two years, we have learned that many families become aware of new legislation, orders, guidelines, and recommendations when school districts are asked to implement them. At that point, it is too late to be heard during the decision-making process.
We believe that every voice should be heard when decisions have major impacts on your kids. This is not a request for advocacy, but is our attempt to inform everyone that decisions will be made beyond our local level that will have implications for our students. Some examples include:
· Future indoor masking mandates will be determined by CDPH and SCCPHD.
· SB866 (Weiner) would allow students 12+ to receive COVID vaccines without parental permission.
· SB277 (Pan) would mandate vaccines for all K-12 students by January 2023, while eliminating religious and personal belief exemptions (Bill found here).
Again, policies related to COVID-19 have been and will be set at the state level, not at the county or local level. For anyone wishing to express their opinions regarding masking, potential vaccination / booster mandates, availability of antigen take-home tests, or other COVID related topics, we suggest contacting agencies and elected officials directly at:
San Bernardino County Department of Public Health:
California Department of Public Health:
The ALSD Board of Trustees has taken actions in respect to both mask mandates and vaccine mandates. Those Resolutions can be found at:
Resolution 7-21-21 DISTRICT STATEMENT TO CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERNING MASK MANDATES:
Resolution 11-03-21 DISTRICT STATEMENT REGARDING COVID-19 VACCINE MANDATES:
Like other school districts in San Bernardino County, ALSD has adhered to the guidance and legal mandates of health agencies since March 2020. It is important that voices are heard on all sides of future COVID variant management decisions. While our local Board of Trustees is always appreciative of hearing from our families, the major decisions ahead will be made by the people and agencies listed above. Our staff interacts with these agencies, and it is important they also hear directly from our families.
We continue to receive questions about the future of indoor masking as well as potential vaccination mandates. As of now, indoor masking is still required by the CDPH and our local SBCDPH.
As a reminder: on January 12, 2022 the Governor's Office shared updated COVID-19 Public Health Guidance for K-12 Schools that includes updated recommendations for the management of students exposed to COVID-19 in a K-12 setting. The Alta Loma School District continues to follow California Department of Public Health (CDPH) K-12 guidance. This guidance allows for us to follow the Group Tracing Approach. When a positive individual is identified in the classroom families will receive a Classroom Notification letter and should follow the guidance outlined in the letter.
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