At the April 20 meeting of the Windsor Unified School District Board of Trustees, the board heard updates on construction project in the districts, the results of this year’s LCAP survey and a variety of administrative housekeeping items.
Construction updates
District construction manager Eric Van Pelt presented two items to the district, an update on the Cali Calmecac portable replacement project, a two-story, 14-classroom building made to replace portables classrooms on campus. AC Martin’s was chosen for design and construction administration for the project was approved at the Jan. 19, 2021 board meeting. The project team, which consists of district and site administration, have met to review the programming which includes the general layout of the new building as well as the temporary housing location.
Van Pelt reported that once construction starts, it will take around a year to finish the build.
Another project covered during Van Pelt’s report included the new classrooms at Mattie Washburn, which will be delivered for installation mid-June. The new security camera system for the elementary schools is installed and training will begin this month.
The district had also planned to install a new intercom system, but the initial bids were all higher than the budget, so that will be returning to committee for further evaluation. Also up for committee discussion will be colors for the upcoming district-wide painting project and roofing for 2021.
The districtwide landscaping project is completed, and the covered walkway roof replacement at Windsor Middle School is about 90% complete.
LCAP Survey
Director of Educational Services Lisa Saxon presented the results of the annual survey. It was disseminated between Dec. 1 and Jan. 5, and parents, staff and students from fifth to 12th grade all asked the same series of questions. Communication about the survey was sent out in English and Spanish via test, email and Facebook.
Participation among parents was up by 12% over a previous year, but staff participation dropped by about 15%. Student participation remained relatively flat, only dropping by 1% over the previous year.
The majority of parents prefer to be contacted via electronic means (text and email) though Spanish-speaking parents still have a preference for communication via telephone. Survey participation still showed a disparity between Hispanic/Latino households and white households.
The survey found that there is a 19% gap between staff and students agreeing or strongly agreeing that school motivates students to learn, and12% fewer parents than 2019-20 agree that the school is providing a safe and positive learning environment.
Math continues to be the number one area identified where students need more help. Students, parents and staff identify academic intervention and tutoring as the best ways to provide support. However, while 95% of staff agree that the teachers and other adults work hard to help students with schoolwork when they need it, only 75% of students agreed.
One in three parents surveyed indicated they didn’t know or declined to answer about whether or not the school is preparing students to be college and career ready.
One in five parents surveyed doesn’t know if schools assist students who are struggling academically, but 6% more students (than 2019-20) agree that teachers and other adults work hard to help students with schoolwork when they need it.
Parents and students either disagree that the schools assist students who are struggling socially/emotionally or don’t know if the schools do.
While 6% more students than 2019-20 agree or strongly agree that the schools have adults who really care, Saxon wondered if this was because this year adults were defined as teachers, coaches, admin, support staff or counselors. There continues to be a disparity between what staff (100%) and students (84%) perceive as caring adult behavior.
When it comes to trusted adults14% of students disagreed or strongly disagreed that there is at least one trusted adult at school whom they will seek out if they have a problem. Twenty-one percent of parents indicated they were unsure or declined to answer. There is a 16 percentage point discrepancy between staff and students agreeing/strongly agreeing about this statement.
Other items:
Other items approved by the board included:
- Broadband costs savings for the district thanks to master contract under SPURR (School Project for Utility Rate Reduction) to bypass the bidding process and get a highly competitive rate from a reputable vendor,  AMS.net … the total cost of the project is $869,033 and the total district cost will be $173,807. This proposal will provide upgrades to the switching system which is the backbone of the district’s technology infrastructure. It will provide higher performance and greater reliability in support of our one-to-one student devices. Another important note is that this project represents Windsor’s allocation of E-Rate funding for the next five years.
- An annual agreement with the California Department of Rehabilitation, which provides employment services for special education students. According to the agenda, “the grant from the Department of Rehabilitation will continue providing wages for students as well as a coordinator for the program for the next three years. The students served by this program are in addition to those already served by the District’s Special Education Workability program also funded by state money. The program will fund up to $210,000 spread over the next three years.
- Â A resolution allowing the district to notice each employee identified for layoffs at a previous meeting.
- Initial openers and a contract negotiation with the California School Employees Association, and a public hearing, which had no comments.
