At a regularly scheduled meeting, the Gateway Unified School District board held a public hearing on a waiver request to change the district bell schedule so Mondays are shortened for professional learning communities and transportation coordination. The hearing was informational; the board was told staff will return later in the agenda with an action item to approve the waiver so the district can submit the application to the state waiver office. The waiver proposal would reduce instructional minutes on Monday and make up the time Tuesday through Friday; staff said the change would not alter teachers' contract hours. Board members were told the request already has approval from the site council and employee groups including CSEA and GTA, and that staff have discussed the plan with the waiver office and expect the item to appear on the state education board agenda in November. The board and staff emphasized that the waiver is procedural: if the board approves at the later action item and the district submits the application, the state office (the waiver office) will make the final determination. No final decision by the board on the waiver was recorded during the public-hearing portion; the transcript shows the hearing was held and the matter returned to the agenda later for possible action. Clarifying details provided to the board included that Monday minutes would be shortened, the minutes would be recouped Tuesday–Friday, teacher contract hours would remain the same, and site-level and employee-group approvals are already in place. The public-hearing record and staff's reported approvals are the steps required for submission to the state waiver office; the board may vote on the waiver in the same meeting under the separate action item listed later on the agenda.
