Students accuse El Camino administration of abrupt water‑polo shutdown, ask board to recover donated equipment

Students from El Camino Real Charter High School told the board during public comment on Jan. 23 that the school abruptly ended the aquatics program and removed equipment purchased with donations raised by families.

Cash Ellingwood, a junior and three‑year member of the water‑polo team, told the board the program’s donation account “has about 12,400,000 in it” and that equipment bought with those funds was taken back when the program was shut down. “I believe that we deserve the equipment that we donated the money for,” Ellingwood said.

Alexander Sollet, another student, urged the board to revisit a recent coaching hire and raised complaints that the hired coach had only attended team games and that “the rumor of him allegedly taking photos … makes everybody on the team uncomfortable.” Several other students described the hiring and communication process as insufficient and said they were told by e‑mail rather than in person that their season had been canceled.

“All year round we have access to new facilities,” Allison Wong told the board, saying students had organized community events, gathered nearly 1,000 signatures and raised “over $12,000” toward keeping a year‑round pool available. Olive Sanders, who said she has participated in water polo and swimming since freshman year, said the program’s cancellation and the way it was handled showed “a lack of respect for student athletes.”

In response, the board said it would look into the matter. Board Chair Mister Wright thanked the students for their comments and said he wanted staff to investigate the trust balances and how donated funds are being held and disbursed. Wright said he would “look into that, the money” and asked that staff follow up; he also said he would “appoint somebody to do that.” Board members asked the administration to report back.

Why it matters: Students and families said they raised money expressly for aquatics activities and feel the funds and equipment should remain available to support those students. The board’s stated follow‑up — an internal investigation of the relevant trust accounts — is the most direct next step recorded in the meeting.

Details and context: Board members and staff explained how student‑raised funds are held in school trust accounts and may only be spent after administrative approval. Chief business staff described the trust process in response to board questions: money donated for a specific program “sits … in a trust account” and can be spent only when a program requests use and an administrator approves it. The board discussed options including returning donations or reallocating funds to other student activities if the program is formally discontinued, but no final decision was made.

Next steps: The board directed staff to investigate the aquatics trust balances and report back; no formal motion or vote was recorded on any transfer of funds, refunds to donors or reinstatement of the program during the meeting.