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Board approves Leadership Associates search contract, governance handbook and personnel actions
Summary
Trustees approved hiring Leadership Associates to run the assistant superintendent search (6–1), adopted a board governance handbook and approved a revised assistant superintendent job description; trustees debated funding the search with a $1.2M one‑time state block grant that expires in three years.
The Atascadero Unified School District Board of Trustees voted to hire Leadership Associates to conduct a search for an assistant superintendent of educational services and adopted a board governance handbook and a revised job description.
Trustees discussed whether the search expense should come from district funds during a period of structural deficit. A district staff presenter described the funding source as a state discretionary block grant — the Student Support and Professional Development Discretionary Block Grant — and said Atascadero was awarded $1,200,000 in one‑time funds that expire after three years. "It is a discretionary block grant... Atascadero, it was awarded $1,200,000. It is one time money that will expire in 3 years," the staff presenter said.
Board members raised concerns that ongoing salaries are not well suited to be funded by one‑time grants. "The challenge with using onetime funds for salaries is that salaries continue and onetime funds expire," the staff presenter told trustees during the discussion.
After the discussion, the motion to approve the Leadership Associates agreement passed in a roll call vote with a single No (Trustee Cooney). Trustees then unanimously adopted the board governance handbook — a document the board developed starting at its July retreat to clarify roles, responsibilities and practices — and voted to approve an updated job description for the assistant superintendent of educational services; staff confirmed the salary schedule for that position remains unchanged.
Trustees also handled routine business including approval of minutes and a consent agenda, with one consent item (item E) pulled for discussion and later approved following the funding debate. The board approved an annual resolution to release temporary certificated employees by the statutory March 15 deadline later in the meeting.
Human Resources and the board office will carry out the search timeline and publish the adopted governance handbook on the board materials page. The board's next regular meeting is Feb. 17.
