CUSD updates trustees on College & Career indicators, counseling team outreach

Associate Superintendent Greg Merwin and staff briefed trustees on the California School Dashboard's College and Career Indicator (CCI) and on the district's 'Futurology' college and career counseling services.

Assistant Superintendent Jen Smalley summarized how students meet college readiness through multiple pathways — state testing, A‑G coursework, AP participation, dual enrollment and the state seal of biliteracy — and explained how career readiness can be met through CTE pathways, leadership and structured work‑based learning. She noted CUSD is in the third year of a JROTC program at San Clemente High School and expects associated career‑indicator numbers to rise.

Coordinator Erica Gardner described counseling operations: monthly webinars, classroom lessons starting in sixth grade, and one‑on‑one appointments. Gardner cited the program's 2024 impact report figures: roughly 2,501 one‑on‑one appointments in the prior year, over 23,000 parents and students served through events, and more than 14,000 college applications launched through CaliforniaColleges.edu across an eight‑year span.

Smaller governance questions focused on how the district benchmarks its CCI results against county and state levels; trustees requested comparative charts and last‑year snapshots to provide more frame of reference. Staff said they can provide county and state comparisons and pull recent year‑by‑year views.

The presentation also noted that all six comprehensive high schools earned AP Honor Roll recognition between 2023 and 2025, with the district earning its first gold level recognition in 2025.

Next steps: staff will provide comparative Dashboard views and trend charts by year on request and will continue Futurology outreach and reporting.