Garden Grove USD trustees approve food-service price adjustments, contracts and $80.9 million in purchase orders; eliminate temporary CTE position

Garden Grove Unified School District trustees approved a set of business and personnel measures at the board meeting, including supplier price updates and a large batch of purchase orders.

The board approved staff recommendations on items 6A–6H, which included an average 6.6% price increase on eight food-service items, ratification of informal bid awards (Nos. 25,172–25,178) under the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act to vendors including Ben's Asphalt LLC and Wolverine Fence Company, a one‑year extension with School Help Corporation for automated external defibrillators and related maintenance, authorization of a district list of foods that student organizations may sell under California Code of Regulations Title 5, and approval of purchase orders and checks totaling $80,888,944.47.

Board discussion included trustee questions about the fiscal impact of food-price increases and how recently updated federal dietary guidance would affect menus. District staff told trustees that food costs have risen roughly 8%–10% since last school year, that monthly average increases near 6% have been built into the food-services budget, and that the district is awaiting final guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the California Department of Education before making detailed menu changes; staff noted one imminent change would be the availability of whole milk at approved carton sizes and pointed to forthcoming guidance on artificial food coloring.

On personnel (item 7), the board reported a closed session with no action taken and then approved items 7A–7D. Staff described Resolution No. 15: a recommendation to eliminate a temporary classified work-based learning specialist position that had been funded by a regional K–16 collaborative grant; the grant has expired and Education Code requires written notice and the elimination of specially funded positions when funding ends. The resolution lists the position elimination as effective March 31. Trustees also approved a salary-table update to raise the hourly rate for high-school student worker and student worker‑trainee job classifications to $16.90 per hour, effective Jan. 1, to comply with California’s minimum wage change.

Procedural motions and votes on multiple consent and business items were recorded during the meeting. The board moved and voted to approve out-of-district student travel (item 5A) — which included Rancho Alamitos Color Guard trips and CTE Health Occupations student travel to a national convention — and later approved the bundle of business and personnel items described above.

The meeting materials and staff reports provided the detailed lists of vendors, bid numbers and the exact purchase-order total; trustees asked staff for follow-up budget detail on food services and implementation steps for any menu changes tied to federal and state dietary guidance. The district said it would share those details with the board when available.