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Parent complaints, budget and staffing concerns follow board’s selection of Boys & Girls Club for after-school program
Summary
A Monrovia parent said families learned only on the first day of school that Boys and Girls Club would take a larger role in the village after-school program; district staff defended the June decision as necessary to preserve services and staff and cited grant funding constraints and vendor responses.
A parent, district staff and board members sparred over how the Monrovia Unified School District chose the Boys and Girls Club of the Foothills for an expanded role in the district’s village after-school program, with the parent saying families were not notified and staff saying the choice preserved staffing and avoided a large reduction in services.
"The first time we, as parents, became aware of this decision was on the first day of school," parent Nino Castro told the Board of Education during public comment, saying he had sought information about the program since April and that promotional materials provided no clear details about what the change would mean for children and pickup procedures.
Board and staff recounted the procurement and timeline: after the pandemic-era expansion of services, the board requested multiple vendor proposals in May and held a special June 26 meeting to select a model before the summer break. Dr. Z and program director Phil Lujan said some vendors would not participate in a blended model (district Village staff plus supplemental vendor staff); others offered only full external models. Dr. Z told the board Boys and Girls Club was chosen for a blended approach that preserved Village site managers and was significantly less expensive than some other proposals — "almost $1,000,000 less," he said.
Board members acknowledged communication gaps. "We should have done better in communicating over the summer," a board member said, apologizing to families and promising follow-up. Dr. Z said all Village site managers "have the same number of hours" they had previously and that the district will meet with site managers and HR leadership to discuss concerns.
The board and staff also explained funding constraints. The after-school program runs under ACES (state after-school funding) and ELOP (Extended Learning Opportunity Program) dollars; Dr. Z warned that if ELOP funding were to end the district would have to reduce served families "dramatically" — he said reductions could be as large as "up to 80%" and that the district currently serves "over 600" families.
Board members emphasized the intent to preserve jobs and capacity: the blended model was presented as a way to retain Village staff while bringing in vendor expertise and capacity to meet required student-to-adult ratios. The board scheduled follow-up meetings with site managers and said it will improve parent communication.
No vote was required on the vendor selection at this meeting; previous action to approve Boys and Girls Club took place at a June special meeting, which some parents said they did not learn about in time. The board said it will report back on implementation and communication steps.
