Santa Paula Unified board approves SRO contract, crossing‑guard MOU, counselor residency partnership and several district resolutions

The Santa Paula Unified School District board approved multiple contracts, MOUs and resolutions during its Sept. 24 meeting following staff presentations and trustee discussion.

School resource officer contract: The board approved the SRO contract. Staff told trustees there were no changes to the contract since it was presented as an informational item previously; operationally, the district requested officers already working after school shifts to cover duties rather than hiring overtime‑paid officers. The board approved the contract by voice vote (motion and second on the record; outcome recorded as 'passes').

City crossing guards MOU: The board approved an annual memorandum of understanding with the City of Santa Paula for crossing guards. Staff explained the number of crossing guards has declined since the pandemic—from 11 (pre‑COVID) to nine and now to seven for the coming year—and the district is negotiating with the city to request it pay 50% of the contract going forward. Trustees raised safety concerns at specific crossings by the high school and asked that the topic appear on the next district‑city two‑by‑two meeting agenda. The motion carried by preferential vote and was recorded as passing 4–0.

CSU Channel Islands MOU: Trustees approved an MOU with California State University Channel Islands to host school‑counselor residents, described as a cost‑neutral partnership designed to build a local pipeline of counselors; the board approved the MOU 4–0.

Resolutions and routine items: The board adopted several resolutions and routine items by unanimous votes recorded as 4–0: adoption of Resolution 25‑26.05 declaring sufficiency of instructional materials (Williams Act visit reported no findings), Resolution 2025‑26.06 recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15–Oct. 15), and Resolution 2025‑26.07 to submit the annual California Department of Education preschool funding application (CSPP). The board also approved Single Plans for Student Achievement for the 2025–26 fiscal year, the Arts and Music funding annual report and expenditure plan, a notice of completion for McMahon gym flooring at Santa Paula High School, and a curriculum associate contract (contract R26‑01093) after a short discussion about an EL monitoring platform.

Consent calendar and Elevation platform: Trustees approved the consent calendar with one contract pulled for discussion. The board discussed a contract described as 'Elevation'—an EL monitoring, communication and instructional‑planning platform—to support continuous reclassification and teacher recommendation workflows. Staff said Elevation will be used districtwide (K–12) to streamline reclassification forms and strategies and to host teacher resources and videos; the trustees approved the related contract.

Votes at a glance: - SRO contract — approved (passes). - City crossing guards MOU — approved (4–0). - CSU Channel Islands counselor residency MOU — approved (4–0). - Resolution 25‑26.05 (instructional materials sufficiency) — approved (4–0). - Resolution 2025‑26.06 (Hispanic Heritage Month) — approved (4–0). - Resolution 2025‑26.07 (CSPP funding application) — approved (4–0). - Single Plans for Student Achievement (2025–26) — approved (4–0). - Arts and Music funding annual report — approved (4–0). - Notice of completion for McMahon gym flooring — approved (4–0). - Curriculum associate contract R26‑01093 (Elevation-related services) — approved (4–0).

The board’s votes were recorded as passing with a 4–0 tally for the listed items; trustee Rodriguez was noted as absent earlier in the meeting. Several trustees asked for follow‑up reports and additional data—most notably on crossing‑guard cost‑sharing negotiations with the city and on academic outcome data for the ethnic studies pilot.