Fallbrook board approves expanded learning opportunities plan after presentation highlighting doubled enrollment and staff training

The Fallbrook Union Elementary School District Board of Trustees unanimously approved the district's Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) program plan for the 2025'26 school year after a presentation from Lily Perez, the district's director of expanded learning opportunities.

Perez told the board the program now serves a larger share of the district's students and that registration has grown dramatically: "we have 1,250 registered for next year, so we're hoping to continue to build on that," she said. She described ELO as a comprehensive program that includes before- and after-school programming, summer and intersession camps, and a "genius hour" academic block that requires homework help and independent reading.

The presentation explained program design and compliance details. Perez and her team said the ELO plan must follow the stricter of two sets of rules (ELO and the ACES grant) and therefore holds class-size limits of 10:1 for TK/K and a maximum of 20:1 in upper grades. The program also coordinates with the district's ACES grant, trains frontline staff (many aged 18'24), and partners with local vendors and community groups to provide enrichment such as cooking, esports, music, and sports.

Assistant Superintendent Tawka Bustani framed ELO as part of the district's family engagement and LCAP work, noting the program combines enrichment with targeted academic supports. Bustani praised the ELO staff and said the program has helped reduce chronic absenteeism by giving students activities to look forward to; she told trustees that the district is expanding measurement of learning outcomes after a pilot at La Paloma showed gains.

Board members asked about program evaluation and staffing. District presenters said they are tracking results, plan to extend pilot outcome measures districtwide, and emphasized that 90% of the young staff trained in the program are community members or students recruited locally.

The board voted to adopt the ELO program plan following the presentation. The motion carried unanimously; the district will begin its Super Summer Camp on July 8 and staff said invitations will be sent to trustees and the public.

The approval means the ELO plan will operate under state ELO and ACES requirements and will use district and grant funds to support staffing ratios, training, and expanded programming. Board materials and the presentation also highlight partnerships with community businesses and social-service organizations to provide meals and broaden access.

Looking ahead, district staff said they will continue to collect data on student outcomes and to scale classroom-level measurement that showed early gains in pilot sites.