Board adopts second interim budget with positive certification; deputy superintendent to retire and successor named

The Redondo Beach Unified School District board adopted its 2025-26 second interim budget report on March 10, approving a positive certification and receiving updates on enrollment projections and multiyear fiscal assumptions.

Deputy Superintendent Annette Alpern presented the second interim (covering July 1—— Jan. 31), noting current enrollment at 9,412 and conservative projections of 9,341 for 2026-27 and 9,271 for 2027-28. The report includes negotiated salary increases (the CSEA increase is now incorporated) and a one-time state tax refund the district received for two years of taxes paid on unused sites. Alpern said district reserves stand at 13.54% (board policy target: 8%), and outlined the statutory timeline leading to the June budget adoption and possible revisions depending on the governor's May revision and legislative actions.

Alpern recommended and the board approved positive certification, meaning current projections show the district meeting its financial obligations through the two out years under current assumptions. She noted the district is engaging in measured deficit spending to absorb salary increases while maintaining a conservatively paced drawdown of reserves.

In a personnel announcement that followed the closed-session report, the board accepted the retirement of Dr. Annette Alpern, effective Aug. 7. The board unanimously approved Superintendent Nicole Wesley's recommendation to appoint Dr. Nick Stephanie as deputy superintendent overseeing administrative services; Dr. Stephanie will begin July 1 and will overlap with Alpern in July to ensure a smooth transition. A competitive search will be conducted for the assistant superintendent of human resources position.

Separately, the board approved a small set of facility-use fee increases (custodial, campus supervision, auditorium costs) to better reflect staffing costs; Alpern said the last fee increases were in 2021, and many rates had not been updated for a decade.

Board members asked clarifying questions about the assumptions behind enrollment projections, cost-of-living adjustments and how reserves would affect June budget decisions. Alpern said the district's positive certification indicates the district expects to meet obligations but emphasized that state budget developments could require local adjustments.

The board took the vote to adopt the second interim and approved the fee revisions by majority vote.