Board approves EPA resolution, mental-health and Pride proclamations; awards WestEd, EMS contracts and Battles Elementary bid

The Santa Maria Bonita School District Board of Education on Wednesday approved a series of routine and larger items, including a resolution to collect Education Protection Account (EPA) funds for 2025–26, proclamations for mental-health awareness and Pride Month, contracts for professional learning and a compensation study, and a construction contract for Battles Elementary School.

The board opened a required public hearing on the EPA — funds derived from state tax measures and earmarked for instructional services — and accepted staff estimates of $26,594,670 in deposits and expenditures for 2025–26. "All the expenditures are for instructional services and must not be spent on administrative cost," a staff presenter said during the hearing. The board then adopted Resolution 24-33 by roll call.

The board also adopted Resolution 24-34 recognizing May 2025 as Mental Health Awareness Month to promote social-emotional supports in schools and Resolution 24-35 recognizing June 2025 as Pride Month to affirm district commitment to inclusion for LGBTQ+ students, families and staff.

On contracting, trustees approved an expansion of the district's professional learning community (PLC) coaching with WestEd. The director of teaching and learning described a tiered model that will serve all 21 sites, with year‑1 schools receiving more intensive coaching and year‑3 sites less as they progress. Board members asked how the district compared WestEd's costs to other providers and were told the district negotiated price by service level and reviewed line‑item staffing.

The board also voted to engage Educational Management Solutions (EMS) to conduct a comprehensive job-description and compensation study covering roughly 160 classified, certificated-confidential and management positions at an estimated cost of $78,995. The study will include local market analysis and a software license for maintaining job descriptions; staff said salary adjustments that result from the study would still require bargaining with employee groups.

For capital projects, trustees awarded Bid No. 5384 for a new seven‑classroom TK/kindergarten building and site upgrades at Battles Elementary to Precon Industries, the lowest responsive bidder at $9,720,000. Staff said a primary funding source is the state's pre‑K/UTK program and that the district must have a signed contract by July 1 to retain qualification for that funding. The presenter also said $3,734,000 of the bid is allocated to subcontractors based in Santa Maria and nearby communities.

Most votes were unanimous. When a voice vote was used for the WestEd contract, the chair called for aye and declared the motion carried.

What’s next: staff said they will circulate WestEd and Battles project materials to trustees, and the EMS study will begin with planning and job‑analysis work that is expected to take an estimated 24 weeks before recommendations are presented to the board.