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LCAP midyear: Merced City reports modest gains in ELA and math, flags equity gaps
Summary
District officials reported midyear Local Control Accountability Plan spending at about 47% and modest gains on state assessments (ELA +5.1 points, math +4 points), while noting persistent performance gaps for African American students, long‑term English learners and students experiencing homelessness.
The Merced City School District presented a midyear Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) update on Feb. 10, reporting that roughly 47% of allocated LCAP funds have been spent to date and that the district has seen gains on state assessments while equity gaps persist.
Director Aaron Alexander told trustees that approximately 47% of the LCAP budget had been expended to date and highlighted a year‑to‑year gain of 5.1 points in English language arts and a 4‑point gain in mathematics on the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAST). He also noted a decline in English learner proficiency in some measures and said persistent gaps remain for Black/African American students and students experiencing homelessness.
Alexander walked trustees through goal‑level spending and indicators, noting that the district had spent about half of its allocations for some goals and that attendance and chronic absenteeism remain areas of focus. He recommended continuing targeted investments for the district's lowest performing student groups and indicated the board would receive a quarter‑three report and additional presentations on March 10 and the public LCAP hearing in June.
Trustees asked for more detail on program effectiveness. Trustee Delgado asked what steps the district was taking to provide a community day school for sixth through eighth graders as the district considers transitions to middle‑school settings; Alexander said committees have met and that staff would return with more specific committee recommendations. Several trustees urged clearer measures of impact beyond activity counts — for example, to track whether outreach and communications produce measurable changes in family engagement or student outcomes.
The presentation included outreach dates for community forums and a district survey; staff encouraged trustees to share a now‑open community LCAP survey and noted planned partnerships and engagement with parent advisory groups.
