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Board approves $338,000 Prop 28 dance program after questions over funding and procurement
Summary
Trustees approved a $338,470 amendment for a districtwide Conga Kids dance program funded by Prop 28 arts funds amid debate about equity, selection of vendors and a prior agenda math error that omitted middle-school costs.
The Hacienda la Puente Unified School District Board approved an amendment to expand a popular Conga Kids dance program into middle schools at a cost not to exceed $338,470, funded from Proposition 28 arts allocations, after trustees pressed staff for clarifications about cost, scope and vendor selection.
Trustee Serrano asked for transparency on how the program was funded and whether district funds were being used for programs historically funded at the site level. Several trustees expressed concern about equity and how a small number of community-based organizations receive larger district contracts.
District staff and trustees explained the increase resulted from expanding the program into middle schools and from a computational omission in a prior board item that listed only the elementary total. "The cost per unit was approved previously; the math omitted middle-school costs," a district administrator said, calling the earlier figure a technical error. Staff also said the program is open to all fifth-grade students at the elementary level and had been expanded because of its popularity.
Trustees pressed for more information about the number of students served, cost per student, and whether the district could offer similar programming in-house or use other cultural dance options. Trustee Lorera defended the program as a strong VAPA (Visual and Performing Arts) candidate that brings broad student engagement.
The item passed with a majority vote; one trustee opposed citing budget concerns and the need for equitable distribution of district-funded programming.
