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Trustees delay approval on PAL MOU amid concerns about vague scope and police role
Summary
A proposed $150,000 MOU to expand PAL after‑school programming drew questions from trustees about an imprecise scope of services and language referencing 'school safety support.' Staff emphasized the district will not authorize police to investigate incidents on campus and agreed to return with a clarified scope before final approval.
Trustee Proctor and others asked for greater specificity for a proposed MOU with PAL (a city program) that includes a $150,000 line item for after‑school services, some of which the MOU describes as "school safety support." Board members pressed staff to clarify whether the funds would underwrite police officer responses to school incidents.
Superintendent Ooa replied that district practice and existing MOUs with San Mateo and Foster City are specific about how police interact with district sites and that the district would not move forward with services that authorized police to investigate or handle incidents on campus. The superintendent and staff offered to collaborate with city partners and the high‑school district to develop a detailed scope and bring a revised MOU back for review; trustees asked that the item be returned with specific sites, frequencies and program descriptions prior to approval.
Trustees expressed discomfort approving a fixed dollar amount without defined programming and asked that language reflect current district policy limiting police responses on campus. The board agreed to table or bring back the item with more detail for the 2025–26 implementation window (August 2025 onward).
