Fallbrook trustees weigh keeping trimester as budget, staffing and student access collide

Trustees at the Fallbrook Union High School District meeting on May 13 heard competing arguments over whether to keep the district's trimester schedule or transition to a semester-based model, with staff warning that schedule choices have direct budget and staffing consequences.

District finance staff told the board that, under current enrollment and staffing assumptions, Falbrook High School operates with roughly 88 certificated full‑time equivalents (FTE) on the trimester schedule. The analysis presented to trustees showed a six‑period semester could reduce required teaching FTE into the low‑to‑mid 70s to mid‑80s range depending on scheduling assumptions and course selections, while seven‑period or 4x4 block models would increase FTE and therefore personnel costs. Staff also said some positions now classified as 'teacher on special assignment' (TOSA) are funded from a mix of sources, including grants and supplemental concentration funds, and that any schedule change would trigger negotiations over impacts and effects with employee associations.

The public comment period highlighted the stakes for students and families. Student Eric Shaver told trustees the planned removal of AP Calculus BC would jeopardize college prospects for STEM‑oriented students, saying: "If you remove BC, you remove an entire semester of college‑level learning from the school. This isn't just about a grade. This is about our futures." Parent and educator Scott Weezner described how the trimester had limited some students' opportunities and increased reliance on online remediation: "The Fire Academy lost hands‑on hours and we've had more Apex credit‑recovery use," he said, urging trustees to consider practical impacts on programs and extracurriculars.

District leaders stressed tradeoffs. Superintendent Elsa Garcia Gonzalez framed the discussion around "access," arguing the district's push to expand course offerings under the trimester has raised advanced‑course participation and other outcome measures. "Access changes trajectories," she said in the presentation, urging trustees to weigh both fiscal reality and student opportunity.

Trustees debated timing and community input. One trustee asked staff to place a formal action item on the June meeting agenda to decide whether to switch schedules for the 2027–28 academic year; other trustees cautioned that a board vote should allow time for additional teacher and student input and to work through negotiated impacts. No formal schedule change was approved at the May 13 meeting.

What happens next: trustees set a path to discuss the question further, with at least one member requesting an official vote be scheduled in June on whether the board will direct staff to plan a semester for 2027–28. Meanwhile, district staff will continue to refine the cost and staffing estimates and to identify which TOSA positions are grant‑funded versus general fund obligations.

Attribution and source notes: budget numbers and FTE estimates were presented by district finance staff and summarized by the superintendent during the May 13 meeting; public comments cited above came from the meeting's public comment period and are quoted verbatim from speakers who identified themselves as Eric Shaver and Scott Weezner.