Principals of four elementary schools updated the Fillmore Unified School District Board of Trustees on the academic progress of their schools Tuesday evening, November 17, 2009.

Talking about academic achievement, Piru Principal Leticia Ramos reported that their California State testing went up 52 points and they exceeded the statewide target for 2009. She noted that students are using computer lab time and she said there is a migrant homework assistance program, run by a teacher and a staff member which helps 10-to-20 students. She also talked about after school tutoring and professional development for teachers. “I'm putting together some assessments and benchmarks,” she added. “It's wonderful to work with such a wonderful staff.”

Ramos discussed parent involvement. She said they've had great feedback and participation on the School Site Council and the school farm now has three goats. They are planning a school farm day and a school beautification day. Parents are offering roses and other plants for the campus.

Jan Marholin, principal of San Cayetano School said school test scores have risen 191 points since 1999. Under the heading of restructuring, she said every student will have two time blocks of English Language Arts. The school is holding parent education nights in English and Spanish. Marholin said there will be more parent contact. Teachers will communicate with parents three times a year, besides the regularly scheduled conferences. She said they're the first school in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties to participate in the NASA Explorer School Program.

Mountain Vista School Principal Christy Schieferle told trustees that, “Our goal is to be a Distinguished School in three years. We have the staff to do it.” She said they're involved with the new math curriculum, Reading Lions Assessments and the Success-maker Program. She also said teachers are posting learning objectives in student-friendly language. “We're doing things differently, but make common sense,” she added.

Sespe School Principal Rose Hibler told the board that their Academic Performance Index (API) scores went up by 51 points from last year. To increase parent involvement they have a School Site Council, a Parent Club and a volunteer program of high school students and parents. She added that the English Language Advisory Committee held its first meeting and many parents showed up. The meeting dealt with school policies. Addressing the school principals, Assistant Superintendent Katy Hadley said, “This is the best team and I'm proud of all of you. We appreciate working with you.”

District Superintendent Jeff Sweeney talked about the goals for the district. He said to improve the achievement of all students is the goal of all staff, parents, community members and the board. He said that special focus will be given to services for English language learners. “Programs will be explored for dual immersion in both English and Spanish so children learn to read and write in both languages,” Sweeney said. Hadley added that the teachers have been asking if this could be done. Board member Tony Prado asked about how technology fits into the goals. “Will our students have the skills to adapt to future expectations?” Sweeney noted that they need to align their focus for using technology in the future.

Assistant Superintendent Hadley presented the board with the Fillmore Unified School District graduation requirements compared to State requirements. The FUSD graduation requirements in many cases exceed the State requirements. She said that the FUSD requirements match the minimum requirements to get into a California University.

Assistant Superintendent Mike Bush told the board that they've applied for a State grant to establish a community day school. This would be an alternative school for students with behavior problems. He said the program would be for students in grades 7 through12. The majority of expelled students are referred to Gateway (a county program) and several attend the FUSD Independent Study Program.

The board approved an agenda item promoting green school operations. The item states that the board believes all citizens have a responsibility to be stewards of the environment and desires to integrate environmental accountability into all district operations. The policy lists such things as reducing energy and water consumption and exploring renewable and clean energy technologies, establishing recycling programs in district facilities, reducing the consumption of disposable materials, purchasing and using environmentally preferable products and services, reducing traffic by encouraging students to walk or bicycle to school and to provide fresh, unprocessed, organic food in the district's food services program.

The board accepted a donation of $16,150 from the Elite Dance Studios to continue the renovation of the district theater that was begun by the group in June of 2007. This would be used to offset the cost of the theatre rental. Elite will also clean the dressing rooms and theater seating area while they are using it to help cut back on janitorial needs.

Student representative Garrett Reilley told of the free flu vaccinations coming up Thursday, November 19 from 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the high school. They are for people from 6 months to 24 years old, pregnant women, people with diabetes or lung disease. Superintendent Sweeney told trustees that they just found out that football coach Matt Dollar has been named Frontier League Coach of the Year.

The next board meeting is December 1st. The regular meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the District board room at 627 Sespe Avenue.