CVUSD Board of Education: Regular Meeting

January 16, 2025

Present: President Sonja Shaw, John Cervantes, Andrew Cruz, Jon Monroe and James Na, with Superintendent Norm Enfield, Ed.D., and his cabinet 1. The board met in closed session from 4:25 to 5:50 p.m. on litigation, labor negotiations, student discipline and personnel matters, and reported no action requiring public disclosure 1.

💼 Pay, benefits and contracts

Teacher agreement ratified. The district and the Associated Chino Teachers (A.C.T.) reached a tentative reopener agreement, effective July 1, 2024, on December 16, 2024, and the association approved it by a unit vote on January 9, 2025 2. President Shaw opened the required public hearing at 7:32 p.m.; Amanda Swager addressed the board, and the hearing closed at 7:34 p.m. The minutes do not record what was said. The board then ratified the agreement on a motion by Na, seconded by Monroe 3.

Management benefits. The board approved raising the district's maximum annual health and welfare contribution for certificated and classified management for 2025/2026, with a one-time, off-schedule payment of $1,350.00 for 2024/2025 3. The staff report ties the cap increase, from $10,000.00 to $11,350.00, to the A.C.T. agreement, says the one-time payment stands in for it because contributions cannot change mid-year, and puts the cost at $203,850.00 2.

Cabinet contract addenda. The addenda give the deputy, associate and assistant superintendents the same cap increase and $1,350.00 payment, at a combined cost of $6,750.00, and set each contract's term at July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2029, extendable annually subject to a satisfactory evaluation 44. From the dais, the answer given was that the addenda add one year, keeping each contract at four 5. President Shaw gave the oral summary of executive compensation that Government Code 54953(c)(3) requires, and the board approved the addenda on a motion by Na, seconded by Cruz; Jon Monroe voted no 6.

Board pay. The board approved a 5% compensation increase for its members, effective January 17, 2025, on a motion by Na, seconded by Monroe 6. Board Bylaw 9250 caps such raises at five percent a year; the ongoing cost is $219.00 per month 7.

🏈 Public comment: Chino High athletics

Seventeen people addressed the board. The minutes list them as Cecil Howell, Sr.; Cecil Howell, Jr.; Kelly Weathers; Amado Howell; Jovita Donovan; Nick Bergiadis; Luke Stamm; John Wachowski; Scott Rossen; Pastor Valdez; Amanda Swager; David Chavez; Pablo Valdez; Raul Magadan; Jacob Silfee; Lisa G; and Angela Romero 3. The minutes do not record what anyone said, so the themes below come from the recording, are not tied to names, and are not in speaking order.

Most comment backed Chino High School's athletic director, Mr. Hinkle, and dismissed head football coach LaRosa 8, after the death of an incoming freshman football player who was pulled from the school pool during a school activity on June 28, 2024 and died two days later 9. The Champion later reported that LaRosa was dismissed on January 7 and that Hinkle resigned as athletic director on January 15 8.

• One speaker described the athletic director's constant presence at school and at sports events 10, and argued that firing him would not change what happened 11.
• A parent said their son had pulled the boy from the pool, and argued that a thorough investigation would have included speaking to him 1212.
• A student who was at the pool said he filled out police reports, but no one who was there was ever interviewed by the district 13.
• A parent asked that the record show more than 100 people outside had been denied a chance to speak at closed session 14, and said the family received an email on January 6 about the decision to part ways with LaRosa, with no word on whether it was a district decision 14.

Other themes. At least two speakers objected that Don Lugo High School's head football job had gone to someone other than the offensive coordinator that players and parents expected to take over 1516. One comment on the board-pay item backed the 5% increase as a small sum 17 and noted that the Education Code requires a board vote on it 17. One speaker alleged corruption on the board and called for a $5,500 cap on what any one person may give a board candidate 18, and objected to another raise for the board 18.

🎓 Showcase, reports and audits

Ayala HS student Joy Chu led the Pledge of Allegiance. The Ayala HS Chinese and Japanese Clubs gave the student showcase, and Mandarin Chinese teacher Lin Guo was recognized for her leadership and for maintaining a high average of a 100% pass rate on the AP Chinese exam 1.

Luke Hackney, Assistant Superintendent, CIIS, gave the LCAP mid-year monitoring report 1. As presented, five of six Goal 1 outcomes were met 19. Also as presented, year-end attendance for 2024 rose 1% and chronic absenteeism fell 5.3% 20, and the high school dropout rate fell 2.33%, a figure that includes students who move out of the state or country 20.

Student representative Gabriella Segoviano reported on school events and on donation drives for Palisades and Eaton fire victims 1. Employee representatives Steven Frazer (A.C.T.) and Danny Hernandez (CSEA) thanked staff during the emergency, Hernandez noting CSEA is in negotiations, and Emily Lao (CHAMP) promoted the K-12 school quality survey 3.

Scott Bradach of Eide Bailly presented both audit reports 21. He reported clean (unmodified) opinions on the financial statements, federal awards and state awards 22 with no findings 22, and said all sampled Measure G expenditures were allowable under the bond measure 23. The board received both audits and the quarterly Williams complaint summary for information 24; the Williams summary reported no complaints for October through December 2024 25.

🗣️ Board and superintendent communications

• John Cervantes said he was proud of the community's showing for its principal, coaches and athletic director, and that the board takes the comments to heart 24.
• James Na asked whether the student representative's fire donation information could be shared on the district website, and thanked Chino High students for supporting Mr. Hinkle 24.
• Andrew Cruz thanked the Chino community for supporting Coach LaRosa and Mr. Hinkle 24.
• Jon Monroe acknowledged the support for Chino High staff and requested a report on what measures the district has for operating safely on campus when there is no power, and how to prepare better 24. In the recording he listed fire alarms, reserve battery capacity, lighting and generators among the questions 26.
• Superintendent Enfield spoke about the lack of consistent notice from SCE about power outages and the decision to keep schools open 24. In the recording he said that a comprehensive high school had lost power for three days and he had decided to keep schools open 27, that about 10 or 11 schools could be affected 27, and that a report to the board would not be a problem 27.
• President Shaw spoke about fire fundraising, credited local government, school staff and district administrators for mitigating the outages, and acknowledged supporters of the Chino High principal, coaches and athletic director 24.

The outages were Edison Public Safety Power Shutoffs during high winds, and had hit Chino Hills High School and Oak Ridge Elementary 28; the district later said families there could keep children home with an excused absence, while generators powered key rooms 29.

📋 Consent and routine business

The board adopted the proclamation for National School Counseling Week, February 3-7, 2025, and the resolution recognizing February as Career and Technical Education Month, each on a motion by Na, seconded by Cruz 3. Two of the eight student expulsion cases were deleted and the personnel item was yellow-sheeted 3, and the board approved the consent calendar as amended on a motion by Na, seconded by Monroe 6.

The consent calendar rejected two claims and referred them to the insurance adjuster 21. One, submitted December 19, 2024 on behalf of the parents of a Chino High student, alleges that district employees failed to properly supervise the student and provide adequate medical care 30. The Champion reported that the family filed a claim in December over the pool death, and that rejecting it was a routine step that lets the district's insurers investigate 8.

Also on consent: $84,726.97 in November invoices from the district's three law firms, bringing 2024/2025 legal spending to $400,727.80 316; and the revised policy on use of school facilities 21, which the staff report numbers BP 1330 (the agenda and minutes print 1300) and which adds a section on after-hours use and requires liability insurance from all user groups 32. It also approved a 19-member CTE/Carl D. Perkins Advisory Committee, including two education pathway students, and an affiliation agreement with West Virginia University's School of Medicine 2121.

President Shaw adjourned the meeting at 8:20 p.m. 24. An independent summary of the district's records and local press; not a district document.