TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

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TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

Postby blackturtle.us » Fri Sep 13, 2019 10:40 am

Very few people attended the board meeting held on September 12, 2019. Besides school employees, the only people in the audience were a spouse of a board member and a community member. The meeting lasted about seventy minutes. The following are the highlights from the meeting:

1) Board Member Comments - The BHS band will play at the football game scheduled for 09/13/2019. One board member noted that she hopes that all people attending the event will be polite and appreciative.

2) TTA Report - The board was informed that at least two classrooms are without one-to-one devices. This impacts the work students can do and with a progress report coming up in two weeks, there may be few assignment grades to base report card grades on. The devices were promised before the first day of school, but as yet are not available. Several other smaller issues remain unresolved, but the first two weeks of school have not been a disaster.

3) Superintendent’s Report - The superintendent reported that a local politician by the name of Paul Cook will visit Trona. Also a representative of an organization relevant to small schools by the name of Tim Taylor will be present at a school event.

4) Earthquake Repairs - The superintendent explained some of the complexities involved with earthquake repairs. Often old facilities must be brought up with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) specifications and this can be spectacularly costly. Restroom facilities at the round school do not meet ADA specs and it may not be possible to retrofit them and so portable restrooms may be required.

5) Time Capsule - There was some discussion about a time capsule related to earthquake experiences. One board member seemed to be pushing the idea.

6) Discussion of how things are working out with K-12 at the round school. Some issues have been experienced, but nothing major so far. While things have not gone smoothly, no major problems have occurred as of yet.

7) Several coaches were approved by the board. No candidates were rejected.

8) Financial Reports - Two reports were accepted by the board: Gann Limit and Unaudited Actuals. Financial officer reported that the district is spending more than it is taking in and this was before the earthquake. Repairs in response to the earthquake will require even more spending. Funds are strong at this point, but the current spending pattern could cause some issues down the line if royalty revenue does not return to normal.

9) Facility Repair Funding - At this point there are several possibilities. It is likely that the district will receive at least some financial assistance from the state, but the extent of that assistance is uncertain at this point.

10) Two MOUs were approved and one was tabled. One approved MOU had to do with a contract extension for the TCEA (classified union) and the other approved MOU had to do with unusual circumstances involving an extra duty position. The tabled MOU had to do with a new certificated position. Some language on that MOU and/or the related job description needs some reworking.

NEXT REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING: October 11, 2019
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Re: TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

Postby ergot » Sat Sep 14, 2019 6:23 am

blackturtle.us wrote:4) Earthquake Repairs - The superintendent explained some of the complexities involved with earthquake repairs. Often old facilities must be brought up with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) specifications and this can be spectacularly costly. Restroom facilities at the round school do not meet ADA specs and it may not be possible to retrofit them and so portable restrooms may be required.

Although I have nothing against people who are disabled, sometimes I think we go a little too far in our attempts to accommodate them. The idea that repairs become "spectacularly costly" not because of the repairs, but because of special accommodations suggests that something very dysfunctional is going on behind the scenes. I don't want to say that it's a waste of money, but the reality is that it is a waste of money if it is preventing the majority from taking care of a problem in a cost effective manner. In special situations such as this, the normal requirements should be waived.
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Re: TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

Postby panamint_patty » Sat Sep 14, 2019 7:20 pm

And the Burros band comes marching in ... to Trona
This might be a first....
When the Sandmen take to the field for their first home game of the year in Trona tonight, they will be greeted by cheers — and the sound of the Burros marching band. The show of solidarity comes as Trona High School Tornadoes plays Hesperia Christian. The small high school lacks a marching band, something Sherman E. Burroughs High School can field.

LINK:
https://www.ridgecrestca.com/news/20190913/and-burros-band-comes-marching-in--to-trona
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Re: TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

Postby mrgreen » Mon Sep 16, 2019 7:27 pm

This Could Only Happen in California!
The suspension rate for low IQ students is higher than the suspension rate for students with high IQs. Imagine that....
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Re: Student Suspensions

Postby desertrat » Wed Sep 18, 2019 6:13 am

mrgreen: Considering that low IQ is associated with almost every negative social indicator, it's surprising that our law-makers seem so clueless. There is no way to significantly improve IQ and keeping low IQ disruptive kids in the class will only sabotage the education of the other kids. It's one of those cases where lipstick on a pig doesn't change the fact that we're still dealing with a pig. I'm in favor of getting more hardcore with disruptive kids instead of this namby-pamby crap where we pretend that everyone else will be nice if we're extra nice. The world doesn't work that way!
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Re: Student Suspensions

Postby sandman » Wed Sep 18, 2019 8:22 am

desertrat: It all seems obvious to anyone who has the courage to be intellectually honest about the issue. If low IQ kids get suspended more often than high IQ kids and black kids are getting suspended at higher rates than any other group of kids, then the conclusion seems pretty obvious. There are dozens of other collections of data which also support this conclusion, so why do the song and dance to avoid the obvious? Just deal with reality, rather than pretending that there's some big racist conspiracy going on.
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Re: STUDENT AND PARENT ACCOUNTABILITY

Postby CrustyOldFart » Fri Sep 20, 2019 6:14 am

The state of California is run by idiots and this has been proven over and over, ad nauseam. Discipline needs to be much more hardcore. Parents need to be held accountable and I'd even go so far as to propose that work camps for both the juveniles and the parents be considered. Irresponsible people should lose their privileges and an end to the victim card mentality should be unmercifully instigated.
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Re: TJUSD Board Meeting - September 12, 2019

Postby panamint_patty » Sat Sep 21, 2019 12:01 pm

Do teachers have it too easy? | The Pledge
This discussion comes down to one loudmouth versus four reasonable people. If the loudmouth would shut up for a little while, she might learn something!
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Re: Schools and Teachers

Postby twister » Mon Sep 23, 2019 7:43 am

panamint_patty: You're right, that lady is a loud mouth and she should definitely STFU! The job of teaching can be stressful or it can be enjoyable. Conditions vary a lot as does the pay.
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Re: Schools and Teachers

Postby sandman » Tue Sep 24, 2019 7:39 am

twister: I think that's the lady's schtick. She's supposed to be unreasonable so that the guests can talk sense. She just keeps pushing back. The frustration keeps some people watching. Apparently.
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