The Morongo Unified School District Board of Trustees held their regular meeting yesterday at the special start time of 4:30 to reorganize the board, before moving onto regular open session at 6PM.
Standing board president Robert Hamilton was reconfirmed as president during the reorganization, as well as Kerri Condley as Board Clerk. Roberta Meyers was appointed District Representative on School District Organization, Christopher Claire was appointed Legislative Representative, and Superintendent Dr. Patricio Vargas was appointed Board Secretary.
Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Sharon Flores lead a 1st interim work study session, a “snapshot of time in district finances” that showed the district’s dip in funding due to low ADA (Average Daily Attendance), still aiming to correct from the pandemic.
Open session began with honoring Oasis Elementary Instructional Assistants Cameo Green and Isabelle Diaz for their work with disabled students.
29 Palms High School Principal Michael Ruggiero and CSEA President Mike Johnson gave their report on the National Student Safety and Security Conference. Ruggiero’s takeaways were reassuring, reporting MUSD being aligned with best practices of preparation, procedures, and documentation. MUSD has already installed much of the recommended hardware for schools, such as security cameras, door buzzers, smart locks, key cards, and window safety film.
The board unanimously approved the long-embattled MUSD/MTA tentative agreement to a round of applause. The agreement includes updated salary, compensation, and benefits. The “student centered/problem solving contract,” which was voted on by 89% of the MTA, assures “powerful” improvements, including reduction to t-k class size, a cap on caseloads, and a 7.75% raise for teachers. MTA President Amber Hanson said, “We bargained 9% ongoing compensation, and 1.43% of that was to pay to improve student learning conditions. Our (MTA) members did that—we understood that the success of our students is tied to us, and our individual success is tied together.”
