Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West
Hancock Park School
School Site Council Meeting
May 26, 2016
Minutes

The meeting took place and the changes to the board members for 2016-17 were announced as follows.

Volunteer Parents leaving HPS:

President – Reyna Hadar

Joint Treasurer – Catherine Baek

Joint Treasurer – Spencer Kayden

Secretary – Jessie Nagel

New members that were voted upon and agreed:

President – Angela Ridgeon

Treasurer – Lora Altounian

Secretary – Shanon Trystad

Vice Presidents: Jenna Denning, Norma Luna, Shula van Buren, Stephanie Richards and Victoria Yoon.

These changes were approved by all committee members.

Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West
Hancock Park School
School Site Council Meeting
Thursday, May 19, 2016
2:45 pm – Room 32

Minutes

I. Call to Order:

The meeting was called to order at 3:02pm by Mark Harelik.

II. Attendance:

-Members Present: Mark Harelik, Ashley Parker, Christine Choi, Beverly Glass, Deborah Glass, Larry Tynan, Laurie Assael, Greg Apo, Ana Fabian (the “Members”)

Guest Present: Reyna Hadar

III. Approval of Minutes

• Mr. Harelik asked the Members if there were any changes to be made to the minutes from the Thursday, March 17, 2016 SSC meeting. A motion to approve the SSC meeting minutes was made by Laurie Assael. Deborah Glass seconded and the minutes were unanimously approved by the Members.

IV. Friends of HPS Update (Reyna Hadar)

• Carnival was a success! We raised approximately $10,000.
• Teachers’ Appreciation went well.
• Parent volunteer tea party was beautiful.
• The year was great! We managed to stay within the budget.
• Thank you to FHPS for partially funding the refreshments for the Teacher Summer Institute (3 days).
• Reyna Hadar will not be here next school year. A new president was approved for next year.

V. Principal’s Report

• Friends of HPS Board Members Information 2016-2017: Mrs. Parker made a motion to approve the board members who were nominated and approved for the positions within the FHPS for the school year 2016-2017. D. Glass seconded and the motion was unanimously approved by the Members.

o President – Angela Ridgeon
o Secretary – Shanon Trygstad
o Treasurer – Lora Altounian
o Vice Presidents – Candace Cole, Jenna Denning, Norma Luna, Stephanie Richards, Shula Van Buren, Victoria Yoon

• LAUSD School Fundraising Activities Policy Review: Mrs. Parker received an audit notification of our school booster club. We were questioned on whether or not the booster club was functioning within the guidelines established for booster clubs. We were told the students should NOT be involved in any fundraising activities, advertising, collection of donations, or selling of items. The fundraising for the next school year will follow the booster club guidelines. Mrs. Parker will meet with the new FHPS members to review the guidelines.

VI. UTLA Update (Larry Tynan)

UTLA is promoting “neighbor schools” to save public schools by having rallies.

VII. Public Comments / Open Floor Discussion

• Barbara Gallen will be working with Mrs. Parker to pursue further improvement of our school’s traffic and pedestrian safety.

VIII. Adjournment

Mr. Harelik adjourned the meeting at 3:52pm.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Christine Choi, Secretary.

Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West

Hancock Park School

School Site Council Meeting

Thursday, March 17, 2016

2:45 pm – Room 32

Minutes

I. Call to Order:

• The meeting was called to order at 2:52pm by Laurie Assael.

II. Attendance:

• Members Present: Mark Harelik, Ashley Parker, Karen Hollis, Christine Choi, Beverly Glass, Deborah Glass, Larry Tynan, Laurie Assael, Barbara Gallen, Greg Apo, Ana Fabian (the “Members”)
• Guest Present: Reyna Hadar

III. Approval of Minutes

• Harelik asked the Members if there were any changes to be made to the minutes from the Thursday, February 18, 2016 SSC meeting. A motion to approve the SSC meeting minutes was made by Larry Tynan. Laurie Assael seconded and the minutes were unanimously approved by the Members.

IV. Principal’s Report

• Proposed 2016-2017 Budget
  • Annual budget surveys were collected from staff members and parents. The survey asked to check off top 5 items that they would like to see for the next school year.

1. Arts programs: visual, theatre, vocal, chorus and dance. (both staff and parents)
2. Supplemental instructional programs for PE and social studies and science supplemental

materials (both staff and parents)

3. Instructional Aides (both staff and parents)
4. Math lab (staff), school nurse (parents)
5.    field trips, nurse and psychologist (staff voted equally on these 3 items)

orchestra teacher (parents)

• Parker went over the Hancock Park Elementary School Budget Development 2016-2017 (Attached hereto as Attachment A). General School Fund is used for district funded personnel and resources. Per enrollment forecast of less than 750 students, the General School fund for 2016-2017 covers the cost of one Office Technician position instead of two like this school year. Mrs. Parker feels that one office technician is not enough to support the school community in terms of service to our parents and staff.   She feels strongly that our school needs two technicians and it is a priority to fund the second technician (approx. $60,000), which we did not have to do last year. The reason for the decrease in number of students is due to the relocation of a transitional kindergarten class and a special ed. class. We submitted an application to renew our permit as a School for Advance Studies, and we were selected as an advance studies demonstration site for the next 5 school years. This is a permit program, and we are allowed to accept students on this permit depending on space availability.

• The general school fund will provide 3 semesters of arts education. The district assigns disciplines and the school provides input on preferences. We can request to continue instrumental music (orchestra), which counts as 2 semesters of our arts allocation. The members discussed pros and cons of the orchestra program at Hancock Park. The orchestra is a pull-out program and students miss in-class instructional time. This has been a big concern for teachers. Deborah Glass shared that it is a big disruption in her class each week, and it has an impact on the implementation of other subjects. Laurie Assael mentioned that since the orchestra is not offered to all students, it’s a low priority for her. Barbara Gallen, a parent, shared that orchestra is a special program in that it is a team program and that only the school can provide. The orchestra program might be one of the programs that we might opt to not fund if there is a fund shortage.

• The total for 2015-2016 Targeted Student Population (TSP) allocations is $49, 616. The total for 2016-2017 TSP allocations is $53, 628. The increase in the allocations, even though our total student population has decreased, is because we have a larger number of English Learner (EL) students.   The majority of this fund is generated by EL students, and we should keep this in mind when we spend this fund.

• FOHPS will fund several aides and compliance personnel. They will also maintain 2015-2016 levels of all supplemental programs and resources. A combination of Carryover funds and FOHPS donations will be used to fund ½ of the Assistant Principal position and portions of the office technician, nurse and school psychologist positions. Carryover funds are funds that are in our general school fund that cover substitute days for absent teachers up to 7 days. If these funds are not used, they become Carryover funds. This past year, the district allocated 1 day/wk for a nurse and 1 ½ days for a psychologist. We purchased one full day of nurse and ½ day of psychologist. Currently, the majority of the school psychologist’s time is spent on assessing special ed. students and a very small amount of time is spent servicing students who need counseling. If we did not purchase the additional ½ day of psychologist time, we would be out of compliance. Many teacher members voiced that the psychologist and nurse are more important than field trips. Field trips might be cut down to 1 per class if there is a shortage in funds.

• FOHPS will fund up to 7 (3-hour) supervision aide positions. TSP funds will be used for 6 (3-hour) instructional aide positions. Multicultural Multilingual Education Department (MMED) provides 1 (6-hour) and 1 (3-hour) Korean speaking aides. We are currently looking for a 3-hour Korean speaking aide.

• Title III funds will be used for teacher tutor x-time for intervention. TSP funds will be used for 6 aide positions and teacher PD x-time.

• Our school is a Non-Title I School with a low count of English Learners, which qualifies us with low funds, and we are struggling to fund core instructional programs and maintain compliance with district standards. We are grateful for FOHPS. FOHPS allows us to provide an excellent education to our students by funding many of the items mentioned above.

• Summary of budget proposal:
  • Maintain the services and personnel (including the nurse) that were funded for the year 2015-2016
  • Increase the school psychologist’s time
  • Cut down field trips to 1 per class
  • The orchestra program might be one of the programs that we might opt to not fund if there is a fund shortage.

• A motion to approve the budget proposal as mentioned above was made by Laurie Assael. Deborah Glass seconded and it was unanimously approved by the Members.

V. Friends of HPS Update (Reyna Hadar)

• The FOHPS updates were discussed during the Principal’s report.

VI. UTLA Update (Larry Tynan)

• UTLA is advocating to put on the November ballot an extension of proposition 30. Prop. 30 increased state income tax for those earning $250,000 or more and a $0.25 increase in the sales tax. Prop. 30 helped to stop further layoffs in our district. It also increased funding by $1,000 per pupil. This proposed extension to Prop. 30 does not include the $0.25 increase in the sales tax. They need 92,000 signatures by a certain date to put this on the ballot. Without this expanded Prop. 30, the district will be in a dire situation by 2020.

VII.  Public Comments / Open Floor Discussion

• Barbara Gallen shared that it costs $14,000 to administer the middle DIBEL test.   During our school’s garden event, Barbara approached Board President Steve Zimmer and shared this information with him. She was told all district tests are being discussed by UTLA with the district. She would like to continue to bring this matter to him.   Barbara asked for the committee’s approval to speak as a SSC representative and try to make the Colgate Street safer.

VIII. Adjournment

• Harelik adjourned the meeting at 4:35pm.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Christine Choi, Secretary.

MINUTES FROM FRIENDS OF HANCOCK PARK SCHOOL MEETING

APRIL 13, 2016

Boosterthon Run Fun Fundraiser:

Reyna Hadar introduced guest Speaker Jordan Kauffman from Boosterthon Fun Run.  Mr. Kauffman shared that his company assists schools in their fund raising efforts and especially assists in targeting donations from non-parent sponsors.  Boosterthon charges $2000 for the base costs and also charges a percentage of the donations which is determined by their involvement in the culminating event which is similar to the Walk a Thon. Boosterthon Fun Run has assisted 1700 schools, 30 in California.  It is a family owned business.  The program focuses on providing a fitness and character building program.  The event(s) occur during non-instructional time.

Mrs. Parker spoke about and shared that this has been a good school year.  Mrs. Parker explained that our school has historically participated in the Jump Rope for Hope and that it is not a LAUSD fund raising event.  There was some talk about spacing out the different fund raising events.

FOHP Board and Positions: Ms. Hadar shared that there are many vacant volunteer positions that need to be filled for the next school year, including for the first day of school.

Carnival:

Ms. Yoon  said that she has obtained the permit for the Carnival.  She needs more volunteers, especially for the cleanup.  She expects to confirm the student volunteers shortly.   Ms. Yoon also needs BBQ captains.   There may be a talent show at the Carnival.  It is being coordinated by Ms. Hollis.

Volunteer Appreciation Day:

May 17, 2016 is the Volunteer Appreciation Day. It is a tea and will start at 1:30.  Room parents are invited.

Teacher Appreciation Week:

The Board discussed assigning each grade a day to bring food for the teachers.

Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West

Hancock Park School

School Site Council Meeting

Thursday, February 18, 2016

2:45 pm – Room 32

Minutes

I. Call to Order:

• The meeting was called to order at 2:51pm by Secretary Christine Choi.

II. Attendance:

• Members Present: Ashley Parker, Karen Hollis, Christine Choi, Beverly Glass, Deborah Glass, Larry Tynan, Laurie Assael, Barbara Gallen, Greg Apo, Ana Fabian, Gloria Shen (the “Members”)
• Guest Present: Reyna Hadar

III. Welcome:

• Principal/Vice-Chairperson Ashley Parker welcomed everyone and stated that we have a lot of items on our agenda to review and approve today. Mrs. Parker said the budget will be continued to the next meeting and requested that all SSC members join us for the next meeting to review and approve the budget for the upcoming school year.

IV. Approval of Minutes

• Parker asked the Members if there were any changes to be made to the minutes from the Thursday, January 21, 2015 SSC meeting (the “Minutes”). A motion to approve the Minutes was made by Karen Hollis. Laurie Assael seconded, and the Minutes were unanimously approved by the Members.

V. Friends of HPS Update (Reyna Hadar)

• The walkathon fundraiser raised $27,000.
• The final fundraiser for this school year is the Carnival. It will take place on April 30, 2016. Many volunteers are needed.
• Hadar asked Mrs. Parker about the water fountains. Mrs. Parker answered that the district has a protocol on any new attachments or alterations to the physical plant and that we are still looking into different options. A white tag was placed on every sink but no changes have been made to the existing water fountains.   The tags inform that the faucet portion of the fixture does not need to be flushed and the water fountain portion can be used to drink when flushed.

VI. Principal’s Report

• Proposed 2016-2017 Budget, 2015-2016 SPSA Update and Revision, ELAC Recommendation Review:
  • Staff and parent surveys for the next school were collected. Although the surveys were not tallied, Mrs. Parker predicted that the top priority items for the next school year will be the same as in previous years (e.g., instructional aids, arts programs and support for the English learner compliance procedures). Hancock Park School is a high functioning, top quality school because of these items that we budget for each year. We hope to budget the same items to maintain the quality of our school for the next school year. We are still waiting for the fund allocation from the district. Based on that information, we will decide on supplemental budget items.

• Single Plan for Student Achievement (the “SPSA”): The SPSA is a school site plan that shows our instructional priorities within the framework of the eight domains that the district uses to measure achievement and keep the school accountable. Mrs. Parker referred to the back of the agenda for a breakdown of what is included in the SPSA (Attached hereto as Attachment A). She went over the contents of the SPSA. Mrs. Parker completed the required annual review of the SPSA with Duane Dell Amico. We have an advisory committee (ELAC) for our English learners that is linked to targeted student populations, and the ELAC was asked to make a recommendation to the SSC as to how the funds generated by those students should be allocated. The ELAC recommended the SSC to approve the revision of strategies and goals in the SPSA concerning English learner programs for 2016-2017, as well as the SPSA updates regarding funds for English leaner intervention programs (February-March for grades 3-5). These recommendations are available for anyone to review in Mrs. Parker’s office. A motion to approve the SPSA revision was made by Ms. Debbie Glass. Mrs. Hollis seconded, and the revision was unanimously approved by the Members. A motion to approve the SPSA update was made by Ms. D. Glass. Ms. Barbara Gallen seconded, and the update was unanimously approved by the Members.

VII. 2016-2017 English Learner Master Plan Waiver (Karen Hollis)

• The district’s master plan governs the ELD programs of all schools within the district. One of the components of the master plan is that students are grouped homogenously by ELD levels in the classrooms. Hancock Park does not group students homogeneously by ELD level because we know that our ELD students learn better when they are grouped with English speaking peers. Currently, our school has a waiver which allows us to group our students heterogeneously and only group them homogenously during daily ELD instruction time (45-60mins/day). To support this daily ELD program, we have implemented grade level teaming. Another main reason for this waiver is to maintain our school’s unique diversity in our classrooms.   Normally schools have 1-2 main languages that are spoken by the student body. We have 30 languages. The waiver has to be annually applied. This is our third year applying for this waiver. The data in the SPSA and in the waiver support the effectiveness of the waiver. This waiver does not affect funding. A motion to approve the waiver was made by Mrs. Assael, seconded by Greg Apo and unanimously approved by the Members.

VIII. 2016-2017 School Based Management Waivers

• We have two school based management waivers. One waives district policy and union contractual agreements and allows us to have a single decision making body at this school rather than several. SSC is the single decision making body that, among other things, makes rules regarding school policies and budgetary decisions. Due to this waiver, SCC is authorized to make alternate scheduling as a school policy. This allows us to schedule Tuesday bank time days (professional development days) from the first Tuesday of the year to the last Tuesday of the school year. We have adjusted bell schedule to capture the minimum number of instructional minutes that are required within the school year. The second waiver allows us the right to have stakeholders’ input on hiring personnel rather than it being the sole decision of the administrator, which is currently the policy of the district and the union. The Members voted, approved and renewed the existing school-based management waivers for the 2016-2017 school year.

IX. UTLA Update (Larry Tynan)

• UTLA’s BFFF Campaign to raise monthly dues ($19 raise): 82% yes, 18% no.

X. Public Comments / Open Floor Discussion

• Dibel Waiver: Mrs. Gallen asked about the status of the waiver to Mrs. Parker. Mrs. Parker answered that she called and asked for a reply to the waiver. She finally received a call informing her that the Dibel assessment along with many other assessments are part of the UTLA contractual discussion and therefore the waiver is on hold. This will be revisited in the future.
• The March 17^th meeting may be moved depending on when we get the fund allocations from the district.   Please frequently check your email for a possible new meeting time.

XI. Adjournment

• Parker adjourned the meeting at 3:55pm.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Christine Choi, Secretary.

Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West

Hancock Park School

School Site Council Meeting

Thursday, January 21, 2016

2:45 pm – Room 32

Minutes

I. Call to Order:

• The meeting was called to order at 2:55pm by Principal/Vice-Chairperson Ashley Parker.

II. Attendance:

• Members Present: Ashley Parker, Karen Hollis, Christine Choi, Beverly Glass, Deborah Glass, Larry Tynan, Laurie Assael, Barbara Gallen, Greg Apo, Ana Fabian, Gloria Shen, Eunho Lee (the “Members”)
• Guests Present: Reyna Hadar

III. Approval of Minutes

• Parker asked the Members if there were any changes to be made to the minutes from the Thursday, December 3, 2015 SSC meeting (the “Minutes”). A motion to approve the Minutes was made by Deborah Glass. Beverly Glass seconded, and the Minutes were unanimously approved by the Members.

IV. Friends of HPS Update (Reyna Hadar)

• Hadar asked that we remind and encourage our students that if they raise $100 for the Walkathon, they will receive a T-shirt. Our goal is to raise more than last year.
• The Carnival is on April 30, 2016. Will start sending out e-blasts asking for volunteers for the event. Many volunteers will be needed.
• Parent volunteers: We are low on parent volunteers. There are many graduating parents who are heavily involved. We need parents new to Hancock Park and previously non-volunteering parents to volunteer. Ms. Hadar requested the help of teachers in getting the word out to the parents. There will be many positions that need to be filled for the next school year.
• Books for grade levels K-3 have been ordered. Still need book lists from 4^th and 5^th These new books will be housed in the library after the books are labeled as school property, so that they will be accessible to students in all grades.
• Parker thanked Friends of HPS for being an active community partner and supporting the school on applying for a technology grant. Over 350 applications have been submitted to the district, and we are waiting with hopes of getting the grant.
• D. Glass thanked Friends of HPS for making little pink laptops available for the classes. She shared that she uses them everyday, especially with her English language learners.
• Barbara Gallen reminded us about the town hall meeting on Monday, January 25, 2016, at 6:30pm at Hancock Park Elementary School auditorium, and distributed the fliers that she made with Ms. Kathy Wein and Ms. Assael regarding the DIBELS talking points.
• Ana Fabian shared that parents want to get involve but do not necessarily know what needs to be done. Ms. Hadar responded that in the spring time she will generate a list of jobs with detailed descriptions of the roles for the parents with her email available. Mrs. Parker suggested Ms. Hadar could make her email available online as well.
• Fabian thanked the teachers for the last winter program. She and many Latino parents enjoyed the shows and felt appreciated.

V. Principal’s Report

• After School Campus Security Discussion:
  • Final decisions are still pending regarding security during after school hours.   Many suggested locking the gate to secure the campus, but Mrs. Parker informed that we cannot lock the gate after school because the campus after school is considered an open public/community resource. During after school hours, Mrs. Parker does not have the authority to restrict someone’s access to school grounds unless that person gives a cause to restrict access. During instructional hours, the school is a locked campus with one buzzing gate, and all visitors need permission of the principal to enter the campus.
  • Parker found out that the Beyond the Bell coaches’ job description is student-focused and does not include being campus security aids or monitoring the gate.
  • Parker opened the floor for discussion on the matter.
  • D. Glass suggested hiring a security guard who can walk around campus and act as a deterrent.
  • A question was asked: Who is responsible for the safety of the students who attend after school programs? Mrs. Parker answered that each after school program is responsible for the safety and security of the respective students that attend its program.
  • Students are allowed to leave the after school program but they may not return.
  • Gallen asked why there are no speed bumps on Colgate Ave. and Ogden Dr.   Mrs. Parker answered that she has personally requested several times for speed bumps on those two streets and was told repeatedly that the streets were shared property with Park La Brea, and Park La Brea does not want speed bumps placed. Ms. Hadar volunteered to talk with Park La Brea about the issue.
  • Hollis indicated that since the campus is open to the community after school, there should be one gate left unlocked. However, the gate on Colgate may not be safe to leave unlocked since students typically wait to be picked up at that gate without any adult supervision. She mentioned the gate on Ogden and the gate near the staff parking lot. Mrs. Parker asked if the members have any preference on which gate should be left opened. The members discussed different reasons for each gate. One suggested putting a bell on the Ogden gate. Another suggested solar operated motion sensor lights for the staff parking lot. This matter will be finalized at the leadership meeting.
  • The after school security discussion will be continued at a later time.

• TK Program 2016-2017 at Rosewood ES
  • The TK program will continue at Rosewood Elementary School. School Management Services announced that Rosewood Elementary School will officially become a “TK Hub.”

• “Justifiable Personal Reasons” for Student Absence – No ADA
  • Independent Study is now changed to Administrator Approval of Student Absence.   Aside from normal absences, all absences with “Justifiable Personal Reasons” will need Mrs. Parker’s approval.
  • The teacher will provide work and the student will receive credit but it is still a funding-loss event for the district and therefore for the school.
  • If a student is not physically present at school, we lose funding and our school attendance record will be negatively affected, even if the absence is for “Justifiable Personal Reasons.”
  • It was suggested that at the beginning of a school year, parents should be informed of the loss of funding for the school as a result of absences.
  • We lose $27.90 per day, per child for absences. On average, we lose in funding $29,000 per month due to absences.

VI. UTLA Update (Larry Tynan)

• Teachers are voting on a raise in monthly dues to UTLA. UTLA was created in 1970. The dues have never been changed. The dues are based on 1.5% of the lowest teacher’s salary on the pay scale. UTLA is asking for it to be based on a midlevel teacher’s salary, a $19 increase. This is a part of UTLA’s newest campaign called BFFF, Build the Future, Fund the Fight.

VII. Public Comments / Open Floor Discussion

• School Experience Survey
  • Parents will receive information about the School Experience Survey. This survey is very important because it will show how well we provide appropriate programs for the families in our school community. It is available online, and a hardcopy will be provided.

• Community Emergency Preparedness Fair on March 5, 2016
  • Hancock Park will host a community event sponsored by the First-In Fire Foundation, director Steven Rosenthal.
  • The First-In Fire Foundation, Assemblyman Richard Bloom’s Office, school board member Steve Zimmer, Park La Brea, Friends of HPS, and Whole Foods will attend.
  • We will also have a ribbon cutting ceremony for our farm.
  • The goal is to invite the families of Hancock Park and to inform them about the emergency preparedness that takes place at our school, so that parents feel comfortable knowing that their children are safe.
  • The School Safety Plan will be on our school website so that parents can access it.

• There were no more questions or comments.

VIII. Adjournment

• Parker motioned to adjourn the meeting and Ms. Glass seconded at 3:49pm.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Christine Choi, Secretary.

Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District-West

Hancock Park School

School Site Council Meeting

Thursday, December 3, 2015

2:45 pm – Room 32

Minutes

I. Call to Order:

• The meeting was called to order at 2:55pm by Chairperson Mark Harelik.

II. Attendance:

• Members Present: Mark Harelik, Ashley Parker, Karen Hollis, Christine Choi, Beverly Glass, Deborah Glass, Larry Tynan, Laurie Assael, Barbara Gallen, Alice Shin, Eunho Lee (the “Members”)
• Guests Present: Reyna Hadar, Kathy Wien

III. Approval of Minutes

• Harelik asked the Members if there were any changes to be made to the minutes from the Thursday, October 15, 2015 SSC meeting. A motion to approve the SSC meeting minutes was made by Larry Tynan. Laurie Assael seconded and the minutes were unanimously approved by the Members.

IV. Friends of HPS Update (Reyna Hadar)

• Harelik suggested that Reyna Hadar from the Friends of HPS report first before the Principal’s Report. All agreed.
• Thursday, December 10, 2015, is Staff and Teachers Appreciation Breakfast and all were invited to join.
• The only fundraiser remaining for the school year is the Walkathon on the 100^th Teachers will receive free t-shirts. Flyers about the Walkathon will go out to all students a week before the winter break. The envelopes for donations will be distributed to students on the Monday when school resumes.
• Computers were distributed to all teachers. If teachers require assistance with setting up their computers, they should contact Ms. Hadar so that volunteer parents can assist.
• Books for the Classrooms will take place soon. The Farmers Market donated $15,000, which will be used to update the school’s library.
• Chairperson Harelik asked if distribution of the computers is going smoothly. Ms. Hadar answered that as far as she knows it has been going well. The computers have been distributed and are currently in the process of being set up. The second phase of the technology update in the classrooms will take place soon, which includes overhead projectors and other small items.
• Vice Chairperson Ashley Parker thanked the Friends of HPS for providing the updated technology that will help our students to receive technology enhanced instruction and allow the students to access required assessments using computers with more confidence.
• Ms Hadar also shared that she will be meeting with Park La Brea to receive the full amount ($100,000) of their donation.

V. Principal’s Report

• Attendance Targets: Mrs. Parker shared that she once again reviewed the Attendance Target, which is used as a measurement criteria for school performance. Annual daily attendance is utilized to determine what funds will come from the State of California. If students are not physically present at school, the school district loses funds and in turn the school site. They also allocate a certain amount of funds to a school for staff attendance. This amount will remain at the school site as carryover funds for the upcoming school year if the staff uses less than 7 days of absences. In the past year, this significant carryover amount was used to pay for certain personnel. She shared that she was informed that both student attendance and staff attendance were assessed as borderline. Our current attendance percentage is in the 90’s but is below the benchmark of 96%. She asked if there are any questions or any suggestions on how we can improve our attendance.
  • Assael asked about the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (the “FMLA”).   A qualifying FMLA leave is a protected absence, and it is not counted against the school’s attendance targets. FMLA packets should be filled out ahead of time before the need for the absence. It is not retroactive. It is unpaid leave. Mrs. Parker will discuss it further at a faculty meeting.
  • Beverly Glass suggested giving out some sort of rewards as incentives for attendance. She suggested a drawing of prizes for student and staff attendances. Karen Hollis shared that she and Ms. Hadar will start quarterly perfect attendance rewards for students.
  • Guest Kathy Wien suggested informing parents about the monetary costs to the school for student absences. Mr. Harelik added that parents are generally unaware of: 1) the monetary loss to the school in terms of reduced state funding; and 2) the fact that attendance is taken at the beginning of the day.   Ms. Hollis shared that there will be a trimester newsletter going out to parents and these two points will be included.

• Lockdown Drill (presented by Ms. Hollis): A lockdown can happen at anytime and to prepare for that, today’s lockdown drill took place at 12:40pm. Kinder and 1st graders just came in from lunch, and 3-5th graders were at lunch.  A chart of all four emergency drill procedures will be redistributed.

• Protocols:
  • Officer Jones informed the school that the supervision staff must lockdown as well. They are not to walk around to look for students or to secure the school but to lockdown where they are located at commencement of lockdown.
  • This school year, the 4 designated classrooms that are close to the yards to receive students who are outside during lockdown: room 26, 29, 31 and 1. The back door of the cafeteria will also remain unlocked to receive students who are in the lunch pavilion and handball court area. If you are in the auditorium, stay and lock the doors. The library will not be available to receive stduents during lockdown because the library is not open everyday.
  • Doors must be locked, lights out with everyone silent, down on the ground and away from windows and doors. Doors should not be opened for anyone, including students, once lockdown has commenced.

VI. Multiple Assessments (Kathy Wien)

• Guest Kathy Wien made a plea for parents to help with an issue that many teachers are frustrated with – the amount of instructional time taken for testing. CELDT is given at the beginning of the year individually. There are also 6 interim assessments, which prepare students to take SBAC assessments. She is especially concerned with the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy (DIBELS).   DIBELS is given three times a year. It is a one on one assessment with each student, which ends up taking about 15 minutes per student. The DIBELS assesses students’ fluency and reading comprehension, and it is useful in determining the students’ needs at the beginning of the year. The frustrating part of DIBELS is that even though a student has surpassed a benchmark for his/her grade at the beginning of the year, the teachers are required to give the assessment 2 more times; such assessments provide little useful information/data about the students to the teachers.   The amount of instructional time taken for testing is absurd. We are one of the few schools that do not have Breakfast in the Classroom because of the assistance provided by parents. She came to share this with SSC to see if there is any way from a parental perspective to resolve these issues related to DIBELS. Mr. Tynan also shared that it is frustrating to give these 6 online interim assessments and not get the detailed results.   The language arts portion of the 6 interim assessments must be scored and inputted by the teacher for each question for each student to receive results. These are all mandated and take tremendous amount of instructional time.

• Harelik requested a page of talking points from Ms. Wien that he and Barbara Gallen could use to start the conversation on this issue with other parents. Mrs. Parker suggested that this issue be presented at the upcoming town hall meeting on Monday, January 25, 2016, at 6:30pm at Hancock Park Elementary School. We will have direct access to School Board President Steve Zimmer. We need lots of parent support.

VII. UTLA Update

• Tynan, the school’s UTLA Representative, reported that at the next School Board Meeting on Tuesday, December 8, 2015, one of the board members will bring up a vote about Eli Broad and the Walton Family Foundation’s plan to fund non-union charter schools that could draw away half of the students in the district.

VII. Public Comments / Open Floor Discussion

• There were no questions or comments.

VIII. Adjournment

• Assael motioned to adjourn the meeting and Ms. Hollis seconded at 4:15pm.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Christine Choi, Secretary.

Los Angeles Unified School District, LD-West

Hancock Park School

School Site Council Meeting

Thursday, December 3, 2015

2:45 pm – Room 32

Agenda

I. Sign-In

II. Open The Meeting             Mark Harelik, Chairperson

• Approve Minutes from previous SSC meeting to be posted on school website

III. Principal’s Report          Ashley Parker, Principal/Vice-Chairperson

• Attendance Targets
• Lockdown Drill

IV. Multiple Assessments   Kathy Wien, UTLA Rep Co-Chair

V. UTLA Update                      Larry Tynan, Teacher/UTLA Rep

VI. Friends of HPS Update FOHPS Officer

VII. Public Comments/ Open Floor Discussion

• Anyone in attendance at the meeting may bring up topics relevant to our school.
• The committee has the option to open immediate discussion of the topic(s), place the topic on the agenda for the next meeting, or table the discussion for a later date.
• Comments by the general public are limited to 2 minutes in presentation, with no time limit placed on discussion, of said issue, by the council. When more time is needed to present an issue before the SSC, the item must be brought up to any member or officer of the SSC to be placed on the agenda for the following SSC meeting.

MINUTES FROM THE FRIENDS OF HANCOCK PARK MEETING

November 3, 2015

Welcome: Reyna welcomed everyone to the meeting and shared the good news that the Annual Giving Campaign raised $245,000.00. Everyone is happy with the result, especially given the lower student enrollment at Hancock Park Elementary. Approximately 55% of the families donated. Next year, the hope is that 70% of the families will donate. Thus far, some of the funds have been used for kinder yard improvements, to purchase laptop and desktop computers, provide funding so that all classes have classroom aides, and to provide funds for four more hours of janitorial work.

Thus far, Park La Brea has donated $91,000.00 to Hancock Park Elementary School.   We are hoping to receive all $100,000.00 come January 1, 2016.

Everyone was made aware that the library is open after school until 4:30 and that the librarian provides supervision for students in the 2^nd to 5^th grade. Sending out an e-blast to make parents aware of this was discussed.

Teacher/Staff Holiday Breakfast: Shula introduced herself and explained that the staff at Hancock Park appreciate the breakfast. Food is provided for 105 people. Peets donates coffee. Gift Cards from Whole Foods are given out as gifts to the staff. Spencer will provide a budget. Room parents will be asked to send out an email to the classroom parents asking for assistance with the breakfast.

Clothes Give Away Drive – Reyna explained the idea of having the families donate clothing that would then be sent to South America through a known charity. One thought was to have the donated clothing brought to the Carnival in the spring. As another option, it was discussed collecting donations for an organization local to the area such as Toys for Tots. This was not fully decided.

Clean-up Beautification – Candace Cole discussed getting the students excited and interested in cleaning up their campus. Candace intends to speak with the janitor and others currently involved in maintaining the campus. Some ideas contemplated were: promoting the golden ticket program, getting trash pickers for the kids to use during recess and lunch, assigning classes to take turns cleaning the campus, and getting more parental involvement.

Kinder Yard Equipment Proposal – Stephanie Richards discussed the use of the remaining kinder yard improvement funds which is $2500.00. Assistant Principal Hollis shared with Stephanie that the teachers wanted more jump ropes, tricycles and hula hoops. There was also discussion about planting Fichus Trees.

Carnival: Victoria introduced herself and explained that this is her first year coordinating the Carnival which is scheduled for April 30, 2015. She has contacted volunteers from prior years and intends to really start coordinating with them and other volunteers after Winter break.

Morning Drop Off: Jenna was not present, and Reyna explained that Jenna was hoping that someone would be interested in taking over the position next year.

The meeting convened at approximately 7:30 p.m.