Ceres Unified trustees take a gander at Google, will talk finance Thursday

The Ceres Unified School District board will consider a boundary change at its meeting Thursday, shifting more freshmen to Central Valley High School next year to avoid crowding Ceres High. Trustees also will consider a money-saving refinance of district debt and new policies to increase reserves.

The district’s ambitious building schedule has included creating new schools and refurbishing older campuses. This year, it is upgrading its technology infrastructure with $4 million in federal e-rate money and a 10 percent district match. The improvements come in advance of a planned switch to laptops for all but its youngest students next year, Superintendent Scott Siegel said at a special meeting of the board last week.

Nothing has been decided, but board members met Thursday to get a lesson on Google applications, including jointly writing on Google Drive documents and setting up Gmail accounts. The district is seriously looking at Chromebooks for first-graders on up – kids who know their letters – and tablets for those who still trace letters with their fingers, Siegel said.

“The biggest part of this is getting teachers used to using this as an instructional tool,” he said. Teachers will get training in January, and the board got a preview to be at the head of the class if they attend the January training.

“It’s challenging, but I’m excited about it for our students and families,” said board President Betty Davis.

The shift to individual laptops will open opportunities for students, said board member Teresa Guerrero. “Now all these young kids are going to be competitive,” she said.

“It’s time. The future is here, so here we go,” said board member Jim Kinard. “I’m not real keen on technology, but I think it’s very important with the period of time we’re in. We need to do this.”

Thursday, the board will elect new officers and convene briefly as the annual meeting of the district financing corporation board. On the regular agenda, trustees will consider refinancing expensive bonds with delayed interest payments. The deal would save district property owners an estimated $23 million over the life of the bonds, which run through 2050.

Under the proposed high school boundary change, sophomores, juniors and seniors affected would have a choice to shift schools or finish up at Ceres High. The shift would apply to students living in two quadrants: north of Whitmore Avenue, east of Boothe Road, south of Valley Oak Drive and west of Eastgate Boulevard; and south of Hatch Road, west of Faith Home Road, east of Eastgate and north of Whitmore.

The board will consider a 0.4 percent raise, retroactive to July 1, for district office staff and midlevel administrators, plus a one-time payment equal to 0.5 percent of annual salary. The agenda item does not note a cumulative cost for the contracts.

Up for discussion is a Ceres Unified Seal of Biliteracy, to appear on high school transcripts and diplomas. “It is a way of honoring the skills our students attain, and can be attractive to future employers and college admissions offices,” notes the agenda item.

Trustees will review an updated budget and vote on changing their general fund reserve policies. The proposal would set aside a percentage of extra funding targeted for poor children, English learners and foster kids. Extra money would be in the bank to fund rising costs for retirement benefits, to retire debt and to save for future building needs.

In other business, bids to build shade structures for two new schools, Lucas and Beaver elementary schools, will be awarded.

This story was originally published December 9, 2014 at 6:28 PM with the headline "Ceres Unified trustees take a gander at Google, will talk finance Thursday."