Documenter: Ramiro Merino

Summary

  • The FUSD is in the process of accepting bids for various projects, including the renovation of the tennis courts and the construction of the Maintenance, Transportation, and Operations (MOT) Building. 

  • The Board approved the purchase of Ready Reading to be used as ELA curriculum during the Summer Session 2021 for grades K-8. 

  • The Board approved the Paper Learning One-to-One Tutoring for all students grades 6-12, which would provide students with live 24/7 access to a trained tutor from April 2021 to June 2022 as part of the Expanded Learning Opportunity. 

  • Superintendent reported that the school district would resume half-day in-person classes since the county moved to the orange tier, which allows for in-person classes. 

  • WASC approved the accreditation of Fowler Academy, which would allow for the district to have an accredited continuation school. 

Board of Trustees

  • Darlene Martin, Board President and Trustee Area 4

  • Eugene Kandarian, Board Member of Trustee Area 5

  • Henry Murrieta, Board Member of Trustee Area 1 

  • Art Rojas, Board Member of Trustee Area 3

  • Mark Stockwell, Board Clerk of Trustee Area 2 

District Office Staff/Administration

  • Dr. Paul Marietti, Superintendent

  • May Yang, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services

  • Tamara Sebilian, Director of Educational Services and Accountability

  • Gloria Regler, Director of Student Services

  • Edith Cantu, Director of Human Resources

The Scene

The Fowler Unified School District Board meetings are only held in-person. Board President Martin called the meeting to order for Wednesday, April 14 at 6 p.m. at Malaga Elementary School. Board members present included Darlene Martin, Eugene Kandarian, Henry Murrieta, Art Rojas and Mark Stockwell. Superintendent Dr. Paul Marietti and the District Office Staff and Administration were also present, including May Yang, Tamara Sebilian, Gloria Regler, and Edith Cantu. The Board and Administration staff all wore masks at their designated seating. There were two community members present, who also wore masks and sat six feet from each other. At the back of the cafeteria table, hard copy meeting agendas, Parent Commitment Cards, and hand sanitizers were available. 

Informational Items 

Superintendent Marietti stated that the informational items on the agenda are for the first hearing. Mrs. Yang reviewed with the Board the changes that were made to the Board policies. As this is a First Hearing, the Board Policies will be brought before the Board for final approval at the next Board meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 12, 2021. 

  • First Reading of Revised Board Policy 3110 – Transfer of Funds

  • First Reading of Revised Board Policy 3230 – Federal Grant Funds

  • First Reading of Revised Board Policy 3452 – Student Activity Funds

  • First Reading of Revised Board Policy 3600 – Consultants

  • First Reading of Revised Board Policy 7210 – Financing

  • First Reading of New Board Policy 6142.8 Comprehensive Health Ed 

Consent Agenda

The agenda stated the following: “Items listed under the consent agenda are considered to be routine and are acted on by the Board of Education by one motion. There is no discussion of these items prior to the Board vote unless a member of the Board, staff or public requests specific items to be considered and discussed separately and/or removed from the consent agenda. Each item on the consent agenda approved by the Board shall be deemed to have been considered in full and adopted as recommended.” The Board unanimously approved the items on the consent agenda, including: 

  • Minutes of the Organizational/Regular Meeting of March 24, 2021

    • Staff recommends the approval of the Minutes of the Organizational/Regular Meeting of March 24, 2021. 

  • 5YR Renewal Teacher Induction Cooperative Agreement 

    • Staff recommends the approval to renew the 5-Year Teacher Induction Agreement between Fowler USD and the Fresno County of Education. 

Action Items

The Board unanimously passed the following action items:

  • Tennis Court Renovation 

    • Staff recommends approval of Katch Environmental for the renovation of the tennis courts. Base bid amount is $171,716, Alternate 1 is $22,319 and Alternate 2 is $29,419 for a Total of $223,474. 

  • Maintenance, Transportation, Operation (MOT) Building

    • Staff recommends approval of Oral E. Micham for the construction of the MOT building. Base bid is $7,745,000 and Alternate 1 is $50,000 for a total of $7,795,000. 

  • Obsolete Old Tractor

    • Staff recommends to obsolete antiquated tractor (1974 Massey Ferguson 135 for $500 to local farmer (accept tractor as is and will haul away); 

  • Accounts Payable Report 3.5.21- 4.7.21

    • Staff recommends approval of the Accounts Payable Report for the period of 3.5.21 – 4.7.21. 

  • Adoption of School Speciality Curriculum FOSS Science Grades TK-5

    • Staff recommends approval for the adoption of FOSS Science curriculum for grades TK-5. 

  • Summer Session 2021 Ready Reading Curriculum K-5 / Summer  Session 2021 Ready Reading Curriculum Middle School 

    • Staff recommends approval for the purchase of Ready Reading to be used as ELA curriculum during the Summer Session 2021 for grades K-8. 

  • REnewal Curriculum Associates REady Math & iReady

    • Staff recommends approval to renew Ready Mathematics and iReady curriculum for the 2021 and 2022 school year. 

  • Paper Learning One-to-One Tutoring 

    • Staff recommends approval of Paper Learning One-to-One Tutoring for all students grades 6-12. Provides students with live 24/7 access to a trained tutor from April 2021 – June 2022 as part of the Expanded Learning Opportunity. 

  • Facilities Use Agreement SELPA FCOE

    • Staff recommends approval of Facilities Use Agreement between Fowler USD and Fresno County of Education to assist with facilitation of the Fresno County Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA). 

Superintendent’s Report

Superintendent Marietti announced that the athletics program is in full swing, although attendance to these sporting events is restricted to COVID-19 guidelines. “We are excited to start school for next Tuesday. We are bringing tents, tables, chairs, porta potties. We are excited we went into the orange tier yesterday and are glad that we are making progress. We will not be in school for the full day, but it is still nice to go back to school. We are trying to open up the parking lot by Marshall Elementary and have it renovated by this Friday. The Ag building is going up. These are projects that have been sitting. We committed $8 million to the project, so we are committed to the completion of the project. All I say is go go go. We have air conditioners being moved into Marshall Elementary. Since I’ve been here, those machines have been going down. WASC will be virtually at Fowler Academy. By the end of tomorrow, we will have an accredited alternative school for the district. We also talked at previous meetings about branding. The video that went out on Monday is the way we want to tell our stories, it’s a different way to communicate with our community. We are excited for what this means for our community.” 

Board Members’ Report

There were no reports from the Board Members. 

Closed Session

The Board went to Closed Session at 7 p.m. 

Reconvene in Open Session

The Board meeting reconvened to Open Session at 7:50 p.m.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. at Marshall Elementary School. 

Adjournment

Board President Martin adjourned the meeting at 8 p.m.

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