District acts after potential scheduling snag emerges; board also updated on AHS parking lot improvements

ATASCADERO — The Atascadero Unified School District Board of Trustees took a step to neutralize a potential scheduling snafu that emerged at Atascadero High School by recognizing a second program, called the Early College Program, for students taking college-level classes.

The board voted unanimously to recognize the ECP for AHS students, effective for the 2025-26 school year, during its regular meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 2. The vote count was 6-0, with Trustee Rebeka Koznek absent.

As Assistant Superintendent for Educational Services, E.J. Rossi explained in his address and in his report, AHS students who are part of the dual-enrollment plan do so under existing Education Codes (Ed Code) and the current College and Career Access Pathways (CCAP) agreement. Under that agreement, AHS students who are enrolled in community college courses must maintain a minimum of 240 minutes of daily high school instruction and not exceed 11 community college credits per semester. Under a CCAP agreement, students who do not meet the 240 minimum daily high school instructional minutes will result in a 25% reduction in average daily attendance funding.

However, at the start of the school year, approximately 150 students’ schedules did not meet the 240 minimum high school instructional minute requirements. According to Rossi, the district’s options were to change students’ schedules or identify other possible solutions.  

When asked why this became a problem after working under the program for so long without any trouble, Rossi said, “In the spring there were two simultaneous things that happened: A State Senate bill, SB 438, was brought forth to lessen the minimum classroom minutes from 240 minutes to 180, but has been held up in the Senate, and the chancellor’s office for colleges in the state really re-emphasized the 240-minute requirement for CCAP, and those two thing together set off triggers for the state auditors to put that in there books and say that the requirement needed to be audited.”

Fortunately, Rossi said, they found that the Early College Programs allowed most of the students affected to participate as “cohorts” of high school students and take 11 college credits per semester while maintaining a minimum of 180 minutes of daily high school instruction with no reduction to average daily attendance funding. This program supports students to earn a high school diploma and up to two years of college credit, which may be applied toward completing an associate or bachelor’s degree, transfer to a four-year university, or obtaining a skills certificate. The solution allows AHS students to maintain their current schedules and reduces the number of students not meeting this minimum minute requirement from about 140 to fewer than 50.  

And Rossi also assured that nothing changes for those who were already complying with the 240-minute minimum.

“Everything we have with CCAP is also under the Early College Programs,” he said. “This actually broadens our options.”

In other business, AUSD Director of Support Services updated the board on improvements being made for the AHS parking lots and entrances.

Lloyd said workers started work on the day after the school year ended, focusing on three major areas: the stadium parking lot off Atascadero Avenue, the school entrance on San Andres Avenue, and making an interior parking area near San Andres ready for potential installation of electric vehicle charging stations.

For the stadium lot, which Lloyd said was the biggest part of the project, it was being reconfigured to make it more safe for pedestrians.

“We’re moving pedestrian traffic away from drivers, creating more walkways,” he said. “There was significant hillside work and it was a chore to get area excavated, but it’s getting done.”

The San Andres part of the project includes installing an electric fence at the entrance, like two other entrances at the school

“It’s moving along quite well, although there was a minor setback with the grade, that made us pause the earthwork project.It may set us back for a couple weeks, no more,” Lloyd said. He also added the crews were currently at work on the EV readiness for the internal lot, as they couldn’t do any work on it during summer classes.

Lloyd said the original completion date was set for Oct. 31, and that they were working hard toward it, the delay with the San Andres setback had him estimating completion of the project to be done in mid-November.

The AUSD Board of Trustees will next meet on Tuesday, Sept. 16, with closed session at 5:30 and open session beginning at 7 p.m.