New Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Dan Neff introduced to the board

ATASCADERO — Overcrowding the district was a topic of concern for teachers and parents at the Atascadero Unified School District (AUSD) school board meeting on Tuesday, March 21, at 7 p.m. The meeting took place in person at the Kenneth Beck Building. Since August 2022, the district has remained with in-person meetings only, without a live streaming option. 

During Oral Communications from the Public, both parents and teachers expressed concern about overcrowding in the district. Santa Margarita School kindergarten teacher Lauren Cotterell requested that the district have a 24-1 cap and not a 32-1 cap for classrooms, stating benefits for students with smaller groups.

During his Superintendent Report, Tom Butler acknowledged the concerns raised by the kindergarten teachers and announced that another Kindergarten Committee meeting would be held later that week. He also introduced Dan Neff, the new assistant superintendent of human resources, who will be taking over for Curt Eichperger.

Eichperger will continue to hold his position with the AUSD through the end of June 2023 before leaving to start his new position as assistant superintendent of business services at Lucia Mar Unified School District.

The meeting proceeded with the unanimous passing of both the minutes and the consent agenda.

The AUSD Citizen’s Bond Oversight Committee Annual Report was given by Chairman of the Bond Oversight Committee Don Vert. He stated that a sampling of 85 percent of invoices showed no issues during the accounting audit. 

Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Jackie Martin and Director Brant Lloyd presented the board with the 19six Architectural Services Agreement.

The project scopes Atascadero High School (AHS) Site Safety, Security, and Front Entry Improvements for the amount of $253,000. It would include a reconfiguring of the Administration Building, adding parking spaces to the Stadium Parking Lot, reconfiguring the lower student parking lot, better pedestrian access and the, widening the ramp from the lower parking lot, and a new security camera on the north side of the A building. In addition, a new electric vehicle gate and a lockable pedestrian gate would be added to the San Andreas entry to the school, plus many more improvements.

Martin confirmed that the project would be funded by state matching funds, and it was approved unanimously.

During the AUSD school board meeting on Tuesday, March 21, Director of Curriculum Josh Aston gave a presentation on the Career Technical Education Pathways at Atascadero High School. These pathways aim to help students develop the skills and knowledge necessary for future careers.

In 2013, the California Department of Education revised the Career Technical Education (CTE) Model Curriculum Standards to assist districts and schools in developing high-quality curriculum and instruction. The model standards were created with input from representatives from business, industry, postsecondary, and secondary education and reviewed by members of the general public. These standards offer clear guidelines for course content development and expectations for student achievement, with 15 Industry Sectors containing 58 Pathways.

Each Industry Sector has California’s 12 Standards for Career Ready Practice (Common Core), which closely aligns with Career Technical Anchor Standards, providing a framework for curriculum objectives. Each Pathway contains standards specific to that pathway and performance indicators for each of those standards.

At Atascadero High School, students have the opportunity to begin their journey to a future career by enrolling in a sequence of courses offered in seven different pathways. The pathways include Agriculture and Natural Resources; Arts, Media, and Entertainment; Business and Finance; Engineering and Architecture; Health Science and Medical Technology; Hospitality, Tourism, and Recreation; and Public Service. The courses offered in these pathways are divided into three levels: Introduction, Concentration, and Capstone. There is also flexibility in course choice within each level.

Overall, the Career Technical Education Pathways at Atascadero High School are designed to prepare students for success in their future careers by providing them with the necessary skills and knowledge in a variety of industries.

The next regularly scheduled school board meeting took place, in person, on Tuesday, April 4, at 7 p.m.