There were no representatives from Contra Costa County on the state’s Ed Tech task force, as far as I can tell. It looks like the closest task force member was Alexander Zwissler, Executive Director/CEO, Chabot Space and Science Center. (The district uses the TechBridge program that is available through the science center.)

FYI: When it comes to posting meeting agendas of the Citizen Bond Oversight Committee (“CBOC”), the district must comply with the Brown Act in addition to Education Code 15280(b). Ed Code 15280(b) requires the CBOC meetings to be posted in the same manner as Board Meetings. MDUSD Board meeting Agenda’s are posted via the Internet and so the CBOC meetings must be posted in the same manner, on the Internet. Further this Code mandates the CBOC have a dedicted Internet Site to make CBOC correspondence, such as meeting minutes, available to the public.

“15280. (b) All committee proceedings shall be open to the public and notice to the public shall be provided in the same manner as the proceedings of the governing board. The citizens’ oversight committee shall issue regular reports on the results of its activities. A report shall be issued at least once a year. Minutes
of the proceedings of the citizens’ oversight committee and all documents received and reports issued shall be a matter of public record and be made available on an Internet website maintained by the
governing board.”

I don’t post Site Council agendas or minutes on our school website. It’s not required. Plus, I don’t have that ability at site level. We POST them at the site; those who give a damn read the board. Our parent group doesn’t, either. Why must the district? Again, TIS isn’t sitting around waiting to post an agenda. Dent has had staff cuts too.

“Doctor,” since you work at Dent you know that employees can only do what’s in their job description; if you deviate and do anything outside your department, there’s Hell to pay. How about YOU volunteer to post all the meeting agendas? Go down the hall and tell Steve you want to add agenda postings on the web as one of your duties. Then there will be no more Brown Act violations for you to complain about. Put up or…well, you know the rest.

Anon: As previously noted, no board member showed up to the BOC meeting, where there was a lively discussion by dedicated district residents who said they wished a board member had attended to hear their concerns about technology and the use of social media. These people are trying to help the district. Chairman John Ferrante advised at least one CBOC member to bring his concerns to the board. But, that takes time. So, that person said he would likely send an email. However, emails are private communications that may or may not influence a board member to take action. Even those who make public comments are often frustrated by the board’s lack of responsiveness. This is why Trustee Cheryl Hansen wanted to hold community meetings where there could be more informal discussions between board members and the public. But the rest of the board appears to be resistant to that idea. Although Board President Sherry Whitmarsh said she thought the strategic plan could be addressed at the June 25 meeting, it is not on the agenda. At a strategic planning board study session months ago, Trustee Gary Eberhart said he wanted to make discipline one of his top priorities. However, there has been virtually no discussion of this topic since he made that comment. Now, teachers and parents are starting to speak out about the need for a comprehensive discipline policy. It remains to be seen whether their attempts to “help the board” understand community concerns will result in action by the board.

Also, FYI, Trustee Cheryl Hansen said in an email that she didn’t attend the BOC meeting because she received an email from Pete Pedersen telling her the 2002 BOC meeting was canceled. She didn’t realize there were two separate BOC meetings and that the 2010 meeting was still moving forward.

She also said she never received copies of the bond preliminary official statement or purchase agreement and that she was never told they were available for review at the April 23 meeting. Superintendent Steven Lawrence, on the other hand, has claimed that trustees knew this, even though he failed to make any public announcement stating that.

The board and administration could help itself — and help build public trust — by improving transparency and being more responsive to residents such as Alicia Minyen, when they point out that important documents are being withheld from public view.

To the MDUSD staffer(s) responsible for these complete reports-great job!!!!

I apologize for hijacking this thread with my own district issues. In response to Anon34, I believe we should give credit where due.