Monrovia Unified School District
Board of Education Meeting Highlights
January, 2022
Recognitions
The Monrovia Unified Board of Education invited students from Santa Fe Computer Science Magnet School and Bradoaks Elementary School to lead the Pledge of Allegiance during our January meetings. Adam Cao and Malaya Lane (Santa Fe) and Scarlette Urias (Bradoaks) did a great job starting off our Board meetings for the month.
The employees of the month for January were also recognized at the Board of Education’s January 12 meeting. Instructional Aide Ruben Lozano and Teacher Marina Kagel-Dowling (unable to attend) were highlighted for their dedication and work ethic at Mayflower Elementary. While Alex Lara and Wendy Stewart were celebrated for 20+ years of bringing joy and outstanding service to our students at Monrovia Unified.
The final recognition goes to Clifton Middle School teacher Gina Ayala. Ms. Ayala was named Middle School Educator of the Year for the California League of Schools Region 8. She’s now in the running to become the California State Middle School Educator of the Year that will be named in March. In addition, Ms. Ayala was also named the "2021 Public Health Teacher of the Year," by the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District. She won the award by encouraging your students to support public health efforts and taking steps to wipe mosquitoes off the grid! She was joined by her husband to accept the award at the January 26 Board Meeting. Congratulations to Ms. Ayala!
Actions Taken by the Board of Education
The Board of Education approved a new Career Tech Education (CTE) Pathway with Project Lead the Way Engineering. This will give Monrovia High School students another opportunity to build up their technical skills and experience before graduation. The Board also approved the first class offering for the program, ‘Honors Introduction to Engineering Design,’ during the January 26 meeting. Here is a thorough course description of what students would be learning in the class.
Board Members approved an agreement with Fresh Start Healthy School Meals to provide fresh school meal entrees for our child nutrition program. These products are different in that they are
made to order, refrigerated and reheated from a refrigerated state. The freezer changes food taste. It is the District’s hope that the healthier ingredients and aesthetic qualities of these items will surface on the dinner tables throughout our Monrovia households. The company will be serving meals to students every Friday, here’s a look at what they’ll be serving in February.
In partnership with the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE), the Board approved new mental health support services with the Employee Assistance Service for Education (EASE) program. EASE is a confidential and voluntary service offering professional counseling, consultation and education to district employees. The program is designed to assist employees struggling with work-related and personal concerns which may be affecting the employee. These services are free for all Monrovia Unified employees.
The Board approved a number of agreements with universities allowing the District to provide field experience while working at our sites:
- There is a new agreement between Biola University and Monrovia Unified to allow the District to train student teachers and student speech-language pathologists.
- The district has renewed the agreement with Iowa State University to provide support to the Food Services administration team. One Dietetic intern will conduct a professional assignment that supports the administration team. This training regimen contributes immensely to developing Food Service Industry leaders and sustaining the profession.
- There is a new agreement with Grand Canyon University allowing the District to provide field experiences and train nursing students.
Board Members approved the contract for the new Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, Dana Smith. Dana has over 20 years of experience serving the fiscal departments of a variety of school districts, most recently South Pasadena USD where she served as the Director of Fiscal Services since 2014. She has a master's and bachelor's in accounting and graduated from FCMAT's prestigious CBO Mentor Program.
Finally, at the January 12 meeting, the Board adopted a resolution recognizing January 18, 2022 as “A National Day of Racial Healing.” Board Members recognize the deep racial divisions that exist in America that must be overcome and healed.