By MAGNOLIA LAFLEUR | Reporter
The Palisades Charter High School Board of Trustees met on Tuesday, February 8, to discuss COVID-19, safety and security, budget and financial updates, and more.
Director of Student Support Services Tammie Wilson led the COVID-19 updates. She reported that more teachers and students had gotten Omicron over the Delta variant.
Principal Dr. Pamela Magee added PCHS has been able to maintain “a stable health environment” thanks to the dedication and hard work of the school health office and nurses.
“While other schools were forced to delay reopening after winter break, PCHS teachers, substitute teachers, staff and administrators managed to keep all classrooms and essential offices open during a challenging period of time,” Magee said to the Palisadian-Post. “PCHS will continue weekly health checks for the time being. And although mask restrictions have been lifted in many areas, mask mandates continue for schools.”
During the meeting, Brooke King, who is on the Safety and Security Team, shared that she was successful in finding resources to conduct threat assessment at the school for no-cost.
In regards to perimeter fencing, there has yet to be a vote on whether or not a fence should be installed. The Safety and Security Team and a stakeholder survey will aid in determining if it will be necessary to erect a fence around the school.
In regards to funding, Board Chair Dara Williams explained the need for public schools to lobby state legislatures and governors for more funding. Due to inflation, school budgets have increased, minimizing the amount of funds for teachers salaries in comparison with their cost of living.
“Many of these costs are outpacing inflation,” Williams said to the Post. “We should be cognizant that workers for these companies may be getting higher raises than our teachers. Of course, this is due to a labor shortage. But fewer people are going into teaching and the country may find itself with a teacher shortage if things do not change.
“To prevent that we need to do everything we can to better compensate teachers. The state budget is the most significant factor in whether we can pay teachers more.”
The board also expressed concerns about the rising costs of transportation and the effectiveness of the current system, asking “How might we make this a self-sustaining program or find another way to address this issue?”
Members said transportation funding cuts would primarily affect minority students that are bussed in from different areas of Los Angeles.
“When the transportation budget is raised, there is a perception from some that Pali doesn’t embrace diversity. Nothing could be further from the truth,” Dara explained. “The question is whether we can ensure diversity, equity and inclusion without providing transportation, which is a significant expense. Freeing up the resources spent on transportation could be used for other priorities. No one knows what effect not continuing to fund transportation would have on school demographics, but the worry is that it would have a negative effect.”
This coming year, there will be open seats to join Pali High’s Board of Trustees. They are currently seeking interested parents, teachers and management representatives who are interested in serving their community. March 11 is the deadline for candidate applications and the voting window is open from April 1 to April 7.
Applicants can find more information—soon to be posted by the election committee—on palihigh.org.
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