School district groups appointed, meetings coming up

The FAC was established by the board in December and the public was encouraged to apply for positions representing the district’s schools and the community at large.

According to Superintendent Stacey Larson-Everson, the FAC will provide an opportunity for parents, community members, teachers, support staff and students to provide input and recommendations to the district and to the governing board regarding capital improvements needed for the district, as well as long-term facility planning.

As specified by the bylaws for the FAC, which were also approved by the board, it will be made up of one parent representative from each school plus three community members. Additionally, there will be three district staff representatives. One student from grades 6 to 10, and two school board members (Tyler Napier and Tracy Kelly) will bring the voting members of the committee to 15. 

Serving as a facilitator will be Hojat Entezari, the district’s chief business officer, who will be a non-voting member.

At its meeting on March 14, the board reviewed applications and appointed the following people:

Jeff Stock to represent Cummings Valley Elementary, Brian Reel to represent Golden Hills Elementary, David Watkins to represent Tompkins Elementary, Curtis Nelson to represent Tehachapi Independent Learning Academy, Pamela Mangelsdorf to represent Jacobsen Middle School and Ami Shugart to represent Tehachapi High School.

Raymond Schmidt to represent Classified School Employee Association #466, Deborah Haeberle to represent Tehachapi Association of Teachers and Bonny Porter to represent the district’s confidential and management staff.

Corey Costelloe, Guy Dees and Corey Torres were chosen as the community representatives. Costelloe is assistant city manager for the city of Tehachapi and president of the Tehachapi Warriors Booster Club. Dees is an instructor at Tehachapi High School and a baseball coach. Torres is district manager for Tehachapi Valley Recreation and Park District. All three are alumni of local schools.

No student representatives applied, but efforts will be made to recruit to fill the student seat, Larson-Everson said.

Discussion about the committee began last October when Costelloe brought his concerns about the football stadium and sports facilities to the school board. But Napier, who pushed for the group to be formed, said the effort is not focused on sports.

“I think this is going to be a long-term commitment to the community, to all the facilities, all schools,” he said.

The FAC will operate under the Brown Act, a state law that governs meetings of public boards, including advisory committees. Meetings will be open to the public and follow posted agendas. The first meeting is expected to take place on March 30, but an agenda has not yet been posted. Information is available on the district’s website, bit.ly/3n3yA0B.

Citizen’s Task Force

The Citizen’s Task Force is a committee composed of parents of district students and members of community organizations. Its purpose is to provide community feedback on key issues facing the district. It exists to advise, support and advocate for the, in alignment with Board Policy 1220. The task force has no legislative, administrative, or programmatic authority. It works cooperatively with school officials in planning and carrying out its work.

Members of the task force were appointed at the board’s February and March meetings.

Cora Gutierrez and Alexander Maupin will represent Cummings Valley Elementary, Jennifer Carr will represent Golden Hills Elementary and Sara Laughlin and David Watkins will represent Tompkins Elementary.

Carlo Acevedo and Leslie Whiteside will represent Tehachapi Independent Learning Academy. Ami Shugart will represent Jacobsen Middle School and Nicole Gockel and Nancy Weinstein will represent Tehachapi High School.

Jeff Kermode was nominated by board Clerk Jackie Wood. John Buckley will represent Golden Hills Community Services District.

Other trustees had an opportunity to nominate representatives to the task force and other local governmental agencies were invited to do the same.

The task force will meet in person at 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 23, at the school district office, 300 S. Robinson St.

More information about the task force is online at bit.ly/3TprW0A.

Claudia Elliott is a freelance journalist and former editor of the Tehachapi News. She lives in Tehachapi and can be reached by email: claudia@claudiaelliott.net.