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Pleasanton Unified School District staff will be presenting the 2024-25 Proposition 28 annual report to the Board of Trustees Thursday evening, which includes information on how the arts and music state funds have helped students and staff during the last school year.
In order to keep receiving these state funds, the district has to prepare these reports each year and they must also be approved by the board before being submitted to the California Department of Education.
“Prop 28 funding has been instrumental in expanding inclusive, innovative and culturally-sustaining opportunities for PUSD students to engage in meaningful exposure to arts programming,” according to the Aug. 28 staff report. “Pleasanton Unified School District is committed to expanding student access to high-quality Visual and Performing Arts programs, aligned with the intent of Proposition 28.”
California voters approved Proposition 28 in November 2022. Dubbed the Arts and Music in Schools (AMS) Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act, the measure required the state to “establish a new, ongoing program supporting arts instruction in schools beginning in 2023-24.”
Thursday’s discussion will give staff an opportunity to show all of the ways the district has used Proposition 28 funding to “strengthen and diversify opportunities across all grade levels, with a particular focus on equity, inclusion, and innovation.”
One of the ways PUSD has used those funds has been to expand music and performing arts opportunities through additional lessons, individual coaching and targeted support for all students, according to the staff report.
“We have expanded small-group music programming tailored to Students with Extensive Needs, ensuring access to meaningful arts experiences,” the staff report further stated.
The district was also able to provide new resources and materials to fifth graders. Other programs like the Mariachi Program at Valley View Elementary School and Pleasanton Middle School have also expanded, thanks to Proposition 28, according to staff.
Additionally, the proposition gave the district the support needed to expand elementary school art lessons; create art-based classes for sixth graders; and grow the AP Computer Science Program in order to increase participation among English learners.
Staff also benefited from the additional funding thanks to the addition of new Visual and Performing Arts program instructional assistants.
“These roles are strengthening classroom instruction, providing enrichment and ensuring that our arts programs reach more students across the district,” the staff report states.
All of these investments, staff said, have helped the district prioritize “equitable access to arts education.”
“From culturally responsive programs like Mariachi, to inclusive practices that provide small-group instruction for (Students with Extensive Needs), to targeted opportunities for English Learners in computer science, Prop 28 has allowed us to extend the benefits of visual and performing arts to students who historically face barriers to access,” according to the staff report.
The board’s open-session meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Thursday (Aug. 28). Read the full agenda here.
In other business:
The school board will also be receiving an annual report on the district’s Maintenance and Operations Department, which includes updates on completed and ongoing projects that are handled by the department.
According to the presentation, the various operations teams completed over 5,000 work orders and numerous other projects in 2024. Those projects ranged from upgrading high school pools and tracks to renovating elementary school playgrounds and installing hydration stations.
One of the more specific projects the department completed last school year included repairing, sealing and striping the Amador Valley High School parking lots.
There will also be information presented regarding ongoing efforts to reduce utility costs in electricity, gas, water and garbage — all of which have been main drivers of increased operations for the department, according to staff.
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