📋

Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

Sacramento County Grand Jury • 2019-2020

F2. LRCCD’s Guided Pathways module does not by itself allow for students to seamlessly

Published: May 24, 2020 15 pages

View PDF View Full Original

⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.

⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 13 findings

F1 Page 137

Legalization, increased availability, and easy access have led to misconceptions regarding marijuana use, particularly with youth.

F2 Page 136

LRCCD’s Guided Pathways module does not by itself allow for students to seamlessly transfer between Academic and Career Technical Education (CTE) programs.

F3 Page 136

The success of Guided Pathways is dependent upon adequate counseling services and perhaps a change in the counseling model.

F4 Page 136

LRCCD lacks a formal survey process for students at entrance and exit in order to better understand student achievement issues.

F5 Page 136

LRCCD’s financial flexibility to adjust existing or new programs and services to meet student achievement goals is constrained by the fiscal requirements between the Fifty Percent Law and the collective bargaining agreements.

F6 Page 136

The quantity and scope of Online classes are insufficient to meet the work/life issues of two large cohorts of LRCCD’s students: those 25 or older, which comprise nearly 40 percent of students overall and part-time students that represent approximately 70 percent of students.

F7 Page 136

CTE programs take an estimated six years to develop and produce the first graduates. This is too long to reach the fast-changing demands in the labor market. 2018-2019 RECOMMENDATIONS

F8 Page 138

Since each school district in the County runs its own programs related to alcohol and other drugs, there is a significant variation in the resources available to students and their families throughout Sacramento County. 2018-2019 RECOMMENDATIONS

F9 Page 140

After voting to award health benefits to Board members, no further action was taken, no policies were created, and no health insurance benefits were awarded to Board 139 members. The Board could institute health benefits for themselves with no further public discussion.

F10 Page 141

The practice of conducting closed sessions after open sessions at the Board meeting may lead to an uninformed public and forestalls knowledge or comments. This practice does not encourage public engagement.

F11 Page 141

Candidate pools for Board Member seats are so low that elections are sometimes not required. As a consequence, Board members are appointed by the County Board of Supervisors, denying a voice to the public in selection of those who represent them.

F12 Page 141

The lack of adequate Board member awareness of regulations, operations, and institutional history can lead to poor decisions on the part of the Board and leads to an over-reliance on the General Manager and staff.

F13 Page 141

There is a pronounced lack of public oversight of the FRCD, as shown by poorly attended meetings and few Board candidates. 2018-2019 RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendations 11

R1
Page 136

The LRCCD Administration and Faculty should be commended this year by the Board of Trustees for their commitment for improving student achievement rates.
R2
Page 136

The LRCCD Chancellor should ensure, as part of its implementation that Guided Pathways includes a seamless administrative system for students to switch between Academic and CTE programs.
R3
Page 136

The LRCCD Board of Trustees should budget sufficient resources for case management/student advisor services to augment existing counseling services as needed to ensure the success of Guided Pathways.
R4
Page 136

The LRCCD Chancellor should ensure within the next 12 months that a survey process that includes entrance and exit interviews is developed to ascertain whether further actions are needed to address student achievement issues.
R5
Page 136

The LRCCD Board of Trustees should reconsider its 80 percent funding agreement as part of its collective bargaining negotiation with the goal of providing more financial flexibility to meet current and future student achievement rate challenges.
R6
Page 136

The LRCCD Board of Trustees and Chancellor should work with the academic senate and faculty to enhance the number and scope of online classes offered. 135
R7
Page 137

The LRCCD Chancellor should streamline the process to establish CTE programs to reduce the number of years it takes to develop these types of programs over the next 12 months. 2018-2019 RESPONSES The LRCCD Chancellor responded to the findings and recommendations on October 8, 2019, in compliance with PC Section 933. LRCCD replied that R1 has been implemented and explained their disagreement with R5, both in compliance with PC Section 933.05. R2, R3, and R4 are not addressed in their responses and are therefore not in compliance with PC Section 933.05. LRCCD will implement R6 but not in the time frame recommended, and while in agreement with R7, but provides no plan for its implementation, neither in compliance with PC Section 933.05.
R8
Page 139

School districts should establish Youth Program Specialists or similar positions to administer programs related to alcohol and drug prevention in the next budget cycle. 2018-2019 RESPONSES The Sacramento County Office of Education and the 13 District Superintendents responded to
R9
Page 142

FRCD should conduct its closed sessions before general Board meetings to ensure the public is notified timely of any actions resulting from those closed sessions. Board bylaws should be updated by December 31, 2019, to address timing of closed sessions.
R10
Page 142

FRCD should establish policy, by December 31 2019, to ensure a programmatic on- boarding process for new Board Members that includes both policy and operations. In addition, FRCD should establish, by December 31, 2019, a web-page with Board policies for public review.
R11
Page 142

FRCD should, on an ongoing basis expand its outreach to its ratepayers, in order to increase their engagement with the business and activities of the district. This could include, but is not limited to, increased inserts with ratepayer’s monthly bills, enhanced web interaction, media outreach, such as a periodic column in the Elk Grove Citizen or other avenues, and practical workshops for ratepayers. FRCD should also engage with both the California Special Districts Association and the Institute for Local Government to learn about any other outreach efforts that are possible. 2018-2019 RESPONSES The Chairperson of the Florin Resource Conservation District (FRCD) provided the required responses to the findings and the recommendations on August 22, 2019, in compliance with PC Section 933 and PC Section 933.05.