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Heads up! We have scanned the upcoming agenda for Santa Barbara Unified. We found 6 items that need your immediate attention before the vote.
| HIGH CONCERN (LEVEL 8) |
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Board to Use Public Office to Lobby for State Tax Hike
The Board is scheduled to vote on Resolution No. 2026-27-12, which uses the school district’s official name and resources to support Proposition 3, a state-level initiative to extend income tax increases. This is taxpayer-funded lobbying. The school board’s job is to manage the district, not to take political positions on state tax policy.
Recommended Action Plan
PACK THE ROOM: This is a misuse of public office. Email the Board (contact info on district website) and sign up for public comment: ‘Vote NO on Item H.4. The Board must remain non-partisan and focus on educating our children, not using our district’s name to lobby for state tax policy.’
💰 Impact: Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying
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| NEEDS REVIEW (LEVEL 7) |
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District Pushes More Screen Time Despite Failing Math Scores
The district’s own report shows abysmal student achievement, with 56% of high school math students ‘far below grade level’ on the IXL software platform. Instead of focusing on proven instruction, the district’s plan doubles down on more of the same: computer programs, data systems like ‘Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS),’ and teacher training. Parents are not being shown independent proof these expensive programs work or how much daily screen time they add.
Recommended Action Plan
DEMAND TRANSPARENCY: Email the Board (contact info on district website): ‘Regarding Item G.1, before renewing or expanding contracts for IXL or similar software, the Board must provide parents with independent, non-vendor-funded evidence of academic gains. How many minutes per day does this software replace direct instruction from a teacher?’
💰 Impact: Ineffective EdTech Spending
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| NEEDS REVIEW (LEVEL 6) |
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Secret Panel Appointed to Police Student Attendance
The board is approving the members of the School Attendance Review Board (SARB), a powerful panel that investigates ‘chronic absenteeism’ and can escalate to home visits and court action. The names of the people being appointed to this panel are not disclosed in the agenda. Parents have a right to know who is being given this authority over families.
Recommended Action Plan
DEMAND TRANSPARENCY: Email the Board (contact info on district website): ‘Pull Item K.15 from the Consent Agenda. The names of all proposed SARB members must be made public before they are approved. Parents have a right to know who sits on this powerful board.’
💰 Impact: Undisclosed Panel Members
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| NEEDS REVIEW (LEVEL 6) |
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Vague Purchase Report May Hide New Device Spending
The Consent Agenda includes a Purchase Order report with multiple line items for ‘Apple Inc.’ The actual report detailing what is being purchased is not included in the main agenda packet. This could represent a significant expansion of student screen time through new iPads or Macbooks without public discussion.
Recommended Action Plan
INVESTIGATE: Open the file ‘20261013 FY 26-27 PO Board Report – Rev. 1.pdf’ attached to Item K.2 in the Official Agenda (linked above) to confirm the purpose of the Apple purchases. If it’s for student devices, email the Board: ‘Pull Item K.2 from the Consent Agenda. All student device purchases require a public discussion on academic benefit and screen time impact.’
💰 Impact: Undisclosed
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| MONITOR (LEVEL 5) |
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Staff Sent to ‘PLC at Work’ Ideological Training
Buried in the staff travel approvals is a trip to a ‘PLC at Work® Institute.’ This is a brand name for training by Solution Tree, a major national consultant that often promotes progressive educational frameworks over traditional academics. Parents deserve to know what ideologies teachers are being trained in and how it will change the classroom.
Recommended Action Plan
INVESTIGATE: Open the file ‘8)SMHS PLC at Work® Institute.pdf’ attached to Item K.8 in the Official Agenda (linked above). Email the Board: ‘Regarding Item K.8, please provide the materials from the PLC at Work Institute for parental review. We must ensure teacher training focuses on academic excellence, not ideological frameworks.’
💰 Impact: Ideological Teacher Training
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| MONITOR (LEVEL 5) |
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District to Share Student Data with County Social Services
The district is approving a Memorandum of Understanding with the Santa Barbara County Department of Social Services for the CalFresh and school lunch programs. The agreement involves a ‘Release of Information,’ potentially sharing sensitive student and family data between the school and a government social services agency. The text of this data-sharing agreement was not included in the main agenda packet.
Recommended Action Plan
INVESTIGATE: Open the file ‘SBCEO Release of Information Lunch Program MOU revision 9-1-26.docx (1).pdf’ attached to Item K.3 in the Official Agenda (linked above). Email the Board: ‘Regarding Item K.3, what specific student data will be shared with Social Services, and for what purpose? Parents must be able to opt-out of this data sharing.’
💰 Impact: Your Family’s Privacy
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