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Novato Unified board meeting, Sep 15, 2026

2 h 39 min · 8 public speakers

School closures ▶ 1:02:19Budget cuts and layoffs ▶ 2:03:52Enrollment ▶ 56:44Safety, weapons and police ▶ 32:13Vouchers and school choice ▶ 1:33:00

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 2 h 39 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Novato Unified board hears proposal to move Hamilton 6th-8th grade program to San Jose 56:44

  • A district staff member presented a proposal to transition the Hamilton 6th through 8th grade program to San Jose in the 2027⁠-⁠28 school year, pending board approval, and said the meeting was not a final decision night. 56:44
  • The staff member said the district would conduct an equity impact review voluntarily and bring it back with a resolution on October 6th for a board decision. 1:02:41
  • Several speakers at public comment raised questions about the RISE program, transportation and the projected savings from the proposal. 1:11:53
  • The board and superintendent goals, the 2025⁠-⁠2026 unaudited actuals and the Prop 28 budget each received 6 votes and 1 student advisory vote. 1:56:44

Until Nov 4, lines where a board member takes a side don't name the member. Why →

Item by item (10)
  1. Opening and closed session report 0:00
    • Julie Jacobson reported that the board met in closed session on personnel matters, labor negotiations and existing litigation, and gave direction on the litigation item. 1:21
    • The agenda and the consent agenda each received 6 votes and 2 student advisory votes. 2:01
  2. Board member announcements 2:43
    • Abbey Picus said they attended back-to-school nights and continued conversations with PTA and PTO leaders about parent engagement. 2:50
    • Debbie Butler reported site visits at San Marin and Novato High School and attending the Parcel Tax Exploratory Committee. 3:24
    • Diane Gasson said the Joint Legislative Advisory Committee changed its format this year to a spreadsheet with linked bills. 4:02
  3. Sinaloa belonging presentation 16:00
    • The Sinaloa principal said survey data showed 75 to 85% of students and families believed staff respected different races, ethnicities and backgrounds, while about half of students reported feeling bullied at some point. 17:06
    • A teacher said the Culture of Belonging course is offered as a 9 or 12-week 6th grade elective this year. 21:33
    • One board member asked whether the curriculum could be used across the campus, and another board member said they fully supported the work. 28:49
  4. School resource officer report 31:21
    • A district staff member said there were 31 documented calls in the most recent year, and the number of students documented talking with an officer went down from 42 to 36. 33:33
    • A police sergeant said calls for service to the school resource officer went from 465 to 352, with 47 reports generated. 42:56
    • Julie Jacobson asked where the system might be part of the problem in the demographic data. 53:22
  5. Hamilton middle grades transition proposal 56:29
    • A district staff member said Hamilton started the year at 461 students and that around 650 students supports a robust TK-8 program. 56:44
    • Speakers at public comment asked about the RISE program, transportation and whether the $300,000 to $400,000 savings estimate was based on a complete financial analysis. 1:11:53
    • Debbie Butler said the board had not discussed the proposal collectively and it had not been decided in advance. 1:34:08
  6. Board and superintendent goals 1:41:11
    • A district staff member said the district has about 200 long-term English learners and hopes to reduce that by at least 5%. 1:49:04
    • The staff member said the fiscal stability goal is to approve a balanced multi-year budget by June of next year. 1:51:24
    • The goals received 6 votes and 1 student advisory vote. 1:56:44
  7. Unaudited actuals financial report 1:56:44
    • A district finance staff member said the original budget and the unaudited actuals differed by $643,000 of a $136 million budget. 1:58:51
    • The staff member said restricted revenue grew 65.7% while restricted expenses grew 96%, so unrestricted dollars had to fill the gap. 2:09:05
    • Diane Gasson said the parcel tax pays for positions such as librarians and coaches. 2:16:38
    • The report received 6 votes and 1 student advisory vote. 2:20:31
  8. Appropriations limit resolution 2:20:54
    • A district staff member said the GAN limit is adjusted by zero and asked for approval of the resolution with no alterations. 2:21:04
    • Abbey Picus asked for the revenue and expense growth percentages for unrestricted funds as well. 2:23:55
  9. Prop 28 budget and report 2:24:41
    • A district staff member said last year's revenue was $1,183,925, spending was $1,112,513 and carryover of $560,309 was added to this year. 2:24:56
    • The staff member said the district total for school sites this year is $1,601,953. 2:24:56
    • The Prop 28 budget and report received 6 votes and 1 student advisory vote. 2:29:42
  10. Legislative talking points discussion 2:30:12
    • Diane Gasson presented talking points on LCFF funding, special education, the California Public Records Act and state mandates, and said the item would come back on consent at the next meeting. 2:30:27
    • One board member said they leaned toward using page 5 instead of page 4. 2:37:01

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “Novato Unified School District Regular Board Meeting 9/15/2026”