San Diego Unified board meeting, Sep 1, 2026
1 h 27 min
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 1 h 27 min.
- Who spoke · first speaks at
- Sabrina BazzoBoard Vice President
What happened
What happened at this meeting
San Diego Unified board approves New Heights Academy charter petition 5:34
- The board approved a charter petition to establish New Heights Academy, with the motion passing unanimously and the student trustees concurring. 5:34
- The board held public hearings on charter renewals for Harriet Tubman Village Charter School, High Tech High and Empower Language Academy. 16:23
- Each renewal will be brought back to the board for action at a later date. 32:39
- The board also approved the superintendent's consent agenda unanimously, with the student trustees concurring. 1:17:45
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Item by item (8)
- Opening and agenda adoption 0:03
- Sabrina Bazzo called the meeting to order with 3 adult trustees and 2 student trustees present. 0:03
- The board showed a land acknowledgment video prepared by students from the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. 1:00
- A staff member said each charter item would be allowed a total of 10 minutes for public comment. 3:04
- The agenda was adopted unanimously, with the student trustees concurring. 2:22
- Management appointments 4:17
- A district staff member announced new principals for schools including Hamilton Elementary School, Salk Elementary School, Pershing Middle School and Claremont Canyons Academy. 4:48
- New Heights Academy charter petition 5:34
- A staff member said staff recommended approving the charter for a 5-year term beginning September 1st, 2026 and ending June 30th, 2031, for a non-classroom-based program for grades 9 through 12. 6:18
- One board member said staff projected a potential enrollment loss of 39 at Hoover High School, said due to legal reasons they would be approving the petition, and asked for data at the end of each year on where students come from. 12:13
- One board member said they were willing to give the school that opportunity and agreed the board should have data at the end of each year. 15:36
- The motion passed unanimously, with the student trustees concurring. 16:06
- Harriet Tubman Village charter renewal hearing 16:23
- A staff member said the school sought a 2-year renewal beginning July 1st, 2027 and ending June 30th, 2029, based on the state's low-performing designation for the school. 16:39
- Several speakers at public comment asked the board to renew the charter. ~18:18
- Sabrina Bazzo asked about an enrollment drop from 455 to 393 and lower literacy rates, and a school representative described a corrective action plan focused on teacher professional development, student engagement and parent engagement. 30:48
- The public hearing was closed, and the item will be brought back to the board for action at a later date. 32:39
- High Tech High charter renewal hearing 32:39
- A staff member said High Tech High sought a 5-year renewal beginning July 1st, 2027 and ending June 30th, 2032, along with a material revision to consolidate the 6 other High Tech schools authorized by the district into one TK-12 charter. 33:05
- Sharon Whitehurst-Payne asked about chronic absenteeism, and Sabrina Bazzo asked about a decrease in literacy rates at most of the schools. 47:09
- The public hearing was closed, and the item will be brought back to the board for action at a later date. 51:58
- Empower Language Academy charter renewal hearing 51:58
- A staff member said Empower sought a 5-year renewal beginning July 1st, 2027 and ending June 30th, 2032, and a material revision to add grades 7 and 8 beginning in the 2028-29 school year. 56:25
- Several speakers at public comment asked the board to consider the expansion to 7th and 8th grade. 1:03:46
- A staff member said staff did not anticipate fiscal challenges unless enrollment fell short of projections, and Cody Petterson asked how the school would provide a transitional middle school experience. 1:09:30
- The public hearing was closed, and the item will be brought back to the board for action at a later date. 1:16:00
- Consent agenda 1:17:45
- Non-agenda public comment 1:18:53
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 “Board of Education Regular Meeting, Charter Meeting, September 1, 2026”