Youth and Family Action Committee

LA VERNE YOUTH & FAMILY ACTION COMMITTEE Minutes of the Regular Meeting October 25, 2022 1. A meeting of the Youth & Family Action Committee was called to order by Vice Chair Lau at 6:30 p.m. Executive Board Members present: Executive Board Wendy Lau, Council Member Denise Fisher, Resident Greg Palatto, BUSD Don Kendrick, Resident Chris Dransfeldt, LVPD Ryan, Lehotsky, LVPD Janessa Gonzalez, LVPD Frankie Cambero, LVPD Michelle Mata, Tri-City Mental Health Gamaliel Polanco, Tri-City Mental Health Cory Campos, Tri-City Mental Health Mark Rodgers, BUSD Joy Lindsay, BUSD JR Ranells, City of La Verne Erin Beilstein, City of La Verne 2. Review of Minutes Minutes for the June 28th and August 23rd meetings were approved. 3. BUSD Report Mark Rodgers shared that the State has released raw testing data and there is a nation-wide amount of learning loss, however BUSD students are 30 points higher than the California average in English and Math. BUSD leadership is looking at the effect of poverty on performance and ways to close the gaps by focusing on tutoring, access to programs, and social group liaisons. This year BUSD has a team of 11 personnel supporting families and students gain access to these resources. 4. SRO Report School Resource Officer Janessa Gonzalez reported that she and Tobacco Education Compliance Officer Ryan Lehotsky were doing presentations at schools and facilities including David & Margaret and local private schools on tobacco and drug awareness. Janessa also shared that the explorer program is up Youth & Family Action Committee Minutes October 25, 2022, page 2 and running with seven students who are all really enjoying the experience. Tobacco Education Compliance Officer Ryan Lehotsky provided an update on flavored tobacco enforcement efforts and noted their positive impacts in the community. Ryan shared that there are increased patrols at parks around lunch and that he has spoken with the Saturday School students on vapes and tobacco. 5. Fentanyl Presentation Detective Frankie Cambero and SRO Janessa Gonzalez shared their knowledge and expertise on the fentanyl crisis. YFAC, the Police Department and the school district can assist by continuing to support communication outreach and raise awareness for the dangers of this drug. Detective Cambero shared about the dangers of fentanyl including how prevalent it is as a supplementary drug. Drug dealers are cutting other drugs with fentanyl because it is cheaper, and they can appeal to a larger demographic. Detective Cambero and SRO Gonzalez want to create a program to educate students about fentanyl including social media posts/reels that will appeal to both students and parents. SRO Gonzalez shared that she is trying to get Narcan in every classroom and Mark Rodgers from BUSD shared that the district is currently working on this and hoping to have it implemented in early 2023. 6. Public Comment Denise Fisher shared that there is an upcoming event on December 3rd at University of La Verne to raise money for the La Verne K-9 & Police Foundation. JR Ranells shared that the BUSD candidates were holding a forum at the La Verne City Hall Council Chambers on October 26th and it was being streamed via LVTV. Tri-City employees shared about the wellness center hiring event and that they are back in schools. They also shared about the Therapeutic Community Garden and that they are creating a family group 7. Next Meeting The regular November meeting was canceled due to the Thanksgiving holiday that week and similarly the Youth & Family Action Committee Minutes October 25, 2022, page 3 group decided to not meet the week of Christmas. In order to not have too much time between meetings, the next YFAC meeting was scheduled for December 6, 2022. 8. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 7:44 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Erin Beilstein Management Analyst