Youth and Family Action Committee

LA VERNE YOUTH & FAMILY ACTION COMMITTEE Minutes of the Regular Meeting August 22, 2023 1. A meeting of the Youth & Family Action Committee was called to order by Chair Crosby at 6:30 p.m. Executive Board Members present: Executive Board Rick Crosby, YFAC Chair, Council Member Wendy Lau, YFAC Vice Chair, Mayor Pro Tem Denise Fisher, Resident Jason Prows, LVPD Mark Rodgers, BUSD Nikole Burgess, BUSD JR Ranells, City of La Verne Erin Beilstein, City of La Verne Robin Carder, Resident Emily Turner, Resident Luke Melkesian, Resident 2. Review of Minutes Minutes for the June 27, 2023, meeting were approved. 3. SRO Report With a few days into the school year, there have been no incidents or issues for the School Resource Officer. Lieutenant Prows shared that there have been extra officers and personnel on campus during drop off and pick up to ensure a safe start to the year. 4. BUSD Welcome Back Mark Rodgers shared that there have been no major issues with the start of the school year. The district is seeing enrollment at a higher level than pre-Covid levels, with multiple grade levels almost at capacity. The TK class is approximately 440 students as the program continues to grow and expand per state regulations. The district has been sharing a lot of information with the parents and community including at Back to School Night. 5. Finance Update Assistant City Manager JR Ranells shared that YFAC is funded completely through donations. The last fundraiser was approximately 5 years ago, and the committee has continued to do programs, but has not increased funds or donations. The majority of the funding was spent with the summer lunch program that saw record numbers and unanticipated success Youth & Family Action Committee Minutes August 22, 2023, page 2 this summer. As a result, YFAC is unable to support the School Counseling program. However, this year YFAC will not be charged for its portion of the School Counseling program through Tri-City Mental Health as BUSD will be covering YFAC’s share. 6. Summer Lunch Program Assistant City Manager JR Ranells shared with the group that the summer lunch program saw about triple the number of students from previous years. It cost $18,000 for lunches this past summer with a total of over 3,000 students served. The Tri-City grant that YFAC received for $7,000 does not cover the program cost, so the committee will use the remainder of the YFAC budget to cover the cost of the program. 7. 501c3 Designation Following the presentation regarding the YFAC budget, Assistant City Manager JR Ranells shared that the partnership with Dan Harden’s foundation, The Reed Foundation, will be beneficial for long-term sustainability of the committee. City staff submitted the 501c3 application to the IRS and the hope is that in September the Ruth Reed Foundation could provide us funding if the 501c3 goes through. Executive Board Member Denise Fisher asked if YFAC is able to have another committee that is designated as a 501c3 receive the funds and then transfer them to YFAC. Council Member Wendy Lau inquired about the parameters on the donations given through the Reed Foundation and what kinds of programs YFAC would be executing. 8. Public Comment Resident Luke Melkesian shared that he is looking to bring a curriculum to the high school level regarding the increase in human trafficking and would like to partner with outside agencies and the school district to bring this education and awareness to the community. 9. Next Meeting The next YFAC meeting was scheduled for September 26, 2023. 10. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 7:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Erin Beilstein Management Analyst