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Goodbye, and Welcome Back
to our Interim Superintendents
Charles DiFazio
February 11, 2025
With February rolling around, we have some new changes in leadership at the district. Dr. Skelly’s time as interim superintendent is up, and I want to thank him for his service to the district. Working with him has been a pleasure, and it’s been inspiring to see him work so diligently to steer the ship during our transition period. I wish him all the best in his return to retirement, and I consider myself blessed to have worked with him during the early months of my first term as a board member.
At the same time, I’m excited to welcome Jeff Baier as our new interim superintendent! While he’s coming to us most recently from the Los Altos School District, where he was superintendent for 12 years until his retirement in 2022, he began his career at MVWSD as a teacher and a principal. We are fortunate enough to have him come aboard and help guide us into our next era.
Board Policy Review Committee
In the last board meeting, we selected the two members of the new Board Policy Review Committee, and I’m pleased to say that I will be serving on the committee along with Trustee Henry. I look forward to kicking off the work on this committee, since policy making is one of the critical responsibilities of the board.
We started the year getting up-to-date on our existing policies, but there’s more work to be done in crafting and refining the policies that guide the work of the district. Everything is always a work in progress, and this committee will allow us to keep our focus on iteration and improvement.
Board Meeting
The Thursday, February 16th meeting begins at 4:30 PM with closed session until 6:00 PM. Here are some items on the agenda:
Affirming Mountain View Whisman School District’s Support of Its Students and Families Regarding Immigration Enforcement Actions At Schools
The Mountain View Wisman Board of Trustees wants to affirm the district’s commitment to follow the law by protecting immigrant students and making sure all of our students feel safe, welcome, and fully supported in our schools at this time when many families are facing significant challenges and fears because of their immigration status.
At the Mountain View Whisman School District – and all schools– education is a right, no matter their or their parents' actual or perceived national origin, citizenship, or immigration status.
With so much uncertainty at the national level, we’ve had many questions about the district’s response to policies affecting our students. This resolution is a first step in reaffirming the district’s commitment to our schools being a safe place for each and every student to learn and thrive, no matter who they are.
Volunteer Process Update
Staff would like to provide clarity about our volunteer process and share planned updates to the volunteer process.
Volunteering is important to school districts, as volunteers help students, teachers, and the community in many ways. Having an engaged and passionate volunteer base strengthens our community bonds and builds a deep connection between parents and our schools. The volunteer registration process tries to balance the need to know who is on campus, the safety of our students, and the clear benefits of having volunteers in our schools. This item will cover some of the planned changes to that process.
Financing Options for Purchasing Land
At the January 30, 2025, board meeting, the board decided to explore the possibility of purchasing the 1.8 acres of land under the district’s staff housing building. […] Staff will present available funding and purchase options for the board’s consideration.
Having recently approved the option to purchase the land under our staff housing building, the next step will be for the board to evaluate how we might fund that purchase and ultimately whether the board will choose to exercise the option. As with any budgeting, we must be good stewards of public funds, so we’ll need to weigh all of our options carefully and look at some of the difficult tradeoffs. This item gives staff the time to present potential funding sources along with planned projects, and for the board to discuss those options.
Update of Vendor Selection / Contract Checklist
As I mentioned above when discussing the Board Policy Review Committee, everything we do is always a work in progress. The vendor selection and contract checklist has been a great improvement in board oversight and clarity, attempting to balance with operational efficiency. Having worked with the process for some time now, staff has some suggested changes to the process that they will present to the board for discussion and feedback.
Upcoming Events
As part of our search for a new superintendent, there is a public Community Meeting on Tuesday, February 11 at 6:00 PM. This is an opportunity to share your thoughts about the qualities you would like to see in our next superintendent and what you see as the strengths and challenges for the district.