Preview: Los Alamitos Unified Board of Education Meeting - August 25, 2026

The Los Alamitos Unified School District Board of Education is scheduled to meet on August 25 for a workshop at 4 p.m. and a regular meeting at 6 p.m.

Agenda highlights

Presentation and Policy on “Emerging Technology”

What it is: Last school year, the district formed a task force on artificial intelligence made up of teachers from all grade levels, district leadership, and board member Farnaz Pardasani. During the workshop, Director of Technology Dan Bennett, Ed.D., is expected to review the task force's findings. Later in the regular meeting, (Item 17.a) the board will have a first reading of a new policy on “Emerging Technology,” based on the task force’s discussions. (See policy below.)

Why it matters: Artificial intelligence is a hot topic, especially how it is being used by students and teachers and how it impacts learning. People are already using A.I. but most districts are racing to get a handle on the rapidly-developing technology. These discussions will provide insight into how the district may restrict or permit A.I. use in classrooms and beyond. While the policy doesn’t specify rules, it offers guiding principles including that the district “should provide ongoing professional development for staff in all aspects of AI and other emerging technologies,” and “should engage with the community to share these principles, to educate the community on AI and other emerging technologies, and to communicate clearly regarding the permitted and prohibited uses of the technologies in the district.”

Four-Year Contract Extensions with Executive Leadership

What it is: At Item 16.c, the board will consider extending the contracts through June 30, 2030 for the top four employees of the district. That includes: Supt. Andrew Pulver, Ed.D., Deputy Supt. Ondrea Reed, Assistant Supt. for Human Resources Ryan Weiss-Wright, Ed.D., and Assistant Supt. for Business Services Tim Golden.

Why it matters: These are the non-elected leaders of the district that decide and implement policies that affect all students. Approval, which is highly expected, would put them in these roles for roughly four more years. Their salaries account for more than $1 million annually in district funds. Most have worked for the district for many years (decades for Dr. Pulver and Reed) and have served as teachers and principals at district campuses. At least two are also district parents. Related: during closed-session, the board will conduct an evaluation of the superintendent. 

Performing Arts Center Project

What it is: Since last school year, the district has been exploring two options regarding the aging Performing Arts Center (PAC) at Los Alamitos High School – renovate the existing facility or construct a new one. The board will consider going with the latter when it votes on an agreement with Westgroup Designs architecture firm to “take current schematic design to full construction completion,” according to the agenda. (Item 18.a) The cost for this contract is approximately $1,807,662 to be paid from the Special Reserve Fund for Capital Outlay Projects Fund 40, as stated in the agenda. 

Why it matters: The PAC is a facility used by several visual and performing arts programs at LAHS including the award-winning show choir, drama program, dance program, and others. The board will decide whether to invest in building an entirely new facility that could be a boost to these groups but could also mean a major construction project and potential reworking of the heart of the campus. If approved, construction of the new PAC would take place alongside the existing PAC, meaning the original would still be able to be used, according to the district. In April, the district estimated the total cost of the project at more than $30 million.

Other items of interest on the August 25 agenda:

Legal Settlement: In 2022, the district was named in a civil lawsuit by a student that attended Los Alamitos High School in the 1990s who, according to the lawsuit, was the “victim of childhood sexual assault." During closed session, this lawsuit will be discussed. Item 12.j in the regular meeting is the approval of a confidential settlement agreement for the case: John Doe v. Los Alamitos Unified School District; Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2022-01284386-CU-PO-CJC.

Student Board Member Report: Los Alamitos High School student Emma Jimenez will present her first report in the role covering the academics, athletics, activities and the arts of LAHS.

New Turf: Item 12.a is an agreement to spend approximately $365,000 to “provide design and [Division of the State Architect] services for the conversion of the existing natural grass practice field into two multi-use synthetic turf practice fields” at Los Alamitos High School.

Social Media/Video Game Harms Lawsuits: Items 15.a and 16.a authorize the district to contract with the Bullock Legal Group, LLC, Jeremy Fietz, Attorney at Law, and the Law Office of David Bush “in connection with social media addiction and video game addiction claims.” There are no up-front costs to the district to participate but attorneys will receive a 30% contingency fee of any recovery, according to the agreement.

EdTech and Software Purchases: (Spotlight Schools is trying to track the EdTech and software purchases districts are making. These items are all on the consent calendar for education services and are considered supplemental.) 

• Kami is a web-based teacher app that facilitates student digital annotation of text lesson strategies and provides text-to-speech and speech-to-text supports. Approximately $149.00 per teacher license, and will be paid with school site funds.
• Gimkit Online “provides online practice and review tools that gamify the learning experience to enhance engagement,” according to the agenda. Cost is $1,000.00 per school site PRO license paid from school site funds.
• DeltaMath Plus “provides an online platform for teachers to assign math practice and assessments with instructional video support,” according to the agenda. The cost is approximately $115.00 per teacher Plus license and $180.00 per teacher Integral license per year to be paid from school site funds.
• BrainPop “provides unlimited access to engaging instructional video supplements for lessons through BrainPOP,  BrainPOP Jr., BrainPOP Espanol for K-8 students, and BrainPOP ELL,” according to the agenda. The annual $5,025 per annual site license will be paid by school site funds.
• Typing Club is “a web-based, engaging, and effective way to learn to type.” according to the agenda. It will be used by second through fifth-grade students “to improve keyboard typing speed and accuracy.” The cost is approximately $3.15 per student and will be paid from district funds.
• Cyber Range, a CodeHS tool, “provides a safe browser-based lab environment where students run real command-line tools in a sandboxed environment and solve gamified Capture-the-Flag (CTF) security challenges,” according to the agenda. It costs around $60.00 per-student annual license to be paid from Career Technical Education grant funds.

• Find the entire agenda at https://www.losal.org/board-of-education/agendas.
• Watch the workshop and meeting on YouTube.
• For more Spotlight Schools coverage of Los Alamitos USD, click here.