Before the first bell rang, hundreds of hands were already at work.

At the August board meeting, district leadership shared how LASD prepared for the new school year, and the numbers tell the story.

Deep cleaning is work that can't happen during the school year. Thank you to our maintenance, operations, and custodial teams, many of whom shift their vacations so they can be here when campuses need them most, along with our Curriculum & Instruction and Technology teams.

Tan bark was refreshed districtwide, and blacktops at Santa Rita, Oak, and Covington were seal-coated and re-striped, meaning all seven elementary campuses now have refreshed play surfaces. We also replaced bell and PA systems at several sites, repainted a building, and completed tree trimming and safety work across our grounds. At the San Antonio campus, demolition is complete, and a groundbreaking is on the calendar.

LASD hired 21 certificated and 13 classified staff, and all certificated positions are filled, with classified staffing close behind. We also celebrated 15 teachers who earned permanent status.

Schools kicked things off with scheduled days, picnics, and socials, plus the first-ever LASD Back to School Social on August 15 at Almond Elementary. Staff gathered at Egan on August 10 to re-center on the LASD Student Experience and this year's inspiration: being warm demanders, expecting a great deal of students and helping them get there.

The Los Altos School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously to adopt Resolution No. 26/27-01, declaring its intention to transition Board elections from an at-large system to a by-trustee area system, beginning no earlier than the 2028 election. This does not affect the November 2026 election. Voters will cast ballots for Board seats exactly as they always have this fall. It also does not change the terms of any current Board member.

Today, LASD uses at-large elections: every voter in the district votes for every Board seat. Under a by-trustee area system, the district is divided into five geographic areas, one for each Board seat. A candidate must live in the area they represent, and only voters within that area vote for that seat. The change would phase in gradually as seats come up for election in 2028 and 2030. After the 2030 election, all five seats would be elected by trustee area.

The District received a letter from an attorney, on behalf of a district resident, alleging that LASD's at-large elections violate the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) and threatening litigation if the District did not transition to trustee areas.

Districts and cities across California have received similar letters over the past two decades. To date, no local agency in the state has successfully defended against a CVRA challenge in court, and defense costs have run into the millions of dollars. Several agencies serving our own community, including the Mountain View Los Altos High School District and the City of Los Altos, have already made the change.

State law provides a "safe harbor" that limits a district's financial exposure when it adopts a resolution of intention within a set window. Adopting Resolution 26/27-01 preserves that protection and keeps District dollars in classrooms rather than in a courtroom.

Trustees were candid that the vote was not an endorsement of the allegations in the letter. Several members stated on the record that they disagree with the claims, but concluded that the cost and risk of litigation could not be justified.

The transition process is set by state law and is built around public input. Working with a professional demographer and legal counsel, the District will follow this timeline:

The Board adopted this timeline as a revision to the schedule printed in the resolution, in order to avoid overlapping with the 2026 election cycle and to allow for stronger community engagement.

Trustee area boundaries determine which neighborhoods are grouped together and who represents them, and community input directly shapes those maps. Beginning in January, the District will launch a dedicated districting webpage with hearing dates, draft maps, and instructions for submitting feedback. We will share those details in this newsletter, on our website, and across District social media as soon as they are available.

LASD's Business Services team shared an updated look at how Bullis Charter School (BCS) enrollment and funding affect our district's finances.

Each year, LASD transfers local property tax dollars to BCS, often called an "in-lieu" transfer.The funding amount is calculated based on the number of students attending the charter school at each grade level, regardless of where those students reside. This year's budget includes:

Of the $12.2 million in-lieu transfer, about $2 million dollars are owed to the charter school because of the 185 out-of-district students that they now enroll (17% of total BCS enrollment).

LASD is a "Basic Aid" district because our local property taxes exceed what the state would otherwise provide. Many of our neighboring districts are “Basic Aid” as well, which means that we receive $0 for students who reside in those districts but attend BCS. Despite getting little to no state funding for the charter school’s out-of-district students, we must still pay the full in-lieu transfer from local property taxes. Over the past two years, BCS out-of-district ADA (average daily attendance, which is slightly less than enrollment) has grown from 96 to nearly 180, and the related property tax cost has climbed from about $1 million to more than $2 million a year.

While 17% of the charter school’s enrollment comes from outside district boundaries, by contrast, out-of-district enrollment at LASD schools is only 5%. Nearly all of these students were permitted to enroll because they have parents working for either LASD or the MVLA high school district. Such transfers are granted under board policy as a benefit to employees.

LASD has transferred a cumulative $99 million in property taxes to BCS over the last decade, funding that otherwise would have supported LASD classrooms, staff, and facilities.

Updated BCS enrollment figures arrive by the end of September and will refine next year's projections. LASD will continue sharing updates as new data becomes available.

View the full Charter School Financial Impact board presentation here.