School Committees
If you are interested in serving on any of the following school committees, call Ms. Riddle at 644-6298. No experience is needed. Election for the committees is held in September. Don't let that word election scare you away--there is no campaign, and often the vote is unanimous as candidates do not exceed available spots.
The School Site Council (SSC)
The SSC is a decision-making body; school personnel and parents/guardians are elected members. The council helps write, monitor, and evaluate school plan that addresses student achievement, staff development, and program expenditures. It budgets how most state school-specific money is spent.
The BSEP Committee
This committee conducts a school-wide needs assessment each winter and decides how the school's $50,000 BSEP funds will be spent. BSEP is parcel tax in Berkeley that provides $10 million for education. One in six teachers in the district is paid by BSEP. For more information, see the district webpage at http://www.berkeley.k12.ca.us/DE/DE_bsep.html
Note: BSEP and the School Site Council are are important to the welfare of the school community. Parents and staff meet and decide on how to divide funds given to us by the city and state. BSEP money has certain restrictions to it. Site money is more flexible so personnel can be paid through this fund. The two committees occasionally meet together to coordinate funding and to avoid duplicating efforts.
The School Advisory Committee (SAC)
SAC oversees the Title I portion of the school plan and addresses the program needs of students identified to receive help from state/federal funds.
The English Language Learner Committee (ELL)
ELL assists the school in providing for limited and non-English speaking students.