News, Notes & Votes | August 18, 2026

The Board of Trustees held its first regular meeting of the 2026–27 school year Tuesday night, with a look at where Paso Schools is headed—from the long-range future of our campuses to the continued growth of expanded learning programs, new career-focused coursework, and investments in students and staff.

School district budgets are complex, and we realize it can be difficult to make sense of the many funds, restrictions, and rules involved. A dollar in one fund may be available for classroom materials, while a dollar in another may only be used for facilities, expanded learning, or a specific state or federal program.

Beginning with this issue, News, Notes & Votes will include a recurring Behind the Budget section designed to add context to the financial items that come before the Board. Rather than simply reporting the numbers, we’ll explain where funding comes from, what it can be used for, and how those restrictions shape District decisions.

You’ll also see a recurring Budget Decoder, where we’ll define the funds and school-finance terms that appear in Board reports and explain them in plain language. Details about the funds and budget terms in bold text can be found in alphabetical order in the Budget Decoder, below.

Our goal is to make the District budget easier to understand and give readers the context they need to make sense of the decisions behind the numbers. You'll find Behind The Budget and the Budget Decoder toward the bottom of News, Notes & Votes.

The Board welcomed Julia Cox, a senior at Paso Robles High School, as its new Student Board Member. Superintendent Jennifer Loftus administered the oath of office, officially beginning Cox’s service as the student representative on the Board of Trustees.

Throughout the school year, Cox will bring a student perspective to Board discussions and help ensure student experiences, priorities, and ideas are represented as trustees consider decisions affecting schools across the District.

The Board received a detailed update on facility improvements completed or underway across the District this summer, supporting the Strategic Plan goal of maintaining safe, welcoming, and well-maintained school environments.

The new Cosmetology salon remains on schedule, with a contractual completion date of August 21.

The portable classrooms were ready for students by the first day of school, and the playground was ready for play on August 17.

The portable classrooms were ready for students by the first day of school, and the playground was ready for play on August 17.

The new modular classrooms were ready for students by the first day of school, and the overall project was reported ahead of schedule.

The shade structure and kitchen were completed for the start of school. Construction of the new restroom building has been delayed after crews encountered a previously undocumented City storm drain running through the building footprint. The District worked with the City Engineering Department on a relocation plan, with restroom completion now estimated for November 1

Director of Expanded Learning Programs Kim Gaspar shared just how much the District’s before-school, after-school, and summer programs have grown.

Through District staffing and partnerships with the YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs of Mid Central Coast, and People’s Self-Help Housing, PRJUSD now provides up to 210 days of year-round expanded learning programming.

Over three years, participation in school-year programming has increased 46.9%, or 417 students, while summer participation has grown 112.9%, or 297 students. Last summer, seven teachers also participated in the District’s “Power Hour” attendance recovery program, recovering an equivalent of 800 days of student attendance.

Growth continues this year with four new After School Education and Safety (ASES) grants, bringing PRJUSD to seven ASES sites, including a new program serving 110 students at Lewis Flamson Junior High. Twenty-five teachers are participating in Power Hour, and Expanded Learning is also supporting elementary after-school athletics and additional before- and after-school library enrichment.

The Board reviewed the draft Facilities Master Plan, developed by 19six Architects following a year of facility assessments and extensive engagement with students, staff, families, and community members. The planning process included 23 meetings, site-level conversations, focus groups, and a PRHS student forum, with input used to identify facility needs and develop conceptual plans for each campus.

The Facilities Master Plan is intended to serve as a long-range roadmap—identifying potential repairs, modernization, and new construction while helping the District prioritize future investments.

At Paso Robles High School, the plan identifies a particularly significant need for modernization. Major improvements to many of the campus’s buildings have not occurred for approximately 14 to 31 years, and the assessment found a need to modernize and expand general classrooms as well as Career Technical Education and Special Education spaces.

The draft long-range plan proposes:

The PRHS projects outlined in the draft carry a combined 2026 planning estimate of approximately $162.5 million. Because the Facilities Master Plan is designed for long-range implementation, the document also estimates approximately $186.9 million if projects are completed with 15% construction-cost escalation and $203.2 million with 25% escalation.

Tuesday night’s presentation was informational only. The Board did not approve individual construction projects or the associated expenditures; the draft Facilities Master Plan will continue to be finalized and is intended to guide future priorities, funding decisions, and potential projects.

Select renderings of PRHS projects included in the Facilities Master Plan are included below.

The Board continued its discussion of the new monument at War Memorial Stadium.

Originally centered on the 12 Bearcats who died during World War II—the students for whom War Memorial Stadium was dedicated—the project has expanded following committee discussion to recognize Bearcats lost in other wars and conflicts as well.

The project has an estimated cost not to exceed $110,000, initially funded through Fund 40 – Capital Facilities, with donations collected by the committee intended to reimburse District expenses.

The plaque honoring the 12 Bearcats who died during World War II, along with the flagpole and flag, was installed Tuesday afternoon.

The Board accepted $22,250 in donations and in-kind support benefiting students and programs across the District:

Executive Director of Fiscal Services Sherrie Castellanos presented the District’s required 45-day budget revision following adoption of California’s final state budget.

The revised budget reflects approximately $6.06 million in additional restricted revenue, primarily through the Student Support and Professional Development Block Grant and Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant. The Student Support and Professional Development Block Grant and Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant are both one-time funds which means they are set aside for designated purposes or projects rather than ongoing operational costs like salaries. The state budget also includes additional investments in special education and the Local Control Funding Formula.

A quick decode of what the funding source is, where it comes from, and the rules that come with it.

After School Education and Safety (ASES) Grants: State grant funding specifically for before- and after-school expanded learning programs serving students through ninth grade. ASES funds must be used to provide academic support, enrichment, and safe, supervised activities outside the regular school day; they cannot be redirected to unrelated District expenses. Funding is tied to the number of students a program is approved to serve.

Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP) Funds: State funding allocated specifically to provide before- and after-school and non-school-day enrichment programs for students. ELOP funds are restricted, meaning they must be used to support expanded learning services and cannot be redirected to general District expenses.

While ELOP can pay salaries for employees working in the expanded learning program, it cannot be used for general salaries unrelated to ELOP. Each year’s allocation must also be spent within the state’s required timeframe or returned.

Fund 40 – Special Reserve Fund for Capital Outlay Projects: Money set aside for major, long-term investments in District facilities—such as construction, renovations, and significant building improvements. The fund can receive money transferred from the General Fund as well as certain other capital-related revenues. Once General Fund dollars are placed in Fund 40, they must be used for capital projects rather than ongoing operating costs. That means Fund 40 dollars cannot simply be redirected to permanent expenses such as salaries.

LCAP Carryover Funds: Funding carried forward from a previous year to complete planned services and investments identified through the District’s Local Control and Accountability Plan. Because carryover funds are a limited, one-time balance, they are best used for one-time or short-term needs than permanent ongoing expenses.

Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant (LREBG): One-time state funding specifically intended to address learning loss and student needs stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. LREBG dollars may only be spent on approved learning-recovery purposes, such as tutoring, additional instructional time, academic interventions, expanded learning, mental-health and student supports, and services for students who need help meeting graduation or promotion requirements.

Student Support and Professional Development Block Grant (SSPDG): One-time discretionary state funding designed to give school districts flexibility to address local needs and rising costs. Because the funding is temporary rather than ongoing, it is best used for one-time investments and short-term needs rather than permanent, ongoing expenses such as salaries.

NN&V is a highlights-based recap of Paso Schools Board meetings, designed to keep families, staff and the community connected and informed regarding the work of the Board of Trustees.

Members of the wider community looking to stay up-to-date with the work of the PRJUSD Board of Trustees are invited to subscribe to NN&V. Please feel free to forward this message, or share the subscription link with anyone you believe may be interested.

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📅 2026 Calendar of Regular Board Meetings

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NN&V is a highlights-based recap of PRJUSD Board meetings, not a complete list of all actions taken or items discussed. Meeting minutes will be available at this link after approval by the Board at the next regularly scheduled Board meeting. 

You're invited to attend the next meeting of the Board of Trustees on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 6:00 PM In the District Board Room located at 800 Niblick, Paso Robles.