The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District's Board of Education reviewed dozens of policy and regulation updates at its Aug. 27 meeting, revising local rules to match new state laws on school meals, construction bidding, nondiscrimination and charter schools.
The updates were presented across three areas: food and nutrition services, facilities and construction, and district vision, goals and charter schools. District staff said the revisions bring local policies into alignment with new state laws and model language from the California School Boards Association, and that many already reflect current district practice.
Richard Marchini, director of food and nutrition services, told board members that policy governing the district's meal program is being updated to reflect SB 348, a 2023 state law requiring districts to provide one "nutritionally adequate" breakfast and one such lunch, free of charge, to any student who requests it, and to give students adequate time to eat. Related updates encourage freshly prepared meals made with locally grown, minimally processed food.
Marchini said other changes to the cafeteria fund policy raise the limit on excess cash reserves the food service fund may hold, from three months to six months of operating costs. "It allows us to sustain ourselves during the summer without needing cash inclusion from the district," he said.
He also emphasized the district's approach to surplus food. "We want to take care of our kids first," Marchini said, explaining that leftover meals are typically routed to after-school programs before being donated to local shelters or soup kitchens.
Gerardo Cruz, assistant superintendent of business and fiscal services, noted the district already participates in some of the practices reflected in the new language, including transferring funds to food services in years when meal reimbursements fall short. He said the higher reserve cap should help, adding that because the previous threshold was so low, "lots of districts were put on ... spending plans."
Cruz also encouraged board members to see the operation firsthand. "We often go to the Samohi cafeteria for lunch, and if you haven't been ... please do visit," he said.
The nutrition updates also permit food services to share students' free and reduced-price meal eligibility data with other district departments to help target educational services under the Local Control and Accountability Plan.
On facilities, a staff member filling in for Chief Operations Officer Carey Upton presented updates consolidating the district's construction bidding rules. Two administrative regulations — governing lease-leaseback contracts and design-build contracts — would be deleted, with their requirements folded into the district's main bids policy. The revised policy clarifies that the definition of "maintenance" includes landscape maintenance and minor repainting, and specifies that projects using state general funds must be prequalified.
The board also reviewed a new Facilities Master Plan policy reflecting SB 848, a 2025 law requiring the board to adopt written standards for the design and construction of school facilities that promote safe environments for learning. The policy excludes district residential housing from the definition of a "school building."
Superintendent Dr. Antonio Shelton reviewed updates to policies on vision, goals, comprehensive plans and charter schools. Among them, a nondiscrimination policy would be revised under AB 3074, a 2024 law prohibiting public schools from using "Redskins" or any derogatory Native American term as a school or athletic team name, mascot or nickname. The same policy expands protected characteristics to include combinations of two or more bases and requires district websites and mobile apps to be accessible to people with disabilities.
Other updates would add students experiencing homelessness to the district's list of numerically significant subgroups and adopt a new equity policy addressing barriers facing historically underserved students.
Shelton noted that although the district operates no charter schools, state law requires charter policies to remain current. The revisions tie charter accountability to the LCAP, prohibit charter schools from operating for profit, and replace a 29-item list of charter requirements with 114 items covering areas such as student health and safety, hiring practices and emergency protocols.
District staff said the board policies will return for action, and the administrative regulations as information items, at the board's next meeting on Sept. 3. Once approved, the changes will be posted to the district's online policy manual, and the management team will be notified.