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Monterey County Office of Education
Leadership, Support and Service to Prepare All Students for Success
Dr. Deneen Guss, County Superintendent of Schools
Date | Presentation |
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Thursday, January 13, 2022 | Slideshow |
Thursday, January 20, 2022 | Slideshow |
Tuesday, January 8, 2022 |
Frequently asked questions and information regarding redistricting.
There are seven trustees on the Salinas Union High School District Board of Education. Each one represents a specific geographic area, which is called a "trustee area" or election district. Residents of each trustee area vote only for candidates who live in their area. Candidates for each Board seat must live in the trustee area they wish to represent. This is called a by-district election system.
Every 10 years, a new U.S. Census is conducted, and the population counts are then used for redistricting. Trustee areas must be relatively equal in total population using the new Census counts. After new Census data are released, all jurisdictions must evaluate whether their current trustee areas (boundaries based on the last Census) have equal populations using the new counts. If not, trustee area boundaries need to be adjusted to re-balance trustee area populations. The redistricting process is governed by the U.S. Constitution, federal law, and California law.
The new trustee areas will be in effect for November 2022 elections. The deadline for adoption of revised districting plans (February 28, 2022) allows time for county Registrars of Voters to adjust precinct boundaries before the filing deadline for the November election.
Federal and state laws require that the trustee areas be nearly equal in population using the most recent Census counts. Some deviation is permitted, but the rule of thumb is that the difference between the most- and least-populous election districts should not exceed ten percent of the "ideal" district's population, which is one third, one fifth, or one seventh of the jurisdiction's total population (depending on the number of trustee areas). We understand that courts have generally accepted this standard for population equality (in school districts).
Federal law also requires that election districts be drawn to respect protected race/ethnic groups so that their communities are neither divided nor overly concentrated in individual districts. Protected groups are race/ethnic/language groups, including Hispanics, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans (as well as some others).
In addition, the California Elections Code (Section 22000) lists criteria that may be considered during the redistricting (and initial districting process):
In adjusting the boundaries of the divisions, the board may consider the following factors: (1) topography, (2) geography, (3) cohesiveness, contiguity, integrity, and compactness of territory, and (4) community of interests of the division.
We have hired professional demographers (Lapkoff & Gobalet Demographic Research, Inc.) to draft and revise maps for consideration by the public and the Trustees. Revisions of these draft maps will be based on feedback received by the Trustees and from the community during the public hearings, Board meetings, or sent to a designated staff member. Members of the public will be able to provide input about boundaries, as well as possible revisions of plans. The districting process will be transparent, and it is important that everyone will have the opportunity to suggest map revisions.
Members of the public can call the District Office at 831-796-7000 to provide comments about the redistricting maps, communities of interest, the process, etc. This feedback will be conveyed to the Board and our demographers.
Recent California legislation (for the state legislature, cities, and counties) requires that communities of interest be considered when drawing plans, and when possible, our demographers will do this, too. A community of interest is a geographical area (such as a neighborhood) that would benefit from being in the same district because of shared interests, views, or characteristics. Downtown areas, historic districts, and housing subdivisions are a few examples of areas that would be communities of interest (there are many more).
Sometimes, populations with similar demographic characteristics are considered communities of interest. These characteristics can include the population's race/ethnic composition, the language spoken at home, the area's median income (and other socioeconomic characteristics), and the type of housing (for example, those in a particular housing development or retirement community).
Defined regions like cities, school districts, and school attendance areas may sometimes be considered communities of interest. Geographic characteristics can identify communities, such as those on one side of a mountain range, highway, around a park, or another publicly-recognized region.
Because of the COVID pandemic, the Census Bureau is about six months behind schedule in the release of redistricting data. This means that we have about half the amount of time to redistrict as we did in the past. As a result, timelines must be very short.
We may provide virtual meetings rather than in-person meetings, or have "hybrid" meetings, in which some people attend in-person while others participate virtually.
Plans for election district boundaries will be based on the total population counts from Census 2020, and data that comply with federal and state laws.
The 2020 Census counts will be adjusted by the California Statewide Database (SWDB), which will assign prison inmates to their pre-incarceration home addresses (the adjusted counts will be available 4-6 weeks after the Census Bureau's data release). The state legislature, county boards of supervisors, and city councils must use these adjusted numbers for redistricting. School districts are not required to use adjusted counts, so we will begin with unadjusted data and re-check when the adjusted counts are available.
When drafting plans for consideration, the demographers also use estimates of the Citizen Voting Age Population (CVAP, citizens 18+, by race/ethnicity) from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, (ACS) to check for Federal Voting Rights Act compliance. Estimates from the ACS survey are also used to help identify communities of interest.
The Board of Trustees will adopt an ordinance establishing election district boundaries by February 28, 2022. The county Registrars of Voters will then adjust precinct boundaries before the filing deadline for the November 2022 trustee election.
We expect there to be an orientation for Trustees and members of the public in October or November 2021. One or more draft plans will be provided by our demographers before the Thanksgiving holidays. Members of the public are encouraged to provide comments about the draft map(s) and/or indicate other ways they suggest trustee areas be drawn. The Board must adopt a plan by February 28, 2022.
By law, election district boundaries must be evaluated after each decennial census. The 2030 U.S. Census redistricting population counts will be released in 2031. If the trustee areas adopted in 2022 still have equal total population counts, the boundaries will not need to be adjusted. If the total populations are not equally distributed, the trustee area boundaries will need to be adjusted so that the 2030 population is distributed evenly in the three, five, or seven trustee areas.
Avoidance of head-to-head contests between incumbents is permitted, but only after criteria prescribed by federal and state law are met. Boundaries that take incumbency into account still must be reasonable.
Current Board Members will continue in office until the expiration of their terms and their successors are elected. The first elections using the new boundaries will be in November 2022. Because Board elections are staggered (some trustees elected in 2022 and the rest elected in November 2024), the new plan will be completely implemented in 2024. If current Trustees' terms end in 2024, they will continue to sit on the Board until the 2024 election, even if they live in the same election district as a Board member elected in 2022.
The California Fair Maps Act of 2019 (AB 849) applies to cities and counties, but not to school districts and special districts. However, Salinas Union HSD might use some of these guidelines when it is reasonable to do so. The Fair Maps Act lists the following criteria, in order of priority, that cities and counties should (or should not) use during plan drawing, after federal legal requirements are met:
In addition, the Fair Maps Act requires that cities and counties:
The MCOE prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying based on actual or perceived ancestry, age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or association with a person or a group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.
Accessibility Statement | Non-discrimination Policy | Sexual Harassment Policy | Uniform Complaint Procedures | Title IX NotificationCopyright © 2014 Monterey County Office of Education | WebMaster | Contact MCOE: 831.755.0300 | 901 Blanco Circle, Salinas, CA 93901
Welcome to the Monterey County Office of Education’s Website
We want everyone who visits our MCOE website to feel welcome and to easily find the information they need. Our website will be maintained in accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We will ensure each webpage conforms to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level AA standards. These guidelines were established by the World Wide Web Consortium, an international community with a shared vision to make all websites accessible to individuals with visual, hearing or cognitive disabilities.
How to Report Issues
If you have difficulty accessing information on our website due to a disability, please contact us at webmaster@montereycoe.org. and provide the URL (web address) of the material you tried to access, the problem you experienced, and your contact information (name, email address and phone number) so that we may contact you to provide the information in another format.
Title IX - Sex-Based Discrimination is Prohibited
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”) is a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in all educational programs and activities, including athletic programs. No person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity operated by the Monterey County Office of Education. Title IX protects all participants in the County’s educational programs and activities, including students, parents, employees, and job applicants. The Monterey County Office of Education does not discriminate on the basis of sex. Discrimination on the basis of sex can include sexual harassment and sexual violence.
In addition to Title IX, the California Education Code prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in schools. (California Education Code §§ 220-221.1.) Other state and federal laws also prohibit discrimination and ensure equality in education. Please refer to Board Policies 5145.3 and Administrative Regulations 5145.3 for more information on the Monterey County Office of Education’s anti-discrimination policies.
You have the following rights under Title IX, to the extent applicable at the Monterey County Office of Education:
The Monterey County Office of Education has a responsibility to respond promptly and effectively to sex-based discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual violence. If the Monterey County Office of Education knows or reasonably should know about sex discrimination, it must take action to eliminate the sex discrimination, prevent its recurrence, and address its effects. The Monterey County Office of Education must resolve complaints of sex discrimination promptly and equitably. Information on filing a complaint alleging sex-based discrimination is below, including contact information for the County’s Title IX Coordinator.
For more information specific to anti-discrimination in Monterey County Office of Education employment, please contact the Title IX Coordinator.
Learn more about your rights under Title IX:
Review related Monterey County Office of Education policies and regulations
The Monterey County Office of Education has a Title IX Coordinator who oversees the County’s compliance with Title IX requirements and promotes sex equity in the County’s programs. Contact the County’s Title IX Coordinator:
Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources, Title IX Coordinator
831.784.4195
lbutler@montereycoe.org
Assistant Superintendent of Student Services, Title IX Coordinator
831.755.1405
evela@montereycoe.org
The Uniform Complaint Procedure is available on the Human Resources Forms page.
If you need assistance putting your complaint in writing, please contact the Human Resources Department for Personnel related complaints and the Student Services Department for Student related complaints. You may file a complaint anonymously, but the County Office of Education’s ability to investigate and respond may be limited by a lack of information.
You may also file a discrimination complaint with the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights. For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights website. The electronic complaint form for the Office for Civil Rights is available on the Office for Civil Rights' Website. Contact the Office for Civil Rights at:
San Francisco Office Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education
50 United Nations Plaza
San Francisco, CA 94102
Telephone: 415.486.5555
Fax: 415.486.5570
TDD: 800.877.8339
Email: ocr.sanfrancisco@ed.gov
For information about how to file other types of complaints and the procedures for those complaints, please contact the Human Resources Department at Monterey County Office of Education at 831.784.4195.
A complaint alleging unlawful discrimination or retaliation must be filed no later than six months from the date the discrimination or retaliation occurred, or six months from when the complainant first learned of the unlawful discrimination. The Superintendent or designee may extend this timeline by up to ninety days for good cause, upon written request by the complainant setting forth the reasons for the extension.
Complaints filed under the County’s Uniform Complaint Procedure will be investigated and a decision made within sixty calendar days of the County’s receipt, unless the complainant agrees to an extension. The County’s compliance officer or designee may interview alleged victims, alleged offenders, and relevant witnesses. The compliance officer may review available records, statements, or notes related to the complaint, including evidence or information received from the parties during the investigation. The compliance officer may visit reasonably accessible locations where discrimination is alleged to have occurred. As appropriate, the County’s compliance officer periodically will inform the parties of the status of the investigation. The complainant will be notified when a decision is made.
Complaints that are not filed under the County’s Uniform Complaint Procedure will be investigated and decided pursuant to the applicable procedure.
For complaints filed under the Uniform Complaint Procedure, the compliance officer will prepare and send a final written decision to the complainant and respondent, if any, within 60 calendar days of the County’s receipt of the complaint (unless this deadline is extended by mutual agreement).
The complainant or respondent may appeal the County’s decision within fifteen calendar days to the California Department of Education. The appeal must specify the reason for the appeal and whether the County’s facts are incorrect and/or the law is misapplied. The appeal must include a copy of the original complaint to the Monterey County Office of Education and a copy of the County’s decision. For more information, visit the California Department of Education’s webpage on Uniform Complaint Procedures.
For complaints alleging unlawful discrimination based on state law, the complainant may pursue available civil law remedies, including seeking assistance from mediation centers or public/private interest attorneys, sixty calendar days after filing an appeal with the California Department of Education. (California Education Code § 262.3.) Note that this sixty day moratorium does not apply to complaints seeking injunctive relief in state courts or to discrimination complaints based on federal law. (California Education Code § 262.3.)
Complaints may also be filed with the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, within 180 days of the alleged discrimination. For contact information, see the section above on “How do I file a complaint of sex discrimination?” and/or visit U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights website.
If the compliance officer finds that a complaint has merit, the Monterey County Office of Education will take appropriate corrective action.
For more information regarding Title IX and sex equity in education or in Monterey County Office of Education employment, please contact the County’s Title IX Coordinator.
Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources, Title IX Coordinator
831.784.4195
lbutler@montereycoe.org
Assistant Superintendent of Student Services, Title IX Coordinator
831.755.1405
evela@montereycoe.org