FUEL Update: What We Learned from the October 9 Board Meeting
Dear FUEL Community,
Thank you for continuing to show up with care, patience, and purpose. As we reflect on last week’s School Board meeting, we want to share a recap and some important updates with you.
Highlights from the October 9, 2025 Board Meeting
Dr. Glass’s 100-Day Report: Building a Legacy for the Next Generation
Amid the distractions, Superintendent Dr. Jason Glass presented an inspiring 100-Day Report that reminded everyone what real leadership looks like. His message centered on vision, legacy, and the role our community plays in shaping the future of Laguna Beach schools.
Dr. Glass spoke of the need to modernize classrooms, renew facilities, and prepare for a bond initiative that will allow our schools to meet the high standards our students deserve. He tied this investment to a larger legacy, one that reflects the same community pride that revitalized our campuses over two decades ago.
View Dr. Glass’ Statement HERE
He emphasized continuing our district’s strong identity, blending academic excellence, the arts, environmental stewardship, and civic pride, while ensuring fiscal responsibility and transparency.
Our View: We strongly support Dr. Glass’s vision. The coming bond initiative will not increase taxes, but would renew our community’s long-standing commitment to excellence. This investment will protect what previous generations built and ensure that the next generation of Laguna Beach students can learn in facilities that inspire them.
Just as important, we celebrate the ongoing achievements of our students and educators and look forward to partnering with the district to build upon that success. FUEL is committed to supporting forward progress in our schools and working collaboratively to strengthen academic excellence, innovation, and opportunity for every student.
Insurance: Complex Issues, Steady Solutions
In the September 25 meeting, the independent auditor shared that because of the complexity of the issue and the timing of these calculations, the health care cap (the set dollar limits the District agrees to pay for each employee’s health care premium) were exceeded for multiple school years. The District report a net cost of $5.5 million for health benefits last year (after employee contributions) and confirmed that independent auditors will review and validate those figures. Several community speakers stressed the importance of understanding why this happened and fixing the process over blame. We are confident the administration will take these findings seriously and use the auditor’s recommendations to strengthen their systems and collaboration with union representatives.
The healthcare premiums issues was the subject of Board Member Hills’s inappropriate communication referenced below, in which he implied malfeasance and attempted to tie this complex matter to an election. We encourage community members to speak out and reject misleading narratives that undermine trust and respect in our district.
Our View: These issues are technical, not political. From what has been shared so far, the caps have remained flat for many years and haven’t kept pace with the sharp rise in healthcare premiums nationwide. As a well-funded district, it would have been reasonable to proportionately increase the caps each year so that the District’s share of premiums rose alongside those of our teachers and staff—without placing an undue burden on our talented workforce. FUEL supports a professional review, transparent communication, and solutions that rebuild trust among staff, labor partners, and leadership.
Board Decorum: Our Community Deserves Better
Once again, the regularly scheduled October 9 LBUSD School Board meeting was overshadowed by Trustee Howard Hills's conduct and a widely circulated communication that has shaken confidence across our schools and community.
Read Hills’ communication HERE | Read 27 pages of staff & community comments HERE
Dozens of employees, teachers, and community members spoke out through these Public Comments. Their words painted a clear picture: fear, frustration, and exhaustion. Many shared that they feel “angry, sad, and hurt,” and “afraid of retaliation.” Several expressed that the ongoing chaos and personal attacks have created a “toxic environment” that is driving good people away and could harm our students and district.
These 27 pages of comments reflect a district in distress, one where educators and staff feel attacked instead of supported, and where governance dysfunction has replaced stability.
Our view: This is not sustainable. The Board must restore professional norms and ensure a sense of safety and respect for employees. We urge trustees to publicly disavow Mr. Hills’s statements, agendize a formal censure, and reaffirm their commitment to respectful, unified governance, as required by Board Bylaws 9005, 9010, and 9012.
Our community’s educators deserve better. Our students deserve better. And our district’s reputation, built over decades of excellence, depends on it.
Communication and Transparency: A Crucial Reset
Board Member Dr. Joan Malczewski offered one of the most important reflections of the evening, reminding the community that clear, collective communication is a cornerstone of effective governance.
She noted that while the Board previously discussed revisiting its communications policy, those conversations were intended to strengthen shared governance, not to give individual trustees more control over district messaging. Recently, a couple members of the Board took over writing the district’s “It’s a Wrap,” the factual summary provided after each board meeting. As she stated, the president of the board “is not the spokesperson for the entire district,” and no single member “has individual authority.” Rather, the board has collective authority.
See Dr. Malczewski’s statement HERE
She went on to connect these governance failures to the broader health of the district, noting that instability and public dysfunction damage the district’s reputation, undermining our service to the students, and, ultimately, our property values.
Our View: We agree. The superintendent and our communications director, not individual trustees, lead the district’s communications and operations. We commend Trustee Malczewski for her courage and clarity. Her comments reflect what so many in the community have been saying: the board’s job is to govern with unity and respect, not chase personal narratives or undermine professional staff.
What Comes Next:
Read: Dr. Glass’s 100-Day Report - LINK
Review: Staff & community comments - LINK
Join: Volunteer and visit FUEL’s nonprofit booth at the Laguna Beach Farmer’s Market on October 18 - LINK
Act: Ask the Board to censure and disavow Hills’s statements - LINK to email President Perry and Dr. Glass
Next Board Meeting: Thursday, October 23, 6:00 p.m.
