Simi Valley Unified board approves $13.8 million ESSER III spending plan and one-time ASB payments
May 08, 2026 | Simi Valley Unified, School Districts, California
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The Simi Valley Unified School District Board of Education on Tuesday approved the district's Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) III spending plan and a separate one-time resolution to pay Associated Student Body (ASB) accounts for pandemic-related expenditures.
Dr. Youssef, presenting the ESSER III plan, said the district is required to submit a proposal for how it will spend federal emergency relief funds and asked the board to approve "the ESSER 3 plan of 13.8 million dollars in expenditures." He told trustees the bulk of the actions in the plan track goals already vetted in the district's Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).
Trustee Bagdasarian moved approval; another trustee seconded. In roll call the board recorded four yes votes and one abstention after Trustee Smolin lost connection; the clerk recorded the result as a 4–0–1 approval.
The board also approved a resolution authorizing payments to multiple high school ASBs — described by staff as a one-time action enabled by stimulus rules because booster organizations and student groups were unable to fundraise during the pandemic. Mr. Toto, answering trustee questions, said the payments cover ASB commitments and that the district may use stimulus funding to restore normal operations costs incurred during 2020–21. Trustees discussed training and support for ASB accounting and booster organizations to reduce future turnover-related issues.
Board members and district staff emphasized alignment between ESSER spending and existing LCAP priorities, including parent engagement, student supports and expanded course access. Dr. Youssef noted the ESSER plan lists how the district proposes to spend the $13.8 million and that many of the included actions have already been reviewed through the LCAP process.
The actions approved Tuesday were procedural votes by the board to implement spending and to reimburse student activity accounts; no additional policy changes or new ongoing budget commitments were reported in the meeting record.
Next steps: staff will implement the ESSER III plan as outlined to the board and arrange the one-time ASB disbursements; trustees directed staff to continue aligning expenditures with LCAP goals and to pursue training for ASB and booster organization leaders.
Dr. Youssef, presenting the ESSER III plan, said the district is required to submit a proposal for how it will spend federal emergency relief funds and asked the board to approve "the ESSER 3 plan of 13.8 million dollars in expenditures." He told trustees the bulk of the actions in the plan track goals already vetted in the district's Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).
Trustee Bagdasarian moved approval; another trustee seconded. In roll call the board recorded four yes votes and one abstention after Trustee Smolin lost connection; the clerk recorded the result as a 4–0–1 approval.
The board also approved a resolution authorizing payments to multiple high school ASBs — described by staff as a one-time action enabled by stimulus rules because booster organizations and student groups were unable to fundraise during the pandemic. Mr. Toto, answering trustee questions, said the payments cover ASB commitments and that the district may use stimulus funding to restore normal operations costs incurred during 2020–21. Trustees discussed training and support for ASB accounting and booster organizations to reduce future turnover-related issues.
Board members and district staff emphasized alignment between ESSER spending and existing LCAP priorities, including parent engagement, student supports and expanded course access. Dr. Youssef noted the ESSER plan lists how the district proposes to spend the $13.8 million and that many of the included actions have already been reviewed through the LCAP process.
The actions approved Tuesday were procedural votes by the board to implement spending and to reimburse student activity accounts; no additional policy changes or new ongoing budget commitments were reported in the meeting record.
Next steps: staff will implement the ESSER III plan as outlined to the board and arrange the one-time ASB disbursements; trustees directed staff to continue aligning expenditures with LCAP goals and to pursue training for ASB and booster organization leaders.
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