The State of Education in LA by Jim McFarland
Well, the year is up and rolling. Full house for the second meeting of 2026. We were greeted and Joel Ruben led us in the flag salute and thought of the day. "Our goal should be to live life in radical amazement... get up in the morning and look at the world in a way that takes nothing for granted. . . . Abraham Joshua Heschel. Joel also led us in the song of the day… Richard Rodgers’ “Oh what a beautiful mornin’.”
Guests at this morning’s meeting: Shwetha Reddy brought by Dave Gendron, Gordon Cook by Kathleen Terry, Eric Brinkman and Randy Niesson by Tarek Shaer.
President Cedric Tuck-Sherman gave a quick shout out to last week’s All Club Assembly facilitators, Larry Johnson, Kathleen Terry, Kelly Stroman, and Richard Montgomery. Last week’s closed board meeting of 12 voting members took a look at our suggestions on improving our club based on President Cedric’s overarching objectives 2025-2026.
What the board discerned from our suggestions was to improve new member onboarding, pathways to engagement (make it easier to sign up to volunteer and participate, etc.), communication, and make Rotary fun again.
The “new” overarching objectives are:
1. Continued Fun & Fellowship - moved up from 6
2. Focus on Signature Programs - moved up from 4
3. Shared Leadership & Engagement - more updates
4. Lean into Rotary - moved down from 2
5. Transparency - removed “Radical”
6. Increase Public Image - lower priority
Special Events - Mike Jenkins organized a CPR training class for us (see description below and register on ClubRunner.
Zimbabwe Wash Project. Donate any amount to Rotary International and an anonymous donor from our club will match it up to $25,000. We already have $7,000. This donation will also go towards your Paul Harris credit. Expires Jan 31. Make checks payable to MB Rotary Charitable Foundation, Memo: Zimbabwe WASH, GG2686389. Mail to the Foundation at 515 N Sepulveda Blvd., Manhattan Beach, 90266-6748.
Norm Levin auctioned tickets to Distinguished Speaker series tonight with Laurie Santo. with a special offer of car service hosted by President Cedric and the First Lady! Proceeds going to the Wash Project! Winner was Rita Crabtree-Kampe. Thank you, Norm and Rita!!
Tarek Shaer Introduced Randy Niessen and Eric Brinkman with the City of Manhattan Beach Cultural Arts Dept.. The city art center has quarterly art classes in ceramics, drawing 200 students per week. They host exhibitions and the next one is “Do you see what I see?” January 16-29th at the Manhattan Beach Art Center Gallery, 1560 Manhattan Beach Boulevard, featuring local talent. They are also responsible for putting on our Concerts in the Park. They are looking for sponsors! A special studio tour and workshop for our club has been pushed back to a future date. Look for it on ClubRunner.
Christina Pascucci introduced our next speaker Nick Melvoin, board member of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Nick is an honorary member of the Playa Sunrise Club. Nick was born in Brentwood. He graduated from Harvard University in 2008, and earned a master's degree from Loyola Marymount and a JD from the NYU School of Law.
Nick shared his journey from teaching at Edwin Markham Middle School through the Teach for America program to role on the LAUSD. After his first year at Markham Middle School, he was laid off along with 70% of teachers due to budget cuts. He worked on the ACLU’s Reed v California lawsuit, which challenged LAUSD’s seniority-based teacher layoff policies, as well as testifying in the Vergara v. California lawsuit. The school where he taught at 104th in Compton was 4% proficient in math in 2008-2009. LA County has 88 cities with 81 school districts. LAUSD has 500,00 students and 70,000 employees. Largest land owner in the county. Nick stated that they now have an 87 percent graduation rate. They are making improvements including immersion language programs and listening to parents’ needs. He says the biggest hurdle is the state’s bureaucracy. He wants to create charter type schools and to bring back industrial arts. Had great questions from Nelson Gray, Charlie Steinnmetz and others.
Restoration Diversion Services Support Team Lisa Schlager, Kavita Patel and Sandesha Singh gave us an update on the design and remodel of the Serenity Room. Huge thanks to the many supporters of this project. The next project is in April - pepper spray and personal alarms to give to the women at the center.
Rotarians in the Wild. Christina Pascucci was seen with Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo. Speaking of Christina…She will be leaving us. She’s moving to D.C.!! President Cedric honored her with a Certificate of Gratitude for her exemplary service. The club also is donating $500 on her behalf to Ready to Succeed LA. Thanks, Christina, from all of us!
Drawing. Wine was won by Jay Harkenrider and yours truly won a chance at the money…no luck!!!
For more meeting photos, go to SmugMug. 
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