Making Progress for the LAUSD Westchester Community of Schools

1. Began a Youth Advisory Council to hear from
student leaders at all Board District 4 high schools
about their perspective and ideas for
strengthening their educational experience
(pictured)
Served over 140 million free meals and other basic
necessities to kids and families in need at our 63
"Grab and Go" meal centers while schools were
closed to the COVID-19 pandemic
Accelerated construction for accessibility
improvements, funded security cameras and
auditorium upgrades, and cultivated community
partnerships at WESM, also benefitting Katherine
Johnson STEM Academy and WISH Charter
Academy on the same campus
Expanded families' access to early education
opportunities by reopening the shuttered
Kentwood Early Education Center program
(pictured)
Expanded tutoring and mentoring programs
and partnerships for both elementary and
secondary students, including virtual programs
to support students throughout the pandemic
Supported the opening of a new Gifted
Magnet program at Cowan Elementary
Funded a new "Makerspace" project to foster
creative thinking in an innovative learning
environment at Kentwood Elementary
Eliminated bureaucratic hurdles to make it
easier for parent organizations and booster
clubs to use school facilities
Cowan Elementary · Emerson Adult School · Katherine Johnson STEM Academy
Kentwood Elementary · Kentwood EEC · Loyola Village Elementary · Ocean Charter
Open Elementary · Wright Middle · Paseo del Rey Elementary · Playa Vista Elementary
Westchester Enriched Sciences Magnets · Westport Heights Elementary · WISH Charter
Proudly serving Board District 4 on the LA Unified Board of Education
MAKING PROGRESS FOR THE
WESTCHESTER COMMUNITY OF SCHOOLS
As we work to make LA Unified a more transparent, student-centered system that improves academic
outcomes and supports the overall wellbeing of our kids, check out some highlights of the progress we've
made for the school communities in Westchester over the past few years.

2. Supported LA Works efforts on their annual Martin Luther King, Jr.
Day of Service to bring hundreds of volunteers to paint and
beautify local school campuses, and continue their volunteer
efforts virtually once the pandemic began
Funded the Flexible Science Laboratories project to create more
innovative STEAM learning spaces at Wright Middle School
Funded classroom upgrade and improvement projects, along with
new roofing and a new electronic marquee at Westport Heights
Funded the replacement of current roofing, auditorium
renovations, and repainting project at WESM
Hosted a Facilities Forum to discuss new and ongoing projects in
the Westchester and surrounding school communities
Ensured Open Charter Magnet was able to fix its cistern so it could be used as an educative tool for students
Funded dialogic reading professional development program for teachers at Paseo del Rey Elementary to learn new skills
Supported the Class of 2020 during the pandemic with gifts, virtual ceremonies and celebrations, and socially distant or
drive-through events at Westchester Enriched Science Magnet, and successfully advocated for the Class of 2021 to have
safe, in-person graduation ceremonies
Making Progress for the Westchester Community of Schools
Funded new chemistry labs at WESM
to support student learning
(pictured)
Hosted a Westchester Community
Forum to engage in conversations
about community stakeholders'
vision for the future of their schools
Supported the new Paseo Del Rey
Spanish Dual Immersion program to
open Fall 2022
Assisted in securing facilities grants
totaling $5 million for improvements
at co-located campuses, including
new lunch tables on the Westchester
Enriched Science Magnets (WESM)
campus and library renovations at
Wright Middle School
Celebrated outstanding educators in our
schools annually at the Westchester teacher
"Eddy" Awards (pictured)
Successfully advocated for greater flexibility for
teacher assistants to better serve the needs of
multiple schools in the Westchester community
and across the District
Ensured that vital after-school programs,
including STAR and the YMCA, could continue
to serve our students and families without
disruption
Helped close the digital divide at Cowan
Elementary, Katherine Johnson STEM Academy,
Wright Middle School, and Westport Heights
Elementary by procuring digital devices,
charging stations, and approving network
security upgrades
Funded one of the District's "SEEDS" programs with community partners, providing an educational garden to enhance
the STEAM curriculum at Paseo Del Rey Elementary School (pictured)

3. Helped facilitate volunteers from LAWorks, UCLA, and LMU to complete campus beautification efforts at several schools
Making Progress for the Westchester Community of Schools
Participated in Westchester Farmers' Market office
hours to hear from community members (pictured)
Helped facilitate a partnership between Emerson
Community Adult School and LAX to provide career
opportunities and training for students
Supported a partnership for Venice Family Clinic to fill a
childcare need for adult students going back to school
at Emerson Community Adult School
Supported partnership with Google for technology
grant at Katherine Johnson STEM Academy
Supported a campus-wide painting project at
Westports Height Elementary
Ensured overdue power washing was expedited to
clean Wright Middle School's floors and grounds
Funded water bottle filling stations at Playa Vista
Elementary and WISH Charter
Supported and emceed the Del Rey Neighborhood Council Spelling Bee (pictured left) and the LAX Coastal Chamber
Spelling Bee (pictured right) for students in local public elementary schools
Funded a partnership through TeamHeal to provide free physicals and rehabilitation services for WESM student athletes
Funded Parent and Family Centers at Wright Middle School and Westchester Enriched Sciences Magnet
Supported OCEAN Charter School in securing matching bond funds to move to a private site, which was completed in
time for the 2021-22 school year and eliminated their previous colocation on the WESM campus (pictured)
Approved a new “Whole Child”
platform that provides educators
with a more holistic academic and
social-emotional snapshot of
students' wellbeing by integrating
data from various sources of
information
Ensured that schools received
accounting of leasing revenues,
enabling Cowan Elementary School
to generate additional funds for their
school through leasing opportunities
Provided access to partnerships
offering targeted literacy support and
tutoring services for students to
accelerate academic recovery after a
year of distance learning

4. Funded more sustainable high-efficiency upgrades at Open Charter Magnet and Westchester Enriched Science Magnet
Supported Loyola Village Elementary's art program by helping to secure another teacher (pictured)
…and the work continues, to keep making progress for our school communities and
meeting the needs of all our students, families, teachers, administrators, and staff!
Funded a classroom addition project to
support the successful enrollment growth
of Playa Vista Elementary
Funded a new heating and air conditioning
system as a critical repair project at Paseo
Del Rey Elementary
Supported the recognition of Clean Air Day
and secured multiple air quality monitoring
devices to improve the safety of our
students and school communities, including
Loyola Village Elementary and Westport
Heights Elementary
Funded mutli-million dollar campus
upgrades to ensure that the WESM campus
can become fully accessible for all students
Supported the LAX Coastal Chamber's annual Rock 'n' Roll 5k event for
students and families to raise money for their local schools (pictured)
Funded field trip for elementary students to visit neighboring middle
schools and learn more about their future education
Funded network upgrades to meet the technological needs of students at
Wright Middle, Loyola Village, and Westport Heights Elementary
Ensured community-led process for new principal searches at Kentwood
Elementary and Wright Middle School
Approved a new initiative to provide trainings for parents of children with
special needs to help develop family peer groups to support each other
in navigating the system for their students, including at Kentwood
Elementary, Paseo Del Rey, WESM, and Westport Heights Elementary
Funded new musical instruments to enhance arts programs at Cowan
Elementary, Open Charter Magnet, Paseo del Rey Elementary, and
Westport Heights Elementary
Boardmembermelvoin.com
213.241.6387
BD4info@LAUSD.net
@NickMelvoinBD4
For more updates and information:
Making Progress for the Westchester Community of Schools
UPDATED 3/2022