Coachella Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees adds student trustee position
The Coachella Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees welcomed a junior member to the dais on Thursday night — a student trustee.
Caitlyn Hill, a student at Desert Mirage High School in Thermal, was appointed to the board by trustees and will serve in an advisory role for the remainder of the 2021-22 year.
Hill will have a ceremonial vote on certain matters but never a binding vote, and she will be excluded from the board's closed session and action items related to district personnel, disciplinary actions and other confidential issues.
Adonis Galarza-Toledo, appointed to the school board at age 23, had pushed fellow board members and new superintendent Luis Valentino to implement a student trustee program for months.
Desert Sands Unified School District and Palm Springs Unified School District already have established student board positions that allow high school leaders to take turns at the dais during board meetings.
Upon his appointment to the board in 2020 when he replaced his older brother, Galarza-Toledo, a Cal Sate University, San Bernardino, graduate himself only a few years removed from attending Desert Mirage High School, said he wanted to "fight for students."
While at CVUSB, Galarza-Toledo served as president of the Associated Students Inc.
On Thursday, he said creating a student trustee program was personal for him.
"My commitment to the student trustee program is something that comes with me from my background in student leadership," Galarza-Toledo told The Desert Sun.
He hopes the student appointee will improve the board's insight into school affairs by providing an on-the-ground perspective.
"We need to make sure the people affected the most by our services — students — are at the table and are part of the decision-making process," Galarza-Toledo said.
Because the position was established mid-year, the inaugural trustee was selected by board appointment. Three finalists who had been screened by administration at each of the district's three high schools interviewed in front of the board earlier Thursday evening. The additional finalists were Brianna Gonzales from West Shores High School in Salton City and Ramses Bautista-Paredes from Coachella Valley High School. They will be appointed to the superintendent's advisory council, Galarza-Toledo announced.
Galarza-Toledo said the process for selecting next year's student trustees — whether by election or appointment — has not been finalized yet. However, three student trustees, one from each high school, will rotate in an advisory role on the board, similar to the processes in other area school districts.
Jonathan Horwitz covers education for The Desert Sun. Reach him at jonathan.horwitz@desertsun.com or @Writes_Jonathan.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: CVUSD adds student trustee position on board
