Dear Board President Goldberg, Honorable Board Members and Board Secretariat McLean:

We are writing to respectfully request that the Los Angeles Unified Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Policy and Committee be placed on the Agenda for the scheduled September 21st School Safety Committee meeting.

The May 23, 2002 “Decision Making Process for the Los Angeles School District Integrated Pest Management,“ requires issues surrounding the IPM Policy and Committee to be directed to the School Safety Committee to provide guidance and verification regarding procedures and program implementation and to recommend resolutions for any District policies found to be in conflict with it.

We are requesting that the Committee approve the proposed IPM Committee Members, and if any updates are necessary to the Policy or Procedures Manual, to have those addressed and resolved through the School Safety Committee with the IPM Oversight Committee Members.

In 1998, the LA Unified School Safety and Campus Environmental Committee initiated a working group to review the IPM policy that was in place at the time. The working group included parents, teachers, community members and staff who created a more protective policy.

They understood the high risk to health because of an incident when a six year-old student was accidentally sprayed with a pesticide by an LA Unified gardener
in a hazmat suit resulting in an asthma attack and emergency services.

After a year-long process of working together collaboratively, the LA Unified School District’s Board unanimously adopted a ground breaking policy that embraced the “Precautionary Principle” and the “Right to Know” and established a 15 member Oversight Committee to ensure that the safeguarding standards would be upheld when implemented at all LA Unified School sites.

The success of the LA Unified IPM Policy led to California legislation, The Healthy Schools Act and AB405 (Montanez). The LA Unified IPM Policy has become a national and international model for school districts and communities because of its proven effectiveness and preservation of health and the environment.

Therefore, based on the May 23, 2002, Board of Education’s directive to the School Safety Committee to oversee the IPM Policy and Committee, we respectfully request that the IPM policy and Committee be placed on the Agenda for the September 21 st , LA Unified School Safety Committee meeting. Thank you.


Respectfully,