Martinez Unified Keeps AI Camera Tools Off, Eyes Visitor Screening Pilot

Martinez Unified's security cameras can already recognize faces and read license plates. Staff told the Governing Board on Sept. 28, 2026, that those tools remain switched off, and previewed a visitor check-in pilot with automated background checks that will test how far families want school security to go. Trustees also signaled they will skip an external search and move to make Interim Superintendent Janelle Ayotte permanent.

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• AI camera features stay disabled, except face redaction for lawful footage releases
• Visitor check-in pilot with automated background checks will return as a formal proposal
• Trustees back a permanent job for Interim Superintendent Janelle Ayotte; item returns next meeting
• Biliteracy pathway expands to grades 5 and 8 as a trustee floats Spanish immersion
• New junior high security vestibule closes what staff called a "real soft spot"

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AI Camera Tools Stay Off as Screening Pilot Looms

The basics: Under Board Policy 3515, elementary schools run locally hosted Avigilon systems installed through prior bond programs. Secondary schools use cloud-portal Verkada cameras that store footage on the camera. Most sites have 10 to 15 cameras covering entrances, exits and common areas. None are in classrooms.

Why it matters: The hardware supports facial recognition, license plate reading and traffic-flow analysis. The next step staff is weighing, a visitor screening pilot, would bring photos and background checks to every front office.

Where things stand: "Facial recognition could be used in this location as well, where you could feed the system a picture and say, give me all the footage for this person, and it would review that," said Joe Gengler, technology staffer.

He then drew the line. "Even though I discussed all these features, everything is disabled across all of our systems at this time," Gengler said. The one exception is AI face redaction, used only when footage is lawfully released.

Other guardrails include:

• No audio: No camera records sound. California requires two-party consent to record conversations, and new cameras have hardware microphone switches.
• Retention: Footage is kept for 30 days.
• Legal status: Footage is treated as a FERPA education record under federal student-privacy law. It may also be subject to the California Public Records Act, with redaction.
• Export limits: Administrators can only view footage. Only Gengler and network administrator Kevin can export it.

Gengler stressed that no one actively watches the feeds. "I appreciate your stressing the fact that no one is going to go look at the video," said Board President Tania Brugger.

The other side: Trustees pressed on oversight. "Are you checking in on kind of who's accessing and for what reason?" asked one trustee. Gengler said every action in the system is logged, but logs are not routinely reviewed and the district extends trust to administrators.

"If you were to get a court order or subpoena or something, it's most likely going to be way past 30 days," said another trustee. Gengler said legal holds and incident bookmarks preserve that footage.

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: No action was taken.

Andy Cannon, district staff, said fencing now creates a single point of entry at every school except Alhambra High, which is being fenced with Measure O bond dollars. "In light of our recent situation at the high school some weeks ago, we have met with the police department captains and the chief," Cannon said. The district is also:

• installing new fire knock boxes
• giving police an administrator radio
• placing administrator key sets in offices

Evacuation plans are unchanged for now. A future Building F expansion from 12 to 17 classrooms may divert traffic flow.

What's next: Staff will bring a detailed pilot proposal later. The system would:

• photograph visitors
• run automated background checks with red or green results
• check the student information system to confirm parents
• use visitor photos to search camera footage

That last feature relies on the kind of photo-based search Gengler described as currently disabled. Parents, volunteers and privacy-minded residents will want to watch for that proposal.

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Board Moves Toward Making Ayotte Permanent Superintendent

Why it matters: Appointing Ayotte would end interim leadership well ahead of the December timeline the board had previously discussed. It would also skip an external search entirely.

Where things stand: Ayotte has served about six months as interim superintendent after a leadership change last spring. Brugger outlined the options: a direct appointment, a search firm or a search run by the board itself. She made clear no decision would come that night.

"I think it's worth considering as a board whether or not we want to just move forward with making her the permanent superintendent," Brugger said.

Trustee Brenda Leal read prepared remarks on Ayotte's career in the district since about 2012. Ayotte has worked in special education and student services and served as assistant superintendent of human resources. "I believe that we should consider offering her the position of superintendent rather than launching an external search," said Leal.

"Since day one, it has not felt like Janelle is acting as an interim," said Trustee Anne Martin. Martin proposed following board policy and working with legal counsel on a contract before any action.

Parent Todd Navarro, a public commenter, credited Ayotte with guiding a difficult budget cycle and restoring regular superintendent updates he said were missing last year. "She picked up the reins of the school district at a very difficult time last spring, and overnight you could see the improvement," Navarro said. He called the prior period costly and urged the board to act before December.

The other side: No speaker argued for an external search. One trustee asked why the timeline moved up and what board policy requires. The response indicated a trustee had asked the president to bring the item forward sooner. Brugger pointed to longer meetings, governance training and mission statement work ahead.

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: There was no vote. The board reached consensus, and Brugger will consult the district's attorney. Contract terms may be worked out in closed session after an appointment. For staff and families, the move signals continuity heading into tighter budget years.

What's next: The item returns at the next board meeting for discussion and potential action.

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Biliteracy Pathway Grows as Immersion Idea Surfaces

Why it matters: More than 30 languages are spoken across Martinez Unified. The program targets English learner reclassification and Seal of Biliteracy attainment.

Where things stand: Yadira Zapata, Educational Services, described a program with three tracks aligned to the California Department of Education:

• Home language development: grades 1, 3 and 7, with grade 1 launching in 2027-28
• Biliteracy attainment: grades 5 and 8, launching this year
• Seal of Biliteracy: awarded since 2018 to more than 100 recipients

The program is open to any student with no prerequisites. It aligns with LCAP Goal 2, the district's accountability plan, and Zapata credited advocacy by families on the District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC). Last year's soft launch saw four third graders finish the pathway in four languages. A newly approved assessment let three more seniors earn the seal. The goal is a fully established program by 2027-28.

Outreach begins around November through auto-translated ParentSquare messages, newsletters and classroom presentations. Brugger asked how families fluent in English but speaking a heritage language at home would learn about the program.

The other side: Trustee Courtney Masella-O'Brien asked about elementary Spanish immersion like programs in Berkeley and Concord. "I see the need just in the business world for the folks that are bilingual, especially in Spanish," she said. Zapata said staff has not formally studied immersion and pointed to the new LCAP being written this year. "One of the big implications obviously are the credentialing," said a district director, who also cited budget and textbook costs.

What's next: Zapata is pursuing vendor-taught language courses funded by attendance recovery money. She also highlighted free Rosetta Stone and Mango access with a Contra Costa County Library card.

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Summer Work Closes Junior High's "Soft Spot"

Why it matters: The junior high entrance was a known vulnerability.

Where things stand: Gerald Riddell, facilities staff, reported on summer projects. The junior high now has a security vestibule with fob access and a video intercom, and its office was reoriented to face the entrance. "It was a real soft spot here in the district," Riddell said.

Other projects included:

• Alhambra High: new baseball netting, plus siding and gutters on the D building after water intrusion
• Las Juntas: six irrigation valves and 20 rotor heads on its community-shared field, and Pacheco Boulevard planters on an $8,000 budget
• District-wide: new marquees, and a generator that passed final city inspection

Riddell said every contract is negotiated. Permitting has slowed a bond-funded upper field project.

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Minor Items

• County budget review: The Contra Costa County Office of Education approved the 2026-27 LCAP and budget, maintaining a 3% reserve but projecting deficits in 2027-28 and 2028-29.
• Board actions: The board approved a stipulated expulsion in closed session (For: 5, Against: 0), moved by Trustee Logan Campbell. Voice votes, with tallies not announced, approved the consent calendar, Resolution 2027-05 on textbook sufficiency, the conflict-of-interest code update (agendized as 2027-06; the motion said 2027-07) and August 2026 CSBA policy updates.
• Labor: Public hearings, with no comment, opened MEA successor talks for July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029, and CSEA Chapter 99 talks for 2026-27. A state-funded $106.16 hourly rate for apprenticeship instructors had no recorded vote.
• Foundation support: The Martinez Education Foundation's Run for Education raised a record $281,000. MEF will fund a new Wellness Intake Specialist position.
• State funding: Masella-O'Brien flagged lawsuits over $3.5 billion withheld from Prop 98 and requested a board discussion on Proposition 3.

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Looking Ahead

At the next meeting, the board takes up Ayotte's potential appointment and votes on the Wellness Intake Specialist position. Martinez Adult Education hosts its career expo with 40 employers on Oct. 15. The visitor check-in pilot proposal will come later.