The Palo Alto Board of Education discussed plans for increased high school emphasis on college entrance requirements, opposed a possible district property transfer, and approved a new food services contract during its Tuesday, Oct. 28, meeting.

The board’s decided to emphasize University of California and California State University a-g entrance requirements in high schools in hopes of readying Palo Alto Unified School District students for college, according to board Vice President Barb Mitchell.

“The fundamental goal here is to give kids wider choices upon graduation,” Mitchell said.

Seventy-seven percent of 2008 PAUSD graduates met all of the UC and CSU a-g requirements. According to Mitchell, the board hopes to increase that number to 85 percent in the next five years as part of a long-term set of goals for college readiness.

“This [the increase to 85 percent] is part of a longer discussion we’re having about revising graduating standards,” Mitchell said.

The board approved a resolution opposing the proposed small-scale property transfer from Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District and Mountain View-Whisman School District to PAUSD. Though few people would be affected by the transfer, the board did not want to let down its guard for possible future requests with larger implications, according to board President Dana Tom.

“If this transfer were to take place, then it would set a precedent for more requests,” Tom said.

Tom cited the proposal’s incorrect formulation as another reason that the board opposed it.

“We don’t feel it meets the [county] criteria for a permissible boundary change,” Tom said.

According to Tom, since the board does not decide on issues of district property, the proposal may still go through despite the board’s opposition.

The board also approved a new contract with student food services provider Sodexo, according to the meeting minutes from the board’s Oct. 14 meeting, when the Student Nutrition Services contract item was put on the consent calendar for the Oct. 28 meeting. See Board of Education approves Paly master-planning contracts, discusses food services plans and standardized testing scores for in-depth information on the Sodexo contract.

The board’s next regular meeting will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 18.