Report to City Council
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TO: Mayor and City Council
Mayor and City Council Acting in its Capacity as
President and Members of the Board of Directors of
the Moreno Valley Community Services District (CSD)
FROM: Jeremy Bubnick, Parks & Community Services
Director
AGENDA DATE: January 20, 2026
TITLE: TRANSITION THE AFTER-SCHOOL EDUCATION AND
SAFETY (ASES) PROGRAM FISCAL
ADMINISTRATION TO MORENO VALLEY UNIFIED
SCHOOL DISTRICT (MVUSD) AND VAL VERDE
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT (VVUSD) (REPORT OF:
PARKS AND COMMUNITY SERVICES) ( ALL
DISTRICTS)
TITLE SUMMARY: Authorize the Transition of After School Education and Safety (ASES) Program Fiscal Administration to Moreno
Valley Unified School District (MVUSD) and Val Verde
Unified School District (VVUSD).
DISTRICT: All Districts
Recommendation(s)
That the City Council and CSD:
1. Transition the A fter School Education and Safety (ASES) Program Fiscal Administration to Moreno Valley Unified School District (MVUSD) and Val Verde Unified School District (VVUSD).
2. Authorize the City Manager or their designee to take all actions necessary to implement the transition.
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SUMMARY
This report is to request that the City Council authoriz e the transition of fiscal administration and program oversight of the After School Education and Safety (ASES) grant from the City of Moreno Valley to the Moreno Valley Unified School District (MVUSD) and the Val Verde Unified School District (VVUSD), effective beginning with the 2026/2027 school year.
BACKGROUND
The After School Education and Safety (ASES) program is a California Department of Education (CDE) funded program designed to provide high -quality academic support, enrichment activities, and safe after -school supervision for K -12 students. Historically, these programs are administered by Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) because they integrate directly with school -day instruction, attendance systems, and state education funding structures.
In early 2025, the City received notice from the C DE that municipalities would no longer be eligible to serve as fiscal agents for ASES funding and that the grant would be transferred to the applicable LEAs. Later in July 2025, the State reversed that position and allowed the City to retain the grant.
Although technically permissible, continued municipal administration of ASES has proven increasingly impractical and poses significant compliance and financial risk during our state audit of this program.
DISCUSSION
The City currently operates the ASES program in partnership with MVUSD and VVUSD, in conjunction with Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP) funding administered by the school districts. Together, these funding sources support a single, fully integrated after-school program operated by Think Together.
This integrated model is both operationally efficient and required under the ASES statute, which mandates a cohesive program structure. Beginning in the 2026/2027 school year, both MVUSD and VVUSD have the option to transition to a different ELOP program provider. The result could be two parallel after -school programs operating at the same school sites, if the City continues to independently operate ASES, no longer providing the unified program structure required by the California Department of Education (CDE).
Additionally, ELOP funding significantly exceeds ASES funding and allows for enhanced programming and services. If families are required to choose between programs, participation would likely shift toward ELOP, further jeopardizing the long -term sustainability of the City’s ASES program.
To ensure continued compliance with state requirements and to provide the highest - quality, most seamless after -school programming for students and families, it is recommended that the City transfer the ASES funding to MVUS D and VVUSD. This
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approach would allow the districts to operate a single, cohesive after -school program, avoid service fragmentation, and ensure funding remains in Moreno Valley , serving our families and children.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve the recommendations listed in this staff report. Staff recommends this alternative as it will allow for continued enhanced after-school programming for students at MVUSD and VVUSD.
2. Do not approve the recommendations listed in this staff report. Staff does not recommend this alternative.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no adverse impact on the City’s General Fund. The ASES Grant is a State education funding source that is reimbursed based on eligible program expenditures and may only be used for allowable program and administrative costs. For Fiscal Year 2025- 26, the total annual ASES grant allocation is $7,020,157.98.
Of this amount, approximately $175,000 per fiscal year was retained by the City to help cover City staff salaries and benefits for reporting, compliance monitoring, and contract oversight. These costs were fully reimbursed by the grant and were not supported by General Fund Resources.
Please see the table below for FY26/27 and FY27/28 compensation per school district:
FY26/27
MVUSD VVUSD TOTAL
Award Amount 4,374,881.06 2,645,276.92 $ 7,020,157.98
Payment to Think Together 4,265,823.09 2,579,334.89 6,845,157.98 City Retention 109,057.97 65,942.03 175,000.00 TOTAL $ 4,374,881.06 $ 2,645,276.92 $ 7,020,157.98
FY27/28
MVUSD VVUSD
Award Amount 4,374,881.06 2,645,276.92 $ 7,020,157.98
Payment to Think Together 4,265,823.09 2,579,334.89 6,845,157.98 City Retention 109,057.97 65,942.03 175,000.00 Total $ 4,374,881.06 $ 2,645,276.92 $ 7,020,157.98
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NOTIFICATION
Posting of Agenda.
PREPARATION OF STAFF REPORT
Prepared By: Department Head Approval:
Kimberly Reeder Jeremy Bubnick
Senior Management Analyst Parks & Community Services Director
Concurred By:
Danielle Monarrez
PCS Admin & Financial Services Division Manager
CITY COUNCIL GOALS
Community Image, Neighborhood Pride and Cleanliness: Promote a sense of community pride and foster an excellent image about our City by developing and executing programs which will result in quality de velopment, enhanced neighborhood preservation efforts, including home rehabilitation and neighborhood restoration.
Positive Environment: Create a positive environment for the development of Moreno Valley's future.
Revenue Diversification and Preservation: Develop a variety of City revenue sources and policies to create a stable revenue base and fiscal policies to support essential City services, regardless of economic climate.
CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
1. Economic Development
2. Public Safety
3. Library
4. Infrastructure
5. Beautification, Community Engagement, and Quality of Life
6. Youth Programs
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Report Approval Details
Document Title: STAFFREPORT_PCS_TRANSITION ASES GRANT_TO MVUSD VVUSD.docx
Attachments:
Final Approval Date: Jan 14, 2026
This report and all of its attachments were approved and signed as outlined below:
Jeremy Bubnick
Natalia Lopez
Launa Jimenez
Brian Mohan
Patty Rodriguez