Board votes 3–2 to move 2026 LBHS graduation to Irvine Bowl
Vote 3-2
At the February 26, 2026 board governance meeting, the board voted 3-2 to relocate the 2026 Laguna Beach High School graduation ceremony from Guyer Field to the Irvine Bowl. Hills, Morgan, and Perry voted in favor; Malczewski and Kelly opposed. Both student board members also voted no. Superintendent Glass recommended the venue decision remain at the site level (delegated to administration); he reported that a student survey was "split right down the middle." A substitute motion to keep graduation at Guyer Field for 2026 and move to the Irvine Bowl starting 2027 failed 1-4. Kelly initially attempted to abstain, stating "this is not something that the board should be voting on"; the board president stated abstention required a financial conflict of interest, after which Kelly voted no. Petition organizer Liz Bates told the board the Irvine Bowl petition had "over 1,100 signatures." Upstream context: the vote followed a February 3, 2026 student email and survey from LBHS Principal Jason Allemann inviting community input on the location. Glass clarified on the record that the School Board holds full authority over the final decision. Downstream context: at the March 12, 2026 closed-session pre-meeting, Kelly attempted to add a motion to reconsider the venue and return the decision to administration; board counsel ruled on the record that the motion would be a Brown Act violation because the matter had not been agendized, and Morgan stated "the board will not hear this item again." Per the LBHS student newspaper Brush and Palette (Chloe Falk, March 26, 2026), the Irvine Bowl had been LBHS's graduation venue for 71 consecutive years (1955–2019) prior to the 2020 COVID-era move to Guyer Field; capacity is approximately 2,600 with 8-10 tickets per graduate.
People referenced
Citations (6)
- Laguna Beach Unified School District
Official LBUSD recording of the February 26, 2026 governance meeting where the 3-2 graduation venue vote occurred. See /meetings/2026-02-26-governance for the full meeting summary.
- February 26 Recap and March 12 Meeting Agenda advocacy FUEL — Families Unified for Education in LagunaFUEL — Families Unified for Education in Laguna · Emily Rolfing · 2026-03-11
FUEL's recap of the February 26 meeting also documents the graduation-venue motion.
- 71 years of tradition returns to Laguna Beach High School's graduation news Brush and Palette (LBHS student newspaper, lbhsnews.com)Brush and Palette (LBHS student newspaper, lbhsnews.com) · Chloe Falk · 2026-03-26
In returning to the Irvine Bowl, LBHS is not just choosing a location. It reaffirms a tradition that connects past, present, and future generations of graduates.
Closing line of the Brush and Palette piece, exemplifying the student-paper's pro-tradition framing of the Feb 26 vote. Also adds previously-uncaptured logistical detail (capacity ~2,600; 8-10 tickets per graduate) and the 71-year historical anchor (1955–2019).
- Board Governance Meeting — Feb 26, 2026 Agenda (Diligent OnePortal) primary Laguna Beach Unified School DistrictLaguna Beach Unified School District · 2026-02-23
At its February 12, 2026, meeting, the Board received a presentation from Laguna Beach High School and Thurston Middle School leadership outlining promotion and graduation planning considerations, including venue options, student feedback, operational logistics, cost sharing, and guiding principles centered on student recognition, family access, safety, and inclusion. The Board also heard public comment on location options, including costs, logistics, community feedback, and historical and traditional background. The item was heard as a discussion item, and no action was taken. The matter has been placed on this agenda for consideration and possible action.
Verbatim background note from the Feb 26 Board Governance Meeting agenda (Item 5.A 'Approval of High School Graduation Location'). The district's own framing of the upstream Feb 12 step explicitly names 'operational logistics' as part of the planning considerations.
- Bring LBHS Graduation Back to Irvine Bowl in Laguna Beach! advocacy Change.org (Elizabeth Bates, petitioner)Change.org (Elizabeth Bates, petitioner) · Elizabeth Bates · 2025-08-27
Liz Bates's petition, launched August 27, 2025 (~6 months pre-vote). Final count 1,134 signatures. Petition organizer Bates cited it at the Feb 26 meeting as 'over 1,100 signatures.' Change.org applies no residency-verification mechanism; counter-petition (Savage) cites a 35%-outside-district-zip-code audit claim against the Bates signature composition.
- Breit v. LBUSD — Complaint (Document 1, filed June 2, 2026) primary U.S. District Court, Central District of California — Southern DivisionU.S. District Court, Central District of California — Southern Division · James S. Azadian, Christine Mardikian, David Ter-Petrosyan · 2026-06-02
On February 26, 2026, the Laguna Beach Unified School District Board of Education voted, in a split 3-2 decision, to relocate the graduation ceremony from Guyer Field at Laguna Beach High School to the Irvine Bowl without first conducting a formal ADA accessibility evaluation of the Irvine Bowl.
Breit v. LBUSD complaint ¶14, retrospectively characterizing the February 26, 2026 relocation vote as the act that gave rise to the June 2, 2026 federal ADA / Section 504 complaint.