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so if we're going to be changing our zoning we have to ask for more than 10% now I get that there's a requirement it's not economically feasible so one is Pawn Street and two I did read surveys now I know there are other communities but like Lexington was able to say you're good with 15 you might push it to 20 we're not Lexington but it doesn't cost as much to acquire land here the rents are very high we just read to report that they're higher than surrounding communities so I I hope that we have the very best data to help us um get to more than 10% well I'd be curious why are we different from Lexington um if if I could add one um just observation related to that so uh when you mentioned the maximum height requirement in the Pond Street District at five stories this is this is a challenge that we've had with eohc in the past they require that we test the maximum the the minimum threshold in which affordability is triggered in terms of number of units and then the maximum buildout specifications meaning like if you're building in Palm Street we have to test a five-story building the challenge there is that right now construction costs for Stick Over Podium which if if you're building over four stories then you need to have Podium construction to support going up past those four stories that type of construction becomes incredibly costly and that's starting to become an inhibitory factor is those construction costs when you build higher um in the case of Lexington I'm I'm not quite certain of the their height requirements off the top of my head but in other communities that we've worked if you have a set maximum height of four stories that's what we test and that's wood frame construction and then that would work that's why it works in your other two districts why we can't test a project less than that five story maximum because even though it's a Max story height Max height of five stories you you technically don't have to meet that Max but eoh requires us to test that uh we we've asked them why because we experienced this in in a couple of other communities and that's just sort of the response that we've been so we aren't allowed to make if you build it five stories sorry we can't ask for more than 10 but if it's four we could I mean is aren't we allowed to do that then I understand your data than presenting but can't can't we ask for a different percentage if someone builds it four stories then I think what's Eric saying is that's going against the state in their regulations so the state demanding the test at the five the I think but that I think Eric was going to answer the question yeah so so the way I say it the way I say it because because you have in your zoning a maximum height of five stories we we have to test that if you're going to submit an EA to increase the affordability that's that's basically um the long and the the short of it if you reduced it to four stories or if you add it in other language that's that's a different story all I can really speak to in terms of the EFA is we have to test whatever the maximum assumptions are so just to follow up so that what you're saying is then if we say we're going to put this potential zoning in but we're going to just make it a requirement a four Fe a four stories that would change the cost estimate and we could potentially go above the 10% you could then get 12 and a half in Palm Street as well yeah if we go higher no if we go lower if we change the zoning change the zoning on Pawn Street to four stories we we would have to change the Zoning for the whole pwn Street overlay District right would that be how it would h i mean because if we were we couldn't spot so currently in the pawn Street overlay District it is five stories and that goes back to when the pawn Street overlay District was adopted to the so I think in theory yes you would be changing it for the entire element and then obviously we're really just creating a a zone for 501 and 369 and that's going to be the MBTA overlay Pawn Street district and so what we we would have to do there is compress that down to four which would go from Podium construction down to just stick construction which would be a different what we're seeing on Chestnut Street stre correct how would that change our MBTA data though if let's say we reone all of Pawn Street to get to the 12.5% we bring it down to four stories does that change your analysis for I I think it just changes what we can ask for a affordability I think it's I think it's this I mean though the questions are good for our time tonight I'm not sure we want to go down this road because when we're looking at the property on Pawn Street um of of the area that we've allotted there which we will'll see one of them one part of the lot the space is already constructed and the other one is already uh approved at F for 501 Pawn Street at and it's approved at 25% affordable right okay so I'm not sure a deep discussion on this is is worth our time tonight right so that makes sense thank you thank you for that clarification but is there are there any other questions for Eric because I assume well I don't know I don't know what the Eric's time schedule is this evening and we'll be getting into the you know ELO's presentation as well any other happy to answer as many questions as you need questions for Eric I do have one one other little question so if when when you say that the Pond Street numbers failed you know for the affordability and would get rejected by um EO eoh EO eohc thank you thank you the acronym um so if if if we would write if if we would write a bylaw that we would submit to the state to um to comply with MBTA communities and it had that and we it didn't meet that criteria the state could reject the bylaw correct is that like grounds for a rejection yeah yes okay I just wanted to thank you okay if there's no other immediate questions for Eric I'll I think Alo are you uh are you on next yes I can I can start presenting um I'll probably turn it over to you to like go through like the last approach but so at least we'll have all the information in the big picture and we can discuss it all at one time thank you so much Eric thank you so this is the same power not the same power by a very similar version of the PowerPoint that uh we presented last time that we were meeting and also the one that we walked through the two public discussions um you know as a recap we're just kind of like mentioning that this owning District um has to at least be 50 acres and a minimum of those 50 acres has to be within the MBTA buffer um each individual district has to be at least five acres or greater um so no less than that can just be an EST Standalone District um based on the 3A requirements um the minimum density is 15 units per acre multif family we know each restriction Allowed by right um and the districts need to have to access to train station that basically all of the town of Ashland um has that because of the location of the train station um so basically what the approaches were or like what the information was that he was given to us is that we need to based on the 2020 census we have to allocate Sony for 1124 units 1,24 units um and you know like the kind of like as we mentioned from the start there will be two ways that we could do this we could go for a very low density approach where we were trying to maximiz area and land and we're trying to like minimiz density um and you can kind of like see the numbers there and then there's also different approach where you are trying to minimize the amount of land that gets sewn but then you are looking at the highest amount of density um which will be an average of 20 units per acre but of course into that is kind of like what Eric was mentioning you have to take into account all the zoning differentiations height um open land all of those kind of aspects so you need to like make sure that all of those numbers play around when you're looking at the total land because you might think that you have the 50 acres and that is working but then when you actually look at open land percentages of that can go away and you need to make sure that the density then plays along so it's it's kind of like a trickier game than just you know like putting colors in a map and then just deciding what areas will work and what numbers could run um the gis I think that you kind of like uh seen this before but just to like redirect it um from the state we get the samples of GIS data that they tell us how to at least like navigate the first part of this process uh one of them is giving us information about excluded landone areas that we definitely cannot um touch for these exercise and that's due to ownership so for instances areas that are owned by the town or the state or they had some sort of like use restrictions those are areas that they EST they pre-identify as they're not practical or possible for us to use so from the start we did not look at those Parcels um sensitive land is areas that we do can use um for the MBTA the only thing is that for these areas um they're going to be red flaged so it doesn't necessarily mean a negative thing it just means that when you're looking at those areas in a map you have to know that there might be an extra cost due to its location due to its geographical um features so most of it you can see that it's near like reer fronts or anything like that because of the float Zone and that's why it's kind of like shown a sensitive land um and then the density denominator these are I want to say a little similar in the sense that it could be due to geographical impacts or geographical features that it impacts it but the main thing is that for the exercise you cannot count these towards the total number of land so let's say if you pick any parcel here that has the light brown area you will have to decrease that from your total number of land but you can still counted for um and that will be deducted to the density so when you're doing your density exercise that that parcel is going to be impacted for how much of the brown space is basically taken so if you have a parcel of one acre and you have a brown space of 0.3 Acres you can only use 0.7 to actually like measure the density um yeah I mean I think I can turn around to Trisha so she can walk over the district itself yes so this goes back to just our um our kind of continuing um analysis about how we approach these sites first we had General discussions about all kinds of areas across Ashland um that included obviously the big chunks of the rail Transit District um but as well as other properties around Ashton some of which um have projects the planning board has recently approved on them such as um C is 100 Chestnut Street um D is um D is 501 Pond right and well and and its neighbor um but e is the uh kenwall lot uh we were considering obviously we're considering um area C which is um part of the area between um uh near near the train station and along Pleasant Street and uh and we're considering a couple other places that well that we kind of just ultimately decided we couldn't use because part of it was Town property or it was just way out of the zone or inappropriate use so um where we the second part of our um our thoughts and looking at this um actually entailed a couple things one is that as we've gotten feedback from members of our community that um hey Ashen has already done a lot as far as housing and the planning board knows this a lot right about permits you know projects that we've permitted as long as well as Cirrus that was has been a while now but you know we've already we've already as a town added a lot of housing you know to Ashland um over the past 10 years or so um so we were conscious of that and then we were also conscious that we have a um comprehensive plan process in the works right now um and so we wanted to be careful about making decisions for the town when the town meaning the residents and the public were in the process of making decisions for for ourselves for the for the larger group so we took both of those things into consideration and we really started to focus on um land that we have already built on that either it's already built like Cirrus or it is already approved to be built on um like the um uh 501 Pawn Street or um not gcg g ugc ugc the initials right or ugc which is the um uh over 55 community in in that District um so we were we were basically L landing on four pieces of property to make the numbers work and as Alo was going through all those different kinds of land exclusions and it has to do with the current zoning there's a lot of information to put in so that it's spits out yes it's approved or no it's not right and so um those ended up to be Cirrus um ugc um 100 Chestnut Street and 501 combined with the um 369 369 which is the memory care facility next door it's already built but those two properties together because we have to have a 5 acre minimum for any parcel to count and and 501 Pond was too small so we focused on those four properties which with minor tweaks in the zoning to get them to fulfill the requirements all of all of the units that we needed all of the acreage that we needed basically hit those properties or are fulfilled by those properties which with our feedback from our two forums which granted I mean maybe we had 20 people around on our each Forum granted isn't a mandate from the people or anything like that but the for the people seem to be appreciative that we were keeping it to things we've already done um at least at the present time so that was that is what we were we are now delivering to the Joint boards as uh as where we have landed after this however many month Endeavor okay thank you is that the um your presentation anyone else happy to answer questions that's the information that we have for you questions or comments from folks I have a question so um I know we've said this before but we didn't say this tonight that the um the 1100 change units that we 1124 units that were zoning to um to to have built it's a really just a zoning exercise we're not really building 1124 units um and MBTA communities is not saying we have to build these units it's really just saying we have to Zone to be able to build by right for these correct that's right that and that's to be something obviously it always came up at the forums and something we made clear that none of this mandates that a single unit is built it's just has you have to have the possibility that it can be built and you can also designate that land on property that is already built that that's that's okay too in fact I think many communities I think take that approach when they're in the situation we are so um so my other one other question that I had because we had some some feedback about Pleasant Street um which I think is not in but it's a different C right okay so if I saw that chart right it's it's like 6.09 Acres that parcel that you guys took a look at if and I'm saying if we were to include that in the zoning what would the density what how many units could that potentially add to Ashlin because I think we need to also understand if we do change any Zoning for what we approve for MBT ta communities from what you guys are recommending that there would be an impact because this would be by right and there would be an impact that we um you know to town services and potentially um you know development that we would not have a say in as far as the planning board it wouldn't come to the planning board um so I I I'm curious do we know what that I think by R still comes to us they still have to review the and approve comes through site review is through site plan approval process but it wouldn't but it wouldn't be anything negotiate as far as unit right unit size those types of things that right that we're talking about I think the um so if that is that that's area it's about six that area that we were considering yeah I think it was yeah so um at 6 Acres 15 units an acre which is a minimum that it's 90 units okay so that would be you know in that area that would be that's what we would have to BU right minimum for that area okay can I just kind of confirm on the reverse if we don't Zone that area by right a developer can still come in with a special permit to build density that's that's correct so um and I think that's an important point because we're not zoning to prevent development dense development can always be proposed anywhere in our community with a special permit project I just want to make sure that's clear to the public that that specific process is Far and Beyond the uh by right it takes a lot longer and it's a little bit more expensive to the to the individuals so uh that should be also added to that comment as well that's interesting I have yet to see the planning board deny a special permit project um I just had a couple comments here um you know so one I guess on some level I'm confused by what our goal is because on on one hand we're talking about uh let's increase the N number of affordable units we can build and then on the other hand we're saying well we're going to uh permit this but we're we might not never build right so you know and and I understand pros and cons and I'm not suggesting where I even come down on between those two things but they they seem uh like they're at odds with one another um I I think they I I think it's just exploring to me it's just exploring all avenues of the development as if there was nothing there and then 12.5% would be better than 0% affordable or better than 10% affordable but yeah I think right now I mean of the two and and granted anything can happen just because projects are approved that doesn't mean they're getting built right but the two approved projects that are currently still with an empty site are both at 25% affordable right so but but they're not there right so um yeah so it does seem a little bit at odds um it's just kind of the it's kind of the yeah the timeline that we're on I guess yeah and then I I think um you know to Anna's Point um you know when we talk about Pleasant Street and we talk about the property that that's adjacent to um the station you know it does make sense to to build housing there for right does seem like you can walk to it right um and and while I say okay well you know but maybe I mean that can happen anyways but it sometimes if we let stuff happen anyways when it comes before the planning board and you all can't come to an agreement with a developer we end up with a 40b project well 40b is is a leadership thing to set in place to try to meet 10% right that's not controlled by the planning board I mean we have it is if if you're negotiating right with a with a developer and the developer gets frustrated and walks away that's when they come back sometimes right with if we had 10% they wouldn't be able to do 40b right but right if we had 10% of housing of affordable right but we I think there's always I go back to respond to one of her your your comment about the zoning and building yeah the the idea here because I've I've I've also been conflicted about that it's like okay we have to create the zoning but we don't actually have to build it and I think what the state is trying to do with this zoning is have the ability that should someone want to come in and build it they have the right to do that and they're not telling us we have to build it but we have to have the ability for someone to commit yeah no I understand that but I'm thinking what do we want never mind I mean I understand what the state's kind of forcing but ultimately what is it that we want well and that's why Claud I think if I could go ahead I I think I think I know what you're saying I think um and the way I look at it is I feel like Ashland has already done what the state wants and I think because I think what you're identifying is attention hey we want more affordability than why are we just zoning where we already built so it feels like a disconnect but to me it feels like the same thing because essentially to me Ashlin has gone above and beyond if you drive around to other communities we have already done it so we're not the reason the MBT law exists I think for other communities that need to get there they should catch up to us right I agree and then but then in reality to to miss G's point in her email about um you know the fact for comparing to Southboro and what Southboro is responsible for doing well because they lower density you know the way they're automatically have have less responsibility it's you know again the state the way this is written it does it penalizes communities who have done some work not to say we're perfect but we've done some work right um so that that you know that's my editorial comment I suppose um right the more work you've done the more dense you've become the more punished you feel right which is why if we Zone to the areas where we've already developed we're less punished yeah yeah again but is it still enough at least that's one perception I'm not saying we're being POS some people believe we are and then my last question just and I'm not suggesting that that we do any go down this road really but I'm curious what do we know what um it would cost us if we were not to do what the state is telling us to do what what would be the actual grants that we would lose um you know I I know Milton is you know got all that publicity and I think theirs was $100,000 um in that particular so I can stop you right I'm going to I'm going to ask you this I'm going I'm going I'm going to read them right now right number one Mass Works number two housing Choice number three local Capital project funds furthermore planning Community planning grants from the eohc down Massachusetts downtown Innovation grants Urban agenda grants Rural and small town development grants please note Ashen does not qualify for either a rural I mean for a rural or small town development Grant we are greater than I believe the threshold is uh 7500 uh population a population size of 7500 so to follow up from claudo what you've just read right are the our potential grants our gr that we can no longer apply so which is an important point and correct but what do you have a ballpark numbers of what I I realize there might be a huge range there Mass works we have what almost we've almost had no almost 12 million right we had Mass works so it's a significant it's a huge punishment down I would say the mass works I would I would I would I agree with yoland can I put a number on it no however this town of Ashen has received in the range of 12 to5 million in massworks Grants I would say over the last few years okay so it's it's a huge number it's not $100,000 that we're at at risk correct I want make a note Michael does have his hand up Michael may have and Marcelo does does as well so um Peter I'll let you uh Michael uh well Marcel do you want to add to the conversation uh sure uh I just just just listening to the conversation it it's more and and again that's uh everybody that has worked deeply in in in this subject it's it's a lot better verse than than me but it the the conversation about those areas adjacent to the station uh just made me think and I think was Yolanda that that that mentioned um uh what what why is that not included and you know I I get all the the the control versus not control if it's a as of right however it it seems to me that it I have more like a philosophical kind of overview of this the the the overall objective of this effort by the state is to uh incentivize and to generate housing uh close to the train stations for obvious reasons that area on on on Pleasant Street I I I agree I don't know who said it but I I it seems to me that that that by by not including that for whatever reason we're almost just trying to comply with the Mandate just by by by by going around in circles and and and and you know uh matching checking the boxes which is fine it's one way to do it but if if I guess I would just question are we not really committed of developing density in downtown close to the station because it seems to me that that whole area on on Pleasant Street and adjacent to the station should be uh by default uh is is is a prime um uh candidate to to fulfill that uh if that's really what we feel um so I just wanted to make that com I mean I I'll tell you as somebody who takes that stop like I I park my car at the si side and I take that train ride back and forth right if I don't go to the West Nao stop but what I'll tell you is we have complied we do have dense housing right next to the train station on the si side and by not having on both sides we're not somehow escaping responsibility we have a lot of density on right next to the train station at cerus and there's there's a beauty to some control for us as to what happens on the other side because on the other side you're very close to downtown and nothing prevents a developer from coming in and proposing density on the other side but to do it by right means Marcelo that you would not be able to as a planning board member have some say in certain characteristics that might make it more consistent with your Downtown Vision that I know you have and so nothing prevents developers from trying to build dents on the other on the other side but it is much closer to downtown and we as a planning board should have some say through special permit we have a Marcel do you want to finish and then I'm gonna let Michael have a have a chance go ahead Marcelo sorry no no I was just going to say I I I I I I never said that we were trying to skirt responsibility yes so not say what I didn't say but I I'm just saying that that uh the downtown by default has a form code that allows people to build by right certain things that everybody has agreed is proper for for the downtown um why would that not be able to be to to take place there um I I think um those the down you would have to be I'm not sure about that if it's in the downtown zoning District um would they still have to would would new construction in that area as a as a by right have to follow downtown zoning District regulations I'm sorry would it have to follow form based code yes like it would so if we're coming in if we're going to make an amendment so this hasn't been done yet and just by the way because we didn't go down this road within obviously our working groups and in our public forums right we start to think about this but yeah you would any building Within in the add district is going to have to be fall under this under the add requirements yes so it would be by right but with the add zoning requirements correct okay however this is the thing right is that we would still we would have to change the a the the add the Ash and downtown zoning District to make sure it complies with all of all elements of the of the MTA communities the MBTA legislation so there's things that we may have to go back and start changing is section c that's showing on this map Downtown no oh no that's 100 no no on so on this map yes on the old one so the southern side of Pleasant Street southern side of Pleasant Street isda is overlay District so that's considered downtown yes yeah oh under in terms of the our zoning Zing ad ad the southern side of Pleasant Street running from the down running from Main Street all the way to the station ad daa is overlay district and it covers 10 to 60 Main Street there's some sections in the downtown and then it runs the entire Southern Southern side of Pleasant Street which is to to the train station the underlying zoning in that district is industrial right so an add was a adopted they created Adda as an overlay district add sections B and C are base zoning one would say okay I just want to excuse me I just want to make sure I understand because we're talked about that zone C being right by the the station and that's been subject to some discussion but you're saying that's controlled by add a d a all the way right all the way to downtown and they all have to have the same conditions so you can't you couldn't separate out Zone C and put it by itself well we could but we're saying what it is right now okay but anyway right before we go too far yeah here I want to go to Michael Herbert who's been waiting and that's just the zoning map so it's a little more clear the actual that's good so that's interesting good evening everyone good evening um so I just want to provide go back to Claudia's question and uh provide a little bit of context on the grants um so first of all the probably the biggest one is obviously the massw works Grant so we so far have secured um just slightly under $10 million in Mass Works grants to support uh infrastructure projects including downtown uh over the last uh 10 years um another one that we've received is the Commonwealth places Grant which uh helped support The Corner Spot uh which was about $50,000 and then I believe the last one you read off feet was the municipal vulnerability preparedness Grant if I I didn't I didn't get the I didn't finish all the grants I'm sorry so there a lot of Grants yeah so I believe that totals what we've been able to secure is $100,000 through um through that program and one thing I want to make clear is that some of these are planning grants and while the the numbers might be smaller like the MVP the municipal vulnerability preparedness grant program those might be smaller what they do is if you complete those and you complete the planning through those grants it makes you eligible for larger grants for construction and um I don't have exact figures for right in front of me but like with the housing Choice Grant which we would also be ineligible for that goes up to $250,000 um so you know know I I don't want to say it should be the only factor in consideration um when you're determining what you want to do here but there is some significant uh financial implications that are on the table all right thank you thank you Michael all right I went to uh give Amanda Amanda a chance to come on oh that would help too many uh situations hi guys can you hear me yes y hi um my name is Amanda Walsh um Pine Hill Road um I've been on a couple of these meetings and I'd first like to thank everyone thought it was okay hold on just a minute Amanda sorry yeah I was thinking it was the other Amanda my mistake but I was going to open it up to public comment when we get done with this so sorry Amanda you you can go ahead okay um I've been on a couple of these meetings and I first like to thank everyone involved I know you guys have worked really hard on this um and I really like this plan and I just wanted to you know say that from a residence perspective um I think that this plan has a great chance of passing at town meeting too um there have been quite a few people who have come out and said that you know they don't want more density in town and I think in order to get their support this approach is a great one um and has a good shot you know at potentially passing at town meeting um I strongly personally disag agree with including Pleasant Street um you know we have already developed other areas you know on this plan and we like to see the comprehensive plan be completed or further along before we include land that is not already developed um I'd also like to you know leave Pleasant Street open to give planning board feedback if somebody comes in and you know a developer wants to develop that land um you know lastly I think before this goes to town meeting residents need to be informed on you know this is a zoning change and I think that's a huge misconception I think a lot of people think like oh if you you know if this passes that town meeting that we're going to build all this housing and that's not the case and by you know keeping the plan with you know current housing that's already been developed and if we can get that message across I think that you know this would pass more easily so thank you guys thanks thanks Amanda and at this time I do want to take a few minutes to open it up for yeah public comments can I just um make a statement before to that thanks um so I did want to thank you folks on the subcommittee for all this hard work um and um I did um and I think it's a very good plan and in terms of um you know passing I think we understand that we can do this with relatively little impact but I do um I did want to point out that I think we're missing an opportunity here and I I understand an's point about being possibly able to have a developer come in and use the Zone C but if you know but and also the idea of waiting for a comprehensive plan to make that decision but I would remind everybody this is a public process this will go to town meeting this is elected officials talking about the plan so um I think procedurally if we feel that and I personally think that we're missing opportunity in zone C because it really is it's right by the train station it's already developed that whole area is already developed so we kind of missing an opportunity to build um you know to add to housing and one of the ways you get housing more affordable is to build more housing and build it in the proper place this is the proper place this is the rail Transit District this is why we have a Commuter Rail station that's why they passed this law so I think you uh suggested some very good things here I think we can live with this but I think we're missing this opportunity um and I think um it's across the street from Pleasant Street okay but it's not that's it's not in a neighborhood it's already developed uh so I think we should look closely at that and I think this committee ought to um consider taking a very close look at including that um I I doubt that a planning board in the future is going to feel uh who knows what they'll what they'll feel but the idea that they're going to allow housing to be built that's not already zoned and permitted I think is is really unlikely um and that's not the best process anyway the best process is this process where we're talking about it and we're going through a very public process so I would um again my thanks for all you you folks effort I would just um my personal position we got to look very closely at including Zone C uh to see if that's feasible um and fits with you know so thank you thank you okay so this time I will open it up to public comment we'll go with our usual um our usual specifications on that which are three three minutes person one time to the mic I'll let you manage Peter minutes three minutes Danny yeah my my wife Dan J from burnhams and ashin uh I run own burnhams it's been on our family for since 1938 the process of putting the MBTA station in back it started in 1992 it was never completed in 200000 till 2002 uh during that time the initiative of putting some dense housing in the area The Proposal most by Bob gaina mostly he wanted to put 750 units up on that Hill it ended up to a 398 I thought that was a pretty good compromise and I was pretty much instrumental my wife and myself because we thought that's a good idea to have people near the train station in Li of that instead of having 750 the negotiations ended up as you know at 398 but then at the top they made some uh concessions to have I believe it's age restricted and I believe that's under litigation right now I tell you if you change that Bob Gainer is not going to let that go he's going to go full-fledged to try and get as many units as he can up there that has been what he's tried to do over the years now Anna says that we've done our part I was part of that big part of it and I supported it we're looking for a little support on our two acres and all I hear is we can't do that there's no discussion as to the the logic of the law as as Rob just stated the law was there for a reason it's not as if this whole thing's going to come flying apart if Pleasant Street gets included in this way and some way shape or form Marcelo did the same thing this is the first night I've heard both Rob and Marcelo to step up to the plate and say what they think and I've watched every meeting on here I haven't been able to attend them because uh well I took a night off tonight and closed so I could come down because I think it's important uh as an example I was just doing my taxes my I was doing my uh mileage report I have a thing in my pocket for my uh cell phone mile IQ and it records all my trips my entire trip both business and personal for 2023 was 2,97 Miles the average in Massachusetts is 13,500 and that's what this is trying to prevent getting people off of the roads and there's no discussion about this there's no discussion about the pollution no discussion about Energy savings all of it's we're going to do everything we can to avoid and it's been publicly stated the board members have said this is a good job because we've avoided a net zero of any new apartments coming in or any new housing coming in I disagree with that if that's the road it goes down I am going to push it back against it as best I can you might win but but I suppose the district attorney will finally make that final decision as to whether the meeting was appropriate or not I don't I'm not a lawyer I don't know but in May uh 30th the town got a letter from the moratorium that was rejected and she stated right within that letter that uh this law is an important part of Massachusetts to provide housing and someone just pointed out the the answer to affordable housing is more units now it doesn't mean it has to be out of control but our two acres that's not going to change the world and I've never seen so much resistance on such a simple premise my wife probably has more to say than myself that's my three minutes thank you thank you thank you d do you want to jump to someone online or okay hi larange Jerry Burnham's restaurant I'd like to thank you rob for your comments it was so important to hear that um I'd like to say that you know pre prior to the previous um public zoning meeting we sent a letter to the planning board and we asked it to be shared with all the board members and we asked if someone could please read it during the public meeting because we would have to close our restaurant to attend unfortunately the letter was uh acknowledged but it was decided that it was just too long to read it would have taken about four minutes so in the meantime all the participants at the zoom meeting got to speak more than once with no time limits and ironically most of the conversation was specifically about us or the street we live on so they got to be heard um and there was Praise In Praise for all the new voices that participated in the process yet the one person who's lived here for 70 years didn't get to be hurt so I'm hoping tonight to read the letter it's changed a little bit be with me it should take a few minutes okay and and I'd like to bring up a different point that I don't he talked about which is traffic in Ashland a is at our business the most common complaint we hear about Ashlin is the traffic rail Transit zoning should alleviate traffic so how have recent developments in permitted projects address this problem a few examples Chestnut Street which you included in your option 29 units per acre in a residential neighborhood these occupants need to drive through downtown or along 135 to access the train Homer AV also 29 units per acre will we support the idea of a walkable community and hope this makes the downtown more vibrant we suspect most of these residents that would like to access the train will drive rather than walk a mile again through the downtown 13 or 135 traffic congestion and third Ashlin Woods which is next to TJ's this one is also in a residential area and appears to be 29 units per acre the website advertises a community amenity one mile from the commuted TR rain train station but to access the amenity requires adding to the traffic on 135 yet here we are at burnhams with a very similar size property to Ashlin woods but with the great amenity of stepping out your door and hopping on the train I can tell you that from living at burnhams when I also had a Boston walking tour business it was such a privilege to have a train at my doorstep but somehow the town boards refused to consider us as a potential for rail Transit use and unlike other projects in residential neighborhoods our property is surrounded by an MBTA parking lot with the closest Neighbors being a daycare center and serus apartments one more point about traffic we also provide commuter parking on our property before Co we had 100 WR 30 pckers it is much less now but have seen a 50% increase just this year especially recently I can tell you that currently 55% of from Ashlin will the other 45% travel to Ashland from other towns Hopkinton Southboro Milford Hopedale Holliston Hudson Malboro and Framingham Apartments here could dis displace some of that local traffic also the comparison to Milton's complaint that the MBTA is not providing the transportation the community needs so that people are driving into Boston is not relevant to our rear line with such an increase in Riders now I'd like to make one presentation new Option add the 12 acres on Pleasant Street that was removed from the original presentation observations from the last Forum board members do not think it will be right to include this area because it would negatively impact the residents on the north side of the street with one member referring to this is very dense yet the planning board presentations claim 15 units per acre is low density also Forum participants from outside the area are opposed but I'd like to know has anyone who actually lives on Pleasant Street responded okay here's a plan since area A and B are now 39.

a second second roll call vote an teski i i Catherine Jers guy Amanda haes I and Trisha Kendall I thank you everyone we haven't had a long one like this in a while good night thank you drive safe everybody

uh marel or if somebody else is there to support us with um roll call please at this time today's a regular board meeting on March 14 2024 at 5:30 pm members of the board and attendance president Cora president vice president Andres Kinto thank you Clerk and Andrea Flores Shelton here member Linda Chavez here present me member m fam present members of administration superintendent Dr Bower present thank you Mar uh now I'm going to um go ahead and go into the Pledge of Allegiance if you can all join me at this time I PL aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible liy and justice for all thank [Music] you all right um and I'll go ahead and uh read Our Land acknowledgement the Board of Trustees of the elmrock Union Elementary School District does hereby acknowledge that the district schools and Facilities sit on the traditional lands of the MMA alone people and the Board of Trustees further acknowledges with respect and reverence the MMA alone people tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area for their stewardship of these lands thank you uh now we'll move on to item 102 discussions and or modifications of the agenda um any of my colleagues want to move any agenda items around I have a couple but I'll wait to move those until uh trusty Flor Shelton um before okay yes we were on the right track so um before I'll just say after 3.0 okay yes and um with that if uh you are all okay with also moving up item 301 I know we have our special Jazz uh band members here so we can move that up item 301 uh right after uh let's see where are we at 102 let's um do it right after after 102 if you're okay with that I know our students have been here for a long time they were setting up and uh played wonderfully so I just want to make sure that we honor their time are you all okay with that and then we keep uh after 3.01 then just bring on that's what I was thinking of uh Flor Shelton are you okay with that if we move it up oh is that okay I think um you know I want to honor people's time and I know that we have several members of our community here for that item as well yeah and last time the kids were stay here very I want I know there's homework and um other items okay so we'll do um 301 after 102 and then 502 right after that any other items or modifications to our agenda did you have any youve it was those two oh okay yeah I moved 301 um okay if I don't see any others um yeah I would like to move uh after 5.02 I would like to move uh 5.06 5.06 okay so 301 502 and then 506 any others okay seeing none then um we'll go ahead and vote on this change all those in favor uh please raise your hand okay Andre um my guesses you are to okay I hadn't seen it all right so uh passes unanimously so we'll go ahead and move to item 301 Dr Bower I am going to um defer it to miss cble and she's GNA introduce the item and then um you can follow up perfect thank you good evening board president Lera era uh board members superintendent and Community it is my honor to be able to um share in this special opportunity to recognize the alumrock Jazz Band The Rock Jazz Band program was started in 1973 by music teachers with the help of then Principal Bob bird at Matson Community School director Ed viagran the musicians in the Jazz Band are fifth to eighth grade Alam Rock students who competitively audition each fall for the instrumental and vocal spots in this group the band performs a dozen times during the school year and its repertoire in includes big band jazz classic rock show tunes and popular songs as some of you might have heard the the tune from what was it pokon Pokemon yes I'm I'm so out of times the alen rock Jazz B uh Jazz Band program is a tribute to the education provided by alumrock District music program it continues to succeed due to the Alam Rock School District support exceptional student M musicians excellent teaching several generous Community sponsors as well as strong Partnerships with the San Jose Jazz five of our current music teachers were once students in the Alum Rock jazz band Angel Ortega quas came from Adelante Academy Lorena L loano came from painter Elementary an Shephard Benjamin Vega came from Joseph George and Renaissance Matson Mr Louie Flores came from Ryan adant to in Okala and C J Posner from an uh San Antonio Lucha and is the current Alam Rock jazz band director and in on top of that we have three other alumrock employees that were also members of the alumrock Jazz Band when they were growing up as students so we have a special recognition to honor the Alam Rock Jazz band's 50th Anniversary here in Alam Rock School District thank you um and with that I am honored to present that special um award I'm going to go ahead and uh read um this nice plaque the Alam Rock Union School District acknowledges the dedication and contribution of the alen rock jazz band for 50 years of service to our students and the community thank you for the music Here's to the next 50 so congratulations if everybody can join me and um I see that some if not all you have your instruments if you can um slowly carefully maybe join us in the front here um so we can hand this to you all and hopefully take a picture with you all so um as you all gather we'll head over there my peers you like em Emily [Music] yeah say go [Applause] [Laughter] Jazz all right [Applause] you guys thank you nice [Laughter] job thankk you congratulations anyone um have any comments uh or questions um on this item before we close up and move on to the next I will uh trusty fam you know I just want to take this opportunity as a we can stay quiet please um just want to take this opportunity and I see as the band is um moving on out there uh congratulate them on 50 years as a fan and as a supporter of all their Jazz fundraisers all these years uh you know uh my uh many of my friends were were members of the Jazz Band When I was a middle schooler at paa and uh you know it is really uh this District's most famous performing arts program so uh you know it uh it takes a lot to build something and it also takes a lot to to hold it through and in tough times and good times for 50 years so I congratulate the Jazz Band on its golden anniversary and may we have 50 more years thank you so much thank you trusty fam trusty um GTO yes I've had the uh when I first came on to the board U we were going through some very difficult times and there was talk about slashing music and all the unnecessary stuff because you know some during tough times people tend tend to take on some uh call for drastic measures and so it was a a it was a privilege to be able to be here and demand that we not um cut uh those things that make life worth living such as the Arts and so uh always been a preg to support uh the Jazz uh band when they have their events as well as through action here on the board and so yeah definitely looking for another 50 years that's going to happen then we need to go ahead and continue to support their efforts and give them the sometimes it just to matter of getting out of the way uh and allowing allowing them to do the work that they need to do to continue to thrive because they they've been able to continue to support the work that they do uh in other instances is giving them uh the just the right amount of support that they need so they can keep on going so looking forward to continuing to support an excellent organization amazing music every time I go to hear their uh to to their concerts it's a it's amazing and always uh always left astounded by the by the great work that our kids are doing thank thank you anybody else okay uh and I think the only thing I'll add is um think also in addition to what's been said Thank our sponsors for helping us keep the Jazz uh band including Mr fam and um all the others that contribute you know to ensure that we're able to um have these programs for our students uh and not to mention the teachers you know that sometimes volunteer hours to just make sure that our um students have the time uh to play and to connect with their instrument and to just play that medicine right that our ears gets to hear so I'm thankful for everyone who's you know allowed this jazz band to continue for 50 years I'm sure there's been lots of sacrifices along the way um but all worth it when we hear that beautiful music uh place so thank you again uh now we'll move on to item Madam president public comment oh yes thank you so much trusty fam you're on it um at this time I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment on this item okay see one welcome Miss ton good evening just want to say how um wonderful it is to hear music as I was driving up to the board meeting this evening and also to give honor to my colleagues in the vaa department and to Emily mcchristian who is our vapa coordinator it is music and our schools month and it is youth art month and I'm a proud performing arts teacher and proud to know that uh music is in the collective bargaining agreement in Alam Rock which is what drew me to this District so just want to give a shout out to all of the Performing Arts teachers and the Arts teachers this month thank you so much for featuring them today thank you thank [Applause] you okay seeing uh no other comments we'll go ahead and move on to item 502 at this time uh and item 502 um Dr Bower yes tonight um I bring before the board a recommendation that has been that was brought to the board in May of last year and um the board asked me to go back and to hold um meetings with the different stakeholders in aptitude and we have held some meetings with the stakeholders to redesign aptitude at gos to a traditional Elementary moving the grade levels six seven and8 to other middle schools in the district so I'm bringing that before you this has been a very difficult decision anytime we redesign or collapse or do something different um any kind of change um is never easy right but this is something that I bring before you because of we're trying to make sure that um in some way shape or form we can uh save the Elementary grades Decay through 5ifth for the near future and that will give if we move the six seven and eight out of aptitude it would allow us to reroute some students um back to to that area I know this is you know not again not a a an easy uh recommendation for me to bring um I don't know if you want me to do my presentation my formal presentation right now or um yeah I think that would help sure sure so no aptitude if you recall and I'm just while we put together the the slide presentation we had a demographic study right before the pandemic and right after the pandemic we um had a another demographic study because the pandemic affected our area in a very heavy way so because of that we saw a very sharp declining enrollment not only at the district level but at the school level and one of in three of the causes for this sharp declining enrollment had are as uh presented here families moving out of the area and that is not only happening in alumrock but that happen around the bay area in the state we have had a continue low birth rate and we also in alumrock um very unique in the Santa Clara County we have a very heavy impact of charter schools in our midst so because of that uh before you change let me let me just go back one more um we the recommendation is to move grade level six seven and 8 to other middle middle schools and in the hopes to free some classroom space to enroll more TK through first grade students at the site go ahead uh next slide please just to remind the board the an to run an elementary site uh we need about 500 students to sustain the site and in order to run a middle school or a tk8 site we need about 700 currently aptitude is seting at 410 students so this is the the first um Trend in the demo graphic study but you can see in the next couple of years we're going to be losing close to 700 students uh districtwide so there's some difficult decisions that are coming up um and this is the first step to reassign a school with the hopes that we can increase enrollment in the early grades next slide please this is the the school itself aptitude the red line is the aptitude enrollment and the blue line is the number of children that are available in the area of aptitude to attend aptitude so they are uh attracting some students from other areas and we're very grateful for that but because of next slide please but because of this trend in TK and on the the gray represents the current enrollment in aptitude because of these very low numbers in the early grades we're trying to see if there is any way we can reroute students to the site so that we can sustain at least the Elementary grades TK through five um this is a breakdown of the classrooms in aptitude um there was a question on Monday's meeting about Portables and um Portables are at the tune of about $500,000 per portable we just move one and it's sitting in the back going through the process of being DSA approved and that portable is going to be housing the SDC classes because there's no prop ER classroom for SDC as it's currently sitting the next slide shows the middle school so for Middle School grades it's not like one to one ratio where you have one classroom for a group of students you need at least two classrooms per the group of students taking uh six seven and eight graders about eight um six classrooms plus plus also the the um the additional ban uh area the SDC area and the RSP area so it is because of those reasons that I'm bringing to you this recommendation tonight thank you at this time U is it okay if I open it up for public comment before we go into the questions and comments from the board okay I'm going to go ahead and open it up at this time for comments um from our public on this item yeah if you can join us at the theard member yes and then um when when you're ready you can speak from the mic uh we can go ahead and start Cina yes president do you want to just hand me that and I can hand them so this way it doesn't take up your time I see that there's a lot of people that are standing up you guys want to move over here in the seats seats in the front if you like to join us in the front please okay uh go ahead okay thank you board member um I'm a parent of a seventh grader at aptitude and I just wanted to counteract your uh presentation um the one item you didn't Focus for my uh piece of document to you was as you can see aptitude has the most socially disadvantage in the county um but my sles um I don't think the superintendent has done enough research in presenting a uh closure of six seven and eth AD aptitude um I rather you delay the vote wait for another year hire an independent non-bias consultant come in and do analysis of each school and decide why should be closed as you could see yes there are declining enrollment but by um closing 678 you will create more difficulty for the family which will create you know less enrollment as you can see from that sheet from that sheet 90% of the family at abude are socially economically disadvantaged use the money on Section 509 and 510 that you guys going to look at later for approval for the superintendent to go to Spain that's $30,000 use that money to hire an independent Consulting to come in and do a deep analysis on the enrollment the effect it has with the families and the outcome you have to look through of all that and to make your correction the portable that been sitting at attitude been been sitting for a year it's not for SDC it's for the RP group so just to make your correction so I just you hear us out delay the vote for another year thank you thank [Applause] you hello my name [Music] is I'm a parent of where we are very we very displeased with the closing of sixth seventh and eth grade atude after analyzing our trustees profiles we feel very proud to say that each one of you has an enormous experience regarding what is our community in your profiles you describe that you feel connected to our community and you you um promote Equity you also promote the prevention of gangs and jobs for for [Music] you we want your experience serving the community be reflected here and now there's not tomorrow this is the moment to act because this is also your community the district only explains to us us that our children are just a number as parents we know that our children are not only numbers they're tomorrow the future we ask for your vote not to close our Middle [Applause] School one of the families being impacted for the second time because of this situation and experience as a parent I can express to you this is an enormous trauma for our children as I said earlier our children are wondering asking why are they closing our school why do I have to be moved to another school why do I have to start all over again why do I have to meet new teachers when our when my teachers are some of the best when our school there are no games there are no fights what you need in order to avoid the closure of the school thank you so much we hope to count on your vote [Applause] gracias [Music] yes I I just want to clarify she got the additional two minutes because of the translation um no problem just want to make sure in case anybody and I support my thank you so much dear board members I ask you to please postpone the moving of the Middle grades at aptitude Elementary School the mil the mil Goss Elementary School Community chose to start the aptitude Charter into to grow into a TK eth Grade School site our community and families are whom we serve and a resource for our continued existence as a district two meetings have been held to address our concerns and both have been held just days before these board meetings two meetings a year apart do not amount to a year of regular collaboration to build support understanding and confidence in a district and its decisions our district has closed too many schools over the last decade and more closures can be foreseen while only a mediocre effort has been made to promote and recruit families and students to stay our structure aptitude is a viable alternative that is meeting the needs of the families it serves taking away the structured aptitude from a TK 8th grade site and leaving it as an elementary site without a strong plan to recruit students is setting the stage for another school closure closing schools and not aggressively recruiting puts your positions my job and the future of our district at risk these families deserve to be included in regular discussions and seen as a great resource for our district their commitment to our district can make or break our future these Charter the charters use their appearance to promote and recruit how can we do this if our families are alienated by not being included in discussions around the long-term needs and struggles our district is facing please postpone your decision and make this community an important resource in the determination of this plan and build the unity this District so desperately [Applause] needs good evening board members my name is Wendy rols I'm a teacher at aptitude I am also a parent of a seventh grade student to attend aptitude I am currently in my 23rd year of teaching in the alumrock school district I relocated to aptitude last school year after teaching at Meer for 14 years I accessed myself from Meer to aptitude so that my son could attend sixth grade and continue attending the same school where I taught there was no way I was going to let him attend a traditional 6 to8 middle school after the excessive bullying we went through with my older son who's now a senior in high school and he attended a middle school in alamro 6 years ago it was my hope hope that my younger son could attend aptitude all the way to 8th grade before moving on to a high school however now we are worried about the stress of him having to attend a new school for just one year before moving on to another school to start his high school years many families at aptitude are feeling the same way just like me they like the TK through 8 model my son is safe his teachers care about him he is excelling in his academics he has friends and he is happy and that's what's most important it's a small school feeling of community and family that is contributing to the success of our students at aptitude please consider closing please reconsider closing aptitudes Middle School aptitude has already experienced a tumultuous year with the trauma that occurred this past fall we've been through enough we are all paying careful attention and entrusting you the board to provide proper oversight and make the right decision that would have the least amount of harm brought upon the students and their families thank you thank [Applause] you uh good evening board my name is uh Chris Scott I'm the C clar County director for Fresh Life LS for youth also known as fly um I've been touched by a lot of the words that a lot of the families and the teachers and uh a lot of the faculty have have demonstrated in these last few months as they gathered and rallied and came together to pretty much essentially save their school um I empathize with the board as also making very difficult decisions especially in a uh a down term um budget year where other school districts like San Francisco Unified Oakland Unified having to make very Sim similar unspeakable decisions but I do ask that the board does consider maybe some of the unintended consequences that might come with closing a uh a grade level or two where yes some of these young people can be displaced to other middle schools but there's unintended consequences that do come with going to a middle school that might not be as close to your home as well as um traveling there and even the engagement um with that said Middle School uh one of the things that really inspired me in being connected with aptitude as we are a service provider who provide services with aptitude currently right now um has been the level of Engagement that these students have shown especially during the pandemic they've shown the most engagement out of any of the schools that we worked with during um Co um as we all know that was a difficult time but these students in their classes they were the most engaged they had their actual cameras on which doesn't sound significant five years ago but as of right now everybody knows how important that is in terms of Engagement so I do as everybody else um want you to please reconsider at least bring other people to the table as I heard that there stakeholders in May who were brought to the table to have these conversations but as a stakeholder myself and as the Director um I was not at the table for any of those conversations who is affected by these things so I love for you all to at least delay um taking down the um the Middle School portion and bringing in more of the assistant Partners thank you thank [Applause] you hi my name is syvia I'm a parent at aptitude U my daughter came last school year after struggling with bullying at another Middle School aptitude school has CH has changed her life she is happy to come to school and feel safe I'm extremely disappointed in hearing about wanting to move 6 7 and 8way to other schools I wanted to look into why this is happening the teachers gave me a little background and told me to watch the board meeting from last year to try to have more understanding I was not able to make the meeting meeting on Monday but will'll be at the board meeting today I have several questions after watching the board meeting that took place in May 2023 number one I have never seen any kind of survey that went out to the parents last school year can you please provide the link that went sent out into regarding this number two one of the board members said that the school needs an infusion of support financially and with infra infrastructure to be honest honest with you I'm highly disappointed in what our school looks like after driving around and looking at other district schools we are on the only schools where our science is old and beat up Believe It or Not parents look at this kind of stuff I would like to know what money was put into our school and what kind of improvements were made to our building at the school number three why did the superintendent only come out 3 days before the boat is supposed to happen this should have been done a long time ago so parents could have tried to get more middle school students number four the board talked about how you were supposed to meet up again in four months and watched the meeting and check the agenda and did not see that happen can you please show me to the meeting where aptitude proog progress was discussed four months later I am very mad the proper protocol was not followed I would also be looking into the school council was supposed to be talking about this thank [Applause] you you can start I think it'll start when you start okay hi my name is Aiden uh I was a fellow student at God and I'm very sad to see that it's going to close down uh one thing that I really appreciated about the school was that the teachers were caring enough to look out for the children for those who struggled a lot I was one of those students that struggled a lot have faced multiple challenges during that time like struggling on my work or like maybe having a problem with the student they would always come me and with the right approach to like face it the good way instead of fixing the B and one of the things like I have a teacher that I really appreciate that he help me a lot cuz we had a miscommunication and he came to talk to me and that when he came to talk to me we cleared up things the good way and we had Goods after that we had a good connection the rest of the year and I would like to if he's here today Mr lens and Mr Brooks really helped me a lot thiss would always helped me after school with all my work that I struggled with because I was very kind and Mr Lov he would always have that time when I was very stressful class and I would get frustrated he would come and talk to me take me out a class and help me calm down and get a good idea what it's good or not and that's what I that's all I would like to say today that I appreciate all the good stuff that SCH has done for me thank you and that's it thank [Applause] you hello my name is Elo Rodriguez believe we already met thise anyway um I respect the decisions that you made but we want to how come we as parents you know we are set side instead of considering us about the decision that is going to make because it's going to be a great impact and the children and it's going to be a great impact to the parents especially when we live in close to the to the school and many parents they don't have a way to go to the to to to to the school or or driving or anything it's walking distance it's going to be hard for them as me as a single parent it's going to be hard for me too you know because um I have to start at 5:00 in the morning and then have to take my daughter to to the school to the to the nearest school over there to the um a babysitter so she has to go there what am I going to do many parents are the same way here and I feel you know that when you guys make a decision and here for you and you guys and leave us out like we don't really count when we think that we are important and our decisions as a community it is important also so you could can communicate with us to see how with you people making some decisions and that that's it you know just a very frustrated and the St situation the way set up and I don't want the Middle School stop I want to continue that thank you thank [Applause] you oh okay hi my name is Ruby Aras I'm a parent of two children in aptitude I'm here sing due to the proposed umaria B had for today closing down 6 to8 in aptitude I keep asking myself why we met with her once she couldn't give us an answer why then we were finally able to meet with her again this past Monday three days before the voting why three days before I don't know she brought out her graphics and she stated we're losing kids okay but why it's not the kids it's it's not the community's fault has she thought about that ever since she took over to be superintendent those numbers have dropped because the community why because the community is never heard we are promised so much and nothing is done people get tired of not seeing action and being harassed because if you know some of us if you're against her you're done you're red flag you're going to be targeted she blames she blames our suppos to have low enrollment for K to forth but why there's kids that have been turned back why we we don't know it's that we don't have enough students it's that they don't let us get no more the children are kids they're not numbers we're just here to ask for you guys to take in consideration your vote that there's things that could be done before thinking of closing down aptitude see we're here today thank [Applause] you Mar Lopez good afternoon my name is Martha Lopez um I'm here asking you please look at our children look at our children as people who want to get ahead in life don't look at it as a money sign with that closure I'm going to be impacted I have two children one will remain in that school my daughter will have to go on to Middle School my daughter has emotional problems please consider this she's not the only child that feels like this ever since the mentioning of closing the school there several children through who have been showing anxiety I please beg you to consider this take it into account please please take it into account graas thank [Applause] you all right so it's been a few months since Dr Dar walked into our staff meeting and told us that we were going to be shut down there was nothing we could do we just had to deal with it then she came and told us teachers that it was our job to go out and recruit students back to our school that that's what we needed to do she said to us that hey since I've been here I've lost 8,000 students to Charter Schools it's your guys' job to go get them back that's what she told us after she told us she was shutting our school so I want you guys to think for a minute if I was a CEO of a company and you guys were the board of directors I want you guys to think about this I walk into your office and I say hey guys guess what I've lost us half of our customer customers over the last 10 years which are our students I've lost over half of our Revenue because that's multiplicative over the years of students that don't come back not only that I've closed most of our plants and given our plants that work just fine to our biggest competitors which are the charter schools and then I you know what I've taken a couple people who were known to be sexual assault people and I've left them in our district move them to your school by the way thank you very much for that I've taken a $26 million Surplus that was there at the beginning and it disappeared and I have nothing to show for it I go ahead and I tell all of my Engineers hey you know what you guys are the ones responsible for go getting the customers back not me even though I lost them and then you want me to go out and tell these people hey come back to our district but what do I have to show them to come back to nothing has changed the reason they left is because the charter schools offer them something that we don't and we haven't changed to adjust to get those people back how am I supposed to go to a charter school say hey guys we really want you to come back to our school and our district but the management is exactly the same as it was when you left nothing has changed our schools are still in squalor we still look like garbage you guys are doing a great job building up your schools and doing nice things and we want you guys to come back for no other reason than just because we're great teachers which we are but our management is not going well and there needs to be a change and I think the change needs to start right here thank you hello good evening Daisy Sanchez my name is Daisy Sanchez I'm addressing the board to let you know my concern and how the closure of of our school would impact us as a family we are a family with a child who has special needs Who currently attends the Middle School aptitude he he arrived at that school with a lot of issues and they got worse with the support of the St at aptitude mainly in that time period when things got worse with the support of mrz and currently with the support of Mrs kimz the the school principal we're still working believe me our our children with special needs needs they don't like changes with the closure of the school honestly it would be very very bad for them counting on with the magnificent staff that they have it's a small school for that same reason our older children behave better in comparison to other schools and the reason is there is a kindergarten Elementary there's an elementary middle school there's a middle school there's more attention and more respect I say this because previously I had visited other schools in search of the most appropriate services for my child honestly aptitude was the best choice and it was the most recommendable school and it's the best way that one can find out about a school you can find out by asking doing your research from parent to parent sometimes parents are afraid or ashamed to talk about such topics in the district or with the principal in exchange hand sorry on the other hand taking the time individually as a person it's easier and it's more safer and beneficial personally number one it's an excellent school it's a small school of choice three it's a EXC exellent location four it's a it's performing academically well five excellent teachers six qualified staff she has one more s okay I they have a program with okay thank you that was the last sentence gracias thank [Applause] you welcome hello everybody I'm a Vietnam uh um I think the many person have the many news from you already so uh I want to uh ask my staff my family story because I come to uh us uh from the seven year ago and the my kid here when he start the attitude School the first grade he don't know the English he very shy and um we uh I'm very I'm very warmly because many picture very warmly him well very kindly him and until now he uh studying the Ser brace that he very L the attitude school and uh and this year when the my family hear about that the the middle will slow for the next year and uh um in in my my my son he he very upset about that because in my mind sorry my English not well in my mind uh at attitud SCH very very wonderful for the fature everything for the program uh I think the many thing that you hear that already and uh um some on more the Vietnam uh we want to sell the attitud Lee and the Lee here for the uh student for the thinking for the something yeah thank you thank you so much [Applause] hello um I'm Adrien vain um I am the area Middle School director and um I've been teaching middle school for 16 years and when I tell people I'm a middle school teacher they look at me like I'm crazy and I Som whatat think I am because I I think Middle School is wonderful there I love the ch challenge they give us I will say that this District in the 16 years that I've worked here doesn't seem to care about Middle School we always get the short end of the stick I've seen more middle schools close here than Elementary and it's a shame because it takes a lot of effort and a lot of oomph to teach and really care and love middle school so please please do not close another Middle School that this is a time when these students are developing emotions puberty they have no clue what's going on and to have a stable place where they they have they know what to expect that's the type of environment that middle schoolers thrive in and we don't want to take that away from them thank you thank you [Applause] we've been here since KGO we want to be here until we finish 8th grade we both have a lot of friends here and we might lose them if the middle school closes down plus the school is our home so please don't close the middle school down cuz we want to finish our Middle School years here thank [Applause] you hi I'm a mother of the beautiful student so we have a conversation um last Monday with Mrs Bower so I'm GNA say again what I'm say that day you failing our students if you are part of the community you know how important is for as a parent to have a good education for our kids right so what I'm saying that day if you is in my hands you will be fire because you fell to my daughter you fell the community and you fell our district so you done doing great job so now their option is to send my send our kids to a different mle school which one Okala we don't have Okala anymore we have a two charter school and a campus uh were supposed to be Okala was so which one uh we have it now fish sorry we have another Charter School inside the campus give me one so you don't give us a choice to have a good education for our kids charter school they're big because they have good good good system to to cut our students you losing a student is because you don't doing your job as a good as supposed to be have we losing the school is your respons ability to don't close any other school we're losing child you say we don't have enough students and I said that day your math and my math they match they match at this point you don't even say anything about why you're closing really really be honest because we don't have enough money really we in good gray area we're in Silicon Valley do you say to us we don't have enough money thank you thank you thank [Applause] you okay seeing no other uh comments at this time I'm going to go ahead and open it up to the board any questions and comments from the board it's okay m if there are any questions or comments otherwise I have questions go ahead trusty Flor Shelton I can't hear the mic but I could hear you okay use your loud [Laughter] voice thank you trusty Chavez um a couple questions to start out um or I'll just say um first thank you for the emails that I received I don't think I was able to respond to a lot of them but I read them all um so appreciate your Outreach um and couple questions so superintendent Bower I would like to know so I have three questions um what is this what would be um if the board took a took an action to support your recommendation what's the status of the wellness center um second what would be the actual budget reduction from this consolidation be um because to go through all of this and with our enrollment going down there would need there would need to be some sort of budget reduction or you know trying to understand what what the the purpose of it all is so the budget and then the third is um beyond what was presented here was there any other Equity analysis that you conducted using like Panorama data or anything else to help determine you know who burdens who benefits so there's a lot of questions there Dr Bower so the wellness center will stay okay and they're the only school as of today that have a Wellness Center um the budget redu will be 8.5 positions and that will be a savings to the general fund of $1,275 th000 in terms of equity and Panorama the this is the the the difficult part because the answer is um the recommendation is based on the enrollment numbers in the declining enrollment the school is is as you can have heard right they're doing really good but we also have other schools in the same boat right so right now they're the only ones that are being considered to reduce grade levels not the school as a whole right so trying to the the main decision had to do with those classrooms that we need to free to hopefully be able to attract more TK Kinder and first graders you had another question I'm done with my first round okay any other uh trusty fam you know um you know basing the demographic data you know now suppose you know so you know if we're going to do this Switcheroo here does the uh does the administration have uh you know a general idea of how to you know how to recruit for tkk uh you or you know if we're going to if the board is going to consider this you know in order to make room for certain you know what's the what's the general you know general idea you know in regards to reversing uh some of this uh demographic loss so we have been uh on an enrollment um marketing plan starting on January of this year which is follows some of the stuff that we have done in the past we have Community Leon visiting and canvasing the area that's we have staff actually going to Hom and recruiting students we have staff during events community events um in the past uh if you recall we have had a major marketing campaigns that include uh PSAs and they have been we have been with Billboards and around the BTA but those are very expensive uh things to purchase and because of our budget this particular um last two years we have not been able to afford the bus campaign you recall we had a number of years where we you know had alumrock en roll in alumrock using our VTA we had Billboards um but those are expensive items we have now um Dr almasan and working with the community Leon have a specific recruitment plan to be able to recruit students specifically in the early grades and specifically four year olds because we know that if we have them they will stay guess the the followup question uh you know but you know besides that uh any general ideas as to you know any curriculum changes that we ought you know that needs to be considered in in order to get students back into you know not just aptitude but you know our elementary schools right that's the uh was it the elementary schools are the key to our Middle School you know we we if we can't grow the enrollment in one area you know uh that's the primary feater so uh do we have a you know any any idea of what we can do to to uh you know make changes to our curriculum that will attract parents specifically in aptitude I mean not but in terms of Elementary right because you know what in in terms of uh you know recruitment you know uh I mean my sense from the the aptitude meeting what parent meeting was that uh you know we're we're we're starving for TKS and KS right that's the key we need to get the TKS and KS they enroll in grades one through five and then they feed into the middle school so it's s like uh any general ideas of curricular changes to you know bring Alam rockers to consider tkk TK and K in Alam Rock so we have had a number of those we had we added at theant to because we have a a lot of demand for ad Doan invention programs we have painter Elementary with Vietnamese an English dual immersion program that we have a long waiting list for those programs uh Russo ma the um the staff and the principal redesign their school into an En Environmental Education site and the Early Learning Cesar Chavez Center who are the first school in the state with that serves infants to 5y olds and we have a waiting list of 100 young students at that Center that we were considering trying to figure out also because the lack of space in the Early Learning Center to Route somewhere else thank you okay thank you thank you trusty thank you trusty FM um are you done with your questions for now yes okay thank you trusty uh Travis okay so this is what I'm hearing you're giving up students that are already here that are already guaranteed the money is following the students we're already getting income from them and you're giving them up for the possibility of maybe recruiting and getting the numbers I say why don't we try to recruit while they're still here give them a chance to survive give them a chance to up their numbers and they've been doing a good job uh in um academics why not give them a little bit more time and a chance to get their numbers up that's all thank you thank [Applause] you Madame President uh first of all I want to thank the public for being out here being part of the coming out and having their voices heard uh this is you know regardless of what side you're on it's an opportunity to engage the Democratic process come on to all of you that came out and spoke and so thank you sorry I couldn't finish the arest in the Vietnamese but I wish I could I took some Vietnamese classes before but I couldn't pick it up so my apologies um uh some of the I I appreciate the information and um we've been we've been addressing this issue or attention to address this issue of declining enrollment since I came out to this board before Dr B came here we were actually thinking of turning Matson into a k28 because we saw that that's where uh uh at the jump from fifth to sixth grade we lost we saw a lot of students jump to Middle School at that time we had a room just like this people coming yelling at us and screaming and saying no don't take away Matson and so the board at the time chose not to move in that direction and so you know I I respect the decision of the board I was on the side of moving to the k28 and I got a lot of heat for it so there's there's there's always differences of opinion and that's what we do here we have to deal with those things um I don't tend to base my decisions on how many more people are in the room and how loud the rumors is to look at the facts and what makes the most sense for for the for the district um and in this case I have concerns with regard to the Pres what has been presented because we're seeing that uh there's a Roman of 410 uh approximately 48 students less than hover um and so it's looking like it's very close if we were to we we were told that there's a savings of 1.2 million and so my concern is that is that savings taking into account the the the results of our actions here so for example let's say that there's 146 students right now in the K in the sixth gr grades so that half of them walk because of resentment because of whatever reason they just take off the ada8 follows them and they were out uh almost a 1.2 at about probably what like uh 900,000 that we would be losing if half of them leave that doesn't take into account the the TK through fif through fifth graders that would follow some of their siblings if they'd go to to a uh a middle school I was wondering if the administration had taken into account those figures and does a 1.2 take into account a certain number of students that has has have left because they've gone to Chargers or for whatever reason they're no longer in Alam Rock so we lost 85 students to rocket ship because we don't offer full day kindergarten and that's something that I Shar earlier on this year um we know that parents are that's what they have been asking for we don't have that um in terms of who's going to leave trusty kto and who's going to stay is a very difficult calculation because I know some people may leave but some people may choose to stay and so it's very difficult for me to present to you a number tonight and to say for sure this is what's going to happen because I really don't know we have uh asked during the first parent meeting um Mr Klein hands from Renaissance at fiser and Miss uh finnen from Renaissance at mson gave a very brief presentation about those are the closest sites where the students can walk to um and I know it's a it's a it's a burden um you know I my heart goes out because I know the community and I I live in the community and I know that it's difficult to take your children to to different schools I understand that completely but I also know that we have 22 sites and 7,500 students so whether the board takes action tonight or next year or 3 years from now there I I really don't know we have done many things to keep enrollment I think I know that people may not see it because not everybody is able to see other schools um and the changes and and the ability we we still have 11 Charters amongst us um and so the decisions that we're trying to make to you are as the least amount of hurt I guess that that that will cause in a community and it's still a change it's still a burden but but you know my job is to tell you this is this is where we last later on we're going to talk about the budget and um we are trying to you know there's there's a resolution we're not going to bring any new positions we're going to um try to do things to be able to retain our teachers especially those who have special credentials like bilingual credentials special AED so that we can continue um but at this point it's just basically having 22 sites that we have to take care of right and I I agree with the parents we have not been able to purchase a brand new sign for every single site uh for aptitude we did some work in terms of the black toop in terms of the playground and it's I know that is not enough but I have 21 sites that are in the same situation we all know that right so it's it's you know I'm bringing the recommendation that in my from my perspective was the least disruptive at this point for the district thank you any other questions otherwise I'll ask M just uh to finish up my comments and all stuff there um I I'm I get it I didn't expect to have a crystal ball to give us an idea as to what the numbers are but I'm given the long drawn out process that and then clearly the the resentment that's been built up I have serious concerns that the savings that we're looking at or being told aren't going to be realized because in fact we're going to wind up having an exodus of a good number of students that are not going to so at the end we're going to wind up losing part of the savings so on paper it'll look like all right positions are no longer going to be here so we'll save however the Ada is also not going to be there and so that's a concern for me um and so that that's something that's having to uh inform my my decision and yeah uh Madam president uh it's clear we're going to have to make some decisions this isn't going to be the first one and so for folks here as well as those who are maybe viewing us uh there's going to be tough decisions are going to come come down the pight and uh and so we're going to have a lot more people showing up to meetings and being upet and and so just be aware that this this is going to be the the the next few years unless we figure out how to continue to retain to retain and grow the students that we have so thank you um vice president kto I'm going to go ahead and ask mine and my comments and then we'll do another round um so first of all I'd like to thank the community uh especially the youth for speaking up the emails as uh trusty FL Shelton mentioned I did my best to respond to all of them you know I apologize if I didn't but um I really appreciate the time that each parent and uh Community member took to connect with us um uh we're here to serve you um gosh this is one of the you know there's a lot of fun things being a Schoolboard member and a lot of uh fun presentations we get to go to and pictures we get to take but this this is absolutely one of my least favorite parts of being a Schoolboard member uh but definitely something that I signed up for right when I um decided to be in the seat um or run for the seat and then you know being um elected by you all to be here um and I think for me it's important to understand the big picture kind of the wise and I think I heard over and over today why how are how did we get here what is the reason that even this consideration is on the board right why and so um Dr Bower or CA maybe can help um take the bigger picture because I think we heard that the savings you know would be 1, 275,000 uh board vice president GTO highlighted some important information uh but beyond that so beyond this one school because as board vice president mentioned we were we are going to have to make some tough decisions moving forward so what does that mean right I don't want you all to be surprised next month when we have something else on our agenda or in five months or in a year um so if one of you can let us know what our budget looks like and help us all understand this is 1, 275,000 of how much at the end of the day when we talk about you talked about enrollment total enrollment and you know if we decide to keep this you know we might decide I'm only one of five but what does it mean in the long run what kind of decisions are we going to have to make as Alam mock um what what is um how much do we need to cut I guess is what I'm what are we looking at what is the total amount and in how long CA maybe that's okay and did that make sense my question how much cuts are we going to have to make and how long to be at a point where our district can continue to function the way it's been I I think I understand your question thank you uh Madame board president um so later tonight we're going to be presenting our second interal report um which shows the current uh fiscal condition of the district and that report will reflect a $2.8 million uh deficit going into next year um all of this you know is is many reasons it's kind of a perfect storm um that that that is impacting districts um over the last few years with co uh we had infused um funds from the federal government from the state the economy was doing well um all that are coming to an end on top of that uh the state is also uh facing a budget challenge um you know just over the last 3 months or so um you know the state made a m uh reduced the cola which the cost of living adjustment um for next year is a little over 3% just that alone the impact itself it's about 7 half million um over the next two years so that exacerbated um first of all all the covid money the onetime money that we received um and with the state kind of a midyear cut on us it exacerbated our budget um you know consolidation of school should have happened a long time ago um Co in a sense kind of helped us push that um later because there was some additional funding that helped us and also you know it was a good decision to consolidate schools during the tough time because uh students were suffering they needed to learning loss to support um but all that is kind of coming to an end at this point with the loss of the co funding with the state bu budget Challenge and the continu declining enrollment the districts um you know continue to face this when I joined the district about in 2015 um we were at about 125 th 12,500 students as Dr B referred to earlier we're at 7,500 so um and we're still running the same amount of schools that we did back in 2016 uh 2015 2016 we did consolidate some schools but there were multiple schools at the same sit for example uh Matson and Renaissance and Matson were both on the same site uh Fisher and Renaissance and Fisher were both at the same site um we um converted uh arbuck which was arbo then to now to adante to which is thriving um you know their their attendance and enrollment is actually increasing um you know I think last year was the first year that they' heard had their first year of 8th grade corts um but in their lower enrollment those corts will be able to sustain that school moving forward into into the long run so in a short story I mean all this are like a perfect storm hitting us um that you know um this those difficult decisions would have to be made sooner than later um you know we have enough Reserve right now to last us for this year next year and the year coming up if nothing is done um you know starting next year we're going to be running our Reserve um which means that you know the district will be insolvent at that point um the county office will take over um take over the school districts in terms of the decision that we need to make in terms of the cuts that we we need to make in terms of schools consolidation um at that point they would take over and their recommendation would be the same thing that we'd be talking about right now so um again those are some difficult decisions that the boards can have to make but those are some of the information that I want to um you know share with you folks so that um we have an understanding ter what we're facing I think it's very helpful to understand I mean the presentation was great but I think you know the real I mean meat of this decision making right is there um I mean the school's doing great you know the students are doing amazing sounds like you know there's amazing programs amazing teachers um and we're not you know questioning anything that's happening there uh is these tough decisions and um you know also if we don't make these tough decisions we're not being responsible trustees right as Dr bar mentioned today next month or whenever we make them we're going to have to make them um in order to continue to have a district um in the future um and but I think the one of the the most important things that I heard today uh and I've been hearing and I've been reading in the emails and you know as a parent myself right the importance of community engagement parent engagement student engagement that's key to me so you know everyone in this room is a part of alen rock so everyone in this room heard the same information I heard right whatever the decision is today we're going to move forward and the I don't know what that leaves 18,7 whatever is left I'm sorry million million to still cut right to still bring our district to a place where we can continue to move forward and have a school alamro school district in 10 years in a 100 years in 200 years beyond the time that we're here so I want you all to be a part of those decision making right that decision making and so Dr Bower I know is a big task right and I know we've talked about this in our one-on-one for me it's important to engage the community um yes you know we presented this maybe a year ago um but to go back soon right not 3 days before not a month before because then unfortunately we get sick we have emergencies that come up and it doesn't allow for us to have the community feel like they were engaged so um as staff you know I am going to ask for more Community engagement so that our parents and stakeholders as we heard today and are willing to be a part of those decision-making um you know Community meetings however we decide to do it task force and you know those conversations can come next that we engage folks because again today's is just one of many decisions we get to make and I want to hear our community students parents stakeholders that want to be a part of this um um there's no way out of making these Cuts we're going to make them and I mean for us as trustees we're five here so it'll be much more easier if we make them together for us otherwise we still get to make them um so those are my comments for now and I see trusty FL shon's hand UPS thank you um thank you presidenta um when when this was brought to us a while back um I did ask for this to be deferred and we did do um to do more Community engagement and it's it is disappointing that there wasn't more information brought back that really gathered you know was there a parent survey done did why didn't we ask like what is the transportation burden you know will you go elsewhere like those are the types of conversation that is the point of community engagement right to understand the the burden understand the potential benefit or to hear you know Alternatives along the way because I think we all have ideas right to to save our schools to to be creative and this board has been very very creative in this 10 years of the charter impacts the declining birth rates the um housing affordability crisis pushing our families out to the valley and elsewhere I mean there's so many factors that contribute to this enrollment that are um but one that I think is something that is dear to me is when we attempted to create full day Kinder 10 years ago and that was stopped by the teachers union who I love dearly right but we tried to stem and stop the bleeding at Kinder 10 10 years ago and we didn't we didn't come to an agreement agent on that and 10 years later we still don't have full day Kinder so as a working mom when I sent my kindergartener to Chavez and I had to drop him off at 11: and pick him up at 1:30 that's like impossible right that's impossible for working fam so I was so convinced like that if Alan Rock could do that we could change these numbers around and here we are in 2024 without full day Kinder so I'm saying as we go to the bargaining table if we don't have that we will be doing this again and again and again so I'm I'm just very passionate about that because we knew we could have helped not fixed maybe but helped this um number um so with that being said I I do think though that from what I'm hearing this feels peac meal this feels really peace meal and I'm and I get that we have to make hard decisions and we will be making hard decisions but I guess I'm at a at this um what did you say the perfect storm right it feels like we don't have a way to determine um because I'll say when we first started this I heard middle schoolers need better assets the the aptitude campus doesn't have what middle schooler should have right a a gym or a or a track or like I heard that was an argument that we wanted our middle schoolers to have better amenities and assets okay that made a lot of sense right but if it it's the criteria for what may happen at the next school and the next school I feel like we need to have a better why you said it we heard it from other people like why why this place now I think there's some compelling arguments definitely the budget but it doesn't feel like we have the the full analysis to say and I've I've seen and we've all seen it on TV other school districts where it's just like bedum right because but what I think is fair is that you put this you mentioned hubard right you put you put a bunch of schools and you say these are the pros and cons right and unfortunately to your point of like doing less harm you know we're we're only creating chaos at one school instead of chaos at five schools thinking they're you know their Futures at at risk so I get that but on balance it feels like it's peace meal and maybe again I'm not seeing the the bigger picture but I like I said I think there's compelling reasons unfortunately because of budget because of all these terrible factors that are coming into play now but I also feel like a oneoff doesn't doesn't serve us well right now uh trusty fam okay well I guess I will you know after hearing everything I will say my peace uh oh good evening and I do see my fellow Vietnamese in the audience I will say and uh was it buus noes toos last familias right good in in whatever Spanish I've picked up now you know uh you know the gravity of the situation is you know we've got declining enrollment uh you know it's impacting our budget you know and you know here we are now on you know on the other hand I think you know H you know having been at a parent meeting and also you know to see all of you here um though I see the merits of the uh recommendation of the administration uh you know I think that there you know may be some areas that threat the needle uh I will say one of which is on another uh you know one of one of the steps I've offer I am offering will appear later on this agenda uh but I think that there are some efficiencies we can do and I think that uh my colleague Bo board vice president Quintero has you know has a lot of miror in what he says you know there the issue of uh one in the bird and two in the bush right the burden the hand right now is better than two in the bush so I I as someone who went to started aptitude at Goss and I saw some gos Gators in you know the gos Gator appeared uh in this meeting you know my my instinct is to you know uh you know we if we're going to go for it I'm I'm in you know going to be in favor of uh seeing that uh aptitude plays uh you know one more football game all four quarters of it you know but at the same time I'm going to you know put out a bit of a you know a bit of a challenge now as anyone area knows that you know I've been a friend of the teacher you know Alam Rock teachers and so is CSA uh you know so our job you know in order you know let's let's take aptitude as our our our test experiment right we got to sit down and think you know maybe in some ways in in you know in in formal conversation between you know for a lack of better term the stakeholders you know uh where we start thinking what you know where where it is where we can stretch while honoring the commitments we've already made you know to to get you know to find some way to to boost enrollment I don't know how that is you know that's a conversation you know I invite and I say that as you know uh the trustee who's visited every school you know every year more than once uh here that you know uh as many district events as physically possible and then some and as I've said I've never you know my job is to face the residents I want to hear from the residents I also want to hear from our teachers and our classified staff and our Administration and you know this is you know this is the challenge I'm you know I'm going to support you in playing one more game of football here all four quarters of it but this is going you know but you know these decisions are coming and so I think that this is an opportunity you know let's take this opportunity to see you know where you know where we can stretch ourselves a bit and you know see if we can't think of a way to use this as a model template to save our schools and you know with that said you know I'll just announce that I think you know I'm all always going to be open to ideas feel free to write to me if you have some ideas and also uh I will say that I'll uh join uh join the small schools and Innovations committee uh chaired by my uh my good friend uh board vice president Quintero and let's see what we can't what we can put together and you know see if we can threat the needle but again as I said that you know we're going you know this you know these are difficult times and uh you know let's you know I think that there are some things we can find in this District but also I think that it behooves us to think start really thinking of ways together uh you know to to see what we can what we can improve to you know bring Alam rockers back to Alam rock thank you so much thank you trusty uh Travis when I attended the the meeting on Monday I was talking about that there is a lot of solutions one of the main solutions would be if the parents could make the teachers union understand and the teachers um to extend the Kindred that way we can get the students from the get-go and not be struggling year after year with the Ada the Ada means average daily attendance which is the Money Follows the student so as long as we can have the student in the seats we can keep doors open more so parents need to understand your decisions make a big difference whether you stay and whether you fight for the school as well as all the other schools but one has to really talk to the teachers and have them understand that their job is also on the line if the numbers keep dwindling and I say numbers because it's numbers that count um the students are people the parents are people the teachers are people and we love them all but everybody has to understand that everybody has to do their part and give and take a little bit so I'm asking you guys because all of the sh please I didn't interrupt you if we can have respect both ways please um I'm just asking you to really ask the teachers for this allowance because obviously the district hasn't been able to have them offer Kinder and once we get them in Kinder and and TK then that'll change things immensely and that will most likely change the future of all of alam Rock and I thank you all for being here and I thank you all for speaking up and I thank you all for bringing your children that's all thanks thank you trusty Chavez anyone else yeah just my final vice president GTO um I as I mentioned before there's going to be tough decisions that need to be made and not afraid of making those decisions um we've made them in the past where we got a lot of heat for the libraries one want we start going down the list I'm not going to re uh get pts here uh for the public to have to hear all the stuff that happened those were tough decisions they were based on on on the budget on the need to take action in order to realize savings however um as has been mentioned um this plan uh this strategy needed to have been done we need have get we need have gotten that data uh those those surveys that would have told us if people had the intention of taking all the children out to our competitors at that point in time we would have been able to pencil in pencil out exactly what the the savings would have been at this point given the fact that I don't have a clear understanding as to what the savings would be because we don't have that data I'm uh I'm I'm concerned as I as I've expressed before that that we won't realize what we're projecting um I think that the the refan that my colleague mentioned here is very apt in this moment and so we have the students I would rather see that ADA stay here so for that reason I wouldn't be able to support uh uh the recommendation uh this evening um however I in this in these comments I would advise the administration to bring us back a very serious plan that uh that that brings that that addresses that that that deficit uh I yeah it's true we needed to have dealt with it a long time ago we didn't on the hopes that we could do our best and just out of sheer grit and work figure out how we can turn this around how stop the bleeding we did a lot of stuff uh such as a Chavez Early Learning Center to attempt to keep our kids from our early age on up obviously it hasn't yield did the numbers that we need every day there's 5,000 kids in our community that go to our Charter Schools if we didn't have that we'd be back at the 12,500 we wouldn't have we wouldn't be having these conversations today so I'd ask each and every one of you to continue to support us continue to encourage your friends and family to come to our schools we have really qualified teachers that are fully credentialed uh that's a big difference from some of our competitors that are not at the level that we at and it's important to let people know so help us uh and be in the best position to keep our schools open so we don't have to make these decisions I'm pleading with you directly as you're here and um I won't bring up the other stuff because I don't believe in negotiating in public um but we do need every asset every tool that we can to keep our schools open to keep our kids here and so that'll be dealt with in a different time and a different place thank you vice president GTO um and I think the only thing allow is that it's clear one that app is amazing the teachers the students the families the community um and two as we've heard today you know it won't be staying that way if we decide to keep it open right let's just say we decide to keep it open the numbers you know we can't continue to fund a school with how it is right now and what we're listening to that was that's going to change if aptitude stays open I don't know um but what is for sure is that we're calling everybody right um you know from as trustees you know our superintendent our parents our community our stakeholders to come together and uh make decisions together it's tough we you know have the hardest you know job at the end to vote um but when those decisions are made together again it just becomes a little easier right we've all had our voice heard um and had a say even though sometimes it might not be what I wanted right but at least I had my my piece um said and I was listened to so um you know based on what I'm hearing today uh Dr Brower it sounds like there's um a direction that we're going to make and I mean just as one of the five trustees here as a board president you know I'm wondering if we're going to have to you know pull that Band-Aid right at some point 20 plus million dollar and so maybe that time is now Co and Dr Bower that we just I mean go for it because you know doing it little by little school by school decision by decision it might as much as we wanted to right little by little so it's not that hard of a hit I think we're going to have to make it you know all together is my thought and I I mean I heard C you say that by next here we have to make some tough decisions we can continue in 2425 with how we are right now um and I'm not saying aptitude right I'm not even using that word I'm talking about as Alam rock as we currently are and so those decisions are going to have to be made and maybe we make them together as a district and phase phase one phase two phase three but again encourage um our community members right and make our meetings and our opportunities at different times in different ways by you know surveys for parents who maybe work two or three jobs and cannot go to meetings meetings in the morning meetings in the evening uh virtual meetings where our community has an opportunity to have a say in how we're going to do that um and and we do it together uh that's that's the direction I'm hearing the board right now you know and that we're not ready to make this decision here today um and and you know maybe in the future we direct you know staff to come back in the future uh and I don't know if we want to set a time with an update or um you know Dr Bower do you have so I want to be very clear what the board wants right I don't do anything without your support um it's very clear that we're going to have to close at least five schools so that's that's what we're facing today right I have no problem bringing a comprehensive plan we can survey the community we have to figure out which ones are going to be the ones and that's that's the that's that's what I'm understanding right now we can start surveying as early as may I had to craft the surveys so that I can send it across the district so that everybody gets a chance to your point I think that's an amazing idea of having virtual Town Halls not a problem we held them during the pandemic I will be happy to hold them again right so I want the timeline from the board so that I can be very clear because obviously I have not been clear and so I need your support also to tell me this is what we want and this is how we want it deliver and I'm all ears and I think along with that you know I also believe in not negotiating in public um but it allows also our partners to have some tough conversations and decision- making as well and conversations right um and that might impact the direction of our district so um I mean I look forward and coming up with Solutions together hopefully uh but you know reality is reality so with what we have we're going to have to move forward um and you know I I'm I'm definitely you can count on me as a trustee and a leader that you know will have a backbone to make tough decisions and you might not like it in the future right today though I see an opportunity to come together and make those decisions together um I just want the timeline so that I can prepare with the stuff when do you want this you have some personally I I I feel like you all it's like working backwards either from the budget you know scenarios or I don't think we make the time I would think you make the timeline but that's just it just that I I just want to be clear right that I am given the direction because I thought you know I thought that I was doing it correctly but obviously I have not and so I just want to in public ask everybody when do you want the plan so that I can start working backwards and I'll get to you real quick but I think um what trusty FL Shelton said is very clear and maybe CLA you can give us that um I heard in your presentation in regards to the total amount I heard you say that by 2025 we have to make an x amount so in your you know what you just stated I think it's important to see what is that number and then working our way back um to then allow us to see do we have one month or do we have you know four or five months trust each other 60 days but in that time we're giving the parents uh time to respond and also uh to meet with them again uh to listen to the responses and why they responded that way I I I don't just need I think I would like to see um not just a response and that's it I would like to have a community meeting and the reasons why they gave those um responses and thank you just go ahead I was just say I think 60 days is too long but different things yeah I think um back and forth is what I'm saying I think CA yeah I think it's too long but I think key is when do we need to make those cuts by in order to keep our district out of the County Board the County Office of Education um you know radar so um as I mentioned earlier um tonight will be the presentation for the second inim the next key timeline is the adoption of next year's budget um that needs to happen before July 1st so with that timeline we can do a backwards map in terms of um what it needs to take for us to bring a recommendation to the board um in conjunction with the budget adoption with next year's budget adoptions report so um I think we have a timeline in terms of how we work or you know where we the target timeline and how we need to work backward to achieve those goals okay that's helpful I have vice president I'm sorry trusty Flor Shelton vice president GTO and then back to Linda okay vice president there's a mixup here in terms of what we're looking for you're talking about what happened here regard to the parents at one School uh I think the conversation has shifted over to the overall budget uh issues that we have and so I think we got that what I'm I I don't expect us to come up with the list within 60 days of everything that's going to get shut down that would be too aggressive um and it doesn't take into account that we do have reserves that we're able to uh wait this out for not wait it out for a year but take action collectively in good transparent with the community and then uh do it in a thoughtful way that takes into account the perspectives of the community at the end of the day somebody's not going to be happy um there's going to be upset people who are closest to the schools but the decisions have to be made um and i' I would rather do them soon but not within a 60-day period I think that would be irresponsible um and we' out people and we would not do something that was thorough thoughtful so uh I do I I I I think CA got it though that's the important part where he's going to come back with the road map that allows us to begin a a process so am I correct or was I compl I I I'm in agreement with that c is that what you understood and uh superintendent well you know I I want to be very clear I think it has been helpful that you have not only the backwards mathia which is very important I think we got that very clear but I also think that the whole thing about being comprehensive and thoughtful is a little subjective for me because when I come and I say this is what I did or this was not enough so being very direct and telling me I I heard surveys I heard uh uh virtual town halls and when we're talking about multiple sub sit a community meeting in different quadrants where that's going to be affected that's what I'm thinking so to trusty Kino's point you know this is going to be engaging the community and it's going to create a number of people that are going to be anxious about their school so I want us to all be ready for that because this is not an easy conversation right and so peace meal didn't work I hear cloud and clear so it's going to be comprehensive plan right we're going to backwards map it in terms of timeline you already know that we have to bring to you during the budget adoption process a very clear this is the plan of how many schools need to go and so that's June right middle June middle June so that's the timeline and then once that happens we have to go out and let the people know because between now and June to go and tell the entire District that this is going to happen is going to be very difficult and unfair right so uh one second so I it's pretty clear I heard today five schools so we don't have to wait till June correct to figure out that it's I don't know maybe four to six right um so that's clear so we don't have to wait till June so we already know that some schools might have to be cut now as administrators right I trust and I know that you're all intelligent enough because you've provided us information that we've needed to identify such as today schools that would make sense for whatever reasons right or wrong right but you're going to identify certain schools maybe I don't know this is just a thought right um but I think it's important to you know identify as we talked about how parents would be affected um you know the input from those schools there's some schools that will not be touched for obvious reasons and I think that were said today we have waiting lists obviously we probably will not touch those schools this is my guess but that's you know just one of many so I think um between now and June we already know some things that are for sure we know an amount we know how many schools um and between now and then you know if we work from there backwards uh July to now you know there again maybe there's a phase where we identify schools I don't know maybe that's done in 60 days and then you know we have a virtual meeting in each qu quadrant I'm just guessing of how we're going to reach out because it's important for me to understand how the reaching out is happening when the surveys are going to go out um you know making sure that it's transparent because at the end of the day there's a lot of people that will not be happy and there will be some that are um but that you know we're a part of this process trusty Flor Shelton so in the spirit of clarity um I am I was not under the impression or and so maybe the qu we're not deciding the five schools in this budget cycle no maybe it's a phase of Ming maybe so I think what I'm I guess what I'm so I just want to be clear I thought we were telling you to come back with a like a community engagement plan Clarity on what the equity analysis would look like so that it would help us then go okay when we come to the why these five schools and not these five schools there's some clarity on the why and then you and then you kick so this is why I I'm I'm totally caught off guard because we have one school in front of us I have was not under the impression we would need to do potentially four more by June so I I don't know if we're accelerating it I thought we were asking for a plan so you could come back with here's the community engagement strategy here's the analysis and here's the T like then we would roll this out over the course of next year right if we have to make some Cuts right this June and it's 1.8 there is a bunch I'm sure we're going to get a new budget that's going to have other decisions if it was five schools this June by this June is I guess that's my question that's this this June's budget action potentially so we don't have to get to identify the school um we can provide you with the cost in terms of how much and then we could roll out next year correct thank and just I'm sorry um and just for clarification you know that five is very conservative um I just want to throw it out there um with the number of students that we're serving um you know realistically we should be about almost half the schools that we're operating right now so so I believe Community engagement is a very deliberative it it it's sure it's Town Halls those are like what we do but thinking about what we're asking and doing the analysis it's really it's really important and I don't see that being done so quickly so I thought we were asking for when can a plan come back that then gets rolled out so that's if I misunderstood I'm sorry and if it's faster that's what I want I mean I think I want to know what I think we you know uh based on that right where he just said about 10 schools that's a reality right the more we wait it'll be more for sure but I mean I'm okay if at the end of the day if we want to wait you know another year or two or whatever it is and we go for the for the four I don't know maybe it's I I think it's the reality of um and I I have all the respect for superintendent because I think you've had a lot of balls in the air that you're juggling but this was challenging to do for the one school this community engagement right it's it's it's hard work right to do it like with that quality and intention with all the things going on so I just want us to be realistic too about the the quality of Engagement the quality of information we're getting back the and and again sort of that this accelerated plan should all be lined up with when we have to make decisions so pres I may I understand um your point trusty Flores Shelton but there is a sense of urgency like ca talked about um we tried to do it one way and I'm I'm going to shift gears in terms so including some of the recommendations that the board has given me but at the end of the day right whether I work you know nonstop for the next 60 days you know 40 I mean four months at the end of the day it's going to be closing schools sure right and so seeking out you know my mind is already designing a a a survey that is going to go districtwide to start asking parents what is the criteria that we I need to come back to the board and share of how we're going to have less schools that's going to be a hard thing for parents to answer right it's hard right but I will do it I will definitely do it right uh the considerations that we need to take right in terms of transportation and all of that we have 22 different sites with 22 different kinds of needs so in order to collect the analytics for that right and so I'm just I'm trying to be realistic we have to present a budget that has specific actions by the board because at the end of the day we have the County Office of it that is going to be asking do you really mean it right we have been kicking the can they're going to ask that question we are going in order to better the sites right because we want to better the S side we have to sell bonds right whether or not our budget is qualified or negative or positive that's going to impact the sell of bonds I you know I all of those things are I know are complex but that is the reality that we live in order to be able to fix the roofs in half of the schools the plumbing in half of the schools right so that is that is why this conversation is never Pleasant it's like us at home when we run out of money right and our kids come and say I want those tenis shoes and you say I can't and that's the same thing right now we love our children and we want to give them the best right but sometimes that we're not going to feel the love because of these very difficult situations and the budget needs to come to you we have to have a plan by June yeah so it's not going to be spelled out about which schools but it's going to include more or less the number yeah I think that we're in agreement okay so the reason I said the 60 days is because isn't that when we do the May revision Dr I excuse me Mr CA so we would get a better picture of that then well the May revision is when the state provides an update in terms of Statewide um fiscal condition and how that trickles down to um the local level which is school districts um so we'll get more information um but given the trend that is going right now um not sure what information is going to be coming out by then um so but we won't we have a more accurate picture of the money that actually is going to come yeah it's it's it's more solidified by then thank you that's why I said 60 days because of the May revisions thank you so I think sounds like we're in agreement in 60 days you'll come back with a plan a plan and then I mean because sounds like we need to adopt the final by our June meeting right to submit in July yes so we'll have um a public hearing um early in June and then we'll have a followup board meeting in the middle or towards the end of June for the board to um adopt the budget okay trusty FL can I make a motion okay I'd like to move that we deny resolution number 42-23 uh d24 and not remove grade six seven and eight from aptitude Community Academy at gos second and direct the administration to come back with the plan in 60 days a plan for what just to the the comprehensive plan to make our budget a plan with Community engagement analysis and the identification of the criteria for uh the schools that we will eventually need to consolidate or close thank you so a motion by trusty FL Shelton and second by truste uh Chavez okay all those in favor raise your hand all right motion passes unanimously thank you you so [Applause] much all right moving thank you again for uh coming moving and we can uh exit quietly uh for those are leaving thank you for coming uh but if you can please exit quietly thank you okay moving on to item 103 welcome an explanation to audience any person may address the board on any item on the meeting agenda persons to wish to speak on an item on the agenda will have an opportunity to do so when that agenda item is introduced and presented during this meeting there is a limit of two minutes two minutes for each speaker the board has a right to limit total public comment on any agenda item to no more than 20 minutes persons who wish to speak to the board about any matter within the jurisdiction of the district but not on this agenda we'll have an opportunity to speak during item 2011 on this agenda as stated below item two public members who wish to address the board on any matters not not on the agenda uh opening up now for public uh members wishing to address the board at this time welcome hey didn't we have 5.06 after 5.

students were brought to the campus during their class time when did the enrollment go down after we switched to extended day when those programs weren't being offered the district failed the Educators as well to hire highly qualified AIDS who wants to work for $16 an hour 2 hours a today any of the board members $32 before taxes shame on you for again blaming the district's inability to provide what both the teachers and the students need on the backs of the teachers you want a full day Kinder program programs meeting before school during the school day and after school care as a working parent it isn't about the 6-hour day that the child child was in my classroom go to think together go to YMCA and demand that they offer the support that the students need and do not blame the teachers thank you Alam Rock administrators Association do we have any we the current president is under the weather she she wasn't able to make it thank you I'll move on to your report superintendent thank you so much I want to thank um everybody who make comments tonight um I know that it's very that it is the support that that students need and it's again one of those difficult decisions we're still trying to figure out how we're going to be able to continue to provide the support to some extent perhaps not to the to the level that we have it right now but it goes back to that same conversation um there's there are so many things that are very complex when we are um trying to talk to each other about the needs of children and about the needs of families and I don't want to for any reason be misinterpreted I was in the classroom 12 years my daughter is a classroom teacher it is a very challenging job very very challenging job and Sandra was correct when she said the classroom of today does not look like the classroom especially me because I'm a little old lady people like the classroom that I attended as a child so we're trying to work the best we can to be able to continue to provide services and to continue to have an alarm Rock to where we can have schools and families and students these are very challenging times very very challenging times and I hear what everybody said to today I I I'm not just ignoring it um I want to in the midst of these I also want to honor the tremendous effort that everybody did during March March Madness um just a week ago um to see the kids playing to C the the people there uh the parents and everybody um it just warms my heart because a lot of everybody was giving up their time to be there so thank you teachers who were there thank you families who were there and thank you administrators who were there um sometimes it is one of those jobs that nobody notices but when we're not around people notice right when somebody when a principal is not around teachers need that uh support so I want to thank the principal um for being there and for the rest of the staff uh from it to um district office people thank you so much for making that happen because it's about kids um thank you very much guys this these are very rough very rough times for me as a as a professional um I'm trying very hard to sustain sometimes what is unsustainable and um believe it or not I have feelings believe it or not I have feelings and there have been a lot of comments about me that have been very harsh tonight um but above all even the people who don't like me very much right now I love you I love you with from the bottom of my heart otherwise I would not be here I do have a choice I have said that many many times I have a choice and it just so happened that my choice is to be your superintendent and maybe one day that was not going to be your choice and that's okay too that's totally fine you know um I have tried my best um to bring Alam Rock to a new level and I have not done that alone a number of you have been with me in this journey and we need to move to the next level because I do want to be invited to the Centennial as I mentioned I'm a little old lady I'm not going to be your superintendent when you celebrate a 100 years but I want to be invited and I want to be in that celebration even if I'm sitting just on a chair that's totally fine I want Al Rock to be here to serve this community because this community is not going to go away thank you so much guys sorry about the you know about this but um sometimes I just need to to express what I'm feeling thank you thank you moving on to to uh Board of Trustees Communications or comments from trustees trusty fam well I know there's always that giggle so I am well thank you madam president uh I will say it's been a busy month since the last board meeting right so uh you know part of this job is you know being the community's representative and was it in the since since last board meeting I was a judge at the East Side Union High School District stem paloa I had the great opportunity to be a celebrity judge to see our you know how our graduates did how they compete once they graduate from our district and I want to say that you know they they're doing great things I think that you know we've done we've done a good job in preparing them and we've given them a foundation to do bigger and better things when they when they receive their eighth grade diploma from here I you know uh the the the Tet Festival on February 17th you know to to ring in the uh Lunar New Year uh assembly member leagues Black History Month event uh you know we want to you know my commitment is has always been that Alan walk is the greater than to some of its parts and I want to honor you know and continue to honor and keep our word to you know our africanamerican Educators and our efforts to uh keep in rettin African American Educators as well as providing you know a re a re relevant and rigorous and Equitable to the extent possible education for not just our africanamerican American students but for all our students um you know last weekend you know I I I will get to March madum I'll go through uh the county school boards Association uh annual legislative branch uh it was a great panel we had uh was it two members of Congress uh two state senators three assembly members two County Supervisors and you know uh uh although I you know I you know it was always good to say hear ideas and bounce ideas off of our colleague trustees in the other districts but also you know there are there is some news from Sacramento that you know all is not well you know and I will you know and I will uh sum it up with the words of state Senator John lard who is the chair of the Senate budget Senate bud Comm in who said you know don't tell you know don't tell that to me we're negoti you know you're just negotiating you know with yourselves here you know and I guess that that sums up the the situation in Sacramento as I as I understand it uh was it March uh it was a always a pleasure to be at March March Madness you know uh you know and I sort of great to my colleagues and the superintendent in their cabinet that for some reason or another I've you know I I uh play the role of Mr Alam Rock so it's you know always a pleasure to be at Courtside to see our see our kids uh you know uh congratulations to uh Joseph Jo the Joseph George uh boys basketball team who won who won in overtime 20 to 24 they had that second win H and uh was it Okala girlss basketball team who takes home their fifth consecutive March Madness title uh you know and I want to give a a special uh what is it a special mention to the Joseph George Mean Green Machine Drumline who performed at halftime it was a wonderful show as well as a special men to uh uh the shepher cheerleading squad who qualifies as their own uh who qualifies as their own uh I should say honorary member of the Shephard basketball team because they they alone cost Jo they alone cost Joseph George 13 free throws there so uh but at the end of the day I think that you know as I've always said you know uh uh I visited every school morning you know more than I can count on my hands I physically attend as many district events as possible and it's you know part of it is encouraging alen rockers to come back to alen rock whether it's you know uh sports or music it you know it's uh I know our district has a lot to offer our kids and the thing and you know and I hope in my own actions and the actions of my colleagues and the actions of superintendent now and her Administration that we continue to do what we can to you know invite Alan rockers back to uh Alan Rock uh you know it's you know uh you know and so I encourage you know you know all of all of alam Rock to come out next month and see our kids for uh Copita later in April and and I want to leave you know uh make two last points the first point is you know uh there was a comment about you know te you know uh our priority being teaching our children and you know not so much teacher housing you know as I've always said the the first priority of uh the Alam Rock School District is to educate our children now it costs money to educate our children so that's why Alam rock is concerned about teacher housing and that's because it's a opportunity to uh be able to use our resources in a way that generates Revenue so that we can pay our teachers and keep up our schools and maintain programs right uh the whole point of it is I don't want to you know uh you know at you know as superintendent V said she wants to be invited to the Centennial I'd like to be invited to the Centennial too but I also want to make sure that you know uh that Centennial isn't you know once again plagued by the question of school closures down the line and the best way to prevent that is you know as I you know and I think my uh my good friend board vice president Quintero of you know bringing that suggestion to the uh in the first place uh and I also at the end want to close you know I was at the aptitude meeting and yes uh you know and I want to make how I how should I say this a call for civility um school closures or any big changes in the district you know are necessarily going to create uh hard feelings I get that uh but I I want to uh but I I did notice that there were some coms that were leveled at the person and not the policy and I I want to uh say that you know uh we may not all be perfect but let us let us try to you know argue on the policy and not the person you know after all we all have to we all have to live in the same Community right just like uh what is it uh e even though it C you know it's costing a few fingers but we all have to be sometimes we we need each other at the food Max on at the corner of story and white trying to pick up a box of Cocoa Puffs there you know we we have to be able to live in this even when we disagree we have to live in the same community so I I do want to close with uh you know disagree with the policy yes but please please let you you know let us let's not attack each other on a on a personal level and as I've said you know uh I said I make my commitment to doing you know that's why I was elected this this board to do everything I can in partnership with my colleague trustees to you know keep this District afloat so that you know we get to the sentenal and Beyond you know and that's about and I said working working with all our teachers and all our classified staff you know our parents and you know our children too and our uh to you know uh let us you know come up with a maen alam Rock solution to our problem so with that I you know that's my update for the month and I Ed my time Madam president thank you any others all right the only thing I'll um highlight is uh it was great to um attend the FL raising ceremony on the first day of the Vietnamese year um and uh thank our neighboring uh trustee monly for the invitation and her organization for um creating that and uh having that for our community um and I won't uh spend more time on the March Madness other than congratulations on the Champions and every other student that uh played out there I know you all did your best um and although I attended some of the games I wasn't considered missing is Alam Rock but you know maybe next year I'll get that title and looking forward um to you know the goita as well and all the other um opportunities to see our students uh succeed out there um in addition to academically um and you know also want to um thank for everyone who exercised their vote the right to vote you know our ancestors some lost their lives to do that so um thank you you know who uh all those who took the time to vote um this past March 5th and last but not least just an invitation to mishika New Year our Aztec New Year Ceremony this weekend beginning tomorrow with Cali native night Sunrise ceremony on Saturday um and then also ceremony on Sunday at Emma push Park this year we celebrate uh 12 debot which is uh 12 Flint um and it's a year that brings illumination Clarity and serenity and uh you know uh it generates many ideas that spark important conversations that elevate our Consciousness um and may we all search for meaning and truth and be transparent so that we may focus on what is necessary as we move forward together as a community so I look forward to seeing you all out there uh bring your families you'll have a great time um and with that we'll go ahead and move on to item 501 I'm sorry I'd like to interrupt I'm sorry you did wanted to say something yes because we need say happy birthday to our president Corina ataa thank you happy birthday to you we don't need to be thank you and I want to say um personally how proud I was to um to support you and um proud of how you represented um us all um in your bid for County supervisor and um it just was you you make you made me very proud and I just really appreciate you um you know putting your your neck out there in a in a tough environment and wanting to continue to be a representative for us at the county so um congratulations on your campaign and while it may not have put you into the next round um we look forward to your leadership here I look forward I I look forward to your continued leadership here so thank you for again um um your very very strong um inspiring attempt so thank you thank you thank you truste Flor Shelton um okay and with that President really quick apologize happy birthday to you as well you know Echo everything it said um I sorry about that I should have jumped in earlier I got selected to participate in a committee that does um scholarships for the Mexican council is running this uh here the Mexican counil here in s uh they wanted to remind us as a district to encourage our children to participate in an upcoming uh competition that the Mexican foreign Ministry has for children to um do artwork so they get uh they get um entries from all over the world and it actually doesn't have to be Mexican kids it could be kids from any ethnicity race whatever uh and as long as they go ahead and they provide their perspective on how they New Mexico everything has a they have a theme for everything see life and stuff of that sort so it'll be coming out shortly and uh the console General herself said hey if we can encourage as many kids as possible for Mel Rock to submit uh because it's been about 10 years since the last time they got a child for some said to be showcasing their your annual calendar that they put out and they goes out all over the world they hand out those calendars so um just wanted to make sure to put a pitch in for for any teachers out there to encourage their children and have the district U pass along the information to get the kids to participate trusty Chavez um sorry you went by the comment so quickly that you weren't looking over here almost jumped out of the seat and for your information you're not old Dr Bower especially since I'm older than you but um I would like to see maybe uh the amount or the cost of what the cost is for the tosas and because I see several things on the agenda that we're going to vote for and like the Galileo program was excellent and the kids had so much fun but I believe in my mind that we need it uh we need to toast us more than we need the activities after school and maybe there's other things that we could do to to keep maybe all or some but uh if you can give us the number on that and maybe we know what we're looking at thank you um May I respond just because uh so that everybody gets to know right yes um the items that are coming up are all part of specific fund funds uh and specifically things like Galileo the spring break all of those are part of the Extended Learning opportunities Grant yeah so you know that has been one of those challenges for us we had um conversation with um board Senator Cory and assembly member calra to ask them you know to to do some other stuff at the state level to be able to flex some of this and and I want to I want in trans I want to share this not only with the board but with the entire community so that we are able to utilize those funds in different ways and um very kind staffer you know I'm not going to say who that was but she did a lot of work research and things like that came back with no can do so um I wish truthfully that we had more flexibility in our budget that was the intent for the lcff to have a real local uh uh control right and in some of these programs that are coming down and I don't promise they're going to be there by the end of May because that they're looking into some of that so just so that that for to remind you because I know you know but to let the public know that sometimes those are the huge challenges es that we have that we have some funds that cannot be used any other way and we want we are I know you do we all want the best we want to purchase great programs we want to have great activities um and that's what we're what we have been doing with this funds yeah yeah just a quick reminder uh you know and I know we covered this in our oneon-one with assistant superintendent Chang with just a a reminder about about uh bringing the bo you know I had suggested it some time ago but bringing an update to the board about the about the ability to increase developer fees as a again as a way to generate some revenue for this District so that that's it thank you yeah I just had one more um announcement to my colleagues and a and a thank you so the city of San Jose has been in the throws of developing a Children and Youth master plan and I want to thank um superintendent for your staff who've been engaged in a very robust planning process and many in our um Community Network the c collective and others so it's that plan is coming to city council April 9th and there's a um there is a um and the mayor's budget message came out two days ago it's been it's been quite a week um and it called it did say that that when the plan the plan should come back with an implementation plan that includes the two demonstration sites one of which is in our district and so that's the hoko way Mayfair area so I just wanted to bring awareness to my colleagues about the children youth master plan that it's coming to the plane is landing we're all very excited about that and then see what that means for um our community thanks all right moving on to item 5.01 I will say thank thank you Mr Vice President uh you know this is my item uh you know first of all me let me here it is so uh you know let me you know open with you know first of all let me say I want to validate the work you know the work you do superintendent bow the work your cabinet does the work that every administrator does in this District uh the work of every principal and assistant principal and coordinator I mean you know uh em Emily mcchristian did a heck of a job at March Madness for her first time out so I want to acknowledge that right and this is you know uh the work of a school administrator is also very hard I want to validate that you know it is sometimes making tough recommendations and tough decisions and uh you know and I know that sometimes you kind of feel like uh you're in a rocking a hard place between the Comm the community this you know uh the major stakeholders of the district and yes the board so I I want to open with that validation um so it is in that's you know in light of in light of the you know financial situation I bring fourth res you know resolution number 4423 sl24 uh you know to enact the freeze on the hiring of administrator positions through June 30th 2025 you know this is a temp I want to stress that this is a temporary measure I've Al as I've earlier said that it's the the highest priority of any school district is the provision of classroom education and the supporting services associated with instruction uh and that you know I it is our desire desire to protect students and families from Financial disruptions and maintain its commitment to the faculty and classified staff to the extent possible and in in reflection of the uh board resolution number [Music] uh you know uh the board uh freezes the number of certificated administrators at the level of 48 full-time equivalents and the number of classified supervisors and administrators at the level of 49 full-time equivalents uh per the uh 2023 2024 first interim report adopted on December 14th of 2023 and that this uh you know uh this freeze uh takes you know takes effect uh on the date as of the passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 uh and be it further resolved that there will be no further appointment of Administrators and supervisors beyond the limits enumerated from above uh from the date of passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 and be it further resolved that no further administrator super supervisorial and confidential positions be created from the date of passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 I said you know this is this is about you know as I earlier said uh finding efficiencies in the district office you know where we can and also you know and also I want to stress that this is a this is a temporary measure right and you know hoping for better economic news you know sometime down the road uh and you know and we can you know re you know revisit you know hopefully we would don't have to enact an another freeze but again let's you know uh for now let's you know uh as I said swapping at the Egg McMuffins for corn flakes so uh it is with that that I uh bring forth this item to my colleagues for consideration tonight is that a motion and I motion to to approve motion by trusty fam and second by vice president kto um at this point I'll open it up for public comment on this item seeing no public comment I open open it up for questions and comments from the board I'll give you time 1001 all right seeing none at this time we'll go ahead and move to the vote all those in favor uh please raise your hand all right vote passes unanimously thank you so much uh moving on to item 503 update on RFP affordable housing developers Dr B we don't have an update tonight no update tonight thank you moving on to 504 20 uh 2024 ballot for csba delegate assembly um so we have a list motions accept it motion by uh vice president to uh to put forward the names of the people that we want to support are you putting forward a name or name no it's four of them so Cates unless the board wants to only vote for one person or we can vote for four move that we support Isabelle jubis flck Jody Mirad Carol prka and Jessica sper all right uh moved by vice president kto and second by trustee Chavez all right um I'm going to open it up to public comments at this time on this item seeing none we'll go ahead and open it up for comments or questions from the board truste quick question so are these um we are seeking to have them replace the people on the next page that expire in 2024 so like patter yeah so what they would do is they're the ones who qualified unless we go ahead and do writing but at this point those people haven't reached out they haven't informed us that they're interested in running sometimes people forget to submit the paperwork and it happens it's not like uh you know out of the ordinary but in this case I haven't heard anything and so I would go ahead and move forward with the individuals who qualified um there are two people from the same district trying to run for the same position I don't think it's in good taste to have one District take up too many spots I would note that it's unfortunate that we've lost the voice from E from the East side where no longer running um that's why I think it's important to maintain communication throughout you know because this is a very important body and these folks are the ones who go up uh and um speak on behalf of us to the csba the policymaking body so so unfortunately we lost L Chavez um but we still got some good people there that will be able to carry our message forward okay any other questions or comments from the board before we vote okay uh let's move to a vote all those in favor please uh show raise your hand vote passes unanimously all right moving on to item 505 approve out of state travel Association of Latino administrators and superintendent uh Washington DC on Capitol Hill speaking of speak speaking on speaking about um support this is the association of Latino administrators and superintendent have invited several years in the past and because one thing or the other I have not been able to attend this meeting in Capitol Hill um because of the great need of um reform in terms of funding for special ed and because alumrock has a significant amount of special ed students they have asked me to see to see if the board allows me to go and speak on behalf of that in Capitol Hill on March um 20 motion to 22 motion to approve 24hour this is a 24-hour trip motion by trusty fam second second by trusty Flor Shelton I'm going to go ahead and open up for questions and comments from the public see none bringing it back to the trustees any questions and comments from the board truste Chavez um I was thinking about voting for it before but now that I see such a need for the funding for the Tulsa I I just can't see spending on it thank you trust F I just say you know I I think it's important to to Lobby where we can for the district you know this I you know and as we discussed in our one in one this is an opportunity for the Dr Bower to meet you know see our federal elected representatives and you know tell them about our our issues and you know see how you know we maybe out some you know get something out of it as I always said you know lobby lobby lobby so uh with that bone voage and I wish Dr Bower all the best in Washington DC if we pass it let's see any other questions or comments from the board vice president GTO yeah no you folks are well aware of expressed my concerns about uh resources and and money um I do believe that it's important to support organizations like um like alas uh because it's through them that we can go ahead and push collectively um and so it's for that reason that I would be supportive of of this uh measure even though we are facing some tough Economic Times and so um I would be supportive of this action anybody else okay CNN we'll go ahead and bring it up to the vote um all those in favor please show raise your hands at this time and I'm guessing you raise your hand okay just want to make sure all right uh four pass uh or I'm sorry 44 um all those against raise your hand and one against thank you motion passes thank you all right moving on to 507 approve memorandum of understanding between s State University and alen rock move to approve by trusty fam second second by vice president GTO opening it up for public comment at this time um anybody wish wishing to address the board on this item okay seeing none I'll go ahead and bring it to questions and comments from the board uh trusty chis uh for the same reason I won't be voting on this because I believe that the money should be spent TOS us thank you any other questions or comments from the board see you them we'll go ahead and bring uh I say you know part of it is uh you know I I you know uh see it a little differently this uh this program is about you know professional development for for our dual immersion program uh it's a program that brings in the enrollment and uh if we can develop those programs further I hope to see you know it will help with bringing more Alam rockers back to Alum Rock so it is for those reasons I'll I'll be supporting theou with San Jose State thank you thank you uh Trust Flor Shelton um I I would it would help me if if someone could just kind of discuss how 789 10 are a package so I can decipher all this yeah I have a presentation uh it should I think it should be under theou because theou isn't really money right it will be it will be it could be it could be yes but right now it's not right right the the other ones are right and so if I may present the program Caminos to the board I think that would be good because it will then give us a presentation information for the next all of the other ones okay and I just want to make sure I think five is not in that bundle correct five has nothing to do with the 7 507508 not 5 507 508 and 59 seven yeah I meant 50 507 508 and 509 all of them are connected they're all connected but you need to take action different separately separately yeah so thisor I'm sorry I don't know you that's okay if you're ready to do the presentation I'll just I am um so program Caminos is for Multicultural multi uh lingual professional development we open this uh opportunity throughout the district to see um number one to provide support for the two adante acmis they have been asking for specific professional development for them tailored to them and so this was an attempt to do that um this came as a result of a collaboration for some from somebody who used to work in Alum Rock who is now in Spain and he called me and said it would be a great opportunity if we had a interch interchange between um Spain and the adanies in terms of professional development so next slide please following our vision statement around um making sure that we're preparing the kids for a diverse and competitive world and our mission statement about making sure the kids are in uh ready for 21st uh learning next slide please and as part of our strategic plan if you see one of the sides of the triangle talk about Multicultural multilingual education next slide please so this professional development opportunity we had a one-time fund called educator Effectiveness the district received 1.9 million to do nothing for but professional development we cannot use it for salaries we cannot use it to save schools we we cannot use it in any other way and it's a one-time only fund so we set aside of in addition to all the different professional development opportunities we have provided the the district 70,000 for this pilot program next slide please I just wanted to clarify where this money is coming from so we want to make sure that we're providing professional development that allows teachers to learn the most updated Trends and topics in the area of bilingual and multi Multicultural education that they become trainer of trainers so that they can come back and present uh their learnings to the um to the rest of their of the staff and with our efforts as a district in terms of equity and inclusion through the the ethnic uh studies topics the thrust of this professional development it's around that concept is not only in terms of pedagogical strategies on how to teach to languages better but also the understanding of languages and how we need to uh honor and support not only Spanish or English but any other language in the many manifestations of those languages according to communities um many times uh speaking of um people having a little bit of bias uh we talk about well that's not really Spanish because Spanish is that that person has this accent or has different lexicon and things like that so this is an effort that has been permeating dual immersion programs to really and uh support and honor all kinds of Spanish that our students bring with them and it's the same thing with the English language so that students are able to honor and to say you know we need to respect each other and the way we speak and finally this has opened the opportunity for some of the current teachers in alumrock to obtain their bilingual teaching certificate many every year and you can ask Cesar now and before we have to hire bilingual staff because we don't have enough and we have in alumrock people who are able to get that certificate so that's another way of opening it to our current teachers so that they begin their path to obtaining that bilingual certificate as a matter of fact a couple of the people who applied and were selected for this particular program do not have their bilingual certificate but they want to further their study so that they can become part of it the other Innovation is that uh also one of our music teachers wants to be part of this Cadre to be able to to integrate in our music program you know a multicultural component to the kinds of music that are are uh students are exposed so those are the program goals next slide please very oops um this is going to have um uh four predeparture sessions with a professor uh from San Jose University and the the post sessions also with SOS state to create a professional Learning Community around this concept of bilingualism and multiculturalism the teachers that are going to be going to um to the people that are going to be going to Centro the langua Modas in Granada are going to be there for 10 days with full day sessions around this concept and there's a whole you know um list of things that they're going to be um studying um so this is the program component um this is what we're bringing before you it is very restricted funding it's an opportunity for us uh sometimes we have to uh pay other people you know to help us recruit by lingual teachers a good Hefty amount of money and when we do the math the 70 70,000 total with room and board and you know uh in uh we include the the travel there um it it is a very uh economic way of providing a very robust uh program for a very good number of teachers uh when we you you just saw the the travel to DC for me for one day in the states it's close to two you know it's over 2,000 um this is for not only the two weeks but the extended time with San Jose State University for the amount of money we're getting a very good deal in terms of um of the program thank you trusty Chavis I have a question um on item five um in section four it says alen Rock will pay the travel cost to Granada for the San Jose State University faculty in charge of the what are you reading I'm sorry five I'm reading um in section four number five okay and where it says Alam Rock will pay for the travel cost to Granada for the San Jose State University faculty yes so is there any way around that they could pay for their faculty versus alen Rock pain for them I can certainly ask yes yeah I can certainly is that cost if we separate that that would be about 4,000 because it's room and board and all of that so 4,000 each or four it's only one Professor it's only one person Professor from s State yes I don't need correction so it's only one person the 4,000 for the airfare Local transportation accommodations and the course instruction costs 4,000 total because I would have liked to have seen that that was the exact amount for that person because the way it says here faculty sometimes it doesn't say one single person yeah a little bit more clear would have been nice thank you any other questions or comments justy FL Shelton yeah just um on theou your on the very last page on the signature line your last name is Baldwin I don't think you're married to Alex Baldwin you're the b thank you for bringing that um so you might want to check that one out um I so I support this I really support it because it's from the professional development only fund right that can't be used for anything else um and I think this does make us competitive and Innovative which is kind of the Hallmarks of what it um alen rock been doing on this San Jose State relationship so the professor goes with the group and then this ends in December of 2024 is there something that the professor is doing for the group after the train after the Spain part the four sessions afterward to create the post yeah he's the one that is leading that he's leading the ones before and the ones after okay and but and those costs are born by is that part of that the okay the only thing that is missing here and I need to bring that back to the board is once the board considers these we have to go to San Jose State for their uh their own internal thing because in addition this is part of open yes it's part of open University okay so the certificate program correct correct so so that is a part of the 70k that's already been said yes okay we are we estimated so if you add you you don't have you're not approving 70,000 right now because there's this other pocket of money that we still need to get from San Jose State that I need to bring back thank you um I was going to ask something there's we'll do one round and then vice president GTO so the the budg participation by the S State faculty is important uh and is part of this path to try to get them to get their bilingual certificate so that's the reason why they're they're participating in this whole thing correct all right so I think that it would make because think about it if you had all these teachers go out there and pay to take one of that person's classes um it would wind up being pretty expensive as part of their open University program so we're getting an individual to come in at 4 as opposed to having them all PID to be part of an open University class which would probably a lot more we have to add trusty kto that's what I'm saying right now the estimate for travel because that was uh truste Chavez question was the travel alone but there is that other Delta of the tuition but all of that is already estimated in the 70,000 right so you're now approving you if you approve right this things with the specific and I have to come back with a final uh agreement with San Jose State to to do the Delta the estimate just to you know give you it's about 177,000 total with trouble for the professor for tuition for the teachers which is pretty pretty good deal yeah I'm I'm support of giv the fact that it's going to um make our instructors or faculty that much more qualified to be a to services that they're doing so it helps them grow it benefits their kids and the funds are dedicated for that purpose you can't spend anything else yeah I'm supportive it okay um I have some questions so I um added since we did 507 508 and 59 uh 508 and 509 is 50, 385 oh um I'm sorry that's less but that with 177,000 adds up to 50,000 385 mhm um and and the additional 19,000 is for if we pay for the teacher contingencies um certification no if you added already the 177,000 to whatever an amount that you added up that's going to be the total it's less than seven it's less than 7 um I think I mean for me it's important to you know have an amount and be specific and say up to right yeah 70,000 is a lot more than 50,3 185 and I'm not saying you're all going to use it to go out shopping or anything but I think it's important to you know be clear on the amounts thank you um and also clarification because my understanding was that this item um if we passed this it was not going to pay for the certification for the teachers for credit for the teachers to have that certific correct they the the university has a is the tuition which is allows you to take the class and if you want the credit the specific credit for you as a person the teacher needs to pay for those for that credit so they it it qualifies they can go and say I want to place this on my transcript right to do to do to go for that certification but because that benefits the person alone it doesn't fall onto the professional development piece but I I think to vice president kto point you know for us it's important that the teachers have the certification so I'm wondering if we pass the 70,000 if that would support in paying that per teacher and I don't you probably don't have that answer that's my only like for me to okay 70,000 would be you know to support the teacher with paying for paying for that certification I I really don't know I really no no because not every I'm sorry to interrupt but not everybody's going to need it a lot of our teachers that are going is professional development they don't need they already have the certification right yeah and I think that that for me I think I'm okay with passing the 70,000 to support some of those teachers that might need that certification because then it benefits alen Rock the logic is that you don't you don't never I'm not GNA go um what do you know what the the amount is for people to turn that into I don't know I really don't know that I don't know that's those are the the pieces right um just to share with you guys because I know you know this is the only time I get to talk to you as a group um the process has been uh very enlightening in terms of engaging with a university right and one of the things that we really want to solidify is that relationship with our local University because our kids are going to go there right and then they're they come back you know as staff members and so helping the university see they they have been amazing listening to us and saying what is it that you guys need which is a first and I want to get hats off you know hats off to San Jose State that they were open to listen to that because not everybody does that trust me I worked in universities and it is hard you guys have been professors you know that and we have a counselor here um and the other thing with the Centro the langu Modas is for us as a district as a public school district to enter in collaboration with an international entity to be able to send our teachers there to participate and be part C langu Modas in Granada is the place in Europe to go in learn about how to teach foreign languages any other questions or comments from the board on this item we did already call it but we will have on this next item and it's still connected so thank you for your patience okay so we'll go ahead and um bring it to a vote on item 507 um if you're in favor please raise your hand at this time all right for in favor if you're uh not in favor please raise your hand if you abstain please raise your hand all right four in favor and one exstension from trustee Chavez moving on to item 58 approve Granada contract for arusd bilingual teacher program summer 24 in the amount of 27,0 410 and 77.

roll call I presid Melinda saski Charlene Diaz here Fred rushon here ziki here Sheila Barnett here would you please stand ups say the Pledge with me conratulations to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy and justice for all citizens here present um I'm hoping that you guys all printed your names on the on the paper in the back of the room it's nice to know who's been here and who hasn't okay okay donations oh sorry excuse me ignore ignore you no I don't ever ignore you that's not uh item 2.5 call to the public uh go for it this is the time that the public may speak to the governing board regarding issues within the jurisdiction of the governing board and subject to reasonable time space and manner restrictions as the governing board May establish see policy B DH comments will be limited to 3 minutes per individual unless specifically waved by the governing board at the conclusion of the call to the public individual members of the governing board May respond to criticism made by those who have addressed the board may ask staff to review a matter or may ask that a matter be placed on a future agenda however the governing board cannot take action on matters that have not been noticed in advance as part of the agenda um I have one Shea do I need to go down there yes okay Dr Sheila Barnett is going to talk to us my name is Sheila Bernett I am here representing the Ladies Auxiliary from uh AmVet post 19 in Fort Mojave and basically we just would like to announce a contest that we are going to be doing um for the students uh it is the national americanism contest and um there will be cash prizes for the students uh there's three categories uh the first category is for kindergarten and first grade it's actually coloring a flag and then having to answer some questions about the flag uh that will be each category will have first second and third uh Place winners um so we will go from 15 for first place or or third place 30 and then 50 for first the second is a contest for um a poster and the theme for the poster is why is it important to vote and that is going to be 2 through 5ifth grade and again 1530 and 50 for the prizes but my favorite one personally um is the essay contest and that is going to be 6th 7th and eighth grade and again it's going to be why is it important to vote and this one we're going to do 30 50 and $100 so we will be passing out um to the younger kids to the art teachers to the older kids um I believe the students themselves and we're going to try to get them in the next couple of days after uh School comes back in and then uh announce them I believe May 9th at the board meeting possibly if we can get the kids here to hand them so um it's a cool project I'm the secretary so it's kind of been a really neat project for me because I'm a baby vet from my dad so um it's just kind of cool thank you m thanks are there any other um people in the public that would like to speak with it speak to us okay I'm going to close um call to the public and go on to 2.6 donations um early on when you when we took the carpeting out and all that kind of stuff I was in a classroom at the very beginning of school and somebody suggested putting tennis balls on chair bottoms and then just recently I was in a classroom and they had the tennis balls on the chairs and there was so much difference so I'm wondering if maybe we should look into getting tennis balls for whatever class wants a tennis ball on their chairs because there was a big difference and I One um it was a kindergarten class and there's always scraping and stuff going on in um I'm I really appreciate the United States tennis Association giv us 200 balls but I think that we need about 200 more of those or maybe 2,000 more of those since there's four chip four legs on the chair and I think that it would be a really sweet thing to do thank you very much um to the Ed Brandt whoever Ed Brandt is I wish he was here to say something to him husband because it does work it does work um I have a question on on donations I've been reading on our Facebook page and in the newspaper and everybody who's been reading to our kids M that's donated time it is I'm thinking that we should include something like that on this page that would be good for next month we could certainly get from all the sites who they had to read and I think that is donated time because it is donation it's a donation of time it is and um it's not there's not it's not monetary especially for some of us who are are retired no but time is money but it's it is so I would I would I'd kind of like to see that I think it's a good idea because we know we had lots of people reading at our sites lots of people and not everybody got recognized so this would might be it would be a good place to do it okay thank you um adoption of agenda 2.7 adoption of the agenda I need a a motion to adopt the agenda as presented I'll make a motion to adopt the adopt the agenda as presented I second it all those in favor I Melinda saski I Charlene Diaz I Fred rushon I Barb ziki I Sheila Bernett Dr Stewart 2.6 2.8 excuse me 2.8 I would point out to you that this time I made sure that I had both uh this year's and last year's cumulative reports for uh discipline uh and uh and I actually sat at my desk and did uh um did the pluses and minuses uh we were doing we were doing great up until winter break and uh anywh and then we had uh we had a little hiccup uh in uh because we were we were down 20% for first semester from last year yeah we did really well we did really well um and um I I know that the principles have told me that kids kind of came back from winter break a little wound and it shows in this in the discipline report so January uh January was up some and uh February was up quite a bit um so we'll we'll watch what happens next in terms of uh we're still we're still at total lower than we were a year ago total is low the total is still lower it's not it's not 20% anymore but uh but it's um uh it's still better than better than a year ago so um so you guys are on top of the uh Trend yes very much so um so I wanted to note that for you um uh you have the financial reports and uh if you have any questions about any of those i' I'd be happy to address them um um would it be possible oh okay Financial reports um I have down here the daily the 100th day that's on here isn't it yes it is right there it is yeah yeah and uh interestingly enough we were back up a little bit that was very nice we were is there a chance on this kind of thing to do it by month you get it each month oh no you don't no no you don't would it be or by qu or to show to show the changes so that maybe we can figure out if there's a trend that we're having more people come in or more out at this time and maybe try and figure out why that's happening so to show so like the First first day which was happened to be the end of the last day of July but um so show a so then show August September octob we can do that a simple bar graph just a simple bar graph we can certainly do that because I know that there was a diff you know there was some ups and downs in in there it would be really kind of interesting to figure out where the influx really came from came at at what position and especially if we use this as a base year but actually I think probably Jenny Becker could go back and do last year and we could I'll ask her if she could do last year I'm not I won't swear to it but I think she could go back and do last year and then we could compare M uh to see if there are any Trends otherwise this becomes kind of a base year for us to figure out what's going on and and that's a good idea that's fine Bas years are good yeah it is got to start somewhere yeah got to start somewhere um otherwise did you have other questions yeah okay on the food food food service I'm trying to find it here I know I had it I I copied it off um are all the kids eating still yeah we're still C which is everybody's free and we continue to we uh we we apply for that on fivey year in fiveyear uh rounds and I think we're in year two of your of the fiveyear round okay so the kids when they're eating how much of it gets thrown away do we have any idea I don't have any idea some things get put on the no thank you table oh okay there is a no there's a way to rec anything that's package or uh or like milk none of those things could be you know I used to think I used to think years ago gosh if kids aren't drinking the milk why is it going in the trash you know could it not be used but once it's sold it can't be it can't be resold so we started the No thank you table and uh at each of our sites so if they're packaged things so the milk cartons if they've not been opened um brownies or whatever granola bars um uh can go on uh the no thank you table and then uh kids who bring their lunch because there are still a few kids who bring their lunch or other kids who want a second milk uh or you know or a second whatever that's been packaged can go can go do that uh you know get more food um and then I will uh remind you also that the snacks we have at the end of the day in the after school program uh are also part of this program so uh you know that's a that's a free thing for our kids who stay for after school programs MH and that's all part of the Food Service okay I was just thinking that for giving giving food food away or giving not giving it away that's that's a bad way to say it I'm sorry um if we're providing food for free that we have some way of of keeping things from going into the trash that perhaps can be reused and guess I guess you've already solve that problem and then as a footnote to that uh if you recall last year um occasionally the Chartwells did uh test foods with kids and they've done that this year uh particularly up at Fox Creek and um uh have added a couple of items to their menu rotation um be based on the feedback from the students because they were things that uh had not been on the menu before and so they you know they they test drove it test drove those items with the kids and uh and the kids oh that's that's pretty good so they put it on the on the menu and and what that does is it it does increase student participation especially at the junior high level because they tend to be the ones who don't eat yeah or don't eat as much and so you know if you can figure out ways to get things on the menu that they like they're much more likely to eat and I remember on during the workshop you know the gra where the the food was down um so we have no idea why I have no idea why yeah I have no idea why I'll have to investigate that and find out why our costs are higher um I don't know if it's because of you know we we contracted out um I don't know we'll we'll find out and yet we've had uh we have started using some of the uh uh for some things that we need to either repair or replace in our kitchens and our cafeterias but particularly in our kitchens um uh We've now started charging that off to this account as opposed to M so our our wonderful facilities people who've been out fixing things and you know fixing electrical outlets and you know all kinds of things in our kitchens repairing uh uh the motors in the freezers all kinds of things um that we've been charging those expenses not the salaries but the expenses for the items against this account as opposed to M um because we've you know the accountant has said you you guys need to spend more of that money and um so we are so um you know we learn all the time how how to better use our budgets okay um the the actual M budget can you pull that one out where is EI on this uh it isn't on here okay you mean I.E I excuse me no it isn't on here because 100% of it for this current year was paid with grants perfect 100% that's what I that's what I wanted to know okay thank you not on here at all thank you thank you that solve that problem okay it has actually if you recall I gave you three of the 48 budgets in in the financial report so uh you know if I if I brought you the all of them or brought you in in that case Sr two Sr three and s two and the governor's Grant one and title two and title one but if we we saw the grant one we would have to pay Jennifer more right okay so we don't want to see it okay uh the only updates I have for you because I've been very busy the last three weeks working on salary schedules and uh uh calendars the Cal the actual work calendars because we want to get contracts and uh work agreements out and I have to determine start dates and end dates for those uh for their for work agreements and contracts um and uh and working really hard to get uh those salary increases and make sure that we uh could cover them um uh even though our enrollment is down and so our you know our funding for next year the base funding is going to be probably a bit lower or break even if they give us an increase because of course the legislature has not decided on that so anyway I've been busy with that so I don't have a whole lot of updates but I will tell you uh that uh when we sent the resolution uh out to the education committees for the legisl lure and to the governor's office uh the only response we got was from the governor's office and uh they thanked us for that information and um uh would certainly work it into their uh their work process uh and then I also learned uh today that uh topac uh governing board adopted um essentially the same resolution at their last meeting um to support U those things that you all had said so um okay that's nice of them it is nice yeah do you did anybody else have any questions on any superintendent report no okay um board member updates anything new um I just went and read at the middle school and uh besides reading I went and I observed a couple math classes while I was there and stuff and um I was very impressed by one of the Math teachers that I observed uh it was a sixth grade math class and he was extraordinary and he did a a very very very good job and had fantastic classroom control it was interesting I I went to a Kindergarten class and one of the kindergarteners was actually reading at a third grade level so we did Dr S as a play I took uh we were doing cat and hat so I took um the narrator the kid took the the fish you know the fish that says no no no Mom's going to get upset yeah and um she she did an excellent job we had more fun in that class that was really kind of neat to yeah neat to do there were several classes though that I mean Mo or desert desert valy had me so booked that I have to go back there on Monday to finish because we took took too long to read the book but anyway and you were there you went in I was at Diamondback they had me do all of second and all of third there you go and then I went to the middle school yeah but I think we were all at the middle school some I mean they they wanted us badly Fred where did you go I went to uh PR School Miss Alvarez's preschool and uh got to read to three little classrooms there and I'm telling you those kids are just just so much fun and amazing um and then I also went to middle school as well so I was very I was very impressed with uh uh Middle School I read the the lady that was helping me selected suggested a Dr Seuss book for them and lo and behold as it turned out it was very interesting book one I'd never heard of before or read before but it had very a very U appropriate message for the kids but I was I was really so impressed with their behavior and their attentiveness to to listen to this old guy read this boring book and uh but it was it was really uh very enjoyable I'm glad I went yeah at the middle school I actually just passed the book around I started it and then they started getting restless so I said and then they started started uh reading and it was you know I think that's why it took us so much longer because passing the book anyway Dr Bernett did you get a chance no I plan on going Wednesday morning to probably diamond back way cool all right I forgot how hard Dr Sue's books are to read and upside down reading them upside down and you know with my dyslexia and it's like whoa read Dr Seuss in my class I learned the true story of The Three Little Pigs from the wolf side that's kind of cool it was anyway it was a good time I had a good time and so that the public doesn't think you all were ignoring the junior high junior high students went to read at Diamond I was going to say so they they they flipped the rle so they were involved as well yeah had they called and said would you please come up and read to us I probably would have said are you kidding you guys read better than I do um but I would have been there yes yeah of course I would any other updates okay so we can all honestly say we are going to be or have been in the classroom during March Yes Yes we finally got something accomplished 100% 100% 100% okay uh consent agenda um we've already talked about 3.3 I was going to ask that that be pulled but we've already discussed that we discussed that in uh in our Workshop probably 3.6 as opposed to 36 3.6 okay um um could I ask that 3.5 be pulled okay and can we move that to an executive session no no we can just pull it okay let's I'd like 3.5 to be pulled okay anybody else okay I would like to talk about 13 13 yeah 13 Madam president could I ask a question please yes um uh 3.5 is in information only it's not an action item okay is there oh I just I don't know if maybe should p i I'm just wondering um why this one was even brought to us it has to be by law I have to notify you that I have that I have issued those notifications so anytime we have an underperforming teacher the school board is notified of it ified yes that I have sent the letter I have actually presented the letter because I do it in person okay okay and in that case let's not pull it let's go ahead and leave it there okay so we're not going to pull that one and it and by the way it I mean it's you know I could inform you in some of my informal email updates that I send to all of you but those are informal and and and it has to be documented that I have that I have shared that information with you okay then I withdraw my request to pull that one that was new information thank you yeah yeah um I still want to pull one 3.13 okay okay okay pull that okay um you need a motion we need a motion to accept the consent agenda with the with exception of 3.13 I'll make a motion to um approve the consent agenda except for 3.13 we're pulling that that one point of order point of clarification was not 3.6 asked to be pulled as well 3.6 I thought we decided I I was going to pull that one yeah we already talked about that during Workshop did you want to talk to it again no I missed that part it was 3.6 right no three okay we already had the a presentation on that not a very happy presentation but presentation no no no 3.6 certified employees I think you were talking about it's all employees 3.6 is the one that asks you to authorize us to offer contracts and work agreements to all current employees who are listed there uh and that the salaries there are the current salaries not the salaries that would be offered to them for next year okay yeah and that some of the those salaries are inaccurate because uh as annual salaries because people came late okay so their annual salary for some of those folks M besides the one that was just 19,000 for a teacher um uh some of those salaries are going to be short what we would pay somebody for a full year because they came late and didn't start uh you know in July understand okay okay did you want to pull it Fred no because we can discuss it even more nope that's good I'm good thank you did you get a second yes get a second yet and then I asked when we were doing the uh approvals uh I what is it I'm supposed to say you're second no you were seconding I thought we did the roll call yeah yeah we have we haven't done that yet okay all right sorry would you like to start the roll call sure okay do it all right I Fred Rush do hi barbar Zaki I Sheila Barnett hi Charlene Diaz hi Melinda saski see all right equivalency okay um or equality equality is not equivalency yeah 1.3 No three I'm so sorry I woke up left-handed today and that is always a bad thing because that means that I start reversing things so please forgive me I I apologize and that's why I said play it play it there's no way I can read it um I was just really curious on this one can can you show us this and Madam president could we have uh Mrs lot come and respond to any questions or comments that you all have glad for there's a there's a a chart or something a graph isn't it with this Cassie is there a graph with this or a chart a table oh that was in your board report that's okay can she can get it oh there it is scorecard report I'm but it's basically the same thing isn't it it just breaks down oh you can I guess I just never have seen this before so this is a school like a school health index and by policy we are required to go through this every so many years we hadn't been through it for a while we used to do it with the high school when darene Brown was the high school so all throughout the year our committee has gone through each module they've taken the module back to um a committee at their own school and they've rated each of the indicators under each module to see where our strengths and our needs are as far as health and wellness in our district and so in some cases like if it's PE teach like like related more to PE teaching and health and fitness that kind of thing our PE teachers would fill it out um the health attendants filled out the Fe on the health attendant Fe and then chart will didn't fill up the nutrition pce for us are we moving to pull some of the things in the red over to Green yes okay yes all right now go to her chart thank you I'm I thought they were both in the same place uh have you guys seen this stuff before this is interesting isn't it mhm I think we did it more formally this year than what's been done in the past okay yeah because it hasn't been done for a while so they decided Well my question obviously was on the the table that just saw um and and this is in policy okay the wellness is you know there is a wellness policy and uh and truthfully the this process is supposed to happen annually and so um they've done it more informally the last four years and I think Jen intended this year to make it much more formal okay I just have never seen it I'm Jennifer I really don't I had a question on the the red green and and then that stuff but I didn't have I really don't have a question on this but thank you thank you anybody else have questions though before I before she goes and sits down and no like you said was something i' never seen before yeah thank you thank you thank you now do we have to we have to vote on this one right um I need a motion to accept item 3.13 Wellness Plan please I make a motion we accept item 3.13 Fisco year 25 Wellness Plan I I second that motion is does somebody want to start the roll call Sheila hi Sheila Bernett hi Barb ziki hi Fred rushon hi Charlene Diaz hi Melinda saski going to confuse everybody see everything backwards tonight it's it's like um Charlene says change is hard yes it is would you would you put that calendar up please thank you at this time we were we are going to convene to Executive session we' got the did I forget bus old business I got new business up here Cassie yeah no I'm just kidding um we have a k in front of us Madam president and board members you did approve a calendar for next year month or so to a couple of months ago uh but one of the things that we have recognized uh as uh as I've kind of indicated to you in the workshop is that we really need to address the standards for science and social studies and uh and we got a late start on that excuse me addressing standards for ELA and math this year um and so um two things have happened one is that um uh our leadership team and all of the sites have um uh talked about what we're doing on professional development days which were already on the calendar uh and devoting three hours of each of those days next year specifically to uh pulling the the teams together particularly from our three elementary schools uh to to work on standards and but to work on planning and so that we can have some consistency across the district we do have kids that move regularly back and forth between among our elementary schools particularly and uh so there's real value in having those complete teams work together which they can't do during the week so that was already in place but we recognized that that was probably not going to be enough time uh for that kind of planning uh for science and social studies uh to take place so uh I'm proposing to you that we add um four quarterly half days uh for that kind of planning and there would not be other professional development there would not be other things going on there would be additional planning days uh for all of our teachers so you can see those dates uh in the columns on the left and the right they're in red uh so there would be a day in August uh they would essentially deal with first quarter a day in October to deal with second quarter a day in Jan January to deal with third quarter and a day in March to deal with and and they're half days they're 4H hour days uh and this would uh this would fall into the 1488 uh contract hours uh that our teachers have um uh so and be very targeted for um for planning so I'm asking approval to add those four half days to the calendar it doesn't change anything relative to students or what parents need to to do but uh it does it is part of the formal calendar do I have a motion to accept the calendar as revised Madam president I would like to move that we accept the calendar that is presented to us this evening I'll second that motion all those in favor I Melinda saski I Charlene Diaz I Fred rushon i b Zar ziki I Sheil pernet now we're going to ex we the go okay we're go we're going to convene to Executive session pursuant to AR ARS 38 43103 A2 it's a discussion or consideration of Records exempt from by law from public inspection including the receipt or and discussion of information or testimony that is is specifically required to be maintained by law by state or federal law um I need a motion to convene to Executive station executive session I make a motion we convene to Executive session I second that motion all those in favor I Melinda saski I Charlene Diaz I Fred rushon I Barb zeri I Sheila Burnet okay we're now in executive session [Music] for [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] a [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] he [Music] he [Music] [Applause] [Music] l [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] yeah [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] a [Music] n [Music] oh [Music] a [Applause] [Music] yeah [Music] oh [Music] a motion to reconvene or to come back to regular session please I make a motion reconvene to regular session I second that motion all those in favor I Melinda saski I Charlene Diaz I Fred rushon I barbariki a Sheila Bernett um 7.2 do we have a sorry yeah do we have a motion we just did I make a motion that um the parent request for early start of the kindergarten student is denied I'll second that motion okay all those in favor I Melinda saski I Charlene dasas I Fred rushon I Barb Zari I Sheila Bernett thank you item 8.

62 acres after removing the 20 acres you could add the 12 acres on Pleasant Street to equal the 50 acres required then you could make Burnham's lot a subzone with a higher density his some math 12 acres * 15 UPA minimum equals 180 units total Burnham subzone 1.9 Acres * 29 UPA equals 55 units the balance of 125 units for the remaining 10 acres equals 12.5 UPA regarding sub zones I was told at Town Hall that you can't do that however the state guidelines say this quote please note that communities can manage density on a subdistrict level lower density subd districts can abut existing neighborhoods or natural resources while higher density subdistricts can be farther away as long as your average District density is greater than or equal to 15 UPA your bylaw should be compliant also there is a similar statement in ashlin's section 3A overview by the way much of that is owned by the church do you really think the church or the daycare center will go out of business in build Apartments final thoughts we understand the sentiment of the boards as well as residents who do not want more Apartments it's too much change but given the small size and ideal location of our property we believe there is no better place for apartments we understood the walkable Community concept back in 2000 when the station was built and the serus apartments were proposed and were happy to be included in the ashin downtown district resoning several years later at the combined board meeting in on November 15th one board member asked what about burnhams another said it's not part of this with specific density by right so we have more control over those types of projects in what way does the town plan to control us this property means everything to us and I'd like to add one more comment from tonight um I could say a lot about it but I'll just simply say the special permitting process you're talking about will benefit a developer who can wait it out and spend lots of money after many years it does not help a property owner zoning by rightwood thank you thanks right thank you I'm going to go to uh some people who have been waiting online Peter can you manage that yes uh thank you so much so the first up uh first person a hand up um and Mark I will come to you next uh but is Alex Kee Alex I am asking you to unmute hi guys thank you Alex ke over on pin Hill Road um first off I'm glad I could hear what they had to say about burnhams uh I just want to point a couple things out I'm dead set against us including Pleasant Street on the plan um I can speak from personal experience and working for the town for many years uh the traffic congestion on there is unbearable as it is your average time triples during a heavy communting hours and when we were talking about redoing Main Street it was discovered that Thea traffic plan was done in the midst of co uh producing very low numbers because everyone was at home um as it stands right now increasing stuff uh traffic coming down into that area um I know in talking to the DPW many years ago the bridge at Pleasant in cville needs to be replaced it's long overdue and I know that's a battle with the state but who's responsible for it hearing that you know we're talking about 45% of people according to the woman from Burnham are traveling from outside of town to come in I see that number getting higher if not doubling because people still have to travel from High Street and from uh the northern side and southern side of town and from the southern side of South bro or the South side of Framingham when it overflows so we're still going to get an influx of people coming into town even if we were to build on Pleasant Street that that's not going to go away by any stretch um the other concern is people going to start using Winter Street as a cut through I know that we've already had a gate off the back in the Winter Street to cause people to go around because they were using it as a cut through uh there's already heavy traffic being pushed out on the strobis lane in that area with people cutting through trying to skip the traffic that is already on Pleasant Street so I'm saying keep that off uh I understand what the uh the family from burnhams is saying but I I think we're we're doing well by keeping Pleasant Street off the dock and on this to try to decrease the traffic congestion that we already have going into downtown because you go down there at 8:00 in the morning while the buses are going it could take you 15 to 20 minutes to get through downtown and you can see just a sea of cars going down Pleasant Street so I'm against it thank you thank you Alex I'm going to come to the next uh person ignore public comment and that is in the room Mr M do can you please step up to the podium thank thank you Mark the Sony 49 hathon Road I have a concern and a comment and then a question the concern is has this T Station had a ever built um parking lot sold out in the years has been here uh yes I've seen it pre-co pre-co PR completely full okay the uh concern the the comment is um what's the goal if there is one for MBTA this the Zone in the housing zoning what's their goal at the end of this if it passes through if it does pass more housing more housing plain and simple to and more affordability and more yeah okay question semi traffic more more housing more people has the state have a percentage of being build out for this town I don't think the state has a buildout number for us I think the what they're trying to do with this MBTA zoning is increase of the availability of potential housing I know we as a community are looking at our buildout based on as part of our comp plan and other times but I don't think the state has a buildout number and it's certainly not going to be based on the NBTA zoning and for the MBA zon have I'm I'm on the fence either way I'm not Milton wise I'm not Asing wise but I'm going to just listen to everything that comes out of it because I don't take the I don't I live in my own house already and I'm saying this this board boards has got to hear what the state has to get more legal zoning and with the change of zoning that is coming up will this is this zon have to go through the town meeting bylaws yes and how and how would the vote have to come out 2/3 or unanimous no I think it's just it's a simple majority vote icept a majority so we're going to be seeing that down the road and then hoping that people will realize that it's going to be working for housing but can the the school handle more education I had to look at it from the outside of the box too that's it thank you thank you Mr Don next public comment is going to come via Zoom Jo G Friday I asking you to unmute yes thank you um first um I think thank you for thank you all for your hard work um obviously this has not been you know I'm exhausted so I can only imagine how exhausted you you are just trying to just trying to comprehend it all um I as as I don't think there's any secret that I wish that the towns had banded together what I feel is the state major overreach and I think it's wrong but having said that I do think that the plan that you have in front of you is the best plan for the town I think that um specific um sites aside um like the Jaris which I which I feel for um um I think that right now that the town is at a Tipping Point and I think that um our schools our water and sewer um we just can't afford more we need to take a breath I guess is what I'm trying to say and reassess and see what what what we can really accommoda in this town forward going I think we're if not if not built out I that would be interesting numbers to know um I think we're pretty close close to what we can our capacity for um based on our service so thank you again for your time and I appreciate it take care thank you Jo thank you Joan with that that ends public comment so so just to think about I mean it's 10 to 10 nothing unusual for the planning board but uh so um but we do have to figure out we have to figure out a path forward no matter what that is because as we started this process our goal was always to hey can we make Springtown meeting that was a goal at on our current path the answer is yes we can make spring town meeting so I think that's a question of whether that's still important to us or if there's more discussion that has to be had I I'm not sure but it seems like if we're making changes in what we're proposing that might automatically mean fall um yeah I can take a I can just know so hold on just a second so I just want to like I think that's in a way that's a level of decision we need to understand understand tonight um and we need to understand the implications of that let me let Peter put his thought in about scheduling yeah just from from a time management obviously we're always on a tight time frame coming through this process the way everything is set up right now in the trajectory of the bylaws it does not clude in Pleasant it does not include Pleasant Street we are there we have the edits we you know to the bylaws we have everything rolling through we have um obviously our compliance model data all set up ready to roll with our text being uh reviewed by Lisa um and through this process right we the planning board right have to have a public hearing on all zoning bylaws I have to have that posted and advertised right if we are going to make changes I would suggest that we take the six months and we go to a fall town meeting now with that said and I know there could be El there could be questions I will say it is happening right now that as bylaws are being drafted bylaws are also being submitted by communities to the state for review right and so you are taking some of that process you you'll be taking some of that process out uh regarding not some of the process out but regarding some of the risk if the AG is going to accept the bylaw out if you're getting your bylaws reviewed prior to adoption um does everyone understand what I'm saying but if we go to May there won't be a chance for review is that correct so because of we're under the timeline right we are doing our best with Town Council who has been who represents as you know Rob many cities and towns in Massachusetts right and so she is going through the process and highlighting things that we may have to change along with our consultant done the same exact thing right so they're reviewing it and they think we're in a pretty good place and I think we're in a very good place right and I will say we do have some of the building blocks and thank you to the town of Ashland that reson this RTD District in 2003 and I will state that the town of ashin did grow by 10% and added 800 units between 2010 and 2020 fun facts however to go back to the bylaws and the trajectory we were on if we are going to change elements of what we proposed um I think we're most likely going to we should most likely shoot for a volatile meeting so could we comment on the public comments we've heard and maybe figure out if we are feeling a consensus of sticking to the draft as is or changing it please yeah um so I I have to say I'm very appreciative of the comment from the the Burnham owners I I understand the passion especially in light of the fact of how support they were over their history here of bringing more density to that area um and I'm trying to kind of make uh make peace with their position and and what I'm hearing from the public and my personal comfort with the plan as drafted I don't think we need to redo it um and I think where I'm landing is I am not confident that this MBTA resoning is the right mechanism to respond to your concerns and what I mean by that is right now I leave you can build density of 10 per per acre where you are the MBTA zoning would push that density way higher probably into the 20s if I understand this correctly probably even higher than that right we would be why wouldn't it be 15 it could be 15 it could be 15 okay yeah okay um so just to confirm so is that correct they could build now at 10 units per acre so so 80 da applies and so if anybody came along and I'm not going to pinpoint bars I'm going to say any property on if any property on Pleasant Street comes in right they can use the ashin downtown overlay District a as their pering mechanism and they can do 10 yes yeah and in doing 10 they're also being consistent like right now you can propose 10 with the add district and I'm just looking at the the documentation from 2021 three years ago when this went through town meeting so very very recently the town of Ashland placed on that property the add restrictions including the 10 per acre that's very very recent a few years later through a very different mechanism to change it to higher density doesn't feel like the right approach I would feel more comfortable with that being proposed to the steering committee of the comprehensive plan and exploring whether we can push higher density in a more thoughtful way that is consistent with all the work that was done through the effort what is it three years ago very very recently um so that that was one comment I was going to make and then the other comment is even if it's 10 now you could have a special permit for more and again I have yet to see the planning board deny any special permit this planning board h oh thank you um Peter do you want to unmute Michael Michael as a co-host uh Michael please uh unmute yourself I um I just uh wanted to make one comment regarding the ugc property and um just to give you a little bit of the history of it um when we were looking at buying lot three of the RTD as part of that NE negotiation what we did was we had negotiated um a give back of lot two so lot two was 38 acres and as part of the lot three deal we negotiated 20 to 24 Acres of that 38 acres of lot two coming back to the town and so one of the things that I've been concerned about is the same thing that Mr jari had had pointed out was that if this litigation this protracted litigation between Mr Gainer and the current current um or proposed developer of the 180 units at ugc fell through what kind of exposure would we have at the ugc property if um if uh we were to rezone this under the nbca zoning uh that is being proposed and I just want to let you know I calculated that out to units and um so I just wanted everybody to be aware of that as you're making your decision and deliberating so we have right now now 180 units that are slated to be going up there um if that falls through and the Zone the zoning as proposed goes through and the ugc property is included as part of the NBTA zoning our exposure there would be 216 units oops did you say 260 or 216 2 216 216 so it's about what 1520 more 25 well that's interesting I'd to make a comment on the schedule I I said this way back when we started I I'm very reluctant to have something pushed a fall because I feel like that says to the community you have to pass this and and essentially right that puts it um if it goes to spring and it doesn't get passed there's chance to recover and hear from the public which we've been asking to hear from the public but the town meeting is another mechanism to hear from the public the public has a right to vote it down they also have a right to vote it down the fall but we're going to be having something hanging over we've just talked about losing grants and things and I don't think that's the right thing to do the community we have to figure out to get something to Spring I I'm fully supportive of bringing something to Springtown meeting and very much against having it the one time that people get to vote is under the gun that it has to be passed Yolanda I would I I don't know this for sure but I would think that if we're working toward doing what we need to do and we go to the state and say we've tried this we're going to try again and it doesn't pass in the fall I would think we could you know they would give us extra time I don't know who knows with this AG um but it and it depends on why it fails right what's interesting is we keep hearing about Milton and I actually heard from someone who lives in Milton and they said one of the reasons the zoning didn't pass it had nothing to do with the actual density of housing it had to do with the expected increase in traffic that that potential zoning was going to create and that's why it failed in Milton which I found well that's that's a nice easy answer for them to give I'm just saying so anyway I and I go back and forth in regards to you know do we push this through to spring or not or do we or we or you know do we push it out for fall what I'm finding interesting for myself is I like to hear from the public and I've heard some people say keep Pleasant Street in I mean put Pleasant Street in we've heard obviously for some people tonight that they don't want Pleasant Street included I try to consider what business owners need and and that's what I'm hearing from the jaros that they'd like to be included um I'm hearing from Michael regards to includ keep keeping um if we have a in there that that could if the ugc part project does not go through we could potentially lose the open space related to that which potentially could impact our upper Charles Trail pathway um so I I I think there's been a lot of good work done but the other the other thing that someone has brought to me is and I don't know how large the parcel is but there's the parcel at the end of Memorial Drive that is currently yellow I don't know what that zoning means so across the street from Dunkin Donuts I don't know how large that parcel is I don't know what the zoning is but it's been suggested that that's Highway Commerce okay and I do not believe that parcel is greater than 5 Acres okay I think it has been noted recently though by someone that I talked to I can't remember who was someone in this room and we talked about um and and maybe this was M what Michael Herbert was getting at that if we wait for fall town meeting which I know has its drawbacks but there's also a chance to let some of these other things play out like what will happen at ucg you know what will happen and other sites on town and we'll have more of those answers and then can potentially make changes accordingly I'm not advocating for that I'm just putting it out there as something that was discussed and Yolanda were you part of that who I talked to about this I don't know so but like I said I I think some good work has been done we are in the process of having to wrap up the warrant for town meeting you guys are going to have to have your hearings I I I think there's I I don't know that we have all the answers yet to be able to bring this forward to a town meeting vote that's my that's my thought I a I had a question I think Peter you mentioned mened um the idea of having the um the Attorney General review these um so if you know to go to Kate's concern about the the fall town meeting that would give us time to have it be reviewed prior to town meeting is that right or not yes yes 100% you know I think what we're talking when I when I when I say that is all bylaws throughout MBTA right have to be reviewed by the they have to be pass after town meeting typically then zoning bylaws have to be SED all zoning and general bylaws have to be sended to the to the to the Attorney General's office and they approve them and they deny them you know they approved our changes to the add in 2001 I want to say and they rejected our housing moratorium in 2023 right uh but with that said the state is working with communities right in the e e eoh LC LC see I I DCd is always easier for me um they are working with communities and they are reviewing bylaws as by as bylaws are produced they're also looking at you know uh compliance models which is a very large spreadsheet I'm not going to bore anybody with except Alvaro and uh and and yes the attorney general and so with that said there is a part there is obviously that communication piece which I think you the noted and those lines of communication are open right now between the state and communities um and and I agree and I agree with Kate's point you know do you do you want you to go now or do you wait until the fall there's pros and cons but you the pl board and the select board are ex you know you are the the citizens of Ashland and and it's your your decision you know I think our our committee and for some odd reason we're all sitting on this side of the table like it was planned I thought that's I was supposed to I think it was um we've put the town of ashon in a position working with the public with two public forums with a situation to with a process to move forward and if we want to that's great we're ready to go but if we're going to start changing things up if we want to make some edits to it if we want to continue the public hearing process I'm going to say right now we're going to have to look to the fall and just one question can you tell me an example of 10 units per acre development like what does that look like as opposed to 15 does anybody what size is Homer Homer is about three I would say three acres no no no but 23 oh excuse me 29 okay 29 so 10 it's more like what condos 12 Pawn Street is very 12 Pawn Street is 18 I believe right now so if you're looking at that no structure that's what it would look like toal hold on hold on 29 units in total so what is that per acre for Homer we're going to find out yeah just out the top of my head though I do I can tell you Pawn Street 12 Pawn Street is one acre and that's 16 units of house I'm pretty sure homer so 10's about half that size is about 910 per acre and so so have you seen the photos for Homer this is Homer we had it earlier today yeah kind of is that the new r so the burn and property can in fact have a project like this right now without any issue which looks exactly what the addd downtown district intended three years ago how many units is that 29 no it's not 29 29 for the entire project it's not it's three acres yes so so approxim 10 10 units per acre consistent with what the burnens can build right now and so what I'm suggesting is this is exactly what we want there yeah I don't think we want 29 per Acres which you keep saying we this is this is not 29 per Acres Peter so and so with all due respect I think we've had a ton of public comment and I and I do believe that the burnhams can have their economic interests met by a homeres project if there's interest in this kind of project for a developer then the homers can do well with that and Anna says you could have more if you want so no I didn't say that but what I have yet but my point is this is a project that is viable in that area because we're listening and hearing it and we're considering and we're working on it and therefore the homers could have it too or something like it and so we're not preventing them from developing in a way that I think is consistent with what they're looking for but 29 per acre would be a very different kind of project it would be a much bigger project on that side that is not what downtown is supposed to look like per threee process threeyear process ago three years ago years AG it's 15 we're talking Madam chair please um I'm sitting here and I and you I'm not trying to put a wrench in this in this project but Kate I understand that you're concerned about you know waiting till till the fall and with all the things that could happen so is there a possibility of having a special town meeting for this specific issue at some point before before the fall maybe early September can I just ask if if if this were to fail in the fall what would then become the risks associated with that for the that's a good question Claud I don't have an answer to that so what would be if we wait for the fall what would be the reason for it hold on the risks we know what the risks would be the risk of if if it gets voted down in the fall we wait till the fall and it gets voted waited till the fall and we and it went failed whatever we brought before the town then I I think it supposed to be done by the end this that's the unknown this is the unknown right is that you know I think everyone's in a everyone's in the same situation right now they're telling us that we're not going to be able to apply for these grants right and right now the c town of Milton that's a big risk it's a huge RIS yeah and so we're not going to apply for Grants and we don't know what's going to happen with Milton right so that it's it's it's unknown Claudia so if I can continue with my my thought process with respect to the the special town meeting um I'm not that familiar with the special permitting process and Anna I I I understand your your your idea about you know you've never seen the planning board deny a special permit well I'm not sure what the plans are for the Jaris down the road what they want to do with their property when they want to sell it when they're not planning on selling it but I'll use a 10 year I'll use a 10 year window the board's going to be different in 10 years who knows who's going to be sitting at where you're sitting right now and you have no idea what they may want or not want so you you can't say you've never seen it there's always the possibility that it could happen but you have to be real about this you just you know so I just I just want to make sure that everybody is aware of that and yeah I only laugh because I imagined myself here in 10 years and well good I I imagine myself at wallwood so so all right let's not get into imagining where we're going to be I wasn't laughing at you I was laughing no that's quite all right I laugh at myself Anna don't worry about uh so but you know there have been people that were were Pro uh were very supportive of having you know uh uh un c section c as part of the uh project on on from Pleasant Street so and there were emails that were sent that weren't part of the uh record but I just want to make sure people were aware of that I absolutely read them all so um to say that you know everybody was not supportive of it there there's quite a few people that were at the same token sure and a good point taken by by by Mrs gar is's that nobody in Pleasant Street was opposed to it or we didn't hear from them so uh so I have aor just one one more quick thing lastly if we if we have to do if it's if it's the if it's the board's decision to and I'm saying the select board's decision to add uh section c I guess the question would be what would be the process we need a timetable so I'm assuming that we would need to redesign the map yeah we would need to recalculate figures of the units per okay and then we have to go to back to rkg to reaffirm the consultant's uh financial status or the financial uh these of of of that area including C so where you already have all those figures for A and B and the other units all you would have to do is consider what the financial burden would be for Pleasant Street and add that to the total f figures on on a on a spreadsheet so it's not like red doing the whole thing all over again it's just that section so I don't know how long that would take I'm just I just want to I was I was goingon to say I'm not I want to let Brandy in here she's been waiting thank you um so you know I appreciate first of all thank you for the work that you guys have done because this is great great stuff and I um the discussion tonight has been really good I think we need to talk about these options and we need to talk about you know the the trade-off between going to Springtown meeting and fall town meeting um you know for me personally we're involved in this comprehensive plan if I had my way I mean we're in the middle of all of our public Outreach for the comprehensive plan and our goal is to reach 15% of the public in Ashland um I if I had my brothers I'd I'd say let's put pause on this MBTA communities for for two plus years until we know what the recommendation are going to be but we can't we can't do that um because I think I think when we hear from the public on the comprehensive plan we will hear a lot more voices um probably a very broad spectrum of voices I'm hoping um so you know for me personally you know I I I don't want to make big decisions that would affect the community without that input from the comprehensive plan so I like the approach that you guys have taken about um you know basically fulfilling what this MBTA Community is is looking for I think that that it it really does meet what the MBTA communities is really looking for because we have already done a lot of the work at the rail Transit District we've already built a lot of housing we've already permited a ton of housing um so I think like you know and and I agree with Anna I think that the that the the Pleasant Street zoning that we had done the overlay you know several years ago does allow for housing and I would I would love I am not anti-growth anyone that knows me knows I'm not anti-growth I think that that there will come changes to Pleasant Street I think there there will be overtime um but I think for this particular exercise I'm I'm comfortable with what was proposed I'm comfortable with it going to Springtown meeting I'm glad you guys have had two public forums I'm glad we've had the discussion tonight there'll be more discussion when it goes to the public hearing for the in front of the planning board there's lots of discussion um and so I I I I personally feel comfortable with what you all have proposed it's not going to ever be perfect none of this is ever going to be perfect um and I think that that ashleen is still going to see changes to Pleasant Street I think that's going to come so um so that's just my two cents I feel I feel good with the with the proposal that you put together Hanna I mean I'll add I it is a town meeting it it's Democratic process we could push this forward and the burnhams could show up and make a motion to um to propose that their part of the town be included and technically we know that it could and so the town could choose to push it towards towards that I don't think we have to have everything cooked up for town meeting I think town meeting is an opportunity to say this is what we're presenting and it's an opportunity for the public to go a different route and in fact I think in theory you could have a majority vote agree with the burnam if they make a motion to such a thing I'm not sure that type of motion I'm not sure that kind of motion be made on the floor I'm so sorry thank you for correcting me I I said I'm not sure but I'm I'm not sure that type of motion could be made on the floor of town meeting sounds complicated I'm not sure well so that would fit with my major concern which I have said since we started this and I will keep repeating it let's say that happened like there's there's um an alternate motion and people like that idea and they say let's go back to the drawing board now the public got to to speak I my major concern is we're boxing in the public fall sorry if you don't pass this they we might get sued look what they did to Milton I do not want to do that to the public I we can prevent that right so if we can investigate and say everything's good if you tried real hard we'll give you till the spring of 25 I'm okay with that as well but if we don't know that it feels really wrong to do that to the public do we want to take like a I was so hoping all this would be done soon but what should be sign up for folks can I asked my question that I was going to ask and um so I know a lot of work's been done you've been working on the bylaws and to Joe's point if we say okay what would it look like to add the section c on Pleasant Street I mean I would think that when you were doing your evaluation that some of the evaluation was done on section c before you decided to pull it out we were starting to get to that point regarding the mathematics behind it you know I think the biggest thing is then you got to get into the add bylaw and actually start making the edits into the add bylaw to make that qualification I would ask this question in response if you do add the 12 acres in in along Pleasant Street are you looking to then remove other sections and then also are you then looking to decrease density in other sections so it's kind of for me no I would I would leave everything else the same except ad se you know so it it gets it's not just one answering one question brings up two okay you know and so um that's where I that's my point of view on it now you know we could can and that's where I think everything kind of stands yeah and I guess just to to like the G like just for like the technical aspect of it is yes the partial did exist at some point but I cannot just like drag it back into like the model and just do it I will have to redo every single parcel every single District M comply it into the model like the Excel model and then from there we start it because you cannot just like plug it in you have to basically make everything from scratch so you will have it will take some time from like the gis aspect because you have to redo the whole process okay in that part of it okay thank you thank you can you un Marcel y Marcelo uh coost oh you're a co-host you can unmute but you need to unmute oh can you hear me yes yeah um I just listened to the last uh five minutes of conversation what Joe and what Yolanda said it it it almost converges to me because on the one hand we have this this approach with one r risk which Michael Herbert explained um and on the other hand we have the possibility uh what that we heard tonight where Pleasant Street could be included and the the the risky proposition of I guess the the other parcel I guess a could be removed and kind of balance it out so my question is very simple because I don't know the the Dynamics of the of the of the town meeting could could the proposal if if if the work that alar and and and others have to have to do is is completed could the could could it be in the in the town meeting a proposal where it says we have option A we have option b and then the town meeting makes the call of which one which will address what Kate is suggesting that they have a voice like kind of an informal discussion you mean like an informal vote like like I don't know can you do that so essentially we would present town meeting a choice of either A or B and see which one passes with a majority so one with and one without exactly one with c one without C like as a trial run kind of like as but like well it would be the it would be the final it would be the final town meeting no no that's a tough one you could not do that no I just don't know legally if does that legally I would I as a town planner who sat through many Town meetings I cannot get Beyond I cannot get behind that process because from a legal standpoint so once you have a bylaw right it has to be advertised and so it has to be advertised it can't be changed you know and that's what we're going for right and so we're looking to advertise the bylaw changes to be put on the warrant right but technically you could advertise A and B you could say a is with this section B is without this section or whatever like you're advertising an edited version right you're putting the public on notice that these are the two possibilities being discussed or can can any meeting I I I don't want to take on the comprehensive plan but can can any meeting in call for an informal vote on those two options without being B binding so at least we understand what the people stand I I can't so so I think what you're what you're suggesting is more of an informal conversation or like a forum a town meeting about it to gather kind of a sense of appreciation and I think that's our job now I think we're supposed to be doing that public input we did two forums the the planning board if we're going to Spring would have another one right we would have one more I believe no we would not we would have a public hearing that's what I mean we would have one more public hearing we would have a public hearing yes we have two public hearings right so we we already had two you got the subcommittee had two we hads those were't official public hearing correct two forums public common today and then we would have two more hearings with the planning board so that it would be a total of five opportunities for the public to come with input yeah but but going forward tonight this Zone as of next you know next week right when we finalize and solidify the zoning changes that those zoning CH those zoning changes cannot change once they are are advertised does that make sense so after the pl after we could we could do this right we could continue this conversation post the public Hearing Pro you know post the zoning amendments open the public hearing and then say you know what we deny we we we're not going to the spring we're not going to the spring you could do that but once you post that zoning change you cannot change those and you cannot really change them on town meeting floor unless there are minimal scribers you know down you know downgrading the numbers and so and that's why tonight's critical you do you move forward with what we have or do you postpone into the spring right can I ask a question um and um you know thank you um so I'm trying to understand um from say dear's point of view the difference between 15 and 10 units per acre and why is that so important um and I don't know if anyone here can explain that to me because I I'm not sure I'm not sure anyone's going to be able to explain that to you because obviously it's there's different building styles there's different building types it's how you do the parking it's so one thing so if I could just ask so they made an impassion plea to be including this zoning I guess I would like to hear from them what's the importance of this difference because it it seems to me that 10 units per acre is substantial housing and uh meets our purposes so I would with your Indulgence invite them to come up and just make that point like the 10 versus 15 because I I have to say that's uh that's important at least to my decision making here the difference between the MBTA Community bylaw is by right and the other way would be special permit that's not my is that true that's true that's if you go through the special permit it takes a long time to go through tradition for instance but I had 10 units per acre is not special permit right now in no this well then the difference would be we have about two acres 10 units per acre would put you at about 20 units 20 and the other would be about 30 it's at 15 per acre so what's what's wrong with that I think it's the special permit versus by right so it would be site plan review rather than special permit well I think to Rob's point for the Jaris right right now you can someone could build 10 units per acre so about 20 units understandably that's less than 30 units if we if we added this right now you could as I understand you could push a special permit and you could ask for many many more as you know what I mean but that's probably going to occur most most likely under a scenario where I sell the property to someone or have an agreement with someone and they will try uh get the permits after the sale okay so it doesn't benefit me at all all right unless I come to an agreement with a developer that says it's based on how many units you end up with which could push it down three four years down the line and for instance I don't know but home ra has been discussed tonight when was that originally applied for that's been three years in the making hasn't it no and I I don't know I don't think so it's been it's only been in front of the board this C I mean this year 2023 but there were significant delays on the part of the applicant not on the part of the board we are drafting the decision so so it's not we had some long periods of wait where we were waiting for the applicant well again the big difference is that this doesn't help the owners the property it helps the developer okay because the developer has Deep Pockets in a team of lawyers to push this to the end all right okay all right thank you D I think for me and um and I wasn't necessarily gonna thank you speaking about this we our our man we took our mandate right about what we were given and tried to approach it in the best way we can we've explain the parameters that we were working from and for me um one of those I think was to let the um let anything that that would change Ashland if possible because we eliminated other properties too that we were looking at we were looking at the kitty fenwall property easy to walk to all the schools right might be a great place for kids um but we eliminated that because we didn't and and please everyone jump in if you disagree but we did we kind went away from making a decision in our group that um that was a decision for the town to make about the feel of the town the look of the town the density of the town where do we want this in the town where do we want this we didn't want to make that decision as four four people and only two residents right we didn't we didn't think that was our job right so we were trying to come up with Solutions that would let that would get us into compliance zoning can change any time uh properties can be added into the zoning it's up to us we can change it next year and add more property into that zone if we want right once we have more of the answers but we were trying to get us into compliance now without without um making a decision even amongst the 10 of us what Ashlin looks like we were trying to let that for the people and and including so including other areas um you know making them by right didn't seem to be in that in that flavor to us yeah say in that vein in that vein yeah yeah so do we take a conservative approach yes we did are there still some risks that Marcelo and and Michael were talking about yeah there's still some risk cuz there's still some unknown stuff we're not saying that you know but that's that's where we were coming from and as much as I I I think I personally too do think it's a good spot for mixed you it's just you'd love to get off the train and you know and maybe you live there or there's businesses there it is good is it for me to make that decision no I would say no that's not my decision until a project is before me as the planning board and then I will judge the project on its merits but that's that that would be that was my stance on it I I'm not against it but I'm I don't think it's part of this I think the comprehensive plan process is this and we have a significant investment of that and that zoning can come in at any time we can we can change that add zoning anytime we want we can we can add other properties later into the MBTA Community zoning as we want that the the state would be thrilled right that we put more acres in there but that was where that was is where I keep Landing as much as I think personally it is a good place for some kind of mixed use I just don't know what that is yet and I don't want to just I'm hesitant to throw it in there without thinking about it thoroughly that's okay I meanone think that that's a good point if this goes through as as kind of proposed and set for May if people want Pleasant Street there's fall to add it and any other time but like that's unlikely that gets us I don't know that I thought that was sort of the agreement to get into compliance right and and that's what you guys have BR that was our goal yes I I I would say hearing it stated that way Trisha makes me think about this a little bit differently and whereas I hear what the Jaris are saying about trying to add that but the I the the reminder from you that as Brandy said we're in the process of a large comprehensive plan this would get us into compliance so we don't have to worry about some of that other stuff um we're hearing from a lot of the public that they don't want Pleasant Street added at this point but we do have the ability to look at that in the future should that be the right thing based on what we're hearing from the comprehensive the plan with and hold on let me finish with that statement I would say we move forward with what's been presented get it to Spring and if it doesn't pass at Spring as it's been said right if people say no we want that other area or there's concerns about a because of what Michael had said with the um with ugc then we can go back and look at it but at least we've potentially gotten us ourselves into compliance compliance Marcel I'm just going to mention Yolanda stole my thunder I think after listening to Trisha I um I I totally concur with that well the the only thing I'll add is um that I I do think um an opportunity to build housing is good I'm not sure I'd be as conservative as as you laid out but I am uh I think it was important to hear that there is an option to build housing there now whether we include it there or not um so that that kind of swings it for me so I will um you know at this point support this proposal as as stated potential carat that at some point in time down the road we could probably look at that piece of proping attitude to see how see how it plays out for years with respect to the changes that we made be in compliance with the zoning with the NBTA properties and see how that goes and if there are no issues and their passes and and we're good and the state gives their blessing um what would happen you know it's just interesting what would happen if they said we didn't do enough what what what would we do with that I think that's if they come back and say you know you folks didn't do enough because housing is already there we want that that doesn't I understand yeah you never know we'll have time to make changes if that happens if if if it gets rejected like any bylaw and I think this is what Kate's point is if it gets rejected you know strike one but guess what there's three you know obviously there's strike two would be well the second fight of the Apple will be in the fall yeah so just given the late hour like do you I we're I think so I'm I'm looking at Trisha so I think we had talked about the possibility of a vote to endorse this and um are we doing one vote for both committees or are we doing separate votes yeah I mean I think we need to know how to move forward because those are two very different as a subcommittee as a subcommittee yes right and that's we need a new directive what all right so I'm I'm asking procedurally if um um do we take one one vote of both committees together or should we do separately for the select board separ okay so I guess as chair of the select board I will look at my members and say are are is someone prepared to make a motion okay why don't you go ahead then sure I move that we support and approve moving forward of the recommended MBTA zoning option b that was presented um Mar can you confirm that option b is is that the is that what we're talking housing approach yes okay I will second that okay the motion has been made in seconded all those in favor in the select board say I I oppose none so the motion is carried then thank you for your work on the subcommittee and on behalf of the I guess for the planning board I'll make a motion to approve the proposed MBT zoning option b as presented and a second second and a roll call vote Ana Tes minitz I Mel I Catherine Jersey gu and Trisha Kendall I okay so we will uh move forward yeah so the next process for for for for us the planning board will be to take the bylaw amendments um I have to notify uh and send those to the newspaper for advertisement by the end of next week um and those and then the planning board will hold a public hearing on the first meeting in April obviously the this bylaw change will be submitted to the warrant through gen ball you know she she has it in there the board of San obviously will have to do the board of the select board will have to do your job and close the warrant and go through that procedural process the planning board will have two public hearings uh at the two meetings in April and then at some point at the most likely the second meeting in April we will vote to either support zing an article as drafted Andor uh to not support and then we will see you at town meeting all right thank you all do we have that one more agenda item that you wanted to cover quickly good thing you reminded me Michael comprehensive plan staring Precinct one person there here he comes yeah here he is you thought I'd fallen asleep on you yet no it was me yeah you were hiding from us no so um unfortunately we don't have a Precinct one candidate today um there is a gentleman that had interviewed before that was interested and I'd sent him some information he was going to review that and get back to us okay so procedurally do we really have to meet together to do this not that anything against you guys but can we vote separately we could probably vote separately yeah okay okay I just want to make a quick note before all the Plenty board and select board meet the select board members leave that we're never leaving we're going to be here that on April 18th right the comprehensive plan will be having and reviewing their existing conditions and all planning board and psych board members will be invited to that meeting can I just say one thing that's April vacation week it's I'm not going to be able to make it okay and what is this just because of the timing because it's not a it's not a standard planning board or a select board meeting it's our typical comprehensive it's a comprehensive plan meeting going to miss oh but but I I'm just saying like just to make sure everyone else is aware because there might be others that are but I might be missing it's going to be around it's typically a 7:00 but just and what is it what is it we're doing we're getting a report from our um consultant regarding existing conditions conditions oh so this is kind of an important presentation may be important for Michael and you and our co-chairs to say put something out to the full comp plan group and go this is April vacation how many people will be impacted because at our last meeting the the meeting that we had to have special to cover for February we were lucky we made Quorum so if this is vacation week we should look at potentially doing it the week before April 11th planning board meeting planning board meeting the MBTA public hearing AIT I was going to say could we could we could we do it as part of the planning board meeting like do you guys I don't know what you guys have on your on your agenda is it a it's just a presentation right it's just a presentation by the potentially in April yeah potentially um I mean I don't know what goldson's I don't doing but that's a good point I was just going to say because it's just it's it's it's a little it's just that week is tough yeah why don't we look at that because do existing conditions as part of I that might be possible assuming it's a 9 hour 90 minute type of thing I wouldn't think you would expect the full planning board and select board to be there I just made a note that um I just made a note on my agenda the April 18th to go into further detail I'll be speaking on a line I of turn yeah okay be here though resing it is that have to Peter will let us know okay yeah I'll work with Michael obviously but I just want to make a note of that but sure we should probably put that on the agenda for the next comp plan meeting I agreed okay and I'm gonna and and I'll kind of hold a spot try to hold the spot for April 11th in case you need it okay okay all right okay anything else we should touch base just motion to adjourn the SL Board second all those in favor select board ad joury say I okay we Jour thank you all planning board don't go anywhere I know we're getting to our best time yeah this is this is when things get good oh my [Music] God yeah we're not inviting you to our meeting ever again I better get out of here you all right to drive okay the thing I my best time I think obviously we may uh thing one I think to skip ahead to seven I think I think we might need to look at another so we're not doing no we are I I just want to throw wen't we going to do the pre they said that there's no candidate yet if you jump ahead on the agenda thank you can we jump to reports and go to comprehensive plan because then I have some information that will change what you're going to say okay so can you give me an update on comprehensive plan so we um the steering committee uh got a little out of cycle meeting because it um and what you want to referred to there wasn't barely a quorum we met Corum yeah no we lost the oh I think I'm on am I on Amanda do you hear us okay um so we were not on target where we wanted to be to meet the public engagement goals so the steering committee voted to um extend the the public engagement period we're in which is survey public forum SL meting in box and crowd mapping till April 26th so that gives us okay more time thank you that that was a great jump in yay okay because I'm like damn we can't get to it again okay so then um going back uh to um Starbucks we just we want to give we don't have anyone from Starbucks here um but Peter and I have been talking about this a lot we've been trying to gather some information so all the stuff is a little informal it's not all document a but let let me tell you did did everyone get a chance to kind of look at the the offending view call it so it's in your binder and this is the only picture in the binder but um obviously everyone knows that there's electrical equipment posted on the side of the building and talking with the applicant Greg um Starbucks and Greg Salvador the owner of the building um has proposed to modify and to change the canvas of the mural to the front portion of the building yeah so as I reported kind of last time and I think other people have checked it out since then you come out of CVS and you look at that short end the building and there's a some electrical boxes and things that kind of in my mind I think severely impede on the mural on that side if you don't have it in front of you I don't know if you guys online have it in front of you grab I'm trying to grab it right now comp's trying to get up but it was basically a a wall and a gr and the wall is kind of set back from the street and then a door and then another little section of the wall so and the electrical stuff was put on the wall the the larger section of the wall so even really making it even smaller the usable area so um but in a few things to bring up here one is that frankly I didn't think that I didn't know the front of the building would be an option the side of the building only came up because really because um we wanted it to be something inherent with Ashland right and also because this that side of the building just wasn't meeting the standards of um of a three-sided building according to the ashin bylaws right so we came up with this idea of a mural or they did actually they proposed it to us I think and um and we all thought it was a good idea so now the electrical equipment is in the way um but we're being off offered the front of the building which could be much more visible coming down Union Street to see this where the side they it there are there is a junction box there there is plantings to hide the junction box that's always been a part of that part of the site part of the site plan thing number two um Peter has had a conversation with Stacy and the cult well yeah so talk to Stacy a couple times from the ash culture Council and I was in an email with her and the culture Council supports the change in the Miro to the front of the building obviously it's more obviously visible it's up front and so she in the culture Council there they're working they have a couple artists they're trying to work with uh but obviously for a location the cultural Council believes that this is a better location than that side of the building facing uh 126 so then as a third part of that that um Peter has been in touch with I know if it was the owner or the the um I've in touch with the owner here off and on um and so yes because my my other concern about that was like well what about our elevation it's still kind of a not a great elevation and this this Greenery that we're showing without a mural on it isn't really impressive so they seem they apparently they are open to again I don't have any documentation but they're they're open to relooking at those plantings not looking at removing the electrical box or anything like the things that are already hidden in there there's a big junction box in there but redoing some of the plantings to make that so that when you're coming out of CVS which is the primary view when you see this is just to make that just cover it up a little bit cover it up have better have better vegetation there you know and and so that's um in Starbucks according to Greg has their own screening obviously they're going to put screening on they have their brand they have their models they don't want to see they put this on the side of the building either and so I need to reach out and work with Greg and just to kind of get up get a better kind of feel of of what's being proposed uh but regarding the mural and the mural location in the canvas right now the discussion is to move the mural to the front of the building so I'm just trying to get some feedback on this to to me personally I'm kind of hesitantly saying seems like kind of a winwin I like the idea of a maybe a bit a mural in a more prominent location I like the idea of better Greenery maybe it wasn't what we started out as but might might be better but it's I mean I think we have to look Pro prospectively forward and the past is the past here we are it sounds like if the art the art folks who are working hard on this are comfortable with this for me it just seems like a logistical issue now because we had a decision we had a rendering now it's something different I would just want to figure out what's the way to formalize this is it like a letter from them that says hey this is what we're going to do and we kind of like agree to it like just kind of making it official in some way they're not here yeah um yeah I would say kind typically I always have this is you know minor I call this in my through my experience I would call this a minor modification yeah it's come in we say this it's a gender item I have a conversation about it it's a vote I create a little memo this is the change describe they need to I would think they we would need them to consent to it because it's sort of agreed upon with them correct so it would be like hey we've drafted this memo we get something in writing from them confirming and it's almost like we have to make findings that correct we understood that this happened it requires a modification we got input from the cultural folks who are working on it we approve it we've gotten their consent and we have to all sign it right to make it sort of official we're kind of modifying the decision there's no issue we can all sign it that's I think as long as we go through that formality I'm comfortable okay no I think it is a um what do you call an epas panel EPS just it is an the the the dark right yeah I don't think the dark can be painted on so I'm just curious like you said those electrical panels are visible at a distance irrespec of how far you drive towards that I wonder if this mural can be a corner element that returns towards that door do you mean it's a it's a door in the side with that awning that's there on this elevation can that be a mural that's not only on the on the front but something that returns and Corner element I I was thinking of that too that on the bottom it's a possibility that something turns the corner until they get to the electrical equipment yeah something that distracts you from all those elements but at the same time it's powerful enough because when you are driving down that Union Street you are seeing both those angles very very prominently so um looking at that square footage of what's just on the side you return that m kind of create an element that literally returns toward the door I don't know if you can come proud of the facade but there's an way of making that really be an element that will showcase not only their brand but also kind of create an interesting threedimensional uh mural I feel like I I would how flexible they are yeah well I would think May maybe it might also land in the like as an option for the artists yeah like you could do this or you could Round the Corner propose something to round the corner I I would assume but we hadn't talked I don't think Peter talked about that option but like I said I was very surprised when they offered the front I didn't realize that was an option I think it's an awes I think it's a pretty awesome option but um and I would also just note when I look when I analyze the building drawings I mean the building plans it looks like there's a screening wall that's coming that's somewhere inserted in that area as well and so I got to take I want to ask the question where is the screening wall what's going on and just kind of get a better understanding of it and I and I don't think we can go I think this is just meant to say yeah here it is here's here's your new canvas and I think that conversation is great but I think the next level and I'm happy to do that leading up to the next meeting I just want to kind of have a follow up with everybody tonight so any other comments from people on on line otherwise it's just it seems like a general okay with the path forward that we'll continue to pursue Amanda and Marcelo sounds okay everything that has been discussed is a plus okay agree all right great thank you I love the nice short answers too you guys are awesome okay um all right so that just leads us to uh any um updates um that and the minutes if we want to again I what why don't we take the minutes really quickly did people have a chance to look at them I mean they're very thorough I thought I I did look at them Trish just to answer your question and I'm sorry Marcel I did look at them and nothing jumped out of me something I'm trying to remember where I have them here okay I I thought it was great really detailed notes lately I I will say the formatting on page three on just seemed a little runon like there was not a lot of spaces on top of Page Three between paragraphs I don't know if that makes any sense to you guys but like line 75 through 96 uh like one paragraph ends and then like 96 yeah like line 77 probably needs spacing between 76 and 77 and oh just just in there just some between line 81 and 82 I just I just feel like it got a little squished yeah just the squishing needs to be UNS squished yeah I did have one thing [Music] um on line 108 um it says Mr mat noted that sewer capacity documentation has been received yeah and it makes it seem like every like so I I would just put some in front of that some sewer capacity document I'm not sure what we were looking at at the time but as we know we kept as we asked for more later um it'll at least just say that maybe there was more to come okay I going to stop my screen share and sorry 96 I think that's T building 76 oh Tel yep okay anything else anybody I'll make a motion to accept the February 8 2024 minutes as amended and a second second roll call vote and a test miniski I Katherine Jersey and Trisha Kendall I okay so those were good with that so we keep up with that um everything else is just updates anyone have uh important updates that that they don't want to wait important announcements I think we're good I am too nothing's important to me maybe right now legis of breakfast April 12th Kay and me I think are going to a planning conference in Worcester this Saturday Saturday yes we'll try to bring something fun back something planning related good luck with that I know Emma will be there Emma Emma will be giving a presentation we'll take a selfie I think I'm I think I'm going to that okay Emma and Emily ins who's our who who we working with so Emily and I uh have been working she's been kind of working on us with the zoning and stuff like that but great wealth of knowledge uh great person too you guys should come next year we should do a retreat there it's always tough Saturday um Marcelo and Amanda did you have anything you needed add tonight no all right so um I'll make a motion to adjourn at 10:58 p.m.

oh sorry oh my goodness I apologize for those of you that got to stretch for a bit um we actually do have item 506 before this I apologize and I hopefully that was a nice stretch for you all uh let's go back to item 506 approv contract with Q Communications for public relations marketing services in the amount of 24,000 Dr bow yes last time that I brought this we can please keep it quiet and if you are have any conversations to be made if you can go in the um hallway please thank you so much can you do me a favor and close the doors to the hallway um there's a staff there if somebody can help out I know it's exciting to be here okay Dr Bower yeah last time I brought this item to the board I um was directed to go and back and renegotiate the communications um contract we need support um in a number of areas for the district including managing our social media accounts and so I respectfully asked the board to support uh spending $24,000 to support us to do a better job in terms of marketing the district okay um if I can get a motion for purposes of discussion and just to um and if I don't see any um motion um trusty floron I'll move approval of the contract with Q Communications for $24,000 for a period of now until June 15th of 2024 thank you uh I don't see any others I second the motion okay um at this time I'll go ahead and open it up for public comment on this item item 506 anybody here to discuss item 506 okay seeing none we'll go ahead and open it up to the trustees any members of the board wishing to ask any questions or comments uh vice president kto I'll just provide my comments the last meeting I was not in support of the previous contract uh I still I'm not uh at this point it says $224,000 however it's for a 3mon period which at the end is a little bit less than $100,000 and so uh it's more than I'm comfortable spending um uh additionally I feel that there's probably somebody locally or a firm or somebody that has more more awareness of our community that would be able to uh provide U more you know knowledgeable Services about our community and so it's for those reasons that I won't be supporting this contract I had spoken as a superintendent informed her that uh something last to the in the tune of about4 or $50,000 possibly something I could support given the very very uh you know serious situation right now that we're facing that is requiring us to take some very very drastic measures um I'm not comfortable spending the amount uh that is uh being proposed here I know it says 24 but it's over the course of a year it would amount to a little bit less than 100 Grand and so it's for that reason I won't be supporting this measure thank you any other members of the board wishing to comment or ask any questions on this item okay see none I'll go ahead and uh make my comments for me um you know even though we're making Cuts but I think um and to vice president keto's Point earlier uh you know every Ada right every amount of money we get per student will help um our district or not if we keep having our children leave our district and so for me it's um a good investment in Communications to ensure that people know the good things we're doing um and it's not fair for our current staff who are handling their current duties you know whatever it is you know if it's uh you know our superintendent or our secretary or our you know counselors who are trying to put a post up but do their job at the same time it's not fair for those to um to cover that at this time and so for me um you know 24,000 although you know we're at a point where we're making Cuts it's a good investment to hopefully then bring in students who will will help make up that and more so um I will be supporting this item um it's only until June at this time if between now and and then I'm in agreement if we can get somebody local um I think it's important to invest in somebody that is local so if we can find somebody that would be great uh but I think you know for right now we definitely need somebody who can be um managing Communications all the neighboring school districts have a Communications person that's just focus on Communications and Alam rock also deserves somebody like that um and so with that I will be supporting this so I'll go ahead and call um at this time seeing no other trustees um having any questions or comments I'll go ahead and uh call the vote all those in a favor of um this item uh being approved at this time please raise your hand all those against please raise your hand okay so uh item does not pass at this time all right moving back to public comment I apologize thank you for your patience um so I'll just uh turn it right over to Maria at this time thank you for your patience all right good evening superintendent bow Board of Trustees um my name is Mara Martinez I am an intervention teacher at Curtin and in December you all asked what we can do as a district to improve our student outcomes once you saw the California dashboard results well and another way to um improve our enrollment um while this year's tosas have had the pleasure of working with students who are some of our most vulnerable to make sure that they are accelerating and growing in the most needed areas such as Reading Writing math and English language development I hope the Board of Trustees takes the time to consider and understand the implications of what will happen if we remove the intervention teacher position from the district we can't continue to make rash decisions we need to make sure our need students get the help they need to close the opportunity Gap I implore you to do the right thing to find the funding needed to continue the service for our students toes provid some of the muscle for the students to get them over that hump thing need tosas would be happy to present to the board any data or what our detailed work looks like to help develop a full understanding of what we do one year of having an intervention tosa at most sites isn't enough time to see the exponential growth we want to see if we want students in our alumrock school seats we need High performing schools making sure the students who deserve it can get it is what tosas do on a daily basis bis we ask that you do not eliminate the intervention to position for next year and and lastly um one of my colleagues this evening will be speaking on behalf of a black student achievement plan and this is something I am in support of as well thank you very much hello board uh Dr B how are you guys doing uh thank you for list list to us tonight we really appreciate it uh my name is Michael Wright I've been in the district for 12 years I currently serve as an instructional coach and an intervention specialist for aptitude uh and again thank you for sparing us uh tonight um our program reaches a large number of students at each site uh typically each intervention cycle has a period of 6 weeks with 50 students per cycle our last cycle focused on passing the elpac test uh which is a huge hurdle for every District in our state uh we should be making the reest classification process our top priority if we do not these students will go to high school and will be forced to take period zero and will not be allowed to take elective classes we are setting them up to fail I wish we had more data to share with you on the alac I know those scores are coming in the next few weeks um what I have noticed as an instructional coach is the stress each new teacher faces trying to teach a curriculum that a third of their class cannot understand Co learning loss did not magically disappear we still need time to work with these students and offer support for our teachers who are struggling to meet the needs of their students teachers are not leaving our district just because of the cost of living they are leaving because of the frustration they face with the impossible task of getting their students caught up as intervention Specialists we have the opportunity to work with students in small groups to help fill the gaps with their learning due to small groups our children are not afraid to speak up they ask questions and are more willing to participate because we are designing targeted inst instuction to meet their specific needs simply put we are giving our students the gift of time we are asking you tonight to give us the gift of time as well thank [Applause] you good evening trustees and Dr Bower um I speak tonight in support of my colleas um that are toas not only for students but also for new teachers um these positions are essential for the recovery of learning and I ask you that you consider this um not removing this position because remember that change is over a course of time one year two years is not going to make um you're not going to see that change so we need more time to to see what um what positive change it's bringing um having our toas um and I I urge you to look at other funding where we can um fund this position thank you hello uh once again my name is Adrien vain I'm a teacher at Joseph George middle school and uh Miss Campbell can attest that for the past 10 years I've been helping out with the uh Alpac testing this is the first year that when the test has started and I've given out scratch paper the kids folded the scratch paper and made a graphic organizer right away they took detailed notes that Miss Rios helped them to do showed them how to take those notes they put so much effort in elpac we we aren't going to see it yet but we will and one of the things that sometimes frust frustrates me with this district is we have something that's working and then it gets taken away because we don't see the results soon enough and sometimes we have to wait maybe a couple years but I promise you I've seen it I've already seen it when these students took their tests and sometimes they look frustrated and they would look at each other and be like you can do it and that's because of Miss Rios Osa she did an amazing job and she's going they're going to continue to do an amazing job I'd also like to to say that I stand in solidar solidarity with black Educators and students and families in the district who have been experiencing racism I myself have seen and heard kids on my campus say the nword multiple times and it hurts me for those students and teachers we ask the district to honor its commitment to recruit and retain black Educators as uh as outlined in the black lives matter act at Schoolboard resolution passed in 2020 there is a black student achievement plan and we should be working towards that thank [Applause] you my name is Sean SS I teach at dors elementary I'm going to shift gears a little bit board members I want to talk about uh not creating combination classes next year at dors um somehow someone in the district has Ed fewer students at dorsa uh we were told by our principal we have currently in our two3 grade classes we have 51 students in our fourth grade classes we have 54 students if we they want us to have one full class of each and one combo class of four or five combo that would be so a max number of students in every classroom would be 33 kids plus two more additional that we contract in um so that would give me 28 because I'll be the combo teacher four and five that means 11 students will be get maxed out of our school because we don't have room for them based on the contract that we have with uh Alro um this is going to happen at dors I know it's happening at other schools too about making combination classes I I think we we've done so well of having smaller classrooms with our students we are progressing faster better than we have with 33 kids in a room if this like I said if this is going to happen here at dorsa or every other school then it better happen at every school and the board members I want you to check make sure even alante schools have to make sure they are collapsed or combined because I know in Middle School some of those middle schools al2 are very very short they don't have very many kids in them um I wish the district will stop worrying about housing for teachers yes that's a big thing but let's focus on teaching our kids in a smaller classroom okay also it's sad to hear I've not seen one of you on my campus except Mr fam in the very beginning of the year you all need to start coming to our schools more and spending quality time with us thank you hola so maranao Hughes I'm at dorsa I've been at the indri at alrock for 12 years and of all the 12 years this is the first time by far that I was living kind of in a little bubble at hubard because I wasn't aware of how our kids were doing via through our uh tossas because during our tossa meetings we started to share how difficult it was for our kids to learn and how behind they were academically I am very concerned I grew up in this viio I know this viio very well and I'm asking you I'm asking you to visit our schools talk to our teachers understand the needs of what our students need by far they are not a number they are children that are confused they don't understand and they cannot read they can't read without reading they can't do math without math they can't do science they will not excel in this country unless they are properly taught and I am working with my kids my second third and fourth and fifth graders run to my class they run to my class because they want to go on an adventure of learning they want to know what I've got in store for them I don't have a script I don't have anything all I know is that I'm talking and addressing you this evening Dr Bower Board of Trustees my fellow colleagues families that are in the audience I care about what's happening I am saddened to see that I asked a group of students my fifth graders what the word comprehension was they had no clue I asked him to name the seven continents they named Seattle in New York I was a gas to see and to hear what it is so I have a student that would like to read a letter from one of my classes thank you my name is and I'm reading this letter from my teacher my name is Maria and I am a first year teacher I am writing on behalf of Mariana our amazing teacher on special assignment CSA before I begin I want to express my gratitude for all that you us thank you for all that you do your work never goes unnoticed throughout this year Mar Mariana has been a tremendous support to both my students and myself as many can imagine a being a firste teacher can be challenging but with the right support that first year will be full of wonderful memories this has been my experience and one of the reasons why is because our posa Mariana H whether this be by providing tips that will be maximum maximiz by teaching in the classroom or by providing test reading for our students our class can always be sure to count on her teachers or should I say t USA like Mar Mariana continue to make a enormous impact on our students life a few weeks ago one of my students came back from her class smiling from ear to ear because near stage about what a wonderful School us Davis was for future Mar like her another inent was when one of my students came back to class with a GI Ariana gave her that reminded her how much fun leading could be there have been countless times when my students have been comforted inspired or empowered by her teaching thank you [Applause] oh okay that's great okay okay um so in our school I play a lot of hats well I wear a lot of hats um because I'm incredibly invested in my school I love my school and I see my children cuz I call my children and um when I first got them they were really nervous um some of them did not want to speak in English and slowly but surely through little meetings um and thoughts of encouragement and the word yet if you guys have not heard it it's amazing um we have been able to really make great progress towards their um English acquisition but I cannot just take that credit when I know that myosa has been there for us and times where it's really hard um for us as a dual emerging school one of our goals is to have our students reclassified or at least to level three to be able to go ahead and try to get the path of the Seal of biliteracy which is like the gold standard for being able to be bilingual it's extremely hard to get there and even though some of my students are excelling in in Spanish and they are able to like walk circles around me um it's still that test that just gets them in the ankle and does not let them go through and fortunately with with Miss Bravo at our at the helm helping us out we have been able to push more students into her classification this year um I told her yesterday I was like well I'm like we reclassified the student how many do we have and she said we have 25 I was so excited because honestly our numbers have grown and I know they're going to get bigger and just you know have a little more confidence in our little TOA program because it's totally worth it thank you so [Applause] much good evening my name is Evelyn locker and I'm the tosa at Lucha Elementary um this is my 15th year of teaching um I live in the alumrock community went to school here hover Kon Joseph George and I'm now back teaching um to give my students the same opportunity I was given as a student myself here in Alum Rock um the TOA program has been so beneficial um both teaching in the classroom both fourth and fifth grade for many years and being outside of the classroom as uh either an instructional coach or an intervention specialist I see how important this role is for our students um as a fellow tosa mentioned in one of our tosa meetings and this is like a seed that we're planting and we can't just give it up after one year that tree is not going to grow in just one year and we need more time to keep um nurturing our students to meet their potential for example I have a third grade student this year that came to me um reading at a letter F which is first grade um currently he's at a level M which is end of second grade but we still have a few more months to get him to be on grade level for end of third grade and I'm very optimistic that he will get there if not further um but I do have a lot of my little seeds that haven't grown that much and they need more time and they need us there to support them to give them that individual attention that I that they need so I beg of you to try to find some funding to keep our program going because our students really need it thank you [Applause] my name is nandez and I am a second grade Spanish bilingual teacher at lante 1 I'm also here to talk to you about the importance of maintaining the teacher on special assignment program I am within my first 5 years of te teaching and as you can imagine and as I'm sure you know it is difficult being in second grade I'm also responsible with teaching my students how to read and not just in Spanish but also in English and it is exhausting to try to get my students to grade level when I don't have a TOA specific to our school site yes we have a tosa but she is shared and it's difficult to reach out to her it's difficult to find time to meet but I know that her support is invaluable and so I beg and I urge you okay sorry about that um oh my goodness I beg of you all to reconsider terminating this program because it is important not only for our students but also to retain our teachers to retain me to retain all the other teachers that are within the first 5 years of teaching who really need this support thank [Applause] you uh good good evening alumrock Community my name is Miranda ying and I am currently serving as a senior impact manager of two City year teams um from cityar San Jose Silicon Valley here in alen rocki of High School District this is my third year with cityar as well as my third year with Alam Rock and I am here to speak to you about how the impact that cityar has had on students would be impossible without the collaboration of the tosa interventionists with the tosa interventionists this year I have trained a group of 13 newish Educators in small group interventions um we work together to coordinate observations um and also coordinate feedback um my collaboration with the tosas this year has also brought the statistic that 47% of students that were on our Focus lists were um ranking in the high risk category at the start of the year at this midyear point they are now down to 16% um that's C year has worked with um the toas have also inspired and directed resources for one of my aspiring Educators on my team um and they are looking into pursuing a very similar degree um after this year of service um they have contributed greatly to the integration of my teams in their work with students as well as the culture and fabric of the school and staff and school Community reinstating or reconsidering the tosa interventionist position Embraces the holistic development of our students the well of my staff and District Partners like City or San Jose Silicon Valley and the overarching goals of our educational Community by doing so we not only honor our commitment to Excellence inclusivity but also ensure that our district remains a beacon of innovation and inspiration and education I sincerely hope you will consider the profound impact of this decision and I urge you to reconsider its implementation in the school year 2024 to 2025 thank you for your time and thoughtful [Applause] considerations all right hello um my name is Alandra Rios I teach at Joseph George Middle School I'm there TOA um first I would like to just um say I stand in solidarity with black Educators students and families in our district um we ask that our district honor its commitment to recruit and retain black Educators as outlined in the black life uh matters at school board resolution passed in um I would also like to read a letter to you uh from Miss Dolly wall who's a tosa at shefford Middle School um she said I would like for you to consider finding the funds for the TOA position because of the follow for because of the following reasons this position allows us to take steps which close the achievement gap for our students and that was widen uh over CO as toses we have seen students they are becoming more confident in small group settings we are able to provide more targeted support for students which can sorry which can't be provided in such large classroom settings conversations Among Us and staff has further developed about best practices standard alignments and understanding State assessments our admins are receiving additional support for students who would normally fall through the cracks um because they don't always qualify for any other types of support or accommodations please consider keeping this position because our toos are working hard to provide students with confidence and academic growth thank [Applause] you hi okay dear Alam Rock trustees and superintendent B I'm here today because this month the school of alpha Blanc Alvarado is celebrating the 9 year anniversary of its Alpha F bank for 9 years Alpha public schools has partnered with Second Harvest of Silicon Valley to host a food bank at Alpha Blanc alv School throughout these years the alpha food bank has provided free and nutritious food every month to families in the neighborhood and Beyond we distribute items ranging from fruits and vegetables to chicken we're currently serving 360 families per month and from the start of the Academic Year in July 2023 to now March 2024 we have served 3,45 families we do this work because our approach to providing an exet education is holistic and Community Based we understand that for students to thrive academically they need to live in a community that has easy and consistent access to nutritious food so if we can provide both an excellent education and a healthy and healthy food for our community we will continue to do so lastly I want to recognize our incredible volunteers who make our food bank a reality or volunteers are formed by high school students throughout San Jose Alpha parents and staff and community members it is because of their commitment or serving or E side s community that we can run the food bank every month I welcome you all to visit on a Saturday when when our food bank is running uh so you could see the amazing work that is happening thank you for your time truste and have a good evening good evening my name is Geraldine Sanchez I'm a mother of a student of um fifth grader and I know the um I'm here because I want to um the intervention specialist uh program to uh stay in schools because we do need it and uh me and my kid are proved that the program is working because um my son has been struggling uh for years for Reading Writing um I know he does um uh he does approv for help at school because he is an ADHD student he was diagnosed 2 years ago but um even though he didn't was dignosed before uh he was already having the benefit at school he was already having the hope at school um and he has improv a lot I I thought it was going to take longer for him to approve the uh test the Alpa test and actually he did it in less time than I was expecting because I didn't realize how good the program was working with him at school and that actually thank you Miss Bravo you really really je and I thank you so much for that um but it's sck to hear that uh there's more students that need the help at school and it's hard to hear that some of the students I know that you're uh providing help and budget uh to provide music classes and sports but you have to stretch the money and put it where really it's needed I know we need Sports I know we need uh music because the students need that right but um you have to priorize um in those uh factors that really really needed and those what we have to focus [Music] [Applause] on hi my name is maida I am a parent at atanta 2 and as most of you know proud PTA parent so that means being very involved in the school and just kind of seeing everything you know more openly um and I'm here in support of our intervention Specialists as well they help out our students so we ask that you please don't take that away our students are in need of the support that they provide that no computer program can do nor will do miss Bravo is a huge part of the physical and mental support that our students need and students are showing Improvement our children are happy when when they work with this Bravo at their level and they they feel that they can achieve their goals so we ask that you please don't take that away from our students they need that one-on-one smaller support group as we know we just went you know through Co and virtual and that set back a lot and we see the effect that Miss prow has on our students so please thank you thank you okay uh thank you now um seeing no other we'll go ahead and move on to item 401 uh comments and communication from Teamsters Dr B do you know we have somebody uh I don't see the teamers Tom here I'm sorry Tom's not here no he was okay um moving on to item 402 California School Employees Association uh Sharon sense her regards she wasn't able to make it today okay thank you moving on to item 403 alumrock Educators Association my book good evening esteem board members Dr Bower and Alam Rock Community last month we celebrated Black History Month students and Educators came to present to you the contributions African-Americans have made to our society area strongly believes that supporting our African-American population doesn't stop there area stands in solidarity with black Educators students and families in the district who have been experiencing racism discrimination and harm in schools we ask the district to honor its commitment to recruit and retain black Educators as outlined in the black lives matter at the school board resolution passed in 2020 the next area I would like to open the board's eyes to is putting people over product Osa in intervention Specialists are dedicated to helping our most vulnerable population this year I have visited many sites and classrooms observing the phenomenal work our educators are doing I have witnessed firsthand the important and crucial strategies that osas have taught our students to put into their educational jar of resources students that are one two three grade levels behind are strategically using graphic organizers outlining sentences and going over checklists double-checking not only their work but also the questions to make sure that they are answering what is being asked we need major change this is part of that change I go back to the time I started in alumrock saloner 9 years ago no sorry back in 2005 20 200 five I can do math how did we increase our students academic knowledge was it a computer program wasn't an iPad no it was people over product we had people multiple people at sites as intervention teachers these teachers pulled small groups and also helped us as Educators on a professional level review data look at where we were and where we wanted to go shout out to Jim Vinson and Gloria kosa who were huge proponents and like alamro royalty right right and many others that worked with Educators as professionals and guided us to higher knowledge and students that excelled cutting toses in this time is not going to help our students it will hurt them taking away productive and useful intervention practices when we just started is business as usual when it comes to long-term planning moving to the next shiny thing before we even see the results that is working with the intervention after just going through the lcap process there is $27 million in the budget that's allocated to help our eel Foster and homeless youth area tosas work in small groups to help these students reach their full potential again people over product I implore you to take another look and find a way to fund this sacred delicate and productive workpace that is helping so many of our students in schools now if I may take a second and speak from my heart this week has been unbearably hard there are so many things that have come up and pulled me in so many directions as our schools that are declining in enrollment so are our sites teachers are being moved year after after year up and down grade levels this movement is due to a few factors one loading of classes article 10 in the collective bargaining agreement between the alumrock school district and area list class size just in it it says maximum TK K 20 K through 3r 24 4 through 8 31 bilingual 30 combination 28 I don't know how to define this any clearer maximum as an adjective as great high or intense as possible or permitted as a noun the greatest or highest amount possible to or attained the exact definition gave the example of the maximum number of students in a class is 32 adverb at the most post-pandemic educators are seeing a higher and higher need of students by loading class sizes over the maximum and paying a penalty to the teacher is a penalty to the students learning environment overages over the maximum are supposed to be an extreme or intense situation like the definition states by cramming more students into classrooms May save the district an educator but at the cost of a burnt out educator and you are affecting the students ill ability inability to get one-on-one attention because class sizes are too big and lastly the cost of the district's overall budget payments on Tuesday I was blindsided with multiple emails from overburdened Educators that be be that are being told they now have one more thing added to their plate teachers are professionals we are planning yard duing teaching attending trainings attending 35 hours of staff meetings after school interventions committee work School site Council nurses student seal being a psychiatrist a psychologist a doctor a mom a friend an IT Tech for students and ourselves when our equipment doesn't work oh yeah and by the way teach the daily life of an educator has changed we are no longer in the 1950s teaching has evolved in The Last 5 Years to things most people would not recognize we no longer have textbooks workbooks and easily accessible curriculum everything we do is internet based what happens when that goes down when devices don't work when programs fail the daily life of a teacher is based on many outlying factors need a worksheet look it up they're not easily accessible once you find it you got to print it oh by the way for the last year and a half at Chavez my printer never worked I put in work orders and I never got a new one the district solution connect me to another classroom or the front office is there paper in their printer is is their paper in the office if I stay too late do I have access to get it from that classroom or from the office sometimes no one was there after I printed it then once I printed it I needed it to be copied but we're limited to 500 clicks a month we are professionals what is the district's goal area came to the district to work out collaboration to move us to the next stage in intervent in education we have a curricul Council that joined some teachers wanting to work on curriculum the meetings had been switched and in so we no longer have the attendance we did we are a district that provides its teachers with an adopted curriculum yet this template asks for standards what lesson what page etc etc the template has 72 boxes 72 boxes that's two times the amount of some of the report cards we fill out what is going to be mandated to be filled out one box asks for supplemental materials used however the district is taking away teacher autonomy and not allowing us to choose our supplemental materials next year this form is contradictory this form is timec consuming and will do the exact opposite of what we fight for as Educators demanding that Educators take time away from lesson prep creating in order to fill in boxes is demeaning do employees at the district office turn in calendars every week to the superintendent how are they being held accountable for supporting our students and Educators if you would treat us like professional if you would treat us like professionals board members direct the district to allow us to use our professional development days at the end of this year and the beginning of next year to map and plan with our grade levels and subject matter Partners in our curriculum let us do our job and work with the students and work with the meat and potatoes not the pile of paperwork that will be turned into an administrator and then be filed under never and be filed and never looked at with no feedback providing bringing back collaboration days where we can discuss where our students are at and where they need to be what important next steps and re redirections need to adjust is what we need now this is where I had originally stopped my speech but upon listening to the comments during made during the aptitude section I am extremely ashamed that board members blame the teachers for the reasons why we do not have students let's discuss full day Kinder I have been in this District since 2005 I was at sper we had five Kinder classes fully enrolled five 5 * 25 125 we can do the math we worked with San Juan Bautista what did they provide everything the parents need and what Alam Rock has refused to provide full day Kinder is not the Cure putting it on the backs of the teachers to be babysitters for longer is not the Cure it is not an end all be parents need a full day program San Juan provided Child Care from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

76 move to approve by uh trusty fam and second by trusty Flores Shelton okay going to open it up for public comment at this time welcome back so that was for um now I'm here to talk to you about the importance of approving this contract um it's an academic and professional trip to Granada Spain aimed at the professional development of our bclad or bilingual teachers and those seeking that certification um as Dr Brower mentioned with its Rich history culture and linguistic diversity Granada offers a unique experience that will enrich our skills in teaching Spanish and integrating cultural diversity into the classroom uh this trip will allow us as Educators to immerse ourselves in an environment where we can refine our language skills learn new teaching methodologies and establish connections with International colleagues uh teachers holding the bilingual credential play a crucial role in our school Community by providing inclusive and Equitable education for all students but especially for our English Learners however since the return from the shutdown due to covid staff at Adelante 1 have felt a sense of stagnation in our dual emerging program despite the growing research supporting the benefits of bilingual education such as improved cognitive development and higher academic performance in multiple areas so I think this trip will strengthen our ability to address the needs of our students and promote their academic success therefore please consider this proposal this contract favorably as it will be an investment in us as teachers and most importantly the learning and growth of our students thank you for your attention good evening again um first I want to um address um trusty Chavez today sitting down here and listening to all the deficits and money that we are having um I had the same feeling like oh okay I'm asking for something but here we are and we need all this money but knowing that it comes from a different fund um I just hope that you can reconsider um so again I'm a teacher at Adelante teach second grade um and I would like to speak in favor of the Caminos program um this program will afford professional development for us bilingual teachers like myself and it will teach us about International methods and strategies of teaching and learning language so that we can improve the way that we teach currently um however this experience is not only limited to learning me different methods but also understanding other cultures from um the international perspective um this experience would only not only benefit me but it also help um help my students and it will also help my colleagues um through collaboration um during um local PD in our our sites so I appreciate you voting yes tonight um to consider this um this uh proposal thank you thank you hi good evening everyone um I just want to say this is the type of innovation and um strategies that we need to be employing here in alumrock we are using the appropriate funding to support this and I feel that in order to make sure we are following the guiding principles of dual language and also supporting foreign language developments here in our district we really need to immerse our teachers in this experience it is one thing to be bilingual it is something else to be a dual language teacher um it is something else to be a foreign language teacher they need to know these strategies and skills and here in Alam Rock we are not linguistic oppressors right we want to make sure our students are using their linguistic repertoire to make sure they are accessing curricula make sure they're accessing things in whichever language they're learning in so I highly support this and feel that it is a great opportunity for teachers and I hope you support it thank you good evening for member superintendent B and my name is maras and I teach kind school um I I'm going to answer the question what I want to go to Camino's program I want to attend the Camino's program because this is a great opportunity to grow in my knowledge and apply what I will learn in my classroom this is in favor of our students I will be give me it will give me methodology and strategies that will help me to design teaching units that I can use with my students it will also help me to develop my work at the dual immersion school where I collaborate it will help me learn more about the needs and strengths of each student in terms of language social cultural and academic areas I want to support my students and encourage them to expand or increase their vocabulary and recognize the importance of using it in the best possible ways whether with the first language the second language Pro probably third language I want to support my students as much as possible in their oral and linguistic cognitive area my vocation as a teacher makes me create search explore and invent to ensure that childr learn and academically this opportunity will help us all the teacher that we are we were selected to grow ped pedagogically and upda myself as a teacher to continue supporting our students and for this I would like to pleas support this thank you good evening uh board members Dr Brower thank you for allowing me to speak my name is Jose cores I am the principal at Atlant to D Language Academy and I'm speaking on behalf of the communal program and I just want to start off by saying that for many years as a teacher um I was able I was fortunate enough to experience some transformative work at some of the sites that I had and I think some of the reasons for that was the amount of Capac capacity building amongst the staff that was available to us and the leadership that stood by us and worked with us through that training to build effective staff that serve the needs of our kids uh at our sites and um today I'm here before you asking for your support because I'd like to be exactly that for my staff they are very enthusiastic about being a part of this and I think that building that capacity and building that teacher leadership is very important and it's going to be um part of what takes Atalanta to to the next level and building our school and right raising it to the level that uh matches the potential of our students also research uh after research proves that the biggest factor in student outcomes is is teacher Effectiveness and this type of professional development as was pointed out in the um the presentation the scope of it is very robust and it's very thorough and it will definitely impact not only our teachers by making them more engaging them better which in turn will engage our students better it's just going to provide overall a better uh environment for Alamar students thank you thank you okay um bringing it back to questions and comments by the board trustee Chavez I did want to address Theodor Linda I think it's easier to say Theodor TOA anyways uh actually um I wanted to vote no because I thought that maybe the San Jose um uh State University uh I felt that they should pay their way but I I get it it's a good program and the fact that when you abstain it's actually not a no it's actually a yes but you just can't bring yourself to say yes because you have these reservations so yes I am in favor thank you any other questions or comments from the board all right see none we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand all right vote passes unanimously moving on to item 509 approve out of County Trav travel for Camino's program to Granada Spain May 31st through ji June 14th um move to approve by trusty Flor Shelton second for purposes moving forward um I'll second at this time uh opening up for comments from the public on this item okay seeing uh none we'll go ahead and bring it back to questions and comments from the board okay seeing none we'll bring it up to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand did you raise your hand sorry no okay uh vote passes uh by four all those um voting no on this item please show by raising your hand all those uh abstaining on this item please show your hand uh abstention from truste Flo I'm sorry Travis uh vote passes thank you so much item 510 approve out of County travel Ginos program Granada Spain for 12 teachers and three administrators move to approve move to approve by trustee bam second by Flores Shelton um I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment at this time on this item seeing them we'll go ahead and bring it back to the board any questions or comments from the board just one but I just how do you say happy travels in Spanish okay so so for I would just say felis VI nice Fel VI happy travels thank you all right um did we vot yet just a quick comment have we voted yet okay comment by vice president kto yeah no um yeah what is it bambo yeah say that um I think it's an excellent opportunity that's being provided to our staff uh to uh you know get a lot uh going to m it's going to be incredibly humid uh I have I had the privilege to go with my Spanish teacher actually uh because my mother who clean homes uh saw it uh as very very important to get me out of e San Jose which was my world and my only my universe and I saw our neighborhoods as our like dividing lines those are boundaries and people can't cross and it was through her um she essentially pushed me and said you're GNA go I'm like no you work really hard for your money G to take your money to go to Europe and she's like oh you're going to go so she sent me and it was very eye opening uh to see people uh produce you uh um important works that had uh similar last names to people that I know and as well as my own and things of that sort which were very very fascinating very eye opening that's obviously from respect of a high school kid but I know that you guys are going to get a lot out of it and build up on the on the knowledge that you already have and so it'll be very beneficial to our kids so um yeah uh safe travels like thank you uh vice president GTO and I just I think of the possibilities right to travel the world not just for our teachers um and administrator but also for our students I look forward to Growing this and hopefully getting funding and support you know for our students to travel the world I mean we have a Vietnamese learning um you know bilingual learning program as well would love to open it up for you know Vietnam and all the other opportunities that I see for our um District so thank you Dr Bower and all the other staff who worked hard you know including all those who applied to this program and took the time to fill out the applications um and you know I look forward to hearing back from you all and seeing pictures um so with that let's bring it to a vote uh all those in favor of this item please raise your hand all right item passes unanimously B Fel V enjoy your travel okay um item 601 approv second interim financial report C welcome to the podium good evening uh mam board president members of the board and superintendent Dr Bower um tonight I'll be presenting the uh second interum report and with that we'll talk about uh the key assumptions in building the second in report um we'll also discuss the multi-year projection and then uh go over some next steps and future consideration um the first assumptions you've seen this chart before um this is our uh chart from our demographic studies um that shows the enrollment projections uh out through 20 2027 through 2028 um the current year the projection showed uh 7,376 um as you may recall when I presented the first interim back in December um at that point I shared with you the warm body count which was 7,41 um so we're tracking pretty close to the um demographic study um it does show a continued Trend in declining enrollment um going into next year from from 7,376 this year to 7,093 next year and then 6,810 the following year um with that disar discharge just shows you um the number of of decreases from one year year to another um as you can see in 2425 um when compared to this year um we're going to be losing about 308 students and then in 2526 when compared to next year um we'll also be losing about the 283 students um another significant impact or change from first interim to Second interim I shared with you that um you know the cola was going to be um increasing um from when the budget uh the state approved the budget back in June to when uh the state put out their budget proposal in January uh for next year um as you can see for 2324 which is the um the first block um there's no change in Cola there but there is a uh slight uh reduction in lcff dollars to the tune of about $118,000 uh these are adjustment um uh due to various factors um in 2425 this is the the significant impact of the um change in Cola um in the enacted budget the cola was at 3.94 um in January when the governor proposed his budget um that Cola was prod reduced to 76 which is about a little over 3% in reduction um in terms of dollar amount um that 3% or a little over 3% redu reduction in Cola um equates to about almost $3.5 million in reduction um in lcff dollar um and then in 2526 um in the enactive budget the cola was 3.29 um at the January budget proposal um that number went down to 2.73% which is a 0.56% increase or decrease in Cola um but the impact to in terms of dollar amount you can see there um it's close to $4 million um in reduction in total lcff dollar so if you look at just a 2-year period in 2425 and 25 26 that's about $7.5 million in reduction in lcff due to the reduction in Cola um this chart here just shows your comparison um and and from year to year in terms of lcff dollars um you'll see this year the total lcf enement is a little over 4 million um next year in 2425 um lcff dollars uh will be reduced dramatically and mainly this is due to uh declining enrollment uh you'll see that um when you compare this year to last year um you'll see that uh the reduction in lcff dollars is about $5.7 million and then going into 2526 um again the lcf enement will decrease um to the tune of about almost $1.7 million when compared to uh this year I mean 2425 so other uh Revenue in terms of state revenue um in our budget is the onetime learning recovery Grant um that's approximately almost $11 million um in that onetime funding um the onetime AR music instructional material discretionary block rant um approximately 4.6 million in our budget um you may recall that the board approved um this plan back in January and then the other uh big pot of money that we get is the elop money this is for um these are grants to provide services for after school um before school intercession uh summer school um this year's allocation is about $1.4 million um other big pots of money that we re iiz is the partial tax um to the tune of about $4.6 million and then lastly on the revenue um the the big part is the sr3 um which will be exhausted this year and that amount is about $10 million in the current year um moving over to the expenditure side um we'll start with the c Pur rate um this year the rate is 26.68% eight and then in year 2526 uh 28.5 uh for Cow St rate these are um pensions for certificated staff um this year the rate is 19.1 um actually for all three years is 19.1 so no changes to the cowers rate um over the three-year period you have any idea why the differen is between the the amount in cers and cers is it the people get or is it related to how while they manage your finances um a little bit of both um the the I forgot which one it was but one of the one of the board has more flexibility in terms of whether they can uh change the rate from one year to another the other one needs to be I believe approved by like a vote or something oh okay um so one one pension has more flexibility um they do an actuary um in terms of what it's going to cost and what their investment is um generating then based on that they fluctuate their rates from year to year um yeah um also in the budget is uh the increase for the S column for all three years um special ed um as you know um continue to increase this um from one year to another so we built into those increases for all three years um there's is a requirement for us to contribute um 3% of our total budget to uh maintain our schools um to allocate those funds into the routine restricted maintenance account um and that's a requirement for all three years as well um due to the cining enrollment we've built in a reduction of 10 certificated FTE for uh 2024 25 um again um in 25 26 um we've also uh buil with in 10 um reduction in certificated staff um and regarding uh the S fund starting in 2425 um all salaries that have been been paid out of Sr funds um in the restricted general fund would now be moved back into the unrestricted general fund um starting in next year's budget and then in 2526 there's a $12.5 million in other adjustment um in the unrestricted general fund um that is to utilize um the $10.9 million in learning loss I mean learning recovery Grant and then uh and 1.6 of it uh will be either a reduction in other costes or um to uh identified other funding sources uh to be determined later so with those assumptions um this is a multi-year projection uh for the unrestricted general fund uh you see that we're starting this year with about $39 uh million in reserve um we're projected to receive a little over 20 $124 million in total revenue um with a total expenditures of close to $94 million um bringing um incurring a 2.6 um million uh spend down in reserve uh which brings our Reserve to uh 36 about $ 36.3 million um at the end of this year um going into next year uh we're projecting our total revenue to be about $18.3 million um a total expenditures of um $14.5 million um spending down the reserve um in the tune of about $20.8 million which draws a reserve uh from 36.3 to about 15.5 um and then moving into 2526 um projecting to um generate about $116.5 million in total revenue um 92.1 uh in total expenditures um which includes the other adjustment of $12.5 million um and at the end of that year we're projecting to end um that year with a ending fund balance of about 4.6 which is um right near our 3% requirement um moving over to the restricted general fund um you'll see that uh we we're starting this year with about $32.8 million um projecting a total revenue of approximately $48.5 million uh with a total um expenditures of 114.4 um and then ending the year um with no um carryover um and then in 2425 we're project ing um total revenue of about 27.3 um total expenditure is about 6.9 million and ending the year um with uh with zero carryover or any funds and then lastly um the last year 25 26 um we're projecting a total revenue of approximately 27 26.7 million um total expenditures of $62 million and um ending the year with uh withdraw any fund balance with that in terms of um next steps um as I mentioned earlier um you know we'll be waiting for the May Revis to come out to give us um some more firm numbers to build our budget on um terms of Revenue um and then we'll be conducting the public hearing and also the adoption of budget um in June with that uh I be happy to take any questions thank you thank you you um and if it's okay I'll open it up for public comment and then bring it back to us for questions and comments from the board anybody would wishing to address the public the board from the public at this time on this item okay CM we'll bring it back to the board any questions or comments from the board okay seea uh we'll go ahead and bring it to um and do I have any motion move approval of the second interim financial support report move to approve by trustey Flor Shelton second by vice president kto all right and uh I'll go ahead and bring it to the vote all those in favor please show by raising your hand okay all those uh voting no on this item please show by raising your hand okay uh vote passes 4 to one um truste uh Chavez voting no on this item thank you uh Mr CA all right um moving on to 602 approve resolution 4023 24 approve move to approve by vice president ginto second second by uh trustee Flores Shelton I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment at this time any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item Dr bar was there presentation or anything there's no presentation but there is a resolution and so um I don't know if you want me to read the resolution or you want to read the resolution just so that the public knows what you're approving okay so I'm going to go ahead and read it um whereas a Board of Trustees just make sure yes um of the Alamar Elementary School District has a fiduciary duty to meet its Financial Obligations in the current fiscal year and two subsequent fiscal years pursuant to educ code 42127 whereas the alen rock un Elementary School District continues to experience severe declining enrollment and is projected to continue with this trend in the foreseeable future years whereas included in the district's current budget is one-time federal funds to address a covid-19 pandemic of approximately $10 million in fiscal year 2324 whereas the cost of living adjustment was reduced from 3.94 to.

students were brought to the campus during their class time when did the enrollment go down after we switched to extended day when those programs weren't being offered the district failed the Educators as well to hire highly qualified AIDS who wants to work for $16 an hour 2 hours a today any of the board members $32 before taxes shame on you for again blaming the district's inability to provide what both the teachers and the students need on the backs of the teachers you want a full day Kinder program programs meeting before school during the school day and after school care as a working parent it isn't about the 6-hour day that the child child was in my classroom go to think together go to YMCA and demand that they offer the support that the students need and do not blame the teachers thank you Alam Rock administrators Association do we have any we the current president is under the weather she she wasn't able to make it thank you I'll move on to your report superintendent thank you so much I want to thank um everybody who make comments tonight um I know that it's very that it is the support that that students need and it's again one of those difficult decisions we're still trying to figure out how we're going to be able to continue to provide the support to some extent perhaps not to the to the level that we have it right now but it goes back to that same conversation um there's there are so many things that are very complex when we are um trying to talk to each other about the needs of children and about the needs of families and I don't want to for any reason be misinterpreted I was in the classroom 12 years my daughter is a classroom teacher it is a very challenging job very very challenging job and Sandra was correct when she said the classroom of today does not look like the classroom especially me because I'm a little old lady people like the classroom that I attended as a child so we're trying to work the best we can to be able to continue to provide services and to continue to have an alarm Rock to where we can have schools and families and students these are very challenging times very very challenging times and I hear what everybody said to today I I I'm not just ignoring it um I want to in the midst of these I also want to honor the tremendous effort that everybody did during March March Madness um just a week ago um to see the kids playing to C the the people there uh the parents and everybody um it just warms my heart because a lot of everybody was giving up their time to be there so thank you teachers who were there thank you families who were there and thank you administrators who were there um sometimes it is one of those jobs that nobody notices but when we're not around people notice right when somebody when a principal is not around teachers need that uh support so I want to thank the principal um for being there and for the rest of the staff uh from it to um district office people thank you so much for making that happen because it's about kids um thank you very much guys this these are very rough very rough times for me as a as a professional um I'm trying very hard to sustain sometimes what is unsustainable and um believe it or not I have feelings believe it or not I have feelings and there have been a lot of comments about me that have been very harsh tonight um but above all even the people who don't like me very much right now I love you I love you with from the bottom of my heart otherwise I would not be here I do have a choice I have said that many many times I have a choice and it just so happened that my choice is to be your superintendent and maybe one day that was not going to be your choice and that's okay too that's totally fine you know um I have tried my best um to bring Alam Rock to a new level and I have not done that alone a number of you have been with me in this journey and we need to move to the next level because I do want to be invited to the Centennial as I mentioned I'm a little old lady I'm not going to be your superintendent when you celebrate a 100 years but I want to be invited and I want to be in that celebration even if I'm sitting just on a chair that's totally fine I want Al Rock to be here to serve this community because this community is not going to go away thank you so much guys sorry about the you know about this but um sometimes I just need to to express what I'm feeling thank you thank you moving on to to uh Board of Trustees Communications or comments from trustees trusty fam well I know there's always that giggle so I am well thank you madam president uh I will say it's been a busy month since the last board meeting right so uh you know part of this job is you know being the community's representative and was it in the since since last board meeting I was a judge at the East Side Union High School District stem paloa I had the great opportunity to be a celebrity judge to see our you know how our graduates did how they compete once they graduate from our district and I want to say that you know they they're doing great things I think that you know we've done we've done a good job in preparing them and we've given them a foundation to do bigger and better things when they when they receive their eighth grade diploma from here I you know uh the the the Tet Festival on February 17th you know to to ring in the uh Lunar New Year uh assembly member leagues Black History Month event uh you know we want to you know my commitment is has always been that Alan walk is the greater than to some of its parts and I want to honor you know and continue to honor and keep our word to you know our africanamerican Educators and our efforts to uh keep in rettin African American Educators as well as providing you know a re a re relevant and rigorous and Equitable to the extent possible education for not just our africanamerican American students but for all our students um you know last weekend you know I I I will get to March madum I'll go through uh the county school boards Association uh annual legislative branch uh it was a great panel we had uh was it two members of Congress uh two state senators three assembly members two County Supervisors and you know uh uh although I you know I you know it was always good to say hear ideas and bounce ideas off of our colleague trustees in the other districts but also you know there are there is some news from Sacramento that you know all is not well you know and I will you know and I will uh sum it up with the words of state Senator John lard who is the chair of the Senate budget Senate bud Comm in who said you know don't tell you know don't tell that to me we're negoti you know you're just negotiating you know with yourselves here you know and I guess that that sums up the the situation in Sacramento as I as I understand it uh was it March uh it was a always a pleasure to be at March March Madness you know uh you know and I sort of great to my colleagues and the superintendent in their cabinet that for some reason or another I've you know I I uh play the role of Mr Alam Rock so it's you know always a pleasure to be at Courtside to see our see our kids uh you know uh congratulations to uh Joseph Jo the Joseph George uh boys basketball team who won who won in overtime 20 to 24 they had that second win H and uh was it Okala girlss basketball team who takes home their fifth consecutive March Madness title uh you know and I want to give a a special uh what is it a special mention to the Joseph George Mean Green Machine Drumline who performed at halftime it was a wonderful show as well as a special men to uh uh the shepher cheerleading squad who qualifies as their own uh who qualifies as their own uh I should say honorary member of the Shephard basketball team because they they alone cost Jo they alone cost Joseph George 13 free throws there so uh but at the end of the day I think that you know as I've always said you know uh uh I visited every school morning you know more than I can count on my hands I physically attend as many district events as possible and it's you know part of it is encouraging alen rockers to come back to alen rock whether it's you know uh sports or music it you know it's uh I know our district has a lot to offer our kids and the thing and you know and I hope in my own actions and the actions of my colleagues and the actions of superintendent now and her Administration that we continue to do what we can to you know invite Alan rockers back to uh Alan Rock uh you know it's you know uh you know and so I encourage you know you know all of all of alam Rock to come out next month and see our kids for uh Copita later in April and and I want to leave you know uh make two last points the first point is you know uh there was a comment about you know te you know uh our priority being teaching our children and you know not so much teacher housing you know as I've always said the the first priority of uh the Alam Rock School District is to educate our children now it costs money to educate our children so that's why Alam rock is concerned about teacher housing and that's because it's a opportunity to uh be able to use our resources in a way that generates Revenue so that we can pay our teachers and keep up our schools and maintain programs right uh the whole point of it is I don't want to you know uh you know at you know as superintendent V said she wants to be invited to the Centennial I'd like to be invited to the Centennial too but I also want to make sure that you know uh that Centennial isn't you know once again plagued by the question of school closures down the line and the best way to prevent that is you know as I you know and I think my uh my good friend board vice president Quintero of you know bringing that suggestion to the uh in the first place uh and I also at the end want to close you know I was at the aptitude meeting and yes uh you know and I want to make how I how should I say this a call for civility um school closures or any big changes in the district you know are necessarily going to create uh hard feelings I get that uh but I I want to uh but I I did notice that there were some coms that were leveled at the person and not the policy and I I want to uh say that you know uh we may not all be perfect but let us let us try to you know argue on the policy and not the person you know after all we all have to we all have to live in the same Community right just like uh what is it uh e even though it C you know it's costing a few fingers but we all have to be sometimes we we need each other at the food Max on at the corner of story and white trying to pick up a box of Cocoa Puffs there you know we we have to be able to live in this even when we disagree we have to live in the same community so I I do want to close with uh you know disagree with the policy yes but please please let you you know let us let's not attack each other on a on a personal level and as I've said you know uh I said I make my commitment to doing you know that's why I was elected this this board to do everything I can in partnership with my colleague trustees to you know keep this District afloat so that you know we get to the sentenal and Beyond you know and that's about and I said working working with all our teachers and all our classified staff you know our parents and you know our children too and our uh to you know uh let us you know come up with a maen alam Rock solution to our problem so with that I you know that's my update for the month and I Ed my time Madam president thank you any others all right the only thing I'll um highlight is uh it was great to um attend the FL raising ceremony on the first day of the Vietnamese year um and uh thank our neighboring uh trustee monly for the invitation and her organization for um creating that and uh having that for our community um and I won't uh spend more time on the March Madness other than congratulations on the Champions and every other student that uh played out there I know you all did your best um and although I attended some of the games I wasn't considered missing is Alam Rock but you know maybe next year I'll get that title and looking forward um to you know the goita as well and all the other um opportunities to see our students uh succeed out there um in addition to academically um and you know also want to um thank for everyone who exercised their vote the right to vote you know our ancestors some lost their lives to do that so um thank you you know who uh all those who took the time to vote um this past March 5th and last but not least just an invitation to mishika New Year our Aztec New Year Ceremony this weekend beginning tomorrow with Cali native night Sunrise ceremony on Saturday um and then also ceremony on Sunday at Emma push Park this year we celebrate uh 12 debot which is uh 12 Flint um and it's a year that brings illumination Clarity and serenity and uh you know uh it generates many ideas that spark important conversations that elevate our Consciousness um and may we all search for meaning and truth and be transparent so that we may focus on what is necessary as we move forward together as a community so I look forward to seeing you all out there uh bring your families you'll have a great time um and with that we'll go ahead and move on to item 501 I'm sorry I'd like to interrupt I'm sorry you did wanted to say something yes because we need say happy birthday to our president Corina ataa thank you happy birthday to you we don't need to be thank you and I want to say um personally how proud I was to um to support you and um proud of how you represented um us all um in your bid for County supervisor and um it just was you you make you made me very proud and I just really appreciate you um you know putting your your neck out there in a in a tough environment and wanting to continue to be a representative for us at the county so um congratulations on your campaign and while it may not have put you into the next round um we look forward to your leadership here I look forward I I look forward to your continued leadership here so thank you for again um um your very very strong um inspiring attempt so thank you thank you thank you truste Flor Shelton um okay and with that President really quick apologize happy birthday to you as well you know Echo everything it said um I sorry about that I should have jumped in earlier I got selected to participate in a committee that does um scholarships for the Mexican council is running this uh here the Mexican counil here in s uh they wanted to remind us as a district to encourage our children to participate in an upcoming uh competition that the Mexican foreign Ministry has for children to um do artwork so they get uh they get um entries from all over the world and it actually doesn't have to be Mexican kids it could be kids from any ethnicity race whatever uh and as long as they go ahead and they provide their perspective on how they New Mexico everything has a they have a theme for everything see life and stuff of that sort so it'll be coming out shortly and uh the console General herself said hey if we can encourage as many kids as possible for Mel Rock to submit uh because it's been about 10 years since the last time they got a child for some said to be showcasing their your annual calendar that they put out and they goes out all over the world they hand out those calendars so um just wanted to make sure to put a pitch in for for any teachers out there to encourage their children and have the district U pass along the information to get the kids to participate trusty Chavez um sorry you went by the comment so quickly that you weren't looking over here almost jumped out of the seat and for your information you're not old Dr Bower especially since I'm older than you but um I would like to see maybe uh the amount or the cost of what the cost is for the tosas and because I see several things on the agenda that we're going to vote for and like the Galileo program was excellent and the kids had so much fun but I believe in my mind that we need it uh we need to toast us more than we need the activities after school and maybe there's other things that we could do to to keep maybe all or some but uh if you can give us the number on that and maybe we know what we're looking at thank you um May I respond just because uh so that everybody gets to know right yes um the items that are coming up are all part of specific fund funds uh and specifically things like Galileo the spring break all of those are part of the Extended Learning opportunities Grant yeah so you know that has been one of those challenges for us we had um conversation with um board Senator Cory and assembly member calra to ask them you know to to do some other stuff at the state level to be able to flex some of this and and I want to I want in trans I want to share this not only with the board but with the entire community so that we are able to utilize those funds in different ways and um very kind staffer you know I'm not going to say who that was but she did a lot of work research and things like that came back with no can do so um I wish truthfully that we had more flexibility in our budget that was the intent for the lcff to have a real local uh uh control right and in some of these programs that are coming down and I don't promise they're going to be there by the end of May because that they're looking into some of that so just so that that for to remind you because I know you know but to let the public know that sometimes those are the huge challenges es that we have that we have some funds that cannot be used any other way and we want we are I know you do we all want the best we want to purchase great programs we want to have great activities um and that's what we're what we have been doing with this funds yeah yeah just a quick reminder uh you know and I know we covered this in our oneon-one with assistant superintendent Chang with just a a reminder about about uh bringing the bo you know I had suggested it some time ago but bringing an update to the board about the about the ability to increase developer fees as a again as a way to generate some revenue for this District so that that's it thank you yeah I just had one more um announcement to my colleagues and a and a thank you so the city of San Jose has been in the throws of developing a Children and Youth master plan and I want to thank um superintendent for your staff who've been engaged in a very robust planning process and many in our um Community Network the c collective and others so it's that plan is coming to city council April 9th and there's a um there is a um and the mayor's budget message came out two days ago it's been it's been quite a week um and it called it did say that that when the plan the plan should come back with an implementation plan that includes the two demonstration sites one of which is in our district and so that's the hoko way Mayfair area so I just wanted to bring awareness to my colleagues about the children youth master plan that it's coming to the plane is landing we're all very excited about that and then see what that means for um our community thanks all right moving on to item 5.01 I will say thank thank you Mr Vice President uh you know this is my item uh you know first of all me let me here it is so uh you know let me you know open with you know first of all let me say I want to validate the work you know the work you do superintendent bow the work your cabinet does the work that every administrator does in this District uh the work of every principal and assistant principal and coordinator I mean you know uh em Emily mcchristian did a heck of a job at March Madness for her first time out so I want to acknowledge that right and this is you know uh the work of a school administrator is also very hard I want to validate that you know it is sometimes making tough recommendations and tough decisions and uh you know and I know that sometimes you kind of feel like uh you're in a rocking a hard place between the Comm the community this you know uh the major stakeholders of the district and yes the board so I I want to open with that validation um so it is in that's you know in light of in light of the you know financial situation I bring fourth res you know resolution number 4423 sl24 uh you know to enact the freeze on the hiring of administrator positions through June 30th 2025 you know this is a temp I want to stress that this is a temporary measure I've Al as I've earlier said that it's the the highest priority of any school district is the provision of classroom education and the supporting services associated with instruction uh and that you know I it is our desire desire to protect students and families from Financial disruptions and maintain its commitment to the faculty and classified staff to the extent possible and in in reflection of the uh board resolution number [Music] uh you know uh the board uh freezes the number of certificated administrators at the level of 48 full-time equivalents and the number of classified supervisors and administrators at the level of 49 full-time equivalents uh per the uh 2023 2024 first interim report adopted on December 14th of 2023 and that this uh you know uh this freeze uh takes you know takes effect uh on the date as of the passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 uh and be it further resolved that there will be no further appointment of Administrators and supervisors beyond the limits enumerated from above uh from the date of passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 and be it further resolved that no further administrator super supervisorial and confidential positions be created from the date of passage of this resolution through June 30th 2025 I said you know this is this is about you know as I earlier said uh finding efficiencies in the district office you know where we can and also you know and also I want to stress that this is a this is a temporary measure right and you know hoping for better economic news you know sometime down the road uh and you know and we can you know re you know revisit you know hopefully we would don't have to enact an another freeze but again let's you know uh for now let's you know uh as I said swapping at the Egg McMuffins for corn flakes so uh it is with that that I uh bring forth this item to my colleagues for consideration tonight is that a motion and I motion to to approve motion by trusty fam and second by vice president kto um at this point I'll open it up for public comment on this item seeing no public comment I open open it up for questions and comments from the board I'll give you time 1001 all right seeing none at this time we'll go ahead and move to the vote all those in favor uh please raise your hand all right vote passes unanimously thank you so much uh moving on to item 503 update on RFP affordable housing developers Dr B we don't have an update tonight no update tonight thank you moving on to 504 20 uh 2024 ballot for csba delegate assembly um so we have a list motions accept it motion by uh vice president to uh to put forward the names of the people that we want to support are you putting forward a name or name no it's four of them so Cates unless the board wants to only vote for one person or we can vote for four move that we support Isabelle jubis flck Jody Mirad Carol prka and Jessica sper all right uh moved by vice president kto and second by trustee Chavez all right um I'm going to open it up to public comments at this time on this item seeing none we'll go ahead and open it up for comments or questions from the board truste quick question so are these um we are seeking to have them replace the people on the next page that expire in 2024 so like patter yeah so what they would do is they're the ones who qualified unless we go ahead and do writing but at this point those people haven't reached out they haven't informed us that they're interested in running sometimes people forget to submit the paperwork and it happens it's not like uh you know out of the ordinary but in this case I haven't heard anything and so I would go ahead and move forward with the individuals who qualified um there are two people from the same district trying to run for the same position I don't think it's in good taste to have one District take up too many spots I would note that it's unfortunate that we've lost the voice from E from the East side where no longer running um that's why I think it's important to maintain communication throughout you know because this is a very important body and these folks are the ones who go up uh and um speak on behalf of us to the csba the policymaking body so so unfortunately we lost L Chavez um but we still got some good people there that will be able to carry our message forward okay any other questions or comments from the board before we vote okay uh let's move to a vote all those in favor please uh show raise your hand vote passes unanimously all right moving on to item 505 approve out of state travel Association of Latino administrators and superintendent uh Washington DC on Capitol Hill speaking of speak speaking on speaking about um support this is the association of Latino administrators and superintendent have invited several years in the past and because one thing or the other I have not been able to attend this meeting in Capitol Hill um because of the great need of um reform in terms of funding for special ed and because alumrock has a significant amount of special ed students they have asked me to see to see if the board allows me to go and speak on behalf of that in Capitol Hill on March um 20 motion to 22 motion to approve 24hour this is a 24-hour trip motion by trusty fam second second by trusty Flor Shelton I'm going to go ahead and open up for questions and comments from the public see none bringing it back to the trustees any questions and comments from the board truste Chavez um I was thinking about voting for it before but now that I see such a need for the funding for the Tulsa I I just can't see spending on it thank you trust F I just say you know I I think it's important to to Lobby where we can for the district you know this I you know and as we discussed in our one in one this is an opportunity for the Dr Bower to meet you know see our federal elected representatives and you know tell them about our our issues and you know see how you know we maybe out some you know get something out of it as I always said you know lobby lobby lobby so uh with that bone voage and I wish Dr Bower all the best in Washington DC if we pass it let's see any other questions or comments from the board vice president GTO yeah no you folks are well aware of expressed my concerns about uh resources and and money um I do believe that it's important to support organizations like um like alas uh because it's through them that we can go ahead and push collectively um and so it's for that reason that I would be supportive of of this uh measure even though we are facing some tough Economic Times and so um I would be supportive of this action anybody else okay CNN we'll go ahead and bring it up to the vote um all those in favor please show raise your hands at this time and I'm guessing you raise your hand okay just want to make sure all right uh four pass uh or I'm sorry 44 um all those against raise your hand and one against thank you motion passes thank you all right moving on to 507 approve memorandum of understanding between s State University and alen rock move to approve by trusty fam second second by vice president GTO opening it up for public comment at this time um anybody wish wishing to address the board on this item okay seeing none I'll go ahead and bring it to questions and comments from the board uh trusty chis uh for the same reason I won't be voting on this because I believe that the money should be spent TOS us thank you any other questions or comments from the board see you them we'll go ahead and bring uh I say you know part of it is uh you know I I you know uh see it a little differently this uh this program is about you know professional development for for our dual immersion program uh it's a program that brings in the enrollment and uh if we can develop those programs further I hope to see you know it will help with bringing more Alam rockers back to Alum Rock so it is for those reasons I'll I'll be supporting theou with San Jose State thank you thank you uh Trust Flor Shelton um I I would it would help me if if someone could just kind of discuss how 789 10 are a package so I can decipher all this yeah I have a presentation uh it should I think it should be under theou because theou isn't really money right it will be it will be it could be it could be yes but right now it's not right right the the other ones are right and so if I may present the program Caminos to the board I think that would be good because it will then give us a presentation information for the next all of the other ones okay and I just want to make sure I think five is not in that bundle correct five has nothing to do with the 7 507508 not 5 507 508 and 59 seven yeah I meant 50 507 508 and 509 all of them are connected they're all connected but you need to take action different separately separately yeah so thisor I'm sorry I don't know you that's okay if you're ready to do the presentation I'll just I am um so program Caminos is for Multicultural multi uh lingual professional development we open this uh opportunity throughout the district to see um number one to provide support for the two adante acmis they have been asking for specific professional development for them tailored to them and so this was an attempt to do that um this came as a result of a collaboration for some from somebody who used to work in Alum Rock who is now in Spain and he called me and said it would be a great opportunity if we had a interch interchange between um Spain and the adanies in terms of professional development so next slide please following our vision statement around um making sure that we're preparing the kids for a diverse and competitive world and our mission statement about making sure the kids are in uh ready for 21st uh learning next slide please and as part of our strategic plan if you see one of the sides of the triangle talk about Multicultural multilingual education next slide please so this professional development opportunity we had a one-time fund called educator Effectiveness the district received 1.9 million to do nothing for but professional development we cannot use it for salaries we cannot use it to save schools we we cannot use it in any other way and it's a one-time only fund so we set aside of in addition to all the different professional development opportunities we have provided the the district 70,000 for this pilot program next slide please I just wanted to clarify where this money is coming from so we want to make sure that we're providing professional development that allows teachers to learn the most updated Trends and topics in the area of bilingual and multi Multicultural education that they become trainer of trainers so that they can come back and present uh their learnings to the um to the rest of their of the staff and with our efforts as a district in terms of equity and inclusion through the the ethnic uh studies topics the thrust of this professional development it's around that concept is not only in terms of pedagogical strategies on how to teach to languages better but also the understanding of languages and how we need to uh honor and support not only Spanish or English but any other language in the many manifestations of those languages according to communities um many times uh speaking of um people having a little bit of bias uh we talk about well that's not really Spanish because Spanish is that that person has this accent or has different lexicon and things like that so this is an effort that has been permeating dual immersion programs to really and uh support and honor all kinds of Spanish that our students bring with them and it's the same thing with the English language so that students are able to honor and to say you know we need to respect each other and the way we speak and finally this has opened the opportunity for some of the current teachers in alumrock to obtain their bilingual teaching certificate many every year and you can ask Cesar now and before we have to hire bilingual staff because we don't have enough and we have in alumrock people who are able to get that certificate so that's another way of opening it to our current teachers so that they begin their path to obtaining that bilingual certificate as a matter of fact a couple of the people who applied and were selected for this particular program do not have their bilingual certificate but they want to further their study so that they can become part of it the other Innovation is that uh also one of our music teachers wants to be part of this Cadre to be able to to integrate in our music program you know a multicultural component to the kinds of music that are are uh students are exposed so those are the program goals next slide please very oops um this is going to have um uh four predeparture sessions with a professor uh from San Jose University and the the post sessions also with SOS state to create a professional Learning Community around this concept of bilingualism and multiculturalism the teachers that are going to be going to um to the people that are going to be going to Centro the langua Modas in Granada are going to be there for 10 days with full day sessions around this concept and there's a whole you know um list of things that they're going to be um studying um so this is the program component um this is what we're bringing before you it is very restricted funding it's an opportunity for us uh sometimes we have to uh pay other people you know to help us recruit by lingual teachers a good Hefty amount of money and when we do the math the 70 70,000 total with room and board and you know uh in uh we include the the travel there um it it is a very uh economic way of providing a very robust uh program for a very good number of teachers uh when we you you just saw the the travel to DC for me for one day in the states it's close to two you know it's over 2,000 um this is for not only the two weeks but the extended time with San Jose State University for the amount of money we're getting a very good deal in terms of um of the program thank you trusty Chavis I have a question um on item five um in section four it says alen Rock will pay the travel cost to Granada for the San Jose State University faculty in charge of the what are you reading I'm sorry five I'm reading um in section four number five okay and where it says Alam Rock will pay for the travel cost to Granada for the San Jose State University faculty yes so is there any way around that they could pay for their faculty versus alen Rock pain for them I can certainly ask yes yeah I can certainly is that cost if we separate that that would be about 4,000 because it's room and board and all of that so 4,000 each or four it's only one Professor it's only one person Professor from s State yes I don't need correction so it's only one person the 4,000 for the airfare Local transportation accommodations and the course instruction costs 4,000 total because I would have liked to have seen that that was the exact amount for that person because the way it says here faculty sometimes it doesn't say one single person yeah a little bit more clear would have been nice thank you any other questions or comments justy FL Shelton yeah just um on theou your on the very last page on the signature line your last name is Baldwin I don't think you're married to Alex Baldwin you're the b thank you for bringing that um so you might want to check that one out um I so I support this I really support it because it's from the professional development only fund right that can't be used for anything else um and I think this does make us competitive and Innovative which is kind of the Hallmarks of what it um alen rock been doing on this San Jose State relationship so the professor goes with the group and then this ends in December of 2024 is there something that the professor is doing for the group after the train after the Spain part the four sessions afterward to create the post yeah he's the one that is leading that he's leading the ones before and the ones after okay and but and those costs are born by is that part of that the okay the only thing that is missing here and I need to bring that back to the board is once the board considers these we have to go to San Jose State for their uh their own internal thing because in addition this is part of open yes it's part of open University okay so the certificate program correct correct so so that is a part of the 70k that's already been said yes okay we are we estimated so if you add you you don't have you're not approving 70,000 right now because there's this other pocket of money that we still need to get from San Jose State that I need to bring back thank you um I was going to ask something there's we'll do one round and then vice president GTO so the the budg participation by the S State faculty is important uh and is part of this path to try to get them to get their bilingual certificate so that's the reason why they're they're participating in this whole thing correct all right so I think that it would make because think about it if you had all these teachers go out there and pay to take one of that person's classes um it would wind up being pretty expensive as part of their open University program so we're getting an individual to come in at 4 as opposed to having them all PID to be part of an open University class which would probably a lot more we have to add trusty kto that's what I'm saying right now the estimate for travel because that was uh truste Chavez question was the travel alone but there is that other Delta of the tuition but all of that is already estimated in the 70,000 right so you're now approving you if you approve right this things with the specific and I have to come back with a final uh agreement with San Jose State to to do the Delta the estimate just to you know give you it's about 177,000 total with trouble for the professor for tuition for the teachers which is pretty pretty good deal yeah I'm I'm support of giv the fact that it's going to um make our instructors or faculty that much more qualified to be a to services that they're doing so it helps them grow it benefits their kids and the funds are dedicated for that purpose you can't spend anything else yeah I'm supportive it okay um I have some questions so I um added since we did 507 508 and 59 uh 508 and 509 is 50, 385 oh um I'm sorry that's less but that with 177,000 adds up to 50,000 385 mhm um and and the additional 19,000 is for if we pay for the teacher contingencies um certification no if you added already the 177,000 to whatever an amount that you added up that's going to be the total it's less than seven it's less than 7 um I think I mean for me it's important to you know have an amount and be specific and say up to right yeah 70,000 is a lot more than 50,3 185 and I'm not saying you're all going to use it to go out shopping or anything but I think it's important to you know be clear on the amounts thank you um and also clarification because my understanding was that this item um if we passed this it was not going to pay for the certification for the teachers for credit for the teachers to have that certific correct they the the university has a is the tuition which is allows you to take the class and if you want the credit the specific credit for you as a person the teacher needs to pay for those for that credit so they it it qualifies they can go and say I want to place this on my transcript right to do to do to go for that certification but because that benefits the person alone it doesn't fall onto the professional development piece but I I think to vice president kto point you know for us it's important that the teachers have the certification so I'm wondering if we pass the 70,000 if that would support in paying that per teacher and I don't you probably don't have that answer that's my only like for me to okay 70,000 would be you know to support the teacher with paying for paying for that certification I I really don't know I really no no because not every I'm sorry to interrupt but not everybody's going to need it a lot of our teachers that are going is professional development they don't need they already have the certification right yeah and I think that that for me I think I'm okay with passing the 70,000 to support some of those teachers that might need that certification because then it benefits alen Rock the logic is that you don't you don't never I'm not GNA go um what do you know what the the amount is for people to turn that into I don't know I really don't know that I don't know that's those are the the pieces right um just to share with you guys because I know you know this is the only time I get to talk to you as a group um the process has been uh very enlightening in terms of engaging with a university right and one of the things that we really want to solidify is that relationship with our local University because our kids are going to go there right and then they're they come back you know as staff members and so helping the university see they they have been amazing listening to us and saying what is it that you guys need which is a first and I want to get hats off you know hats off to San Jose State that they were open to listen to that because not everybody does that trust me I worked in universities and it is hard you guys have been professors you know that and we have a counselor here um and the other thing with the Centro the langu Modas is for us as a district as a public school district to enter in collaboration with an international entity to be able to send our teachers there to participate and be part C langu Modas in Granada is the place in Europe to go in learn about how to teach foreign languages any other questions or comments from the board on this item we did already call it but we will have on this next item and it's still connected so thank you for your patience okay so we'll go ahead and um bring it to a vote on item 507 um if you're in favor please raise your hand at this time all right for in favor if you're uh not in favor please raise your hand if you abstain please raise your hand all right four in favor and one exstension from trustee Chavez moving on to item 58 approve Granada contract for arusd bilingual teacher program summer 24 in the amount of 27,0 410 and 77.

76% for fiscal year 2425 thus resulting in a significant loss of revenues for the district not only for the upcoming fiscal year but for subsequent fiscal years whereas the Board of Trustees of the Alami Elementary School District recognizes the district has a significant structural deficit that must be resolved from 2021 to 2324 there is an infusion of one-time dollars from the state and federal government to address covid-19 related expend expenditures and the impact of declining enrollment has been temporarily mitigated because of covid-19 related measures but in 2425 the district faces a structural deficit as noted in the second interim report of approximately $2.8 million unrestricted income less unrestricted expenditures now therefore be it resolved based on the above recital and in order to ensure that alen Rock Elementary School District remain fiscally solvent the Board of Trustees is committed to reducing expenditures in all budget areas including Total Staffing benefits services and operating expenses Capital outlay other outgoing and consolidation of schools the district is also committed to examining potential sources of revenue including but not limited to the repurposing of excess facilities to generate facilities used or leasing Revenue the Board of Trustees is committed to taking appropriate action to begin addressing these projected funding shortfalls with the adoption of the 2425 budget in June okay so with that any questions or comments from the board trusty Pam just a just the question and you know uh Mr Chang didn't the board affirm a commitment the fisal responsibility if I remember in 2021 in fact I cited that you know board resolution number 23202 there so I mean uh you know not that I'm opposed to it but isn't this sort of like a a repeat resolution of something the board has already passed three years ago approximately 3 years ago yes and uh and this is a reassurance to um the County Office of Ed um I know the board did pass resolution back then um but circumstances have changed a little bit and so they just want the acknowledgement um you know recently or at at the current stage and with updated information the cola and things like that okay any other questions or comments from the board all right see them we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor please show by raising your hand all right item passes unanimous moving on to item let's see where are we at 701 approval move to approve by vice president kto second second by trustee Flor Shulton uh Dr bow is there a presentation or anything on the no it's just the regular approval okay um thank you I'm going to go ahead and open it up to comments from the public at this time on this item see none Madam president it says here the recommendation is information only so is there there a need to are you talking about 701 yes it says here approved so Dr can you please clarify but on the memo in the board book the recommendation says I just want to make sure you can clarify ask uh uh bar I believe [Music] sorry I believe we have been approving them but I just and it is on on the agenda for approval okay um all right any other comments or questions uh trusty fam good catch yeah I'll follow up all right seeing no other questions or comments we'll go ahead and bring it to a vote all those in favor of passing this item please raise right your hand all right item passes unanimously moving on to item 702 approve School sponsored Phil tripl move to approve move to approve by trustee uh fam and second by vice president kto uh anybody from the public wishing to address a board on this item okay see none we'll go ahead and bring it back to the board any questions or comments from the board I'll just say it's bone Fel okay seeing uh no others I will bring it to a vote all those in favor of passing this item please show by raising your hand all right item passes unan iously moving on to item 703 motion motion by trusty Chavez second second by trusty Flores Shulton um any particular report on this item no just for the okay thank you um I'm going to go ahead and open it up for any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item seeing none I'll go ahead and bring it back to the members of the board any comments or questions from the board okay seeing them we're bringing it to a vote all those in favor please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously moving on to item 801 motion motion by trusty Chavez second second by trusty Flor Shelton um any presentation or anything on this item all right seeing them we'll go ahead and open it up for uh members of the public wishing to address the board on this item seeing none we'll go ahead and bring it back to the board any members of the board having a question or comment on this item all right we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand motion passes unanimously moving on to item 802 information only feel free to read um the resignations thank you for your service all right moving on to 901 approv contract with thing together for the amount of board any members of the board have any questions or comments on this item okay we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously uh item 902 approved contract with spring broke board collaborative for 243,017 back to the board any questions or comments from the board on this item okay seeing none we'll go ahead and bring it to a vote all those in favor of passing this item please show your by raising your hand item passes unanimously item 903 approve move move move to approve by vice president kto the contract with Galileo uh learning for the 2324 school year in the amount of $487,500 second by truste uh Chavis any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item seeing none we'll go ahead and bring it back to the board any members of the board wishing to have any questions or comments on this item see none we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously moving on to 904 approved contract with Silicon Valley Education Foundation for the school year 2324 and $2 33,5 se4 motion by truste Chavez second second by by trusty Flor Shelton any members of the public wishing to address a board on this item seeing none any questions or comments from the board truste for Shelton um I'd like to ask if the administration can or if they've already discussed and if not can they discuss whether the Education Foundation can support um osas in any way say that the can the silic Valley Education Foundation instead of providing us some program can they they're a foundation can they fund uh fund a TOA or two or can they fund it fund it yes I'll be happy to ask okay and when we're at the breakfast tomorrow we can all swarm them or something C me in okay thank you lobbying it's called lobbying yes that's right that's that's okay um any other comments or questions from the board all right great ideas um all right let's bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously moving on to item 101 approv contract extension with assessment resources uh Inc for 23 24 school year in the amount of uh 450,00 000 um so it's this is an extension the original amount from 150,000 to increase 300,000 for special education uh and do you want to motion and for purposes of discussion all right motion by trusty Flores I'm sorry Chavez second second by trusty Flor Shelton okay any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item okay uh Trust Travis go ahead Tony go ahead Tony welcome to the podium have a moment you've been quiet all tonight it hurts me I know to build yes it is a increase we are replacing a school psychologist that worked in our preschool Assessment Center that recently that recently became an administrator in the district so when we contract out with the agency they charge per assessment and we did the math and the number of Assessments resulted in that cost I remember when we promoted her you're like Tony's G we did I mean we did give a month you guys were kind to give us a month but at this time of year it's just difficult to find people there's legal we have legal we have to do the assessments so we're very fortunate to promote from within good tent yeah all right any more questions or comments from the board seeing none I'll go ahead and bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously all right moving on to 102 approved contract extension with loano Smith for 20 3 24 school year approval move to approve by vice president GTO second by uh trustee Chavez in the amount of 30,000 to increase uh by 30,000 um for a total of $120,000 all right um any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item seeing none I'll bring it back to the board any members of the board wishing to ask any questions or comments on this item seeing none we'll go ahead and bring it to to vote all those uh in favor of this item please show by raising your hand item passes unanimously all right item uh consent calendar uh vice president GTO uh move approval calar second move to approve uh by vice president kto second by truste Fuller Shelton uh trusty [Music] Chavez 11 for discussion okay um I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment at this time any members of the public wishing to address the board seeing none we're going to go ahead and um well any members of the board wishing to ask any questions or comments on this these items one comment and I want to say you know uh you know this is you know reversal of a little bit of Wheeling and dealing but one of the in item 11.07 we have a with the Metro Ed in the amount of $10,000 Metro Ed will provide you know for the first time uh Career Training education during spring break camp for our middle school students at silon Valley CTE uh one of the great it was a sort of a idea that you know uh Brian Wheatley who in in 2023 was the uh uh board president of uh the Metro of Metro ad which is a it's a composite District or joint Powers District right so um so it's a Consortium San Jose Unified Campbell Union High East Side Union High School District withus UniFi pront in high school district um they run the you know they they govern the the CTE program at the secondary level and uh as a K8 District we are represented by way of the East Side jior High School District in anyway but long story short uh you know they need the students we need the programming and Brian you know uh I'm having trouble with you know some of the high schools and I said you know why not consider you know something from the K8 and you know uh we put two and two together and you know superintendent bow uh worked quickly with superintendent Lynch over at Metro Ed for the low low cost of $10,000 we're providing a a real uh you know uh Career Technical education offering in District something that's been missing in this district for a long long time here so I'm glad to see that you know uh this is being offered we've all you know the administration myself and Mr Wheatley we've all worked in some way to get it together and here it is and you know offering something uh you know the charter schols don't you know the Kips and the alphas and the uh was it DCPS can eat their heart out there so anyway so I'm excited that our kids are getting to do something that you know their kids aren't to do it and if uh Alam you know Alam Rock families want a part of it they they've got to enroll here so uh with that I'm you know I hope my colleagues see the value of uh Silicon Valley CTE so on that note thank you thank you thank you trusty fam any others um just say I want to thank Sandra Garcia and Lupa Ral Cava for working very hard on developing the actual partnership so thank you so much Sandra thank you um and the only other thing I'll highlight is uh the first year we're bringing um proclamation to uh acknowledge as the ASC mishika New Year um you know considering our Native American and uh Native Mexican students and Community here at alumrock um you know makes me really proud um to bring this forward and also being that we host within the boundaries here of alen rock one of the largest AA mashika New Year ceremonies um that a lot of our families look forward to uh as I mentioned earlier we'll have our 26th annual this year um this weekend so uh looking forward to celebrating with our community and the city of San Jose's parks and W is a proud partner of that the city of San Jose is a proud partner of that along with others check out the the Beautiful chicken oh yay um yeah there's a actually a beautiful also um playground that has opened up uh and it's not done in its enti open because of inspection issues it needs to be safe for everyone but it's still a beautiful view yeah all right amus looking forward to that okay um with that we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor favor of passing um the consent calendar except for 1109 and 1111 this time please show by raising your hand okay the item passes unanimously uh now coming back to 11:09 um I'll do 119 and 111 yeah we're going to do 11:09 first uh so um the the day resolution at this time move to approve by trusty fam second second by trusty Flores Shelton um any members of the public wishing to address a board on this item okay seeing none bring it back to the board any members of the board wishing to comment or make any questions on this so when you make the motion for 1109 119 no just 1109 just 11:09 one at a [Music] time people any other questions or comments from the I just say you know in recognition nobody's perfect but the lower s to work you know in many ways very hard along with Cesar shavez and you know uh workers rights and a lot of the you know benefits that workers have today are due to their efforts and I I I you know what you know in so I am in support of recognizing these efforts since it's 10 o'clock there so there's going to be some stumbling I need some caffeine quick but yes I am you know I you know I am in support of this resolution thank you trusty Flor Shel I want to thank the administration for putting uh dor on the agenda and for us um hoping pass it tonight and in honor of women's History Month um and her Legacy and yes I'll just want to say that be on the record at this time of night but hope we can support this thank you anybody else I'll just uh as a relative um weika wol a proud relative and um she acknowledged that in my presence and um you know I mean I support her not just because of that but all the other all the work she's done um and her former endorsements for me personally as a woman um and being recognized not just locally but you know nationally and internationally um not to mention her c um you know Lo slogan that is used throughout the world um and you know former president Obama recognizing her um you know I will definitely support this so um thank you uh administrators for bringing this forward um and I look forward to pass ing this uh now I'll bring it to a vote all those in favor of passing this item please show by raising your hand all right all those opposed please show by raising your hand all right four uh motion passes four uh for and one against uh NE um a no trustee Chavez uh item 111 approv resolution CES CH move to approve by trusty Sam second second by trusty Flor sh uh opening it up for public comment at this time seeing none we'll go ahead and bring it back to comments or questions from the board truste Travis again um I know that I sound like a broken record but there's no way that I could support a man who treated the people so badly and everybody still recognizes him as some kind of hero might have done some good things but i' seen his organization in action um so I will never supporting what he did and there's a lot of good things he did stand for but not for the best thank you thank you any other questions or comments from the board I'll just say you know again the uh you know in many ways we you know many of the rights that we enjoy today are you know due to you know the work that Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers put in uh and you know it's for those reasons that I'll be supporting this resolution you know in recognition of you know the uh contributions to labor rights and uh collective bargaining uh and you know fair treatment of uh laborers that you know we we take this opportunity to honor his legacy so you know I'll be in support of this resolution thank you thank you any other members of the board wishing to make comments or questions um the only thing I'll add as a a union member myself you know in agreement with what trustees uh fam mentioned also you know a lot of his work began here in our alen Rock Community um and I know I also sound like a broken record um but it's important to also acknowledge that and also being a daughter of a farm worker you know who benefited from his work um and needs of many other Farm Workers um I will be supporting this item um although all right we'll go ahead and bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand item passes for uh and anybody oppose uh trusty Chavez opposing all right uh moving on to Clos session Dr Bower any report or any announcements before we break break out to close session uh and do you think 1 hour will be sufficient do I think an hour I will say an hour and a half an hour and a half okay yeah um so first point of so should we extend the you know uh the because it will go past 10:30 yes should we extend it to say 11 and we're going to take a break so um so an hour and a half 10:30 11:30 12 what am I my cannot do it so 1159 I don't know just want to make sure that give ourselves enough time 115 all right so 11:59 we'll be back here um thank you so much hopefully sooner 10 minute recess M 10 minute recess oh thank you thank you e for e the e a the laptop [Music] for e s can you hear me yes okay I want to make sure how much longer say that you know should be much longer okay okay e see [Music] you for e of the wind is supposed to stop in tension the what the wind is it pretty strong it was you know well out there during the concert it's so windy it was windy it was supposed to be like that yeah I I hope it that's not like that over the weekend what are you doing over the weekend yeah I hope nothing because it's been a late night every night I had I know Monday riew Tuesday lcap input Wednesday I got home really late because we on that play back that's right and tonight tonight yeah need I know I know you do I know you do and next weekend we have job there yeah and I'm at another job here during the week I go to Fullerton okay Mon luo and Doug next week oh okay that's because they have the vietnames language program they things that yeah I can you m yeah I know [Music] your child is graduating yeah what what yeah she's graduating in junior yeah where is she going to go what is she going to do after graduation I'm going to go to Disneyland right away and then maybe like another quick trip to San Diego it all depends you know she she got into Santa Clara oh good she got into USA now she's waiting to hear from irine what does she want to like which her number one yeah her number one Irvine Irvine she like that campus the best one yeah know this man and she makes her decision yeah irine is not has not answered yet they they told her they're going to tell her by the end of the month okay and where is when is her um what do you call what is her major she wants to go into prade oh okay because G high they have a really good prr a friend yeah she enjo that pursue that I just got into this exchange thing to go to an international business school in Tokyo next year oh wow you're going to do a semester because he doesn't want to delay graduation where is he going right now San State oh okay okay have a really good I guess international business school that's fantastic and it's and the program's in English she doesn't speak Japanese yeah I was going to ask you no I was going to ask you my mother-in-law even Joe doesn't know a lot of Japanese yeah so he's excited yeah he applied and he got into that program so it'll be good for him it be good for him to get a different perspective yeah he only knows Gilroy and then the two years he went to University of Nevada so he needs to expand his Horizons and see the world yeah that's fantastic I think he's going to have a wonderful opportunity yeah looking for to it's going to be hard I never been away from him that long all well I guess when he went to UNR but he used to come home a lot when he was in Reno stud he used to come home about every couple months he'd just drive home yeah we go to 4it games he'd come home for that that he's going to be gone for like six months we are my kids I know it's hard it's very hard I still think that you know the ones that are the one that is married has you know yeah even though they're not kids I still think they're you it's I feel the same way and now I have an extra one and that's fantastic start over again all the all the things you missed yeah yeah my brother's got a couple of my niece is four and my my nephew's like a year and a half and you know he's running around after them and I said okay but enjoy it because one day you're going to miss it you're going to wish they were that small you're going miss yeah the other day I was um we're getting ready for our spring break trip and I purchased tickets and everything and it's the three of us mhm and I don't know why I was think you know I was like they they keep sending me updates about the airf and stuff like that I'm like how come it's not giv me four it only sends me three yeah and I was like well because it's three I always it was always four of course it was always four where are you guys going we're going to to Africa oh wow yeah Africa I need to get out is that during the April yeah yeah I'm going to DC for the Howard trip huh I'll be in DC for the for the Howard trip yeah I didn't know where Howard was you see yeah did you see um I meant to ask you the board meeting in June it was approved as like the 14 I believe or the 13th believe we have it let me see last don't worry don't worry about it don't worry do what you need to do don't worry don't worry about it yeah but I was thinking that's I want to know because we normally do the retire if we do it after school's over may affect attendance we need to do it we need to do it in May okay let's do it in May yeah let's do it in May I'm afraid that if we do it on the 13th no I I I agree let's do it in may we had it scheduled for the 6th because that's traditional when we've done it we always seem to have a board me like the last day of school and then you know we have our celebration then people come but sure I notic now let do in May it's on June 27 and then the other one June 13 yeah June 13 yeah no it's too late they won't come back that's different from previous years yeah it's always been and I think it's because also our school year ended a week earlier on the 7th because we usually went to that second week so that it catches okay the board meeting yeah I'll talk to Bar then we we kind of co-planned that retirement we have calendar is June we also have the teacher of the year but it's not dur right it's in here it's been in here but we recognize them don't we we do when is that over when is are they selecting the teacher of the year right now yeah I got I have to look me up we have to figure that out because we may have to combine that one it's around that it's around me I don't think it was in June yeah we may have a busy yeah yeah yes yeah we have that breakfast in the morning to the most of the board going with you what that is most of the board going with you for the breakfast no no because they work I think it's a uh Linda Andrea and Corina yeah now for I left my my cores the office is it time for a new yeah but I don't want to change it I'm a creature of habit and and it takes me forever to get used to the phones this one I bought right when I when I came as a superintendent because the other one just died well they designed the battery like to degrade so you buy a new one on purpose yeah so then that's why you always prob in right doesn't the last a couple hours and then yeah yeah it does the new ones will last you all day this one yeah of course this one is like a year old but it if it's fully charged in the morning when I wake up it'll go all yeah and they make it so you can't change the battery you know on purpose but just I I don't like to to spend a lot in technology I'm not I'm not into that my kids my my younger daughter and her husband are he used to be the one like every time the new Apple will come he will that was his thing but now with the baby things change yep change that's priority yeah priority no a e you have to report right um going out of my head do ro still around yeah because he has to do the cases oh where is RO I don't know say back oh I thought the B wanted to to talk to the board nice hopea out yeah I guess I have what I need to report on but I don't have the yeah for e for um [Music] for [Music] for [Music] oh oh all right be reporting yeah what extend the meeting I think we can't well we can he has to report out it'll just be a German can we just we not to or or yeah can he report out because he knows no has it all written out it's really technical stuff too okay for the mics on right now yes yes Mr too her mic didn't work tonight so it has a plug but it doesn't have a plug but the inside is is other guys will fix it l okay thank you yeah it's not important [Music] tonight for GRE for you you second microphone for e for e I want her to have a moment for [Music] you I'm sorry you guys have had quum I thought you guys took care of it sounds good all right calling the meeting back to order 129 am uh roio are you going to report out for us please close session report close session item uh 12 03 the board unanimously approved uh a settlement um with special need with family of a special needs student uh a copy of the settlement agreement is available upon request um close session item 12.04 in the matter of the Allen tro APC versus uh elmrock Union Elementary School District the board unanimously approved a full and final release and settlement agreement uh pursuant to which the parties have agreed to Mutual releases and the district will pay to lean Trejo the sum of $255,000 a copy of the settlement agreement is available through the district upon request also close session item 12.04 in the matter of alam Rock Union Elementary School District versus delterra at all and all related cross complaints um the board unanimously approved a full and final release and settlement agreement pursuant to which the defendants and cross defendants will pay to the district the total sum of $500,000 um in exchange for which the district will uh dismissed the matter and the parties have also agreed to Mutual releases a copy of that agreement is also available upon request uh to The District close session item 12.07 uh the district has received notification that the credential of Israel Santiago has been revoked and on that basis the board has unanimously approved the termination of Mr Santiago also close session item 12.07 um upon a motion by member ketto second by member Chavez the board by a vote of three to two approve the unilateral termination of the superintendent's contract of employment with the district which shall be effective March 25th 2024 voting in favor of the motion were members ginto Chavez and fam opposed were members era Lera and Flores Shelton there are no further actions to report thank you um at this point we'll uh and the meeting at 12:12 a.m.

76 move to approve by uh trusty fam and second by trusty Flores Shelton okay going to open it up for public comment at this time welcome back so that was for um now I'm here to talk to you about the importance of approving this contract um it's an academic and professional trip to Granada Spain aimed at the professional development of our bclad or bilingual teachers and those seeking that certification um as Dr Brower mentioned with its Rich history culture and linguistic diversity Granada offers a unique experience that will enrich our skills in teaching Spanish and integrating cultural diversity into the classroom uh this trip will allow us as Educators to immerse ourselves in an environment where we can refine our language skills learn new teaching methodologies and establish connections with International colleagues uh teachers holding the bilingual credential play a crucial role in our school Community by providing inclusive and Equitable education for all students but especially for our English Learners however since the return from the shutdown due to covid staff at Adelante 1 have felt a sense of stagnation in our dual emerging program despite the growing research supporting the benefits of bilingual education such as improved cognitive development and higher academic performance in multiple areas so I think this trip will strengthen our ability to address the needs of our students and promote their academic success therefore please consider this proposal this contract favorably as it will be an investment in us as teachers and most importantly the learning and growth of our students thank you for your attention good evening again um first I want to um address um trusty Chavez today sitting down here and listening to all the deficits and money that we are having um I had the same feeling like oh okay I'm asking for something but here we are and we need all this money but knowing that it comes from a different fund um I just hope that you can reconsider um so again I'm a teacher at Adelante teach second grade um and I would like to speak in favor of the Caminos program um this program will afford professional development for us bilingual teachers like myself and it will teach us about International methods and strategies of teaching and learning language so that we can improve the way that we teach currently um however this experience is not only limited to learning me different methods but also understanding other cultures from um the international perspective um this experience would only not only benefit me but it also help um help my students and it will also help my colleagues um through collaboration um during um local PD in our our sites so I appreciate you voting yes tonight um to consider this um this uh proposal thank you thank you hi good evening everyone um I just want to say this is the type of innovation and um strategies that we need to be employing here in alumrock we are using the appropriate funding to support this and I feel that in order to make sure we are following the guiding principles of dual language and also supporting foreign language developments here in our district we really need to immerse our teachers in this experience it is one thing to be bilingual it is something else to be a dual language teacher um it is something else to be a foreign language teacher they need to know these strategies and skills and here in Alam Rock we are not linguistic oppressors right we want to make sure our students are using their linguistic repertoire to make sure they are accessing curricula make sure they're accessing things in whichever language they're learning in so I highly support this and feel that it is a great opportunity for teachers and I hope you support it thank you good evening for member superintendent B and my name is maras and I teach kind school um I I'm going to answer the question what I want to go to Camino's program I want to attend the Camino's program because this is a great opportunity to grow in my knowledge and apply what I will learn in my classroom this is in favor of our students I will be give me it will give me methodology and strategies that will help me to design teaching units that I can use with my students it will also help me to develop my work at the dual immersion school where I collaborate it will help me learn more about the needs and strengths of each student in terms of language social cultural and academic areas I want to support my students and encourage them to expand or increase their vocabulary and recognize the importance of using it in the best possible ways whether with the first language the second language Pro probably third language I want to support my students as much as possible in their oral and linguistic cognitive area my vocation as a teacher makes me create search explore and invent to ensure that childr learn and academically this opportunity will help us all the teacher that we are we were selected to grow ped pedagogically and upda myself as a teacher to continue supporting our students and for this I would like to pleas support this thank you good evening uh board members Dr Brower thank you for allowing me to speak my name is Jose cores I am the principal at Atlant to D Language Academy and I'm speaking on behalf of the communal program and I just want to start off by saying that for many years as a teacher um I was able I was fortunate enough to experience some transformative work at some of the sites that I had and I think some of the reasons for that was the amount of Capac capacity building amongst the staff that was available to us and the leadership that stood by us and worked with us through that training to build effective staff that serve the needs of our kids uh at our sites and um today I'm here before you asking for your support because I'd like to be exactly that for my staff they are very enthusiastic about being a part of this and I think that building that capacity and building that teacher leadership is very important and it's going to be um part of what takes Atalanta to to the next level and building our school and right raising it to the level that uh matches the potential of our students also research uh after research proves that the biggest factor in student outcomes is is teacher Effectiveness and this type of professional development as was pointed out in the um the presentation the scope of it is very robust and it's very thorough and it will definitely impact not only our teachers by making them more engaging them better which in turn will engage our students better it's just going to provide overall a better uh environment for Alamar students thank you thank you okay um bringing it back to questions and comments by the board trustee Chavez I did want to address Theodor Linda I think it's easier to say Theodor TOA anyways uh actually um I wanted to vote no because I thought that maybe the San Jose um uh State University uh I felt that they should pay their way but I I get it it's a good program and the fact that when you abstain it's actually not a no it's actually a yes but you just can't bring yourself to say yes because you have these reservations so yes I am in favor thank you any other questions or comments from the board all right see none we'll bring it to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand all right vote passes unanimously moving on to item 509 approve out of County Trav travel for Camino's program to Granada Spain May 31st through ji June 14th um move to approve by trusty Flor Shelton second for purposes moving forward um I'll second at this time uh opening up for comments from the public on this item okay seeing uh none we'll go ahead and bring it back to questions and comments from the board okay seeing none we'll bring it up to a vote all those in favor of this item please show by raising your hand did you raise your hand sorry no okay uh vote passes uh by four all those um voting no on this item please show by raising your hand all those uh abstaining on this item please show your hand uh abstention from truste Flo I'm sorry Travis uh vote passes thank you so much item 510 approve out of County travel Ginos program Granada Spain for 12 teachers and three administrators move to approve move to approve by trustee bam second by Flores Shelton um I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment at this time on this item seeing them we'll go ahead and bring it back to the board any questions or comments from the board just one but I just how do you say happy travels in Spanish okay so so for I would just say felis VI nice Fel VI happy travels thank you all right um did we vot yet just a quick comment have we voted yet okay comment by vice president kto yeah no um yeah what is it bambo yeah say that um I think it's an excellent opportunity that's being provided to our staff uh to uh you know get a lot uh going to m it's going to be incredibly humid uh I have I had the privilege to go with my Spanish teacher actually uh because my mother who clean homes uh saw it uh as very very important to get me out of e San Jose which was my world and my only my universe and I saw our neighborhoods as our like dividing lines those are boundaries and people can't cross and it was through her um she essentially pushed me and said you're GNA go I'm like no you work really hard for your money G to take your money to go to Europe and she's like oh you're going to go so she sent me and it was very eye opening uh to see people uh produce you uh um important works that had uh similar last names to people that I know and as well as my own and things of that sort which were very very fascinating very eye opening that's obviously from respect of a high school kid but I know that you guys are going to get a lot out of it and build up on the on the knowledge that you already have and so it'll be very beneficial to our kids so um yeah uh safe travels like thank you uh vice president GTO and I just I think of the possibilities right to travel the world not just for our teachers um and administrator but also for our students I look forward to Growing this and hopefully getting funding and support you know for our students to travel the world I mean we have a Vietnamese learning um you know bilingual learning program as well would love to open it up for you know Vietnam and all the other opportunities that I see for our um District so thank you Dr Bower and all the other staff who worked hard you know including all those who applied to this program and took the time to fill out the applications um and you know I look forward to hearing back from you all and seeing pictures um so with that let's bring it to a vote uh all those in favor of this item please raise your hand all right item passes unanimously B Fel V enjoy your travel okay um item 601 approv second interim financial report C welcome to the podium good evening uh mam board president members of the board and superintendent Dr Bower um tonight I'll be presenting the uh second interum report and with that we'll talk about uh the key assumptions in building the second in report um we'll also discuss the multi-year projection and then uh go over some next steps and future consideration um the first assumptions you've seen this chart before um this is our uh chart from our demographic studies um that shows the enrollment projections uh out through 20 2027 through 2028 um the current year the projection showed uh 7,376 um as you may recall when I presented the first interim back in December um at that point I shared with you the warm body count which was 7,41 um so we're tracking pretty close to the um demographic study um it does show a continued Trend in declining enrollment um going into next year from from 7,376 this year to 7,093 next year and then 6,810 the following year um with that disar discharge just shows you um the number of of decreases from one year year to another um as you can see in 2425 um when compared to this year um we're going to be losing about 308 students and then in 2526 when compared to next year um we'll also be losing about the 283 students um another significant impact or change from first interim to Second interim I shared with you that um you know the cola was going to be um increasing um from when the budget uh the state approved the budget back in June to when uh the state put out their budget proposal in January uh for next year um as you can see for 2324 which is the um the first block um there's no change in Cola there but there is a uh slight uh reduction in lcff dollars to the tune of about $118,000 uh these are adjustment um uh due to various factors um in 2425 this is the the significant impact of the um change in Cola um in the enacted budget the cola was at 3.94 um in January when the governor proposed his budget um that Cola was prod reduced to 76 which is about a little over 3% in reduction um in terms of dollar amount um that 3% or a little over 3% redu reduction in Cola um equates to about almost $3.5 million in reduction um in lcff dollar um and then in 2526 um in the enactive budget the cola was 3.29 um at the January budget proposal um that number went down to 2.73% which is a 0.56% increase or decrease in Cola um but the impact to in terms of dollar amount you can see there um it's close to $4 million um in reduction in total lcff dollar so if you look at just a 2-year period in 2425 and 25 26 that's about $7.5 million in reduction in lcff due to the reduction in Cola um this chart here just shows your comparison um and and from year to year in terms of lcff dollars um you'll see this year the total lcf enement is a little over 4 million um next year in 2425 um lcff dollars uh will be reduced dramatically and mainly this is due to uh declining enrollment uh you'll see that um when you compare this year to last year um you'll see that uh the reduction in lcff dollars is about $5.7 million and then going into 2526 um again the lcf enement will decrease um to the tune of about almost $1.7 million when compared to uh this year I mean 2425 so other uh Revenue in terms of state revenue um in our budget is the onetime learning recovery Grant um that's approximately almost $11 million um in that onetime funding um the onetime AR music instructional material discretionary block rant um approximately 4.6 million in our budget um you may recall that the board approved um this plan back in January and then the other uh big pot of money that we get is the elop money this is for um these are grants to provide services for after school um before school intercession uh summer school um this year's allocation is about $1.4 million um other big pots of money that we re iiz is the partial tax um to the tune of about $4.6 million and then lastly on the revenue um the the big part is the sr3 um which will be exhausted this year and that amount is about $10 million in the current year um moving over to the expenditure side um we'll start with the c Pur rate um this year the rate is 26.68% eight and then in year 2526 uh 28.5 uh for Cow St rate these are um pensions for certificated staff um this year the rate is 19.1 um actually for all three years is 19.1 so no changes to the cowers rate um over the three-year period you have any idea why the differen is between the the amount in cers and cers is it the people get or is it related to how while they manage your finances um a little bit of both um the the I forgot which one it was but one of the one of the board has more flexibility in terms of whether they can uh change the rate from one year to another the other one needs to be I believe approved by like a vote or something oh okay um so one one pension has more flexibility um they do an actuary um in terms of what it's going to cost and what their investment is um generating then based on that they fluctuate their rates from year to year um yeah um also in the budget is uh the increase for the S column for all three years um special ed um as you know um continue to increase this um from one year to another so we built into those increases for all three years um there's is a requirement for us to contribute um 3% of our total budget to uh maintain our schools um to allocate those funds into the routine restricted maintenance account um and that's a requirement for all three years as well um due to the cining enrollment we've built in a reduction of 10 certificated FTE for uh 2024 25 um again um in 25 26 um we've also uh buil with in 10 um reduction in certificated staff um and regarding uh the S fund starting in 2425 um all salaries that have been been paid out of Sr funds um in the restricted general fund would now be moved back into the unrestricted general fund um starting in next year's budget and then in 2526 there's a $12.5 million in other adjustment um in the unrestricted general fund um that is to utilize um the $10.9 million in learning loss I mean learning recovery Grant and then uh and 1.6 of it uh will be either a reduction in other costes or um to uh identified other funding sources uh to be determined later so with those assumptions um this is a multi-year projection uh for the unrestricted general fund uh you see that we're starting this year with about $39 uh million in reserve um we're projected to receive a little over 20 $124 million in total revenue um with a total expenditures of close to $94 million um bringing um incurring a 2.6 um million uh spend down in reserve uh which brings our Reserve to uh 36 about $ 36.3 million um at the end of this year um going into next year uh we're projecting our total revenue to be about $18.3 million um a total expenditures of um $14.5 million um spending down the reserve um in the tune of about $20.8 million which draws a reserve uh from 36.3 to about 15.5 um and then moving into 2526 um projecting to um generate about $116.5 million in total revenue um 92.1 uh in total expenditures um which includes the other adjustment of $12.5 million um and at the end of that year we're projecting to end um that year with a ending fund balance of about 4.6 which is um right near our 3% requirement um moving over to the restricted general fund um you'll see that uh we we're starting this year with about $32.8 million um projecting a total revenue of approximately $48.5 million uh with a total um expenditures of 114.4 um and then ending the year um with no um carryover um and then in 2425 we're project ing um total revenue of about 27.3 um total expenditure is about 6.9 million and ending the year um with uh with zero carryover or any funds and then lastly um the last year 25 26 um we're projecting a total revenue of approximately 27 26.7 million um total expenditures of $62 million and um ending the year with uh withdraw any fund balance with that in terms of um next steps um as I mentioned earlier um you know we'll be waiting for the May Revis to come out to give us um some more firm numbers to build our budget on um terms of Revenue um and then we'll be conducting the public hearing and also the adoption of budget um in June with that uh I be happy to take any questions thank you thank you you um and if it's okay I'll open it up for public comment and then bring it back to us for questions and comments from the board anybody would wishing to address the public the board from the public at this time on this item okay CM we'll bring it back to the board any questions or comments from the board okay seea uh we'll go ahead and bring it to um and do I have any motion move approval of the second interim financial support report move to approve by trustey Flor Shelton second by vice president kto all right and uh I'll go ahead and bring it to the vote all those in favor please show by raising your hand okay all those uh voting no on this item please show by raising your hand okay uh vote passes 4 to one um truste uh Chavez voting no on this item thank you uh Mr CA all right um moving on to 602 approve resolution 4023 24 approve move to approve by vice president ginto second second by uh trustee Flores Shelton I'm going to go ahead and open it up for public comment at this time any members of the public wishing to address the board on this item Dr bar was there presentation or anything there's no presentation but there is a resolution and so um I don't know if you want me to read the resolution or you want to read the resolution just so that the public knows what you're approving okay so I'm going to go ahead and read it um whereas a Board of Trustees just make sure yes um of the Alamar Elementary School District has a fiduciary duty to meet its Financial Obligations in the current fiscal year and two subsequent fiscal years pursuant to educ code 42127 whereas the alen rock un Elementary School District continues to experience severe declining enrollment and is projected to continue with this trend in the foreseeable future years whereas included in the district's current budget is one-time federal funds to address a covid-19 pandemic of approximately $10 million in fiscal year 2324 whereas the cost of living adjustment was reduced from 3.94 to.

because of our 90minut time limit we have a two-minute time limit for all testifiers so one item on the agenda HB 2774 HD2 modifies certain Benchmark goals and timeline for the Department of Education to provide locally sourced Agricultural and food products first up is Department of bag not here they have comments uh Department of Education good afternoon chairs and my um members of the committee C too Deputy superintendent testifying on behalf of the Department of Education and our superintendent uh the department stands on its written testimony we're in full support of this um the bill is going to help us streamline um and standardize reporting reporting obligations uh to the legislature as well as to our constituents um we're happy to it's also going to help us with communication uh for menu planners to talk to uh and share with uh farmers Growers Distributors and things of that nature so we believe this will is very important I'm happy to answer any questions thank you thank you uh Mikata from ulupono initiative in support uh Kay e Nixon from Office of Hawaiian Affairs Allah Cher gabber Cher kidani and members of the committee KY Enix with the office of hawaian Affairs we will stand on our written testimony and support Mahal for the opportunity Dennis Chase from Public Health Institute chair gabard chair gadani committee members thank you very much for the opportunity to testify I am the uh program manager for the farm to school hoie and we are in strong support of this measure I just want to expand on what our friends from doe were saying a little bit to say that we have act 175 and we have act 176 Farm to school and farm to state which we think are great what this does is clarify a slight discrepancy in the benchmarks between those two bills because both bills mention the Department of Education one requires 30% local food by 2030 one requires 18% local food by 2030 so we think it's really helpful for doe to clarify and for everyone else who's involved in the food system who will be supporting doe to clarify that it's going to be the 30% by 2030 for the Department of Education in our school cafeterias so we're in strong support thank you thank you Dennis uh momer in support Willian Colton in support n Shaw in support anyone else wishing to test on this measure please for are you sitting in the back of the classroom thank you chairs members of the commune B here on behalf of the Hawaii Farm buau sitting uh in detention in the back of the classroom uh my apologies chairs we did submit written testimony if it's not received we will make sure the Committees get our testimony in strong support uh uh we agree with Mr Chase's explanation on what this bill is hoping accomplish I'm just here testifying uh to really commend the Department of Education they are doing what what they believe they need to do uh stakeholders agriculture has been meeting with them seems like every week and we feel like there is momentum 2030 is 6 years away we are about 6.4% 30% is going to be about 4% per year so without speaking on behalf of the department they are serious in trying to achieve those that goal and continuing to meet those benchmarks so again we're in strong support we want to make sure that the Department of Education has the tools that they need and the resources they need in order to achieve this first goal of 30% by 2030 thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony and I will uh get the testimony if it is received by the Committees thank BR anyone else members any questions okay uh Ros is on the way just take a brief recess okay all right reconvening the uh 305 joint with a and Abu the decision making the chairs having conferred the chair's recommendation will be to pass this amend this measure with an amendment to change the effective date to July 1st 2050 are there any questions or concerns for aen I think Senator Deco will take the vote chair votes I all members voted on HB 2774 HD2 with amendments uh chair votes I Vice chair excuse Senator votes I Senator Ro I Senator a excuse chair your motion is adopt thank you and for this committee on education chair agrees but we have no Quorum so we will make decision do decision making on Monday March 18th in this conference room 3 p.m. okay that uh adjourns the hearing good afternoon welcome to the senate committee on education today is Friday March 15 2024 it is 3:14 p.m.

hello myo and good afternoon Mahala for joining today's uh joint a hearing with edu is February 15th and we are in room 229 March sorry March behind a little yeah sorry and we are uh video conferencing as well which is being streamed live on YouTube in unlik the event that the hearing is cut short for whatever reason we will reconvene uh Monday March 18th at 1:1 p.m.

we are in hearing room 229 this meeting including the audio and video of remote participants is being streamlined Live on YouTube you will find links to viewing options for all Senate meetings on the live and On Demand video page of the legislator's website this Zoom meeting and YouTube live stream event will include the 3:15 agenda for the committee on education in the unlikely event that we must abruptly end this hearing due to Major technical difficulties the committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business on Monday March 18th 20124 at 3 p.m.

because of our 90minut time limit we have a two-minute time limit for all testifiers so one item on the agenda HB 2774 HD2 modifies certain Benchmark goals and timeline for the Department of Education to provide locally sourced Agricultural and food products first up is Department of bag not here they have comments uh Department of Education good afternoon chairs and my um members of the committee C too Deputy superintendent testifying on behalf of the Department of Education and our superintendent uh the department stands on its written testimony we're in full support of this um the bill is going to help us streamline um and standardize reporting reporting obligations uh to the legislature as well as to our constituents um we're happy to it's also going to help us with communication uh for menu planners to talk to uh and share with uh farmers Growers Distributors and things of that nature so we believe this will is very important I'm happy to answer any questions thank you thank you uh Mikata from ulupono initiative in support uh Kay e Nixon from Office of Hawaiian Affairs Allah Cher gabber Cher kidani and members of the committee KY Enix with the office of hawaian Affairs we will stand on our written testimony and support Mahal for the opportunity Dennis Chase from Public Health Institute chair gabard chair gadani committee members thank you very much for the opportunity to testify I am the uh program manager for the farm to school hoie and we are in strong support of this measure I just want to expand on what our friends from doe were saying a little bit to say that we have act 175 and we have act 176 Farm to school and farm to state which we think are great what this does is clarify a slight discrepancy in the benchmarks between those two bills because both bills mention the Department of Education one requires 30% local food by 2030 one requires 18% local food by 2030 so we think it's really helpful for doe to clarify and for everyone else who's involved in the food system who will be supporting doe to clarify that it's going to be the 30% by 2030 for the Department of Education in our school cafeterias so we're in strong support thank you thank you Dennis uh momer in support Willian Colton in support n Shaw in support anyone else wishing to test on this measure please for are you sitting in the back of the classroom thank you chairs members of the commune B here on behalf of the Hawaii Farm buau sitting uh in detention in the back of the classroom uh my apologies chairs we did submit written testimony if it's not received we will make sure the Committees get our testimony in strong support uh uh we agree with Mr Chase's explanation on what this bill is hoping accomplish I'm just here testifying uh to really commend the Department of Education they are doing what what they believe they need to do uh stakeholders agriculture has been meeting with them seems like every week and we feel like there is momentum 2030 is 6 years away we are about 6.4% 30% is going to be about 4% per year so without speaking on behalf of the department they are serious in trying to achieve those that goal and continuing to meet those benchmarks so again we're in strong support we want to make sure that the Department of Education has the tools that they need and the resources they need in order to achieve this first goal of 30% by 2030 thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony and I will uh get the testimony if it is received by the Committees thank BR anyone else members any questions okay uh Ros is on the way just take a brief recess okay all right reconvening the uh 305 joint with a and Abu the decision making the chairs having conferred the chair's recommendation will be to pass this amend this measure with an amendment to change the effective date to July 1st 2050 are there any questions or concerns for aen I think Senator Deco will take the vote chair votes I all members voted on HB 2774 HD2 with amendments uh chair votes I Vice chair excuse Senator votes I Senator Ro I Senator a excuse chair your motion is adopt thank you and for this committee on education chair agrees but we have no Quorum so we will make decision do decision making on Monday March 18th in this conference room 3 p.m. okay that uh adjourns the hearing good afternoon welcome to the senate committee on education today is Friday March 15 2024 it is 3:14 p.m.

in this conference room 229 a public notice will be posted on the legislature's website I'd like to take this time to remind our testifiers that due to time restrictions on our hearings we will be limiting testimony to 1 minute per testifier per bill for people participating remotely please remain muted and video disabled until shortly before it is your turn to testify when I call your name unmute yourself and your time will begin after your minute is completed staff will mute you so that we can move this hearing along in an orderly and efficient manner members please hold any questions until testimony on all measures is heard okay our first oh because we have no quum today by the way we will defer decision making to Monday March 18th 3 p.m. in this conference room 229 our first item is House Bill 1906 house draft one relating to making an appropriation for the Department of Education to promote student mental health and to testify Department of Education Tammy CH Department of Education standing on our WR testimony thank you Tammy Brad kusunoki school counselor hi chair kadani Senator faella uh thank you for allowing me the opportunity to to speak and support again um just wanted to add something to my testimony about uh this is listed as a mobile app but it's way more than that mobile app is is just the one way of accessing this tool um this is which is a very important program through counselors in any school to help to maintain and to Monitor and to provide assistance to kids for their social emotional well-being uh it's it's discreet it's easy to do and what the program does in addition to Panorama it gives us uh something to help organize analyze and to to give us the data that we need rather than taking all the raw data and trying to to Cate and analyze it ourselves um so it really pushes us ahead and allows us to have the access and to give services to every student that needs it um and we can give it from any student from ages kindergarten through adult um and we can give them assistance if needed in a very quick amount of time so uh just wanted to clarify that're they're both programs that um of course they they there are tools and the kids might not use it but they have the opportunity to use it and it does help when they do because um it gives us an insight to how they're feeling and helps us to to Pro provide any interventions needed in the event that they might be feeling any of those feelings that we see that might lead to uh things that we see on the news or things that we don't want to talk about so uh I humbly ask you to just to support this measure and to allow us to keep using it thank you thank you Brad on Zoom we have osou President hsta not present on Zoom chair thank you we have someone from Hawaii state Council and mental health on Zoom not present on Zoom chair thank you is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure if not we are moving on next item is House Bill 2399 HD1 relating to the ho state public library system exempts an additional administrative assistant position in the white state public library system from Civil Service here to testify Stacy Aldridge thank you is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure moving on might finish on time our third item is House Bill 335 HD2 relating to the Department of Education procurement exempts from the Hawaii public procurement code educational materials and related training for direct student instruction in Career and Technical education programs within the department of education to testify superintendent Tammy superintendent Department ofation stand thank you Tammy on Zoom Bonnie Kakui procurement office good afternoon chair member of the committee Bonnie kahaku for the state procurement office rest stand on our written a testimony providing comments for clarity thank you thank you you Bonnie also on Zoom principal Zachary sheets my high school not present on Zoom chair next on Zoom Kumari Moss principal Moana laa Middle School also not present on Zoom chair tardy huh okay next to testify Shan Wong principal Roosevelt High School not present on Zoom as well chair is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure members questions on this that's all we have okay members questions on any of the items discussed for the the mental health [Music] which item 1906 okay question is that the the de or the program will be available for homeschool students and if not Department are doing reach out to the home school students so um you want to take that one introduce yourself hi Ida Bania and I'm with school-based Behavioral Health educational specialist for the office of student Support Services thank you chair kidani and senator faella for having me here today um to answer your question yes so it is available to all doe public school students and so we can Outreach to our home school students as well and on all grade levels all grade levels yes okay thank you J thank you is that the only questions that you have C on all of the whe that was it okay my turn um so for um doe on House Bill um has this program been used nationally or internationally um so both programs uh Panorama and Trust Circle have been used nationally um Panorama more so nationally and Trust Circle actually internationally so Panorama is widespread across the continental US and Trust circle is actually part of the World Health Organization and the cost the annual cost is oh we're asking for 1.7 for both platforms so equal split between the two and that's annually yes thank [Music] you um for State libraries please mie um can you explain the need for this bill to correct act 88 right so when you create a position through the budget process it creates a civil service position but the intent was always to create an exempt position so you have to create the position and then there's that statutory change that must also happen when we created the um position for our facilities to see all our facilities back in 2021 the corresponding Amendment which is reflected in HB 233 was never done so when the when that position was created was it specified at that time that it was an non Civil Service uh that was our intent and that's what we uh discussed with the um the finance staff but I think in the rush of everything uh we all neglected to do the followup statutory Amendment and if you notice the statute right now says that the state librari the exempt positions for the library system are the state librarian uh Special Assistant the secretaries and administrative assistant a an administrative assistant so a very technical reading of the specific language requires us to say administrative assistance within n okay thank you mie thank you let's question sorry okay so for House Bill 335 do e regarding procurement so how is this going to help student achievement and students goal of Industry recognize certifications how is this build specific so this bill would allow students to get our schools to obtain Career and Technical education equipment more quickly so that students could have access to the equipment and be able to learn the skills the Hands-On skills and how many contracts is this going to impact uh so we don't know yet how many contracts this will affect but we do know examples of the kinds of equipment that were um that currently need to go through the full RFP process because of the amount of the the cost of the particular equipment so sometimes our Career and Technical education equipment can be quite expensive or at least above the threshold um that we currently have for procurement uh and especially when you're doing equipment for engineering or for example uh agriculture uh they can be uh they they're higher than the current thresholds which require full full procurement which takes quite a long time sometimes it can delay receipt of the uh the equipment for a full school year from the time the School intends to purchase thank you thank you I never have but um for just for that going forward um would it be okay if we I me this is only out the box right if they we raise the threshold is this the schools purchasing or the doe will be purchasing for each school cuz I know there's thresholds for the principles inquiring and buying equip for the schools for Educational Tools and then the doe so which one is this going to be just a doe so it would apply across the doe whether State office or complex area or schools are purchasing uh we have all the same thresholds one of the things we'd like to do in the future is be able to have the state office be able to do larger purchases so that schools don't have to individually purchase um the equipment yeah that's that's what I was talking to some of the prison because you know we doing the pathways for enmies and even though Kim Sanders was blessed with an equipment of carpentry when she took over the school still yet other equipment still cost uh the school's a lot of money and the kids who's interested in them not going to be able to benefit if we cannot expedite okay thank you thank you chair app so did you guys expect the cost savings by doing that uh possibly it's possible that we'd have a cost savings we definitely have a Time Savings and I think the cost savings might come in the amount of effort that staff have to put into the procurement process currently but for delivery it still be to individual schools yes well it depends on the kind of equipment but a lot of this equipment is large so yes okay thank you question for the uh State procurement office is Bonnie Kakui still online line she is still on Zoom good afternoon Senator thank you so Bonnie when is SPL moving to a new electronic uh procurement system as you indicated last year the move would be completed well we're in the process now but we're not starting with the the electronic procurement portion of that we are starting with our e- Marketplace which is our already contracted Price Less and vendor list so it'll be a couple of years before we move into the full e- procurement system however we still do have our Legacy system that's up and running as does the doe they you I believe they use heps uh for some of their work and uh they're they're able to use hypro currently so um to address your testimony and equal opportunity though doe and other departments for um that matter could post their notices on hands which is the state's Hawaii Awards and notices data system that is cor that is correct that is a posting board only um agents vendors would have to go look for those notices as opposed to a procurement system like hypro like aloh ebis which is the brand of our new one in in hypro in an electronic procurement system notice notifications go out two vendors who have signed up in our system hands just says it's just a like a bulletin board electronic bulletin board and you got to go look for it so are you assuming that uh those companies that regular deal with due would not be looking at the postings I I don't know for sure particularly if it's only once in a once in a great while by but what the doe can do is reach out to their vendors uh if a particular item is coming up for their need they can reach out to their vendors and say hey go look at the the notice in hands and then that way everybody or everybody that they reach out to where that's seen the notice uh will be able to respond to them okay thank you thank you de you please so how will this help with student achievement and students goal of Industry recognized certifications so we know that the industry is changing really fast especially as technology um increases and there's more applications of technology and so this uh this bill would allow schools to acquire equipment Career and Technical education equipment more quickly quickly to give students uh more students access to the Hands-On experiences that prepare them for for work in some of these emerging Industries or high-tech Industries um they would be able to in some cases earn industry certifications um that are associated with um learning skills on the equipment so um you just heard the SPO say that um do you could reach out to to vendors um to and just tell them to look on hands to see what you guys are looking for is that a possibility yes yes it is so at the State office level we do use hands to put some of our procurement up on that system um so that is a possibility yes so what defines some how do you determine what goes on B anything that's gone through an RFP process is put up uh through the hand system is posted on there as well um and as well we also do use high pro for some of the uh uh different uh procurements that procurement methods that are used so both hypro and hands are being used by the department I don't know if you guys know the answer to this but how many contracts go has to go through a procurement each year that we're going to have to get back to I apologize I don't have that on hand yeah so you guys don't keep up a number by schols in well we would we would have that number I just don't have that okay I would appreciate your getting back to us on that Senator can you clarify do you mean contracts overall or do you mean specific to CTE purchases CTE purchases yes further questions thank you and this concludes our meeting or do we have something else yeah we're going to decision make is that what you're talking about yeah obviously we can't take a vote there's only my friend here and myself um so we will be decision making um on Monday March 18th at 300 p.m.

we are in hearing room 229 this meeting including the audio and video of remote participants is being streamlined Live on YouTube you will find links to viewing options for all Senate meetings on the live and On Demand video page of the legislator's website this Zoom meeting and YouTube live stream event will include the 3:15 agenda for the committee on education in the unlikely event that we must abruptly end this hearing due to Major technical difficulties the committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business on Monday March 18th 20124 at 3 p.m.

in this room 229 thank you it's adjourned

in this conference room 229 a public notice will be posted on the legislature's website I'd like to take this time to remind our testifiers that due to time restrictions on our hearings we will be limiting testimony to 1 minute per testifier per bill for people participating remotely please remain muted and video disabled until shortly before it is your turn to testify when I call your name unmute yourself and your time will begin after your minute is completed staff will mute you so that we can move this hearing along in an orderly and efficient manner members please hold any questions until testimony on all measures is heard okay our first oh because we have no quum today by the way we will defer decision making to Monday March 18th 3 p.m. in this conference room 229 our first item is House Bill 1906 house draft one relating to making an appropriation for the Department of Education to promote student mental health and to testify Department of Education Tammy CH Department of Education standing on our WR testimony thank you Tammy Brad kusunoki school counselor hi chair kadani Senator faella uh thank you for allowing me the opportunity to to speak and support again um just wanted to add something to my testimony about uh this is listed as a mobile app but it's way more than that mobile app is is just the one way of accessing this tool um this is which is a very important program through counselors in any school to help to maintain and to Monitor and to provide assistance to kids for their social emotional well-being uh it's it's discreet it's easy to do and what the program does in addition to Panorama it gives us uh something to help organize analyze and to to give us the data that we need rather than taking all the raw data and trying to to Cate and analyze it ourselves um so it really pushes us ahead and allows us to have the access and to give services to every student that needs it um and we can give it from any student from ages kindergarten through adult um and we can give them assistance if needed in a very quick amount of time so uh just wanted to clarify that're they're both programs that um of course they they there are tools and the kids might not use it but they have the opportunity to use it and it does help when they do because um it gives us an insight to how they're feeling and helps us to to Pro provide any interventions needed in the event that they might be feeling any of those feelings that we see that might lead to uh things that we see on the news or things that we don't want to talk about so uh I humbly ask you to just to support this measure and to allow us to keep using it thank you thank you Brad on Zoom we have osou President hsta not present on Zoom chair thank you we have someone from Hawaii state Council and mental health on Zoom not present on Zoom chair thank you is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure if not we are moving on next item is House Bill 2399 HD1 relating to the ho state public library system exempts an additional administrative assistant position in the white state public library system from Civil Service here to testify Stacy Aldridge thank you is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure moving on might finish on time our third item is House Bill 335 HD2 relating to the Department of Education procurement exempts from the Hawaii public procurement code educational materials and related training for direct student instruction in Career and Technical education programs within the department of education to testify superintendent Tammy superintendent Department ofation stand thank you Tammy on Zoom Bonnie Kakui procurement office good afternoon chair member of the committee Bonnie kahaku for the state procurement office rest stand on our written a testimony providing comments for clarity thank you thank you you Bonnie also on Zoom principal Zachary sheets my high school not present on Zoom chair next on Zoom Kumari Moss principal Moana laa Middle School also not present on Zoom chair tardy huh okay next to testify Shan Wong principal Roosevelt High School not present on Zoom as well chair is there anyone else here wishing to testify on this measure members questions on this that's all we have okay members questions on any of the items discussed for the the mental health [Music] which item 1906 okay question is that the the de or the program will be available for homeschool students and if not Department are doing reach out to the home school students so um you want to take that one introduce yourself hi Ida Bania and I'm with school-based Behavioral Health educational specialist for the office of student Support Services thank you chair kidani and senator faella for having me here today um to answer your question yes so it is available to all doe public school students and so we can Outreach to our home school students as well and on all grade levels all grade levels yes okay thank you J thank you is that the only questions that you have C on all of the whe that was it okay my turn um so for um doe on House Bill um has this program been used nationally or internationally um so both programs uh Panorama and Trust Circle have been used nationally um Panorama more so nationally and Trust Circle actually internationally so Panorama is widespread across the continental US and Trust circle is actually part of the World Health Organization and the cost the annual cost is oh we're asking for 1.7 for both platforms so equal split between the two and that's annually yes thank [Music] you um for State libraries please mie um can you explain the need for this bill to correct act 88 right so when you create a position through the budget process it creates a civil service position but the intent was always to create an exempt position so you have to create the position and then there's that statutory change that must also happen when we created the um position for our facilities to see all our facilities back in 2021 the corresponding Amendment which is reflected in HB 233 was never done so when the when that position was created was it specified at that time that it was an non Civil Service uh that was our intent and that's what we uh discussed with the um the finance staff but I think in the rush of everything uh we all neglected to do the followup statutory Amendment and if you notice the statute right now says that the state librari the exempt positions for the library system are the state librarian uh Special Assistant the secretaries and administrative assistant a an administrative assistant so a very technical reading of the specific language requires us to say administrative assistance within n okay thank you mie thank you let's question sorry okay so for House Bill 335 do e regarding procurement so how is this going to help student achievement and students goal of Industry recognize certifications how is this build specific so this bill would allow students to get our schools to obtain Career and Technical education equipment more quickly so that students could have access to the equipment and be able to learn the skills the Hands-On skills and how many contracts is this going to impact uh so we don't know yet how many contracts this will affect but we do know examples of the kinds of equipment that were um that currently need to go through the full RFP process because of the amount of the the cost of the particular equipment so sometimes our Career and Technical education equipment can be quite expensive or at least above the threshold um that we currently have for procurement uh and especially when you're doing equipment for engineering or for example uh agriculture uh they can be uh they they're higher than the current thresholds which require full full procurement which takes quite a long time sometimes it can delay receipt of the uh the equipment for a full school year from the time the School intends to purchase thank you thank you I never have but um for just for that going forward um would it be okay if we I me this is only out the box right if they we raise the threshold is this the schools purchasing or the doe will be purchasing for each school cuz I know there's thresholds for the principles inquiring and buying equip for the schools for Educational Tools and then the doe so which one is this going to be just a doe so it would apply across the doe whether State office or complex area or schools are purchasing uh we have all the same thresholds one of the things we'd like to do in the future is be able to have the state office be able to do larger purchases so that schools don't have to individually purchase um the equipment yeah that's that's what I was talking to some of the prison because you know we doing the pathways for enmies and even though Kim Sanders was blessed with an equipment of carpentry when she took over the school still yet other equipment still cost uh the school's a lot of money and the kids who's interested in them not going to be able to benefit if we cannot expedite okay thank you thank you chair app so did you guys expect the cost savings by doing that uh possibly it's possible that we'd have a cost savings we definitely have a Time Savings and I think the cost savings might come in the amount of effort that staff have to put into the procurement process currently but for delivery it still be to individual schools yes well it depends on the kind of equipment but a lot of this equipment is large so yes okay thank you question for the uh State procurement office is Bonnie Kakui still online line she is still on Zoom good afternoon Senator thank you so Bonnie when is SPL moving to a new electronic uh procurement system as you indicated last year the move would be completed well we're in the process now but we're not starting with the the electronic procurement portion of that we are starting with our e- Marketplace which is our already contracted Price Less and vendor list so it'll be a couple of years before we move into the full e- procurement system however we still do have our Legacy system that's up and running as does the doe they you I believe they use heps uh for some of their work and uh they're they're able to use hypro currently so um to address your testimony and equal opportunity though doe and other departments for um that matter could post their notices on hands which is the state's Hawaii Awards and notices data system that is cor that is correct that is a posting board only um agents vendors would have to go look for those notices as opposed to a procurement system like hypro like aloh ebis which is the brand of our new one in in hypro in an electronic procurement system notice notifications go out two vendors who have signed up in our system hands just says it's just a like a bulletin board electronic bulletin board and you got to go look for it so are you assuming that uh those companies that regular deal with due would not be looking at the postings I I don't know for sure particularly if it's only once in a once in a great while by but what the doe can do is reach out to their vendors uh if a particular item is coming up for their need they can reach out to their vendors and say hey go look at the the notice in hands and then that way everybody or everybody that they reach out to where that's seen the notice uh will be able to respond to them okay thank you thank you de you please so how will this help with student achievement and students goal of Industry recognized certifications so we know that the industry is changing really fast especially as technology um increases and there's more applications of technology and so this uh this bill would allow schools to acquire equipment Career and Technical education equipment more quickly quickly to give students uh more students access to the Hands-On experiences that prepare them for for work in some of these emerging Industries or high-tech Industries um they would be able to in some cases earn industry certifications um that are associated with um learning skills on the equipment so um you just heard the SPO say that um do you could reach out to to vendors um to and just tell them to look on hands to see what you guys are looking for is that a possibility yes yes it is so at the State office level we do use hands to put some of our procurement up on that system um so that is a possibility yes so what defines some how do you determine what goes on B anything that's gone through an RFP process is put up uh through the hand system is posted on there as well um and as well we also do use high pro for some of the uh uh different uh procurements that procurement methods that are used so both hypro and hands are being used by the department I don't know if you guys know the answer to this but how many contracts go has to go through a procurement each year that we're going to have to get back to I apologize I don't have that on hand yeah so you guys don't keep up a number by schols in well we would we would have that number I just don't have that okay I would appreciate your getting back to us on that Senator can you clarify do you mean contracts overall or do you mean specific to CTE purchases CTE purchases yes further questions thank you and this concludes our meeting or do we have something else yeah we're going to decision make is that what you're talking about yeah obviously we can't take a vote there's only my friend here and myself um so we will be decision making um on Monday March 18th at 300 p.m.

in room 224 okay and we do have a 2-minute testimony limit but it's highly recommended that you stand on your written testimony okay all right up first house bill 2720 into collective bargaining up first we have uh good afternoon chair Vice chair members of the committee Deborah Halbert vice president for academic strategy I do stand on my written testimony but I did want to make one uh one clarification of a number that has been circulating about 80% of courses being taught by graduate students in February 20233 we had 498 graduate teaching assistants so those are the folks that would have been teaching courses of the 2543 undergraduate sections that would be excluding independent studies or those types taught at uh Manoa a total of 579 sections or 22.7% involved a teaching assistant of some kind 187 sections had a ga and the instructor of Rec or as the instructor of record which would have been 7.3% so we just wanted to clarify some of the data on what and where the students are teaching and I know way mean this to undermine the quality of the work that they're doing or the services that they do provide just wanted to clarify that thank you thank you very much up next we have BNF director saw earlier okay the comments okay up next we have Benjamin wisman good afternoon chairs Vice chair members of the committee I'm uh Ben wisman I'm here with the graduate student organization of the University of Hawaii at monoa I'm also a a graduate research assistant and PhD student and the gso um unanimously passed a resolution in support of this bill and we stand on that resolution St testimony okay thank you very much up next we have hsda good afternoon president to going to be here today I'm Andrea echelman the deputy exec we stand on our written testimony I'm available for any questions you might have okay thank you very much here we have okay thank you very much comments okay next we have n Tom Israel on Zoom hello my name is Danielle dco and I'm here on behalf of Tom Israel and the National Education Association I'm a higher education organizational specialist with NAA and I join you tonight to thank you very much for the opportunity to testify and to again express our commitment the National Education associations of commitment in our steadfast support for academic labor United's efforts to unionize specifically I want to highlight that we are here to support reverting HP 2720 uh HD3 to HD2 which more appropriately uphold the constitutional right of all grad workers to collectively bargain I just want to share with the room I have witnessed myself that academic Labor United is ready to unionize they have the support that is necessary they have the resources that are necessary they have the expertise that is necessary now is the time to support them in their efforts to form their Union appropriately this support of this committee I urge you all to push this bill forward so that we are able to provide the support that we have been that we have been prepared to provide the last couple of months and are looking forward especially to um seeing them through the recognition process and as they form their Mighty Union thank you very much malaho for the opportunity Balo excuse me for the opportunity to participate hey thank you very much okay up next we have diano it's a little tooo close um afternoon um chair Senator Henry okino and Senator Don Mar kakim as well as the members of the labor and technology and higher education committees uh I'm di un teaching assistant from mography and I'm the chair of academic Labor United We Stand in strong support of HB 2720 but we contend that it must be reverted from HD3 to HD2 ht3 the current uh version of the bill as it stand simultaneously creates bargaining Unit 16 for grad res unit workers and classifies them as a class of workers that shall not be included in any bargaining unit nor entitled to coverage under chapter 89- 6 we recognize that the legislature has the power to place public employees in the exent workers category as this detailed in chapter 89- 6 however doing so for graduate student workers directly interferes with their constitutional right to collectively bargain as public employees which the Supreme Court in ubw versus Yogi already ruled that the legislature cannot do so having both mend Ms ra a legal contradiction since graduate student workers were placed under the exemp category buing them from coverage under chapter 89- 6 this removes her ability to eventually file any petition to the hlrb much less for inclusion in bargaining Unit 16 and finally since the law in the hlrb looks to the legislature to create new bargaining units first having Unit 16 take effect only after the hlrb certifies it is a clear obligation of legislative Authority thank you for the opportunity to provide us and I will be able to answer questions okay thank you very much up next we have hga okay with comments okay we have Elizabeth yenu new support okay Chris Coffield Jason Bradshaw Chris Coffield again uh mikeu Senor Michu Jr Ronald sturis loha good evening chair Vice chair other members of the committee uh my name is Ronald sturis I'm the vice chair of the uh student caucus that's the University of ho student caucus uh we represent formally we are authorized to serve as a systemwide Association of students from each student campus government across all 10 campuses in the UA system we unanimously share a position of support for House Bill 2720 with a specific request to have its language amended back to the uh How It Was Written HD2 thank you very much for allowing me to testify okay thank you very much up next we have miles jakowski how it chair marot Kim chero members of the committee I appreciate the opportunity to offer my testimony today my name is Miles rowski I'm a civil engineering graduate worker as well as an organizer with academic Labor United and I like i' like to voice my strong support and reverting HP 2720 HD3 back to 2720 HD2 uh firstly I want to say that we're proud to have the support of and stand in solidarity with OA we recognize the vital role that OA members play in our professional and academic lives now we've pre previously estimated that 80% of students are affected by ta labor during their course of study uh based on the available data that we had this estimate does not imply that t teach 80% of classes this is not the case merely that our contributions and our labor during our employment will collectively account for 80% of The Graduate students during their course of study the important truth here is that the university doesn't function without our labor in addition to making valuable and significant contributions to advancing our respective fields we affect so much of the student body the labor Central to our struggle doesn't subtract from the labor of others nor does it negate the value and the significance of that labor our desire is that we are all recognized for the contributions we have poured our emotional and physical labor into we believe that any attempts to minimize the vital role that graduate workers and our colleagues in OA play in the future of our communities and this island represent an ignorance of the True Value that we all bring our Collective contributions cannot simply be a ledger entry to be tallied and summed up this is not a zero sum calculation 100% of undergraduate students will eventually in some way be affected by graduate workers and 100% of students will eventually be affected by uh faculty we firmly resolve to stand in solidarity with AA and our Collective struggle to have our labor recognized and fairly compensated I want to thank you guys for allowing me to testify before you today thank you very much up next we have Sarah Maria s moin did I get that right perfect just look intimidating chair committee members I'm s they pronouns I'm a third-year PhD student in political science and a graduate teaching assistant I support reverting HB 2720 HD3 back to HD2 which upholds a constitutional right of graduate assistance to collectively bargain I stand behind my written testimony and want to add additional color about how the university works with the gso in 2021 to 2022 I was elected the academic Affairs chair of the graduate student organization which means I worked with uh Deans and faculty on issues including both academic and graduate student grievances representing graduate students to The Graduate faculty Council provos Council and faculty Senate a key issue I worked on was the punitive practice of academic probation when students pass the recommended time of their program while still being within the maximum time limits uh puts academic probation on our transcripts this could happen if a student took courses part-time while caring for a sick family member or got sick with covid-19 imagine what employers and funders think when they see academic probation they assume the person cheated or Worse not that they're simp l a few years away from the deadline to finish their program this Draconian measure impacts graduate students applying for research funding fellowships postal positions and faculty jobs upon graduation I talk about this because I worked for seven months to Garner graduate student testimony and faculty support for changing this policy in May 2022 The Faculty Council then unanimously agreed this practice should be stopped this however didn't occur instead uh decided without further graduate student input that they wanted to keep the academic probation notation policy even as it hinders the financial security and job prospect of their students our constitutional right to Union would allow us to actually successfully work with uh to create working conditions for us as both students and workers without a union our efforts to organize frequently are undone by uh Mahi andoss okay thank you very much up next we have Noel iaki okay support will coron junin Olivia Meyer Daniela es contella Monica orillo John Nightingale all in support and we have at least at least 20 30 or so all in support um we do have Hannah manshel with comment any others wishing to testify Aloha cherino cherim and committee members my name is Lily fiser I'm a graduate assistant in the American studies department at uh monoa and an organizing chair with academic Labor United um I'm here to testify in support of reverting HP 2720 HD3 to HD2 which upholds the constitutional right of graduate assistants to collectively bargain um the University of Hawaii could not run without grad student labor collective bargaining will allow graduate students to harness the power of our labor to address structural inequities in student salaries treatment and security we deserve to represent ourselves and negotiate with the administration as a collective and we've proven that we're capable of doing so for years and without institutional support Alo has created Avenues to serve the unique needs of our diverse membership we're a truly Grassroots organization committed to creating a union built on principles of community care and inclusivity that can attend to the intersecting needs of every graduate student I've been working with Alo for over 2 years and I've listened to many stories of the compounding academic economic and interpersonal stresses that make life as a ga unsustainable but I've also seen Alo emerge as a space and resource in which we can seek sustenance from our community I'm so inspired by the brilliant workers that compose our membership and seeing in spite of numerous roadblocks and our own heavy workloads our numbers continue to grow we're becoming more organized better resourced and more committed to one another and our mission for a union we're going to continue to work for the rights that we know we deserve because we genuinely care about keeping each other safe and about making higher education accessible to people of all socioeconomic backgrounds we also know that a graduate student union will benefit not only the students and workers of U but workers in Hawaii more broadly we're here asking for support and a legal Pathway to do what we've already been doing which is to care for our community mollow for the opportunity to testify okay thank you very much any others wishing to testify guessing non members questions chair yeah a question um Sarah can you come back up hi so and I you know any one of that you could answer this question but uh I've read in other testimonies and heard that part of the problem is that um The Graduate assistants seem to be overburden with um number of classes and that if folks complain then you concerned about retaliation because the professors you would be complaining about are the ones that you are working for is that any truth to that I think there is truth to that so when I was the academic Affairs chair I was the person who was trained on all of The Graduate division policies for academic and graduate grievances who graduate students would go to and most frequently students did not want to go through the proper channels because you have to list and document everything and show it to your Superior and and that's still the person who would need to write your letters of recommendation for any future jobs or anything else but there's no other Pathways that we have to actually address grievances that are outside of a system built without us and that when we raised concerns about it in training was just this is the thing that we've had to build legally I rais that because I listened to the testimony of person before you miles who said folks are in solidarity with OA but yet it's OA members who are the ones that are doing this so have you folks approached o as far as you know making sure that they would they would um give you folks equal kinds of work and Fair Labor practices I think would you want to take this yeah thank you let me well I have one more question for you too you do you want to come up why don't I finish asking then and then you talked about the amount of money that you make how much in tuition what's your tuition I pay out of state tuition um so I'm trying to think of exactly what it is off the top of my head but it's like what is it 12 I think it's 10,500 up to 13,000 depending on how many credit hours I take per semester per semester depending on how many credit hours I take okay so you could actually 205,000 $22,000 a year inition wavers soim no I don't ever actually receive that money that no but they're waivers right be tuition waivers the the tuition waivers are in the M of I believe 12,000 in the fall yeah but per semester so per semester so 12,000 in the fall yeah so about 24,000 a year if you went sure yeah I think it depends on the amount of coursework if you didn't have the waivers that would be out of pocket cost right it could be either out of pocket costs or other funding that I would have to cover it so there are other ways to get tuition waivers or to get f for like Fellowship so there certain fellowships that requ you not to have any other things that would offset funding for example there's fellowships I can apply because I have a tuition waiver as a worker so it doesn't necessarily mean I would be paying for that out of pocket right but somehow that cost would be attributed for your education okay thank you so yeah to clarify the statement regarding OA um so there are members of Faculty that may have that gent workers may have grievances against but that does not mean that the entirety of OA is responsible for that yeah Behavior just like the entire legislature which we get blamed for and or not but we get blamed Anyway by the unions so I'm just saying that you're talking about solidarity by the unions and by Opa and they're the members that are in fact um viol ating or making you guys want to go to a union because you don't have certain rights you know the fact that they're a union you would think that they would want equal rights for you as well so I'm just you know concerned when you folks use such words because they come they come here and they don't come in person necessarily but they come here and talk about you know that you folks should get it but then what are they doing to helping you folks and the uh as well I think is a culprit in that they're not helping to make your um your workplace uh you know equal or or reasonable as far as you folks doing the work and I think it's unfair and yet You' have nowhere to go which is crazy that you should be in that position and so trying to understand that OA has supported the formation of a collective bargaining unit for graduate student workers ever since that any kind of legislation yes that's not the question is whether or not they've helped you folks in resolving some of your issues with their members well so the thing is that OA has a union and so there is a process by which renes are acknowledged because they have a union because graduate student workers do not have a union even though you have faculty that may be supportive even though you may have The Graduate um I think our interim graduate um division share was held testimony to that that they can offer us options they can offer us all these Pathways but because we do not have the that Union we do not have that legal framework but which we can kind of um accommodate these policies then there's a limit what um can be done but labor practices are labor practices whether you have a union or not right I mean you would think at this day and age the University of Hawaii would recognize some of these labor practices or or policies or the way they're running things that shouldn't be going on um and so should the union and so that's all I'm I'm raising that that's a concern that I rais when you know you guys talk about solidarity yes maybe for you folks to have a union but whether they're not they're there to assist you and theying sure that their labor practices and what's going on and how they're treating you folks in the workplace uh is fair so again these are individual members of OA Senator and so we're not trying to um blame it on OA as an Union as a whole because there are these policies in place and there is a way for them for their members to be held accountable because they are a union and for example if there were some grievances between you know AA and the uh they have that recourse but because graduate student workers do not have a union no I understand I'm just saying that these are issues that if we folks don't get this bill passed that you be in the same situation and the university shame on them for not stepping up to make sure that you folks are adequately taken care of uh for the work that you do and similar to the union that you folks are not getting treated adequately or the way you guys think you should be so with Aion fact really push for that kind of fair treatment because right now there's no legal accountability framework where we can there's no legal framework by which we can hold them accountable similar to what SAR said even though a polici unanimously supported by the faculty Council I think if you've listen to you know the executive management has no Union and they want to be treated correctly and equally right and they do and they raise their issues with uh without having a union so you don't have to have a union I'm just saying that the treatment of the graduate assistant necessarily just having a union is not going to necessarily solve all your problems because even though you go by grievance you ask how many union members and I know cuz my mom was a um shop steart for her Union and that it doesn't get resolved just because you file a grievance doesn't necessarily mean it gets resolved but truly Senator there is a recognition that a unionized worker has more power because of that collect bargaining unit because of being able to negotiate a contract rather than a non-unionized worker is there that recognition of the difference between a unionize and a non-un ni worker yes and you still have people that op out of being in the union and they still get the same rights so thank you okay thank you chair um any other questions pleas chair uh Dr Halbert afternoon um so the students are saying that they have brought concerns up they don't feel protected um and and so the university has a process why are they saying that they haven't been treated well and protected by faculty who may be abusing their position could I ask that our dean of graduate education come up to help answer that question because there are processes in place at man but I believe she's been more involved in afternoon announce yourself please uh Julian MAA interm Dean graduate division there is a process for graduate students as well as graduate assistants to share their concerns or report concerns um about how they're being treated uh neglected all kinds of different things in order for the university to move forward with any type of investigation we do require a formal complaint most of the graduate students that come talk to me they do not want to file a formal complaint they do not want the respondent to know that they filed a complaint even though there are options on and we've have had cases where they could change their committee and reconfigure it so they were not part of that um I guess in that relationship or that environment anymore with the mentor or whoever it is that might be um causing an inappropriate environment for them but the vast majority do not want to to go through the investigation process so if they form a union and they have representation do you think these how how would the process be so that we can protect our students have them finish up their studies and graduate I think it would it would be similar to the way faculty and staff um if they reported a situation it would be a similar process where they would invite their union representative or I mean if they went formally I don't know too many employees that that have just in my own um experience um due to similar concerns of retaliation or um just unfair treatment perhaps uh I think it would be similar in in that sense there would still be the fear of retaliation and not having the situation completely resolved and I mean and I and I get it it's I get very frustrated because I can't do anything to help them because they don't want to go forward and as part of due process we have to I mean we can't move forward investigating someone if that someone doesn't know that they're being investigated just going to maybe it's for um end up um so in terms of one of the other concerns that they brought up is the salary compensation and being overworked um is there any standard so that you do um Monitor and assess that they're not being worked overly over the the 20 hours or whatever hours and that they are compensated there's a way of of raising their salaries so we do have policy under revieww right now and sometime in the next few weeks we'll be meeting again to go through the comments from the formal consultation that would increase the salary steps for gas another 10 steps so instead of stopping at 20 which is currently $35,000 it would go up to 30 that's uh at 52,000 at that point we're starting to hit a salary that if doubled to a full-time one FTE would be more than what many of our faculty make so there's concerns that we would need to balance in terms of that as well so what is the salary now of your different steps so the steps start well at Manoa I believe you start at step 12 this year is currently step 12 step 12 which is $25,988 it's 22,170 so that's the starting um Step now the other part of your question is the workload piece and that's always a really difficult question to answer because there is the 20 hours part-time work but then oftentimes these are students who if they're research GA are potentially working on the work that is part of their doctoral dissertation so how you choose to categorize any given thing I mean it's similar to what faculty work is right if I'm reading for my course is that work or is that fun I don't know right it's just all part of what we have to do in in preparing for both our scholarship and our teaching so so there's always going to be some fuzziness around the end now in ga's TAS or gas who have a more discret kind of workload then it should be easier to be able to identify the starting and stopping points but the other part of it I mean this is obviously infinitely uh complex is that if you're assigned teaching a class not all the work happens in a 20-hour work week right sometimes it'll be more sometimes it'll be less depending on the waxing and the waning of the work in the course so so what what do you say when they say that the university couldn't run without grad assistance I think that in addition to that graduate students this is a critical professional development training for graduate students so for those who are going on into the academy this may be the opportunity they have to teach a class or to be mentored by someone who's teaching a class so so it's a critical part of what we do at the University and also for the research component both for their personal research but also for the research that they will go on to do in in their professional careers there's these critical parts of what graduate students do that's important so are they taking on loads that should be done by faculty no I think in I mean and again I think Julie can speak in more detail to the specifics of what's happening at monoa but it's a it's an important relationship and it's one in which you know and and again it's not to say that there aren't that it's perfect right there are definitely problems that need to be addressed you answer to that no I think um what Dr hbert shared is is accurate it it's a it is a complicated um issue thank you chair s just just going forward this see one the complication and going forward the students cannot be rep representative with the more Union but they keep talking about these Oompa whatever I don't know people that is supposed to be setting in unity with them where's those guys who set in unity with them representing on their behalf to their fellow colleagues I mean if I got to advocate for somebody in my community with one of my colleagues I'm going to Advocate is say how much of them going to have evocation from them going forward when we come into the Union because they kind of keep waiting to become Union and keep getting past you guys telling me to getting $112 so how can we get more of that to help them so they can move forward right you heard how much of think came up said right I don't know all the acronyms they had over there but I heard about three or four of them said unified and I know what union unification means that means we unified as one but it doesn't seem I think there's the disconnect between them and the unification because unification means they're advocating and they're not advocating they're just giving the verbal I would you girl well I can't speak for the unions but I would I would like to highlight something that Dr MAA had said which is that in the process of making a complaint right now a faculty member would come for have forward and have Union representation in this case uh it would also be something potentially a graduate student could do uh for their own if if they are engaged in a complaint process is that they would have an advocate for them uh now whether or not that means all unions will unite I cannot tell but um that's different yeah but the thing the thing is what what you were saying so the students we can complain black Bal power they're not going to use them CU they black Bal and you can't say the university not going to do that because they're they're very you know you know anyway so going forward how can we end up protecting them CU that's the reason why they came to us right they want to feel some kind of protection or being used and misus and Abus for decades or years I don't know how long Abie said he created him so I don't know since Abie how long is that see so how can we again help them cuzz I heard something about $12 how much how much you get P an hour $12 an hour no oh sorry 12 12 step 25,000 25,000 I was like BR you're getting ripped off okay thank you chair whatever you guys can help because we want to help them how can we help them if you know we don't have the tools to do it so thank you thank you chair sen kidani thank you so do you have a a number or percent of um other universities that have um unions for grad students I should have looked that up before I don't have that right here but I I bet the students do though yeah it's quite a number yeah it's quite a few right and and very large systems as well like California's system has unionized grad students so specifically is the University Administration against Union in reg we we not in favor we are taking no position because this is a legislative matter but a legislative matter because you folks made it that way well since they have no position I think we should support the gr students so you you responded to Senator moraki that when she asked you about the university could function without grad assistance and you your answer you didn't really answer that question but your answer was no more that this program is for the benefit of the grad students and not necessarily for the University so I would take that as the answer is uh yes you guys could function without grad assistance I would like monoa to answer that but I don't think that a research one institution can function without graduate students would you like to that is that is correct okay so let's get that on the record because the way you answered it didn't see sound that way um to somebody listening where you didn't really answer the question yeah I wanted to make sure I highlighted what I think some of the value of that right is the value were more towards the grad system than it was through the faculty because technically The Faculty should be teaching in classes if there's no grad assistance to teach them right but not all grads assistants teach many are research faculty or research assistants and many of those who do teach are you know in the classroom or Tain section so okay so um Dr Maya the number of complaints that you receive I mean it's well kind of well known right or well documented Mano that there's these issues surrounding gra assistance yes right that's correct kind of well known so the fact that it's well known why do I have to need an investigation why couldn't there be whole whole system changes to address these issues why why do you have to wait for individual investigations when you know that it's it's problematic it's question to you AG right you guys know it's there yet you kind say well there's a process oh well you know we have to go through this we have to wa for an investigation and these these students fear for retaliation and not just them that fear trust me I get calls from faculty that belong to the unions that don't do Grievances and that's why I bring that out because they're not no matter who represents you you're still going to be known to that Professor that you filed agreements and doesn't always get resolved I get so many faculty that call me and they either quit or they file lawsuits I just got two last week they're filing lawsuits you know um for hostile work environment for for some other reasons um but if you folks know that this is there why why have't be hope so changes system changes for the the students who have come to see me one they're all different faculty so it's not necessarily all in the same now if it was in the same unit then no but then it should be for the whole university why is it only one unit I mean you know what's good for one should be good for the other so whether you have graduate assistants not being violated or not being protected others that are the fact is the whole university should have a same same kind of policy to protect them all right we we do have policies against a hostile work environment hostile academic environment um but it's a prevalent and it's not working something's not working enforcement's not working something's not working so why hasn't you guys I mean technically I always hear this that you know a lot of the University they're the brightest mindes in the state right they're the brightest mindes in the state they get paid a lot of money in the state they do a lot of research so how you guys can't we solve this issue one a basic labor practices is and and treatment of your employees do if I can if I can clarify though for most of the students who have come to talk with me they're not a ga they're a graduate student I've maybe had two come to speak with me in maybe three in the 10 years I've been with The Graduate Division and so those are very few and far between um we do have Advocates now for them and actually The Advocates out of the manal carees office was created primarily to help graduate students especially with the concerns that they have okay but the fact that you've said that it's kind of well known that why are we addressing them whether they gas or whether they're Grant students it shouldn't be occurring and yeah they they're never going to be perfect system but it shouldn't be dis prevent right yes I mean we but we do offer trainings um for the faculty um it's just a matter of making them much more I guess annual and to encourage all of the faculty to attend so one last thing I just want to make sure so all the those grad students that are supporting this understand that whether you are represented or Not by a union rep for a grievance you file a complaint this complaint is going to be made known to the person that you're fing it against right and that not all griev get resolved to the liking of the people bringing you up and there's still retaliation that go on despite that right even though we have policies against it yes and even though you have a union you still have issues yes right okay just so that they know that this is not the Panacea because it's still going to occur and because I get union members call me and they don't want to file agreements they don't want to go they don't even want to go on the anonymous on the anonymous of law because they feel that that they're still going to somehow be found out and they fear for their job jobs even though they may be tender they still do so okay thank you I have a quick question so what's your reading on the current house draft it's a little confusing in one section it says they can bargain and then another section that says they're exempt from bargaining I mean what's since you shared your position can you share on The house's position um I I'm not sure I can speak to how uh that should be resolved it seems contradictory to have it in both of those sections the way it is currently written okay thank you very much members any other questions you see on chair okay thank you move on to the next item on the agenda which is House Bill 2501 house draft one this is relating to the university reporting requirements repeals the reporting requirement to identify the cost impacts to the state of providing workers compensation coverage for the University of voice students and uh just as far as Jen goes there there she is walked in great timing Jen thank you uh the University of ho stands on its written testimony and support of this [Music] measure you are the only one testifying members any questions no questions good for you okay um anyone else wishing to testify on this measure okay nobody else so with that I'm going to the decision making going to recess briefly thank you okay reconvening our 3 p.m.

agenda we are in room 229 this meeting including the audio and video of remote participants is being streamed live on YouTube you will find links to viewing options for all Senate meetings on the live and On Demand video page of the legisl website this Zoom meeting and YouTube live stream event will include the 3:00 pm agenda no the 3:5 p.m. agenda for the committee on education in the unlikely event that must abruptly end this hearing due to Major technical difficulties the committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business on Wednesday March 20th 2024 at 3:03 p.m.

hopefully we'll all have Tans and uh be refreshed um on April 15th uh regular business meeting at 6:30 at North High School not the ASC please note that one we're catching up on our recognitions of students so the South High students that we didn't get to recognize so far this year will be here on April 1st uh for those set of recognitions uh we have some larger teams we need to recognize at the April 15th one that's why we'll start in the North High Auditorium we'll do the student recognition we'll take a recess move to the community room for the rest of our our the boring part of our business meeting no our exciting part of our meeting and then before we adjourn I would just like to um uh celebrate uh the accomplishment of all the students at uh dgn who were part of the uh little Maid Little Mermaid um play over the weekend I was able to attend with my family and it was just a fantastic performance the the quality of the production and the talent that was exhibited by the students that evening was just off the charts I was really moved emotionally and um just want to uh mention that that was just fantastic and also uh have a very safe and uh enjoyable spring break that is coming up yes so before our meeting for those of you that weren't able to attend the South High uh art our theater Department well dance group orchus I had a a wonderful performance this weekend as well so the Arts were shining this weekend it's great all right can I get a motion to adjourn so moved a second all in favor I I I motion carries we are adjourned thank you everybody have a good evening we've got you out of here and maybe there's

to 7 p.m. this week we are thrilled to really begin um to have our annual student Le amplify we want to thank our our student ambassadors for their support of the Amplified work and we know that this is important in Dr Waller and her team's leadership um this will happen here in asigo on Thursday um March 21st beginning at 5:00 pm we encourage everyone to come out and hear the voices there is nothing more important than really listening to the voices of our students um this is an opportunity where we're going to hear their stories showcase empowering and inspirational performances we want to acknowledge our Muslim Community um and we join them in acknowledging the observance of Ramadan which in Islam um which is significant in Islam and many of our students and staff are participating in this um exercise of fasting it was interesting a couple schools I found you know students who are fasting were gathering and I was able to encourage them in their fast it was really a meaningful moment they they were very excited to to meet with me and I to meet with them and also our families of Christian faiths who are observing lent um through March 28th and we want to um recognize this important time of fasting and prayer for all and reflection for all of our communities of various Interfaith um faiths and backgrounds um tonight you heard these eight priorities these are directly aligned with the five Essentials and I want to invite and I want to ask the whole Community um check with your neighbor did you fill out the five Essentials check with each other it's a really important part of this we are at the last uh in the last days of this survey um parents teachers and for students to provide their Viewpoint this becomes a real important barometer for us to gauge it's a litmus test it's a thermometer test of where we're at as a community and we really need 20% of our communities to take of our parent Community to participate um when you break it down um it's really it's really not a lot of time invested but it does have a significant impact in our ability to understand and really supports our school Improvement planning and our resource allocation in our school district um as a reminder studies show that when schools are strong on at least three of the five Essentials they are 10 times more likely to improve student learning and as I just wrap up I just my comments formal comments I really want to thank everyone um for their efforts um for coming together and really helping build a shared Vision team our senior leadership our executive leadership teams District's parents um who've contributed to what you heard tonight um the challenges are far and deep in our schools there are also lots of successes what these eight priorities provide us with with a road map to really getting to that next stage of success um it is us who really build the system the system is not out there we we are the system we are the system and so the challenges we Face are a function of what's we are creating the challenges we Face are a function of what we are creating from the classroom to the school to the district and really to our governance ultimately really to society but we have an opportunity to make a difference when I was a principal I always say to um teachers I'd say you know wow the classroom is humming there's such energy in the classroom and oftentimes teachers would say it's it's the it's the kids it's a great year and i' say no actually it's something you're doing yes we have great students but really it's the impact of our teachers and I would say the same applies to everything we do the work that we put in is the outcome we're going to get and I want to thank everybody for their leadership and making tonight's presentation of the priorities relevant and connected to the work I want to invite um my my uh the board me the board to share some other additional celebrations from around the district that um are part of the public comments that I make every month so thank you board for your support I'll start excuse me just like to say congratulations to Murphy's mathletes on their first place finish at our District's Junior High math competitions congratulations another congratulations to Jessica Corey the music teacher and director at plank junior high school for being recognized as one of six Illinois Educators in the fourth annual Yamaha 40 exceptional music educators under 40 program congratulations moving on this weekend at the central Illinois Regional Garett forward the robotics team took second in the competition and was awarded the engineering inspiration award which sends them to the world championship in Houston and this is cool and NASA pays the registration fees and if I'm not mistaken I I believe they're at the village board meeting tonight doing a presentation as well uh this award celebrates A team's outstanding success and advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and Engineers both within their school and their Community they will compete again over spring break at UIC so congrats to them uh the Illinois art Education Association celebrates March as youth art month Fox Chase fifth grade student UAH Newman was the Elementary winner and featured on their web page the youth month uh the youth art month program emphasizes the value of art education for all children encourages support for Quality school art programs and promotes art material safety congratulations think that's it okay moving on to 7.2 we'll hear from our student ambassadors all right hello everybody hi Luke um since our last meeting we have taken the data from last year's uh student mental health survey and the teacher survey okay there we go and the teacher survey that we put out just this February um and we've combined the two to create the innovate K through2 which you have in front of you we gave you all a copy um so through investigation uh into the data in Trends we found some critical data that is vital to better understand the student teacher relationships and how we can bridge the gap that currently exists through our data collection we were able to identify patterns and commonalities to further that goal So today we're going to focus um more on our teacher survey data that we've collected um so on page 26 um in regards to our teacher survey uh we received a total of 307 teacher responses um with 163 being from iGo East um 141 from iGo high school and uh three that indicated working in both High schools a big issue that was uncovered by students last year in our mental health survey was homework uh many students acknowledged that homework and overall workload uh they acknowledged that as a concern so we asked the question how much time do you expect students to work on their homework daily this is on page 26 172 teachers indicated 0 to 30 minutes 120 teachers said that they do not assign home homework in their respective classes and 15 indicated that they uh require 30 minutes to an hour of homework daily through this data we've identified that most teachers uh don't assign hours of homework to their students um another major question that was asked in our teacher survey that can directly relate to Stronger relationships in the classroom was how important is discussing post high school plans with your students so this is on page 28 uh we've indicated that 175 teachers indicated it as super important to discuss um post high school plans 108 um identified it as important and 22 um indicated it as not important and only two said very not important so um we looking at how that can um grow student teacher relationship ships as it um uh relates to postsecondary plans uh College trade school whatever that may be so going off of this specific question we were able to ask the follow-up open-ended question of how they promote these second uh postsecondary plans from the teachers responses uh we identified five main themes uh those five main themes are uh integration into curriculum and daily activities individualized support and goal setting creating a culture of open dialogue incorporation into curriculum and assignments and utilizing various strategies and resources so those are the um five key themes that we developed from uh that main question of postsecondary education and all of those are defined there for you um there is also a Frequency Word chart that includes words that were commonly used in the teachers open-ended responses um and some of those main words are um conversation plan future question goal and talk just to name a few I'll now turn it over to Isabelle to continue the conversation yes so we also collected a good amount of data on student Behavior so on page 32 you can see a graph on and this was something we were all kind of looking forward to seeing the results for so the graph on how often do you experience cost from disruptions that take away from student learning and we saw 17 teachers said always 56 said often 91 said sometimes 133 said occasionally and 10 said never so that was actually positive compared to maybe what we had expected with only seeing occasionally but also of course there is always room for improvement because we just want all teachers to feel respected and understood um we also had a majority of those teachers from there state that the the um the most disruptive behavior that he experienced was off task Behavior often times citing phone use uh earbuds all of that so this has really led a lot of our past meetings we've been discussing how we can manage these discussions around cell phone policy how to ensure that both teachers and students feel heard but also to make sure we're getting to the root of the problem because it's it's not always just the cell phone there may be other things going on and we want to make sure we're looking at it holistically and today we also began our research process to better understand the issues we are addressing we're also working on comparing this data to our past student survey so to board members the front of the packet is all student survey data and the back of it is teacher survey data so you can kind of flip back and forth and look at that in our student survey we had mult questions on how students feel respected compared to their teachers that was really great data to Overlay with our teacher survey to attempt to kind of get the full picture of how students and teachers are viewing it and lastly we also asked Educators what they would like to be done to feel more respected many stated that they already feel respected which was really positive to see but um of course the most common were creating a cell phone policy and to have more support from school administration which has really caus caused us to have some wonderful conversations with our students our district our um School admin District admin and everyone has been very supportive very interested in the conversation which has been wonderful and again this data we are still working on investigating deeper Dr Waller has been giving us some great research uh information especially today we went over it so we learned today we learned about non-verbal teacher communication perceived caring and lack thereof as well as true understanding how teacher student relationships can positively change the trajectory of their learning experiences cell phones have been highlighted as mentioned before we are learning that this is just one barrier to the relationships but not directly about the relationships students have with their teachers um and so that's it on the survey but I just wanted to say quickly in regards to tomorrow and just going off what Dr katti was saying if you are 17 or if you have a 17-year-old if they are going to be 18 by the November election date they can vote tomorrow so just remind your students if they're 17 and they will be 18 by the November election day you can vote in the primary in the state of Illinois and I believe we have same day registration so so we can open up if you have any questions about this data now uh it's we know it's a lot but we'd be happy to answer or going forward um if you have any questions just anytime just shoot us an email or a convers ation and uh we'd be happy to answer any questions that you have um and we look to developing a goal and an action plan going forward with all of this data thank you I don't have any questions at the moment but I really I have to commend you on this is amazing this is a lot of hard work lot and you both and and the team did a did a wonderful job congratulations thank you I'll Echo that and just ask who else are you sharing this with our SS sorry our ssac has seen it and I believe it's getting shared with uh School admin so yes everyone that that's the adults and the students who are a part of ssac will have this but as the students so today they they um went through three different research articles so as they're going through that wi part process some of this will be lifted um to be a part of their action plan so then people will see more data as we go along but are you suggesting we share more now can I so I would say that this becomes a part of how we build out the priorities every one of our priorities is going to have a rationale portion which essentially situates the data and this work is really mentioned in the priorities and so this becomes complementary they'll essentially be an appendix that supports this I think situating within the level setting around here's our Baseline here's our understanding I'm so proud of our students interests and commitment to really hearing what's being said and then finding ways to find Solutions it fits right in the prior so it will be definitely forecast there I think we can put some more attention to that yeah that's that's what I'm suggesting like where where else can we use this so it doesn't live on its own and then also like when you take a survey and I think this is all high school right you always want to be like what happened to that survey that we took you know like that question is always out there so I'm glad to hear that it'll be part of more conversations so make note of that you too we need to have a conversation in our next meeting regarding how we can I think it would be great for our students and um teachers to just again be able to hear those results so thank you yeah so you know as I understand Yar right the youth participatory action research it's about not students trying to solve problems but calling us to action right so I don't want you know them to dwell too much on trying to come up with Solutions but bring us a recommendation y so right no I was that's exactly what it is so the research and the articles that they're looking at will help them to be able to determine some recommendations so that we can then call to action the adults to push it through because often times um adults want others to come up with the solutions but that's what y power is all about it's about making sure that the adults are accountable for making sure that change happens yeah y okay thank you great thank you excellent excellent work all right 7.3 board committee report so we'll start with the equity and teaching and learning who would like to share out on that uh I can share out uh the equity and teaching and learning committee uh met and we discussed a couple things uh we looked at uh the presentation of a portrait of a learner um we went over we talked and gave some feedback about the um um the event that we had with our with our students um and um what else and gave some ideas about that and then we um reviewed student rights and responsibilities update um and we're going to see some of that tonight for information as well uh and we were able to give some feedback about that as they think about the best way to present um that uh document um and we were able to provide some suggestions and feedback that's all okay thank you finance and Facilities you know I is going over kind of the summary of that and I think we're addressing everything I think you're right in the meeting today so perfect so we don't need to take up any more time with it we'll hear it tonight okay and then policy and legislator no it's all about you so it was it was a um somewhat short meeting uh we went over the um policies that we had to review which which fortunately were not very many um we did have some updates with some conversations with some um um uh political people um and there are more policies that are coming up and will be available but they won't be available until the end of this month so we scheduled our next meeting until April the only thing I'll add to that is we did discuss trying to have a little bit more um of a different I I think we go into the mindset of okay we're going to have a meeting every month and honestly there might be months where we should be having two maybe even three meetings and then there's some months why are we having a meeting so I think it needs to if we're really going to reflect policy and legislation then it needs to actually reflect the EV and flow of policy and legislation okay okay 7.4 board member comments any want to have any board member comments um just real quick I I know a bunch of us have busy I was a busy I know I'm trying to remember everything uh a bunch of us have been um visiting doing a lot of school visits a lot of site visits um I know D and I and Dr katti and and um Mrs Kam I'm running out of who went went to uh both B Hill and Long Beach last week uh there a couple others that we went to and and forgive me because it's all starting to become a blur um but I think um particularly in the case of Boulder Hill and the Boulder Hill parents that might still be here um we we definitely we definitely hear you uh we definitely we were on site we we see you we hear you um and we're working on it and and it'll be short-term rather than longterm um the other or short-term answer rather than one too far into the future the other the other thing on a totally different subject um Grand Park Elementary had their diversity Fair on Friday so I went to that um and it was just it was great it was well attended there had to be I don't know maybe 18 different countries that were represented uh it was pretty impressive there were um quite a few programs um presentations that kids did so um it was it was fun all like that anybody else um I just wanted to thank um the equity team can you just name everyone who's on the equity team yes um Miss Kiana hero who is here this evening um she's our director of school Improvement and professional learning Miram osich and Michelle Simmons are equity toses and Michelle early is our assistant director for engagement okay so they all joined me and supported me in um a award in which I received from the Quad County Urban League um on women empowerment and I sat on a panel with um Dr Susanna Rivera Mills the president of Aurora University and Dr Anita Thomas the president of North Central College and we were on a panel um speaking to to um empowering education and inspiring minds and trans trans transforming Futures and um it was a very um Dynamic and exciting and robust conversation that we had they kind of highlighted who we were in terms of being the first um you know Dr Rivera Mills is the first Latina president of Aurora University and Dr um Anita Thomas is the first African-American woman um president for North Central College and me being the first African-American School board president for our SLE 308 so it was a very exciting time and I just want to say thank you awesome congratulations congratulations that's awesome okay we're moving on to our consent agenda so can I have a motion to approve the consent agenda make a motion to approve all items under consent including 8.1 minutes from the board of educ ation meeting on February 26 2024 open and close session and minutes from the public forum on March 4th 2024 open and close session 8.2 to acknowledge all foyer requests received by the district 8.3 to approve the Illinois High School Association membership renewal for 20242 for both ASO and ASO East High School and 8.4 to approve the field trips for overnight and or more than 200 miles second are there any questions on the consent agenda I I have just a quick question is is there any equivalent uh I know we're app we're voting to approve ihsa membership is there any equivalent motion at some point for um Elementary School for IESA that you're aware of I am not we don't okay IA being the elementary school equivalent about HSA yeah that I don't I don't think that um it's nearly as detailed and and since it's not as what's the word I'm looking for it's not as I don't want to use the word common but it it it just seems like if you're not a part of ihsa and you're a high school I don't know what you're going to do whereas in IESA it's not as universal there's been more movement up north of 80 but um it's still not necessarily the norm if you're in the Chicago area um okay I but it depends on the sport well I was hold on to the caveat it depends on the sport right so um you know if you're talking um let's say I don't know basketball quite frankly um I mean I wasn't playing I'm not playing a lot of the closer you get into the city the fewer teams I'm going to be able to find that are IESA if I'm being honest now if you're talking like track and cross country that's a lot more common but it does depend like Neighborville is not IESA plane field is not IESA um that I'm aware of they might have a couple things that they've started it depends on the sport it's not nearly as universal as HS and listen I'm a big proponent of IESA so I'm not I'm not you know saying that from a lens of I don't approve just don't want to forget school kids Mr Gatewood I Dr Mario hi Miss ven I Mr ploger hi Miss Simon hi Mr Cerrone hi motion passes 60 okay so first up 9.1 we have our financial statements and investment schedule um board are there any questions or um dates okay okay uh thank you uh this evening we uh have uh Mr Bell and bayy Campbell who are joining us to discuss our student rights and responsibilities handbook I want to thank you for your leadership in this uh we you will you'll speak a little bit to how we we participate in some engagements with the community but also this is connected to the leadership work around our equity and uh board priorities that you heard this evening thank you Administration and Board of Education my name is Jeremy B I'm the executive director of student services hello my name is Bailey Campbell assistant director of student services and tonight we are here to discuss um our annual process of updating the student rights and responsibilities um you should have a couple of different um handouts for your board packet one of those is the timeline um for for that review of the the process um the goal here is always to get in front of uh multiple stakeholder groups um to make sure that that's updated accordingly um we're going to talk a little bit about the rationale tonight the student rights and responsibilities communication and acknowledgement the summary of changes and those key takeaways for you in terms of rationale as I mentioned this is an annual process we're governed by a couple of different things here with regards to Illinois school code um board po policy and we have to make sure that we integrate any recent or new legislative updates in terms of that acknowledgement our rights and responsibilities our student rights and responsibilities are embedded for all of our parent acknowledgement and student acknowledgement within Power School um as we migrated this year to um from Tyler to uh Power School um as part of the returning student registration and New Student registration um that is in the enrollment side of our s system um and so parents when they log in to complete that online registration process have the um option then to be able to go ahead and click that acknowledgement part of the feedback we talked about um at ETL was making that a required or mandatory field and there's some um there's some aspects to be able to do that but as it's loaded in the enrollment side um and the student side on power school it is not currently a required field but it is something that you click open um and acknowledge uh school code mandated that uh student rights and responsibilities or student handbooks are provided to parents and families or sorry students and families within 15 days of enrollment in the district so whether that's returning student enrollment or new student enrollment as long as we're providing that handbook and that information to them um within 15 school days um and uh the other side of this uh is that uh the buildings are very um active in getting those students to acknowledge um the student rights responsibilities on the student side um they kind of Chase those students all year along um and we did have some um challenges obviously with migrating to Power School sis um this year but we're hoping that that's much smoother transition we're able to get as many kids as we can we do offer centers at schedule pickup and those types of things for students to access um the student rights and responsibilities and sign that acknowledgement um early on in the school year with that I'm going to turn over our summary of changes to Miss Bailey Campbell to kind of highlight those uh key points all right um so if you can take a look at the redlined draft student rights and responsibilities code that was provided to you guys I'm going to highlight some um high level changes for you guys starting with section one and section two so if you flip to page two you will see in red right in the middle there that we added language to reflect our Equity Journey that we're currently on regarding equity and rightful presence that we heard discussed earlier today there's additional some minimal language changes within section one and within section two you'll notice that we changed our title from um student rights and responsibilities to student rights and student commitments section three and section four have very minimal changes along with section five and six um so if you take a look at those you'll notice a lot of that is based on some headings changes and small language changes um in addition to some changes required for the IEP meeting and puns information jumping ahead to page 15 this section is where we have adjusted the title to reflect the bullying harassment racism discriminatory language and hateful acts so this aligns with the call to action that was referenced earlier tonight so we want to just uh show focus on that in terms of the title change that title change language is then reflected throughout that document in the different headings we've also added definitions for racism discriminatory language and hateful acts and we have revised our current definitions for harassment and microaggressions again to match up with that call to call to action document okay can I highlight this we often talk about bullying um and its impact um for those of you who've experienced bullying as a child um it's a Memory that you it's hard to reflect and erase it's actually something that stays with you for life um and I would argue that um I'm really proud of the work of the equity committee and the collaboration the work of your team of integrating this because the reality is that when a child experiences a race based or ethnic or identity based right whether it's your uh from one identity to another any kind of thing that situates you it requires a different response and not only does it require response it requires a certain level of attention from the community and so I want to thank you all for integrating and lifting up how we think about this it's something that's really important and we can't ignore the impact it has on children when they experien this whether it's a racial epith or a gender or or or a um what's that religious freedom religious freedom um all students have the right to feel and experience School with joy and of course grit but that's not the kind of grit we want to experience at school and so the response has to be equally attentive we have to think about how our students and the restoration and the Justice occurs in our schools and so I want to thank you for integrating this into the work um it will make will go a long way um this evening we heard parent comment this will go a long way to ensureing that our students are protected and our staff are protect frankly and I want to Echo um that as well with the work that the equity um and engagement department is doing around those uh Equity policies around the success indicators we have that call to action for what we expect our adults uh in those spaces and what we expect our stakeholders in those spaces to adhere to when those things are finalized um it is an um it is definitely warranted and needed to have a proportional response um if we're finding um opportunities um to continue to educate our young people to continue to educate our adults and create that system around those folks so um it is present in this it will continue to evolve um I hope that you have seen this document continue to evolve year after year um and we hope with um the opportunity to kind of Rebrand and really make it um much more uh student usability the student usability of this document um that you see that come through as well all right so now jumping to section8 which begins on page 19 um we have rebranded this one to reflect student conduct if you turn to page 24 you'll notice down at the bottom that we have added definitions for preventative measures which includes intervention and then flipping to page 25 prevention there's also a graphic in the middle of page 25 that we have added this year this is a graphic that we shared out with our buildings universally at the start of the school year to help guide the work that they do for student support plans and student safety plans at the bottom of page 25 you'll see continued definitions with restorative measures on page 26 nonviolent Crisis Intervention physical management of students and limitations if you jump ahead to section nine which is on page 28 this is a new section this section was added to reflect newly required language regarding registered apprenticeship program along with accelerated placement restrictions on Publications chat GT chat GTP Ai and puns and again those are legislative changes flipping to section 10 we want to highlight some new language here as well again this also ref reflects some changes um which is newly required language regarding awareness and prevention of child sexual abuse and grooming behaviors we've also added newly required language regarding inappropriate relationships and other boundary violations by adults and I want to also point out that on the bottom of page 32 we are including um available resources and assistance information for a number of different uh resources that span between Kane County Kendall County and W and Will County the rest of the changes for Section 11 12 and 13 again are very minimal language changes um there was a merging of sections um and again just some reformatting throughout the document so I also passed out in front of you um uh a document that is a draft publication if you will um as we talked about the information that you're receiving tonight is strictly around content changes we wanted to uh to highlight those pieces to understand or for you to understand the content and the work that been shared with stakeholders to provide input and feedback on that content however we recognize that if you look at this document on its face it's very text Heavy it's very policy directed it's not necessarily as easily understood by our community by our families and by our students so the document that you have in front of you is a sample and a sample only of what that rebranding of this document uh may very well look like um any thing that we bring to you for Action at the May board meeting is our anticipated timeline uh April board meeting S as our anticipated timeline will have this document in its entirety with all of the content changes referenced in tonight's information section we were we had some really good feedback from our board members at ETL uh sorry Equity teaching and learning committee um about how to present that information within a rebranded document um making it a little bit bit more uh even with the potential to make it more interactive um down the road um with videos and QR codes and the potential for kids to really be able to access this um in many more ways than just that initial acknowledgement and so again this is a template or a sample um of what that publication could look like and we hope to be able to expand on that so tonight the focus for you is just U information on those content changes but know that greater things are in store for this document to make it user friendly uh and to make it easily understood by our community and our kids so what feedback have you gotten or or do you intend to get from our students um we have taken parts of this content um when we met with um uh was it our Coalition kids jadan um we were in front of uh the Coalition group we were in front of um I guess I don't mean the content I mean like it it becoming user friendly and having all the things that kids or students need um in order to to interact with it like that's I would imagine that's the kind of feedback you want because they they're the user right for the most part I mean our our obviously families because the parents are reading it and looking at it too but I would imagine our students probably need some really good time with how this should be presented that's my thought thank you for that at the um um at the committee meeting we talked about the inter some of the interactive pieces and I think it's a really important point because um if I'm a student like at let say the high school level and I want to take responsibility for I'm going on vacation or I need to do this or I'm going to be absent and I want to take responsibility for that where can I go and do that they're not pulling out their student handbook right they might go to the Dean's office so is there a QR C you know like and you can use those QR codes or those video kind of tutorials both for parents and and students so I think that interactive piece will go a long way we were talking mostly about it in in the realm of parents um but as we have older children uh and you want them to take I think it's a good really good point and ask them how how where would you go look for this information like if you want to know about pick a section right uh where would you go look for that and then you can place some of those pieces in those locations or websites where they would go look for it about attendance matters or highlighting those kind of aspects of of that for our older students that may have um be more mindful of that and want information um thank you for some of that feedback I just want to conclude here and then uh open up for some more questions I hope that you can see through some of these changes in the updates to the content and the work that's been done with those stakeholders for that feedback that there is some intentionality around that purpose um and that intentionality of rightful presence our Equity Journey jne climate culture um the focus on diverse Learners and student interventions rather than just a student discipline um pathway here um and then as I said that student friendlier usability through the rebranding of this handbook are there any questions for us I just I just have a comment and that is um I really appreciate the work that was done on this it's pretty evident and and it's it's quality work um shows that we care about our students a great deal um but also the adults in the building that are servicing them as well so I really uh appreciate all the work that was done thank you for that great thank you team appreciate great job thank you next I want to invite um Marie cellario and Dr zmy to discuss give us an update on The sdo sd308 Residency program and some information that's coming to you for action in the next month tonight is for information we heard an update recently um that was very um impactful um tonight is a continuation of that presentation so Dr yeah thank you board um at at our last meeting we gave you really a comprehensive review um uh of our teacher Residency program and we mentioned one partner that we're working with which which is the national Center for Teacher residencies um anamarie Canario uh has been working with the group um we are currently in the process of reviewing their contract U through our uh through a variety of of uh lenses if you could speak a little bit to uh what the agreement May entail hello good evening um so the partnership with um NCT um just a little bit of background um they're one of the experts in um building residencies currently they are in 47 um States and have over 40 residencies currently in the state of Illinois there's only four um Partnerships that nctr has and if approved we will be the fifth um a little bit about nctr and what they provide um they are truly a consultant um able to design what we need um based on our goals and so they support us through various ways um Consulting conversations and then also the various modules that cover anything from um The Residency year um to what our priorities mission and vision of The Residency um is as well as um the roles and responsibilities and allows us opportunities to track the progress of The Residency um again it's very collaborative um they help and support myself to create a residency design team out of St stakeholders so for example um some individuals are our tosas our directors um Aurora University and so we work together to create the residency and they lead this work and Lead this partnership um and so just you know a few examples by putting us on the map and connecting us um and we do become an apprenticeship uh partner through them um we are open to um the US Labor um grants and funds um which will really allow us to expand our residency and so that's just one thing that just actually hit my email today um was that if we once we could apply as an educational apprenticeship and apply for a decently Fair large Grant to support us so um it's been really great and so I hope that um this contract will get approved so we can really Excel nextg Residency program I have a question are there any other um residency programs or I guess Consultants that will be considered their competition have we considered them um and yeah I guess I'll stop there for now um yes there are um uh Branch Branch head is one of them um and they were able to provide a great foundation with the um uh details packets that's how I was able to start the residency um and so they were great help with the Equity lens um but then just to kind of move us forward to the next um step with being a national network um that's when we chose um NCT got it I had a I'm not sure if I caught everything there so was there a correlation between joining this network and getting access to more funds or was or were those separate things so they are supporting our application to become an appr ship and so they open our doors to apply for these type of Grants it's not being a partner with them to open up our grant but it helps us build in the pieces of The Residency for to apply for those grants like the US Department of Labor and then this helps us do it more comprehensively and quicker that's correct yes okay has NCT supported other programs so far thus far in the in the apprenticeship piece um yes so some of the um I don't know the states like the particular programs but they are in the large cities I I was writing them down for like Nashville Seattle Hartford Boston um Memphis Philly they are all connected to those large larger cities they're connected them through they're helping them with Apprentice the specifically The Apprentice piece I can get The Apprentice numbers for you but those are the ones that are connected to the as building the residencies those are fairly newly a available funds at the federal level designating a teacher pathway as a as an apprenticeship so I know there are other kind of assistant centers out there that are providing some some supports um NCT nctr is a great you know I have full confidence so um I feel like I had another question or comment but I lost it yeah excuse thank you both thank you for your time um doc um Dr Queen Bill Queen operations update forecasting Dr Queen [Music] here good evening board even colleagues um so as you know this is a very busy time for operations this time of year this is Overlook of uh capital projects um a lot 90 probably 95% of this is still in development but I would like to highlight a couple of projects that we have that you're going to be seeing up in front with you here in a week or so um Fox Chase roof approval is up for approval tonight that is going to be a free a full redo of the PDM and asphalt shingles um is there is there any questions about that Fox Chase Ruff no all right we will move on to the plank rtu project so we've been talking a lot about getting this project going over spring break I've got great news from the contractor these units are going to be delivered we are going to go with those units over spring break depending any weather so everybody cross your fingers let's keep the rain away and uh we will pull this project off no problem and have a great jump start on on that summer project for the year the third and final Pro piece I want to touch on are the parking lots for Hunt Club and Fox Chase as well I got an RFP set up for these uh jobs set up for this Thursday at 9 o'clock at 71 Stonehill where we will be receiving bids to further that project outside of any other questions that is my update for this month thank you thank you all right thank you thank you thank you Mr oi fix assets and inventory actually thank you is it on okay so we brought this to well they did they brought it to finance and facility I was absent that day so I apologize for that um but gasby 34 has to do with fix fixed assets and inventory within the district um gby 34 stands for governmental Accounting Standards Board statement 34 it requires government to report the value of capital assets on financial statements um you know besides being required by the state it's very important to track assets for inventory loss prevention and catastrophic total loss um we did receive two quotes um one was for asset control Solutions at 37,500 the other one was industrial pral which was quoted at 89,000 I think it's important to note that the price difference is because we have history with asset control solutions they currently um have inventoried all of our assets up to I think five years ago so they have all the barcodes they have everything um locked and um reported on all of our financial reports they just need to do a refresh um another important note is they're able to come right after spring break whereas industrial appraisal said that they couldn't come until next year um so it's really important that we get a company in here to do that inventory if I can also add uh this has actually been a noted exception for the last few years every time the financial audit of the district has been done we're required to have that we haven't had it as the Mander said for at least five years so we absolutely need to get this in place because the audit for fiscal year 24 which is this current fiscal year it's going to start back in June and if we don't have it set up it's going to be another uh audit exception internal control issue we're trying to prevent that thank you did you say five years clarify yeah okay it's been an audit finding for the last five years or has it been completed okay that was the only thing I was going to call out but you already did so it's basically best practice did it didn't it also required didn't it also come up at the meeting at the the finance meeting that they had not gone down to the level uh there there were more assets that were not identified yes um that's why it's important to do a refresh it's with a district our size it's almost impossible to capture everything ourselves we really need an outside company to come in and make sure that they have everything um located where it's supposed to and um depreciated as the years go by it's um really important thank you Miss SAR um next we want to invite uh Mr Stuart Whit from whitlaw to speak to an update on the village of Montgomery abatement discussion I know you prepared some information ref from the board and so thank you Mr good evening good evening good evening as you know the village of Montgomery has been advocating for the school district's abatement of property taxes for Industrial Development the shuring farm east of Orchard Road West of the cat old Caterpillar plant the shuring farm consists of approximately 204 Acres 5.75 Acres adjacent to Orchard Road are design are reserved for uh retail development and no property tax AB baitman is requested Ed for that territory of the balance approximately 100 acres comprise the southern site which is reserved for current future use by rajo it's a Belgium company with uh facilities worldwide uh they deal in polymers that are integral to products used in and around our homes the southern site is already being improved with the 500,000 Square ft building for use by rajo occupancy is expected in August 2024 that building will be used for distribution of polymer materials as well as the regional headquarters for the company we're advised that the polymers will arrive by rail be stored in silos ultimately transferred into the building packaged and shipped out by rail so there won't be any real heavy truck traffic there the Southside may also include a future 300,000 squ ft addition to the first building as well as a future second second building of 300,000 Square ft² fired used by rajo once again it is possible that the second building the second 300,000 foot building if constructed be used would be used to repurpose recycled Plastics into usable materials for various Industries the total Capital Improvement for rajio in the initial phase is 150 to $180 million the north site will be marketed by Caris which is developed V ining the entire site uh for warehousing distribution and possibly Cold Storage as many as three buildings as many as 1.2 million square fet the total capital investment in the north side is projected at 150 to $215 million and these cost projections include uh the interior uh equipment that is used to handle the products and that is generally tax exempt equipment so there'll be no property taxes derived from that on its website Caris touts that it develops builds owns uh dry storage facilities and C storage facilities so it appear that they will the buildings they build they will own and they will seek out long-term tenants to occupy these buildings which is not at all unusual in this type of industry in exchange for these developments rajo Caris and the village are looking for property tax abatements over over 10 years after issuance of certificates of occupancy for each building a 75% annual batement for years 1 through five and followed by a 50% annual abatement for years 6 through 10 as of today's date no taxing body has approved has no taxing body has taken any formal action to approve any property tax abatements at the end of the day what you have you have a development that will assist of regional distribution facilities and Regional Offices for rajo that's much like what we have in other communities we've reached out to other communities to learn what if any property tax abatements they provide um we learned that Grundy County no longer provides any property tax abatements for big box and distribution facilities nor does the city of Aurora nor the city of North Aurora the village of Manuka has a property tax of batement program for its reg uh Manuka Ridge I80 Business Park uh which is offering um 3 years of abatements at 50% each year Kendall County also has a property tax abatement program for warehousing distribution and logistic facilities as well as Regional headquarters the application for tax of pment is published on the County's website a business is eligible to receive an abatement for a term of three years the the amount abated will be on a sliding scale 75% in the first year 50% in the second year 25% in the third year the term and levels of abatement may be modified only at the discretion of the governing Boards of the taxing bodies that approve it according to the Kendall County's program I've had two conversations with tend Kendall County uh one on two on Friday and one today actually I've had three uh and was told on All Occasions that according to their notes they were not prepared to extend any property tax abatements for rajo or Caris in excess of 5 years that's where that's where uh kendle county is I also spoke to wansi Community College and was told what I could tell you so I need to check my notes here last Friday I spoke with officials at wansi college and they too are asking questions over agreeing to a 10e property tax a batement the officials made clear however that any final decision would come from the college's Board of Trustees like your board of education uh after further deliberation during one of their open meetings which is kind of what we're doing right here so that's the wansi college position I can answer any questions that you may have I have one initial question and then I'll so my first question is do you have a formal agreement for the tax abatement to be presented to us that has all of the final details but before you answer that question I wanted to just um I took the time to go back and look at our June 5th meeting and the reason why I did that is because I wanted to make sure that I was clear because there's of course I want to make sure I inform the community because I've received several emails and calls um in regards to this um in regards to this abatement and so when I went back to watch the board I mean went back to watch that meeting um many of the questions that we were asking um and during the presentation the information was not final at that time for for example uh we were asking about the appraised value and it says it and and the response back to us was that it depends on the type of appraisal and what they reviewed and what they were presenting to us was based on cost um we did go through many of the assumptions that were in there and of course they they were you know based on a 10year stagger scale um but there was a lot of things within that presentation that just had not been finalized yet and the last recommendation um from at the time from our uh Chief Financial Officer at the time was that we that we he would they would go get information and then they would put put it together and then come back to us now being fully transparent I mean there was some train Transitions and Staffing and in the position and so but I just wanted to be clear that at no un no un certain I'll speak for me that and again watching it no one Agreed 100% that we were uh going to to uh to approve it but it wasn't that we were against it we just needed more information and so I just wanted to make sure just based on the emails some of them pretty aggressive um stating that we already approved it and I just wanted to be clear for the community that we had not approved it yet and I I said I just wanted to make sure that I'm doing my due diligence and rewatching it so my question to you is that is it standard that we get a formal agreement with all of those details in order to approve uh the abatement for the 10 years or whatever it is and and in that do we have the opportunity to have the discussion uh to to include any additional uh information that we think that would be in the best interest of the school district um or in our interest before we agree to it an abatement agreement has been prepared okay an abatement agreement has been commented upon by us okay a revised agreement has been prepared that all occurred several months ago um and uh in our desire to get this information to you tonight I've not picked that document up to make certain that it's got everything in it that we need that would come to you before we ever asked you to do anything okay and that would come to you whether it's a three-year agreement a 5year agreement a 10year agreement or a 25 year agreement agreed you're going to get the final document from us with our recommendations that you act on it whatever term you all decide that's your decision agree I'll reiterate I mean I would like to see that I mean obviously we would like to see that before we we decide on anything and then I have um a couple questions um earlier in public comment I heard um some Representatives refer to you know incentive packages um to me that sounded like different taxing bodies offering different types of abatements um and so I'm just wondering well I have two questions related to that um is it typical that through tax abatements that each taxing body has a separate tax tax abatement agreement or is it all in one package together and then my second question is in those incentive packages that might include tax abatements are there possibilities for taxing bodies such as the school district to also receive incentives to what to also receive incentives in regard to like um you know partnering with us on uh career Pathways for students in manufacturing uh or students in transportation um or um you know supporting uh you know um some some of our English learner families and maybe their parents who might be working at TH those facilities um I'm just wondering if there's opportunities like that in an incentive package my experience has been that those taxing bodies who are going to participate in an abatement program and usually it would be the county the city the public schools agreement that that that's been my experience um with regard to uh support from the business for your mission for what you do that's always a possibility as well we we do a lot of property tax work in our in our firm and uh with big huge industrial oil refineries nuclear power plants and those settlement agreements that we enter into with the plant uh often times provides incentive for the local schools the uh K12 schools maybe more high school students and certainly community college students that's good to know and I guess a call would be um in my you know to those listening with the companies that are asking for abatements um you know I think we would like to consider some of those incentives for the school district as well if they're available um in regards to like the other taxing bodies um I've heard you say that no one has agreed to any other none of the other taxing bodies have agreed to other tax abatements um is it typical that we would go first like a school district would go first like and say this is what we're going to offer and then why are we being put on the spot right now sorry I didn't mean to interrupt you I can because we're the largest taxing body because we we get the most tax Abate in money in dollars the the most obvious answer is look at the Chicago Bears and what's holding that up I mean that's the most obvious example shouldn't we be having a discussion with the other taxing bodies though so I listen I think there's a deeper conversation here and I think it's you know I listen I I I don't disagree with things that are being said but let's let's if we're going to be honest let's be honest and we talked about systems earlier so let's talk about Illinois and its system right Illinois is in the top 10 states that taxes its poorer citizens at a higher rate at an inequitable rate as opposed to its um it's most wealthy right uh and part of that is because the concept of Illinois was you everybody really wanted local control and so the um the um uh um need or desire the word escaping me but the need to rely rely is it rely on property taxes is something that Illinois has adopted couple that with the fact that we have more school districts than any other state in the Union right the things that we do no other state does and so I agree in essence that um because of some of these situations where you have all of these taxing bodies it's very difficult to do business in Illinois because we have this the system that we have of taxing and on top of that we have have all these governmental entities that said I also agree that it probably would make sense to probably um approach school districts first and there probably are a lot of people that are looking at us because we are the largest portion of the tax bill of the property tax bill if we had a more Equitable system in this state which is the whole point of ebf some of these conversations would be mute and mute mute and we wouldn't have all these scenarios and situ situations the reality of the situation though is instead of them going and dealing with the state they have to deal with all these local taxing bodies and I agree I don't necessarily think it is all fair to us I do think it's incumbent upon us to look to reach out to those municipalities and the counties that are bringing in these these pieces and say how can we work together better yes because what we can't have is just houses agree because the other piece is and I'm going to get to it later sorry but I'm I've been very quiet tonight for purposeful reasons I'll get to it later we've got people coming in here saying we want to we want to you know hey the the revenue side we need you to give something hey the we need we need this over here because we need the math interventionist we need a new sport we we've got a building in crisis let's redraw the lines all of these things are not isolated I get it that they're isolated to those individuals who care about it but to the school district they're cumulative and unless you invest right unless you nourish all you're going to do is take from it I mean I think there's like what was there's like that story The Giving Tree right shell Silverstein from so long ago and and sometimes it feels like the school district is the giving tree and pretty soon all you got left to sit on is a stump but that said those are pieces that we need to be advocating and are Beyond this we have to be able to do business because we need business here we can't just have houses 100% that's why I was on the Planning and Zoning commission for so long that was literally my only goal was to get to diversify the tax base 100% um so okay so we're GNA we're going to be coming back and forth and bouncing back and forth but I I want to make sure um Amy's question I I understand it and your response was regarding the different tax in bodies and the fact that you mentioned um that one of them actually has a the Kindle county has a policy that they do five years right um well they have a policy that they do three years years but they will deviate from that policy on a case-by Case basis I've been told three times now in the last two business days that they will not go beyond five years okay so which is consistent with what we were told months ago right so then just make sure I'm understanding do we all all the taxing bodies have to do the same thing all the taxing bodies do not have to do the same thing however what I would in every instance recommend that every taxing body signed the same agreement that could have different terms so that everybody knows what you're in for so all of the taxing bodies and what they're offering in one agreement so everyone knows what each taxing body is agreeing to oh yeah that's what I would definitely recommend that and that is something that we would see I'm sorry that is something that we would see prior to making a decision what I what I'm trying to avoid in the interest of partnership with all of our taxing bodies um I don't I want I want everyone to come to the table and put on paper what we're going to offer and then offer that as a community to the businesses that we want to come and do business in our community and Al you know I completely agree like I'm like we need businesses here no doubt uh I just want to make sure it's not inequitably on the backs of our public school students um and unfortunately we're in a district that's underfunded and so it's a really small tight rope to walk we can increase our funding potentially you know so I agree long term yes I agree there's both sides I understand there's 60% of the tax bill like eight or nine other entities that are making up 40% so we're really the weighted average is I know we're the driver of it I understand but I'm I'm saying in the on in the um in the spirit of partnership um I think it's important that all the taxing bodies are on the same page but and but I want to add something to that though because I do think there's a component to this where and I'm not trying to get nasty with some of our partners before we even develop a relationship but there are you bring up the county and so it's it is hard for us like listen again I know where I stand on this and I I know I know that what we need to do right but it is difficult for us and I I hope that somebody's listening at home because I want them to understand that a lot of the rhetoric that comes out of some of the people who are elected at the county is that's the school district it's their it's their bill you know they're the ones taxing well they keep raising the you know they keep do they keep levying more right and we don't that's fine but then notice we're being asked for a 10-year abatement and some of those people who are throwing shade at us they're saying well we only do five so I I I think it's I think it's very imperative that these taxing bodies work together I think it's very imperative that they come together I think like it's very important for us to work with Montgomery they've been very um in my experiences are they're they're very easy to work with um but when it comes to something like the county I think the rhetoric has to be fair yeah and I I just think that you know our students our district our parents the community at large the businesses we all have an opportunity to benefit from a properly Str structured partnership and so I believe that this is that this is one of the ways to diversify the tax base it's a phenomenal opportunity for the the village of Montgomery um I'll just go on the record and say I I think it would be a good idea to do it but when we keep saying the word partnership um it doesn't this didn't feel like a partnership this felt like this is what's happening do it do it and so all I'm saying for president sake for future is like hey what can we do to ensure that we have the open lines of communications that we actually see the agreement that is being uh for uh outlined so that we can see before us what we're agreeing to and then we'll sign that but I think it's unfair to um to us to say that one we don't support it because that's not true or two that we that we don't want to do it or that we're being slothful and slow in doing it um because that's not true either it's just that we did not have all the right in all the information or the information was incomplete and not you know shared fully at the same time and once we have something in front of us to actually see and approve I think that we can then decide as a board what's in the best interest of everybody okay so let me just add one more thing to that and then I I'm coming to you okay um so when we talk about not being at the table not being in full partnership in order to understand this full scenario I heard something today about a phase two and that there was an abatement schedule already in place is that true I think I think I might be able to answer aware huh a new abatement starts for each building at the certificate of occupancy occupy occupancy yeah shaking your head though so the way the the the way that the village is looking for this to be structured and I have not looked at the draft of the agreement in several months but the way that the matter is being structured it is there's a there's a general window during which they can access the abatements but the abatements start for each building and each substantial addition to a building as their certificate of occupancy is issued so they're going to get the cert rajo is going to get the certificate of occupancy um in August of two uh 2024 and just a few months and they're going to occupy that property at that time pH their period of vapen whatever it may be however many years you all agree upon that would start at that time now whether it starts in tax year 2024 tax year 2025 that's the detail that we have to kind of work out in terms of the implementation of this thing but but if and then if they do a 300,000 foot addition a couple years from now then that 300,000 foot addition qualify at that particular point in time so that's the way it's being proposed that's the way the agreement has been drafted in that particular fashion and that's where we want to be in on the conversation right it's like this is the time for us to come together with the village and us as a board yes cuz the board is the one making the decision not our Administration so I think of course they're advising us but I I want to be clear that this is a board decision and I don't want and I'm know I'm not talking to you stu but I'm just speaking to the public a lot of the conversation and even uh what's the word I'm looking for has been pointed toward the administration as if they're doing something wrong no they're advising us of the decision that we need to take and we're just asking for additional information is all we're asking so I can I can tell you that I've read a lot of board minutes over the last 48 hours this this is the first public discussion that I've found relative to this abatement program I haven't found any other taxing body and I looked at a lot of them I haven't found any other taxing body who has discussed in a board meeting this proposed abatement program with the exception of what happened June 5th of June 5th correct again that was here yes I haven't seen it anywhere else discussed I haven't seen terms discussed anywhere else it's always been at the staff level and maybe a committee of at the county level I mean doesn't it just make sense to get a proposal in front of us and then have the discussion rather than trying to figure it out right now because we don't even know what we're looking at we don't we don't I mean I'm go ahead we we know it's been proposed for the school district but we we don't see the full package the partnership package the incen the incentive package I want to see it in writing I want to see things like if if if it's 10 years what our protection is if for some reason you know the the occupant decides to get up and leave town I I want to I want to know all those details before I can make any kind of decision or ask any intelligent questions and in the in the June 5th meeting the last three things after it was proposed um with the recommendation the three things that were on screen is that it would include clawbacks that there would be a minimum assessed value attached to it based on um mean you can tell me why having a minimum assess value as a matter of fact it was such a a good point you either yourself or rapael can explain why it would be important to have a minimum assessed value inside of the agreement and then also our ability to negotiate the 10 years at this point and so minimum assess value can either one of you answer why that's important sure you want me to do it yeah okay you on a roll St so anytime you have a big industrial property built in your community and I've dealt with a number of them you always have an argument of what the property is assessed at what's the fair market value for property tax assessment purposes I'm letting some of my secrets out here anytime you've got someone coming to ask for property tax abatements you want to make certain that you've got a threshold of equalized valuation that they're not going to contest and you've got that for a number of different reasons uh the assessment of competing properties uh you you don't want to give 75% or 50% property tax abatements and get through that and then turn around and have them instantly file tax assessment complaints no more than what you want them to take the advantage of and I'm not suggesting these people would do that but no more than you want them to to take advantage of the property tax abatements and then at the end of the day say we got to leave if you drive West on I 88 right at Route 39 there used to be a facility on the southwest corner that was filled with subway cars I don't know if you all remember that or not but row after row after row after row of subway cars that was owned by a Japanese company their abatement period ended and then they decided Well that's no longer suitable and they left no protection for the taxing bodies at all that's the clawback that you're talking about so you want certain minimum assess valuations to protect you to protect what you're going to get to protect what you've got so that when the abatements are up you've got a steady Revenue stream coming your way um and I forgot the last one I no you're fine that was perfect so St can you can you speak to a little bit just to be clear because I I know you've aged we've the goal has always been to partner and to bring as much information on behalf of the board on on behalf of the village trustees and the um the economic development work that's happening in Montgomery there's a huge commitment to doing this and to seeing success there my question for you is when you think about what's in the contract and the questions have been posed what's the connection between those two you said that you prepared in a certain way this evening in terms of the questions that were brought versus the contract and so I think if you could paint the picture of the connection between those two is really important to speak to the desire to see success here if I'm understanding you correctly okay I think what the developer wants to do is to build their product to make a profit and provide a service and that you know that's what they do that's what businesses do and you know that's good for them and it's good for the community because an investment is good for the for the economy here um it's not enough to Simply talk about the total assessed valuation it's not enough to talk about the property tax abatements that are going to be had you there's it's just like everything else it's just like you got to dot all the eyes and cross all the tees and make certain that you fully know well you know fully well what's going going on and they know fully well what's going on and all the taxing bodies that are going to participate are going to sign on to the same basic terms while their actually amount of abatement might be different I don't think there's any reason for you to enter into any abatement agreement that applies strictly to the school district and a different one that applies to the Village of Montgomery and a different one that applies to kle County one agreement if you're going to have different participation or no participation at all likely in the case of the township of the road district um you know that up front so that at the so that over the 10e period of time and the 15E period of time however long these various abatements are going to last because they are going to last for each building um you've got one source you got one document where you can see all the rules that apply to everybody we we do this stuff all the time it happens all the time um so is minimum assess value the same as a clawback no no okay so what is can you explain the mechanics of a clawback the purpose the purpose um we've got we got an email earlier asked them to consider increaseing the clawback from 10 to 15 years um for greater Comfort how does that benefit what is what is that to be honest with you it's been a couple of months since I looked at the contract I've got to go back and take a look at it and I'm not asking for specifics I'm asking if you expand describe as clawback generally speaking what's why is 15 years better than 10 years what does that mean in my mind a clawback is what you is what protects you to keep the company from leaving once their abatements are over okay you the the subway Factory out there at i88 and 39 you don't want to be in that situation you don't want them taking advantage of the tax abatements that you give and then saying we're out of here or like a lot of corporate companies do take the advantage of the property tax abatements and then say now we need to renegotiate that's the minimum part yeah and now we need to go further or we're going to have to look elsewhere you want that kind of protection so if they simply announce we're leaving they got to pay you back what you abated that's a claw so what so what would be the reason to extend that out from 10 to 15 years to get the 10 year abatement I mean what so that they don't leave after 10 years so here's you ask them so then they would owe like five years more of property taxes that they'd have to pay year 10 so here's one of the points and and I don't I don't want to negotiate in public I agree a TV no get it the point would be if you want if if if if if a taxing let's get off the 10 year let's just if a TA if a taxpayer wants a seven-year property tax abay your biggest concern and if you agree to it your biggest concern is what's going to happen in year eight mhm are they going to come back and say now I need another abatement are they going to come back and say I'm going to leave okay if they're going to leave then you got to have some protection which is that they need to repay you you you need to somehow be secured that you're going to get these property taxes back if they're going to leave in order toic amount of protection that's a significant amount of protection um and the other thing that I wanted to you know what I'm going to ask the you latata um I saw a head shaking from Kate taxor um Kate yeah regarding what regarding the um how the uh occupancy works and the start of an abatement um can I ask it's pretty straightforward ask ask him ask should be it should be pretty straightforward you get there there was a lot of head shaking so I well ask him he's our he's our attorney it all depends on how it's written that's the whole point okay so anybody can shake their head or not or whatever they want to do it all depends on how it's written I've not read this agreement for several months okay but but I I've got a billion dollar I got a billion dollar Power Plant 15 mil down the road that I negotiated the property tax abatements for and I know exactly how the occupancy worked in that instance and there hasn't been any question with regard to it so how it's going to work is all going to depend upon what it is that I yeah I understand the current status I think it just goes to show I mean this is a prime example of the fact that we all need to be in the same room at the same time like so you can understand what the head checking is and we can understand you know all these things that we we need to be saying to each other right um I I I do appreciate the clawback conversation um that was very helpful it you want to say something yeah it also now they might say well clawback is a completely different thing in my mind the clawback is what I just I didn't see that for that I saw I saw acknowledgements it yeah that's why we all need to get in the same room right okay go ahead well and again these are these are things that in my vision of a a a policy and legislative committee right like we we should we we have opportunities to us um you know we we span so many different taxing bodies and kind of this is the piece where um I think we we do need to improve that communication piece so that yes we can have that done right and and you know I know that there have been situations Dominic you probably know about this better than I do where maybe maybe Dr katti one of you where we've had like representatives from 308 um sitting in certain certain committees and certain M or certain taxing bodies and you know Versa yeah right right totally vice versa absolutely and so these are these are pieces where I think at the end of the day what the taxpayers really want to see is functionality they want to see functionality they're not they're not interested in someone pointing a finger at the other and vice versa they just want to see it function yes so and that that's all I'm really saying I think that again we've all talked about expanding and diversifying the tax base so that the burden of the tax does not fall solely on the backs of the residents and this is a perfect opportunity to do it we just need to all be in the same room to have the conversation to figure out the right way that's mutually beneficial for everybody that's it I 100% agree with that I think it's a great opportunity um I want to say my piece very um high level um um which we probably all share right um and congratulations to um rajo and the cooling company for being million million million dollar companies um right it's un to me um we're working in a system that is inequitable when we're abating taxes for million million million dollar companies um so that public school when Public Schools don't have the funds that they need that is no um shade towards the companies that are coming to our our community and asking to be part of our community um it is just something that leaves a bad taste in my mouth um but it's the system that we're in um and with that said I think it's a great opportunity to like Eugene said expand our tax base um and so I'm hoping that we can get everyone on the same page and we can look forward to moving forward so what so can I tell you so so can I tell you what I think I heard sure in terms of Direction yes and you can tell me I'm wrong yes I think I think what I heard was you all want to know what everybody else is going to do in terms of a property tax abatement and our job is to go out and find out what everybody else is going to do whether it be any or or none you know anything or 10 years 5 years three years or nothing at all find out what they're going to do and then get the contract finalized and drafted so that you can take a look at the whole picture and make your final decision in that regard and and yes but primary that's secondary primary is all of the agreement everything in regards to the the uh the the company that we're actually giv the abatement to I need we want to hear like what is what is what are we agreeing to with them and then all of the other taxing bodies as well sure absolutely I I I don't know if we need to I'm just this is my opinion I don't know if we need to hear from everybody else what they're going to do before we because I mean we're literally I hate to say you know that they're 6% 3% 1% 8% we're 60% um I I yeah I don't I I I to me it's more about the discussion than it is about I don't the terms coming to the terms you the mutually agreed upon terms and then we have our individual sections that he was discussing where we you know uh all give our individual abatement schedules or and and we're by far the largest body but that still doesn't mean that we um negate what anybody else is doing yeah but this is never going to I don't I feel feel like this is never going to get anywhere yeah and and the other thing too to consider is there are some considerations in what the other taxing bodies are doing if there's a fire or an emergency at the property I don't know how to break this to everybody but School District's not sending buses and people to put out a fire or stage an emergency rescue right I'm I'm pretty sure that's coming from either the village or the county so I I I think I think it there's a there's a difference between Equitable and equal right and like to your point like we could take that conversation a million ways but I don't know that you're going to you know hopefully we understand the difference I agree with you Dominic but the only reason why I'm saying total is because our our lawyer is recommending that we have one agreement so as agreement but it it feels like to the the generic terms um what we have individual allocation schedules yes so I how do we I mean like getting everybody in the room sounds great but I don't know yeah I'm I'm more concerned about our terms but well when I say everybody in the room I'm talking about the village the the board and those bodies that impact our contract impact terms of our agreement yeah the terms of our agreement I mean Amy talked about incentives you know are there any like what are we how are we partnering and what does that look like like Stephen cubby says our contract should be a win-win we should both feel like we're winning right yeah and I to me it sounds like uh there's potential there for the company that we already know is already there um but I I don't how do how do we have a conversation with companies that we don't even know um want to build yeah we're not talking about them we're talking about what's currently on the table what currently on the table what's C saying then we need to I I kind of want to just move and take responsibility for this and um well how can you do it when you don't even know like okay you just need contract we get the terms for our what we're offer what Raj can provide you know as far as um supporting our students supporting our families AG the things that are important to the district um and review that I don't know that ends up in abatement language or if that's a separate thing um but if it's in if it's in the you know abatement language then so be it um tied to that yes um but I just I I don't want to um I don't want to wait for everybody and the and and and the answer to what you just asked is yes sometimes it's in the agreement and sometimes it's not yeah I to me it it seems like it's yeah if if we want to say you know we'll accept your batement in exchange for these things and it probably needs to be tied to there if if not um then it would be you know a conversation outside of so so so I let me I yeah to try and get us there so can you get us the agreement so we could take a look at it and can you do the best to see that we we would prefer I'm assuming from what everybody said whatever the agreement is with the other taxing bodies put it in front of us and let's go let's go fine okay by when though I'm Sorry by by wi I don't want I don't want to leave this is this to me is very important um because if you kind of look at the project as a whole um at some point what what what do we get from the property taxes rafhael it's an estimate in the uh in the me the dollar no no no the dollar amount that we get cumulatively from the district yeah the in our property taxes oh the that's a district yeah 9 from uh all Three Counties or just from kendle County all in total from all Three Counties we get about 150 million 150 million yes okay so if if they build out you know Grant indicat this is you're 11 or if you have clawback and they decide to leave a 10 then we get claw back um you know that's 1 two 3% tax taxing you know uh that's that's pretty good divers diversifier right there I mean that's a great start it's a great start and so even in year one you know it's it's not one two or 3% but um with the multiple phases and however the occupancy would end up working um it's it's still uh would help support a lot of the things want and and and it goes far beyond that because I just want to make sure everyone understands it's not not just what the district will get we understand the benefit of this company coming to the community and the extended uh benefit that it'll offer not just to the district but to the community we want that but we just want it to be a partnership and to be at the table at the onset of the conversation and not an afterthought so we want it we want this to happen for this one but it just has to be we have to understand what the terms are I'm glad I I want to just say again I just want to make sure we didn't I I know it was late but I wanted to leave with something and I just want yeah I just want to make sure I understand this phase is it I don't I don't know if you call it a phase two abatement is there if a seate agreement okay I just don't want that to be tied to what we're doing now because we don't know anything about that and I don't want that well it might have been it might have been addressed in an email that was received and if and if so I was reading that while I was driving down the highway so let me let me I've got some time I will I will address this at least in part tomorrow got it and get in touch with Dr katti and Raphael tomorrow with regard to how we move forward perfect thank you thank you thank you thank you now stud in terms of timeline can we did we clarify timeline we we're leaving okay sooner than later okay we just want to make sure that sooner than later we know that there's a lot of um you know questions and so we want to make sure so thank you st okay all right next um next uh Mr obafemi regarding uh authorization of loans Mr you have the resolution first oh the resolution for the uh thank you for the transfer thank you we have presented uh a resolution uh before the board I'm sorry you got to go to your mic they can't hear you online I'm sorry we presented a resolution to the board for a fund transfer and to uh from working cash it's the time of the year right now where cash is is low before we get uh 55% the largest uh chunk of our property tax which is the largest source of our funding so we um we asking we have a bank internally which is where a working cash is a working cash is a District's Bank where we don't have to pay interest it's our money but it it it's set up for that reason we Levy for it we can borrow off of it we have three years to pay it back but our plan is to pay it back when we get our property taxes in June so what we're requesting is that the board allow us to transfer some money to transportation and and also into the Ed fund and I'm oh God go this the main purpose of this is so we don't take the tax disspation this yes we are borrowing from ourselves this is our first year not doing it in 20 years in 20 years Hallelujah okay feels good not to fund playing field schools this year Payday Loans on steroids so we're in the process of uh of developing the fiscal 25 2025 budget and part of the process of doing that is to do uh a five-year projection that's customary and just a five-year projection it's a it's a what is a financial projection it's a way to estimate the the financial outcome of the district it includes the revenue how much we're going to get in our key Revenue areas what we're going to spend uh should the expenditure and the cash flow that we need to keep running the district and what I would like to point out is this is a snapshotting time and so much is going on every day so it can change because of things that we don't know about so I just want to say when you look at a a projection to snapshot and the other part of this is the farther you are away from the current year the less reliable it is it's just the nature of projection so the first year the second year tend to be close but then you move away from it there's so much that is unknown so this are the uh the key reason why we do a uh Financial projection I mentioned before it's a way to let the board know and for the community know what is going on financially in the district it's also part of the budget development process and we also use a for Levy strategy uh so for example if we look at the funds that we have in in our in in our funds and if we have a fund that is lower that is projected to be lower shortterm immediate term it can impact how we decide to Levy real life example of that is uh the levy that was approved by the board in December what we know is is transportation fund is been dingling so instead of leving more money in the Ed fund we decide to LY $5 million less in the Ed fund to fill the hole in the transportation fund going into the future so as I mentioned before uh there's some some known fact that makes up the projection and there's some unknown so I'll would talk about on the revenue side we know what CPI is CPI is important because a big chunk close to 70% 65% of our Revenue comes from property taxes so we know the CPI that was uh the levy that was approved back in December we use 5% CPI for that that Levy is going to impact the fiscal 25 our revenue and we also know the uh the CPI that is going to be used for the 24 Levy which is going to be presented to the board in December of this year we know the CPI for that is a CPI for January uh for December of last year that came out in January of this year and that's 3.4 now the things that we don't know as we move the projection is for 5 years so we moving all the way to 2029 so for fiscal year 27 which we are going to do the levy for the uh 25 Lev year we don't know what CPI is for that time because we cannot see that far ahead but because of the history based on the last few years of inflation that the feds have been trying to fight that they have not been able to Wrangle if we all remember the last couple of months inflation is actually been trending well except last months inflation report that came out on the 12 inflation went up again the uh in January it was 0.5 in February went up to 1.2 so it's a it's a little tricky to uh to forecast inflation So based on current data we estimated that the CPI that will impact fiscal year 27 is 3% and from that period on fiscal year 28 and 29 we estimate will be 2.5% those are the unknowns on the revenue side now on the expenditure side there are some things that we know about we know for example that clearly 81% of our expenditure is driven by people as I always tell people we're in the people business that's what we are we educate children and the only way we know how to educate children is to have our Educators teach them and that's where most of the revenue uh the expenditure goes to so the known facts we have a a contract with the largest Union in the district which is the biggest source of expenditure for the district too the teachers union for uh for fiscal year 2025 and on we uh since we have that data is 3.8% right on average and then for ocma the uh the maintenance and the custodian Union is 4% for the uh Transportation Union is 4% and there's also a known fact that we have some retirement coming right now folks who' have actually put in the paperwork to retire and that retirement will provide us an estimated Savings of 1.2% and that comes from the cost of the folks who are retiring they tend to be on the high end of our pay scale and the replacement cost for the folks that we're going to hire to replace them they tend to coming at a lower rate so we estimate our savings to be 1.2% uh 1.2 million now the unknown fact is that uh we know that uh expenditures are going up by 5% in 2025 we also the Assumption I'm sorry the assumptions that we're making is that expenditures are going out in 2025 we're not in 2025 years we use the best data that we have to try to estimate that but we don't know that for sure the the things on top we know those for sure but the ones on the bottom we don't know what we do we use the best available data to try to estimate now for the uh the insurance we know for fiscal year 25 for example what our insurance rate is going to be because we transition to a co-op and when we transition to The Coop we signed an 18month agreement so the first six months was La this fiscal year the next 12 months is going to be FY 25 so we know for example that there's not going to be an increase in fiscal year 25 in in health insurance and um what we also uh estimating is that uh we will spend $1.7 million in capital projects in 2025 that is going to be dependent on the revenue that we get that year to make sure we can fund that any questions Rafael the 3.8% for OA salary increases that's really an average over the life or that's can you clarify that because so known facts I'm I'm talking about really for fiscal year 25 is what I'm talking about because remember we're using the immediate projection information to develop the fy2 budget so all the things that I'm stating here as far as the known expenditure is what we know that will impact fiscal year 25 Budget on the expenditure side so in looking at the fiveyear projection this is what we see uh based on the information that we have which is the property tax we know what the cpis are and we have an estimate of what it will be as we go out further into into the uh the out years as I mentioned earlier we estimating that our reserves are going up right if everything comes together that is the property tax ebf continues to come in if the last three four years we've actually been averaging about $7 million in additional Revenue in ebf but we were been very conservative in when in determining how much revenue we will get from ebf so instead of booking the whole seven this year for example we got $9 million soad of booking that whole amount we decided to go on what we thought was realistic which is $4 million a year for the next five years so doing that and property tax and federal uh federal revenue as well as other state categorical uh Revenue what we are looking at the expenditure this is what we looking at so we are gradually building our reserves it's not quick it's not fast but it's something that we believe is realistic and as I mentioned earlier the further we are from from the years the less tricky it is so as I I want to restate this a projection is a snapshot which is why we do it every year So the plan is that if we have additional information when we present the budget to the board by may this will be upgraded to reflect the changes that we know of and then in February of next year too we we will have more information on CPI for for December of this year we will also include that in the outer years so you normally do projections typically in February because you have the CPI figure it comes out in January so provides you more information to use into the future any questions okay so this is essentially the uh the number of the charts that I just show you and if you look at fiscal year 24 this fiscal year what you see the the red I know it gets confusing when folks see red they think automatically deficit but in this case what this is is sources and uses of fund what we essentially is saying is transfers so this are transfers from from the working cash to to other funds that's what that is the base uh the base area where you find out whether you have a surplus or deficit is at the very top you see the top line where it says Surplus and deficits so if we are a true deficit that's where it we show up okay I I asked the question when we look at the financial statements when we get those later on the year are we going to see that deficit and the answer I got was rafhael no and if you look at this is this is if you see the reserve is trending up wor which is what we saying if you look at the figures it grows gradually not by a whole up it grows gradually and the goal is to start building our reserves surely but slowly and to get it to a point where we are closer to the 25% that is required for best practice when it comes to reserve yes now I have a question you go back sure so we will often have community members even elected officials in the area who will say well you've got the money right that's what they see and I'm not arguing but here's my fear okay because that's one side of the conversation but the other side of the conversation is that budget up there is dependent and you can correct me where I'm wrong we go On Us increasing the levy and also increase in ebf funding Am I Wrong absolutely so I'm hoping at some point that we can show the public like we have in the past what the five-year projections look like if a board comes up here and says hey they've got money I'm going to hold that Levy because we've done that historically and then we went back to the public and asked them listen this didn't work we got bad advice we want to have options and everything else and the public said no no And for those of us who were hitting houses trying to help kids have options what we ended up doing was sitting in an auditorium down there making cuts and it wasn't fun was it my friend it was terrible and that's the part of the equation that some of the community doesn't get and heck I take I I got I get beat up all the time about the fact that I tried to support that referendum that's fine I'll take the hits but when people come in here they need to realize that happened within the last decade and so they need to see Raphael what it's going to look like if someone sits up here and says I'm going to hold you hold the levy they need to see what's going to happen up here if ebf funding doesn't get increased and we say we need your help we want to keep all these options for these kids Athletics I need you to put in some witness slips to help us so that people in Springfield understand what's going on so that's the one piece of this that I need because I have to be able to show the community yeah we have the money if capital I capital F absolutely if you remember those are excellent points when I started this presentation I said is based on assumptions they are knowns they unknown the only thing that we know for sure is how much we're going to get in this fiscal year right and the further you are away from this current physical year the more speculative you get right and so we're depending on a lot of variables to your point we don't know what inflation is going to be at the end of this year that's significant even if inflation is high enough the board has to make the decision to tell me to Levy up to what we're able to Levy to that's another thing the other big part of that is if I get to the charge here you will say is that uh the appropriation from the governor which is what fund zbf for the fy2 budget year the governor introduced his budget message this month earlier this month and what he's proposing is that he's going to appropriate $350 million to fund ebf and if that happens we'll get the funding that we need and I think for next year no for fiscal year 25 this year was done already right fy2 that starts July 1st now it's more likely than not that that will come true because of two things we have a governor who's a Democrat we have the Democrats who are super majority in the legislator so they tend to work in concert right so it's more likely than not but those are very very important important points that you rais well in addition in that speech that he gave he warned they have no idea what they're going to do fiscal year 26 that's the thing with projection yes and I said the same thing too when I start I said it repeatedly this is a projection it's a snapshotting time there's so many things going on that we don't know about perfect example 2020 we started 2020 everything was Rosy right February we started hearing about Co by March everything shut down most businesses shut down if you weren't for Esser and special appropriation from Congress it would have been a different story so we don't know what will happen so I so if we could go back to the Assumption slide I think what uh Revenue I think what what Jared's asking for is we put CPI zero as one scenario and then it's highly unlikely though that CPI will be zero that's what he's asking but here's the thing I agree with you but a board might come up here and tell you they don't want to Levy CPI so I so what I want is the levy part right so what I want is the them to see what happens if someone comes up here and says that and then the other part was not saying I want to go that route I'm just saying I want to show so we expect 112 million in fiscal year 25 I think what jar saying is that make it 11 113 million every [Music] year talk ebf correct okay without the for Jared tends to like and and it's helpful I'm it helped tremendously in this community people get it now when you go to the door now if we did that everything will be right all around that that's what they need to see that's honestly what they need to see they honestly need to see it so it's it's it's you do with both of those worst case scenarios and then with one of those gone and then another so basically you want what is it four I I want three scenarios well four projections actually Four you're right I want one just how you have it that's the one I want and and I'm imagining that that's if you just put zeros for those numbers no problem it's a micro it's going to be I want this like I'm happy to see this but the second one I want is what happens if you get a board up here and says we're holding Levy study for 5 years that's the second thing I want the third thing I want is what happens if the state says throws up their hands and says we don't know you're on your own we're not going to increase ebf and then doomsday is the fourth one what happens if both of those things happen What happens if you get a board up here that says now we're going to hold it and ebf is done I know what it's going to show you what I what I can tell you right off the top of my head is you'll be losing between 30 to 25% of your Revenue right at the top so you have to cut proportionately so when people say what we had to do so when people say you've got the money they need to understand that that's contingent on an increase in revenues which comes from raising the levy or state taxes in or state Appropriations increasing all and it's not just all yes raing and the state incorporating what the commitment calls for for ebf I'm happy to do that otherwise get the get the lights out on the auditorium and here we go because we're not we're not expanding anything want make we point out I do want to give credit here um because it is a relatively conservative when it comes to re this isn't a Rosy picture either um the Baseline here that he's presenting agree um so can I ask one more question SL 7 before you go does this include the projections for the master facility plan cuz I know when we looked at it some years ago for the 20 some odd buildings that we have I mean the the preventative or scheduled maintenance would cost somewhere around I don't know million 2030 million doll per year we can't afford that that but that's my point my point is not included in this numb no it's not it's not what we anticipating is being able to appropriate 1.7 mil but that's for 20 something billion contingent of how much revenue we have to cover an increase wait increase over no 1.7 million a year is that enough totally no of course not well that's what I'm saying because it was like Milli total flat flat what I'm saying toal every year that's not included that's why I'm asking because that if if you took that 30 or 40 million and put it within this budget that also would boun oh that would be that would be crazy well that's that's my point but that's to the point of that he's also making with with the the projections that we have are great but if and again I know that the worst case scenario won't happen that all chillers boilers and everything would go down in one year but all of our buildings are 20 plus years old right now so the probability of of things breaking down is higher and so we have to also have um fund to take care of our building so that our our students can continue to learn so we have five scenarios you would like for me to do now I'm just trying because because the Assumption slide it says $1.7 million increase I just want to make sure that no 1.7 million dollar uh it should be just period yes yes yes okay okay well that that changes that word increased it changes everything it changes things yes okay that's just what they put increase in fiscal year 2025 in just one year so that's $1.7 million increase in next year yes and then from there on it's from there on I'm estimating 2.4 million from there 2.4 million as long as we have the revenue to be able to drive it and as see looked we put that 2.4 million it still looks good with all the assumptions we continue to Levy based on CPI we get at least $4 million addition every year in EPF okay so he's at about 2.4 is what's built in after 25 oh okay yeah 25 it's this year's plus 1.6 better than nothing from last year we well we have we have to we have to budget some money for a building we can yeah okay all right so you still want me to do the scenario with the 30 million four no I was really stating if you want to see it I think you talked about I I just the four okay I can do the four I would love that thank you so much no no problem so what this is here is just uh a graph of the revenue breakdown and if you see as I mentioned earlier property tax is a big chunk of that is a really big chunk and another big chunk of that again is CF I can't say enough about how much of a ebf is made in the uh in the financial trajectory of the district so when people talk about how do we go from being so broke to be blunt to doing better you can see that iide that's a lot of money and it's it's helped us and and not to not to beat a dead horse here but we had these these presentations have really done some serious education in the community because we had a lot lot of people um submit witness slips from the community this time when ebf came up because it it really did make an impact when people saw what it means when we're not getting that so that's great and every opportunity I get to to speak to legislator I always remind them of how much of difference that ebf has made in our district in our ability to be able to fund a lot of things we've been really connecting with a lot of legisl over the last year um and we thank them for their leadership um so yeah so that's the other if you look at it property taxes if we if we follow CPI 49% almost half of that is CBF now almost then the rest of it as you see I mean they are significant but not that big if you look at the scheme of things how much it contributes to our revenues first and then uh this is our as I as I always tell people we're in the people business so if you look at the salary and the benefits is 81% of our expenditures and everything else pale com in comparison to it so when people say just cut the budget what it comes down to you cannot cut the budget if you don't lay people up that's the only way you can reduce because everything else is really not significant purchase services and really there's not much in the way of uh of flexibility and purchase Services that's where we pay for transportation for example uh the Contracting of Transportation the oper uh the uh the bus leases the uh the light bill that we that that you know the heating those things that keep minimally keep the the district going you pay for that at of purchase services so if you want to cut that you're going to have some sign ific impact on how uh the district runs and when it says salaries does that include like stiens that nature anything that is paid out of uh object 100 100 is your regular salary 132 is your skyp in those rolled up into uh into salaries and something that we actually uh contemplating and budgeting for for the first time this year I want to point next year I want to point out his termination benefits uh in the past we've never budgeted for that but that is how you pay when people leave us let's say they retire or they leave us we pay for the accumulated sick days the accumulated vacation in there in the past currently what we do or in the past and currently with this year's budget we pay for it out of salary and that's really not the right place to pay for for it you need to budget specifically for termination benefits and that's what that is and for the next 5 years we projecting it will be approximately $300,000 a year questions on discussion I think we have some great one along the way so yeah I'm good I'm good thank you thank you so we plan to bring the uh there was a memo included at pretty much is more detailed than the presentation it's about seven pages we plan to bring the uh the budget to the board in May and hopefully get it approved by by June and part of the the budget process too is we'll be doing community presentations at three locations in the district it'll probably be in Osgo we'll probably do one Aurora and maybe another one in Montgomery or somewhere else where we'll actually do a presentation we go over the budget we give folks in the community an opportunity to ask questions and just to engage with folks so they know what's in the budget and those presentations and next time we see it they'll have those for four scenarios cor absolutely I can actually get it to you before then I can have it to you by the next uh board meeting just put it in there as an FYI thank you thank you okay almost there all right some big topics though I mean like want to give them time y great uh last but definitely not least in terms of our consent agenda um I'm uh really honored to present oh this is not the oh for oh I'm sorry oh for information this evening um it's it is late so thank you for your uh your your forgiveness all right here we go I want to invite Dr Waller to speak to what I would say is a really important opportunity and really a trailblazing moment for our district um to speak to really our draft Equity policy that we are bringing to the board for its review and engagement as we enter a really important part any you know there when we think about change we think about policy people and practice um do we have have the right policies in place to really support the vision that we have for shifts in how we support our schools if we've been an equality model where everybody gets the same if our two high schools get the same if every single school gets the same that's there's there's a function to that right so that's the practice those are then the practices if we have everybody gets the same then the result is going to be very similar but unfortunately that doesn't make those same um doesn't necessar address the needs you know at home I've got two boys if if I gave them exactly the same uh they would say Dad whatever you know so there's a uniqueness to how we think about all that we're doing and so um I want to thank Dr Waller I'm going to invite her to share who's on the committee um and then also really this is really coming to the board for its engagement around this policy because through this policy we can begin to shift how we fund how we think about the supports that our schools get um for example tonight in tonight's public comments we heard some Deep Cries for concern and so this is this is the foundation for how we change the outcomes we're seeing even today in terms of the frustration in our community and so this is the beginning and I want to really appreciate again Dr Wall for your your leadership here thank you I'm super excited for this moment um so quickly I just want to thank the members of the equity committee Ally Jeremy Bailey and Marie Rita Joe Michelle with two L's Tony Erin Tammy Kiana Agnes Toya Dr kgy Pete Paul mam Dominique Amy Michelle 1 L Reagan Steph Kristen Paul um and all the other individuals who we've um allowed us into their space to ask questions as we've developed um this Equity policy um I also uh want to thank everyone for um accepting us as we went on our little tour of the different committees um we just we have a lot of amazing passionate um Educators in our system and so we're just excited about this opportunity to uh establish a foundation of equity and put this in writing um I know I've said this and shared this but you know our commitments are um an integral part of this policy I don't know if we can slide down a little bit you would see those are the starred ones down here and then also the sd308 call to action again this goes into the collaboration that we continue to talk about um from what Mr Jeremy Bell and Bailey Campbell shared um we know that these are words on paper and we need this call to action to be able to um Drive the work of making sure that our students are um rightfully present in spaces and safe psychologically in spaces um so we're excited about this opportunity um we look forward to bringing our success indicators draft to you all next to do another fun tour um as we know that all these things work in collaboration if you look at these footnotes you see um we are talking about a span we have over 177,000 students we serve a predominantly marginalized groups of students and so we have to be able to create a space where they believe that that space is for them um that it's not a guest host space or mentality um that they again like we said are rightfully present inside and outside of the classroom so are there any questions did I miss anything Dr K can you share a little bit about the policy development process and how this aligns with that and what's happened just so the board can be aware of that too yep so in terms of kind of the policy setting Foundation um so as Dr Waller mentioned she has not only engaged the policy committee but also um the equity committee and many many groups from uh across schools across the district so our policy really serves as a foundation from there then she has a team that is working on um uh success indicators which we will then parallel with some administrative procedures so in conjunction um with the policy um we'll look at some admin procedures um Mr Bell and Mrs C took talked earlier about the call to action which will also partner uh with that from a um operational um uh lens so uh it's really this will be all-encompassing for both um our protocols our procedures and our direct workings with student staff and the community thank you okay so I'm excited about this because um after um the death of of George Floyd there were many school districts who were looking at the social injustices and their systemic inequities and how they were showing up in in their school districts and they were and know they were calling for um School boards to bring forth like proclamations policies um and how they wanted to go forward and what their stance was on equity and our school district um we we we settled for um our Equity statements um and I use that word I don't use that word lightly it it was a settling and um I'm I'm proud that now we we have this so thank you for it other questions comments feedback I I just appreciate the call to action because I think stopping short of a policy leaves it um really up for interpretation for how these uh how they're implemented and so I think it just has another level of accountability by adding the call to actions and I appreciate that yes can I ask how how those Equity statements roll into the work I'm so glad you asked that um so we're really excited about having that collaboration and actually I'm going to put uh Miss cus on the spot as well but one way we are going to weave in and and leverage really and lift right because you know these are water approved September 27th of 2021 and they've been important statements and words but we need traction and we need to lift that and so the equity statements will live within the success indicators so we're going to be tying those statements within each of those indicators and so I know we're not here to talk about the success indicators tonight but just so you all know the the tour of like bringing all these different people in includes us looking at you know Mastery connect and the standard space learning piece of that as well as the behavioral um subjective nature that we see within Mastery connect we're looking at gifting Ed from elementary junior high high school and and looking at representation in our processes and procedures we're looking at student discipline we're looking at lgbtq where we've um connected with HR with multilingual Department with special education so it's a lot of different pieces um and so those Equity statements fit perfectly within those educator spaces and so we're going to be creating um a forward facing um platforms so that those can be lifted within Network cuz and I do want to you know acknowledge that like we that work took like a year to produce those Equity statements and a lot of people put in a lot of time energy and effort to make them happen but what they did was they weren't embedded and they weren't systemic in nature and so they just were piece they were words on a piece of paper and so I app appreciate the fact that now they will live and breed thank you without those Equity statements we would not have an equity policy today exactly right and those Equity statements were the result of I would say decade L decade long effort by members of a very diverse members of this community who really started a nucleus going back I want to say 2002 or when was that 2011 2011 no 14 14 um individuals really saw the need and really I would say were Trailblazers and so there's some history there that I look forward to bringing back and making sure that history is Unearthed for the community because that's a really important uh frame that we have to recognize which makes us really proud to be a part of sd308 when we think about the context within which that effort was was spawn and developed and so that's what brings us to today day and so I think uh that history cannot be lost and that history has to live when we think about this policy so miss kedas were you gonna add in did you want to oh yeah I think I think Dr Waller pretty much filled in the blanks but yes um as you mentioned um president similton um having been here at the same time when those were created they kind of lived as a parallel and not as an integration and so when we sat and looked through this policy and looked through the calls to action it's it's no longer that um it's Equity statements are here and what we're doing is over here it's that the equity statements are driving down to the words that we're using and we're talking about building Banks of words even so that literally not just what we do but how we talk about what we do um and how people read about what we do and everything is really inclusive of um this you know this lens it's everything looks through the lens it's not a separate picture like it was before so um we're really proud of that integration yeah and I would are you gonna add something go ahead no go ahead go um and I and thank you for recognizing the history of the work that um the Dei committees um and their effort and because of all of the work that has been done since that time the U Midwest and plains Equity Assistance Center they're going to be um showcasing our district and our work in the equity space at the um what is it the American educ American educational research Association in Philadelphia in um April and I'll be part of that presentation so that's cool awesome that's really cool our District's doing a lot thank you thank you thank you thank you all right so okay now we'll move on to action item 10.1 approval of bills for payment can I have a motion please make make a motion to authorize the payment of bills and the amount of 32 m87 4,602 as presented Miss similon hi Dr Mario hi Mr Gatewood hi Mr Cerone hi Miss venman hi Mr pler I motion passes 60 action item 10.2 approval of cyber security testing can I have a motion please I make a motion to approve the agreement with l l RS LLC to conduct cyber security penetration testing second Miss Simon hi Miss mouth hi Mr ploger hi Dr Mario hi Mr Cerone hi Mr Gatewood I motion passes 60 action item 10.3 approval of new ihsa sport can I have a motion please make a motion to approve adding lacrosse as a new high school sport in sd38 second I have a comment on this one yeah listen I if you bring something to me that's going to give students more options and more things and you tell me we can afford it I'm never going to say no however I do want to make sure that there's a couple of things said about this one I do think we need a process and a uh almost like a kind of a timeline with that process just like we do with buildings facilities anything like this right I think we need the same thing the other piece that I'll say is this and you know sorry but I'm going to give the history here which is when I hear options and home values those were the arguments we had when we failed with two referendums in this community we went around door Todo knocking relentlessly trying to get people to support school district and we still got less than 20% of people to show up and vote I take a beating for doing that I publicly own it I don't care because I agree with everything that was said we should have options for our students and yes the quality of our schools does affect our home values those arguments they lost in the community twice and what ends up happening is what I call the old American argument you can win win versus somebody has to lose in order to win and what happened was we were we told people this is going to cause pain and pain can be seen in a band here that doesn't have a shell still pain can be seen out on the fields that aren't really well kept for our teams and our marching bands pain can be felt when it comes to math interventionists that are needed pain can be felt from what we heard from the school with what I call the best mascot in the district the Bobcats from Boulder Hill these are all residual effects of that pain and I say this because if somebody comes up here and fools with our Revenue if we ever get into a situation like we were where we needed those those those we needed those funds for options and to help people's home values if it's just about our my group of kids it's not going to work people are going to lose so you have to be willing to Advocate when you say you want options and you want to help home values you have to be able to advocate for the kids that may not be directly your kids I show up I love robotics I've never had a kid in robotics right we're all passionate about some of these things we have to understand that as a community so when we add something that's why I say there needs to be a process but when we add something I don't think it's unfair to ask for the commitment the other way which is we got banned kids in need we got fields in disarray we've got problems in schools that we need to address those are our kids and we have to remember that I I appreciate the comment and the question and the call for and that's exactly why this board um invested this year in what I would call the what we call the curriculum organizational audit because it's not enough to have this one moment of success for one important sport tonight right and we want to celebrate that but the purpose of that audit that the board approved and really was Visionary in doing is really increasing the capacity of our team to do a field stud to make sure that we are understanding the bread of where those priorities are going to lie just like we would do in terms of a building process or our or our fin our Master facility planning process we have to do the same thing now our team through the eight priorities has identified variety of needs and is beginning to work we're not going to wait for that audit because we have responsibility today so I want to say the second thing I want to invite um Heather um Dr Kade and Mr artson to speak a little bit to the process because that we brought those two together in this process with the lacrosse this was a field testing right to then get fi feedback about what the process looked like um in addition to Bringing lacrosse this evening so I think if you could speak a little bit down to the process in terms of a timeline to make sure that we are not overlooking that um an important factor and then also to seek further feedback from the board around what that process can look like in the future we want to make sure that that gets resurfaced I don't know if his mic is on is your m is it on I know it's late Dan thank you so much that green light there we go all right so as we look at the process there there was a process that we we did follow with this and it's a 15-step process the final step in that process is board approval uh as we go through this you know the step one being assessment of Interest going with the the the student survey and interest thr about the community even is there an interest to add these Sports and as we go through look at facilities planning and look at the budgetary analysis um can we can we feasibly handle these Sports uh and I'm not going to talk through each and every one of these because you do have the memos to to look at these yourselves uh but I will say the process that we we did lay out was pretty much all inclusive of everything that we need to add or need to review within those steps um the timeline being one of them one of the things we had indicated in that is that from time to time uh it's not that we would speed through any of these but if we're doing something like lacrosse for example that was approved many years ago by the ihsa um we do have local Club teams and organizations that are currently practicing in that too um that would be something that we could uh and we have here in Step One in cases where the ihsa has already adopted a sport in into a state series the process can be reviewed uh if the majority of our resources are needed for the sport are already in place and that's kind of what we we have done here with lacrosse for example it's already it's already there yeah so so it's about also it's about a holistic picture what I'm hearing from you just to be clear is really it's about a holistic picture that centers Equity versus uh maybe I'm Miss no what I what I I have no doubt that you did a process and I'm listen I okay you know all that sure my issue is like we'll see like a building facility plan right so I want to know hey what what sports are on stage one what you know what what sports are in stage 10 I have no doubts like you come you bring it to me it's not me questioning your faith it's it's me saying hey maybe we need to see more of that in a transparent lens sure so that we have it I'm not saying I need to go till midnight on a on on a on a sure you know uh presentation on it but I think that's what I'm talking about but I think also oh go on sorry go no go ahead please so as um Dan mentioned earlier too there are other sports kind of in that pipeline um not only through the ihsa but also through discussions within the district so um we can definitely make sure similar to a curriculum review that there is a stage process with communication about what's potentially entering the process and where it is in the process and what triggers it to enter the process is it it's well there's an emerging Sports through the ihsa uh and I can't remember the exact percent I off top my head at you know 11 11 12 at night right now but uh there is a percent that the ihsa says this stays in the emerging sports list until enough of our constituents basically say yep we're running something something right now then it goes to the ihsa board to say are we going to have a state series with this and then the ihsa votes on it from there but so am am I hearing you to say that if we're going to look to add new sports we should make sure that the ones that we have are also supported are also supported and that we restore those that were taken away or um they were cut back on because of the cuts that were had is that that's an excellent point but I'll also add this like you know as as board members what if someone comes to us and say I mean somebody comes and says hey why did why don't we have um uh girls flag football right now if I know where it's at in the process I could say well we're at we're at we're at stage 10 um we just need this that and the other and these are the things that we we can we we need that way we're able to have a better conversation with the community about what our needs are maybe it's maybe it's about facilities hey hey we're we're stuck we don't have enough fac we don't have the facilities or maybe it's I don't know um there and I know it's not this but there's not enough teams in the conference whatever it is it gives us the ability to have that conversation with the community and be more transparent with them as well yeah sure I I want to just close out I know as we move to the vote we just to say that I know that there's just I want to just appreciate the those who have rallied for the lacrosse because of its commitment not just to Lacrosse but overall the sense of Entrepreneurship um of lifting up our community and engaging in looking at the best in our community and rallying people together I think it's a great model for all the other sports and Endeavors period that that we when we work together when we find mutuality around opportunities that can invest and support our students we're going to be better for it and at 12:00 at night I have to say I just have to close out with that and just uh just to to to underscore that I think that this is a great example that effort and I want to thank Dan and the team Mr Howard and ton lard and then and all the families who've rallied to support this tonight we saw a great show of that tonight and really kudos to to their leadership as well this is going to be a this is a a silly plug uh for all the Ross families that are watching today uh do the 5 essential survey yes [Laughter] okay tou okay nobody hopefully the students are asleep all right let's vote Mr G hi Dr Mar hi Mr hi Miss Simon hi Mr hi I motion passes 60 action item 10.4 approval of activity bus trust lease to purchase agreement can I have a motion please make a motion to approve five a fiveyear lease to purchase for eight buses for a total of 1,147 23090 payable in yearly installments second Mr Sone hi Mr ploger hi Mr Gatewood i m venth hi Dr Maria I miss Simon I motion passes 60 action item 10.5 approval of Fox Chase roof replacement can I have a motion please make a motion to award the contract for the Fox Chase roof replacement to JL Adler Roofing and Sheet Metal incorporated in the amount of$ 75,7 second second Miss similon I Mr ploger I Mr Gatewood I miss venman I Mr Cerone I Dr Maria I motion passes 60 action item 10.6 action on the 2023 2020 I'm sorry 2023-24 D2 student disciplinary case can I have a motion please make a motion to expel student 2023 24 that -2 per the written findings and decisions as presented and discussed in Clos session second Miss vmou hi Dr Maria hi Mr Cerone I miss similon I Mr Gatewood hi Mr cler I motion passes 60 action item 10.7 action on uniform grievance m-d can I have a motion please make a motion to authorize president similton to prepare a written decision affirming Dr katti's decision with respect to Mr maa's pending grievance against Mr Dar Aran second Dr Maria hi M similon hi Mr cler hi Mr Cerone hi Mr Gatewood hi Miss vou I motion passes 60 action item 10.8 approval personel report can I have a motion please I make a motion to approve the Personnel report as presented second Mr Gatewood I Dr Maria I miss ven I Mr ploger I M Simon I Mr s i motion passes 60 can I have a motion to adjourn I make a motion to adjourn all in favor ah