So good steps there. I want to thank publicly all the local safety personnel that were here in attendance. Magnificent. We got a lot of questions about any of them. All right. So, David wasn't able to come tonight, but I did want to share with you um David is a member of the Civil Air Patrol and he received an award last week. Um he received the Billy Mitchell award which is a pretty prestigious award in civil and mom you want to tell them exactly what it's for. So David's been in air patrol since he was 12 and so um that ranks him up to second. So what he does he goes to weekly meetings over in Canada the American Legion and what the basic thing about is it's um four core it's science technology engineering and that so we spend a lot he a lot of time in claims going over to Purdue on a lot of stuff David had done a lot of stuff he went to encampment in July in that beating heat.
We put QR codes all around the school. Students grabbed their phone, scanned the QR code, and took the survey. And it really just asked them about what's going on in their lives. It was all anonymous. We don't know any of the students who put what. It was all anonymous, but it just um split them by grade, age or grade, um gender, and like what was going on in their lives. So, we took some of those responses and we mashed them up. We put them in the video just to show other students what people around you are going through. So, we don't know who these people are, but we know that they are within our school community. they're like next to us in our classes and that they are going through something that we can be a part of to help um spread awareness and help really show them that they have people around them.
Does the Lawrence Township School Foundation um get involved with this because I noticed it's the NSD Lawrence's general fund but um looking Is there any involvement? We we always with this this comes through the district. The foundation cannot be involved in this. This requires board action. Okay. And obviously district funds in order to do it. So this is through our board policies. Okay. Yeah. Question. Any other questions or comments? What a what a great Well, did you There's one point with Dr. Gagline. 37 years of service just to Lawrence Township schools. He left Butler University, came to North Central High School, and folks, he has never left. You talk about loyalty. Hello. Congratulations, Dr. Gagglon. Thank you. All right. If there are no other questions, at this time, we will move on to 3.06 with our f financial update. Mr. Miles. Thank you, Madam President, members of the board.
I'm not sure whether it was Cindy, John, and Lisa, but even keyboarding skills like my age, right? And so we had lessons where you learned how to use the keyboard. We're watching some of these kids is walking around doing the MCAST doing this trying to like because they're used to this, right? And being able to go this way. I sat behind at that program we were at last night, right? The Nobel laureate. There was a girl sitting in front of me, man, she was so fast on that on that phone, but but all with two hits, but no no skill set could that travel on to using on keyboarding skills as well, too. So, you know, John tells a story about the MCAT grades being low and they figured out it's because they started they didn't know how to do punctuation, capitals, absolutely keyboard, right?
What are our own cognitive biases? re recognize uncertainty and the limits of knowledge. This is as you know Eric and the other scientists in the in the room know that this is that's what it's all about is we're always trying to figure out okay what do we know and what we don't yet know what you know what do we really know and what's the evidence for that okay how well do we know that then given what the evidence is right but this is a way we can all approach our our everyday living right so then finally curiosity I mentioned that curiosity is a I think you know a natural human instinct but it has to be nurtured and it can be inhibited by circumstances, right? So, it's something that we need to nurture in each other and ourselves um and um be careful not to inhibit it in others.
Oneita, did you have something else? Um that sounds good and um thank you, Kelly, um for the excellent ex explanation and um responding to the uh questioning. Thank you. You're welcome. Um I will uh just concur with uh Teresa's earlier point. Um I don't necessarily want to this is not again in the forum necessarily to have a conversation about the direct cost of this but I will express the same concern that if we don't staff this properly um in each building, it's going to be very difficult to follow through on the policy um itself. Um, I know that, uh, you know, to Wanita's point, it's a series of interactions that happen with students who are in this behavioral situation. Um, and I know that that in some cases in some classrooms across the district, they're already practicing this. Um but I think that uh you know especially as you get into older kids whose actions are perhaps a little bit more um uh challenging to manage uh that that that's got a potential to create uh a real issue with the resources that we have available.
So uh that allows us to move ahead on ordering equipment and getting it installed and we are 3 weeks out from our conversion to Skyward Cumulative. So we are working busily. Just heard a big big gasp of air from Courtney back here. We have uh lot to do in in the conversion process, but uh we're ready for it. We're excited for it. Craig, when that happens, will we get all of our history for the for the board, too? Is that tied to Skyward? No, it's not. No, we need to get we need to get more uploaded as we moved over. We've got it in a folder. We just need some time to upload. Our USD244 service and retirement celebration that will occur on May 21 starting at 2 p.m. at the high school. Have an early release date on day the last day of school at 12:30.
I mean, we're the ones who put the majority of the wear and tear on the gym floor. So I feel like it's fair to pitch. So I mean I understand we should and I think that $6,500 some of that and I have no problem doing the additional. I just want to make sure it's still within you know our benefit to do it and I don't know without looking at numbers. I think it still would. I mean you're looking under 10 grand. Yeah. I don't know. And and you add that much more to this gym floor that we already got, plus the football field, plus trying to arrange everything else. I I still think that we're well below what I'm not saying not to do the least. I mean, I No, I'm just saying I think even 10 green is well worth it. I don't know about I don't have but my problem is the contract is so doesn't that we're going to maintain the floor just as maintenance.
And the reason we're doing this is our numbers are growing so much so for students with severe forms of autism. And our program is bursting. And I'll explain that a little further down, but Ascend is on a waiting list. So we are needing to work with another entity to try to help meet the needs of all of our kiddos. Key terms. Um so first I wanted to share whenever a student is going to qualify for special education, they come with a referral. It can be from a teacher, it can be from a parent, guardian. And we um if it's deemed to be necessary, we have a lot of variables we have to consider. We conduct what's called a psychoeducational evaluation. This goes through and is very thorough and comprehensive and tells how the student learns what their needs are. We have to follow AD criteria and federal laws and we review this a minimum of every three years to redetermine eligibility.
But, you know, as much as that dog costume is probably in a costume or is probably, you don't think around for a while. than the you know I think if I had put anything there I'd more so been interested in like you know community and um like parent and family education in terms of like I think a lot of times some of the issues rise there where where parents or family don't recognize or understand some of those things and so any role we can play in that might be helpful I I agree we should leave the language to be general and broad so that it can evolve with the times in whatever way that works. I would say the last few years we've made sure at least one community council had that as a topic. Um this year I think with all of the other things that we were trying to focus on because I know end of last year we had not my kid but have we had them this year?
And the students reported that they felt that their vocabulary instruction was enhanced and that they felt like they could access vocabulary knowledge a little bit more deeply. They really enjoyed um the consum the consumables that Savis brings where they have the text right there in front of them and they can annotate whatever the mini lesson might be and really dive into the text a little deeper than what they had in the past and they found that the texts were pretty engaging as well. So those were some of the highlights that our students shared with us. How much of a challenge is it for kids going from fifth to six to different curriculum? I think both curriculums are very comparable. Um, HMH and SAVIS are very, very similar. They both have a digital platform and they both have consumable texts, K8. So, I don't think it'll be a challenge for them really.
An SRO in the school can make more impact on one day than an officer can on the street for a month. They continually see people and they can work through with people through their problems. Whereas an officer on the street sees somebody and they may not see them again ever. So this is our future. This is our future business owners in town. These are our future homeowners in town. These are our future. This is the future of us. And they have the ability to have some part of that and direct kids along with the school staff in a positive way. And so I I really like that ability for them to make that impact. So this is a model that is put together where there's three major components of our SRO. a law enforcement component, an educator component, and an informal counselor. While this is is the model that we potentially use, it's really not to scale because it really, as Chief had said, it puts law enforcement as the same kind of equal as everything else.
Second. I have a motion and a second. All in favor? I. None opposed. Then I need a motion and a second to approve the staffing proposal for next school year. I'll make a motion to approve the proposed food service staffing for 2526. I'll second. I have a motion and a second. All in favor? I I none opposed. All right, moving on here. Approval of elementary painting. Um I don't have that quote. We have it. Yes, we have a quote from Mark Doulan painting to do that top part around the gym, the letters and the whole bottom section of awning piece around all the way around. $14,000. So, what that'll he can he's he can do it this summer. So, that'll match if you I know you noticed because the the new part on the south side nice and brown. Yeah. the rest of them look like chalk.
Um, but what this is really I was really excited when he got it, but I'll read just one paragraph on the bill marks completion of phase two recognizing sustained excellence in all four areas of cadet leadership aerospace fitness and character. Furthermore, um cadets must have passed a comprehensive examination on leadership in an aerospace topics that have completed a quality government immersing them in a challenging core values and environment. And so this is pretty exciting. I think you shared with me that only the top 15% I'd like to share with you just real quick that David did that Mike's museum and it was on the right brothers and that summer they had the out and I think they went up to David they were marketing and I say but you only one. So, we're going right up there. This was quite an accomplishment. four students simulation um with Mr.
Hey Vikings, we're part of Huntington Youth Leaders. Mental health is a big issue within our school and we have a message to share. We put out a survey for Huntington North students and these are the responses we received. [Music] All [Music] right. So, that was one of our HIL groups. Um, and we had one more HL group also focus on mental health. So like me said, our uh project was also mental health related. Um so we raised money for um High Hopes and we went to basketball games and sold raffle baskets and raffle tickets and from that money we raised we gave it to High Hopes uh to use their outreach to our school. So, what was so great about the second group choosing to support High Hopes is that it gave us a chance to be able to do something um fun with the money that we wanted to do to reach out.
Dr. Smith. In front of you, you have our April 30, 2025 financials, starting with our transportation fund. Um, happy to present revenue in line with expectations as well as total expenditures. Um, and our ending cash balance and in the transportation fund is also within expectations for the general fund. Likewise, revenue uh in total exceeds expectations and projections uh and our expenditures slightly below uh yielding a higher than projected cash balance at the end of April. Just over $15 million. Thank you, Mr. Miles.
Absolutely. Elementary and and we we don't teach that skill as much as those keyboard skills that we should be doing with our kids as well. There's a lot of work to do in keeping up with the technology as well too. And and we got two full-time technology people for our entire district as well too. And half of them are spending the time just fixing our technology devices implementing the work that needs to be done. pretty thin in the office there.
Curious about our world, ourselves and others. And so that curiosity, as I said, that's really the fuel for discovery and and so in science and everyday life. The other thing is maintain a sense of wonder. You know, when I told you an example of this healing of my thumb, you know, as an everyday thing um that you think about it, wow, that's pretty amazing. You know, you can take it for granted or you can sort of look at these everyday phenomenon around us and say, wow, you know, this is really amazing. You know, so the mysteries all around us and most of what there is to know is still unknown. And that's something that I think um maybe we don't always think about, right? in when we're doing science, we always are trying to answer the next question and then people sometimes ask, well, um, you know, have you figured out everything?
So I just want to express that thought. Um are there any other uh questions or feedback from committee members? Anything from non-committee members? Okay. In that case, I am looking for a recommendation for first read of policy 5114.12 restorative practice response uh sorry response policy uh for a full read to the uh first read for the board. Is there a motion on the floor? We'll make the motion. Second. Thank you. Thank you, Anita. Uh, all those in favor, please signify by saying I. I. I. I. Thank you. Motion so carries. Kelly, thank you very much. We're ready to move on to uh 5141.21, administering medication, which will be replaced by revised policy 5141.21, student health services. Thank you. So, we're switching gears uh a little bit now. Um we are going uh continuing on with our 5000 series, but these next four policies that you're going to see um have to do with our health services.
Uh we'll be honoring many employees for years of service and other honors. Uh again I attached our years of service report to shows the many many years our staff served USD244 and the education profession. So again the board is invited to attend that celebration. Uh we are looking to make a change to start times next year based on an issue that was raised there teacher linkage meeting in April as well as start times moving up for VHS activities next year. So, we're looking at uh summer activities being moved up to a 4:00 start time instead of a 4:30 start time next year for some high school activities. We're going to look to standard start times in buildings like we had done in the past. So, high school and middle school will have a 750 to 305 school day. That'll move their time up 5 minutes earlier.