It's our job at the conservation commission to make sure that that water goes someplace besides into the street and off. And that's part of the whole calculation of this. >> How we're going to do that, you'll have to tune in to the conservation commission. >> That's a leave it at that. >> But, uh, it's not a matter of just laying down a whole lot of, uh, asphalt and having that water just fly all over the place. that water can't fly all over the place under the um guidelines. >> Thank you, K. >> Thank you. >> Appreciate that. Thanks, Carl. >> Thank you. >> All right. [clears throat] All right. Update on Keith Tech. >> Yeah. Just uh >> school project. >> Yeah. I had advised you that um Keith Tech was applying to be a part of the MSBA program for uh this coming year and so they were accepted.
And a lot of that has to do with transparency. Um and I think that when you're goal setting, you you do want to say where where do we want to be? You know, it's kind of like when you do UDL in the classroom, when you're when you teach with the ending in mind. Um, you want to plan your goals with the ending in mind. So, I would come in and ask a ton of questions. What What do you want to see Greenfield, you know, the Greenfield public schools in 20 years? What would be the perfect Nothing's perfect, but what would be the perfect educational experience of a student um for Greenfield? And so you need to hear from all of you about what that is. And then I agree, you have to talk to a lot of students and see what their voice is. um because they will tell you and they do know and they may articulate it differently um depending on their age or their life experiences or whether they've been here since prek or whether they came in as a 10th grader.
And we um are in strong support of this measure and would like to stand on our written testimony emphasizing that um individuals with disabilities, they really rely on the sped bus to get to and from school. And when there's a shortage, that bus takes the least amount of children, so kiddos to school. So typically that's the bus driver that will not be there. and they'll take um that bus driver to drive the larger buses to bring more school kids to school, which makes sense, but um it does um hamper our individuals from getting um sped students from getting the education they desire and need. And there's no other alternatives. So, we really are a strong advocate for this bill to be passed. Thank you so much. >> Have a quick question. And I know we're not asking till the end, but does the handicap handicam um buses take students to school at all?
Um, okay. So, let's talk about the budget. Um, that's compression. Any any more questions about compression? That's about where we're at. Yes, Yolanda. >> Um, I know you went over the um what was it? The classified PNP. Uh is that that is just that is not including exempt that time in that >> that's only classified hourly classified exempt salary schedule is in that folder >> is in >> wanted to look at the but we haven't started um pricing out movements well I think they are priced out in the folder maybe >> I didn't see years of service on the exempt >> oh okay um so because we're making our um uh because we're making our information available to the public. The years of service um at this point in time has personally identifiable information in it. So I was able to show you the classified um that had been pulled out.
And so if you do recall just from our own MSBA project not too long ago, um one of the first steps that you do is you go through and you do enrollment projections and you come up with essentially an an enrollment maximum number. Um and so we had um a meeting with the MSBA, Keith Tech did, as well as um members of their school committee as well as members of um the administration of all the member towns as well, just to kind of get an update with MSBA. Um the enrollment uh that Keith Tech is looking, they will not go over 1,200. Um so that is that is the figure that they have kind of drawn the line in the sand on. and they feel like that will give them um a little bit of room but not that much. They think uh you know if if everything got maxed out the enrollment could be somewhere as high as like 1,700 but as we all know with our Mendes school it doesn't that that doesn't just because it's the max doesn't mean that that's what the MSBA decides to right >> so um but anyway that so far is on track and I believe part of that um part of that presentation also included a timeline um for when the enrollment projections are supposed to be finalized and and that's that's really kind of a major step.
Um they may have a different perspective on things. Um but they're going to tell you like it is. And so, you know, you want to look at that from from an equity lens. Um you want to look at that from how the world is going to change. So you need to look at you know how is AI going to change uh the way we teach and how is the you know what DESIE is looking for us going to change things how is the curriculum that you've adopted going to change things and so you need to look at all of that and say what is our vision vision of a learner when somebody looks back and says says I had a great educational experience in Greenfield because I got to do this this and this. Um, and so you want to have that vision and you want to have that insight, but then the the nitty-gritty of doing goals is to sit around the room and talk about it and sit around the room and and we've done it, you know, we've done some brainstorming and some activities.
>> Not children because of the age. >> Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. >> Okay. Kayashi. [clears throat] >> Hello, Chair Kim, Vice Chair Kedani, members of the committee. Shantima, assistant superintendent reporting for the Department of Education. The department stands on its written testimony which provides comments on this measure and we stand by for questions. >> Okay. When you say comments, can you specifically tell us what they might be as far as in support or concerns? >> Um >> cuz you got to remember people watching they have no idea what you're standing on. Um, so in our testimony, the Department of Education appreciates the opportunity to provide these comments. Proposing a range of state administered initiatives to address the statewide school bus driver shortage. Although >> part can you just get to what the initial concerns are? >> Okay. Um the issues that we have are why while we support financial incentives for bus drivers, it's um being that our our bus drivers are private contractors, it's um giving financial incentives to private contractors.
So we'll create that same thing for the other schedule. So there's no identifying information for the years of service. Again, this is a lot of work. And um and we uh I'm so sorry. I just got distracted. My daughters called me. So I'm like waiting to see if it happens again. I'd have to step away. Uh that means emergency. Okay. Um bless you. So yes, we will provide that too for you. Uh it just takes a second. This was a lot. If you go through those, there's probably triple what you see in my folder. >> One more question. Um I know you're you were talking about the SOFG um for classify currently receiving 500. I know there was talk >> no currently receiving merit of 500 it has nothing to do with sof >> moving us that merit to thousand sof would be a separate thing it's it's not you know >> okay >> anything that's a part of it would be totally separate from merit okay >> um budget I guess we could go back to that meet and confer summary um oh is that where we Okay, let me get to my talking points.
So, just wanted to update you on that. >> Michael, could you just excuse me, could you just um explain how would would Ashland vote? So, say say that this goes forward and they're going to build a new school and then would Ashland um as one of the member towns, how does it how does it work? we vote for a debt exclusion similar to what we've done in the community. I think it's a little different, isn't it? >> It it is a little bit different. Um and quite frankly, I'm still trying to get clarity on exactly what what happens whether it can be a debt exclusion or not. Um I I've heard that it it could not go forward as a debt exclusion, but I heard that from I don't want to say a non-credible source, but a source that's just not very familiar with MSBA.
We've done some research into best practices and the research and so I understand how difficult it is but I do believe you wouldn't be here if you didn't want the best for the kids. So if you start what's best for the students and then right after that what's best for the families and right after that what's best for um the staff then I think that's the common ground that you work from and but it also has to be the goals have to be lofty but doable and then they have to have action plans under those goals and they have to be measurable. So then you have to do the monitoring of them. So you know there is a reason they put the strategic plan you know by 2026 by 2028 because you if you just write it and it sits on a shelf and it's not alive and it's not talked about um then it it doesn't mean anything.
That's the that's the crux of our issue. >> Thank you very >> um Michelle Gimba in support. Uh Tom Yamachica from the tax foundation. Thank you, Chair, Vice Chair Tom Yamamaica from Tax Foundation of Hawaii. Um, our primary concern is with the special fund. Um, we we don't think that it's necessary and uh this is kind of going to be a you know whether the DOE contracts with a a private contractor or employees these individuals directly, it seems to be a core function of DOE and doesn't justify a special fund. That's our concern. >> Okay. Thank you very much, Tom. See else? Okay, there is a number of others that have sign not signed up but have sent in testimony. Anyone here wishing to testify on this measure? If not, questions members. >> Question. >> Yes. >> Court who approved? Okay. >> Sean, >> so sorry.
Okay. Uh, I mean, I'm just going to do really high overview. Um, we can obviously dig into my numbers, but I'll be presenting information to the board in more detail. So, um, just so you know, there was a $2 million decline in budget decrease because of the enrollment cliff. And I'll explain how that happened. So, um, each year we start looking at staffing in February. That's before, uh, anybody's even shown up for the next year. We do historic, uh, enrollment projections and also move our kids from grade level to grade level. So that means that our projections heavily weigh on our kindergarten uh enrollment. Um then we apply a percentage to that to what we think we're going to decrease in enrollment so that then we can get our staffing lined in. Um on the flip side, I start doing budget planning and then that's when I start calculating where I think our ADM is going to decline to.
So, um I would hope we'd be able to do a debt exclusion just because I think the impacts of having it inside the levy would be pretty pretty tough. >> Yeah. And do do all the towns or a certain number of the how many communities are there? Five. >> Um would three out of the five towns have to vote in favor of it or is there not that sort of choice? >> I I believe all towns have to vote in favor of it. >> Okay. >> So, it's unanimous. It has to be unanimous. >> I believe so. Yeah. And if not, they don't >> for MSB for for capital projects. I know like on the operating budget that that's what we've started seeing happening around the state. You know, some >> is it different for school building projects? I only asked because I I thought I talked to someone at MMA and they maybe it wasn't a regional school.
So, you need you need to go you need to sort of go back up and down those goals from the top to the bottom um and then back up again to see are they working? Do they need to be adjusted? Um has the world changed. So, I do think I can help um with goals. I think I can help with vision. Um, I would start kind of what I started today listening to a lot of great, you know, I got to hear from a couple good kids. They were talking about um, the Groundhog Day and I walked in and I I thought maybe I I spilled the beans about six more weeks of winter, but they had heard, they knew. Um, and you know, I I at the parent, we did have a couple kids come at the public forum and they were talking about some things that they would like to see.
Uh what was your title again? >> Assistant superintendent for office of campus operations and support. New office. Oh boy. Okay. Oh, you guys like doing that? >> Have to remember that, [laughter] too. >> Creating new offices. So, uh, a part of your testimony shared a few things, but, um, what I kind of really want to highlight is the statement that you had kind of just made about, you know, not really wanting to release funds to contracts. Yet, DOE has millions upon millions of dollars being spent to contracts. So, do you believe that that's a contradictory statement saying you don't want to give money to contracts to help kids to go to school, but you're fine with giving contracts for engineers, architects, so on and so forth? So, do you not think that getting our kids to school is a priority enough to have it be contracted to a private firm?
ADM is not necessarily comparable to enrollment except for path. So if enrollment's going down, ADM will go down. If enrollment's going up, ADM will go up. It is not comparable as a percentage though because the numbers are so differently calculated. ADM is 100 days. Enrollment is a point in time. It's one day. So there you can get trends comparing them, but you can't say, well, if our enrollment dropped 300, then that means our ADM is going to drop this. It's way more complex than that. You've got um sped weighted categories, so it depends on what kind of kid declines. Um uh so each one of those things creates a cost. You've got transportation miles that go in there um that factor into the budget. So again, those numbers are not comparable, but you can do trend. So, we staffed um based uh last year what we were seeing with our and we talked about it with our immigration.
I forget. And their town didn't vote for it, but the other towns did and they still had to go along with it. >> Interesting. So >> I feel like there's something >> I think so too. >> Yeah. >> I I feel back when we were building the high school that >> um there was conversation about how little power >> the member towns have. >> Yeah. So I'm like I'm still getting some clarity on that myself. So >> and and just also to for clarification sake the the five member towns wouldn't pay all into that equally. Correct. >> Correct. It's based on enrollment. >> I think that >> like participation, >> correct? >> Um, and remind remind me what kef tech has they've moved to a different process, right, for enrollment or are they looking to move to a different process or did they completely kill that process?
you know, they were talking about I mean, you do you hear about it. They don't want to sit too much. Um, they want more project-based learning, you know, and um it was just a couple kids, but I am sure that when you talk to them, you know, they will tell you they want real life skills. They want to leave Greenfield public schools um with a vision, with a passion. Now, as we all know, that vision and passion could change a hundred times as they grow older, but they still have it. And so, that's what we need to do. We need to inspire the kids. We need to help them set goals, and we need to help them achieve that. Um, so I know it can be a daunting process, but I think once you get the structure and process in place, it becomes easier and easier, but it has to be monitored.
>> So, we are contracting our bus services right now. And I think the issue with the I think we agree with the intent of the bill which is to give financial incentives to bus drivers to recruit and retain them. Um we agree that I think we feel that that is the highest lever to recruit and retain bus drivers. The issue is that we'd be with the bill we'd be putting more money to the private contractors. And while we do agree it is a worthwhile investment, I think we're trying to be fiscally responsible with this also. So currently with the contracts, the bus companies already have the mechanism to do that themselves and looking at um I know we don't want to continue more of the same and we want to do things differently to result in an impact. So just to share um what has happened differently that has result resulted in a positive increase recently is over the past six years there's been a steady decline of bus drivers.
We kept a really close eye. I did some research and studies from SB1070 that showed that in Kraton our two worst declining years in enrollment were during uh SB1070. Those were the two biggest hits that Kraton ever um ex experienced. So, we started uh we staffed with a it was two and change, so I rounded to 3%. We staffed with a 3% decline with a 5% worst case scenario going off in the background in the budget part of it. Um, so that meant a worst case scenario of 8% enrollment decline. Worst case, it was 10. It was 2% more. It was 10% enrollment decline, 2% more than our worst case scenario based on all of our historic data, our research, all the best minds at the table. It was 10. Um, we actually grew last 100 day in enrollment. We actually had a bump up.