So. >> Yeah. So, let me continue on the questioning. How does How do they handle this in um Australia? Well, because Hawaii's unique because unlike Australia, they do have their uh natural predators. So, but we don't have it down here. Same thing with coqui frogs in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico, you have uh natural predators over there, but when they come over here, there's no natural predators and so, we're stuck with Yeah. What are the natural predators for this beetle? Uh this one, I got to check and get back to you. Okay. Well, it's very troubling to know that this beetle has been here since 2009. And then, you know, all these years have gone by and only now we're studying it. Only now we're getting to it. Why why is that? Who Who drops the ball on this? Well, Well, chair, um we don't know.
The most important part of this process is and I actually got to do this. I got to do one-on-one interviews with the students and the interviews were I would say partially an interview but partially a career conversation uh to make sure that as Brian mentioned before that the students were ready for this experience. Um and when we talk about readiness, one example is um if a student wants to go into gra a graphics internship, well we have graphics courses at our high school. We want to make sure they take those graphics courses first and then they go into this internship. So they're going to have uh Yep. shout out there. Uh they're going to they're going to have a much better uh experience in that internship uh in that you know field experience if they have those technical skills already already made. So another one could be engineering.
Are there any questions about any of them? No. Yeah. They're all commercial. Yep. Yeah. I like to inform them, though. Thank you. Can I ask a question? Is it Do the teachers have spam filters then so that cuz like why are they asking for teachers' emails? Cuz they'd like to email them opportunities to purchase stuff. >> this like I'm like, what are you Why do you need this with all their emails? One last thank you, too, I think it's just Mr. Dennenberg and all the IARs clicking along. I want to thank the team and all that our connectivity has been much improved over the last year, so a lot of effort with you and your team to get our business handled for um many many hundreds of devices using the network all at one time, so thank you. Thank you. Okay, next we have dialogue and selected topics, promotion ceremonies.
Um we have significant improvements and um actually I didn't give you the number. Let me just the number here. Um, we're reducing the impervious surface on the site by almost half an acre. This is a pretty small site, so that that's pretty significant in addition to the significant storm water improvements. So, you know, we we understand the commission's concerns with contaminants and we're very very well aware of that. Um, I think we've put a comprehensive package together that acknowledges we're aware of these issues. Um, we presented our facts. Now, obviously, we're going through the process. You have your comments. We have a discussion back and forth. We work with your peer reviewer as you did with the pre the predecessor here this evening and you know we our hope is to reach a consensus on all the points um and then make sure all your concerns are taken care of and addressed.
I mean, I I'm just new in this position myself, but um the thing is that the invasion of various things, it takes a long time for it to get to a point where it is, an inflection point where more people notice it. Uh so, the fact that no one has >> It's too late by then, right? So, we know that the we know that the tree snake we get one tree snake found and we better get going, right? Not we, two more people recognize it. So, when the first beetle, and I can see, okay, 2009, but by 2013, you would think that, you know, more more is going on and that we I mean, the good thing is that the the research I mean, there there's significant research and this nematode is identified as a a means to potentially control the beetle, but I mean, ideally that we we would, you know, have, you know, some, you know, exploratory, you know, bio- biological control folks going out to Australia and seeing what is, you know, is keeping it in check, you know, in Australia.
We have a couple engineering courses um at the high school. So if a kid wants to be an engineer, you know, one of the questions I would ask is have what courses have you taken already? What math courses? What engineering courses? And uh some of the conversations kind of they don't know that we have those engineering courses. They they should because we we tell them, but sometimes, you know, we miss things. So um those conversations narrowed it down and now we're just getting to the the final, I guess, group where we're going to look at it together and and narrow it down to Brian will talk a little bit more about the exact capacity there. Um the so the next step with this uh in spring and summer now uh we're getting close to that is uh we want to reach out to businesses to build partnerships.
Um I will be doing Algonquin on June 3rd because I'm an eighth grader, so who wants to join me in Algonquin? I. That was a powerful That was a powerful move. I like it. June 3rd, Wednesday, 6:00. I can join you for Algonquin. Ooh, I got I got I got two bids. Ooh. I can I can say, what do you got? Uh I got nothing. >> [laughter] >> I have this cookie pile. I can show you how to foil. I got nothing. You can do You want to take [clears throat] it? Me? No, with Do you want to take it? You can take it. You're Let's stop fighting me over stuff. I'm sorry. I can do Chippewa. I haven't done them for a I want to do Chippewa. Okay. Are you speaking? Would you like me to? I spoke last year. I can I two years in a row would be a a lot for me.
>> Thank you. >> Just to follow up on the half anacre reduction is is that all in riverfront? >> Uh it's across the site. I I don't know. We'd have to calculate the number from the riverfront >> because the riverfront doesn't cover the entire site. >> It it does not. I don't think it's the whole I think it's the whole I think the halfacre is the whole site. We can verify the number. >> All right. >> Well, when we get to that, >> but we can calculate it >> when we get to that part of the discussion. That would be good to know. >> Yeah. >> Hold on. Um, what do you think is the I think it would be um a good first step for you to to uh send responses to our comments so that we know what we agree on and what we don't agree on and what we have to work through.
So, I don't know if that's something that we should, you know, work with Department of Agriculture in order to do, um but >> Am I allowed to comment on Zoom? No. Oh. Um so, when we, you know, just because you folks are new, and I understand that, but the beetle's not new, and there are many people that have been in the department for for a number of years, right? We have people that's there for 20, 30 years. So, I'm just concerned that these kinds of things get caught when it's kind of late already. So, if we we knew this was we knew the beetle was so devastating when it first noticed it, then we should have started doing stuff, right? We should have started making sure we have things in advance, have studies done, so we could react quicker. But we wait. We always do that.
Now we already have tons of great partnerships through the link program uh that coach Pyon's running uh has run uh through Paige Buddles and um through her career counseling and and the things that she's done with that. So, we want to build off those partnerships and focus on the uh opportunities that our kids uh who are going to be in the class next year need first and then keep going from there. So, uh the next part this spring is really planning the course. Uh Austin and Brian both talked about those employability skills and in this everchanging world of jobs where I've heard a lot of different data about how many times students or uh people change careers uh as they go through life, you know, whether it's 10, 15, 20. I've even heard um we want to give them the employability skills through this class that the state has identified and businesses have identified as the important skills that are transferable to whatever career you do.
Yeah. >> I'll do it. Will you speak? Oh, yeah. Okay, I'll go with you. We'll do that. You guys should sell tickets. Yes, that's a awesome. Okay, so just for clarification, we'll have myself and Mr. Herring for Algonquin on Wednesday. We'll have Ms. Guerra and Ms. Salgado for Tuesday, the 2nd, at Chippewa. And then we'll figure out your point. Um but I can do your Iroquois, as well. Um and I'll speak at Algonquin. So that'll be fun. I think you'll be thinking about you. You guys can will have some veiled comments about my daughter Deborah, so I'll write those out. I mean, we'll see. I can add it in myself. >> [laughter] >> Mr. Burton, do you want to sign up for it? I'll do it real quick. I don't know if he had as much choice. Not this year. Okay. Senior already. Sorry, Brian.
And so that being the case, how do you want to proceed here? I know that we have a sitewalk on Saturday, but we have some what seem like kind of serious disagreements here on certain things and and clarification on what it is that we need uh to move forward if our first discussion is going to be contamination. >> Um well, my understanding it seems like the main item we're disagreeing on is the building, whether it's in the flood plane or not. Um, regarding these other issues, >> one of of seven and a half pages of things that we sent to you that that we have an issue with. >> Well, I believe we can address those comments. Um, our intent was to conduct a sitewalk with you this weekend because I think it'll be useful for the commission to see the site and have a better understanding what we're discussing.
We wait. I'm not sure if we wait till the coconut trees are all dead. Right? Yeah, and and we're waiting because we're doing studies to keep studying, to bring the solution, and then to respond. So, when we found out about the CRB, we're monitoring, we're putting up those lanterns, we're doing all of this data, but then the conditions are so bad at this point, no none of the coconut trees can be salvaged. So, hopefully we can replant, but um I think my concern is just that how long is this study going to take? Do you have any solutions? I mean, how hard would it be to start to collaborate with the other side? I understand they have those species that are taking care of it naturally. Uh because we don't have that, there must be some kind of other natural way that we can take care of that.
So just so I know the board you you have those skills on your sheet but um just so everybody knows some of those skills are teamwork, conflict resolution, uh problem solving, critical thinking, uh planning, organizing, uh initiative and self-drive. Uh those are just some of them. So making sure that students have those skills and can transfer is going to be very important. So that's part of the planning this uh spring and then I'll give it back to Austin for what's happening in the fall. >> So this fall uh spring 20 or not spring fall 2026 our first cohort's going to launch. We're super excited to have our first group of kids in the work or in our field experience course. And the big piece of this is we're going to start this class and then send them out. So Mike and I are really going to work as like the coaches of this class.
And then, Miss Duckman, so much for assuming. Well, I was just going to say. Well, the president's gone. So, Mr. Burton for your co-ed June the 2nd. What's Duckman like? I don't know. We're going to have to wait. Yeah, I'll talk to him. It's nice. [snorts] Okay. We're feeling good about emotions everyone? Everyone okay? Yes. Over the moon. Over the moon, she says. Miss McSwain, would you have all that? >> I do. Okay. Okay. Fabulous. All right. Um, can I have a motion to go into closed, please? I move that the board go to closed session to consider the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the district, specific individuals who serve as independent contractors in an educational setting, litigation when an action against, affecting, or on behalf of the public body has been which case the basis for the finding shall be reported and entered into the minutes of the board meeting.
>> Um, and then the intent was to move forward with the peer review. Um and then concurrently because I think we we we we've done this how many decades we've been doing this. Um it gets messy and a lot of paperwork if we're responding one set of comments and revising the plans and then responding to another set. I think it would be more beneficial if we can conduct the peer review with the stormwater and your wetland consultant, receive their comments and work with them and then provide a comprehensive response to it all to Miss Solomon's comments, the commission's comments. But aren't we jumping ahead of the contamination discussion by doing flood plane and uh storm water? I mean, it seems to me that that's a ways off those discussions. >> Uh basically, >> what was that? >> Um I >> Yeah, sorry about that. >> Yeah, go ahead.
So, um yeah. Any idea of what the other nation's is? >> Um I will We will get to you. If you'll just be patient. Thank you. Okay. So, So, the natural way to get rid of this is Okay, we'll take a short comment. Who is this? Um This is Rebecca Uh this is Rebecca Ascher-Tag, University of Hawaii at Hilo. Um the issues are that until we have the the research This research is on finding solutions to for the management and control of the pest, and right now we don't have that. So, I understand the question is, why did it take us so long to want to find a solution? Yeah. Well, that's a common problem across uh all of the work in invasive species. Many times invasive species get to a place, they're undetected or at low levels, and they explode at a later point.
The beginning of our course is going to be a two to three week boot camp where we're going to focus hard on those 10 employability skills. Communication. They're reaching out to businesses, finding those partnerships. Where do I fit? We're going to do some interview skills. They're going to be reaching out to the businesses. They might apply for multiple internship experiences. We are coaching them on how to get those jobs. It's truly up to the student if they do get that position, though. So, if a kid doesn't get that, that's when we get like really into those intensive practice pieces of those employability skills to make sure that they're ready for what the real world looks like. We have this wonderful bubble of our four walls. We want to send them out so that they're most prepared for what it looks like outside of those walls.
Meetings between internal and external auditors, financial finance committees, and their equivalents when a discussion involves internal control weaknesses, identification of potential fraud risk areas, known or suspected frauds, and fraud interviews in school building safety and security. Second. It's been moved and seconded. Can I roll call, please? Morley? Aye. Burton? Aye. Delgado? Aye. Gareth? This is to go in closed session. I have to abstain cuz I can't do closed session. I got to get my kids to Abstain. Abstain. I abstain. Sorry. Aye. Martha? Aye. Thank you everyone. We will now have any action after close. So, thank you all for coming. We really appreciate it and enjoy your evening. Thank you for having us.
Well, I think moving forward on the contamination issue would be appropriate for the next hearing. Um, but while we we look at those and hopefully engage the peer reviewer that way we can have the peer review completed and then we can come back at that future hearing and discuss all the comments then and hopefully, you know, we can agree at that point. Okay. Well, we probably before we have another hearing, we should decide on what it is that we're going to discuss at that hearing so that we're not all over the place and then there can be kind of collateral uh discussions about the peer review things, but the topics remain the same. >> Sure. I see. Uh Mr. Engler, would you like to come off mute make a comment? >> I think I think I think Uh, Mr. Angler, we're getting quite a bit of feedback from your microphone.