Um I know we love our math tutors uh in the district, but we got really great math scores. So, it may be something to consider that we've been talking a lot about ELA and making sure that we make an investment there and we see the reading scores like that are much much lower. Um and we also don't want to take our foot off the gas with our emotional social emotional supports for kids. Um so, maybe it's something where you guys get creative about. Maybe we because it's tight this year, maybe we share the emotional counselor uh adjustment counselor across schools between BMS and BES. Um I if I was a Berlin parent and there was no adjustment counselor, I'd I'd be pretty upset about that, right? That doesn't seem equitable to me. So, maybe if you guys can find some room on the Berlin side to to keep this social emotional adjustment counselor >> [snorts] >> on, I think that would be great um because I think it's a big part of what the kids need.
Yes, we have we have wrestling. We do have wrestling. Yeah. So, that's where those numbers are coming. >> No basketball. >> Yeah. We got unified sports throughout as well. >> Okay. >> Um but not the traditional middle school basketball team >> because >> there's space factor as well. >> Right. >> We have one gym for two schools. So that might come into the the schools we could use but those get used as well. Thank you. Uh recap. So those are kind of our records and we had a really successful fall. Um you know highlighted by really two teams. boys soccer won a conference championship and then the ride that our girls volleyball teams of our whole community reaching the state finals for the first time in history of their program. Um middle school so we had eight weeks that was up cross country up from the year before and then the field hockey games that was up a couple games um from the year before.
Or your team. So, I I think it's important that we get these questions and we ask some honest questions and I mean or you know what do you want to hear or you know ask Sam I mean I don't know but I think we just need to dig deeper and thank you for your time. Board member Greer, I >> I just I just wanted to say um thank you to the to the team once again. Another another great presentation. Once again, another um just stimulating conversation and exploration through the through the data and and um yeah, engaging in dialogue with with with others and hearing the different kind of thoughts and thinking. So just for me it's it's it's once again another just another great example of of the great work that that y'all always uh produce. So thank you for that and um also a special thank you also in this one for including some of the longitudinal data.
I've been in this community for 13 years. I'm grateful for the efforts that Cooley has done. So I applaud. We just toured when we didn't we tour Cooley? I feel it was Yeah, recently. Well done. President Wade, um first I never said don't celebrate. I think it's it's great. We should celebrate um the excellent work that he's done with Cooley. Um I also said I want to understand how they plan to use it. Um So I think there's a little bit of putting words in my mouth that I did not I did not say. Um things that I did not say. So um and as far as SEL is concerned, again, individual basis, it shouldn't be when the minute kids walk onto campus, every student is uh treated like they need social emotional support, um which is the whole purpose of behavioral support based on individual basis, based on students who are misbehaving, um not an entire school.
That's my assumption. And I could talk a a little bit about how charter is billed and assessed at that point, too. Um so, the first scenario is budget scenario 1A, and this is a 1.25% increase over FY26, and it includes the additional days for the clerical position that we discussed at the budget hearing. Um and I had accounted for in other programs the increase for the charter student. So, this budget would mean um an additional 128,000 of uh school choice funds would need to be used in order to bridge the gap. And so, I left that um choice highlighted here. It's um it's a total of $628,824. We were already planning to use $500,000 to support the budget, and then at the request to use additional choice funds to bridge the gap, it would be 128,000 and some change more. Um you see down here, this is what when I had spoken um with the town previously last year, they said they would cover some of the charter reimbursement, and in FY27, as presented in the budget hearing and prior budget arguments, we still have the 35,000 to cover charter here.
I don't think we should be taking that kind of stuff off the off the table. We really don't. Thank you. >> [clears throat] >> Hello, Kathy Ladue, teacher, Williston Elementary School. Um as an elementary teacher, I see every day how much our students carry with them into the classroom far beyond just academics. They bring worries about friendships, family, and other emotional needs. And emotions that they don't even have the tools to understand or express yet. While we do our best as educators to support them, we aren't trained counselors. And we can't meet all of these needs by ourselves. Our full-time adjustment counselor provides consistent professional support for our students' social and emotional well-being. She helps them to build coping skills, resolve conflicts, and feel safe and heard. When students are emotionally supported, they're better able to focus, learn, and succeed. Our full-time counselor doesn't just help individual students in crisis, she strengthens our entire school community through prevention, guidance, and collaboration with teachers and families.
So we are looking to kind of like fill some schedules. I've already been reach reaching out to Phil for the fall. We already have our three field hockey games on the books. So yeah, fall it was really successful. It was really tough to kind of like keep that momentum going into the uh the winter that we had. We had 20 fall all conference. So you can see those uh these have been presented before. There was an additional uh they did theirs much later than last time maybe I spoke to. So did have a football representative on all conference two. We also had an all New England selection in soccer. Although Quinn Alexa um there presented at this soccer banquet his brother. So there's a kind of a family thing. His brother won the same award a handful of years ago as well. So there might be might be something going on in the household.
I know that that's one of the things that we that we talked about and so that I I found that to be very helpful and so so thank you for for including that this time around. I just want to make one more comment, you know, back to um board vice president Rodriguez Pñena, her comment, the the questions. I mean, it'd be nice, you know, and I think maybe that's where it's kind of like what we're doing here, right, tonight. We we appreciate the engagement and it really because we you you get more involved and it it stays with you. We write. So, I think that there's value in I mean, I don't know the truth surveys in general, right? Everyone has a does it is that the questions we come up with or is that just the general questions? We contribute a few questions but they have a a survey that >> okay >> they produce for staff students and families >> and because of that what triggered when when board vice president was talking what triggered that to me was like one you know where do the questions come from two that's why I think like having focus groups or having something where we can narrow it down like the need right what is it that they want to see what is it that you you know, they'd like to to hear uh so that they feel that there's more value and and we're listening, we're contributing, we're taking action.
I appreciate the clarification. I would also like to add not all disruptive students are the only ones in need of emotional support. Sometimes the quiet ones are, too. Uh it matters for all of our students equally. I motion to approve the overnight and/or out of state staff travel Schools to Watch conference. Second. Ooh, I that you know, I'm going to give it to Ms. Schultz. I apologize, you know. All those in favor. I. I. I. Motion carries 5-0. Brings us to item 7.3, approval of overnight and/or out of state staff travel for WEB, W E B.
So, that's budget scenario 1A, and there's a 1B, and I want to let you know down here at the bottom, this 2.8 million, actually I should say the full number, 2,880,851 is going to be the same bottom number for budget scenario 1B. That's why they're labeled 1A and 1B. So, um I'd like to come back to this one after I finish what was originally requested to present and move to budget scenario two, which was to not include the $6,000 for the clerical support, um still have the 1.25% increase over FY26, and it has the accounted for increase in charter under other programs, and still the same charter amount that the town um could allocate in free cash. Um this budget would require an additional $122,445 in school choice to bridge that gap. It's less than budget scenario 1A because the there is no registration um happening within this budget or being paid for from this budget.
Continuing to invest in a full-time adjustment counselor is an investment in our students' success both in and out of the classroom. And our children deserve that support every single day. Thank you. Thank you. Any comments? All right. Can I Oh, yeah. Okay. Julie Nato, um from Williston. I have two kids at BES and of these cuts, the ones that I can speak to are the paraprofessionals in kindergarten. Um let's see. They I would just strongly oppose those cuts because I think it has a ripple effect that we might not think about. That not only are the paras not in there for the students, they're also not there for the general ed teacher who is already overworked because as you know, they lost their one of their um planning periods due to last year's cuts. So, I worry that we might lose those three fabulous teachers to other positions and um they've just been so wonderful for both my kids that that would be a tragedy.
Um next door maybe it's on the water >> middle school. So we had a couple of presentations uh earlier from Crystal Roar. So we did have two podium finishers at that >> and our winter recap. See our records there. There's no record for indoor track because when they do go there's multiple teams. So it's not really a a record. And then we had a swimmer for the first time in this year. We did a collaborative team with Granty. Um what a collaborative team means is really a team of one. But with swimming we actually could have like up to like five still at the beginning of the co-op. Um and we can still call like collaborators. So with angle like we're able to take them on. Um and then middle school wrestling uh they have kind of like individual kind of like matches in Bristol on Saturdays and Sundays.
But thank you everyone. It was a great presentation. >> Board member Rama, >> sorry, I just had a question. Um, so with all the data and information, how much of this is shared back with the groups like our community groups and because they took the survey, right? So, I'm sure they're ask what what are the results because I think this could also um be very useful for for them parents, students, staff because they might be surprised both ways, you know, kind of in a positive, wow, this is what's happening or they might be surprised. I I I didn't think this was going on or I thought everybody was felt this way. So, um you can just kind of share how it's communicated back to the different groups. >> Absolutely. So the survey results are given back to each school. So we have an instructional leaders meeting um where youth truth representative along with Adriana um prepare a presentation for the principles.
Any questions or comments from the board before I approve or before I motion, sorry. President Wade, yes. Um this again is another social emotional behavioral framework uh which again continues to expand the role of our schools beyond academics. Um So this is something else that I mean, once they come back, I I would love to be able to get some information on how they uh are they just going to a conference just to go to a conference or is their intention to bring this back to uh the school and implement it um within our school environment. Um I I just don't like I I want to see us focus on academics, which is our purpose. Uh we have 50% of our our students are not proficient in math and in ELA and our science proficiency rate's even lower than that. Um yet you know, we're having conferences on um SEL related programs.
In budget scenario three, this is um a 1.25% increase over FY26. It accounts for the charter again, and it accounts um for a $132,445 of school choice. I was asked to put together the scenario of how much the current person at Amherst um salary would be to do the Pelham registration. Um and after it it sounded simple um in the meeting, but then when we come back and we start doing the work, that we have to account for the fringe of that person, um like we do with all split split district staff, but also the charge of this of the clerical position for the additional days was not just registration. It was also to work on outreach, and um it it was a larger scope than just the registration. Um, so with that, we would have to um, either utilize the the current person in that role, which right now um, does not do outreach for school.
Um The only other point I had was I saw the note about someone with the bingo night and wanting to not have served alcohol and while I understand those points, I think it brings in money. You get more people to come to the fundraiser. That's just the way of our culture. So, I would support um keeping the alcohol when possible. Thank you. All right. Any other comments? All right. Megan, I know you're looking at me about the bingo night. No, uh I was just wondering I think we can talk about that later. I'm more about the budget. Yeah, I know. We're going to get more about it. Yeah. I didn't know we were going to have it further discussion. Yeah, we are. Um all right. So, if there's no more public comment, then we will move on to our budget. Uh next on the list is our budget vote, which we'll discuss.
So it's really it's not a team. It's just more than um and our sole conference champion was wrestling for the second consecutive year for our winter sports. Nine allconerence athletes. They're all listed there. There are a couple from the fall and then all state we had between the fall and the winter. That's got to be a record, right? we ever had that >> I tried looking back um as far as powerpoints that my predecessor has but yeah 12 and the year is not done yet so there is some anticipation there'll be some spring athletes that will be all state as well >> acknowledgance so I want to thank everyone that support me over the first eight months there's a laundry list of you can put in front of me right now um it It's it's really been great. It's it's more than I expected. Um you know, every time I kind of pick up the phone and say, "Hey, can you help me out with this?" So, yeah, sure, absolutely.
They take their school data and bring it back to the stakeholders who have spoken into that data. So they will present the survey results to the depending on the age group obviously the middle school high school students um all of the families and all of the staff. So that's part of the work is taking back the survey results so that all of the team members can see how the school is progressing. Where are we doing well? What are some areas that that we need to improve on? So it is shared back with all those who have spoken into to the survey. >> Moving on to item 5.1 adjournment. Can I have a motion? Motion second. >> Motion to adjurnn. Yeah. And can I place your votes? >> I think we all >> Yeah, I think second. Yeah. First. Yeah. And no discussion. Colleagues, place your vote.
Um so I'd love to get information on this once they return just to see what they thought of the program and um if they plan on implementing any of it within our schools. Uh Board member Van Hook, President Wade, uh WEB is something that we already do on our campuses. Now, if you listen to the description of the young lady that um won the award today for the Points of Pride for Cooley, she's the president of the WEB. And what WEB does is it is a program where incoming students, seventh graders, um we have eighth graders that we have trained to help lead them, to welcome them to the campus, to introduce them to campus, to provide an opportunity where they have connections already with other kids on campus cuz we know when a student feels connected to the campus, then academics will rise. And that where their their belonging on our campus will be.
Actually, we don't have a person that does outreach. So, in order to account for that, we have to add that role to someone's job. And if it's a unionized person or a committee action person, it has to be negotiated and some additional pay would be associated with that. So, we used an estimate of 6,900 to 10,000 depending on how that would land, which it's just a placeholder at this moment. Um, we used the high end to be cautious. It could end up lower depending on how that would roll out. And so, that's why this budget requires $132,445 additional in school choice in order to bridge that gap accounting for a potential up to $10,000 um, for the for that clerical split role. So, those that's where we landed with what we discussed at the last meeting. I want to bring us back up to budget scenario 1B.