Any questions so far on those two committees? Okay. Let's move on to the PAC, the Parent Advisory Committee. What is that? A committee that works directly with the district to review the Local Control and Accountability Plan, which is the LCAP. The purpose is to provide feedback on how the district is meeting its goals for all students, particularly those who are low income, foster youth, or English Learners. And since we have junior high students, uh special feature and also um a requirement is that we have student voice as part of that committee. And so, we're excited to include junior high student representation on this committee. We believe students should have a say in the programs that affect their daily education. Why join? See exactly [clears throat] how the budget is allocated as it relates to the LCAP and um these specific students. Work alongside students to bridge the gap between home, school, and the district office and help hold the district accountable for student success.
>> Yes, and um it has been a part of what we teach. I know as a fifth and sixth grade teacher, you know, um and we taught both um puberty as well as sexual health education and um we, you know, coordinated across the different classes in that grade level. So, and that was been a year, you know, years ago. So, um there has been um a focus um on puberty and sexual health education uh throughout the years. Um I think what we what we are hearing is that um although we have things currently, um it would be beneficial to have more. Yeah, well, when the data shows that only 48% of students are receiving little or no information, I think there's a huge gap that we're missing. Yet, I'm going to assume that millions of dollars is getting poured into these products. I don't want to speculate, but I believe that when you get me the information, it will validate my concern, which is taxpayers are paying for these products, but the department is not really helping to educate the students for them to use that.
I'm assistant director of curriculum instruction here in Chandler schools. And thank you for the opportunity to talk about summer school. I'd like to start off by saying that um one of the biggest changes that was made was the movement from uh registration platforms from Elio into Qualric and uh Miss Fernandez mentioned it but it really was a game changer and so I just like to thank the team especially Lauren Randall u from the business office and Dr. Fletcher your Alyssa and Thomas from it for getting that together for us. So, thank you. >> I'm sorry. >> All right. So, the first secondary summer program I'd like to talk to you about is uh junior high credit recovery. And this is our inperson option. Um Kyle Dar who's currently assistant principal at Academy is the coordinator. Uh this program is located at Chandler High School and it is required for students who did not pass English and math for the entire school year.
And I would be caution I would I would place caution on that just because I don't know that the time commitment is available to do all the work that needs to be done to bring forward something that's accurate and and represents what we want to do within the community. >> So I think you're misunderstanding um any of the duties that I mentioned are per Arizona revised statute um and they are part of our scope of duties when we accept whether it's appointment or election to this office. Um the only thing that I am to summarize it and break it down for you is instead of you presenting us with a list and then that list goes you you present the list directly to the committee. I would like for us to look at that first and I'll just be real direct here. There is a book that is on that list and it refers to white people as demons and white demons through the entirety of the book that is divisive.
So um what does it really cost to run our district? Uh you've seen this before about $49 million. Um the town appropriate appropriated 44486 um it's like ingrained in my head. Um at at town meeting uh and that includes town meeting in May and in November, right? So remember in November they allocate uh any additional um revenue andor expenses that come through after the budget has been uh finalized at the state level because we're two months in advance when we we set our budget at town level in May. We don't know our true numbers from the state. We're guessing and we're pretty conservative and Michael and I have been really conservative. That's why we've seen our budget increase every single year uh in the fall town meeting. Grants and revolving accounts, 4.4 million. Uh there are concerns. We're already talking about title one grant uh losing I don't know 50% of it was 100,000 Chris.
Um, the journey to walk from Newton, the best day was when I walked in and you were there. So, thank you. >> It's been a joy. >> All right, I've got member childs. >> A quick comment. Thank you for all of the hard data you've provided tonight. And more than that, thank you for caring about our kids so much. Great. Um, I'll ask you all the same questions that I asked your colleagues. How are your staff? How are they doing? And how can we help? What do you need? Well, I you know I I feel like our staff are hardworking. You know, they do what they need to do. They show up. Um and I think that my guys are a little anxious right now, honestly, because they don't know what's going to happen and they've had some leadership changes that haven't lasted long. So, um they they're sort of getting comfortable.
Um, the journey to walk from Newton, the best day was when I walked in and you were there. So, thank you. It's been a joy. All right, I've got member childs. A quick comment. Thank you for all of the hard data you've provided tonight. And more than that, thank you for caring about our kids so much. Great. Um, I'll ask you all the same questions that I asked your colleagues. How are your staff? How are they doing? And how can we help? What do you need? Well, I you know, I I feel like our staff are hardworking. You know, they do what they need to do. They show up. Um, and I think that the my guys are a little anxious right now, honestly, because they don't know what's going to happen and they've had some leadership changes that haven't lasted long. So, um, they they're sort of getting comfortable.
>> Right, because I think the the concern I mean families who want to get their kids in to kindergarten want to get their kids into kindergarten. Um but it would be a like a double loss to to lose the lottery I think that would be a a fair ask and I mean if if we could guarantee them a spot next year, that would be Well, it may not be in our power to to guarantee that >> No, I don't mean guarantee, but if you could advocate for allowing the if they won lottery this year to then allow them to enter next year. Yeah, I mean I think it's I mean again, this is not is a no-win situation, right? But um I did spend quite a bit of time with this talking to the state Department of Education um today um and with the legislation coming down, it was signed by the governor on the 3rd.
So, that's the PAC. >> [clears throat] >> Let's move on to Parent Teacher Clubs. What is that? A site-based organization that brings parents, teachers, and staff together to enhance the school experience. The purpose is to support the school through volunteering, community building events, and supplemental fundraising for items like field trips, assemblies, or classroom supplies. Why it would be important to join, get connected. It is the best way to know what is happening on campus day-to-day. Build a community, meet other families, and create a supportive network. Direct impact, your involvement helps fund the extras that make school fun and memorable for your children. In summary, why your voice matters. Accountability, schools perform better when parents ask questions and stay informed. Equity, your participation ensures that every student, regardless of background, gets the resources they need. Modeling, when your children see you involved in their school, they see that education is a priority which often leads to higher student motivation.
But, I guess you can get us that information when you can, but there is a very large gap in the educational piece, which is clear by the data. Thank you, chair. Um last thing I want to say is that according to one of the testifiers, she said she got her period when she was nine. And so, if you enter kindergarten at five, you you're you're nine at fourth grade. But if if some schools choose not to teach it until fifth grade, then that student I mean, again, you know, will will have the traumatic experience without being or knowing what it is that that they're going through. So, And also, um yes, that that could be true. And also, I think um there are students who don't have this kind of education and information from their homes. >> Right. That's what I was saying. The earlier the better.
The junior high principal and the counselor both recommend transportation is available. The courses offered are English 7, English 8, math 7, math 8, and then there is a math seven prep course for students uh who are incoming seventh graders who struggled in sixth grade math. Um we offer free breakfast and free lunch. And if students successfully complete the program, uh their fee is waved. In addition, new for 2026 is the lit camp uh idea for the English classes. Lit camp is based uh in research, the science of reading research. It involves explicit instruction. It is interactive um and it is focused on structured fluency practice. When the students finish the program, they will be able to take folks home with them as well. So, Miss Fernandez mentioned that for the elementary, we'll also have that for the junior high. In addition, uh the junior high teachers will receive training on this program.
It goes against our policy. I could pull it up for you to turn one group of students against another group of students. I think it's inappropriate. That is something that I would bring up for us to discuss as a board before we submit that out to a committee because that is our responsibility when we accept the oath of this office to determine what is appropriate and best for this school district and you're on your way out and I understand that. Um quite frankly that's I you will be missed but it's not the superintendent's position either. We give the vision to the superintendent. The superintendent carries that out. >> Right. I understand that. Um and in the case of those books we we had the whole conversation of of in the fence behind the fence behind the wall uh partial full whatever you want to call the different things.
Yeah. Um we don't know and we won't know for a little while exactly what it looks like, but it's safe to say that the federal government uh and um the current administration uh is looking to reduce um and disband the entire department of education and uh some of the funding that goes along with those uh with the department of education. 79% of our expenses are salary based, right? It's pretty significant. We are a peopledriven industry. We have colas, so cost of living um increases. We have um steps in lanes in education. Uh the the the longer you are with us, uh you get a bump. Uh but also the more education you have, you get a bump. Um and those are critically important for the community to understand. It's in the budget book. It explains what steps and lanes really are. So what are our two paths?
And I said to them, you shouldn't worry because now this is part of the culture, right? So somebody coming in will see that the culture is strong and they're not going to just turn everything over. They're going to, you know, they're going to see what you can do. So that's what they're worried about, right? Is all the work that they're doing and have done is going to be somehow. So, you know, I just reassure him, reassure them, and I'm glad that I'm part of meeting the candidates. I think they feel some security in that cuz, you know, they trust me. Not that I'm picking the person, but they know that I'm involved. So, but otherwise, you know, there's not enough time, there's not enough money, right? I mean, so we have to we overcome the challenges, right, as best we can, but they show up and our kids are getting some great opportunities as a result.
And I said to them, you shouldn't worry because now this is part of the culture, right? So, somebody coming in will see that the culture is strong and they're not going to just turn everything over. They're going to, you know, they're going to see what you can do. So that's what they're worried about, right? Is all the work that they're doing and have done is going to be somehow. So, you know, I just reassure him. I reassure them and I'm glad that I'm part of meeting the candidates. I think they feel some security in that cuz, you know, they trust me. Not that I'm picking the person, but they know that I'm involved. So, but otherwise, you know, there's not enough time, there's not enough money, right? I mean, so we have to we overcome the challenges, right? as best we can, but they show up and our kids are getting some great opportunities as a result.
Um the LCO, which is you know, the whole legal entity um voted on it on the 5th, right? So, it went into legislation. We did not take action until after that. So, we are following the mandates that are coming down, right? So, um it's just you know, we're eliminating something, right? Before we're forced to eliminate it and um you know, unfortunately, I mean I have this if you guys want to look at it and you know, it was the Senate bill. It's in um it's in section 26-1, page 19. And actually everything that's in um brackets is saying essentially that that language is being completely removed. Um and it's not us removing it. So, I don't know. Like I said, I've really struggled with it, if that >> Yeah, it's tough. It's Um I'm sorry. I think, right, we voted unanimously, right, that we're in this situation that's unique to Brookfield that it moving forward, you know, we would require that kids are five by um September 1st.
And then this last slide gives information about how information on how on how to join. Parents guardians can call the district office. They can speak with Larissa. She will be happy to take your information and direct you to the correct contact person for the committee that you're interested in joining. And then also worked on Larissa's worked on creating a parent involvement tab on the website and they can navigate there and it will have all of these explanations of all of these committees and how they can join and what it means to be part of of these committees. So, really [clears throat] trying to reach out and get more um involvement and make sure that we're staying compliant on um these committees and having our parents and guardians involved with with our school community. Questions? >> [clears throat] >> Comments? Do you find that any of these committees are more popular than others?
I mean, I'm not saying like third grade or kindergarten, but I think fourth grade if if students are getting it from 9 years old, and I know there are, um then, you know, the better that they get ahead of time. So, when when it does happen, they're not traumatized. You know, I know I was traumatized and I I I felt embarrassed um about it. So, Yeah. Yes. A follow-up. I think um and because uh we live in Hawaii where it's expensive and a lot of times both parents have to work and mother doesn't get around to give or the father to give this information to their daughters. Um I think it's important and because we have a large military influx, that we're Does DOH know what states uh what level they get this kind of education, health education? Uh states. So, I think um that information, according to me, is not readily available cuz it's not collected nationally.
Um, in addition to the academics, we also teach some soft skills. We teach students how to ask for help and we teach students collaboration. We're really trying to uh teach them some skills that will help them be successful as they move on. We also have acceleration at the junior high. Chandler online academy offers junior high courses. Um, seventh and eighth grade English, seventh and eighth grade math. Other sites also have their own individual summer programming. So, ACP uh middle has a summer bridge camp for math. Fashia High AMS has a math boot camp as well as a science camp. Vocal has a summerbridge math program and Castile has an accelerated math academy. When we move on to high school and we're talking about credit recovery, we're talking uh about our in-person program first. And again, that is at Chandler High. We found that having both programs, the junior high and the high school on the same campus helped uh minimize costs.
And so that opportunity was there in my understanding of the motion that was made a year ago specifically and we had multiple meetings to discuss exactly what it was that people did and did not want and what members of the board did and did not want. And so therefore we are being responsive to the board. We are being responsive to the concerns of the community. In the case this year we brought back any number of parents that were part of it. And so we can go ahead and switch the process and that's fine. But I would just say I take umbrage a little bit with the notion that somehow we're filtering what's being brought forward. We had conversations in several meetings with you that talked about some of those textbooks and some of those novels that you didn't want brought and the motion that we brought forward was designed to not put those books in there or novels in there.