So it's a a great long-term programming. From that should come programmatic efficiencies because we could centralize administration and supports and all of those kinds of things in one place. Because it's a pretty big change, uh, they want the the group is proposing to change the bylaws as to how you get out if you don't want to be part of this going forward, right? And to get out of a cooperative is like an 18-month long period. It's not quick. So, the bylaws set up a process in which you could declare that you intend to leave and then a process where you could start to leave to then ultimately leave. So, that the cooperative knows generally how many students are going to have before they go purchase big chunk of property, right? If If half the group wants to leave and not buy property, which I don't think that's the case, but that would drastically impact kind of what we're looking at doing.
So maybe um like that could be a phone call instead of like actually like putting it on there and >> yes, >> you know, >> or or if it's technical or tactical, it could be one you bring with you to the board meeting and we and we're just not researching in advance, right? So >> yeah, let me let me add this part. There's a reason why we do the mindset of the choice bene the choice behavior benefit cost the pretending. I definitely don't want you to pretend and and I know that sometimes it can feel performative. I hope that you're you're almost beyond that phase completely. Again, if you're leaving your board meeting and you cannot connect the dots between the progress monitoring reports and you don't feel comfortable to go and tell the community that's what this slide means, we're missing we're missing the mark.
So, we kind of need a spot and a draw a line in the sand of you're in or you're out and that's what these bylaws essentially do, right? So, if you cut through all the red line and all of those kinds of pieces, it's basically saying after this deadline, you're in, right? Um, if you want out, tell us before that deadline and then you can get out, right? And that's that's kind of it. So, that's the in English version of the redline of the bylaws. Um, those will come back to uh, vote on uh, I think next board meeting or the one after it or something. >> The May 18th board meeting, those bylaws come back for for approval and then we need to take action uh, as to who will be our SASED representation at that point, uh, which is the next one. So, >> [cough] >> that's on the bylaws.
>> And that's okay. And this is the time where we can ask for added on support. >> Correct. Correct. And that's what I mean. it at this point where you're at in your journey and the way again the way you all are internalizing the conversation around progress monitoring the way you all can follow the conversation is radically different than three years ago when we first started this journey if you weren't an educator you might have struggled with DNA or all the acronyms this team your leadership team is not pretending they're being honest they're being vulnerable you're being being honest. You're being vulnerable. It is a powerful space that you live in right now. We're just in that final phase. You have your you have your be ability to codify your meetings. None of that means anything if you don't understand the purpose of progress monitoring.
Chris, anything else to add? How did I do? >> Good, yeah. No, efficiency and like spacing location for SAS has been a huge issue the last couple of years. >> [cough] >> So, I think this gives them the the opportunity to eliminate some of those inefficiencies across the program. Cuz the space they're at now is not equipped for students of the amount of students that they're getting into the program at this point. Yeah, so I I No, that that was good summary. >> Thank you. >> [laughter] >> All right, so then we move into the board work of the committee and liaison appointments, [clears throat] Don. >> Yeah, I didn't hear any comments from any of the board members. So, my plan is to just keep our committee assignments that are present unless I hear any objections tonight. >> All right.
I want you leaving here knowing how do we get here and then what's the strategy moving forward. Is there one question is there is it appropriate like you know obviously we should be reviewing our own questions in much the same way we did today right um before we submit them but is it appropriate I would say it's appropriate for me I just don't know at like a whole board level for us to like just like if the admin or the leadership team looks at my questions and are like Katie question you know four five and six are not are are technical and tactical. We're not answering those. I mean, like I don't care. I just I just don't want to like especially if you know I'll try my best and do better, but what I'm saying is is like I would rather you if you can identify what is a good question if there is something that then you can say, "Hey Katie, maybe you just ask these ones at the board meeting." And I'm not saying I'll just continue to submit like millions of questions, but is there some way we could we could do that?
Okay, hearing none. All right, I've shared with the board reflections on my leadership events from the year. It's in the board packet. Overall, I broke it into um areas in which I lead and areas in which I learn. Both have really guided the work that we've done this year. A lot of what you saw tonight is heavily influenced by that work that I've been involved in and I think it speaks for itself in in products that we're turning over to the board and to our staff >> [cough] >> doing across the district. So, if there's any specific questions, I'm happy to address them now or if board members ever want to reach out at any point, I'm happy to discuss it. But, thank you for the opportunities you allow me to to engage in. >> But, you feel strongly that that it's having a positive impact and the ideas and concepts you're bringing back into D99.
because I would hate for you to waste your time on things that don't even need to be in the presentation. >> I I it doesn't waste our time. What I would say is to create the space for us to do that. We just need to receive them earlier because our timeline's super tight right now. So, so the questions are due like the Friday before board prep week. Typically, the team does their first pass on them on Monday to get pull responses together. So that way when we're an executive team on Tuesday, we review those responses and sometimes Lissa or myself or Vanessa or Joel or Emily will see something in it and they'll say, "Hey, I don't know that this is a complete answer because aren't we doing this too?" Or, "I don't think you interpreted the board member's question properly. I think they're asking this, right?" And so then we will kick back that feedback to the team.
>> Not only that, I think it also helps me aware of trends that are coming before they arrive, all right? And that then we can prepare for We're not shocked by things when they show up. It's like, "Oh, we heard heard rumblings, you know, especially some of the rooms I mean at the state and national leadership level. The event I was at last week, um, was talking a lot about the big beautiful bill and the impact on federal funding and and all of these kinds of things and this is how it's going to impact you 12 months from now or 6 months from now or after potentially after the next election cycle, which as a general superintendent, I wouldn't be in the room where where that happens, right? And then I'm able to take that back here, able to take it back to Len and to do Paige and and at the state level with IASA.
So that way Wednesday they produce a final result because all of that gets attached to a presentation and sometimes a presentation with the voice over for the guardrails that has to be attached to the board meeting agenda by 1:00 on Thursday. So, if if prior to that Friday deadline, people had their questions and they sent them over for feedback, I think we could turn that around and get that back to people, but I think it's challenging for us to do that if we're first receiving those questions, you know, kind of right at the deadline to receive them. I'm going to defer to the team to correct me if I'm >> Okay, I hear that. have to think about like it's a one week tight turnaround for us too and I'm not trying to complain you know but >> it is I yeah >> and I and I think the other thing that I was just going to add too is that um I know Dr.
So, um, we do get and we have a lot of people in leadership roles like that in this district, right? I mean, Courtney leads like that in the principals level. Gina has led that way with the title directors. Travis, Scott Like everybody on our team is leading in different levels at that way and it puts our our district at a great advantage to be be on the front end of where things are being considered. So, uh, I appreciate the board encouraging that for me and the for the rest of the staff to do that. >> [snorts] >> All right. Now Now to the cake. So, recognition of uh, current student board members, so Romina and Ryan, I want [clears throat] to personally thank you for all of your work this year. I will say we we have had student board members here for 8 years?
Ramos is available to have those quick check-ins and use him as a coach too whenever because that's what I've done. I've called him and I said, "I don't know if this is strategic or am I being too rough on these questions." Like I I'll call him and ask him his personal opinion because sometimes I also don't want my questions to see um you know push off of or whatever. So we have our coach for right now and we can use him as a resource.
>> 4 years. >> Yeah, wow. >> Some a while. And um, I will say that of all the board members that we have had, you have been the most boardish. Um, [laughter] in the fact that Not boring. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. >> Boardish. In >> the fact you have both been very focused on the goals of the district this year, the strategic plan, and making sure that the board understands how that's impacting you as students and other students in that experience. Um and your intentional connection back to the work has been greatly appreciated. Uh as a superintendent, you guys say a lot of the things so I don't have to. Your reports cover those things for me. So So as a as a superintendent, I couldn't have two better ambassadors than I have this year. So thank you very much. Uh I do have a little token of token of appreciation for both of you in a moment.
Any questions that we have I I mean I'm not trying to speak for Dr. Ramos, but I know that he's said that in multiple meetings that if we have questions or we're thinking one way or another, we can always reach out to him and he's there to support us. And I can also support in whatever I can. I'm not an expert and I still have a lot of work to do, but also I've lived and breathed this for like the last four years. And I'm also in a cohort right now too to get coached. So, it's it's always on the top of my mind. And >> no, I think I just need to do a better job at like it's once a month and I'll figure it out and you know there'll be some months where that week is going to be bad for me and I'll try my best, >> right?
Um and cake. And cake. Don't forget the cake. But before we go on, could you both share what your plans are next year? >> Yeah, I can start. Um so I'm committed to the University of Colorado at Boulder. Um and then I'm going to dual major in finance and marketing through the Leeds School of Business. So that's a little bit about me. I'm super excited to go to Colorado. Um I don't know if any of you have been been there. Um but it was such a toy tough choice between Boulder and Champaign. So it was it was hard, but I ended up choosing um Boulder and I'm super excited for next year. >> Um I'm committed to the University of Michigan and I'm majoring in political science. Um I'm very excited and Urbana's an amazing town and I'm very very excited to continue my academic career there.
>> Yeah, >> that seems very fair. >> Okay, >> I was just gonna I was just going to add um that Dr. Ramos, you're doing you did a really good job of like going over the success criteria. I'm a success criteria. I love it. So like going through each part to check and so that's what I do too like when I'm looking at the progress monitoring reports like check the success criteria to make sure or have someone else check it. Um so I think what you're saying too Sophie is a good idea to have someone check it to see but I know all that takes time. >> Yeah. So I'm I'm a resource and then also um I I think the question is spot on. I I think because you have what we've called a brave space uh superintendent man I don't want to make the assumption for you but I I hope that you're in a position where you could say board member these like 20 questions might overwhelm us and this is what it's going to do to us and you know narrowing down to one or two like I really hope that you get there sooner rather than later if not already.
And I was also between U of I and >> [laughter] >> um Michigan, but I visited and I fell in love and it was the right choice for me. >> Awesome. And congratulations to both of you. >> Thank you. >> [applause] >> Uh is there anything any other board members would like to say to Romina and Ryan in front of the whole group? If not, you can talk to them over cake. >> You guys set the bar really high. >> Yeah. >> Whoever's coming in next year, they have big shoes to fill. >> Oh, thank you. >> Yeah, I would just like to say your honesty and engagement has truly been amazing and every report you give I feel like we're in the school with you and really picking up the vibe and the culture within those buildings and it's really fantastic. You guys have really done an outstanding job.
>> No no I I think I think we're there. I mean, honestly, I I was I wasn't actually joking earlier when I said I was going to be reaching out to Katie because the only reason I didn't manage it today is every time I turned around something else, which I know is not me being the genesis of change, but u but it hadn't fallen off my radar either. So, if it if it didn't happen um during the day today, it was going to happen this evening u that I was going to share something out. So, I wouldn't have just let it sit on you, Katie. And then we you we wouldn't have sat in the background and gone, man, she can generate so many questions. >> There there are board members around the country that use this and then they overdo it and they put it in a chat GPT and then they send like 20 questions.
So thank you. Thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> All right. What we're actually going to do is work through the last couple of piece of our business and then break for cake between this and the closed session. So reception of visitors. Julie, do you have any motions to close? Okay. And then why don't we take an action for closed session and then before that we'll have cake. >> Sure. Can I can I get a motion from the Board of Education to go into closed session for open meetings exception number one for personnel and open meetings act exception number two regarding collective negotiating matters. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Ken moves, Chris seconds. >> Thank you very much. Ken Dawson. >> Aye. >> Chris Espinosa. >> Aye. >> April Finan. >> Aye. >> Michael Risky. >> Aye. >> Cara Caston. >> Aye. >> Amy Courtney.
>> Yeah. >> So I don't ever want you to get anywhere near that arena. Make them genuine, make them authentic that you want to learn because you want you want to be able to turn around explain this to community. And I am not an expert on strategic questions by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm also like if people haven't figured out that my favorite role is thought partner, like it genuinely is. So never hesitate to reach out to me too or or even Dr. Pombo or anyone else on the team. So >> last phase, you ready? Are we good here? And you know, you can reach out to me. Please don't hesitate. Okay, last one. and I am excited to bring you a case study. Uh you should have it printed out nearby. I want to ask you to pair up. Um Katie, sorry you can you you have if you have it, you can read through it.