So overall fantastic event. Thank you to Mr. for helping to organize that and I'd love to see it continue for teacher. >> Great job, guys. Thank you. Questions for students. >> Thank you very much. Continued improvement update. Go visit. I'm sorry. Sorry. >> No problem. Um good evening. Um tonight we're will um review the um operating results as of the end of April 2026. Um two more months to go. The overall forecast as of April 2026 is unfavorable 220,000 which is about 29,000 worse than the previous month. General education is projected to be favorable 21,000 which is 19,000 better than the previous month. um special education is forecasted to be unfavorable 242,000 which is 48,000 worse than the previous month. So I'm just going to go over briefly some of the bigger categories. Um salaries and benefits. We did have swings in the following categories.
That that program is paid for by the state. uh we basically operate on reimbursed uh uh services, billable hours for those people. Once you get into this program though, this is only Cheshire residents and we don't the smart start is paid for by the state but it's only Cheshure residents. >> Okay. And then can you talk a little bit about um I mean I understand the benefits here as you see them for adding this position in early childhood. Can you talk a little bit about why you're okay with not having a social as many social studies teachers? I mean what are the class sizes? What's that going to look like? How many do we have? Are kids not enrolling in it? like why why why can I say to the community it's okay to not have or to have one fewer social studies teacher >> sure so that's a good question um I spoke to Kevin uh when as we were trying to formulate this process about that uh the basically this teacher is teaching five classes now in the enrollment the enrollment across those five was lower um and we felt like they could easily be redistributed into other classes that without you know blowing up the class sizes.
It was realizing that you would likely never be reminded outside of Mr. Hog's class that Manchester City will be playing this Sunday. That one day you would actually missproofing triangles with our wonderful teacher of the year, Mrs. Saunders. That when Mr. Gracia said you would soon be living in the quote unquote adult world, it's not as far as it used to seem. and that somehow you yourself would be saying it behoove you just like Mrs. Babbot did and that eventually Mac wouldn't be the class of 2026's counselor but now the class of 2030s. Senior year was filled with beautiful moments, memories that will last a lifetime and friendships that bring a smile to your face and a sparkle to your eyes. And most importantly, it taught the greatest lessons that we are the sum of those we love and who love us. That we have yet to meet all of those who will love us or who we will love.
So at this point um as we are resettling um help me welcome one more time Miss Enriquez Benson our principal from the primary school to present our students of the month. Thank you so much for being here. >> Students if it's your first time coming when you hear your name you're going to walk forward. You're going to shake every person and he's going to be here in the front. Parents, when the students are here, we need you for the picture because you're part of the success. We want to celebrate the students, but we also want to celebrate you and the family that are here joining our students. We still have some VIP. Please join me. You don't have to pay. We don't charge extra. Go ahead. All right. Good evening. Um, our first student of the month is from Miss Dedra and Miss Jasmine's prek classroom, and that is Daniel Martinez.
Um and then 7 through 8 and 9 through 12, they have some classes that are pretty technologydriven. So the administration and teachers will leave that based on the class, what they need to use the computer for, but then we're also going to have some limitations on things they shouldn't be using the computer for, similar to the cell phone policy where we outline that more. So I'm I'm recommending that we pull the technology piece off of the bond and we focus on infrastructure and safety. With that being said, our administrators are really good and and um one of the things that we'll be looking to approve is Courtney did a great job working with administration and really being wise with our money and as you guys probably know the cost of a lot of things are going up right now. Um the cost of computers are also going up and because they're wise with the money, they're going to be able to purchase the staff computers and and re refurbish those if we approve that in a couple items from now.
So thank YOU SO MUCH JUST TOLD ME BEFORE THIS meeting she might shoot for the 20th 20th at this time. >> So the next is uh to recognize guys cults of the month. >> So if uh go ahead and come on up and all you need to bring with you this time is your piece of paper and we're going to line up all the way back to middle school at the end of the line. Good job. You can hear us. >> All right, parents, please and family members, don't be shy. If you want to come up here when we're reading about your students, you can take pictures and videos, and then we'll have one group photo at the very end. Okay. >> Students, when you come up, you'll just say your name and then you're going to stand over here on the side. Kaden has grown so much as a student.
Um, one is, like I mentioned before, the classroom management, another is scheduling. Another piece is actually that these materials that you see come So, in her What is it? Her left hand? You can see little Ziploc baggies inside that bag, and there are a lot of cards that need to be separated and organized, and that our coaches have identified that that it has been a barrier to some teachers is that like additional prep for the first time that they use the materials. So, our coaches were able to put together a plan for this summer so that we will have all of these materials organized and ready for teachers to eliminate that additional barrier that we saw. In terms of our CFA or common formative assessment administration, uh we [snorts] had them calendared, but we added some additional communication layers. So, coaches sent reminder emails. We were already reporting completion rates to our administrators through our weekly newsletters at the school level or at the grade level.
Swing low, >> [singing] >> sweet chariot, coming for to carry me home. There's a chariot see it coming. Swing low, [singing and music] sweet chariot, there's a chariot see it coming, coming for to carry me home. I looked over [singing] Jordan and what did I see? I looked over Jordan and what did I see? I looked [singing] over Jordan and what did I see? A band [music] of angels coming after me. Swing low, sweet chariot. See it coming. Coming for to carry us sweet chariot. Swing low, sweet There's a chariot. >> [music] >> See it coming. Coming for to carry me home. Swing low, sweet There's a chariot. >> [singing] >> See it coming. Coming for to carry me. Coming for to carry me home. Swing [singing] low. >> [applause] >> And we have two solos at the beginning of this. We have um Luke and Noah Clark.
>> Okay. Thank you. >> No problem. >> Okay. Uh, moving on to discussion item number three. Uh this year we went out to bid for our garbage and recycling services for the district. Um we had two biders. Uh and I'm proud to announce that the winning bid, the lowest bid went to our incumbent provider, Republican Services. After crunching the numbers, garbage uh services went down slightly under 6% and recycling services went down just under 21%. So, um, we've been looking to take action on that and award the bid for another two years to Republic Services to provide garbage and recycling services through the district. >> Okay. And item number four, uh, looking to have a discussion to accept the bid results for MI milk procurement. Uh this is one bid was received for milk procurement that was by our incumbent provider Prairie Farms and that is a flexible pricing model which we entered into two years ago.
But, it was a tough meeting for me and Berlin when I stood up there and they really went at me and anyone that was there, respectfully they did, but it was it was difficult for me because they were making accusations and and I made a promise that this is the right thing that we're doing with this budget, and I need you to support this number in this budget. So, I I just needed to say that. I I appreciate what you want to do with the arts. I hate to see it. I was at the middle school and high school band concert phenomenally the other night, but we we voted on the budget that I stood in front of that town of Berlin and said, "This is the number I need you guys to do." No other number besides this. No lower, no higher. This is the number I need you to vote on.
regular education, regular education support, instructional support, substitutes, central office, and facilities maintenance. Our most notable swing is in our substitute line, which we've been following um all year long. Um but expenses have increased and they reflect a necessary shift and an allocation from regular education to special education to maintain appropriate se levels. And what we did there was the way we do our reporting um throughout um the district and also in the state and federal environments is special education expenses are categorized differently than regular education expenses. Um and so what we did is we took our substitute line and and delineated that appropriately between regular and special education. So this month was the first month we actually uh performed that exercise. Um we do have um maintenance purchases and purchase services um which supports ongoing maintenance contracts throughout the district is over budget um driven by contract increases um that you know were negotiated after the budget was established last year.
Um it's hard because you know you don't know uh how all the scheduling is going to shake out. Surely don't know that in January. It hasn't even started yet. And as we, you know, took a look at it more recently with those five sections of this teacher that happened to be moving out, we felt like now this these class sizes are um on par. Uh if anything, that social studies department's a little bit larger than uh some of our other departments >> and better able to absorb it. So it it just kind of it shook out. Well, >> okay. I I'd be interested in seeing what those numbers are. I'll make up an example with easy math. So, if there's five teachers in social studies with 200 students, they each have I should not have done this on the fly. >> Uh 40 students per class.
That we have yet to make all of our favorite memories and live all of our favorite days. And as the great Winnie the Pooh says, "How lucky am I to have something so special that makes saying goodbye so hard?" The greatest truth I've come to know is that if saying goodbye is hard, if there are sweet memories you will hold on to, and if there are monumental moments that have changed you for the better, then you have loved well. So, thank you for making this goodbye so hard. And to all the parents in the audience who are our late night study partners, our personal money trees, and our biggest cheerleaders, thank you for holding our hand throughout every moment and now finally letting go. To all the Pine Creek staff, Eagles, family, and friends, thank you for giving us sweet memories. Thank you for changing us for the better.
Daniel shows kindness and respect to all of his classmates. He is helpful and is and always cautious of everyone else's feelings. He actively participates in class and has shown so much growth throughout the school year. When Daniel was asked what he would like to be when he grows up, Daniel wants to be a police officer. There you go. >> Congratulations, Daniel. Please welcome Miss Pete as she presents her student with his certificate. All right. For my student of the month, I selected Kellen Hendris. Kellen has Kellen has grown so much throughout the school year. He has shown he is determined and willing and to attempt new strategies. He is kind, respectful, and always checks in on his peers. His storytelling brings light to the classroom. He is a great role model and leader in our class. He is always eager and willing to learn. I am proud of the progress Kellen has made this school year.
But we thought pulling it off the bond and being wise with our money and being able to purchase our staff computers because those are things we really couldn't wait for another two years for the bond because our computers are pretty old. And so I got to credit uh Courtney and the rest of our administration of being really wise and efficient with our money this year so we can get our staff updated on computers. And then as our technology committee continues on to make decisions with community members, parents and teachers about, you know, what research is saying and what's good for kids and bad for kids in technology, then we'll look at purchasing student computers later, but completely pulling those off the bonds. But based on the survey, um overall everything was was very strong. the lowest support was for um the student technology and even that was 67% but we feel like that that's something that's important that we listen to the community and we work with the community that's something they didn't want on the bond even if it's only 33% so we want to pull it off and make a collaborative decision with them.
He is one of the leaders in the class and is a good role model to his friends. It's been such a joy to watch him grow both academically and socially. He is amazing. Congratulations, Kaden. This is Tesso. Aspen demonstrates being safe, kind, and responsible in graceful school. Aspen shows kindness by being a good friend. She shares materials, takes turns, and is considerate of others feelings. Aspen has shown so much growth and progress this school year and we are excited to see her continue to develop and succeed in kindergarten. Congratulations Aspen. Dr. FELICIA Isa is our cult of the month. She is kind, respect, respectful, and consistently well behaved. Isabella sets a wonderful example for her peers, is softspoken, and always follows directions. She's helpful to both classmates and teachers, making her a positive presence in our classroom. Thank you, Isabella, for being such a wonderful cult.
And so, what we added was our coaches were sending participation rates by teacher name and keeping that communication open. And so, one of the changes that we saw is that in So, in January, our third grade participation rate for simply taking the assessment was 8%, and since our last progress monitoring, since that 8% with these additional layers of communication, our participation rates for taking the third grade assessment ranged from 63 to 72%. Amira is something new that we were able to acquire through a grant and it is for all of our second and third grade students. So, in January, we are technology integration coach was able to train all of our second and third grade teachers by January 13th. We started as soon as we came back from break and here you can see the average student use in minutes. Our goal being that students average 30 minutes a week on this.
>> Hakuna Matata. What a wonderful phrase. >> Hakuna Matata. Ain't no passing craze. >> It means no worries for the rest of your [singing] days. It's our problem-free philosophy. Hakuna [singing] Matata. Hakuna Matata. What a wonderful [singing] phrase. Hakuna Matata. >> [music] >> Ain't no passing [singing] craze. It means It's worries for the rest of your days. It's our problem-free [music and singing] philosophy. Hakuna Matata. [singing] It means no worries for the [singing] rest of your days. It's our problem-free [singing] philosophy. Hakuna [singing] Matata. >> [singing] >> Hakuna Matata. >> [applause] >> Yeah, awesome. That's great. >> Good job. Hey, hey, hey. Good job. >> Thank you, Andrew. >> You're welcome. >> Well, if that doesn't put you in a great mood, I don't know what does. And right now I get to hear stuff like that every day. I've been at three concerts already today.
Um and I also included some historical prices for milk uh over the past two years so you guys could see the fluctuations. Worked out real well for us when we did it the last two years and considering we only have one bidder now. Um, and I believe that's because Perry Farms is one of the largest providers of dairy in the area. No one else could really beat their prices. So, we're looking to enter that contract for one year with subsequent extensions for up to four years after that. But, it does give us an out after one year, but after being involved in a program for a couple years, that flexible pricing really didn't cause us any issues. So, we're looking to extend that relationship. So they were the winning bidder prior to this. They are our present. >> Yes sir. >> vendor >> and they were the only one to bid on the service now.
So, I just need to tell you that. That's all. I think the difference is that this was completely eliminated. And so I mean, yes, I know that the ELA tutor or instructional person was also eliminated, too, but I think once it's completely gone, it's really hard to put back together again. To lose an entire year. So, you know, if we don't want to swing even 0.05 for 1 year, then I don't know, you know, could we open it up for people to donate those funds to get her during the school day to maintain band? I don't know. Is that allowed? I mean, the thing about doing it during the day, I think, is that our budget supports a certain level of teaching and learning and education throughout the day. It would be no different than asking another private club of some kind, any kind, to come in and take away from the teaching day to do the private club.