GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE. I THINK IT'S GOOD MORNING. SO THAT 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, IF YOU'RE JUMPING OUT OF AN AIRPLANE, THAT WOULD GET YOUR ADRENALINE. I THINK MAYBE MEMBER WASHINGTON MIGHT REMEMBER IN THE MILITARY, WHEN YOU HAVE TO GO, IT'S NOT LIKE, CAN YOU GET READY? IT'S LIKE, GO. AND THEN YOU JUMP OUT. AND THEN YOU HOPE THE HECK THAT EVERYTHING WORKS, SO WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THINGS WORK TODAY. POLICY WORKSHOP PART TWO.
WE ARE HAVING MEMBER PEREZ ONLINE. MEMBER SNIVELY WILL BE HERE MOMENTARILY AS WILL MEMBER HAHN. AND ALL BOARD MEMBERS ARE PRESENT IN TERMS OF BEING HERE. MEMBER COMBS, GOOD MORNING, MEMBER COMBS AND MEMBER VAUGHN. GOOD MORNING.
MEMBER WASHINGTON AND OUR ATTORNEY, MR. PORTER, WILL BE GUIDING US. KRISTEN WILL GIVE US AN UPDATE IN TWO MINUTES. BUT FIRST, I WANT TO SEE IF OUR WONDERFUL SUPERINTENDENT HAS ANY WORDS OF WISDOM TODAY. GOOD MORNING. Addison Davis: GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU, MS. GRAY. I APPRECIATE IT AND LOOK FORWARD TO ANOTHER, YOU KNOW, GOOD MEETING, GOOD CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW WE STRENGTHEN POLICY SO THAT WE CAN BE CLEAR ON OUR ACTIONS WITHIN A SCHOOL DISTRICT. A LOT OF VERY IMPORTANT ISSUES TODAY AND LOOK FORWARD TO, YOU KNOW, BEING A THINK PARTNER WITH EACH OF YOU AND BEING ABLE TO HELP IN ANY WAY WE CAN. SO THANK YOU AND LOOK FORWARD TO OUR DISCUSSION Lynn Gray: YES. AND WE HAVE A LOT OF RICH DISCUSSION OPPORTUNITIES. FIRST OFF, I WANT TO GO AHEAD AND LET MS. DAVIS, OUR GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, JUST SPEND JUST A MINUTE OR TWO ON UPDATES AND FOLLOWING THAT, I KNOW YOU HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT SO GOOD MORNING, MS.
DAVIS. I THINK I'M ON. GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS, SUPERINTENDENT. SO I WANT TO FIRST START BY INTRODUCING YOU TO -- AT THE TABLE YOU SEE JOINING US DR. DUSTIN ROBINSON. HE IS AN ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT SNOWERS MIDDLE SCHOOL. HE IS OFFICIALLY DR. ROBIN SMVEN WE HAVE BEEN IN COMMUNICATION WORKING ON HIS DISSERTATION SO I INVITED HIM TO JOIN US AS A SHADOWING EXPERIENCE AS PART OF THE POLICY MAKING PROCESS. HE REVIEWED THE POLICIES. HE REVIEWED THE LAST WORKSHOP ON AUGUST 12 SO HE IS WELL PREPARED.
IF THERE IS ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE MAYBE AT A SCHOOL-LEVEL TYPE ADMIN QUESTION, HE IS HERE TO BE A RESOURCE SO THANK YOU. Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, KRISTEN DAVE IS. MS. SNIVELY IS PRESENT NOW IN THE PHYSICAL SENSE. SO KRISTEN, GIVE US THE UPDATE. SURE. JUST BRIEFLY THIS WEEK DOES START THE FIRST INTERIM COMMITTEE WEEK FOR THE 2022 LEGISLATIVE SESSION. THERE ARE COMMITTEE MEETINGS BEING HELD BUT MOST -- NO BILLS ARE BEING HEARD THIS WEEK. IT'S MOSTLY REVIEW AND PRESENTATIONS, FOR EXAMPLE, AT AN EDUCATION COMMITTEE, JACOB OLIVEA IS DOING A PRESENTATION ON STANDARDS AND AN EDUCATION WORKFORCE COMMITTEE THEY'RE REVIEWING HOUSE BILL 1507, THE WORKFORCE BILL TALKING ABOUT IMPLEMENTATION AND BRINGING GROUPS OF STATE AGENCIES TOGETHER. THERE IS A LOT OF JUST ESSENTIALLY KIND OF PRESENTATIONS AND REVIEW OF INFORMATION HAPPENING, BUT I'LL CONTINUE TO KEEP YOU UPDATED AS WELL AS SOME BILLS WE HAVE AND I DID WANT TO MENTION, HOUSE BILL 15, THAT'S THE CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS, THE ONE YOUR LEGISLATIVE PRIORITY TO EXTEND SERVICES FOR CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS FROM AGE FIVE TO EXTEND SERVICES TO AGE NINE.
THAT DOES HAVE ACTUALLY SINCE AUGUST HAS A HOUSE SPONSOR. REPRESENTATIVE TANT AND SENATOR JONES SIGNED ON FOR THE SENATE VERSION AND ACTUALLY SOME OF OUR DELEGATION MEMBERS, DRISCOLL AND VALDEZ SIGNED ON AS CO-SPONSORS SO WE'RE ENCOURAGED AND WILL CONTINUE TO WORK ON THIS. THANK YOU. Lynn Gray: THANK YOU. YOU MAY BE WANT TO ADD THE PARTISAN SCHOOL BOARD. YES. THAT WAS IN THE UPDATE AND I DID MENTION THE HOUSE AND SENATE VERSION OF THE BILL THAT WOULD PUT AN AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION TO MAKE SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS PARTISAN. AGAIN, BOTH HAS A HOUSE AND SENATE COMPANION AND THE HOUSE VERSION HAS BEEN ASSIGNED THE COMMITTEES SO WE ANTICIPATE THAT TO MOVE. Lynn Gray: OKAY. THANK YOU, MS. DAVIS. FOR PURPOSES OF EXPEDIENCY AND ALSO BECAUSE I HAVE CERTAIN POLICIES AS WELL, OUR ATTORNEY JIM PORTER WILL LEAD THIS ENTIRE WORKSHOP, AND MR. PORTER? Jim Porter: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR AND BOARD MEMBERS.
JUST TO HELP SET THE STAGE TO AVOID ANY CONFUSION, WHAT WE'RE DOING TODAY IS THE CONTINUEICATION OF THE POLICY WORKSHOP FROM LAST MONTH. YOU'LL RECALL, BOARD MEMBERS, WE HAD A LOT OF POLICIES AND IT BROUGHT A LOT OF GOOD DISCUSSION. WE WERE NOT ABLE TO GET THROUGH ALL OF THEM. WHAT'S HAPPENING IS A CONTINUATION OF THIS POLICY CYCLE. THIS AFTERNOON AT THE BOARD MEETING, YOU'LL ACTUALLY BE VOTING ON THE POLICIES THAT WERE DISCUSSED AT THE LAST WORKSHOP. THAT HAS A POTENTIAL FOR CONFUSION SO I WANTED TO LET EVERYONE KNOW, THIS MORNING, THESE ARE POLICIES THAT YOU'VE NOT DISCUSSED BEFORE. THIS AFTERNOON YOU'LL VOTE ON THE POLICIES YOU DISCUSSED AT THE LAST WORKSHOP. JUST TO REMIND YOU, BOARD MEMBERS, THE POLICY CYCLE IS ONE WHERE STAFF CAN INTRODUCE POLICIES. STAFF WILL INTRODUCE POLICIES THAT HAVE TO BE DONE BECAUSE OF CHANGES IN THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE OR BOARD MEMBERS MAY INTRODUCE POLICIES.
WHAT WE HAVE THIS MORNING ARE POLICIES I'LL INTRODUCE BY BOARD MEMBERS AND THE PROCESS WE FOLLOWED IN THE PAST IS WE'LL INTRODUCE THEM. I'LL EXPLAIN WHAT THE POLICY IS. AND THEN THE BOARD MEMBER REQUESTING THE POLICY WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS THAT. IF THERE IS CONSENSUS ON THE POLICY MOVING FORWARD, IT WILL MOVE FORWARD TO A PUBLIC HEARING PROBABLY SOMETIME OCTOBER, NOVEMBER. YEAH. PROBABLY OCTOBER 19. Jim Porter: YES. KRISTEN AND I BOTH SHARE THE GOAL ALONG WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT OF MAKING THE POLICY CYCLE VERY ROUTINE SO WE DO IT NOT JUST ONCE A YEAR. TWICE OR THREE TIMES OR FOUR TIMES A YEAR SO IT'S A CONTINUALLY ROLLING PROCESS. ONCE THIS IS DONE WE'LL IMMEDIATELY START THE OTHER POLICY CYCLE. SO FOR SOME REASON IF ONE OF YOUR POLICY DOESN'T MAKE IT FOR FORWARD, THERE IS ALWAYS AN OPPORTUNITY IN THE NEXT CYCLE.
THE FIRST POLICY WE'RE GOING TO DISCUSS IS A NEW POLICY SUGGESTED BY MEMBER VAUGHN. DIVERSITY, ECUALY AND INCLUSION AND THIS WOULD -- THIS POLICY WOULD DIRECT THE SUPERINTENDENT TO DEVELOP REQUIREMENTS FOR TRAINING OF INSTRUCTIONAL PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATORS IN RECOGNIZING AND OVERCOMING IMPLICIT BIAS AND SUPPORTING DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION.
MEMBER VAUGHN SUGGESTED THIS AND IF SHE HAS ANY COMMENTS ON REASONING, THAT'S THE TIME TO DO THAT Lynn Gray: MEMBER VAUGHN, CAN I JUST CHECK THAT MEMBER PEREZ IS ONLINE.
MEMBER PEREZ, CAN YOU HEAR OKAY? Karen Perez: YES, I CAN. Lynn Gray: OKAY. WE'RE GOOD TO GO. THANKS. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. CAN YOU HEAR ME? SORRY, I THOUGHT I TURNED THAT OFF. SO I INTRODUCEED THIS POLICY. I WAS ALSO LOOKING AT THE WORDING OF IT, AND AS MUCH AS I WANTED TO INCLUDE IMPLICIT BIAS, I ALSO WANTED TO ADD WHERE IT SAID SUPPORTING DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION TO RESTORE TO PRACTICES. THIS POLICY WAS BROUGHT OUT OF WORKING WITH THE SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE AND TALKING TO THEM AFTER EXTENSIVE MONTHS AND HOURS AND YEARS OF RESEARCH THEY'VE DONE IN COLLABORATION THEY'VE DONE WITH OTHER GROUPS AND WHEN I ASKED THEM TO IDENTIFY ON THE SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THEY THINK WOULD HAVE AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT, THEIR ANSWER WAS TO MAKE SURE OUR TEACHERS ARE NUMBER ONE, TRAINED IN THE RESTORATIVE PRACTICES THAT ARE LADEN THROUGHOUT OUR STRATEGIC PLAN AND STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT JUST TALKING ABOUT THAT PRACTICE BUT ACTUALLY GIVING TEACHERS THE TRAINING THAT THEY NEED AS WELL AS THE IMPLICIT BIAS TRAINING TO MAKE SURE THAT TEACHERS DON'T HAVE ANY CULTURAL OR ANY BIAS THAT MIGHT AFFECT HOW THEY INTERACT WITH OUR STUDENTS TO MAKE SURE WE'RE GIVING THEM THE MOST SUPPORT.
SO AFTER IDENTIFYING THOSE TWO TRAININGS AS WHAT THEY FEEL WOULD BE A GREAT HELP IN STOPPING THE SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE, I AGREED TO HELP CHAMPION THIS POLICY FOR THEM Lynn Gray: THANK YOU. WELL, ACTUALLY, MR. PORTER, YOU'RE IN CHARGE. I WANT TO MAKE SURE I HAVE THE RIGHT PAGE. IT'S 2260.04? I'M LOOKING FOR THE TRAINING IN HERE. I SEE THE SECOND -- THIRD PARAGRAPH. OKAY. SO MR. PORTER? Jim Porter: SO THAT'S THE REASONING FOR IT AND NOW IT WOULD BE AN APPROPRIATE TIME FOR ANY BOARD DISCUSSION. IF STAFF WANTS TO INTRODUCE ANY COMMENTS AT THIS POINT, MAYBE YOU SHOULD HEAR FROM THEM AT THIS POINT. GOOD MORNING, BOARD. I'LL HAVE MS.
JACKSON, OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR JUST TALK ABOUT WHAT WE'RE DOING CURRENTLY AROUND IMPLICIT BIAS AND ANY QUESTIONS FROM THERE WE CAN ANSWER THAT. GOOD MORNING. CURRENTLY WE OFFER A THREE-HOUR IMPLICIT BIAS TRAINING FOR ALL OUR ADMINISTRATORS AND OUR TEACHERS. STARTING THIS YEAR, THIS PARTICULAR TRAINING IS ACTUALLY REQUIRED FOR OUR NEW TEACHERS. IT'S PART OF OUR INDUCTION PROGRAM. SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED TO BE BRINGING THIS CONVERSATION TO OUR TEACHERS. THE COURSE FOCUSES ON AN OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH RELATED TO BIAS AND THEN IT ALSO GIVES PARTICIPANTS AN OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE THE IMPLICIT ASSOCIATION TEST. IT'S A TEST THAT WAS DEVELOPED THROUGH HARVARD UNIVERSITY, AND IN THAT PARTICIPANTS HAVE A CHANCE TO EXAMINE THEIR BIASES AND HAVE A CHANCE TO REFLECT ON THOSE AND DETERMINE ARE THOSE IMPACTING THE WAY IN WHICH THEY PERCEIVE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND STUDENT BEHAVIOR. WE ALSO SPENT TIME REVIEWING DISTRICT DATA IN THIS COURSE, AND THEN WE GET INTO SOME STUDENT TESTIMONIALS WHICH ARE EXTREMELY POWERFUL WHERE STUDENTS TALK ABOUT THE IMPACT THAT BIASES HAD ON THEIR LIFE, AND THE WAY IN WHICH THAT HAS CHANGED THEIR PERCEPTIONS OF HOW TEACHERS SEE THEM AND SEE THEIR OUTCOMES.
AND THEN AT THE END, WE TALK ABOUT STRATEGIES TO MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF BIAS, BECAUSE WE KNOW WE ALL HAVE THEM. WE SPEND TIME TALKING ABOUT THEY'RE VERY NATURAL. THIS IS NOT A CHANCE TO BEAT ANYONE UP OR MAKE ANYONE FEEL BAD. THEY'RE EXTREMELY NORMAL AND THEY'RE AT THE UNCONSCIOUS LEVEL SO YOU'RE NOT EVEN AWARE. HOW DO YOU -- THEY DON'T BECOME WHAT YOU RELY ON WHEN YOU MAKE DECISIONS IN THE MOMENT WITH STUDENTS. THAT'S THE COURSE WE HAVE RIGHT NOW.
Lynn Gray: MEMBER WASHINGTON? Henry "Shake" Washington: YES. QUICK QUESTION. YOU SAID -- I NOTICED YOU SAID NEW TEACHERS. HOW ARE WE DOING THE TEACHERS THAT'S BEEN IN ALL THE TIME? DO WE HAVE REFRESHER COURSES FOR THEM? GREAT QUESTION, MR. WASHINGTON. WE HAVE A COURSE THAT'S OPEN. WE OFFER IT DISTRICT WIDE AND ALSO AT THE SITE LEVEL. SO SCHOOLS CAN REQUEST TO HAVE THE TRAINING FOR THEIR FACULTY. IT IS CURRENTLY ON A VOLUNTARY BASIS SO IT'S UP TO THE SCHOOL TO DECIDE THAT THIS IS A TOPIC THEY WANT TO ENGAGE IN. SOMETIMES IT COMES FROM DATA. SOMETIMES IT COMES FROM STUDENTS OR TEACHERS BRINGING IT UP. THE ONLY GROUP RIGHT NOW THAT IT'S MANDATORY FOR ARE OUR NEW ADMINISTRATORS BECAUSE IT IS PART OF THE FLA PIPELINE, AS WELL AS IT'S REQUIRED FOR OUR BRAND NEW TEACHERS THAT ARE GOING THROUGH INDUCTION SO ALL DISTRICTS ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE A ROBUST INDUCTION PROGRAM THAT ALIGNS WITH THE FLORIDA EDUCATOR ACCOMPLISHED PRACTICES AND ONE THING INCLUDED IS THE BIAS TRAINING.
THIS IS THE FIRST YEAR SOWEAR EXCITED FOR THAT FOR OUR NEW TEACHERS. Henry "Shake" Washington: SO THAT'S AN OPTION. IT'S NOT MANDATORY FOR EXPERIENCED TEACHERS. CURRENTLY THE ONLY GROUPS IT'S MANDATORY FOR ARE THOSE WISHING TO ENTER THE PIPELINE, OR BECOME AN ADMINISTRATOR OR OUR BRAND NEW TEACHERS. Henry "Shake" Washington: OKAY. THANK YOU. Jim Porter: AND THIS POLICY WOULD MAKE IT MANDATORY. YES. Lynn Gray: I HAVE -- MS. GRAY?
Lynn Gray: I WANT TO THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND ALSO, MEMBER VAUGHN. THE FIRST NAME IS JEZELE? JAMEL YOU. Lynn Gray: SORRY. THAT'S OKAY. Lynn Gray: IMPLICIT BIAS HAS OCCURRED FOR MANY YEARS. UNDER (INAUDIBLE) WE DID HAVE THE TRAINING. I WENT TO THE TRAINING SO IT'S ALREADY IN PLACE, ALTHOUGH IT DOES NEED TO HAVE A RESTART. THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO KNOW. ARE WE ALREADY DOING THIS AND THEN, MY SECOND QUESTION GOES TO SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, WHENEVER WE'RE STARTING TO AUTHOR POLICY, THEN IT BECOMES INCUMBENT ON YOU TO PUT THIS -- IMPLEMENT IT, RIGHT? SO I'M HEARING THAT WE'RE DOING THIS ALREADY. I KNOW THAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING IT, BUT LAST YEAR, COVID SUB SUBTRACTED THAT. CAN YOU CLARIFY AND THEN SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, JUST GIVE YOUR FEELINGS ON THIS SITUATION? GO AHEAD. SO WE DID REWRITE THE TRAINING LAST YEAR, SO ALTHOUGH IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE DEVELOPED A FEW YEARS AGO, AND THEN SHARED WITH THE DIVERSITY OFFICE, THERE IS A LOT OF NEW DATA THAT'S COME OUT AROUND THE TOPIC OF BIAS.
SO WE DID DO A REVAMP LAST YEAR. IT IS A BRAND NEW TRAINING. BRAND NEW ACTIVITIES AND BRAND NEW RESEARCH. THAT STARTED LAST YEAR. Lynn Gray: OKAY. Addison Davis: THROUGH THAT PROCESS, WE ARE LOOKING FOR FEEDBACK ABOUT HOW WELL THAT TRAINING IS BEING IMPLEMENTED. ALSO WORKING WITH CTA IN THAT CONVERSATION. IT WOULD, YOU KNOW, THIS IS NOTHING WE -- WE TALKED ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE SOMETHING THAT'S FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. IT WOULD NOT BE AND WE'D HAVE TO HAVE A PLAN FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND PROBABLY BE -- THE THREE-HOUR TRAINING WOULD HAVE TO TAKE PLACE DURING PREPLANNING AS WE LUNCH THE 22-23 SCHOOL YEAR. Lynn Gray: SO I THINK THE ISSUE IS MANDATORY VERSUS NOT. IS THAT BASICALLY WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT? Addison Davis: RIGHT Jim Porter: ALSO, IT'S MANDATORY FOR NEW TEACHERS AND THIS POLICY WOULD MAKE IT MANDATORY FOR EVERYONE.
THAT'S THE DISTINCTION. Jessica Vaughn: ALSO, CAN I ADD ONE OTHER THING? I WANT TO SEE IF I CAN AMEND THIS AS I MENTIONED AND I THOUGHT IT WOULD TALK ABOUT RESTORATIVE PRACTICES AND MAKING IT A TWO-PIECE MODULE. SO AS THEY'RE LEARNING THE IMPLICIT BIAS, THEY REALLY UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF RESTORATIVE PRACTICE AND HOW WE'RE IMPLEMENTING TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FROM WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. THE FEEDBACK I'M GETTING FROM ACTUAL CLASSROOMS IS TEACHERS ARE NOT REALLY UTILIZING IT. THEY'RE NOT REALLY EQUIPPED WITH THE TOOLS TO BE ABLE TO DO IT SO EVEN THOUGH IT'S IN A LOT OF OUR MATERIALS AND IT'S KIND OF THE FORWARD FACING OF OUR DISTRICT, IT'S -- THEY DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW IT WORKS AND HOW TO USE IT. Addison Davis: AND THROUGH THE CHAIR, TO THAT POINT, BECAUSE IT'S BRAND NEW. THIS TEAM JUST STARTED TO HAVE THE CONVERSATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION SO TRAINING IS GOING TO BE ONGOING WITH THAT PROCESS.
THE OTHER QUESTION I HAVE FOR MANDATORY. I WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MANDATORY, IS IT EVERY YEAR? BECAUSE THAT MEANS WE'D HAVE TO UPDATE THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ANNUALLY TO BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE IT'S A -- IT'S DIFFERENT THAN THEY HAVE HISTORICALLY HAD OR IS IT EVERY THREE YEARS? OR WHEN WE DEEM NECESSARY? I THINK WE NEED CLARIFICATIONS SO -- Jim Porter: THAT WOULD BE UP TO THE SUPERINTENDENT TO DECIDE THE POLICIES DESIGNED -- THE TRAINING WOULD EXIST AND THEN IT'S UP TO YOU TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO ROLL THAT OUT. MS. SNIVELY? Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. I JUST HAD A QUESTION ABOUT -- THANK YOU FOR ANSWERING THOSE QUESTIONS BECAUSE I WASN'T SURE WHAT WE WERE DOING -- IT WAS JUST FOR NEW TEACHERS OR FOR ALL TEACHERS, AND I WANTED TO FIND OUT WHAT THE COST IMPLICATIONS ARE AS FAR AS THE ADDITIONAL THREE HOURS OF TRAINING, THE MATERIAL THAT HAS TO BE PREPARED, THE PRE-PLANNING, IF WE DO THIS AND IMPLEMENT THIS EVERY YEAR.