Prince William County School Board Meeting - December 3, 2025

001Uh motion is now in order for the approval of meeting agenda. Vice Chair Tracy Blake. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that the Prince William County School Board approve the meeting agenda as recommended. >> Do you have a second, >> Mr. Chairman? >> Mrs. Harboard second. >> Any discussion? Please vote. >> All in favor? I raise your hands. Any opposed? No opposition. Motion passes. >> Vote is six. Yes. Motion passes. >> Moving on. A motion to enter close session. A motion to order. Vice Chair Tracy Blake. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that pursuant to sections 2.2-3711 and 2.2-3712 of the code of Virginia, the Prince William County School Board enter close session for the following reasons. One, to discuss with SCA staff the assignment, appointment, promotion, performance, demotion, salaries, disciplining, or resignation of

002specific public officers, appointees, or employees of any public body pursuant to sections 2.2-3711 2-3711A1 of the code of Virginia and two to discuss with division council and staff actual or probable litigation and specific legal matters involving staff students procurement and other civil litigation involving the school division under sections 2.2-3711 22-3711A7 and 8 of the code of Virginia and three to discuss and receive briefings by staff members related to the security of school facilities, the safety of persons using such facilities, and the actions taken to respond to such matters. We're discussing an open meeting would jeopardize the security of such facilities pursuant to section 2.2-3711A19 of the code of Virginia. Do I have a second? I second. >> Miss Wall, >> any discussion? Please vote. All in favor? Hands up. I vote >> six. Yes. One

003that president vote. Williams. Motion passed. >> Okay. At this time, the Prince William County School Board will now enter close session and return in approximately 1 hour. Good evening. It's uh the Prince William County School Board will now return to open session from close session. Emotions in order. uh 801 close session certification. Vice Chair Blake. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that pursuant to section 2.2-3712 of the code of Virginia, the closed session of the Prince William County School Board meeting on December 3rd, 2025 be certified by adopting the following resolution. Now, therefore, it be resolved that the Prince William County School Board hereby certifies that to the best of each member's knowledge, one, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements were discussed in the closed meeting to which this certification

004resolution applies, and two, only such public business matters as were identified in the motion convening the closed meeting were heard and discussed or considered by the school board. Do I have a second? >> Mr. Sherman, >> Miss Williams, >> second. >> Any discussion? Please vote. You have the vote. >> Miss Williams, how do you vote? Okay. >> The vote is seven. Yes. Unanimous. Motion passed. >> Approval for um appointments and releases. Up next, Vice Chair Blake. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that the Prince William County School Board approve the appointments and releases of specific employees as presented in close session. >> Do you have a second, >> Mr. Chairman? >> Miss Williams. Second. >> Any discussion? Please vote. Vote a seven. Yes. Unanimous. Motion passes. >> Okay. Um at this time, we will

005move on to the pledge of allegiance. I'd like to invite our student representative, Bula Sarsa from CD Hilton High School to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Thank you, Miss SA. At this time, we will start off with Thriving Futures Focus. Thriving futures focus is our opportunity to highlight the exemplary work being accomplished in our schools that fulfill our vision that every student will graduate on time with the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind to create a thriving future for themselves and their community. We dedicate this time during our meetings to recognizing students, staff members, and schools that have earned an honor

006or an award at the state or national level. Tonight, the board would like to acknowledge Dr. Jennifer Aloney, school psychologist, for earning the distinction from the Virginia Academy of School Psychologists as the Virginia School Psychologist of the Year. Dr. Aloney serves students at Tyler Elementary School in the Gainesville District and at Yorkshshire Elementary School in the Kohl's district. So, I'm going to ask Miss Wall and Miss Zaraport to share in this recognition, beginning with Miss Wall of the Gainesville District. >> Thank you, Dr. Latif. The VASP supports school psychologists in promoting and advocating for the educational and mental health development of all Virginia students, schools, families, and communities. This prestigious award celebrates professionals whose work is exemplary and comprehensive in the following areas. Databased decision-making and accountability. Consultation and collaboration. Development of cognitive and academic

007skills. Development of socialization and life skills. Student diversity in development and learning. Knowledge of school and system organizations. Policy development and climates. Prevention. Crisis Intervention and Mental Health, Homeschool and Community Collaboration. Miss Sager, can you continue our recognition? >> I am happy to. Thank you, Miss Wall. Joining Dr. Aloney this evening in support of this accomplishment includes supervisor of eligibility and childfind Mrs. Shelley Legal Brickley, Ricky, and Director of Programs and Development, Dr. Wendy Martin Johnson. At this time, I would like to invite Dr. Olooney to share a few words about her accomplishment. >> Thank you. Good evening, Dr. Latif, members of the board, Dr. McDade, colleagues, and community members. I'm truly honored to be recognized this evening for my recent selection as school psychologist of the year for the state of Virginia. And I'm

008deeply grateful to have been nominated by my administration and colleagues from PWCS and as well as the faculty and students at George Mason University where I work as an adjunct instructor. I'm very humbled by their support and their confidence in my work. I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to Dr. Rebecca Zia and Miss Shelley Legal from their unwavering support and leadership. Their commitment to ensuring that PWCS school psychologists are able to fully utilize the breadth of their training and skills has made a meaningful difference in my work. Many of the professional opportunities and experiences that I contributed to this recognition were possible because of their encouragement and their advocacy. I also want to thank the principles of my current schools, Dr. Lynn Marcilio of Yorkshire Elementary and Mrs. Jennifer Perilla of Tyler Elementary for

009their recommendations and for consistently viewing me as a valued member of their school communities. Their support means more than they will know. School psychologists play a unique and vital role in our division. We bridge academic, behavioral, and mental health needs by supporting students through assessment, counseling, and collaboration with families and educators. Much of our work happens behind the scenes um ensuring that students have the supports they need to succeed both in school and in life. Continued division level support for psychological service, particularly the commitment to increasing our staffing and providing necessary resources has allowed many of us to be able to move from behind the scenes roles into delivering direct services to students throughout the division. I began my career in Prince William County schools as a special education teacher and when I decided to

010pursue school psychology, I returned here to complete my internship. Years later, I now have the privilege of supervising interns in the same division, many of whom who have chosen to stay and are now part of our team. The ability to engage daily with assessment, mental health support, and instructional collaboration combined with a consistent encouragement that our coordinator and supervisor prioritize for us for personal and professional growth are the reasons that I continue to contribute to my career here and to in continue to encourage others to do the same. I would like to thank the school board and the division leadership once again for recognizing school psychologists as vital members of our school communities and for your ongoing efforts to increase staffing so that we maintain our sustainable case loads. This support allows us to focus

011more fully on prevention and intervention, ensuring that our students not only learn and truly flourish. Thank you again for recognizing me this evening and for your continued commitment to the well-being of our students. Thank you, Dr. Aloney, and congratulations. At this time, I'd like to ask all those involved in supporting our state recognized school psychologist, including her family members, friends, and folks in our schools to stand in recognition of their support as well. Congratulations. Before taking a few pictures, Dr. McDade would like to share a few words. Dr. McDade. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Dr. Oloney, congratulations on being named Virginia School Psychologist of the Year. What a prestigious honor. We are just so proud to have you here in Prince William County Schools and congratulations on the impact that you've made over your 25-y

012year career here in Prince William County and as as I always say in every Thriving Futures Focus, we are PWCS proud. Congratulations. >> Thank you, Dr. McDade. At this time, I'd like to request our honore to come forward with a photo of the school board and receive a small token of our appreciation. Okay, thank you for all that. And now we'll move on to uh 11.01 adoption of the consent agenda. Vice Chair Blake, >> I move that the Prince William County School Board approved the public meeting consent agenda as recommended. Do >> I have a second? >> Mr. Chairman, >> Miss Zarapore, >> second. >> Any discussion? Please vote. Oh. Um, Miss Wall has a point. I just wanted to highlight that we have the 2026 internal audit plan on here which I want to

013thank the members of the audit committee for their commitment and hard work on that committee and also our auditor who is here tonight. Thank you very much for all of your hard work and um this is a great plan um and it sets forth our um plan for the coming year and the things that will be happening in that shop. So, thank you very much for being here tonight and thank you to the committee members who serve on that committee. On that note, I'll just thank Chair um Wall for chairing that committee. It is certainly um one of the ones that require the some of the most work we do here. And I especially appreciate if you take a look through the audit report, you know, our our work on enterprise risk management and the

014things that we are, you know, very concerned about. I think it sets a strong tone and we want to thank the superintendent for participating and making sure that we're all on the same page. Um with that, please vote. Vote is seven. Yes. Motion passed. >> Okay. Um, next up is approval of acknowledgements and recognitions. Uh, Vice Chair Blake. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that the principle and county school board approves the adoption and acknowledgements and recognitions as recommended. >> Do I have a second? >> Mr. Chairman, >> Miss Williams, >> second. >> Any discussion? >> Please vote. I didn't get my vote. >> It didn't pop up. >> All right, Dr. Latif, how do you vote? >> Yeah, I vote yes. >> Yes. >> Yeah. >> Okay. Vote is seven. Yes. Motion passed.

015>> Okay. All right. Moving on. Uh up next is citizen comment time. Uh those citizens who signed up in advance with the clerk may address the school board this evening when they called to the podium. The citizen comment period for regular schoolboard meetings is 1 hour and citizens may speak on agenda items or other topics to remain to the operations and policies of PWCS. Please use proper decorum and manners while at the podium where you will be asked to step aside. We ask that the audience please be respectful of each speaker and refrain from any clapping, cheering or jeering to avoid disruption of the meeting. If you do not do so, the board will recess and I'll ask that the room be cleared to restore public order. Tonight we have 30 citizens signed up to

016speak. When I call your name, please come to the podium and state your name and address for the record. Per policy 134. The time allotted for each speaker will be two minutes tonight. Um, and as you're get, you know, the the timer's up there to see it and then the mic goes quiet at the two-minute mark and it's not because we're trying to be rude to you. It's just we're trying to be fair to everyone and stop at 2 minutes. So, thank you. I will call the first five names and we'll do the subsequent five each time so you kind of know what's coming up. And if you wanted to, there's seats up front to sit in. Um you can come up now and wait for your turn. If not, you can come from your

017seat. The first five, Timothy Fehey, Paige Bartalot, Jeff Lofgrren, Ha Ansari, and Aubrey Vericone. Timothy Fehee Good. Hello. My name is Tim Fay and my address is on file with the clerk. Members of the school board, I stand before you as an educator and also the father of a high, middle, and elementary school student in the district. My position requires me to collaborate with nearly every teacher at my school, giving me a unique front row seat to their daily reality. I watch these professionals dedicate early mornings, late evenings, and weekends to planning, grading, and building innovative lessons for our students based on an everchanging curriculum as well as ever growing requirements. This time is not optional. It is the unpaid labor that keeps things functioning. Your proposal to extend contract hours hours without compensation or

018additional leave benefits is therefore not just bad policy. It is an insult. It is a blatant attempt to mandate the free labor we already provide, effectively enacting a pay cut, especially for summer school and ESY teachers paid at their instructional rate. You yourselves have shared the best path forward. As board member Dr. Leachchief was quoted inside NOVA back in May, "Research always shows the best way to improve student performance is to have a high quality teacher in the room. The best way to have high-quality teachers in the room is to pay them well. And that's how you get to recruit and retain them. If you add 30 unpaid minutes, you may lose the years of experience and dedication that my own children benefit from. You will continue to accelerate the burnout of the talent you

019claimed you want to retain. Read the room. Invest in your teachers. We demand investment, not micromanagement. Pay us well. Respect our time. And let us manage the work that keeps this district running. Thank you. As I stated earlier, there's no clapping, cheering, or jeering during citizen comment time. If that continues, we will clear the room and start over. Paige Bartalot. >> Good evening. My name is Paige Bartalo and my address is on file with the clerk. For 12 years, I have served Prince William County Public Schools and I currently teach gifted education at PTOAC View, a school I'm deeply proud to represent tonight. I'm speaking tonight on behalf of a marginalized community, a community of families, educators, and neighbors whose voices deserve to be heard. PTOAC View is a beautifully diverse small school tucked into

020the heart of a neighborhood. Many of our families face economic challenges and a significant number speak languages other than English at home. We are a community that deserves a voice in the boundary process, not one to be quietly wiped off the map with barely a mention. On November 6, our staff was told PTOAC View will close at the end of the school year. All students will transfer to the new Woodbridge area school, but staff must apply and interview for new jobs. We cannot move collectively with the students. In all the redistricting conversations, the closing of an entire school has barely been acknowledged. For a school like ours, the silence feels dismissive and inequitable. The new Woodbridge area school will consist almost entirely of PTOAC View students with three of four boundary scenarios adding only 81

021other students. This is not typical redistricting. This is not just shifting boundaries on a map. This is closing a school down, severing deep relationships, and displacing 89 dedicated staff members. Tonight, we are submitting a petition with over 700 signatures representing those who are united in concern and hope. Our petition is simple. Designate the Woodbridge Area School and >> Thank you. designate the new Woodbridge area school as a relocation. Your time is up and transition current staff with students. Your time is up. >> Jeff Lofrren >> here. >> Hannah, I'm sorry. Right. Good evening to the board and Super Nintendo McDade. Wonderful to see you again. I uh before I wanted to go into what I wanted to talk about, I just wanted to commemorate uh December 1st was Matthew Shepard's would have been Matthew Shepard's

022birthday, but he was murdered be because he was gay, which was a hate crime, which is one of the reasons that a lot of us come out here to advocate for trans and LGBTQI kids because we want to make sure that that doesn't happen again. Um and I'm going to try to pivot from that and it's going to be a tough pivot to make, but I'm going to try. Uh, congratulations, Superintendent McDade. I heard your thriving futures presentation last meeting was amazing and you had all kinds of wonderful details and deliverables and executables and community I think committees of some sort that were involved and all that which was amazing. I was like, "Wow, that's so great. It's a project manager's dream come true." And then I hear that the school board says, "You know

023what? Let's add a half hour to the school day, but let's not have any input from anybody. Let's not worry about what we're going to do in that half hour, which I'm really curious what it is that's supposed to be done in that half hour. I'm hoping it's a conga line outside the school because some of the smaller schools, they can really make it around the school. I think at least once, maybe twice. But I just don't understand what's going on. It's like, what are they going to do? I mean, the teachers, I mean, it's almost disgusting that you think the teachers aren't doing enough. I don't know which school board member said that, but the teachers I come in there, I go to school. You guys know I work in the school. I work

024at our our alma mater, Lisa. And it's, you know, the teachers come in early, they stay late, they don't get lunch. I don't get lunch. I mean, as a substitute, I don't, you know, I'm at the whim of the sun coordinator. I'm running out of time. The double secret word for Miss Abalos's class today is uh labu. So, use that for your extra credit points, guys. Thank you. >> Aubrey Vericone. And the next five, just so you all know, is Marsha Sour, Lily Jesse, Don Ferrell, Gloria Jordan, and Cindy Cruz. Aubrey Vericone. My name is Aubrey Vericonee and my address is on file. I am an educator and I'm so super excited that I'm here the same night as Vula Sarsa, a former student of mine. Um I'm an educator, a parent, and a member

025of the PWCS community. Um it is frustrating that the school board is considering extending teacher hours with no discussion of teachers being paid for this extra time. We have a contract for pay based on our current hours. It's great that TAs are getting an increase in their hours so they can get more benefits. they will also be making more money since they are paid hourly. Certified teachers are on a salary. So, if you demand more hours of us and pay us the same salary, that is a paid decrease. This isn't meant to be rude, but if you don't understand that map, you should not be making decisions for our school system. I'd like to share some evidence tonight about teacher retention as you deliberate whether to increase teacher work hours without increasing pay. Shout out

026to my high school debate coach, Mitch Gaffer of Heron, South Dakota, who taught me the importance of evidence, and using credible sources. Quote, "Research shows that employee retention is important for organizations because greater retention leads to more continuity for customers, more efficiency and effectiveness, and greater cost savings." According to con 2020, teacher retention specifically is important because teacher turnover harms student achievement according to Ronfeld Lug Wyoff 2013 and because turnover can cost districts up to $20,000 to replace a teacher according to NSBA 2019. In addition, teacher turnover can disproportionately harm students who need high-quality teachers the most, according to Carver, Thomas, and Darling Hammond 2019. End quote. This is from the PWCS website. Thank you very much. Marsha Sour Sers. Sorry if I got that wrong. >> Thank you. My I'm Marcia Sers. My address

027is on file with the clerk and I also teach for Prince William County Schools. By 2040, the United States will be a majority minority nation. The diversity and cultural wealth that will shape the future is already sitting in our classrooms today. Students and teachers are living the realities behind the data. Yet, the district's answer to concerns about literacy and college and career readiness is to de demand an additional unpaid halfhour from educators who already give countless hours to the system. That does not move the needle on student learning. It sends a clear message that the people closest to the students are the least valued. Recently, I taught my students about industrialization and progressivism, about muckreers, those who exposed injustice and demanded real reform. We are living in a similar moment now. The system keeps asking

028more from teachers while offering little in return as we are the ones in the building relationships, honoring students, languages, and cultures, and creating the conditions for authentic learning. If anyone is the modern-day muckreaker, it is us, the educators, raising our voices to say this is not good enough for our kids. We are not resisting ourselves. We are standing up for our students rights to fully be resourced, have humanized schools led by skilled, prepared professionals, not just warm bodies in front of a class. Our students deserve better than policies that demand more unpaid labor while driving experienced educators away. We're here for good trouble, necessary trouble. And to you, I say ceue. >> Next, Lily Jesse. >> Good evening. My name is Lily Jesse and my address is on file. I'm here to talk about teachers

029and what's happening with this 30 minute additional time. I I just don't understand it first of all. But I must tell you that uh if you believe that all children could learn, you have to believe that all teachers can teach. There's no evidence metaanalysis that shows that additional time will result in more learning. Uh I I have been in this business for 40 years. I've worked with probably about 3,000 teachers during that time. I haven't met that teacher who doesn't come to work on time. In fact, I had to have do you have a minute? because teachers were showing up and I had to come to work at 6:30 in the morning to avoid the time I needed to work. I find that teachers will come to work and there are three types of teachers.

030There are teachers who have who come early and leave early. There are teachers who come late but leave late. And there are teachers who come early and remain early. I provide you with a form. Do you see this? Did you get this? Please look at this because you'll find that you are the teachers, the schools that you're trying to emulate are the worst performing schools in the state of Virginia. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Jesse. Moving on, Don. Don Frell. Hello, my name is Joan Ferrell and my address is on file. Hello, school board, my old friend. I've come to speak with you again. We've known each other for a long, long time. As student, parent, and 25-year employee, when we talk about building bridges with the school board, we are ensuring every group

031affected by a decision is included. Teachers, parents, students, staff, and administrators. A proposal should not move to a motion or a vote until the people that it impacts have the opportunities to understand it, speak to its consequences, and collaborate with the board to consider the full scope of its impact. The proposed increase in teacher contractual hours affects the entire district, elementary, middle, and high school. Even what seems like a small change in extra 30 minutes a day or additional contract days has farreaching consequences. Teachers need to be compensated. Additional contract time is additional contract cost. But beyond finances, the proposed impacts teacher schedules, family routines, and as well as famil family's work, second and third jobs, child care and elder care arrangements are affected because this decision touches every level of our community. Every voice

032must be heard. We must recognize the historical context, understand the financial responsibilities, and gather meaningful data before moving forward with responsive collective decisions. We are all here for the same purpose to work together in the best interest of the students, employees and the entire staff. I recommend two things. Create surveys to collect data and second form a representative committee committee with members from every stakeholder group grade level to review the survey results. Study the logistics and financial impacts. >> Thank you Gloria Jordan. >> Good evening school board members and Dr. McDeay. My name is Gloria Jordan. My address is on file. I want to begin by saying how proud I am of the progress our division has made through the thriving futures and the Prince William County strategic plan. Serving on the superintendent's advisory committee

033on equity was an honor and it was meaningful to ensure that every part of vision 2025 was viewed and implemented through a lens of equity. I was genuinely moved hearing how many students were able to take the SAT because the division made it free and accessible. Thousands now have a clearer path to scholarships and opportunities that might have been out of reach. This is what it looks like when a school division chooses students first. And while Dr. McDade's leadership set the vision, it was our teachers who brought it to life. They stayed late. They worked weekends. They used their own resources and poured themselves into our children day after day. Their dedication is the reason vision 2025 succeeded. To every educator, thank you. This should be a moment of celebration, a moment to uplift the

034people who delivered historic outcomes even through a global pandemic. Instead, we are discussing changes that ask teachers to do more for less without including them in decisions that impact their daily lives and their classrooms. Adjustments to ours may ultimately be necessary, but making those decisions without consulting educators is unacceptable. We teach our children to communicate, to listen, to speak up. We owe our teachers that same dignity. You can do better, and our teachers deserve better. I'm asking that we honor their expertise, celebrate their work, and give them the seat at the table they've more than earned. Thank you, Miss Jordan. Cindy Cruz, and after her, the next five will be Reena Stap, Emily Cherry, Angie Trola, Gwen Edwards, Gwen Edwards, and Dearra Banks. Cindy Cruz Okay. Cindy Cruz. No. Um, Reena Stap. >> Thought I

035had a few minutes to unlock my phone. Hold on a second. Hi, good evening. My name is Reena Stap and my information is on file with the clerk. I'm here tonight as a parent, community member, and an educator. And I have two asks. I live in Braar as do many of the folks here in green and we are imploring the school board particularly chairman Latif, Superintendent McDade and uh Representative Trodenic to use your power and influence to help stop the Dominion power line from considering the blue route that goes through our neighborhood right alongside TCLwood Elementary, Patriot High School and cuts through near Cedar Point Elementary, all schools within the Brentsville district. Um, we know you don't directly have influence on that. But your voice can be a strong impact on what they will decide

036is their best route. They have two other routes. One that goes along a train track and then along 28 does not impact schools and neighborhoods nearly as much. Please use your voice to advocate for us because your students are being impacted by this. My second ask is on behalf of the teachers and all those dressed in red tonight. It was very cold outside. Had to wear my onesie. Um, I previously sent you an email with my concerns, but I'm here to say them again in short version. The time between introducing the changing of workday and tonight is two weeks. That is not enough time to get input from any of the educators whose lives you are impacting. Every teacher I've ever known works far beyond their contract hours, grading, preparing lessons, and making school not

037just educational, but also fun. Many of them work beyond their contract hours, but within the flexibility of their own schedules. mandating that they stay an extra 30 minutes at the work building greatly impacts their quality of life. So, please table this until everyone is at the table. >> Emily Cherry. >> Good evening, Dr. Latif and members of the board. My name is Emily Cherry and I am one of the co-chairs of PWA's uh organizing and membership ad hoc committee and I'm here to speak on behalf of the teachers who dedicate themselves every day to the students of Prince William County. I urge you not to vote tonight to increase the teacher workday from 7 to 7 and 1/2 hours. Teachers are already working far beyond our contract hours. We grade papers late at night. We

038le plan on the weekends. We respond to family emails outside of the school day. Studies show that on average teachers work 54 hours per week. Many PWCS teachers don't get a lunch break, much less a non a duty-free uninterrupted 30 minutes. And the division refused to enshrine the right to duty-free lunch in our contract. However, through this vote, the school board is sending the message that they do not see that the hours we spend in abundance of our contract hours are enough. That's deeply disheartening. Changing our contract hours may increase our hours in the building, but it will certainly decrease our morale. Teachers are professionals who deserve respect and collaboration, not unilateral changes. According to our collective bargaining agreement, PWA and the district have a joint labor management committee to that can meet, and this

039is a quote, in order to discuss any matters of concern to both parties. And PWA and the district are able to begin our next round of negotiations at in April. I ask you to delay this vote until you've engaged in meaningful dialogue with PWA. Doing so honors the hard work teachers already give and ensures any changes are made thoughtfully and with the voices of all involved. >> Thank you. >> Angie Trarola. >> Good evening Dr. Mcdade and the board. My name is Angie Trey Roola. I am a graduate of Unity Reed, a social studies teacher at Osborne Park. I'm also the co-chair of PWA's organizing a membership ad hoc committee. Somehow we've been told that coming to schoolboard meetings and speaking out is being political and that it's unprofessional. Why? They seem to forget we're

040all fighting for public schools. And the only way we're going to fight for public schools is we have to take this fight to Richmond. We have to take this fight to DC. We must work together. That's where this disconnect begins. No one knows where and how to express the concerns they have with conversations that are involved our time, our wages, our work life balance. Um, I looked at some comments from citizens just in the news because they don't understand what any of us are trying to deal with now in schools. We have hit a position in history that rivals the black death. There is an economic and educational shift and things are about to change and AI has unleashed a beast we do not know. The true solution to address inequity in our schools isn't

041to keep everybody an extra 30 minutes because that's a band-aid when our system needs a tourniquet. We need to go down to Richmond to demand our electeds, to find a way to give free meals to all of our students, demand universal pre-K, and change the laws so we aren't beholdened to educational monopolies that profit from finding new ways to tie student success and achievement on end ofear assessments that penalize our incredibly diverse population. Co was the final stress test on an educational system that for decades was already pushed to the brink. And these public schools are no longer designed to do what we need to do. So what we are asking you here tonight is to bring this conversation off the dis and to us at the table so we can work together the new

042PWA this organizing ad this organizing and membership committee so we can come up with solutions together. Thank you >> Gwen Edwards. >> Good evening. My name is Gwen Edward. My address is on file and I am speaking on behalf of NEA Vice President Princess Moss. I love visiting my friends at PWA right here in my home state where I was born, raised, and spent my career as a music teacher. I'm proud of the work my union siblings have done here to give educators a voice. They fought for better wages and working conditions and now have bargained three contracts that are changing the lives of PWCS employees. I'm incredibly proud of PWA's renewed spirit of integrity, grit, and commitment to union principal. The school board says they want to change the teacher workday from 7 to

0437 and 1/2 hours without teacher input. Let's make a few things very clear. First, good policy is also respectful policy. This proposal devalues the partnership that a collective bargaining agreement is supposed to bring. PWA and PWCS negotiated the 20 2627 wages in good faith and at no point did PWCS discuss a change to the teacher workday. A decision of this magnitude should never be considered without consulting our union leadership and bringing PWA to the table. This proposal devalues the teacher compensation by increasing hours without additional increases in pay. Furthermore, increasing the length of the workday will reduce the employees acred leave balances from previous years, effectively decreasing the value of the leave they have earned. Given the significant me impact of proposed changes, the board should pause this discussion until educators can return to the

044bargaining table. Thank you, >> Darra Banks. And then the next five will be Michelle Roupert, um, Lisan Bod, Andrew McCarthy, Kim Simons, Angela Stoofer, Darra Banks. Good evening. My name is Sarah Banks. I am a Prince William County resident, proud parent of two high school students, and a career educator. I've devoted my entire teaching career to Prince William County Schools, being hired in 2000 by former president and board member Lily Jesse. Over the years, I've taught through 911, the DC sniper tragedy, and the sudden shutdown during COVID. I've just seen this division eb and flow through many changes and taught under three different superintendent. I've worked when the county gave early release days on Thursdays for staff meetings and professional development to be built in during the school day. And I worked through the times

045when teachers felt that working to the rule was the only way they could be heard. I am not an anomaly. Many of the people seated behind me have similar experiences. We are the experts that should be asked for advice on how this vote will impact the division. I fear that this board is going to repeat the mistakes of the past instead of learning from them. This proposed vote without discussion of increased compensation will have consequences and the very heart of our current strategic plan, positive climate and culture and family and community engagement will take hits. In addition, this will affect staff's hourly rates for tutoring and summer school as well as bank leave and medical insurance in retirement. This action will have a long re reaching impact. And why now? Why not when the CBA

046is up for renegotiation in 2728? Why are you so so compelled to follow the pack of the surrounding counties instead of leading it? Asking teachers to work along without pay sends a message that their voices don't matter. If you truly value education, you must value the educators and listen to us because without us there's no future. >> Michelle Roupert. >> Good evening. My name is Michelle Roupert and my address is on file. I'm here tonight to address two issues. First, middle school performing arts teachers are still not fairly compensated. And second, the proposal to extend the contract workday. Middle school performing arts teachers do not receive a stipend. We receive a supplement, which our contract defines as an extracurricular activity. Apparently, we can't receive a stipen because nothing is required of us by the VDOE.

047Yet, we were told that participation in assessment is required and the county itself lists middle school music assessments as required on the division calendar. This seems to be a contradiction. If these events are publicly presented as required and if the VDOE's own standards of learning explicitly reference participation in performances that are part of our curriculum, then aren't they an extension of said curriculum and therefore stipendworthy? And if we're going to compare ourselves to Fairfax County to justify extending our contract day, then let's compare everything. Fairfax County middle school directors earn $5,275. Prince William pays 2,600. Our high school directors receive 4,500, less than Fairfax County middle school directors. We hold the same degrees, attend the same events, and often teach more students. Our compensation should at least be equal to theirs. Which brings me to

048the proposal to add 30 minutes to our contract day with no pay increase. For teachers who already give countless unpaid hours, this is not just disappointing, it's dismissive. It tells all teachers that once again, our time and expertise are not valued in Prince William County. Thank you. >> Thank you, Lisan Bod. Good evening, Dr. McDade, Dr. Latif, and members of the board. Thank you for the opportunity to speak. I come to you as a 10th grade English teacher, a special education teacher, and a case manager, and a parent with children who receive special education, gifted services, and 504 accommodations in elementary, middle, and high school. I live the realities of this system every day, professionally and personally. We share the same goal, ensuring every student gets the support they need to succeed. But I urge

049you to reconsider the proposed solution of adding 30 minutes to every teacher's contract day. Other districts have tried this approach. Dixon, USD, and Illinois added 30 minutes for interventions, and New York City DOE implemented 37.5 minutes for small groupoup instruction. Both faced challenges. The extra time often became administrative and not instructional and did little to reduce workload or improve outcomes. In fact, these changes frequently led to lower morale and teacher burnout. Instead, let's pursue solutions that work. Audit workloads, eliminate redundant reports and unnecessary meetings, protect planning time, build collaboration into the school day, invest in support staff, reading specialists, and interventionists, reduce group sizes, and improve outcomes. This is not just about time. It's about strategic resource allocation and valuing human capital. So, I ask you to table this decision until we can all meet

050at the table to design sustainable solutions that truly support students and retain the excellent educators they deserve. >> Thank you, Andrew McCarthy. >> Okay. Good evening, school board. Dr. McDade, thank you for having us. Uh, good evening. I'm Andy McCarthy, a teacher and parent in Prince William County, and I'm providing these remarks on behalf of Carol Bower, fourth grade teacher and president of Virginia Education Association. She's here to speak on behalf of educators in the Prince William County community who are deeply concerned about the proposal to extend the teacher workday from 7 hours to 7 and 1/2 hours. The decision and manner in which you make the decision will impact educators across the state. Let me be clear. This proposal has been developed has not been developed with any meaningful collaboration or discussion with the

051union or with classroom educators. Decisions of this magnitude, decisions that directly impact working conditions, work life balance, and the sustainability of the actual profession should never be made without bringing educators to the table from the very beginning. Our educators deserve transparency, respect, and the opportunity to help shape and change the lives of those who they are teaching. Additionally, increasing the workday by 30 minutes is not a minor adjustment. It is additional work. And additional work must be fairly compensated like every other profession. Asking educators who already put in countless unpaid hours to extend their day without compensation undermines the dignity of their work and sends a wrong message about how we value them and us. At a time when our division faces a teacher shortage, heavier workloads, and growing student needs, decisions like this risk

052accelerating burnout and turnover, we should be strengthening collaboration, improving retention, and investing in the educators who make our schools successful. Stronger staff equals stronger schools. Thank you. >> Thank you, Kim Simons. >> Good evening. My name is Kim Simons. My contact information and address are on file with the clerk. I live in the Braar community and like a couple of other folks here, we're here to discuss the power lines. Data centers are the bane of the existence of Prince William County. In this county, we have more data centers currently under operation than there are in the entire country of Malaysia in more are proposed. Data centers, as everybody knows, are power hogs. They need more energy than we can produce in the state. And in a couple of years, we're going to be facing brownouts.

053When the power is in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the Shannondoa Valley, the data centers have to put a really long extension cord to bring that power from those substations to where they're located. Tlaywood and Patriot High School are currently facing the threat of a 220 volt high voltage power line running across their their land. The State Corporation Commission doesn't have to listen to you. You have no regulatory authority over them. None whatsoever. Nor does the board of county supervisors. But you do have a voice. And your voice is louder than mine. It is louder than the teachers behind you. Your voice represents every member of the faculty, every student, and every staff member in this school division. And you can send a message to the state corporation commission and to the power companies and tell

054them that anytime they want to put in a power line anywhere in this county within 500 ft of a school, it must be buried for the safety, health, and well-being of our students, our faculty, and our staff. Thank you. Have a nice night. >> Angela Stoer. After Angela, the next five will be Marty Weaver, Caitlyn Weston, Turner Montgomery, Penny Stars, and Pierre Durandis. Angela Stove. >> So, I've kind of rewritten this on the fly because um I'm really shocked. This room has room for 310 people and you only have a hundred chairs out. The big message to me is that either you're afraid of us or you don't really wish to allow the citizens of this community to have a voice, which that's what I'm assuming. Um, so now on to my planned message. I

055teach at Unity Reed. I teach child development and I teach um I teach teachers. I teach young men and women that want to be teachers. And I got asked about how I feel about this uh extra time on my day and what as a teacher I thought I might do with this and I was really stumped because I had to give a politically correct answer and I and I didn't have one. So teachers need to know that they're respected and valued for their professionalism and their knowledge base. We need to be consulted when decide when decisions are made about our future. When you discuss our schedule and the addition of 90 hours to my contract without pay increase related to the time increase, you decrease my hourly rate. You decrease my value. Not my value

056to myself. I know what I'm worth. You don't seem to know what I'm worth. I've been teaching 33 years. I'm worth every penny that I get. I stop problems before they occur because I can see them before they occur. Um, will this decision elevate morale? Ask yourself that. Please table this and talk to the professionals that do the work in the schools. >> Thank you. >> 1 minute 35 seconds, friends. That's not two minutes. >> Marty Weaver. >> Did they steal my >> timer? You are cutting people's time off against your own regulations. Um, >> okay. I'll run I'll run a consecutive timer up here to double check that. Marty Weaver up next. >> No, no, you stole my time. I want it back. >> Um, no. Right now, we watch the timer. We're going

057to go with Marty Weaver next. We've never had an issue before. >> You're having an issue today. >> Well, thank you. Marty Weaver, Aacoin, bless your hearts as reality has escaped your notice. What are you afraid of? I've listened to the October 15th meeting and subsequent ones. What I heard was disappointing. One group was asking for a chance to be heard and shot down and the others saying it didn't matter to them. They only care about what they care about. I heard labeling with no evidence. I heard accusations about who many of us voted for. Well, let me educate some of you. The majority of Americans wanted a change. We did not vote for a bully. We voted for a fighter. For America, for a return to law and order, for actual females, for kids

058education, for all of us to be all we can be based on merit, for safety in our homes and on the streets, for legal immigration and secure borders, for accountability, for free speech and religious liberty. Why are you afraid of discussion? Is your position so fragile it can't be defended other than to keep proclaiming that we are stronger for diversity? That's supposed to be diversity of thought regardless of skin shades. And society is not stronger with people here who can't speak or understand the common language of this land. English no assimilation challenges to critical thinking skills. That is what Charlie Kirk was all about. That is what TPSUSA is all about. You label others bully, racist, bigot, fascist, Nazis. Why? You can't debate without knowing both sides of an argument. You argue based on feelings,

059not facts. Why do facts scare you? Charlie encouraged people to search for truth and faith in politics. A boy can't become a girl. The majority are being bullied to accept what is not truth. We are respectful of feelings. >> You have 25 seconds. >> Thank you. I don't know. know You have either Okay, thank you. And um thank you all for pointing this out. This was something we had not noticed and I do apologize. From this point forward, I will time at 2 minutes and then anybody who wants 30 seconds back from the first 20, we will go back through the list to give 30 seconds back. My deepest apologies. I think that's the fairest way moving forward on this and um and I truly appreciate you guys pointing this out to us. Um thank

060you very much. So, we're going to start now. I'm going to do the time. I will just um give a warning at 15 seconds. So, cuz we don't have the we don't on the TV screen that can do it or I'll have um let me have the clerk. Lori, you're going to do the time and you'll give a warning at 15 seconds. >> Correct. You will see the time displayed on the screen and it'll start at 2 minutes. >> What? >> So, Board Docs has a time function that I can run from the screen. >> Oh, I see that one works. >> Yes. >> Do we need to check that one? You think? >> How about somebody out there check that for us? >> We'll have both. The clerks will be in the spirit in

061the spirit of making sure we do the right thing. Let's make sure we do the right thing. So, anyways, I'll double check it as well. All right. So, at this point, we're going to go we'll start with Marty Weaver. We're going to go um Oh, did I just do Marty Weaver? Oh, okay. >> So, Marty Weaver, you get 30 seconds more if you'd like to do that. How about that? Let's go there. >> My apologies. >> Okay. So, we starting. >> Yes. >> Okay. Why do facts scare you? Charlie encouraged people to search for truth and faith in politics. Truth has to be spoken. Some things can't be changed. The sun can't become the moon. A horse can't become a cow. A boy can't become a girl. The majority are being bullied to accept what

062is not truth. We are respectful of feelings as much as possible. But we can't deny reality. We can't validate falsehoods. In the end, that isn't kind or loving. And I have not heard anyone say no to some other clubs that we might not agree with. >> Thank you, Marty. >> Thank you. Again, my apologies on that. So, we're going to go with two minutes. Can is the time up there now? Is it going to stay up there? Okay. All right. And I'll double check it, too. All right. So, up next, so the next just to sort of get us back on the same page, next five will be Caitlyn Weston, Turner Montgomery, Penny Stars, Pierre Dura, Durandis, and Yubo Jang. So, Caitlyn Weston. >> Good evening. My name is Katie Weston. My address is on

063file with the clerk. I greatly appreciate your commitment as PWCS leadership to making every decision with students in mind. While your advocacy for student success is admirable, it is imperative that you recognize that respecting and valuing all stakeholders voice in decision-making has a powerful impact on morale and effectiveness. PWCS has amazing teachers and as a parent, I truly hope you table the decision about teachers daily contract time until you have conferred with all stakeholders, especially our teachers. With the salary increase for teachers in PWCS, it is clear that you value your educators. To truly support our educators, we must recognize that they are the experts in their daily work. And it is unacceptable for contract hours to be determined without their voice. Teachers aren't clocks to be managed. They are professionals who spend their time

064teaching, planning, grading, collaborating, and supporting students needs far beyond the bell. When decisions about daily contract time are made exclusively by you, our teachers feel slighted and disrespected, leading to burnout and diminished effectiveness. And as a parent, it is incredibly important to me that our teachers are respected and compensated so that they can be the most effective educators for my children. If we want fair, sustainable, and effective daily contracts that prioritize student learning, then the people doing the work, the teachers themselves, must be included, consulted, and empowered in every conversation about their daily contract hours. If this decision is really being made with students in mind, we must table it until our teachers are at the table. Finally, to our PWCS educators here with us tonight, and to those that are here in spirit, we

065see you. We see the countless hours you dedicate, the resources you spend out of your own pockets, the emotional labor you expend, and the unwavering commitment you have to your student success. Your work is not just a job. It's the foundation of our future. You deserve to be at the table. Thank you for showing up every single day to make a difference. >> Thank you. We're going to turn that off, right? Okay. Um, next up, Turner Montgomery. >> Good evening. My name is Turner Montgomery. My address is on file. Uh, good evening. I'm here tonight as a parent who cares deeply about the success of our children and the example this district is setting. I want to talk about the recent proposal that would increase teachers contract time without compensation. It is not just unfair,

066it is unethical. We teach our children to value their time to stand up for fairness and respect the labor of others. We teach them that if they work more, they should be paid more. But this board would demonstrate the opposite. The teacher raise that was previously agreed upon was for the current time commitment and it was not intended to cover additional hours in not compensating teachers for these hours. The proposal is disrespectful and exploitative. It and it's destroying trust. Teachers already arrive early, stay late, grade papers at home, answer emails at night, and spend their own money on classroom supplies. They already give countless unpaid hours because they care about our children. Making the extra time an official requirement without pay sends a terrible message. It tells pe teachers that their time has no value.

067And for many teachers, the 7-hour contract day is not a luxury. It's how they manage their own child care pickups, medical appointments, and family responsibilities. Extending the workday without pay strips away the little flexibility that they have and makes profession and makes the profession even less sustainable for working families. Increasing workload and extending hours causes higher rates of teacher burnout, which in turn drives higher turnover, instability, and lower quality instruction. More hours do not create better teachers, they create exhausted teachers. Decades of research show that decreasing class size has a far greater impact on student success. Smaller classes mean more individual attention, stronger relationships, and students who are seen, heard, and supported. If this board really cares, they will understand that is how we raise test scores and close gaps. That is how we launch

068students into truly thriving futures. I urge this board to pause and reconsider. Model integrity, model fairness, invest in smaller class sizes, respect contracts, pay people for the work you ask them to do. Our teachers and our children deserve no less. Thank you. Uh, Penny Stars. Good evening board and superintendent. Um I'm here tonight as a parent. I've had students at all um Cedar Point Elementary at Marstellar and at Patriot School. I'm here to speak um against the blue line that Dominion Power is planning to put in. Um I know a couple of other speakers have already talked about the school board's ability to have a voice in this matter and I believe that you have more than a voice. I believe that you actually have some power um from your own document uh guidelines for

069school facilities in 2021. Um it talks about how school building should be constructed, how much size there should be, how many playing fields there should be. On page uh 16, it says other considerations recommended to evaluate existing schools include number nine, location of schools near electric power transmission lines or other environmental hazards should be avoided. Why is this important to us? We know that the lines that Dominion Power is putting in place are 230 volts. A standard voltage is about 35 volts. So 230 volts means that these are high power uh high voltage power lines. Um the World Health Organization has said that this can possibly cause cancer in children. Um kids that attend our schools, again I'm a school parent, they spend about 12 12,000 1,200 hours a year in our schools. If uh

070students go to Tlaywood, Patriot, Marstellar, they're going to be exposed to 15,600 hours of high voltage. This has been shown to lead to childhood leukemia. So, I think school board, you have a voice. You can definitely oppose this. These aren't going to be buried underground. These are going to be uh triple uh the size of a regular telephone pole, about 200 about 135 feet tall. And so I really think that you can pull with us and make our children safe. Thank you. >> Thank you. Pierre Durandis. >> Good evening board. Uh my name is Pierre. Address is on file. So tonight I uh I'm speaking not just as a parent but as someone who's witnessed some something deeply concerning with that should be concern every uh family in Prince William. While we're the very office

071that's responsible for educating our students and holding up the procedures openly tells parents that they will not follow federal code and we we have we have crossed the line and this can and this can happen if this can happen to my family it's absolutely happening to others in our in our experience in the um many family in speaking to other families I've I've spoken with procedural safeguards are being delayed denied selected selectively ignored. We are not talking about confusion or just talking about uh procedural support. Just just disregarding the law. When you when you're told that your child cannot get uh their uh needs met through special ed education and they will not follow the federal IDA requirements in the Virginia Department. And then the letter tells the the school that they do not have

072to or they're not going to tell them to do it. That's unacceptable. Uh this should terrify every member of the school board. Um if the gate if the gatekeepers of our children's legal protections aren't following the laws, then who will? So tonight, I'm calling for the school board to uh and the superintendent to act immediately to see what's going on with the VDOE and to support our support our children. You must hold them accountable. And I'm going to skip down and um do not let Dominion put the power lines near the schools and vote no to extending teachers hours. Thank you. >> Thank you, Yubo Jang. And then after her will be Douglas Porterfield. Um, Miss Feliciano Rivera, Lindseay Childris, and Charlotte UAS. Yubo Jang. >> Good evening, Dr. McDade and school board members. My

073name is Dr. Ibojama. My address is on file. I'm here asking board a pause vote on changes in teachers contract hours because we're having serious procedure flaws here. First of all, no clear problem statement before a solution is proposed. We still don't know what problem the 30 minutes extension is supposed to solve. Is it instructional need, bus schedule problem, planning time issue? The solution appeared first before a clear explanation of the actual problem. Second, lack of community input, no options presented before a vote of this scale. The usual steps are a full superintendent report, HR legal analysis, budget impact, work session with multiple options, time for public review, teacher association consultation. None of these have been made publicly available. This December 3rd vote absolutely abnormally early outside the standard budget cycle before legal review is

074typically done before teacher association typically receive proposal before community get to review options. When a proposal of this magnitude move forwards without essential data, without full problem definition, without alternatives, without stakeholder input, a vote become meaningless. It is not informed decision- making. It treats the public, educators and even board itself as if details don't matter. This is not how responsible governance works. The quality of our governance matters and the community is watching. If you proceed to vote tonight, it's simply pushing through an outcome without the due diligence that our community expects and deserves. We deserve better. The board deserves better. students and teachers absolutely deserve better. Thank you. >> Thank you. Um, next up, Douglas Porterfield. >> Hello, I'm Doug Porterfield, 12881 Dartic Court, Bristol, Virginia, Braar H Community, Brinsville District. Hello. I'm here today

075about the power line. Uh, I had three kids go through the school system. Three all went to Patriot High School. Wanted to ask the board to write a letter to Dominion or whoever's the best answer is to be strongly against power lines going through Patriot High School. Two primary reasons. First was touched on aesthetic. When the schools were developed, not just Patriot, but all the others, you do uh all the utilities underground. There's obviously a reason for that. Now we have a group coming in that is suggesting they put up the high power lines on school property that has no benefit for the school. So it's going past that over to areas where they're doing other building. The second one is safety. What you're putting on the school property is a very large structure that's

076going to be very noticeable to all the students. If you think somewhere in there if someone's not going to try to climb it, put up signs on it, it's going to be very dangerous to have that sitting there on school property that they may be uh reaching out towards. So, I'm hoping y'all will write a strong letter for both the uh safety of the students, as you heard before, and just the design of those schools that y'all have put in place over the past 20 years. Thank you. >> Beth Zali Feliciano Rivera. >> Good evening. My name is Beth Feliciano. Uh I am a resident of Braar. Um and you guys should have my address. Um I'm an electrical engineer and I'm a mother of three boys, one in kindergarten, third grade, and fifth grade

077who attend Tlaywood Elementary School. We are zone for Tlaywood Master and Pat Patriot High School and I am here representing our school community in strong opposition to the Dominion Energy proposed blue line route. Dominion is planning a six 6.5 mile transmission line extension that is raised major concerns to Prince William County. The blue line route places high voltage in infrastructure extremely close to daily walking roads and travel corridors for students from Tlaywood, Master and Patriot. These areas are not empty or in use. They are active child corridors, sidewalks, trails, and open spaces where students walk, bike, play, and travel every single day. Routing high voltage lines here bring construction zones, heavy equipment like they mentioned before. And that also means increased traffic, lane closures and congestion. That will also interfere school bus routes, bus stops

078and morning and afternoon traffic. That adds unnecessary risk to young children who wait at the neighborhood bus stops and students who walk and bike to school. As I mentioned also before, it is also uh mentioned that the V DOE clearly states location of schools near electric power transmission lines should be avoided. This is wrong. And I know that uh and I'm here tonight that I want to be clear that you as our board have the power and responsibility to push back against any infrastructure plan that places high voltage transmission lines near our schools, our bus routes, and our student travel zones. Please hear our voices and do something about it. >> Thank you, Lindsay Childress. Good evening, members of the board. Thank you for allowing me to express my thoughts with you this evening. I

079am a mother of two young children at T Claywood and I am also an AP Spanish teacher at Patriot High School. Um, I'm here tonight in stark opposition of the Dominion, Virginia Energy proposed Blue Line power lines. As many before me have previously stated, I moved to Bristo 15 years ago to find my forever home. Uh I never thought my home would be jeopardized or threatened by such an eyesore and a health hazard to my children and my family in which I have zero vested interest to fund power to data centers. You may think that I have a vent vested interest in this because it increased my salary but that's not the case. My quality of life and the quality of life of my community is at stake. I implore you to please consider the

080responsibility that you have to write a letter to the Dominion Virginia Energy Power Company. I enjoy the tranquility of nature, taking walks after work. I enjoy the the trails and the serenity that walking brings me as someone who carries many stresses throughout the day as a mother and a teacher. Not to mention that my property value will be significantly lower and negatively impacted if the blue line comes to pass. These power lines are slated to be constructed practically in the backyards of Patriot High School, Tlaywood, and will interrupt um many, many walkways where children bike and walk to school, including the pathway of both of my daughters. The blue line compromises this path and it compromises the safety of our students. How can a company supersede the guidelines of the Virginia Department of Education? As

081someone with a PE certification in addition to Spanish, what will happen to the PE teachers when there's a construction site in the backyard of Tlay and Patriot High School? As an alumni of Virginia Tech, I had the I knew people who were shot in the shooting. If there was a shooting outside, what would happen to our children? >> Thank you. Charlotte UAS. >> Hello, my name is Charlotte UAS and my address is on file. I would tell you that multiple studies have shown that students perform better in school when they are less stressed and can relax at home. But that would be doing exactly what I am asking you not to, seeing us as just statistics, just numbers. But all these numbers are real people. If you extend the school day, we will only get

082more stressed. We have responsibilities, activities, jobs, and sports. It will end up having the opposite effect that you hope it will. Teachers can come up here and speak their peace. But us, technically, we can. I mean, I am here in front of you today. But between balancing work, school, and finding time to just be a kid, we are incredibly busy. You know what other thing teachers can do more easily than us? Leave the school if they do not agree with the policies. We are most of the county's population, most of the people who will be affected if this is passed. And yet, we have the least representation of actual students. Children who are currently in the school and learning in it, who input what they believe and come up to this podium and speak for

083us. And as much as we all appreciate it, not only adults who are speaking for us. I am not an accurate representation of all of my school students, much less all of the counties. If almost all of us are against the lengthening of the school day and believe it would be detrimental to our mental health, that would not be something to be taken lightly, I am begging you to at least postpone the vote until you take a survey about what we think about the school day getting longer. Because I guarantee that what you will find is that the majority will be against it. Just because we are young doesn't mean that we are irrelevant. We deserve the ability to speak our opinion on things that will affect this. Thank you for your time. Okay. So,

084we're going to go back through um the first 20. I will call them up uh five in order. And just watch the timer on the screen. We won't give any verbal warning. I'll just um mute the mic at 30 seconds. Timothy Fehey, Paige Barlo, Jeff Lofgrren, he wasn't here. Hinanari, Aubrey Vericone, and Marshia Sour. Timothy Fehee. All right, I'll be really quick. I'll just say if we're not paying attention to the timer, we we should spend more time uh looking this over and being more careful just like we should have been more careful about the timer. Thank you. >> Paige Bartalo. >> As I as as I was saying regarding PTOIC view, this is not typical redistricting. This is not just shifting boundaries on a map. This is closing a school down, severing deep relationships,

085and displacing 89 dedicated staff members. Tonight, we are submitting a petition with over 700 signatures representing those who are united in concern and hope. Our petition is simple. Designate the new Woodbridge area school as a relocation of PTOAC View and transition the current staff with students. Please honor our petition by keeping the community together. >> Thank you. >> Han, sorry. >> All right. Can you guys hear me? Okay. Because I've noticed a lot of people aren't standing close enough to the microphone and I'm like, I can't hear you. And I'm looking I'm squinting at the the subtitles and I'm like, what? Oh, now I can see myself talking. Um, I just wanted to say I do agree with the free speech that um I don't know what that person's name was. I call it grandma

086p grandma ma. But I know I know it's so bad. But I don't think that we should put a club in that intimidates other students. All right, I've already run out of time. Look at that. >> Aubrey Vericone. >> Um, so I had gotten to my speech where I did a big quote and I just wanted to let you know that that information is on the PWCS SharePoint site under talent retention and engagement. The school division knows that encouraging work life balance, valuing employee input, and having employees who are happy with their working hours is key to teacher retention. The board needs to listen to their own experts and vote to keep teacher contract hours the same. Show us that retaining our skills and expertise is more important than just writing on the web page.

087>> Mar Marshia Sour Marshia Sour. Okay. Lily Jesse. Okay. Don Frell. Oh, I'm sorry. Miss Jesse. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Miss Jesse. Sorry. >> Well, I guess I get to close. Uh, keep your word. You don't change things in the middle and not involve teachers in that process. You have to keep your word. And I want to read off that I thought you were doing this to improve instruction. The research does not support that. John had his research does not support this. I'm not going to name the school systems, but there are two schools that have eight hour days, 200 days a year. Their scores at SOS are of 55. Thank you, >> Missy. Thank you. Um, Don Ferrell. >> I've come here to talk to you again again. I recommend two steps. First, create surveys

088to collect data for teachers, family, students, and staff to understand how the proposed changes would affect them. Second, form a representative committee with members from every stakeholder group and grade level to review the survey results, study logistical and financial impacts, and bring informed recommendations to the board. Because teachers working conditions are students learning conditions. These steps will ensure transparency, collaboration, and responsible decisions for the entire district. This is why I'm asking the board to pause, no motions, no votes until a full inclusive process takes place. Thank you, Natalie and Shannon. >> Gloria Jordan. Um, >> yeah. Am I right? Gloria is next. Gloria Jordan. And then after Gloria, just so everyone remembers, Cindy Cruz, Reena, Reena Stap, Emily Cherry, and Angie Cherlola. >> Okay, I'll be quick. I'm just going to say um please table

089this conversation until all the teachers are actually at the table. And then in terms of the power lines, that is really dangerous. that poses risk for brain development, for their um ability to sleep and for safety. Please, please, please do all you can to move that to a safer location. Thank you, >> Cindy Cruz. >> Um, Reena Stap. >> All right. Uh, teachers work hard and are paid for the hours they work. If you extend the hours with no discussion of pay, you increase, you are doubly impacting teachers who are also parents. They would have to pay for longer hours for before and after care if they have children that go to different schools from where they teach. After school activities would be impacted because they would have later start times or before school activities

090like tutoring and clubs would also have different times because teachers work contract would start before the school day starts. Let's not be like all the other counties in Virginia. Prince William County can stand out by showing how much we value our teachers. They are the ones who make the vision plan as awesome as it was. So table this until everyone's at the table. >> Emily Cherry, >> our teachers are the backbone of our school district. We're exhausted, but we show up every day for our students. Please show us that our dedication matters by pausing this vote and committing to partnership and dialogue. We want to keep great teachers in Prince William County, but you must meet us at the table, not dictate to us from the dis. Thank you, >> Angie Treola. >> Trey Verola,

091time is money, so I'll be fast since we're making comparisons into other counties. I'm an FCPS parent and attended their first schoolboard meeting in August. I'm asking if the board consider these initiatives, putting schoolboard meetings on YouTube the same night. FBI wrapback checks for all employees because FCPS is the first to do this in Virginia. F R RFID cards for students when they get on the bus so transportation runs smoothers. Teachers will have Raptor badges so when there's a crisis they can push a button for a response including emergencies with things like overdoses. Under FCPS CBA, the tier 2 ERFC pension benefit remains intact. They provide a guaranteed double pension for VRS members for an additional 3% of their annual salary. This would mean for a >> Thank you, >> Gwen Edwards. Gwen Edwards. >>

092Okay. Uh Dearra Banks. >> Dearra Banks. >> Okay. Got it. Okay. Got it. Got it. Michelle Roupert. >> Uh Lisan Bod. >> Miss Bod. >> Andrew McCarthy. Thank you for the extra time or the additional or the time we got back. Um, in this giant building that's all about leadership. There's one of the most important things in leadership is trust. And we're just asking you to trust us that we do our job. And we do it every day. I mean, we bring people in here with photo ops all the time because we do our job. If you don't trust us and give us the half hour, but we're not going to do as good of a job. >> Thank you, Kim Simons. >> And then after that's okay, take your time. And after Kim will

093be Angela Stoofer. >> Hi. Um, three points that I haven't heard anybody else make. When you're going to compare districts like Fairfax to Prince William County, you might want to consider planning periods. My understanding is that our teachers have very little planning time and other districts have significantly more time. Number two, if you're going to increase my work hours by 7%, you better increase my pay by 7% above and beyond a step or a cola. And number three, it looks like the snowmiser is gonna be out on Friday, so I hope you're ready. >> And then, uh, Angela Stoer, >> I have a book to read you. It's called Because I Had a Teacher, so you can remember what teachers do and why we need to be respected. Because I had a teacher who loved

094to learn. I love to learn. Because I have a teacher that believed in me and wanted me to succeed, I discovered that I can do much more than I ever thought I could. I realized it's okay when some things are harder than others because my teacher allowed me to observe her own learning process. I found that >> Thank you very much, Miss Stoer. >> All right. >> Um that concludes um citizen comment time. Um again, apologies for that. So we will make sure that timer is uh fixed for the next meeting. Um moving on to the office of associate superintendent teaching and learning annual school calendar. Uh Dr. McDade. >> Mr. Chairman, we presented the school calendar. Um and so we do not have any additional information to share but are prepared to answer any

095questions that the board might have. >> Okay. Um, so we're up for a vote on this. Moving on to 1401, uh, school calendar. We We need a motion then discussion. Mr. Vice Chair. >> Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that the Prince County School Board approves option A for the 2026 27 annual school calendar. >> Do I have a second? >> Mr. Chairman, >> Miss Williams, >> second. >> Any discussion? >> Okay. Um, Miss Wall, no. Okay. >> Yeah, we're discussing option A or any other option you may um not like or like we misspore. >> Um Dr. Sullivan, we we you and I had discussed separately the issue that I wanted to see maybe a half day here and there. Um and we why why is it we can't do that? It was a

096question. I I just I don't know. I don't remember what. >> No, that's okay, Mrs. Argapore. For the recommendation of the calendar, we're not navigating. We're selecting days essentially. Um, so I would have to defer that to an alternate process for consideration. >> So, is that possible still? like we approve the whatever calendar and you all could still perhaps consider ways to help with teacher workload. >> So so the so the calendar committee only brings together um >> dates >> they just just the calendar dates the holidays that's the only thing the calendar committee actually handles. Okay. So actual student um student school day, teacher work day, that's all a function of the board. Okay, wait. So, I would like to see half days for teacher work days on the calendar and I feel like

097no one ever asked me to come to a meeting about that >> that but that's so I don't that's not what the calendar >> Yeah. Right. >> Okay. So, how do I get that on the calendar? Who who else? Who else wants >> Oh, yeah. Lisa's just thinking. All right. Well, for the future then, board because I apparently the the boat has sailed. I I uh would like to add teacher half days to help alleviate workload because we know that that's significant. We will consider that for next year, God willing. Uh do I have u I want friends on that one. So, thank you, Mr. Wilk. Yeah, thank you. Sorry, Miss Argapore. A process I wasn't privy to. My >> my my apologies to staff. I I misunderstood a little bit of that process, but

098I will that you got I got that for next year. So, it's not too late. >> It's not too late. >> I have a comment. >> Thank you, Dr. Williams. >> Thank you, um, Vice Chair Blake. Um this is a a this is actually a good example of what occurs very frequently. Um as uh superintendent McDade said and please correct me if I'm wrong the calendar committee is composed of teachers members of the community. Um so well represed group of uh stakeholders correct and they only address the actual days on the calendar. Um the issue with that is there also is uh the public has option to also weigh in for suggesting half days as well as staff at any point in time. One of the things that I think is missed is a missed

099opportunity is a right now we're going to take the vote. So there are many things that we could do. If we postpone a vote now then it further delays other processes. Knowing what was brought up this evening, I would also ask those of you in the audience who are cheering to share your voice before we get here next year. That is I I I'm I'm just going to continue to say finish my statement. It it is not sharing your voice just from the boardroom. This board does also um read emails. There is the division staff. There's multiple ways to share your voice. And the reason why I say that is because it it's not exclusive to just teachers. It's everyone. That is why the calendar committee is made up of multiple people. What I'm hearing

100is the understanding of what they do and why the expectations aren't being met. That is a separate conversation that does need to be had. But I'm going to say just as uh my board member Lisa said to the board, could she find support? It it also would be um something that the board would appreciate to hear from other sources. The the excitement that is felt in the room. You don't have to do that through through calendar committee. You don't have to do that through PWA. Those are options, but you always have an option to reach out to us directly. There's always a period of time in between an idea being introduced and an idea being voted on. And I'm going to say, as I've said the entire time I was a board member, it matters.

101It it absolutely matters because that is our job. We don't always make a decision that everybody likes, but that's how we get up here. So, I hope that um when do we introduce November? >> When does the calendar committee start? >> Right. I know. I'm just wondering when did they first initially meet? Is it like October? November. September is summer is when it starts. Okay. I just want to make sure that this information is out there because this is part of the disconnect that we have sometimes with our community and who does what and when. I want to make sure that if there is an issue because I hear that there is that I provide you the information needed to know when you can start sending that information independently as well to provide you another

102option. Miss Sullivan, can you tell us when the calendar committee starts? >> The calendar committee begins in the summer and in fact last uh for this calendar began even earlier. Um we condeven several stakeholder meetings, put forth recommendations, um share those recommendations um at the cabinet level, bring those recommendations to the board. >> And and how do stakeholders, if they're interested, let the division know that they would like to participate? >> Um well, we take the survey very seriously as well. So we do uh we got 12,000 surveys. >> But on the committee, >> so um on the committee, uh we do have teacher representatives. Um we did when this calendar was drafted have a PWA rep as well um along with a few other stakeholders um and then did various groups and open sessions

103for people to provide feedback. >> Okay. I just want to make sure that while we have people present that we reiterate that because we meet we may talk about this as a board September may not come up for discussion in this vein until we're actually voting. If you're a member of the public that can be very frustrating. So, while we have this moment, I just wanted to try to lay out the timeline for those in their presence. So, I appreciate that, Miss Sullivan. Thank you. >> Thank you. That's all I have to say. >> Mr. Jesse, >> I somewhat disagreeing with Miss Williams, uh, the committee, the procedures, what they do is identify days. they are if we want them to do something besides tell what do you do in that day then we need

104to change the policies and procedures that's not their job to tell us what we do in that day so uh yes if we want and I agree we if we want a half day that's something that we need to talk about but the committee that's not their mission that's not their procedures thank you >> Mr. Wil. >> Thank you. Um point on that. Um I I think yeah to your point Mr. Jesse there is some confusion because uh two years ago I joined the Zoom calendar meeting um and listened and when people brought up the days the half days scaling back days it was immediately shut down >> killed >> Every time. And so if that is not the right venue, then we have to guide people to the right area and venue. Um, and

105Dr. Sullivan, I think I asked you um a few meetings ago about the verbatims or the submissions, and you did say, if correct me if I'm wrong, there were a number of submissions talking about half days and other in in that realm. Correct. I'm not putting words in your mouth, right? >> No, you're not putting words in. That definitely comes up each year in some of the comments. Um I I do want to clarify the the calendar committee has not been given the authority to shorten a student day. Um and so that's why there is perhaps some confusion because they're outlining against current regulations and policies. So um in working with a committee, we can certainly share like we did last week at the presentation that those comments and suggestions are made. um but not

106empowered to shorten the amount of instructional time a student receives. >> Thank you. >> Y >> appreciate that. Uh I'll be voting no again. Again, um largely because of the shortened days. Um I think everyone knows um the VDOE requires 180 days or 990 hours. Um I understand it's a regulation that we have 180 days and I respect that. Uh but I think we have,00 hours baked into our um our annual calendar. Um and given uh the inclement weather uh changes and not in my opinion needing 15, I think it's on average 15 and a half snow days, I would like to see a discussion about the um early dismissals um having in quarterly uh to give teachers opportunities to work on grades, maybe have parent meetings, conferences, etc. Um, so I will be voting

107no on the calendar. >> Um, Miss Wall, and then we'll vote. >> I wanted to thank the calendar committee. I don't know if anybody is here who worked on that committee, but um, there is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to put together proposals for the board to consider, and there were four good options that were considered. And, um, I also appreciate the How many did you say? 120 no 12,000 sorry um individuals teachers staff parents even students who weighed in with their voices and um while the four options aren't too different um option A was the most chosen of the four um and I can respect that um that that voice and I do want to say one thing um there are a lot of policies regulations and Virginia code

108that put parameters on the calendar and fitting in uh professional development days, work days, conference days, flex days, prep days, holidays for a diverse population where we have lots of different holidays. It does make for a very long calendar year um perhaps different from when some of us were children. Um, and I know that is a point of disagreement in the community, uh, in the communities at large because some individuals would prefer a more condensed calendar, others would like us to start earlier, end earlier, and others are fine with a very stretched out calendar like we have. One thing I have heard teachers and others say is sometimes with a lot of days in the middle of the week like a Tuesday or a random Thursday, it's a little difficult for children, especially young children,

109to get in a routine and stay in a routine. And I understand that and can appreciate that. And I just want to, you know, for the record acknowledge that that that's a that is a challenge of our current calendar makeup. But um each of these four options didn't necessarily address that concern that is out there in the public. But these these calendars do give us, you know, a a reasonable parameter for the situation that we find ourselves in. And um option A was the one that that most people had the most majority support. I guess it was a plurality of support. So I just wanted to put that also in the record for this. And um I I I will be supporting that. >> Thank you, Miss Wall. I'll also support um option A. I'm

110always um consistent on um I love the twoe Christmas break. that's typically among the most popular and that's why usually most folks pick that option. So, please vote. The vote is five yes, two no. Wilk Zarapore. Motion passed. >> Okay, moving on to we are up to student representative time. We have uh Miss Bula Sarsa from CD Hilton High School. Miss Sarsa, you may have the floor. Thank you. Hello and good evening to the Prince William County community, members of the school board, and Superintendent McDade. I am grateful for the opportunity to highlight student matters with you tonight. I would like to open my remarks by asking our schoolboard members a question about teacher contract hours. Many students are aware that the new contract hours may be approved tonight and would appreciate a further explanation

111of how after school activities like clubs and sports would function under the new contract hours. Specifically, they would like to know if they would have to leave school and come back or if they would be allowed to stay in a common area like a cafeteria while they wait for their teacher sponsors. Most importantly, students asked not to be left in the dark and state that they require a clear explanation of the rules next year, whatever they may be. Moving on, the student senate is gearing up for its first middle school leadership workshop. It is for the central middle schools in our county, and it will be held at Unity Braxton Middle School this Thursday, December 4th, and our student senators have lots of fun and interesting breakout sessions planned for our attendees. They look forward

112to facilitating workshops and encouraging future leaders here in Prince William County. There will be another work leadership workshop for our eastern middle schools on December 16th and one for western middle schools on January 13th. Besides the engaging student leadership workshops that the student senate has planned for the rest of the year, our students are taking the our students are taking advantage of the opportunity to build their leadership skills in their student voice committees. Students at Hilton and Kan high schools report building report building and supporting small groups of students focused on certain issues like attendance and beautifification within their student voice committees. These committees within a committee seem to be working and have given our students the opportunity to pay close attention to problems that they may have a lot of experience with or are

113particularly passionate about. Finally, just to clarify for any students who may have heard otherwise, the student school day is not changing at all. Tonight's vote is on extending the teacher workday, not school start and end times. That being that brings it that brings a close to my remarks and I hope that you enjoy the rest of your evening. >> Thank you, Bill. Um, now we are now moving on to superintendent time. Dr. McDade, you had the floor. >> Thank you so much. Um, I want to uh share a little bit of information about the announcement that we made earlier this month related to PWCS being selected as one of only a dozen divisions nationwide to join OpenAI's first national K12 cohort, giving our educators free access to ChatGpt for teachers through June 2027. When our

114educators use Chat GPT for teachers, their data will stay private. Anything that is typed into chat GPT stays within the PWCS secure workspace. It will not be used to improve AI models and the system meets FURPA requirements to protect student and staff information. Our teachers will be able to set preferences like grade level, curriculum, and format so responses fit their classrooms. PWCS educators will also have access to readytouse lesson ideas, workflows, and prompts from their peers nationwide. This partnership directly advances our proposed Elevate 2030 strategic plan by equipping teachers with tools that personalize learning, strengthen collaboration, and create future ready classrooms. As we continue this work, we remain focused on ensuring every student benefits from highquality, safe, and secure learning environments that prepare them for the future. And as we are looking ahead, we're also

115getting ready for the public hearing and presentation of the Elevate 2030 strategic plan at the school board meeting in January. This next strategic plan reflects the voices of our community and charts a bold direction for the coming four years. Families and staff can expect clear goals, stronger alignment across schools, and a renewed focus on personalized learning, global competency, and student well-being. Elevate 2030 is our shared roadmap to ensuring every student will graduate on time with the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind necessary to create a thriving future for themselves and their community. As we close out the calendar year, I want to highlight several important opportunities for our families, students, and staff across PWCS. In PWCS, we are committed to ensuring every family can access important school information in their language that that is representative

116of of their home language. On December 4th, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., we invite all families to an engagement series session focused on how to receive PWCS updates and communications in their preferred language. This is part of a broader effort to strengthen two-way communication and ensure all families feel informed and included. More information is available on our PWCS website. I also want to invite prospective educators to our instructional job fair on December 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. We are looking for outstanding educators to serve our diverse and dynamic community. And this fair is a fantastic opportunity for future teachers and school-based staff to learn about open positions in PWCS. While college football bowl season is here, I invite families of student athletes to participate in an NCAA eligibility information session on December

1179th from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Understanding college athletic requirements early is essential, and this session will help families prepare for their next steps. Finally, on December 16th from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., families can learn about the PWCS gifted identification and services process. This session will provide clarity on how gifted services work and how we support students with advanced learning needs in the school division. As a reminder for families, the registration deadline for applying to our 37 specialty programs will close February 1st, except the Center for Fine and Performing Arts, which closes December 14th. Our specialty programs offered in elementary, middle, and high school focus on career exploration, subject area concentration, and college and university preparation. Information and application assistance sessions are being held through February 1st. And I invite you to attend one

118of our online sessions found on our PWCS website. While acknowledging family, friends, health, and achievements, it is important to also consider giving during the holiday season. Many local schools have food pantries that provide the community with clothes, food, toys, books, and other essential items. Please contact your local school's parent liaison to learn how you can contribute support, resources, or financial donations. Consider giving as we all have received. Mr. Chairman, that concludes the superintendence report. >> Thank you, Dr. McDade. Um, next up is committee updates. We actually don't have a committee update. That's on as a mistake for tonight. Moving on to 18.01, teacher contract day. Uh, we have a motion on the floor. Uh, Mr. Vice Chair Blake Thank you, Dr. Latif. I move that the Prince William County School Board direct the superintendent to

119amend section 3 point C of regulation 561-2 to ensure the classroom teaching assignments, planning periods, and lunch periods of all teachers shall not exceed 7 and 1/2 continuous hours beginning with the 2026 27 school year. >> Do I have a second? >> Mr. Chairman, >> Miss Williams, second. >> Any discussion? Miss Zarapore. >> Yeah, I I think it's >> Yeah, we'll go around once. >> Okay. I I'm not supporting this. I understand that there are some operational reasons for extending the teacher workday. Um but I am not supporting it at this time. I think the board and the board does have authority to make certain kinds of decisions. I would like to have um a little more um thought clarity um about teacher workload because I think we're coming into some interesting times. VDOE keeps

120putting more requirements on our teachers which puts more requirements on the districts to do things and it it's just a constant ask of more and more and more. We've had this for five years now and it's been nothing but constant change. So I am not supporting this right now. Um and I um I just wish I could have done some more for you guys. >> Miss Williams Oh, who wants to go next? >> Who wants to go next? >> All right. Well, this might be a minute. Um, the first thing that I want to say on this topic is I want to take a minute to acknowledge the emotional uh aspect of this because I think when it I don't think I know I'm not a teacher. What I understand and what I have heard

121consistently is feedback that's that comes from an emotional standpoint of teachers not feeling valued. This is where I'm starting because this is not let me say let me rephrase this. This decision is not an emotional one for the members who are sitted up here, seated up here. But that shouldn't mean that you feel disregarded for how you are feeling and the impact that this has had on your life. That's valid. The way that you feel is valid. >> I I I I don't know any other way to phrase it because it's real. It does not change the business side of education. They don't reconcile. It's not fair for any parties involved. What I have heard consistently since the nove the the November meeting is different perspectives from each level of of the academic community. Whether

122you're an elementary school, a middle school, or a high school teacher, I have heard different perspectives from the community at large. Parents, everyone has a different feel on this. What is not being acknowledged to my uh to my knowledge is the response that we've gotten is is that teacher we don't care about teachers. This board cares about teachers. This board hold on because this is important. This is a professional discussion and and if you want dis if you want people to hear you, you have to allow them to speak. and and that is what's going on right now and it's important and if we wanted to I want to make sure that not only the words that I say and my fellow board members are heard but the words that you took time to express

123to me as a representative are restated to you so that you know that you were heard there are some teachers who only work the seven-hour day I am not aware that that is most of the teachers in this division I am aware that when teachers hear this extension to their contract day that they perceive that we that this is a punitive measure that nobody sees the amount of hours that are put in that we don't value you as professionals and that this is one more thing that this board is telling you to do. That's what I'm hearing. You are right in what you are feeling and your interpretation of the situation. Can you not hear me? I'm sorry. Someone's looking. >> Let's tone it down. >> Okay. Thank you. Cuz I can't my my ears.

124I appreciate that. So, what what I want to say is I I just want to take a moment to acknowledge that because it's a very real thing. It's a very real thing. However, what I want to be perfectly clear and understood is this board has not been the responsible party for adding all the additional add-ons. We have sat right along with you having to deal with and fight for you in other circumstances. The issue is a lack of understanding of how all of these systems work and operate together because as teachers you're asking to be treated respect as professionals. Your job and your day-to-day existence is not in a corporate office. It it doesn't function that way. So when you hear corporate business like 7.5 hours on a contract day, that's what that discussion is.

125It doesn't align with your lived experience. That makes sense to me. You feel that my understanding is or what I'm hearing is it it minimizes to you how we perceive you. And I just want to be perfectly clear in stating I can't speak for the board, but I have spoken with my board members. I have spoken with other professionals in the Kelly building. That sentiment has not ever been issued by this administration and it has not been interpreted correctly when speaking uh from a corporate perspective from board members here. I understand why you're upset. What I want to reiterate is how this process works because that is where the disconnect is. A few years ago, the teachers, the school board, the unions, all parties involved decided on collective bargaining. Collective bargaining. When we made that

126agreement, the board and the union, it was decided at that time that contract hours were not part of the agreement. >> This was a mutual decision. >> Let me explain something to you. Let me explain because this is very important. This is extremely important. And as someone who sat on this board for 12 years and as someone who's never liked that teachers work and they aren't compensated for their pay and as someone who understands how public education we we don't generate revenue. The hours that you work as teachers are not recorded time. That's not something that we did. That's not something that you did. It doesn't change the fact that it's unjust, but it also does not get us, it doesn't give us a bargaining position to get money from the people who give us

127money in the general assembly. This morning, we had a legislative breakfast with members of the general assembly, uh, our county board and the principal and and this board. We had a delegate elect tell us how proud we should be because of the results that this county produces on a seven-hour workday. Let me explain to you why I was angry. Let me explain. Because this is the part you're not hearing. >> I'll clear the room. >> This is the part you're not hearing. I don't want you to clear the room only because this needs to be said and you need to hear a two-way street, Miss Williams. >> The The point is, as much as you don't want to hear it, if we aren't able to record on paper and catalog the time that you invest,

128we can't tell the people who give us money, we need more money. Because the thing that they're going to say is, "Look at how good you do with what you got." Now, that's not fair to you. It's not fair to us who are trying to provide the best that we can because we know that public education is not fully funded. The disconnect comes in because never before have you had compensation work and work hours operate in two separate systems. We have to open collective bargaining to negotiate salary. That's completely separate than your contract work hours. This was what your union representative agreed to when discussions with us. When it comes to salary, it must now, as long as collective bargaining is in place, be done through that process with your comments going to your union

129representative. Period. That's how it works. That was agreed upon. I still don't not a fan in the sense I don't like the way the state did it, but I have to operate just as well as all the rest of my board members as well as all the rest of our employees within the system that we have. It's not 100% fair and it's not 100% just. Having said that, let me back you up to how we got here because I was here when that vote came out in 2016. It's probably the only thing uh Mr. Wil and I have continuously disagreed on for the entire length of our service because I felt you got cheated when you got 7 hours because you don't work 7 hours. No, very few people only work seven hours. I understand

130that when I say I want to give you credit for your.5, you still feel like it's an unfunded mandate. It's not an unfunded mandate. The reason why it's not is because right now teachers are our only set of employees who work a seven-hour day that includes a paid lunch. >> Let me let me let me explain because this is where disconnect comes in. >> It is not your lived day. >> It's is be the reason why I'm taking time to say this is because it matters. It's not pretty. It's ugly. The contract is as written says you work a 7-hour day and you get paid for it. That is a different reality than what you choose to do in your day or was told to do in the day. Those are two separate things and

131they are both true. The reason why this is important is at least for someone like me, I would like to get you paid more money. I also feel it is my responsibility because it hasn't been done through your previous union leader to make sure you understand this process. And I'm going to say it and I don't this is this is a fact because if it was done you would not be here saying you're not getting paid. You would not be here saying you don't understand the difference. That's not fair to you. The board's responsibility is governance. Our decision is the the time how the time is used is an operational decision. No matter the outcome of this vote this evening. No let me phrase that. If the board decides to vote and and add a

1320.5 hour day, this conversation is not over. >> The the way that the 0.5 hour day is implemented becomes operational. At no point in time has anyone said to any teacher, "Your input is not valued. The reason why it feels that way is because it's all one-off conversations. There is no there is no method. There's no organized system for teachers to come and have a conversation with us as a board outside of collective bargaining. Period. You can reread the agreement because it's there. This is why it seems that there's another bare layer and barrier between the board and employees because there is because of collective bargaining. >> But that was what >> resolution. >> Okay, hold on. I I don't I I understand the chairman is asking to clear the room and and I understand

133that people are upset at me, but it's my job because it's an elected official's job to help you understand what you're not seeing. And it's okay if you don't, but I don't want to ever hear anybody said that you weren't informed because there's a lot of misinformation right now floating in the in out in the in the sphere. And it's important to me. >> The whole point of everyone being here and the protest is so that you're heard. I took time and went out to speak to the union leaders. I have taken time to go outside. I didn't know that it was starting at 6, but the people were there. I spoke to. I've spent the past month because this was introduced last month speaking one- on- one. The problem is that doesn't help you

134as a group feel that you have been heard. But it doesn't mean that you aren't. And I want to make sure that you understand that there this is an issue that will continue to be raised until there is a way >> that meets both sides when talking about things that aren't included in CBA because that's what this is when it comes to your paid time. There was a presentation done at the last meeting in November and from what I can see and what I understand it still caused problems because the idea that this board would spend the past three four years doing everything under ospaces to ensure that we provide equitable pay to the best of our ability and then turn around and decide to take it away from one group doesn't make sense and

135it's not something that I believe in or I'm going to sit up here and agree with the 7-hour workday is paid in full 7 hours. All other employees have unpaid lunch when you move should this v board vote for a 7.5 hour workday from my lens because I'm I can't speak from anybody else's. I'm now able to give you credit for time that you're in a building that matters to people who don't see your daily activity, who do give us money, who don't understand what you do. When you move to a 7.5 hour workday, the idea is to make it equitable for all of our staff, which is one of our core tenants because what we've done is level the pay scale. Now the op the hours have to be adjusted and and that falls

136in alignment with all of the other groups our TAs all of the other individuals who will be working a 7.5 hour day minus teachers. The disconnect comes in is the fact that you hear 7.5 hours and believe that we don't think you work longer. That's not true. That's not true. Nobody thinks that. Nobody thinks that teachers are not professionals. Nobody thinks that teachers are not capable of doing their job. At least I I'm not aware of value that you're demanding requires money that we don't have. >> We don't and >> and and our goal is to get it to for you. I'm going to >> but there will always be a difference because teachers exist in a public business which is education but your day-to-day experience is not one like anybody else in a public

137business. This requires deeper level of conversation but this is not the end of this issue as many people think it is and that's important. The vote goes on the time. the operation, how it works is completely different. And I'm going to keep saying it because it makes a difference to us. >> It does. It should because you're the employees. So, it does make a difference. When you talk about schedules or you're talking about the movement of a day, the thing that I keep hearing repeatedly is people are already in the building. What I hear from the teachers is my principal will. You're going to make that has not been decided. and does making a 0.5 change tonight still won't make those decisions. The opportunity that you are asking for to be heard about how the

1380.5 is implemented that opportunity has not passed and I want to be very clear about that >> and I also want to be very clear about the fact that that is >> important that's fine. I I don't feel disrespected because your feelings are important, but feelings and operations are two different things. I know everyone's getting irritated. >> Okay. Awesome. You know, here's the problem. If I stop talking, then everybody else can say we didn't we didn't do our job to inform them how the systems work because no ever point in time has there been an hour extension to a contract day that's not simultaneous with pay. The problem is we can't do that. We cannot do it because they are two separate issues. >> And I want to be very clear about that. >> Voting

139no >> and I want to be very clear about the reason why the yes is if we vote no >> and you don't get.5 added >> the ramifications are bigger than what you feel in your day. What I would like to see happen moving forward is for us to build a community response so that the people who continue to pile on things on your day that this division is a funnel through can hear your voice because it is not us who made all the curriculum changes. It is not us who did all of the additional workload to your day. Many of those kings come to come come from the state and this is the first time in 12 years as a board member I know that I've had parents come and actually speak to your

140defense as teachers. So I'm hoping at the very least that you feel heard that you will take this opportunity to work collaboratively at all levels because it takes more than just the board going to lobby on your behalf. It takes all of us as a community because in one month this 0.5 conversation is going to be folded in still with the rest of the budgets and everything else that we have going on. So giving credit for time already there is how I'm looking at it. You don't have to agree, but it is the tool that I'll be using to try to continue to justify the amount of work that you put in as professionals to continue to try to lobby for better things for the people who who do fund us. And I hope that

141you will consider to join that team and not make an enemy out of the board because very soon we all have to be relying on each other and we have to understand the systems that we operate in in order to make a change. And if you just want to exist in those systems and be and complain and not work for change, this won't benefit anyone. >> And it and it will no because if everyone has a right to talk, so do I. Because it's important to me because what's going on right now is what our kids will see. >> Okay? I just want to make sure that everyone is aware >> because we do we do spend time we do spend time making sure that everyone's opinions and voices are heard. And I'm going to

142say the same thing that I said this morning at the legislative breakfast. This school board, this county has worked wonders >> collaboratively with our administration and we have set up systems and worked with our employees. This is an opportunity to continue down that path to continue to work to clear up the things that need to be cleared up to continue to provide equity and to continue to work collaboratively. If this shuts down discussions, then we have wasted our time with all the progress and the innovation that we have done to this point and that's a shame because right now we are where everybody looks and we should be taking this opportunity to be proud and learn to add systems to to fix the issues >> to fix the issues that this situation has brought up.

143And I hope that we will take the opportunity as adults and critical thinkers to do so and to understand how this works. That's all because you know this is the this is the problem. If if if someone is talking and they aren't heard, we can't work together. And it doesn't matter if they're in the audience or on up here on the dis. Everybody has a right to be heard for their opinions and it doesn't have to be and it doesn't have to be agreed upon. But I can't sit here on the dis and continue to listen to people come to us and complain about things that aren't true because that's a waste of time. >> So to those who listen, I hope that you heard and to those who don't, I hope that you will

144take time and take a breath with the emotions and then go back and look at the facts. It's not this is not a pretty conversation and it's not going to be easy, but we are all connected and what we do for one affects the other and that is the point. >> Miss Wall, >> they're not going to be heard unless you go to court, >> Miss Wall. All right. Um, bear with me. I have um a lot of thoughts that I wish to share. Um, I think I will start out with saying teachers do so much. Teachers are loved. Teachers make a difference. Teachers are trusted. Teachers deserve our respect. They work with our children every day. I'm thankful for the teachers in my children's lives who have helped them seen things I didn't see,

145helped them develop talents I didn't know how to develop, um, and guided me as a parent as we work together to develop amazing, amazing young adults who are thriving today. I know teaching is a hard job. Uh, you put up with a lot and I'm telling you now, I appreciate everything that you do. I appreciate all of the teachers in my own children's lives, the teachers have who have taught me and have interacted with me. Never for a second let anybody tell you that you're not valued and that you don't matter. I want to also relate some important facts. Um, since the issue today is not how we feel about teachers, which I did take the opportunity to do that, but the issue today is a very real operational decision that and there are facts

146involved. So, I'm going to try to bring it into that realm understanding that's maybe not where we all are. But I do wish to start out with this. Alexandria, Fakier, Manassa City, and Manasses Park have eight hour work days. >> Everyone else is >> we're talking about I'll clear I'll clear the room. So I expect no more um response from the audience. Uh the board will do its diligence in our discussion and then take our vote. Everyone else is a 7.5 except for principal and county which is the only division out of 19 in region 4 which is our region with a 7.0 hour workday. The only other division out of 131 divisions is in the Commonwealth of Virginia, which I believe there are 132, so don't know what happened in one of them, is

147Williamsburg, James City, County with a 7-point hour workday. Also in region 4, where we sit, 84% of school divisions have a 7.5 hour workday. Of those 19, 13 have longer work days than us. They also are valued educators. What we are considering is not unreasonable nor is it disrespectful to the profession of education. I've heard from many teachers on this issue. Please know I have heard from you. I have read your emails. I've tried to reply. I'm overwhelmed. So if I did not reply, I am sorry. It is impossible for one person to handle the input. I have also tried to seek input from constit other con in con constituencies as well because it's not just teachers that are affected by this decision. This includes students, parents, administrators at the school level, administrators at the

148central level and community members. These individuals voices have not been amplified. They have hardly been tapped. I have nonetheless tried to seek input and I have carefully considered all of the input that I have received. I've deliberated it, waited over pros and cons and I am aware that in my inbox and tonight I have I am only hearing one point of view. The task before us is to balance a variety of needs. student needs, staff responsibilities, and key operational considerations. Above all, I and I know my fellow board members have done this have always tried to look through um tough look to solve tough decisions from multiple viewpoints and consider what is best for the entire division. To do this, I keep in mind the overarching principle of what is best for students because at

149the end of the day, that's why we're all here. That's the thing we have in common. Even though our interests may be diverse and they may at times be opposed, no doubt this is a complex issue and passions are running high. I see and hear the teacher point of view about workload, micromanagement, professional development burdens and so forth. Those issues are important. I appreciate hearing from you. In my mind, they are separate issues that can be addressed and should be addressed through appropriate procedural and other communication channels that do exist. If we need additional communication channels, we can look for that. I hear the teacher point of view that a 7.0 workday is highly valued. I do point out that while it is valued, it is unique and perhaps a relic of another time, a

150past time, and certainly it does have its attractiveness. While our contract hours are seven, I also acknowledge that many teachers work far and above that, often 45 to 50 hours a week, according to chat GPT, the nice service that we have now, which I'm using, have been using. Um, that's pretty standard for the industry. I expect that's true here. And as the consumate professional educators you are, you know that this is true and so do we. Teachers in our county by and large work as many hours as those in other counties. Teachers have shared that the seven hours doesn't even begin to account for all the extra hours they put in as professional hours. But our contract hours simply do not reflect this. Um, I have heard concerns about how leave is acred under a

1517.5 day as well as concerns about a raise in pay to offset the additional contract time. There are ways to offset the impact of a 7.5 day. Uh, one is by keeping leave acral and deductions at 7.0 per day with no impact to the teacher hourly rate calculation. I know that this issue is being examined. Um, the desire to offset a 30-minute increase with an increase in teacher pay will be addressed during the upcoming budget process with budget salary increases. If funds exist, teachers can expect an increase in pay above that of keeping track with inflation and we have already we already know approximately what that will be and we know that the following year we will see another significant jump in pay. Um, so probably number one concern board is giving us more work

152without additional pay. If you look at fiscal year 2026, which we just did last year, there was a 6.8% overall average increase. The range was 3.0 to 11.5% increase. That was last year >> based on back-to-back average pay raise of 7% this year and a proposed 6.4% next year. That would be the following fiscal year. I do wish to go back and show that there has been an significant increase also to entry steps a decompression of the salary scale and we have rebuilt the scale and many I would say everybody has benefited from this in fiscal year 2022 we had a 5% salary increase in 2023 we had a 7% salary increase that was a 7% increase on the already 5% increase this is compounding 2024 we had a 5% increase 2025 5, we had

153a range of 5.2 to 6.1% increase. 2026, a 6.8 to 7.4 average increase. Folks, nobody's getting these kinds of raises anywhere else, >> as far as I know. >> This is really an important point. Going to the merits, a 7.5 hour day will help us meet our goals of organizational coherence. It will improve operational efficiency, will impact instructional quality, will provide greater student support, improved safety and supervision. when children are in the buildings will help us reach our strategic goals. Will align teacher and teacher assistant work days and schedules. It would offer a few minutes more each day for collaborative planning or parent outreach and create a higher adult to student ratio in the building. For elementary teachers, it may offer time for dedicated planning, which in elementary school we have heard for many years

154is is a problem. The details are yet to be worked out, but there is going to be flexibility and there will be continued discussion. I urge the division to consider that flexibility with scheduling to allow for the kind of flexibility that teachers are telling me they appreciate where if they need to come in early and leave at the end of the day a little early, if they need to come in late and stay late or however it is, I'm sure that this flexibility that we are known for will continue depending on the needs of the educators and the needs of the school working as a team. I also urge the division to engage teachers who have voiced concerns about feeling micromanaged and disrespected. If this is a lingering or prevalent sentiment sentiment, I urge us

155to establish communication processes whether that's through collective bargaining which everybody wanted um or some other means to gain valuable insight into how teachers are feeling um listening to their concerns about new curriculum curriculum that's come down from the state or other state initiatives or state laws or any other things that might be worth addressing which I'm sure they are. I just have a couple more comments and I'll wrap up. Um, some have suggested that we should delay this discussion and engage in a back and forth and a committee and study it. Um, which is a good way to drag things out and make everybody really I mean it it may work but it could also just drag things out. Going over the facts as presented by the division last month and in weighing the issues

156for both and against I see from where I sit I feel the issues are clear. supporting data is clear and they need from an organizational standpoint and from the lens of what will help us help kids is clear and so I feel that delaying this is not prudent and an up or down decision is merited and to conclude um in deliberating this issue I've tried to be thorough and examine the issue from many angles from the point of view as I said before of students of parents from school division leadership from school-based administrators from political operatives from employed people from the community from the taxpayers who pay your salary, educators, certified staff and classified staff and our teaching assistants. All of those constitu constituencies have a point of view and their needs while not expressed

157directly are important to consider as well and I have sought to do that to the best of my ability. Thank you, >> Mr. Jesse. Well, after attending schoolboard meetings for about 12 years now, uh it's good to see a crowd again. Uh most of the time these meetings are very boring. And uh it's I I like to have the attendance and see what we have. I want to a couple things before I I get into my little speech. Number one, chair, I hope that you don't clear the room. I will ask the people out there if you want to make noise and stuff and leave so everybody else can stay. Uh it'll take 15 minutes to clear the room, take another 15 minutes to get you back in. and I'd like to go home sometime

158this evening. The other thing is that I think I'm the only board member here that has no intention of running again. So when I make a decision, there's I there's no pressure on me. I want to do what I believe is best for the kids and best for you. So that's what I'm doing today. I have gone back and forth whether I want to support this or I don't want to support that. And so I have listened I have not read 60 70 emails. There's no way I I've read probably about 20 but I just don't have the time in the day to do everything and read emails. But I have listened and I have some opinion that I will share with you at this point. I believe there is a significant financial potential damage

159if we do this to you as teachers and most of you have pointed that out. You have pointed out the uh the salary will decrease for benefits and so forth and that's important and that's something that we should be considered. I'm also glad to hear that that will be considered in the future. However, I can understand if you are in doubt of that because the way we did this today. Uh yes, the board and I want to sort of my understanding Dr. McDade and their her staff does not decide to do this. The board asked for this to be done. So your complaint is with the board if that's the only complaint. It's not with Dr. M. She did not ask for this to be done and I don't think it was even on her

160radar. So we if you're mad, we are the one that she should be mad at at this point. However, I do agree that in all that we do, we always talk about the stakeholders and getting together with the stakeholders. You are the stakeholders and we did not get together with you. Some stop clapping. Please don't make noise. Wave your hand. Thank you. you you deserve to have your voices heard and we should be able to figure out a way to do that and get this done but you have not been heard. Some of these things that are being brought up obviously have been discussed but they haven't been discussed with you. If we have had a me a group meeting like we do for boundaries, like we do for other things with you, then you

161could have said this is what we need to do if we're going to do this. uh when we do it in this manner and I'll say to the Republicans on the board and the Democrats on the board who's supporting this, this is why we need unions because when teachers and when we do things like this and make a decision and don't involve the people that are impacting, they feel left out. They feel ticked off and so forth. And that's where unions come in. Before we had unions, I would say for the most part, we really didn't need unions because we did things for you. But this is an example of something that we did that we shouldn't have done the way we did it. The major reason that I will not support this today is

162this. That reason is this. We have I think it's six six hours and 40 minutes for the school days for the kids and we have seven hours for the teachers. When we say and when the members of this this school board and the administration said that that's going to improve having a half hour is going to improve academic performance. I don't believe it. The reason I don't believe it is simple. If you don't improve increase the school day for the kids, you're not dealing with academic issues. You're dealing with administration. You were not hired to be bus, you know, monitors and so forth. You were hired to learn, teach kids to learn this. there. The other thing is if you have 20 or 30 kids or teachers, they're not going to be used for those

16315 minutes at the end. In 15 minutes, you don't need 30 teachers doing that agenda. What are you going to be doing? I don't see any academic things. If you are allow them to do uh planning and so forth, at some point the teachers who are out there doing the monitoring are going to say, "Why are they allowed to do the planning and I out here doing the monitoring? It doesn't make sense to me." I think this is something that we should have and I would like to make a motion that we table this for another decision time. I'd like to know if there's a second. >> Do have a second for Mr. Jesse's um motion to table. >> I'll second. >> Um okay. Um hold on. So uh all in favor So we'll just

164take the vote to table this motion. So we're just it's just a table. So, if you're if you want to push it off, then you vote yes. If >> Yeah. >> Um before we uh since the motion has been moved and seconded, I I want clarification on how long you would like to table and the purpose of the tableing because there is no current mechanism to do what you are described. It needs to be developed and it not this is not whether it's important or not because it is right. But I if when when to when okay because that could take a long time. >> Mr. Jesse, do you have a date to a motion till >> this is December? I'd like to put this off until April. >> Okay. Mr. Jesse makes a motion

165to do it till April. Miss Arapore, you still continue your second. >> You second it, Miss Zarapore. >> Yes. >> Okay. Um uh take the vote on this. So, because we don't have it loaded in the agenda, I'll take a hand vote. >> Okay. So, if you're voting yes, you're voting to table. If you're voting no, you're voting not to table. And you're going to have the vote tonight. Is it on the screen? What is that? >> All right, I'm going to do a hand vote. So, all in favor of tableabling it and moving it till April, vote, put your hands up. That's a yes. So, I have three yeses. How many in favor of not tableabling it? >> How many do I got? >> Four. So, motion dies. Mr. Wilk. Um I um given

166all that said um um it is an emotional topic um as you presented and said um and I I'm going to stick mostly to my speech and stay on track and then I will add some commentary a little bit afterwards of things that I've been thinking uh adding to this emotional experience. experience uh and what others might be thinking. So, first I do urge careful reconsideration of the proposal to extend the teacher contract day from 7 to 7 and 1/2 hours. My position is not rooted in opposition to progress, but in prior data, history, and the vital need to preserve the trust we have diligently built with our educators. Before I delve briefly into prior findings, I want to address the question that is likely on everyone's mind, including my own still. Why are we

167the board revisiting this issue? Now, what is the impetus for changing the contract day at this specific moment? Honestly, I do not have an answer, and I have not been able to answer that question when people have asked me that question. To propose this change without providing clear justification or new research demonstrating why the outcome would be different. This time requires great scrutiny and sagacious planning. Regardless of the pressures that brought this proposal forward, our duty remains to assess its impact on our students, our budget, and our most valuable asset, our teachers. We need to acknowledge the history of this exact issue. Almost a decade ago, I sat here and led the charge to overturn a similar extension. I remain the only board member who voted in the affirmative in this pivotal moment. The board's

168decision on a May 18th, 2016 to change the contract from seven and a half back to 7 hours passed in a 5-3 vote. I would be remiss if I didn't thank my colleague Lily Jesse out there. I had to refresh her memory after watching it that although this was my baby, she was the pivotal swing boat that made it not 44 but 53. And I'll always thank you for that. I joked with her the other day. I said, I don't think we were really liking each other back then, but she did me a solid. So, appreciate you. That vote was a major victory for teachers grounded on clear evidence and restoration of trust. We must remember that the original discussion occurred 5 months before the 2016 vote, which also included a survey issued to over

1693,000 teachers to gauge their feedback. That process, while imperfect, was vastly superior to the original 2012 vote that added 30 minutes at the last minute before the budget was passed. The data from the 2016 survey showed a palpable concern from the staff. Only 9% of teachers at that time saw adding 30 minutes as a positive. The qualitative comments revealed feelings in quote retaliation, punitive, a loss of autonomy, and words like a slap in the face. I reiterate exactly what I said four 10 years ago. I wish it was four years ago. 10 years ago. There is a fundamental difference between a teacher choosing to stay to work late or come early versus the board dictating how long they must remain in the building. When you tell them you must do this number of hours, it

170sends an ominous message. This proposal is a matter of telling them they must work, not letting them make the choices of individual autonomy. The single most significant cost of this proposal is the impact I believe it will have on our workforce. The risk of eroding work life balance is a serious concern, making it harder for teachers to remain in the profession or in this county. Teachers will always go above and beyond their students. I did for six years. I know Miss Zagapore still does it today as a teacher. But mandating longer in building hours risks undermining the trust that is shared by our teachers and staff. Such a change could lead to burnout and attrition, ultimately harming the very students we aim to serve. I believe this detrimental move does not hold true to the

171trust we share with staff. While we may feel hopeful about our recruitment efforts, the reality is that extending the contract day risk undoing some of the progress we have made in attracting that talent. The question of comp compensation is wholly gerine to the maintaining of trust. If the goal is to elucidate the value we place in our staff, we must align our actions with our words. Additional hours would strain morale and diminish the positive school environment. We have worked so hard to build. Extending hours without increasing pay reduces the hourly rate, undermining recent gains and risking the retention of highquality teachers. This change represents uncompensated work. An extra 30 minutes daily is an extra 2.5 hours each week, adding up to 97.5 hours per year that teachers will not be getting paid for in my

172opinion. Instead of reverting to an approach that was contentious almost 10 years ago, I asked my colleagues, why does PWCS not want to be strategic and offer a shorter contract day in the midst of the teacher shortage? Having a shorter contract day will be seen as a competitive advantage for educators looking to join and improve our overall retention rates. We can gain experienced educators because they will seal see our contract pay in time and could choose us over other divisions. They can do the math and see that they would be getting quote more bang for their buck end quote. Here empowerment by preserving a reasonable work schedule is foundational for building strong student relationships with their teachers. As I said, this is an emotional topic. What happened in 2012? I was a teacher. I saw

173this occur. I worked in a building where this where the school board chairman's son at the time was literally taking note to his dad on every teacher who was working to the rule. I remember this time and it impacted me and it propelled me to run. Sure, on emotion at first, but to run for the board in 2015 and beat someone no one thought could be defeated. This is a passionate topic of mine and yes, it is emotional and it is something I feel strongly about as I feel strongly about it 10 years ago. So in closing, I respectfully urge my colleagues to vote no on this pres proposal and preserve the flexibility that has made Prince William County a desirable and supportive place for educators. Thank you for your time. >> Mr. Blake. >>

174Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Before I speak to the decision in front of us, I want to begin with something that sits at the core of every decision I make up here. respect. Our teachers carry an enormous load emotionally, intellectually, and physically. They show up for our students with heart, skill, and a level of commitment most people never see. I hear the frustration. I hear the exhaustion. I hear the need to be seen and understood. And that deeply matters with me. I read all your emails. You know that. But respect also means being honest about what it takes to run strong schools, especially in title one communities like mine, where time, alignment, and consistency are not only luxuries, they're lifelines. And right now, our system is out of alignment. A 7-hour teacher workday, really 6 and

1751/2 hours once you subtract lunch, hasn't matched the realities of modern teaching in a long time. Every other full-time employee group in this division works longer days and has unpaid lunches. But our classroom teachers are the only group with a paid lunch and the only group whose leave is based on a full contract day, not a workday. And beginning in 2026 27 school year, our teaching assistants too will be moving to a 7.5 workday as well. We can't keep operating a system where almost every staff group is aligned except the people who are most central to instruction. That doesn't support kids. It doesn't support teachers. When I'm in schools, I see teachers carrying. I see what teachers are carrying, but I also see where the gaps show up. And I talked to principles. Principles across

176all levels were clear. Elementary schools need more protected planning time, more co coherent uh collaboration. Middle schools need better coverage, more support around transitions so instructional time stops bleeding away. High schools need stronger CLTs and more capacity for real parent engagement. All of that takes time. Real time built into the system, not squeezed out of already overstretched adults. Right now, we're asking educators to hold up the structure through sheer effort and heart. That's not sustainable. Strong systems aren't built on alignment. Our strong systems are built on alignment, not heroics. And I I want to acknowledge the reactions I've heard. 30 minutes feels like we're losing flexibility. This feels like another demand. This won't fix workload. Those feelings are real. And honestly, they also tell us the current structure is already stretched to the breaking point.

177That's the whole point. We need a system that supports teachers instead of dependent on them to patch holes with their personal time. We keep hearing two competing I keep hearing all of us keep hearing two competing claims as well. This is this extra time adds stress but 30 minutes in a day isn't enough to make a difference in student outcomes. Both can't be true. Time matters. If time matters for adults, time matters for students. And the truth is right now limited teacher availability before and after school is creating real inequities in my district, in her district, in your district. Schools with extra resources can pay for tutoring and support. Others can't. Extending the workday gives students consistent access no matter where they live. This is also about safety and student well-being. arrival, dismissal, emotional regulation,

178restorative circles. Those are all crucial moments that shape the entire school day. We need more adults available during transitions, not fewer. More stability, not less. This is also not about making teachers do more without valuing them. Over the last several years, this division has invested heavily in both pay and overall compensation packages. Teachers are receiving raises again next year of over 6%. I think it's 6.4% raise again next year. Over over this strategic plan, educators have seen roughly 25% minimum in cumulative pay increases and many receiving up to 42% pay increases. That's real. That's tangible. That's commitment. And it happened during the same strategic plan that now calls for the alignment aligning the workday to the needs of the students. But compensation is more than just salaries. More than just salary. It's stability and support

179around the salary that makes careers that makes a career sustainable. And classroom teachers benefit from one of the strongest packages in the region. six weeks of fully paid paternity leave or I mean parental leave which is people don't even talk about that parental leave. So 6 weeks the mom, if you both work in the school system, 6 weeks the mother gets off. 6 weeks the father gets off. You get 12 weeks off fully paid. >> 10 days, 10 six days, five five personal days advancing a full year to start the year. Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, and prescription with no with no in network deductibles. short-term disability that covers up to 125 work days per incident. Unlimited child school event leave. Unlimited leave for VA PWA involvement. >> The VRS retirement. They we pay into the

180retirement system 14% retire um tuition reimbursement and credential support. Those are just some of the benefits. These benefits are necessities. They represent a real investment in educator well-being, family stability, and long-term security. They reflect our values and our beliefs that teaching is a profession worth supporting at every angle. And I want to be honest, the time we're talking about today isn't about increasing the workload. The expectations of the job remain the same. This is about aligning the system so teachers can do the work already being asked to they're already being asked to do within the structure, not outside of it. Not in parking lots at 5:30 p.m. Not at the kitchen tables late at night. This is also not unprecedented or catastrophic. When the workday increased from seven seven hours to 7.5 hours in 2012

1812013 and later decreased again, retention rates remain stable. The length of the workday simply did not die did not drive major retention changes. I know some have asked why isn't why isn't this part this why isn't this a bargaining topic like you heard before? The reason is straightforward. Under the current bargaining agreement agreed upon by both parties, scheduling is a management right that frame that was framed again and agreed by both parties. Exercising that responsibility is not anti-bargaining. It's honoring the structure that exists. I do not make this decision lightly. I'm a parent first. My kids are in these schools. I live with the impact of our decisions around my dinner table. I know teachers shape lives and because I know that I believe they deserve a structure that actually supports them with clearer alignment,

182safer transitions, better planning conditions, stronger collaboration, and more meaningful time with families. This change isn't perfect. No schedule is, but it is necessary. And if we're serious about raising student outcomes across the division, especially in schools where the needs are the highest, >> we cannot keep saying we want better results while clinging to structures that don't allow adults to do the work required to get those results. If we want more consistency, more interventions, more collaboration, more connection, then time must reflect that reality. I respect our teachers deeply and because I respect them, I won't pretend the current structure is working equally well for every school or every student. I won't ignore misalignment because it feels comfortable and I won't let fear the fear of push back outweigh the needs of the students who depend on

183us the most. So yes, I will be supporting this change. Not because it's easy, not because it's popular, but because our students deserve a system grounded in truth. And our teachers deserve a structure that backs them up. Not just through praise, but through time, alignment, and honesty. And then and before I end this, I've heard uh burnout get mentioned, but I'm when I'm in the schools or I'm at these events, I see the same teachers, the same teachers doing the same work all the time. Those are the teachers that are going to get burnt out. Those are the ones that are going to get burnt out. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Um thank you for this. I'll wrap up here and um you know my my remarks continue to sort of change as uh as

184the last couple weeks have gone by. Um I appreciate the board's um commitment to studying this topic. I appreciate all the input um and all the emails and I've read all of them from all the teachers. I haven't responded to all of them. It was similar to sort of the pandemic where they were just coming in and you know it was impossible to um respond to all of them but I read all of them and I know all the concerns and the issues teachers have brought up about moving on this issue. Um I voted on eight budgets. I have served almost eight years on this board. I'll vote on a ninth budget coming up. Um for context sake in 2016 as Mr. W pointed out when they decided to go from 7 1/2 to 7,

185one of the arguments was that they had frozen steps and and hadn't given steps in colas in numerous years. And um this was one way to sort of um address um benefits for the teachers by lowering that that workday. And they made it clear, you know, going back in that meeting that they thought that when we got to a point where we were um competitive salary-wise with our regional partners that we would go back to 7 and a half and that was something that was discussed at at that time. Um and one of the and and and so that's just, you know, one of the the going back to the context of why we went from 7 and 12 to 7, which truly is an anomaly. There's only two districts in the state that do

186that. And um um most districts are at 7 1/2 and and some are even at 8 with longer contract days as we discussed in the last board meeting. And so in all of those budgets that I've had the opportunity to vote on and you know was interesting when I took over it wasn't like the economy magically changed. I firmly believe that I brought to this board a strong commitment when I ran that I would not entertain a budget on my desk without a step in a cola as the first priority of the school division. That was the instruction I gave Dr. Waltz on the day that I took over that there will not be a budget that sees the light of day without a step in a cola. And that means if we have to

187cut dollars from construction or projects that we need to do because we need to catch up with teacher pay and benefits that that's what I would do and that's what I did. Every single budget since that time has had at least a minimum step in a cola plus and it's really been plus. The only time we voted on a step in a cola in the pandemic year but we had to cut back the the cola. we we did a bonus, but every budget since and and every budget under Dr. McDade has had far more than a step in a colon. And so what what we what we looked at was how can we catch up? And and and I know many of you say, well, you know, we shouldn't do what other districts are doing.

188Well, you know, the number one concern when I came in was we're not getting paid as much as everyone else around us and we are losing teachers. And we were bleeding them. We were truly bleeding them. We had a recruitment and retention problem. Even when the seven and a half went to seven, it wasn't as if it dramatically improved our recruitment and retention. What has improved our recruitment and retention is that since 2017, teachers are making 60% more money in real dollars in this county than um they were then and 40% since Dr. McDade took over. And those are real numbers. Those are real dollars. And I made that the highest priority because as our first speaker pointed out this evening. I did say those words. The strongest way to improve student performance is by

189putting a highquality teacher in the room. And the best way to put a highquality teacher in the room is to pay them what they deserve. Pay them everything that we can. Everything we can find in the budget we can. And we did that. And and and I will say it's catching up to us. I don't know how much longer we can continue these raises cuz we have outpaced our regional partners. We have now the highest paid firstear teachers in the entire Commonwealth and nearly in the nation. We have our veteran teachers are among the highest paid certainly in the region and I think in the state and our mid-range teachers are almost at parody with the quote richer districts of Arlington, Lowden and Fairfax. And that's important because I do believe if you pay your

190teachers more, you can improve rear recruitment and retention. And we have we've done just that. Our recruitment and retention is better than the state average and I think is better than the national average and that has been dramatically improved. Our surveys validated from Forbes, you know, of outside saying that we're a a top district to work for. We continue to be in one of the top four districts to work for in the Commonwealth u based on outside um research. And so those are those are that is what I sort of brought to this board is a strong commitment. It wasn't like the money didn't exist before. It was there. They just chose not to do it. They chose not to make that the highest priority. And so it has been different and we have caught

191up. I do believe this is an anomaly. I I have always had an issue with this. I do believe as Mr. Blake points out there are numerous advantages to 7 and a half hours. There are more time at um for um for students arriving, students leaving, more time for possible tutoring, more time for um count we have we have um and there'll be more time for um planning at the certainly at the elementary level. And for those reasons, I think it is very important. Now, we have raises coming up in the next two years of the collective bargaining agreement. We have um you know, as pointed out by numerous members that this is not one of the bargaining parameters that the school board and the PWA came to an agreement on. we we did not

192agree that this would be part of bargaining and um and or we rather we agreed that it would not be part of bargaining and at that time we move forward with a bargain um and so you know I've heard a lot about the word respect and I think you know I've I've you know many of you in the room were here during the pandemic and weren't happy with my decision making during the pandemic and many many folks in the community were Um, we're we're happy and and we're not happy. And and on par, you're going to judge me as an elected official on what I've done to help improve the school division and my commitment to students. And you might like eight or nine of the things I've done and and hate three or four

193of the things I done. And I hope in the end that I have more of those things that you liked. And I think more of those things that I think I have pushed forward have done things to improve student performance. And we've seen that with our strategic plan and the success that's come from that. And I firmly believe as I started this job that it does come from the teachers. I do recognize the going up on the half hour without sort of an adjusted pay as a concern. I absolutely understand that. I do have also made eight years of raises without increased responsibilities that would be outside of the normal increased responsibility that came in the prior eight years when they weren't getting raises. Meaning teachers are always expected to do more professional development, learn

194more curriculum, do more things. Those things were all they're all part of the job. And every one of you who signed up knew that those things were part of the job and and and teachers do that. And that's why we say it's a noble profession. Nobody has nobody I ever went to college with went into teaching for the money. And and none of my friends who do it do it because it particularly pays well. It is a noil noble profession. And so I appreciate that. and and and so when respect if one were to say well you show us respect by salary no division has given higher raises than Prince William County in the Commonwealth or in the nation in the same 8year period no division has done that no division has improved and worked

195hard on benefits as we have and so we've done those things over eight years without a whole lot of new demands and so I do believe that while I recognize the criticism on this I think it I am justified in my push to move this because I do believe this is good for students. I think it's good for families and I do think that you know when we sit down at the collective bargaining table the next time around this will certainly be a point of discussion and contention and and that's certainly why we bargain and why you know if we we say well Dr. Respect is by how much you pay us. Well, we've done more than other districts. Respect is by how much you give us in benefits. We've done more than other districts.

196We've invited collective bargaining, which is something that not all districts do in Virginia. We were among the first to do that. And we were the first to come to a collective bargaining agreement. And so, for those reasons, I am um I believe I've worked really hard for the teachers in Prince William. And and I think the evidence is there with our recruitment and retention and with our um our performance and and I I do recognize that I will disappoint many of you with my vote this evening. I know I'll disappoint many teachers in the division for this, but I also know that I've I frankly have done that in the past with other votes, but I also know that teachers have been happy with what we've done on salaries and it's been, you know, something

197that um hasn't been seen in other districts. And so with that, I will be supporting the motion to go to seven and a half. So at this point, I'll ask the board to vote. >> No, I mean I mean no. Yeah. I mean, yeah, sure. It's just one minute. Mr. >> I I would just like as the board makes its vote if we could um advocate to the administration to have further dialogue on how the 30 minutes, if passed, will appear because that's the missing part of the conversation. Um, there was a miscommunication between myself and the division because I'd asked for sample schedules, but I didn't make it clear that I wanted them to be presented. So, that is my fault because I did speak to some of my constituents and make the claim

198that that would be there would be a visual. And so, I want to make sure that that is corrected for the record because that was my issue with the miscommunication. And um, again, I just want to make sure that there is time after the vote for that conversation to be held on the operational end. That is what I'm advocating for. Yeah, I think um Mr. Blake, read the motion one more time so everyone remembers what it is. Uh, I move that the Prince William County School Board direct the superintendent to amend section 3 C of regulation 561-2 to ensure the classroom teaching assignment planning period and lunch period of teachers shall not exceed 7 and 1/2 continuous hours beginning with 20 beginning with the 202627 school year. >> Yeah. I so just I had you

199read that because I wanted to make sure it's clarified that there is some you know the superintendent has been directed to do this you know based on her operational management and so that that I just want to be clear on that Lori I also wanted to clear up I know we had the students speak this evening uh I she I may have misheard her but it see sounded like she thought the school day was being lengthened the school day is not being lengthened for students the school day hours will remain as is correct Dr. McDade, we're not changing the school day times. So, I want all students to know that that and and I I think that was known because otherwise I think if we were really extending the school day, we would have a

200lot more students here. But that's just I want to be clear on that. This is not extending the school day for students. That will remain the same. So, at this time, I'll ask the board to take your vote. Please put that up on the screen as motion read by Mr. Blake. The vote is four yes, three no. Jesse Wilk, Zarapore. Motion passed. >> Okay. At this time, move on to board matters. Um I think last time we started with um Lisa Zarapore, so we'll start with Mr. Wilk. >> Uh yes, sir. The only thing I want to say is um I um a previous uh colleague of mine had a very impassion speech. Actually, in my opinion, I think it was the best speech I think he's ever delivered. Um but if cons if there's

201concern No, yours was actually I thought yours was very nice, too. Um if there's concern about equity in PTOIC, I look forward to a second and then maybe a third from the Woodbridge rep on fixing the most glaring disparity of equity in PTOAC, which is Dumprey's Elementary School. So we can put that on the CIP and ensure those kids are having access to everything all the other kids are having. We can abruptly close PTOIC view under the opaces that it's a very old building but my building which is extremely old is perfectly fine. So I look forward to adding that on the CIP with your guys support. Thank you >> Mr. Jesse. Again, I'd like to thank all the people that came out tonight to express your concerns and uh it's very much appreciated. Uh

202again, I have hoped to uh start getting out to more and more activities. Uh and I'm happy to see my wife here tonight. This is the first time she's been in a long time. My guess is she's outside in the hall talking to a bunch of people at this point. But uh you know this this is a important meeting. Uh it didn't go the way that I would like it to go but uh that's the way things happen. The key thing is for you all to vote. If you're not voting, please start voting. It matters who you elect. Thank you, >> Jen. Sorry, Miss Wall. >> No worries. Um, given the fun meeting we've had, I'm going to be briefer than normal. Um, I want to report on a couple of things that I've been

203doing since we met last. Um, one of the things that I was able to do was go to the Virginia School Board Association annual convention in Williamsburg. always a wonderful opportunity to network with other school divisions and their schoolboard representatives and occasionally their superintendents and ask them how things are going um and what are their biggest concerns. This is one of my favorite things to do is just say how how are things in whatever county they're in and what is your biggest concern? What is the biggest thing you're dealing with and tell me something really great about your division? It's always really fun and I learn a lot and um everybody I talked to was pretty shocked about our 7.0 workday. Um I wanted to highlight some of the activities I've been to. I went

204to a turkey trot at Tyler Elementary. It was awesome. So fun. The kids, it was a beautiful day. Um sunny. The kids were running around and having a ball. Um Pace West held what what a gem Pace West is. They held a harvest feast for their students, elementary, middle, and high school. And this was like a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with all the sides. Um, and the turkey and and everything, the decorations, a handmade painting, it was just beautiful and really nice. And I know staff went above and beyond for it and they were thrilled to do it and the kids were really appreciative. Um, and they invited their families to come too. So for you know if if this was the the Thanksgiving feast for our family then it was it was a worthy feast

205and it was really great. So I commend Prince Pace Pace West for their amazing dedication. Uh Mountain View also had an elementary school turkey trot. Um and this was with staff with costumes um and the kids ran around. It was a reward for um I can't remember. I think it was for a a readathon or something like that. And the kids again loved the opportunity to get outside and run around and I think staff appreciated it too because it was a beautiful day. Um we had a joint legislative breakfast this morning where we met with leaders across our division super board of county supervisors, delegates, senators um and talked about our priorities as a school division because there are many laws that go into place that do affect us and so we have priorities and

206it's good for us to be able to advocate to them and let share what we need with our um elected officials. And so if individuals have um desire to reach out to their um senators or their house of delegate members, you can find the legislative priorities on our website and you can advocate and help us advocate. I hope everybody had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Um it's one of my favorite holidays. There are so many things that I'm grateful for. I, as I said before, I'm thankful for um the wonderful educators in my life who have guided and helped me along my path and um thankful for the spirit of collaboration that we have on this board. I want to leave you with a thought. Um this is John F. Kennedy on courageous judgment. He taught that

207a healthy democracy relies on citizens choosing leaders who will use their own best judgment even when that judgment is unpopular. And in that spirit you could say um you could apply his quote which is this. Those who elected us did so not only for our ability to listen but for our willingness to exercise conscientious judgment even when it leads us down an unpopular path. I wish to close with that thought tonight and I appreciate my fellow board members for their um dedication and willingness to look into these difficult issues and and tackle them head-on. And with that, good night. >> Thank you, Miss Miss Williams. >> Thank you. Um Vice Chair Blake, I uh also hope everyone uh had an enjoyable Thanksgiving break and will enjoy the upcoming holiday. Um, it will continue to be

208my position to advocate uh that our community um has the opportunity to create space and understanding to learn and and fully um recognize the different systems that our public education has to operate in and how that affects uh everyone and everything else. it it's our job as as leaders to do so and to do so accur accurately. Tonight I struggled with a lot of performative uh speeches and misinformation being tossed around and I will continue to say that does that does no one any service. I hope that at at some point before I leave this dis that we will all be able to at least talk about the same issue with the same set of understanding and defined terms because that's not going on now and it's heartbreaking. It it is the responsibility of all

209of us to build coalition and community and and to do so respectfully and and with a sense of shared understanding. And as every year that I have sat on this board, I have continued to advocate at all levels that we join forces to correct an incorrect system because it matters. And I will again say that I' I've not sat in public office and ever experienced a time where more people with different lenses are tuned in and listening. And it will only be to our advantage to continue to build a shared language and understanding and work collaboratively to change the system that doesn't benefit most of the people in it. And that's the work that needs to be done. And we're not all going to agree how it gets done. But it doesn't mean that we

210shouldn't entertain difficult conversations. And in addition to that, it is the responsibility of every leader to make these explanations clear. That's not being done all the time and it's not being done consistently. It's also the responsibility of the individual to go back and and check what your leaders are saying for accuracy. That'll help all of us. I hope that as we move into the new year that we can work for a sense of understanding that schools operate on a day-to-day basis. Teachers don't experience the business side of it. us business people need to do a better job of changing the language so that it's understood by the people that it affects and I'll continue to sit in a seat and listen to everyone who shares a comment and try to regurgitate that and try to

211have people understood that they're heard in addition to that I would like to advocate that there is some sort of mechanism built because what exists now is not for the purpose of this discussion which was missed or the discussion on the point five it doesn't mean it can't change. Nothing is forever. That's why we have votes. What I would like to say is that there's always time in between a vote is made. And there is a distinct difference between a a governance decision and an operational decision. And I hope that one day, you know, we can have conversations about that for deeper understanding so that we can work more collaboratively. In the meantime, I hope everyone enjoys their break and uh for those who have questions, goes back and watch the November meeting presentation because

212the answers that you're searching for were presented. Um and I don't think everyone had the opportunity to view that. Thank you, >> Mapore. Uh thank you. Um I am looking forward to the many concerts there are in December. So tomorrow night I will should be at Hilton and I know Kan has a bunch of concerts. My niece is in chorus there, so I will definitely be going to her concert. And I know when we get back from the break, we are looking forward to Miss Wall and I tend to go to a lot of stuff together. So, we've got some district events coming up. Uh, so I'm very excited about seeing those things. Um, just hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and hang in there for the next couple weeks until we get to our

213break. Have a great evening. Okay, I'm up. Well, I hope everyone had a chance to rest and reset over this Thanksgiving break. Over the co the past couple weeks, I've been moving around our community quite a bit. I want to lift up some moments that really showed who we are as a division. again. Um, I was able to attend the turkey tri at NASCO Elementary and this I think is a really innovative and simple idea that works cuz attendance usually dips right before a holiday. But, uh, NASCO flipped the script. A lot of families came out, kids were excited, a lot of energy, and I think that's exactly what was needed before the break heading into that break. And then I too also went and down to Williamsburg to the uh BSBA annual conference and

214um got to uh network with a lot of different school board members from different districts. Uh we also won the um we received a platinum design award in the exhibition of a school architect for Innovation Elementary School. So that was a big deal. and the Gainesville Choir was also there and they performed and did a great job representing Prince William County. So, it's always good to get noticed at the state level. U back home, I I stopped by at Minville Elementary. Um I got to see their drama club perform the toy the toy store and I'm just saying the pride on those kids face said it all. They they actually had some um cameo appearances by Miss Ellis and Miss Singleton in the uh in the plate. So, it was it was very good. And

215yesterday I was I got to go to Penn Elementary for their career day. I met some truly impressive presenters, everyone from local professionals to professional musicians. Even the dean of admissions from George Mason University was there at the at the elementary school. So, it was really good. the kids got to talk to him and and uh you know spark their interest in school in uh post post uh secondary education early. So it was uh it was very good to see how they were. And then also I went to uh I wrapped up my evening at Garfield of course you know I got to go by there at least once a week and go go where I went to watch the uh varsity basketball the boys play and they took down Mountain Jew. So, it was

216a great game, great sportsmanship. So, congratulations to the team and the coaches. And at the I just want to leave you with this. At the end of the day, this comes down to doing what's right for the people we serve. Leadership isn't proven in the easy calls. It's proven when you choose the hard path because it's the right one for the people you serve. That's the standard I'm holding myself to and it's the standard our students and teachers deserve. And I just wanted to leave you with that. And as always, thank you to our educators, staff, family, and students for creating all these moments and they're what keep me focused and grounded in the work. Uh have a great day or night. Thank you. >> All right, folks. Um we are um at the end

217of our last meeting for this calendar year and it's been a great year and we look forward to next year. At this point I'll wish everyone a happy holidays early and um see you in January.