001[CHATTER] Well, good evening, everybody. Welcome to our regular school board meeting here. It's Wednesday, March 19. Can I have everybody stand up for 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 [AUDIO OUT]. Thank you. Roll call, please. Director Tidholm. Present. President Van. Here. And Director Alvarez is running a little bit late. Traffic is slowing her down. To her left here is our superintendent, Dr. Ivan Duran. With that said, any calls or changes or additions to tonight's board meeting agenda? I move that 8.2 and 8.4 be moved to the consent agenda. So, there's a motion, 8.2. This is to approve the Microsoft infrastructure licensing renewal. 8.4, this is motion to approve the Pacific
002Middle School Replacement Project to consent agenda. I'll second that. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing, seeing none. Thank you. So we're going to move 8.2 and 8.4 to consent agenda. All right, we have a couple recognitions this evening. One recognition and then another is a community partner coming on up to be recognized. Our first recognition is National Autism Month. Can I please have Gay and Laurie come on up? This is supposed to be for April. But since we only have one board meeting, we're going to just recognize them this evening. Thank you. I'll start off here. Whereas autism is a pervasive developmental disorder affecting the social, communication, and behavioral skills of those affected by it. And whereas while more health professionals become proficient in diagnosing autism, more children are being diagnosed on the autism
003spectrum, resulting in rates as high as 1 in 36 children nationally. And whereas while there is no cure for autism, it is well-documented that if individuals with autism receive intervention early in their lives, it often is possible for those individuals to lead significantly improved lives. And whereas there is a spectrum of needs associated with autism, from mild to severe, some individuals require a lifetime of specialized and community support services to ensure that their health and safety, and to support families' resilience as they manage their psychological and financial burdens autism presents. And whereas Autism Society of Washington is spearheading an awareness effort in order to educate parents, professionals, and the general public about autism and its effects. Now, therefore, the board and superintendent of Highline Public Schools do hereby proclaim April 2025 as National Autism Awareness
004Month in Highline and urge citizens to join the Highline Special Needs Parent/Teacher Association to become better educated on the subject of autism spectrum disorders. Thank you, board directors and Dr. Duran. I'm here just to introduce Laurie Giddings, who is our assistant director of Behavior Intervention and Support, who does an amazing job with her team of supporting our students with autism-- thank you-- with autism. And she would like to just make a brief statement, if that's OK. Thank you. On behalf of our special educators and paraeducators, teachers and school administrators, and our special education department, thank you for recognizing Autism Awareness Month. As you know and have stated, many of our students in Highline in special education are eligible for services because of autism. And you said the prevalence is 1 inch 36. That's a difference
005between year 2001, 1 and 150. So we do know that the prevalence rate is increasing in autism. Autism is characterized by core differences in social and communication development. And that really affects their ability to perform and learn in school. Research shows that children with autism are almost twice as likely to have severe problem behavior. So when I worked on my Master's degree in Behavior Analysis, almost half my coursework was in autism because of the efficacy of applied behavior analysis. So I also want to thank you for allowing us to have a team of behavior analysts who are working diligently to help our special ed teachers and general education teachers, school administrators, and paraeducators to help children with autism. Thank you so much. Can I have you come on up for a picture? [APPLAUSE] OK, can
006we have Mr. Abeba come up and introduce our next partner, our community partner YETI. Good evening, Dr. Duran, board of directors. My name is [INAUDIBLE], and I'm the Community Partnerships manager here in the district. This month, we are very excited to recognize Youth Experiential Training Institute, better known as YETI, for their exceptional partnership with nine of our secondary schools. YETI removes barriers to outdoor education and participation by providing students with opportunities to engage in hands-on activities and cultivating a culture of belonging that exceeds beyond our school buildings. In partnership with school staff, YETI supports outdoor clubs that offer seminars, field trips, planning, and a variety of enriching activities for our students. They also oversee all aspects of after-school and off-campus field trips, including logistics and risk management, and hands-on instruction for activities such as biking,
007hiking, and kayaking, and many, many more. So I now invite David Dunphy to share more about the impactful and fun work that they're doing with our district students, as well as Sean. Go ahead. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Hello, board. My name is David Dunphy. I'm the executive director of YETI, and I have Sean, our program director here. I want to take a moment with gratitude to tell a little bit about how YETI came to be. And then I'm going to hand the mic real quick to Sean to tell about some of the amazing experiences that have been happening this year in the district. 15 years ago, a group of parents, led by John Nelson, who's in the audience tonight, set out on this vision that all young people should have the opportunity for time in nature
008in the district, knowing that outdoor adventure was the keys to physical health, mental health, finding places of belonging, and building resilience and grit. And we are so excited that Highline was the home for that energy and how the community kept coming together to support that momentum. I want to really highlight the Community Partner Department as key to that success in helping us get into a lot of the schools, helping us find a place for equipment when that became a challenge, and always helping us build that momentum. So thank you for that. Without further ado, I'm going to hand it over to Sean to talk about those nine schools and some of the fun things we've been up to this year. Awesome. Thank you so much. Yeah, I'm Sean, the program director for YETI. And right
009now, we currently run after-school clubs at many schools in Highline, as well as help with field trips. And I just wanted to throw out some highlights. So this year, Evergreen High school and Maritime High School students got to do a six-week snowboarding progression at Stevens Pass. Our Pacific and Sylvester Middle Schoolers have gotten to mountain bike locally. And Pacific Middle School has been to King County's Duthie Hill Mountain Bike Park in Issaquah. And Sylvester will be going there very soon. We've got Beverly Park fifth graders that got to go on a snowshoeing trip up to Snoqualmie Pass. There's a few here tonight. And we've also had our Glacier Middle Schoolers get to go up and enjoy the snow. And theirs was mostly snowball fights. But we call it snowshoeing. [LAUGHTER] We've helped with big-picture students
010doing outdoor seminars during the school day, but also, helped in after-school activities and field trips, like to Twin Falls State Park. And we've been able to support the ELS students, formerly known as WEL students, the Environmental Leadership Students, in expanding their outdoor opportunities as well. They're about to go rock climbing with us. And they're also gone biking and hiking. Then lastly, we have students from Highline High school and Evergreen and Maritime are planning for a spring break campout, where they get to go climbing and biking as well. And we're able to do all this because we've got buy-in from students, from parents and families, from teachers, faculty, the very, very important people who work at the front desk of every school we work at, and everyone else, like you all here at the board, in
011the Highline School District. And so we just want to thank everyone for doing that, especially our awesome community partners, folks like [INAUDIBLE] and others, who have helped bring us in. And while we are not yet at every school in the Highline School District, We. Are quickly gaining the resources to be there so that students can grow up with YETI and outdoor experiences as a part of their school experience. And if you are one of those people that I named, students, families, administrators, anybody like that, we want to invite you up here from YETI to get the picture with everybody. Sounds good. Come on up. [APPLAUSE] Everybody, come on up. [INTERPOSING VOICES] You guys are going to have to get a lot closer. [INAUDIBLE] Let's come towards the front, all the young ones. Close, close, close.
012[INAUDIBLE] Stay here. Sure you don't want to be in it? OK. Everyone ready? 3, 2, 1, great. Hey. [APPLAUSE] Nice work. Well, that was great. Thank you so much. So, alongside the recognition showcase tonight and at our March 5 board meeting, we have many more throughout the month of March. We invite you to visit our Facebook page to explore these additional recognitions. One is National School Board-- or School Breakfast Week, Maintenance Worker Appreciation Day, International Women's Day, Pie Day, and last but not least, our National Social Worker Day. So please visit our website. We're going to move on to our scheduled communications here. On behalf of the board, we sincerely appreciate you taking the time to join us this evening and sharing your thoughts. You'll notice that our norms and guidelines are displayed on the
013screens for your reference. Please remember that you are addressing the board, and there may be students present or watching who are listening carefully to what you are saying. Please note, while the board is unable to respond directly to your testimony, we value your input. Thank you again for being here and speaking with us. First up on our scheduled communications, Mari Moon. Good evening, Dr. Duran and board. Thank you for listening to me. My name is Mari Moon. I am one of the school psychologists here in Highline. I have worked in four other districts in Washington state, but this is my 11th year in Highline. And I don't plan on leaving, because all of my colleagues here support each other. This is seriously the best group of school psychologists I've ever worked with. Currently, I'm assigned
014to three elementary schools. All of my teams, as well as all of my current administrators and our director, are invested in our students and their families, regardless of what those students and families look like, where they were arbitrarily born, and regardless of what names those students prefer. There are adults now who I had worked with as children that have sought me out to tell me how vital it was for them that I treated them like a valuable and capable human being. For some of those former students, it was the first time they were told they were capable. I promise to continue to be that person. One thing that I would like to see more in Highline is inclusion of disability in the equity symposium and some other trainings. The intersection of race, gender, and disability
015could use more understanding. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Thank you very much. Our next speaker is Lauren White. [APPLAUSE] [INAUDIBLE] Hi, my name is Lauren, and I go to Beverly Park. I went to the second YETI trip on March 7, which was sledding. On the trip, we went sledding in Snoqualmie. I went by myself down the hill. Then me and Allison went together. And we even got three and four people to fit on the sled. It was very fun and exciting. I think it's important for everyone to get a chance to go on a YETI trip because some people can't do YETI activities. And for others, they have never been sledding or snowshoeing. For some people, going to YETI through schools is the only way they can go sledding, fishing, hiking, et cetera. Also, YETI trips are
016fun. I hope everyone gets to experience a YETI trip. And thank you for your time. [APPLAUSE AND CHEERING] Great job, Lauren. Next up is Haley and Allison. [APPLAUSE] Hi, I'm Haley. Hi, I'm Allison. We are both in Miss Hunley's class and are from Beverly Park. We both went to both YETI trips. I have been to Snoqualmie, which was where both trips were before the YETI trips. But it was really cool because instead of going with just my family, I got to go with friends. The trip was very fun because on the YETI trip, I went with four other people, which were Haley, Lauren, Miss Torres, and my twin sister Madison. I think that the YETI trip is extremely fun because you could do it with your friends. It is important because it is a rare
017opportunity to go to. And you can learn different outdoor adventure skills, like rock climbing, sledding, hiking, et cetera Thank you for your time. And go YETI. [APPLAUSE] Thank you, Haley and Allison. Next up, Katie Utash. [APPLAUSE] Good evening, board and superintendent Duran. I want to talk about my experience with inclusion. I'm a second grade teacher at McMicken Heights Elementary. I've had the amazing opportunity to work with the special education case manager, that has broadened my knowledge of students with all abilities. In our class, we have three students who would traditionally be in an ILC classroom without access to their general education peers. When they were in their self-contained classroom, they were held to lower expectations. Since they've come into my classroom, they are held to the same expectations as everyone else, although it may look
018different. They are achieving more now than we had even planned for at the beginning of the year. They have far exceeded their IEP goals. And we still have over 60 days left of school. Their classmates are kinder and more accepting than I've ever seen any of my former second grade students. In fact, one of our students goes home and researches autism so she can be a better classmate. They look out for our friends. And while this work is extremely difficult, and some days I walk out crying, I know that my students, our students, are much better because they've been included. And I ask that you please continue to support inclusion of all students. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Thank you very much. Larry Moon? [APPLAUSE] I'd like to thank Dr. Duran and the board for this time
019and your often thankless service. It cannot be easy to sit and listen to so much hate, vitriol, and divisiveness. Thank you. I'm here to spread some love today. As a husband of a Highline staff, I've had the privilege to know the Highline educators. And I appreciate them immensely. Each and every student matters to them. Equity and safety for each student is important. Children cannot learn when they are afraid, afraid of immediate physical harm or afraid of being excluded, afraid that no one will ever love them or be proud of them. Trans children deserve safety and support. LGBTQ children deserve safety and support. Every shade of child, no matter where they were born, deserve safety and support. Accepting children as they are is safety. Suppression of children is abuse and leads to the very worst outcomes.
020If an LGBTQ child has an ally, they are 40% less likely to die of suicide. Be that ally like Highline staff. Thank you very much. [APPLAUSE] Thank you. Next up, Brandi Sampson. Good evening. My name is Brandi Sampson, and I'm the parent of a middle school student. I'm here to address the lack of highly capable services. Brandi, can you speak into the mic? Sure. Thank you very much. I'm here to address the lack of highly capable services for middle school students in our district. My child has been in the HICAP program since the second grade, and is now not receiving the education that meets his and his peers' need for challenging content and be able to thrive academically and use their abilities. My child dreads going to school. He's bored. The depth of instruction that
021he was used to in the HICAP program has been lacking in the secondary education level, especially at the middle schools. We hear about the district's commitment to equity for students that need special education to meet grade level standards. However, this commitment fails to provide equity for those students that are above grade level standards that need additional support just like every other student. This lack of comprehensive education to meet the needs of students such as my son is disgraceful. The district claims that the earned honors path provides an opportunity to deepen learning for all students who are demonstrating mastery of grade level standards and showing potential to benefit from more complex work based on their strengths and learning needs. How is the district implementing this in the middle schools? They're not. That's the problem. When I
022asked my son's school leadership about the lack of challenge that he's receiving, we were given solutions of more I-ready, more desmos. And that's it. That's inappropriate and unacceptable. I'm asking that the school board reconsiders their current plan to include specific, robust, and applicable high capable standards for middle school students. RCW 28A.185.020 states, and I paraphrase, that access to accelerated learning is access to basic education. Highline, it's time to step up and meet the needs of my student and others that would benefit from an actual plan for middle school HICAP students. We need to raise the standards for students, not lower them. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Thank you very much. Patricia Bailey? I attended the board retreat on Saturday, March 15, and was puzzled by the concerns raised about public testimony. One Director stated that some community
023members attending Highline School Board meetings are critical, but do not offer solutions. I am, obviously, one of the people referenced. However, I have never failed to offer solutions to the issues I've raised. For example, at the February 19 board meeting, my testimony pertained to the serious situation of two very fine, academically focused, duly elected board members resigning in the very same meeting. Miss Petrini, who resigned publicly, stated that she had been bullied, belittled, and targeted by the district, as well as defamed with name calling. My recommendation stated that if anyone on the board or in the administration willfully withheld information or instructed others to not communicate or work with a publicly elected official, they must resign or be fired. We can't have poisonous, anti-democratic people running our schools. This was a very doable, common sense
024solution. On a different note, it appears that a majority of the current board believes a sizeable number of Highline students watch school board meetings and are likely dismayed at criticisms regarding the direction of the district. I wonder how the students feel about a dysfunctional board of directors who talk constantly about a culture of belonging, but refuse to collaborate in order to maintain an adequately functioning board. I recommend a third party mediator to help assimilate the two new board members. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Thank you. And our last speaker is Alex Myrick. Good evening, directors. Sports have a lot to offer. They can build character and promote unity. Sports may be the closest thing our society has to a true meritocracy. I have experienced the discipline of waking at 5:00 AM six days a week to train.
025I have known the exhilaration of leading my teammates to international collegiate victory. I have coached the teams of my own children and worked to impart the values of sportsmanship and teamwork to subsequent generations. The multiple benefits of sport are at risk in the current generation of student athletes. Girls' sports have always been separated from boys' sports for good reason. Boys are bigger, faster, stronger, and physically tougher than girls. The fad of allowing biological boys to identify as girls and compete against them is a blatant denial of scientific reality. Think of a girl who is important to you. Imagine she has talent and dedicates herself to her sport for months or years, then loses her chance for victory and recognition because a biological boy has identified as a girl and with inherent physiological advantages, has defeated
026her. Imagine also that she is seriously injured as a result of this disparity. The WIAA has been seduced by this madness. The easy course for you in the short term is to stay on autopilot and do whatever they tell you to. The courageous, moral, and sensible solution is to withdraw from WIAA as soon as possible. You can direct staff to create and support alternate athletic competition. It will be inconvenient and require more work, and other leftists will criticize you. But other districts will join you, and you will have stood up for fairness, safety, and common sense. Thank you very much. And that concludes our scheduled communications this evening. Thank you, everybody, for coming and speaking to us. Next up is our superintendent's update. Dr. Duran? Yes. Thank you, President Van. Tonight, I want to take
027a moment just to highlight an important step that our school board has taken in reaffirming our district's unwavering commitment to creating safe, welcoming, inclusive schools for every student, staff member, and family in Highline. With this passage of Resolution 0225, our schools, our promise, we are making it clear that our schools are places where all students and staff, regardless of background, identity, or circumstances, belong and are supported. Highline Public Schools is proud to serve a diverse community. We recognize that representation, inclusivity, and a culture of belonging are not just ideals, but essential pillars of student success. This resolution underscores our commitment to upholding both state and federal laws that protect our students' rights, as well as our district policies that foster a learning environment free from discrimination, harassment, and fear. In times of uncertainty, it is
028critical that we stand firm in our values, our beliefs, and our actions. Our students deserve an education that reflects and celebrates who they are. I want to thank our school board for their leadership and passing this resolution for standing in solidarity with members of our Highline community. Together, we will continue to make our schools places where students feel safe, supported, and ready to reach their full potential. In addition to my school visits last week, I also attended the Family Action Committee meeting, where staff shared information about our goals and priority areas. Families then joined one of the four priority groups, including secondary school redesign, literacy, inclusion, MTSS, budget, or family engagement. It was great to see our families engaging with the district's work and learning more about how we support their students and how we
029can do better in sending the message to our families and involving them in the work that we're trying to do. In addition, last week, I attended the Highline Council PTA meeting. We meet monthly, and I'm grateful for their partnership and support. I would now like to invite Jeb Binns, the president of Highline Education Association, to the podium to make a few remarks. Welcome, Jeb. [APPLAUSE] Thank you very much. I'd like to just say, you look lovely this evening. Thank you for that. So today, the 19th of March, it was a national day to wear red, red to support education. Amidst the cuts in the Department of Education, the half of the members of the staff of the DOE that were terminated unjustly, and the chaos that has ensued for everyone wondering, what is going to
030happen to the funding, and how is that going to be? And maybe one of the tricks is, is you have to get an act of Congress to stop the funding. But if you fire all the people who can write the checks, hey, deviously clever, perhaps, as we go through. So let's think about some numbers. One number is 0.8. That's $0.8 million supporting diversity, helping our English language learners. $8.1 million helps to fund our high poverty schools. That sounds a lot like equity. $4.8 million supporting IDEA and our students with disabilities sounds a lot like inclusion. And food, who doesn't like food? $8.9 million from the USDA to help feed the students in the Highline School District. Because those things apparently are waste and fraud and abuse. I'd say no. I went down to Olympia on
031Monday to lobby the legislature. And I'm going to ask that you all step up your lobbying game, as well, before the session is over, focusing on funding of special education, focusing on not balancing the budget of the state of Washington on the back of nationally board certified teachers. We talk a big game in this district about the importance of that. And so it's incumbent upon every one of you in your positions and everyone in the audience behind me that we go through and say, if we truly support this, and if we truly think that this is what excellence in teaching is, that it is unacceptable to cut those funds. And to think of all of the people who are currently beginning the journey and with a conditional loan to pay for the training, with the
032expectation that there is something that is going to help pay back that loan-- this feedback is terrible, by the way. Thank you. Then all of a sudden, that goes away. And they've done this amazing training to go through there. And now they're stuck with a bill. We must do better for them. We also worked on the idea of simple majorities for bonds. And I don't understand how we can possibly continue to not do that when it does not negatively impact the state's budget. So we need to continue to lean on that one. And then finally, we could solve the whole thing. Washington State has the greatest proportion of-- I'm on a roll here-- greatest proportion of billionaires per capita than any other state in the country. And we don't tax the rich. We don't have
033progressive revenue. And we have a majority in the House and a majority in the Senate, and they are content to sit on their majority and not take swings. Not even big swings, swings-- we've got to do something better. All right, enough of that. Now go to joy, because I've always got to bring you some joy. And my joy is actually sitting back there. He's a librarian friend of mine by the name of Mike Hechinger. And I was raffled off the other day. And you can determine if that's a prize or not. That's up to you. But Mike thought I-- was I a prize, Mike? OK, there you go. I got to go to Madrona Elementary School and read to kids. And I got to read an amazing book called Before She Was Harriet, all about
034Harriet Tubman. And I got to teach a bunch of kids about what a suffragist was, a spy was, what a general was, talking about how people have their names, and other people take their names, and other people force names upon them. And eventually, you get to choose your own name. Because Harriet chose her own name, her own path, her own destiny, and did the right thing all the way. I am ridiculously proud of all of my colleagues who are here tonight, all the people who are giving up their Wednesdays every other week to come and to support the great things that are happening in Highline Public Schools, to support their Association, to support the district, to support you all. Thank you very much. Let's continue the good work. And I look forward to it. And
035I appreciate you all very much. Thanks a lot. Thank you, Jeb. [APPLAUSE] All right, and now I'd like to invite Jackie Bryant, our chief financial officer, to the podium to give the monthly budget update. And as she's coming up here, just a reminder to our community, this is done in the spirit of feedback. We heard from the community that oftentimes, they only provide feedback on our budget once a year. And so we are doing this on a monthly basis, and we're available to hear comments from our community at any time. Welcome, Jackie. Thank you. Good evening. I'm here, as Dr. Duran mentioned, for my monthly budget update for the month of March. And March enrollment continues to trend upward, which is fantastic news. We are 542 FTE over projection as of March 1. That will
036continue to fluctuate throughout the year. And as you know, our budget is built off of an annual average FTE. So we will continue looking at enrollment month to month. Our year-to-date revenue and expenditures are exactly where we would expect them to be at this time of year. Our revenue, we've collected about 44% of our budgeted revenue to 47% of our expenditures. And it fluctuates quite a bit this time of year because apportionment comes in different percentages each month. So it's not a flat amount each month. So that fluctuates along with our tax collection. So you'll see our revenue spike in April, when we have our next collection of taxes. Our year-to-date revenue, you can see. As I mentioned, our local is trending exactly where we would think it would, state as well. We continue to
037collect federal dollars. And our other grants are a little bit lower than expected, but they will trend up towards the end of the year as we continue to follow up with our grantees. Our year-to-date expenditures are exactly where we would expect as well. The only one that's trending slightly higher than budgeted right now is special education. And we also expected that. Usually, we have a trend a little bit higher this time of year. So our 2526 budget development, we have been very busy with budget development over the past month. And I would say, February, and March is our collaboration time, where the team is really reaching out and working with school leaders and department leaders to start and continue thinking through their budget for next year. And then getting into April and May is when
038we're really heads down and doing the work that we've collected for the past few months. So a couple of big things that we've done this month, I think today and tomorrow are the last RAM meeting, so Resource Alignment Meetings with our school leaders. And as you know, that's a large group that is comprised of business services, human resources, student learning, student support. And we're on week two now, and I think our last one is Friday. So it's very exciting. And then we also have central resource allocation meetings as well. Those are with all department leads and budget authorities. And so we do the same process with them as we do with school leaders to get ready for next year. We had our CFAC meeting at the end of-- or the beginning of last month. And
039it was really, a really, really engaging evening. Our executive director of capital planning, Ellie, did a fantastic job putting together a activity for all the participants so they can actually start getting practice. So they were working with hypothetical situations and hypothetical schools, so they can start really thinking through, when we get into the hard work of determining what the next bond could potentially look like, we really know what criteria we're looking for. And so they went through and identified seven key factors that they believe are very important, when we looked at bond planning, and then started weighing those. So we were working through this idea of, how do you weight different factors in order to evaluate which buildings need rebuilding or remodeling with the next bond? So it was a really interesting evening. We're going
040to continue it into our next CFAC meeting, which will be the last one of this school year. And then we have one almost every month, next year as we plan for a bond recommendation to come to you next spring. And last, Dr. Duran mentioned we had our FAC meeting. I was lucky enough to join and do a presentation for FAC committee. And then we are leading a subcommittee now for budget. And so we will be meeting-- or I will be meeting with the subcommittee a few times throughout the end of this year. And then hopefully, it'll continue into next year and really get some feedback from families and community around our budget development. So what's next? This is our busiest time of the year. State revenue projections were released yesterday. No surprises there, exactly what
041we've been hearing, billions of dollars. So we'll continue to work on that. The Senate and House budgets will be released the week of March 24. We're expecting the Senate and the House budgets next Monday. So as soon as we get those, we go into analysis mode and really see the difference between the two, and try and guess or estimate where the actual budget will land. And so we'll be working on that a lot next week. Well, we are going to continue advocating for fully funding basic education. We're going to continue testifying and for all these bills that are continuing through the process. And very excited that hopefully, we'll receive some additional funding around special education and MSOC this year. We're continuing to refine our projections. Tomorrow, I get to meet with SSLT, the Superintendent Student
042Leadership Team. So I'm excited to work with our students and talk about the budget and do some activities with them. And we have our final SALT meeting, Superintendent Advisory Leadership Team meeting of the year next week. So we will continue our work there and come back and present it to you in an upcoming meeting. And we are going to launch our second thought exchange, I believe, on Friday. So that will be open for a few weeks. And we'll collect some feedback from our community, students, families, and staff. I'm happy to take any questions. Thank you so much, Jackie. Directors, any followup questions you may have? We have none. OK, thank you. All right, thank you, Jackie. That concludes my update for today. [APPLAUSE] Thank you so much, Dr. Duran. And we're going to move on
043to our school board reports. We're going to start off with our legislative reports. Vice President Tidholm? We have passed some key milestones in this year's legislative session. Last week was the last week to consider bills in their respective houses of origin. And any bills that did not get heard are what they consider to be dead. So we're anticipating operating and transportation budgets next week, with capital budgets by the end of March. In terms of bills that we're following, very pleased that the special education MSOC budgets are moving forward. Thank you, Dr. Doran, for testifying for both of them today, just a little bit ago. We hope that the House can move closer to the Senate's version of the MSOC bill, though, because it will definitely bring additional revenue to Highline, which, as we know, we
044need. Senate Bill 5637 would amend the current civics education requirement to add instruction on media literacy. And Senate Bill 5189, the mastery education bill that's part of our legislative agenda, has had one hearing in the House and has another one tomorrow. And slightly separate, but also related, the State Board of Education has begun their future ready initiative, which aims at updating the state's graduation requirements to ensure students are well-prepared for their futures. This will be lengthy, anticipating to end with a legislative recommendation to the 2027 legislature. And if you're interested in staying up to date on their work, you can always sign up at the website at sbe.wa.gov. And that is all I have, aside from it would be lovely if the state would fulfill their paramount duty to fully fund education. Thank you so
045much for that. We're going to move to our directors' reports. Director Alvarez. So thank you, President Van. And sorry for being late. I just want to say a big shout-out for Future You. I had an opportunity to participate that a couple of years ago. It's been a while. But it's amazing to see our 11th grade students across Highline. They will be having a Future You-- Future University or Future You on March 26 at Green River College. Students will meet with representatives from various pathways. They'll tour the campus and learn how college and career training can be affordable. This is one of the many ways we support our students in being future ready and prepared for the future they choose after high school. I got to participate. Like I said, it's been several years. And it
046was awesome. I got to follow them through. They get to go to classrooms. They get to actually go through a budget. Like, if they're applying for financial aid, they get to go through, how much money are they going to spend for-- are they going to be able to take a car? Can they afford insurance? Are they going to get a pass? I mean, they have to make decisions like if they were going off to college. And I was incredible to see. I was watching some of the kids, like, oh, I'll just take a car. And they have a budget. And I'm like, Oh my gosh, I won't be able to pay for gas, I won't be able to drive a car. And I'm like, that's right. So to. it was amazing to see in real
047time what the choices they were going to have to make. So it's exciting to see our kids have the opportunity to make those type of practice runs. And then just exciting to see we've had some meetings. We had a retreat this last Saturday, and exciting to, also, just interview a lot of candidates. And so tonight, we'll be making some decisions. So thank you, President Van. That concludes my report. Thank you so much. Director Tidholm. First of all, I think the baby's left. But huge thank you to them for coming out to speak today. That YETI program is so cool. As an avid outdoorsy person myself, I really appreciate the babies having the opportunity. Because a lot of kids don't have the resources in their family, or their parents don't have the time. Or quite frankly,
048we're in the city. And how many of us really get outside to get outside? So great that they actually to get out and do those things and experience it, and not just be stuck behind these dang tablets and TVs that we have these days. And then last week, we celebrated the Education Support Professionals Week and the important role that the staff play in our schools. And if you want to hear about their impact, you can check out this year's nominees for the Outstanding Classified Staff Gold Star Award. Their stories and reasons they were nominated are featured on the Highline website. And the Highline Schools Foundation is going to be celebrating all of the Gold Star nominees and announce this year's winner at this Thursday's Gold Star Bash, so tomorrow evening. Congratulations also to Parkside Elementary
049counselor Helen Edwards for receiving-- bless you-- for receiving the Washington School Counselor Association Equity in Action Award. That's a mouthful. She has been a Parkside counselor since 1994, y'all. This award honors counselors who advance equity in education and closing opportunity gaps. She has had a profound impact on her community in those years by closing the equity gaps and creating inclusive environments where students feel valued. Greatly appreciate her and all of her years in our district. And that is all that I have this evening. Thank you so much. Vice President Tidholm-- Director Alvarez, you had something else to share? Yes. I just wanted to add, I just happened to see a great community member here in the audience. And I never get the privilege to really thank her out in public. And she's just an amazing
050neighbor. And she's always out in the community just supporting our schools. She's a great partner with one of our schools in one of my schools that I support. And she's always hauling kids in one place or another. And she's making the time to be here tonight. So I just want to publicly thank Jane. I see her. She's just a great supporter. She is always organizing things at our school. And when she has to translate things for her school, she's always running over to my house and saying, how do you? She's always been inclusive of making sure that she translate things to make sure her community gets things translated. So I just publicly thank her for being here tonight. Thank you, Director Alvarez. A couple of things here, just want to thank the board, superintendent, and
051the community that came out this last weekend on Saturday for board retreat, a lot of good conversations to be had and some goals for the board by June. So I'm looking forward to that. I had the opportunity to attend the Family University last night at Chinook. I also see a few parents that were there last night as I look up. What a great evening to showcase how to navigate the school system. It was really great. And I was walking out with Lita. I said, Lita, you know what? This is a great program to have for directors, but also, our community to be involved. So I'm going to implore that we highlight more of that so our community comes out and see how our system works from our state down to the local level here. So
052I just want to do a shout-out to you and your team. That was just awesome. So thank you. Directors, just I'm going to share something here more on a personal note tonight. I've spent my career in the private industry, leading teams in manufacturing and supply chain distribution. In my world, I worked with many kinds of different employees. There are seasoned and veterans who have been with us since day one. They know the job inside and out. Give them a goal, a little guidance, and they'll make it happen, which is great. Then there are new hires, people just starting out, some new to the field, some new to the area. They need time, support, and patience to really develop their skills. They may not be the fastest right off the bat, right? But the right mentorship,
053they'll get there. But like any business, I have performance metrics to meet. Senior leadership looks at production numbers and expect results. Some days we hit them. Celebrate that. Some days we don't. And that's OK. Because growth takes time. And it takes an average of about a year and a half to three years for them to be proficient. So should I expect a brand new hire to perform at the same level as someone with years of experience? No. That's not a failure. It's really reality. The real measure of success isn't just hitting numbers. It's really whether people are improving, learning, and becoming the best versions of themselves. Now I flip this. Because I take my professional life and my school board life, and I intermingle them because they correlate. So let's apply the same perspective to
054our students. Too often, we see data that treats all of our students as if they start on equal footing, as if they all have the same resources, the same background, the same opportunities, and the same support at home. But we know that's not the case. A student who has been in the system since day one will have an advantage over a student that has just arrived. Research shows that it takes four to seven years for a new student to catch up to grade level. It's not their fault. That's not the district's fault. That's just how learning works. If you only look at the broad numbers, you might miss the real progress happening in our classrooms. But if you look at each student's growth, the progress is undeniable. Some students are making one to two years'
055worth of academic growth. Yes, they may still be behind on paper. But they are moving forward. And that's something worth celebrating. To those who say our numbers are not where they should be, I hear you. We're working on it. But I challenge you to look beyond the surface and ask, are we making progress? Are we moving in the right direction? The answer is yes. Tonight, I want to celebrate with our teachers, staff, administrators, leaders, for their dedication and hard work. Importantly, I want to celebrate our students for their resilience, their determination, and their growth. Despite the criticism from our community, despite the report cards, they are learning. They are pushing forward, and I'm behind them on that. Think about your own journey. And I share this a lot with my kids. You did not start
056running before you learned how to crawl. You took small steps, stumbled and got back up, and kept going. But what if somebody had told you, just because you weren't as fast as someone else, you weren't good enough? How would that make you feel? I also want to share that there has been a lot of talk about past board directors stepping down. Let me be clear. I'm still here. I respect Director Hagos and Director Petrini. In fact, we align more than you think. But every story has two sides. And too often only one is heard. The idea that we chased them out is an oversimplification. I know what this board stands for. I know what I stand for. And I know what real change happens when we work together and not when we tear each other
057down. I am proud of this board and its past directors that I have worked alongside with. And I'm proud of our students. And I'm proud of where we're going. To end this, someone recently shared something with me after everything that has happened. I replaced the word "you" with "we." So here we go. We are the right people, in the right seat, at the right time. And I believe that. So thank you so much. And that ends our board reports. [APPLAUSE] Thank you. All right, we're going to move to our consent agenda. Can I please have a motion to approve them? I move that we approve our consent agenda. All those in favor? I'll second. Oh. He's ahead of yourself today, Joe. OK, a second? I'm jumping. Can I get a second, please? I'll second. All
058those in favor? Aye. Any of those opposed? Hear and see none. There's nothing that was removed from the consent agenda. We're going to move to our action item 8.1. This is motion to approve School Board Resolution 04-25. Any questions or comments on that? Hear and seeing none, can I please have a motion? I move that-- oh, sorry. I move that the Highline School Board approve Resolution 4-25, authorizing the superintendent to direct action to implement the reduced educational program for certified staff-- certificated staff, sorry, for school year 2025 to '26 and notify certificated non-supervisory staff adversely affected by the reduction prior to May 15, 2025. Can I please have a second? I'll second that. Roll call, please. Director Tidholm? Yea. Director Alvarez? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion passes three to none. Thank you. 8.2 was
059moved to our consent agenda, moved to 8.3. This is motion to approve surplus of classroom portables. Any questions or comments? I have no questions or comments. I know that we had a discussion last time about it, so I have no questions or comments. That is correct. Just also a little tidbit of information that this surplus of classroom portables, that's also including the transportation, moving all of that stuff as well. So that's not upon the district to move that. That's right. So with that, I move that the Highline School Board approve the surplus of the two dual classroom portable buildings at the Pacific Middle School, in accordance with RCW 28A.335.180, allowing for their disposition in compliance with the state regulations. I'll second. Roll call, please. Director Alvarez? Yea. Director Tidholm? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion
060passes three to none. Thank you. 8.4 was also moved to consent. We're going to move to 8.5. This is motion to approve transportation building L project, grant of easement, Puget Sound Energy. Any questions or comments? Hear and seeing none, can I please have a motion? I move that the Highline School Board grant the easement to Puget Sound Energy for the transportation building L project. Can I please have a second? I'll second that. Roll call, please. Director Tidholm? Yea. Director Alvarez? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion passes three to none. Thank you very much. 8.6, this is motion to approve contract increase between Special Education Department and the Emerald Learning Center in the '24-'25 school year. Any questions or comments? I have a quick question. I just maybe need a reminder. I know that we had
061talked about contract increase. So I'm just wanting just a quick reminder. Because I can't remember now as to why now we're having another increase on this. Good evening. So the board previously approved a contract with this particular agency for student services. And since that approval, there is a need for additional student to be served. And so I know we keep talking about this. I think about when we approve, try to approve at the higher end so we don't have to keep coming back and keep coming back. So I know that things change. And so I'm just wondering now, is it because there's one more student? Is it because-- Right. --there was-- OK, yeah. Yeah, this was [INAUDIBLE]. It's based on one student. It's based on current needs that have come out. Because we resort to
062this type of facility as a last resort. And so when we've hit that mark, we definitely will try to do that. In addition, with the cost of these funds, this is one of the items that we could put in for safety net, safety net reimbursement for next year. OK. Yeah, I think that's something that I think we had talked about, but not with this particular-- it was for the other contract, so yeah. Now it's like just remind me. Jog my memory. Because I know that. So thank you. Now it's all coming back, so appreciate it. Thank you. I also want to do a comment in regards to this. If the board approves this contract tonight, this is something that we should take to our state ledge and show them what it costs to take care
063of our kids. That's our paramount duty as far as our district, but it is theirs, as well, to support us. But this gives us a little bit of documentation. But it just shares with them what at the local level we have to go through. Yeah. So with that, if no other questions, I move that the Highline School Board approve a contract increase of $252,960 with the Emerald Learning Center for the '24-'25 school year, for a total contract amount of $505,920, with the minor additions, deletions, or modifications as deemed necessary by the superintendent. I'll second. Roll call, please? Director Alvarez? Yea. Director Tidholm? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion passes three to none. Thank you very much. We're going to move to our introduction and action item. This is motion to approve the school board director
064vacancy appointments. But I just want to first start off with just a short comment. I just want to say a huge thank you for everyone who had applied, was nominated, and went through the interview process. It takes a lot to put yourself out there. And we truly appreciate that. I also want to give, give a big shout out to all the community groups that shared questions. Your input helped shape the conversations we had with each candidate. And that was so important in making sure we got this right. This wasn't an easy process, and we had some really deep discussions about every single candidate. Because we wanted to make the best choice for our communities. It wasn't an easy decision. Everybody brought something that was really valuable to the table. And we're thankful for the process
065and the people who helped us get there. So from the bottom of our hearts, thank you for being part of this. We couldn't have done it without you. So, directors, any comments or questions before we get started? I have none. I will just second what President Van said. I really appreciate everybody putting themselves out there. I know it had to be incredibly nerve wracking to have all these questions thrown at you, and everybody looking at you, and just being put on the spot. So just putting yourself out there, I appreciate that and just the dedication to our community and our district. And our babies is appreciated, regardless of whatever the decision is that we come to today. Thank you very much. So let's start with District 4. Do any directors have any comments to add
066in addition to that regards to District 4 appointment? I have none. All right. Thank you. So with that, can I-- yeah. Yeah, any other questions? No. You're good. Give me a quick second. All right, with District 4, can I please have a motion or a move to appoint a director? Go ahead. [INAUDIBLE] Give me a quick second here. I just want to make sure that I'm following through with our process. Yeah. So, well, after careful deliberation, I just want to make sure that I am following, also, the process. I want to make sure that we're also-- I'm going to ask for a five-minute recess here. So I want to follow through. So can I please ask for a five-minute recess? I move that we recess for five minutes. OK, I'll second that. All in favor?
067Aye. OK, everybody, we're going to come back from recess. I apologize about that. My process was incorrect in my head. So thank you. So we're going to start off with District 4 here. Any additional comments or questions in regards to District 4 appointment? I have none. I just want to say that after careful deliberation, I do move that we appoint Dr. Damarys Espinoza to the open director District 4 board member position per board procedure 1114. I believe she is the candidate most likely to contribute to the growth and development of the district's educational programs and operations, although we did have a lot of lovely candidates. Can I get a second? I will second that. Roll call, please. Director Tidholm? Yea. Director Alvarez? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion passes three to none. All right. [APPLAUSE]
068So congratulations to Dr. Damarys Espinoza, the newly appointed director for District 4. Now we move to District 5. Any directors have any comments or any additional comments or questions regarding the District 5 appointment? No. Again, just want to start by thanking everyone who applied or interviewed for the position. And after the first round of interviews, we reopened the position, and we interviewed two more candidates. And so after listening to the interviews, I move that we appoint Blaine Holien to the open director, District 5 board member position, per board procedure 1114. I believe they are the candidate most likely to contribute to the growth and development of the district's educational programs and operations. And I'll need a second. I'll second. Roll call, please. Director Alvarez? Yea. Director Tidholm? Yea. President Van? Yea. This motion passes three
069to none. Thank you so much. Congratulations to Blaine Holien, the newly appointed director for District 5, [APPLAUSE] Well, thank you, again, all to all the candidates and applicants that applied and interviewed to be part of the decision process. Now, that concludes our intro and action item. We're going to move to our Intro 10.1. This is motion to approve revision to Board Policy 2410, High School Graduation. Holly, present. Is that on now? Yes. I will present very briefly. Because I know that Principal Sallee is here with students, and they are much more interesting than I am. So this is a revision to Board Policy 2410, High School Graduation, three main revisions in front of you. Two of them are technical. One is to remove outdated language about when Highline moved to the Corps 24 graduation requirements.
070Those were in effect, beginning with the class of 2021. They are long gone, so we just deleted that. And then the other technical change is to add information about who qualifies for a posthumous diploma. That is information that we have talked about in the last few years. I just wanted to get it into the policy so that staff and families are clear about when that might come into play. I will say, depending on what happens with the legislature this year, there may be additional changes that need to happen with this policy. I am tracking those bills. But as of right now, nothing is needing to come forward on that yet. The bigger change, the much more exciting change, is the policy to add additional graduation requirements for Highline High School students to allow them to
071move to-- not to allow them, to accommodate their move to a four-period day. Four-period day allows more credits to be gained by a student. So increasing the graduation requirements will just moderate that effect so that students have an opportunity to take more classes. And, Principal Sallee, do you want to come up and bring your students up to talk about this, this move? I'm a lot taller than my students, so I'll keep the mic low because they're going to do most of the talking. But thanks so much for having us this evening. We're super excited to [AUDIO OUT] even prior to Dr. Duran coming to this district. It's really the pandemic, I remember Dr. Enfield talking about, all we know is when we come out of this pandemic, we can't go back to school as usual.
072And then in some ways, we at the comprehensive high school level kind of did. And so starting really in 2022, Highline High School began exploring what kinds of educational models are out there that really lean into creating the kind of engaging learning experiences that highly motivate kids to give their best selves, to take chances, to be ambitious in school. We founded a deeper learning team in 2022, in which we visited a different school models and asked questions like, they have this at a small project-based school, why can't this be at Highline High School? And part of that exploration is looking within our school. Where are the learning spaces where students feel the strongest sense of belonging, show the most intrinsic motivation, show the most dedication to excellence? And what we saw over and over again,
073it was in our electives, our CTE, our arts. And we knew, in exploring redesign and eventually settling on a desire to shift to a credit schedule in the four-period days, we needed to create a build schedule to create more space for all of our students, not just those who excel, to explore their passions and invest deeply in them. So I've invited some students here to share their stories in our elective program. We've done programs. We've been fortunate as we grew rapidly in the new building to add new programs we didn't have before. And so the groups of students who are going to speak to you today about their experience in drama, in leadership, and in video production, these are programs that didn't exist just a few years ago. And they'll continue to thrive as kids
074have more space in their schedule to invest more deeply. And then I'm going to invite Miss Stanley, our computer science teacher, another program. This year, Amanda should be celebrated. We have somewhere in the neighborhood of-- I think we had 95 students sign up for AP Computer Science this last year, the goal being that all of our students can launch, starting in the 10th grade, an ambitious computer science program, not just because it's high-earning jobs, but we know it sets us up for the kind of problem solving to set them up for the future. And we know in the four-period day, kids will have more space to invest in programs like hers. So I'm going to give over to the stage to two of our 9th graders. They told me Penny and Janie are in our
075drama program, which is in its second year. And one of them, Penny, even shared to me, she came to Highline to do drama. And one of the challenges that kids in those programs sometimes face is they start. They get into it. They love it. And then eventually, it gets crowded out in the six-period day, and they won't have that same challenge in the four-period day. So, Penny and Janie, you want to come and talk about your experiences in drama? Hi, my name is Penny. I'm a freshman at Highline, and I do drama. And I actually came to Highline just because of the drama program. And it's funny, because my whole family is Evergreen alumni. That's where my parents met. But I love drama. It's really important to me. And it's where I'm making a bunch
076of new friends, and I'm finding my people. And I'm just really loving it. And it's really important for self-expression, communication skills, memory, remembering lines, and stuff. But I really love drama, and I'm super excited to have more time to deal with it in our four-period schedule next year. Hello. My name is Janie. I am in 10th grade. I came to Highline also because of the drama program. And the drama program hasn't been existing for a very long time. And what I really want to do in this program is make it bigger and more enjoyable for more people like me, who are willing to express themselves through art, through singing, dancing, and just having fun, making friends, and becoming somebody who can show their art in many ways. Just like how I am able to show
077my art, I want others to feel that art with me. And yeah, I'm very excited for the Bell plan. Also, we're doing the prom. And our performances are the 24th and 25th of April and May 1, 2, and 3. All the performances are at 7:00, except for closing night. And that's at 2:00 Thank you. Make sure to show up. Thank you so much. All right. I'm going to bring Espen to talk about what he's working on in video production, a program that's just a few years old here at Highline High School. Hello. My name is Espen Pethel, and I'm a student at Highline High School. I participated in a CTE video productions class last year. And it's intrigued me so much. I really want a career in video productions, and I've made so many friends
078and so many just great, amazing projects. I've helped so many people with their projects. It's actually phenomenal what they're doing in CTE classes at Highline High School. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] All right, and last but not least, some of our leadership students, a program we really had a hard time making space for just a few years ago. And it's thriving. We have so many students who both elected and who also just want to be in leadership. So I'm going to invite Jonas, Maddie, and Lena to the stage to talk about their experience in leadership at Highline High School. Hi, everyone. I'm Lena Thatch. I'm a senior at Highline High School. Thank you so much. And a few years back, my freshman year, I joined ASB. And back then, we didn't have a leadership class. And we
079were a five-man team doing monthly assemblies, creating new clubs, helping fundraise for each of our clubs, and making sure that all of our clubs and all of our ASB activities were being supported thoroughly. And it was hard for us to truly find time to support both of our clubs and create really impactful events for our school. And so my beginning of sophomore year-- no, no. Yes? No. No, beginning of sophomore-- beginning of sophomore year, we went to Mr. Sallee, and we advocated for our class for the entire year. It was a really important to us. Even if he kept shooting us down, we were very adamant. [LAUGHTER] We were very adamant about having this class because we thought it was really important to make Highline a community that fostered a family, a place where people
080wanted to belong. And we got that going. And my junior year, we had the class running. And it was a soft start. We had not a full class. But into my senior year, we have one full class. And there's people that keep wanting to join, and we have to say no. And our hands are tied. And we want more time so everyone has an opportunity to join us. Hi, my name is Maddie. I'm a sophomore at Highline. And last year, it was the-- or my freshman year, it was the first year of the leadership class. And I was lucky enough to have that as one of my electives. Because I was also elected my class president last year. And I was able to connect with so many upperclassmen, other students that were interested in leadership.
081And it was basically a family that I was able to connect with. And I was able to grow my communication, my leadership skills throughout that year. And it brought me to being able to be elected for ASB VP. And as a sophomore, that's a big thing in our school. And to be able to experience this at such a early time in my high school experience is an amazing experience. And I really want that for other students. And for our next year with the block schedule, it'll bring other opportunities for the younger classmen and just other people with a longer time and be able to experience the same that I did. Sorry. I don't want to sound too redundant. But my name is Jonas Noodling. I'm a senior, and I'm also an ASB. I guess, kind
082of like what Lena said, we joined ASB at the same time, and we just had to juggle a lot. And I feel like you can even tell a difference, looking at ASB's Instagram profile. Just there's so much going on now. And it's like, when you look back two years ago, since we didn't have a leadership class, I guess we couldn't do as much as the students wanted. So we're still growing, but I'm just really glad that we advocated for it. Because I wouldn't be able to do it three times in a row. But I'm also a four-year student in band. And obviously, band has been there for the longest. But since I wanted to be consistent every year, I also had to juggle leadership and band. So I had to refuse other opportunities that I
083could have taken. So I just feel like with this opportunity, it can open up many other opportunities to take more classes and just see where younger students can go in the future. You got one more? Sure. Sorry, I don't want to be annoying. I have one more thing to say. So I've been doing ASB for the past three years now. And CTE classes are meant to prep you for the real world. And I'm currently working with the Chamber of Seattle South Side. And that is a huge step for a high-schooler. And the only reason why I'm in the position that I am is because ASB has prepped me to be in a position where I am able and capable to work with such incredible people in our community. And last but not least, I'm going
084to invite up Amanda Stanley, who took a big risk and agreed to take on AP Computer Science for her 10th grade option last year, that led to 90 kids signing up. This came as part of our redesign work, started with our pilot and choice-based 10th grade science. And we let Computer Science be an option. So we will have next year. We'll transition from AP Computer Science to two college and high school Computer Science, a 100 level and a 200 level. And this conversation also started with Juan Lozano, when he talked about some of the high-earning opportunities at PSSE that were underenrolled, Cybersecurity and Cloud Computing. I said, we'll solve that. We've got 100 kids in AP Computer Science next year. Those kids will be in college and high school 200 level. And if they choose
085to go to PSSE in the senior year, they'll be set up to get the certification in cloud computing, cybersecurity, and really strive. So I want to give Amanda an opportunity to talk about the importance of her program, which will have even bigger space to grow in the four-period day. Geez, I think I am. I think I'm going to come speak at the school board meetings for Clint more often. It makes me feel really good. [LAUGHTER] I'm Amanda Stanley, and I have the privilege of teaching Computer Science at Highline. Every single day, I witness the creativity, problem-solving skills, and ambition of my students. They are so inquisitive, driven, and eager to explore subjects that inspire them. Given the opportunity, I believe that they would take full advantage of more classes that align with their passions and
086future goals. So this is why I strongly support the transition from a six-period to a four-period day. This shift would allow students to take a wider range of courses, giving them the flexibility to dive deeper into subjects that truly interest them. Whether it's Computer Science, Art, Video Production, Music, Engineering, Business, or any other elective, our students deserve the chance to explore and develop skills that prepare them for the future that they choose. Along with this change, it's also important that we increase the graduation requirements, to ensure that our students are leaving high school with a well-rounded and competitive education. More required credits means students will have the opportunity and the expectation to engage in a broader set of subjects, strengthening their critical thinking, communication, and technical skills that they will need to be successful, not
087only in higher education, but in the workforce. Right now, so many students feel constrained by the current schedule, forced to choose between classes they love and courses that they need. For example, one of my own students, Lilly, she loves computer science. But she has been forced to put off taking these courses because of classes that she needed to take. By expanding their options and strengthening their academic foundation, we empower them to take ownership of their education, stay engaged, and discover new passions. Our students are incredible. They deserve a schedule and a curriculum that supports their curiosity, nurtures their talents, and prepares them for success. Please vote in support of increasing our graduation requirements, to support Highline and our transition to the four-period day. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] Thank you, everybody. Thank you so much for the
088presentation. We're going to move to 10.2. This is Motion to Approve the Ratification of the Collective Bargaining Agreement Between Highline School District and Teamsters Local Union Number 6-- or 763, representing professional and technical employees. That's the Teamsters for their effective date of ratification is August 31, 2026. Any questions or comments? Hear and see none. 10.3, this is Motion to Approve Technology Equipment for Purchases for Tyee and Evergreen High School. I'm really excited about this, as that means it's getting super close. So any questions or comments in regards to this one? So, basically, just the equipment that's going to be upgraded, the amazing equipment that's going to go in our new schools, is that what we're talking about? That's what we're talking about, the new amazing equipment that's going to be in our new schools. Hear
089and see none for that one. 10.4, this is Motion to Approve Valley View Early Learning Center. This is the approval of the right of way dedication along Military Road South to the city of SeaTac. I believe Kathy-- or Jackie was going to come up and speak to this. Good evening, again. So 10.4 and 10.5 actually are very similar. 10.4, the dedication to the right of way is part of the site work that's within 10.5. The dedication is for a 5-foot area from north to south end of the property for a sidewalk. And so that doesn't currently exist. And so the city would like us to put in-- not us, but put in a sidewalk. And they will then be responsible for maintaining that area. You stated that that's the north and south of the building
090there? It's along Military Road. OK. Is that east and west-- sorry, wrong direction. OK. So, currently, there is a sidewalk there. It's just extending it out a little bit more just for access. Yes. Thank you. Any questions or comments on that one? That was my only question. There is already a sidewalk there. Yeah, because I was thinking there is a sidewalk over there. Because I drive by there all the time. So they're just making it bigger. Yes. No other questions. Thank you. And then 10.5, Motion to Approve Valley View Early Learning Center Change Order Number 1 for Site Work Under the Will Scott Modular Contract. Any questions or comments on that? Hear and see none. Thank you. 10.6, this is Motion to Approve the Elevation Through Curriculum Associates, LLC. I know I have a couple
091questions on this. Directors, do either of you guys have any questions? OK, none? Bernard's going to come on up here. So I can just start really talking high level about this. Since Elevation is going to add another data system to what we already have, and I know that we had just approved the Synergy model, so what specific insights does it provide that can't be captured by Synergy or-- I guess I'm just curious, why are we adding additional probe or data points that-- why can't we get it from any of our other systems? Yeah, thanks for the question. So there are many data points that are in Synergy that we can access to understand many different things about our language learners. A way to think about the Elevation tool is less about being another data resource
092and rather, a way to manage and systematize and provide accountability for how we're supporting our language learners. The number of different data points to consider are a lot. And part of what Elevation does is it allows much greater ease of access to the ML specialists in the schools to identify students, to put into different groups, pulling together many different data points that are sometimes challenging to look at easily together within Synergy. And then at that, once it's in the Elevation environment, they're able to add additional layers of information, like which small group they might be with, with push and supports, with bilingual para supports, with those kinds of things. And then it's a way to, in a much more specific way, manage the English language development that those students are engaging with. OK, so thank
093you for sharing that. I don't want us to do a lot of the double data entry. So if we're adding it to Synergy, I don't want us to have to add it. So are these two systems going to work simultaneously together? Or is it going to be uploaded so they just have to enter into one? Yeah. So all the demographic data, student achievement data, any of the testing information that lives in Synergy would flow into the Elevation tool on a nightly basis. So Synergy talks to Elevation. And then once the data is in Elevation, our ML specialists are able to use that data to create those groups and manage those groups and add additional layers of detail as they're working with students. OK. And then one last question. It is around the training piece of
094staff on that. How is that going to be implemented? I believe that this contract is through 2026? Yeah, so 14 months. So it's a really short span. So I just want to make sure that we do have staff trained up to input, but also use the information. Yeah, absolutely. So it'll be a phased implementation plan. And we've been in contact with some of our surrounding districts to understand how they've done their implementation. And the first thing we would probably do, obviously, is work with our staff that work here in this building to get everything turned on, and make sure that the data is flowing, make sure that all of the features are fully functional. So that would be step one. And that would happen pretty much right away, as soon as we're able to start
095turning things on. From there, in early June, we would be working with our secondary ML specialists in a extended session to orient them how to use that tool and then be able to get them launched with using it in September. We would start with our secondary ML specialists and meet with them weekly through the fall, and have progress checks to make sure that they're able to use it effectively. And the first piece is really going to be to make sure they're doing that data management of assigning students to groups and then tracking them. That's going to be the first big push. From there, the following phases would be accessing the professional development tools that are within Elevation, helping them connect that to teachers they're working with and supporting beyond the ML specialist group. And then
096following that would be bringing along the rest of our schools. So we'll start with secondary and then move to elementary. So those phases would play out probably a little bit later that fall. And then beyond that, if the tool is successful in its use, we would be extending use of this as a permanent feature of how we do language learning. That's great. I appreciate the input. When I was reading into this, I'm like, we just talked about Synergy a few weeks ago. So thank you so much for the presentation. Directors, any other follow up? No, my only concern was about the data entry thing. But it seems like it's going to automatically pull from one to the other. So, yeah, just our staff being overworked all the time and just more data entry. This will
097hopefully remove the need for staff to be pulling spreadsheets and manipulating them and trying to update those spreadsheets in Excel or other spaces. It actually should decrease the amount of having to do that kind of duplicate entry. That's great. Thank you so much, Bernard. Yep. Well, that concludes our intro items. Any items that you guys would like to add to our consent agenda? I move that we move 10.4 to our consent agenda. I'll second. Second? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. So we are going to move 10.4 to our consent agenda. With that said, that concludes our work today. Can I please have a motion to adjourn? I'll make a motion to adjourn. I'll second that. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing and seeing none, thank you. Thank you, everybody.