001[Music] evening 6: p.m. I'd like to call this hearing of the W School District School Board to order um I will now read some announcements welcome to the first of two public hearings on the possible closure of Columbia Elementary this hearing is being conducted as required by and in compliance with RCW 28a 3352 and board policy 6883 the board appreciates your presence this evening and would like to remind you that all public comments should adhere to the same standard of stability that the board imposes on itself the board will exercise its authority to maintain order in cont neutral manner this evening this listening opportunity for the school board will be conducted as a formal Hearing in civil matter as such and in order to preserve as much time for speakers as possible we will be
002adhering to strict rules of decorum we ask that you refrain from clapping cheering booing or approaching the board table throughout tonight's proceedings please also be aware that the board is not obligated to respond to questions or challenges made during public comment and the board's silence will not signal agreement or endorsement of the speaker's remarks Mars before we We Begin I would like to review the guidelines for tonight signage banners and or displays are prohibited inside wachi high school before during and after the hearing speakers must complete a public comment form prior to speaking paper copies of the form are available at the table just outside the entrance of this room and should be given to Kim white who's seated in the back um who will announce your name when it's your time to address the
003board speakers should not hand items to the board during this hearing if you have documents that you wish to share with the board please give those to Kim white following your comment comments will only be accepted in person there is no virtual option for commenting tonight however the meeting is being live streamed for the public to view and the recording will be a available on the district's YouTube channel the board will also accept public comments via email at boore Schoolboard weschools.org also comments made at our regular board meetings will be included in the public testimony the board will consider making decision and as you know we do make Zoom available during regular board meetings if you need translation services from Spanish to English we have a certified Spanish interpreter available and seated near the podium
004we also have headphones available and will translate all English-speaking public comments into Spanish please feel free to use one of the headsets available on the table just outside the entrance to the room English speakers will be allowed 3 minutes of comment time and Spanish speakers will be allowed 7 minutes to accommodate Spanish interpretation if necessary comments are limited to one per person donating time to another person so they can speak is uh speak longer is prohibited tonight's hearing will end at 9:00 p.m. or when the last comment is made whichever comes first if time expires and you have not been able to comment your you your place on the list will be preserved for the next hearing on April 18th should you choose to attend and comment I've been warned that the camera mic is
005very sensitive so if you could keep audience noise to a minimum the people watching at home would appreciate it thank you for attention and we'll begin this hearing with a brief presentation by superintendent K har thank you president Norton and I will have uh my friend and colleague Alonso Lopez uh come up with us um we'll be T kind of tag teaming this presentation together so I just want to thank everybody for being here this evening uh we have a short presentation this evening which is essentially a review of some of the reasons why we are here tonight more importantly this time is for all of you to share your thoughts uh with the board Alonso will be here to help with the presentation for the public hearings this evening um so to start off
006the slide I might get to where I can be in a better position here to start off um why does the district need uh budget reductions and so this is a review from most of most of you in the room the district is experiencing significant enrollment Decline and must make budget reductions to balance our staffing with enrollment um our enrollment declin is is due to uh a variety of a variety of things but most importantly an increase in uh K12 auctions locally overall decrease in birth rates and a lack of affordable housing districts are based uh on enrollment and when enrollment declines so do revenues enrollment decline has been the most significant at our elementary level the WAN school district has targeted a total reduction amount of $8 to9 million for for the upcoming school
007year in um for C [Music] did you have more to say than I did okay no that was good thank you uh how will the budget reductions be made um and we have these uh these These are the categories up top we have um the grade level impacts there we have the Elementary uh with the proposed Columbia closure uh with the $2.8 million we have our Middle School schedule changes um and the subsequent uh Staffing reductions there at two $2 million our high school scheduled change uh $671,000 there and then below we have our additional Staffing at $1 million and then of course our clawback on the materials supplies and Opera costs at $2.5 million to equal the $8 million this is the Wii School District's uh budget reduction proposal um as it stands [Music]
008today [Music] SCH excellent thank you Alonso and so the slide why columia which we have shared in the past but these are important uh for us to share this evening columia is the second smallest uh School in our district with the second smallest staff over the past 8 years Columbia has experienced the decline in enrollment by 26.5% which has resulted in many open classrooms uh that are currently used for non-grade level purposes with small class sizes our schools linkoln and Washington have the space to accommodate more students uh they were built or remodeled in 2014 to house a large number of students Columbia is located in a a unique and centralized location most of columb students uh will live within a mile walking distance of L or Washington the few students who will need uh
009Transportation uh can be added to the existing Wan School District bus routs limiting any additional funding and we know that uh there's a lack of vacant land in the area and the co- zoning of several sections uh for residential and Commercial purposes uh the possibility of growth becomes minimal most homes in this boundary are single family dwellings with a few departments and numerous companies and agencies PR was [Music] was [Music] Washington thank you so much Alonso uh we have some more information that is located on the District budget uh and documentation on the possible closure that is available on our website and I would encourage um anyone who hasn't already to to read the written analysis our addendum and then the budget incl your Q&A and there's also a specific space uh there for information
010for Columbia families and that uh that QR code is available on the next slide as well [Music] too for [Music] thank you very much we also have some upcoming board meetings and public comment uh opportunities our second public hearing will be April 18th uh as always written testimony is accepted uh by the board via email and then of course our uh final decision on uh Columbia will be on May 14th uh at 6:00 at our regular board meeting uh [Music] excellent thank you Alonso thank you folks for being here uh president Norton there's been a request that uh our Cafe translators our wonderful translators who are here share a few of the uh words that you shared in the opening in Spanish if that would be okay thank you so much for an unexpected request
011so I'll pass the mic for [Music] fore for School [Music] schools is thank you so much gracias so as soon as Ron has the camera ready I'll ask looks like Kim you want to read the first two commenters we go two uh two names at SC stuber and then Roxanna [Music] then good good evening is that [Music] loud stay in your L stay in your l oh man they should never hand me a mic that I can walk around in like work to crowd I feel like I should get more minutes than three because any staff member who's in here knows that I can never talk for three minutes only I talk way too long and they're like his jokes are the worst okay where's the timer cuz I'm going to need help here'll it
012have we started started it yet Kim yeah you [Music] should okay on Mark are we ready Mark good set go all right thank you everybody for being here my name is C I'm the principal of Columbia Elementary School um it is my honor to speak tonight about our staff students and families um the reason that I'm with students is uh because I love hearing from your students your children being with them every day it's an honor um they tell a lot of Truth for example today second grade line uh Isabella looks up to me and says Mr Stewart you you have something on your eyebrow and I was like oh is it a bug or do I have dirt on there she's like no your eyebrow hair like sticks down into your eyes and I
013was like oh well I don't think I can fix that and then she reaches up and and like pushes it back into place I was like thanks Isabella that was that's the truth that you get from elementary students every day and it's a lot of fun um talking about some Truth uh we've talked a lot about Columbia's scores over um the last couple meetings I just wanted you all to know your kids are awesome uh teachers you guys are awesome staff you're awesome uh I chopped up a little data in preparation for this meeting so in Eastern Washington schools that are um their highest subgroup is Hispanic students their title one and they have high poverty numbers like Columbia does um Columbia is ranked fifth out of 202 Schools they're ranked yeah go ahead and
014cl that's right and when they're compared to all tile one schools um they're eigh out of the same 202 data set um the last time that we were the schools were recognized in Washington state there was one school recognized in the wachi valley that was 1819 and that was Columbia Elementary School and I encourage you guys I'm sure you've been go to the OPI report card scroll down on the left it says wi s that's the was data has just been updated and released for their last run and um Colombia is looks really good but I'm most proud of the candles in uh the El department and the special ed um candles those went up significantly this last run and it's due to our Columbia team I have 26 seconds I want to thank our
015families and our students for getting them to school every day and all of their hard work and our staff kitchen custodian classified Paras sped teachers OTS pts bcpa slps our intervention Specialists um our specialist Palm team P art library music our office staff office manager secretary family Advocate I my watch is buzzing that's bad the nurse counselor Miss Jasmine after school program teachers you guys are awesome I'm out of time raise your hand if you've been to a top cat assembly okay so you should be able to do this you've seen it done are we ready the more you read the smar you get the more you read the smarter you get the more you read the smarter you get thanks everybody John that does not fit in there is that it won't fit at
016all my [Music] hello can you hear me okay knock me out all right um roxan Vanetta teacher and parent from Columbia Elementary as you delivery on Colombia's closure I urge you to read the findings from the equity review of 2022 it is crucial to recognize that closing Colombia Elementary is not recommended based on the opportunity barriers and educational Injustice it seeks to mitigate there is a troubling Trend emerging where certain neighborhood schools are being maintained open and funded seemingly because that is where our students are being redirected Research indicates that race is a strong predictor of which schools face closure raising questions about the equity of the process as we evaluate the impact on our 70% Latin student population at Colombia it is essential to scrutinize whether this act deliberate or not perpetuates or alleviates
017existing disparities studies show that closures often result in an initial drop in academic performance increased negative behavior and greater absence rates for displaced students while while attending a higher quality School post closure is crucial for mitigating these effects there are doubts about whether all affected students will have Equitable access to such opportunities I urge the board to engage in a discussion surrounding the following questions to what extent will Colombia students in the district have Equitable access to grade level learning opportunities forly considering the 30% elll endorsements among Colombia staff will Colombia students experience culturally responsive teaching practices at Washington Elementary and how can this be ensured how have students and families been involved in the closure Pro procedures and to what extent has their input been considered has the closure process been implemented equitably and
018to what measures have been taken to provide emotionally supportive interventions for affected students and families our future plans for closure conversations taken into account culturally and linguistically responsive perspectives what steps will be taken to increase proportional representation in the classroom for students coming from Columbia to Washington it is essential to closely examine Washington and Lincoln data on 's report card to ensure these schools can adequately meet the needs of incoming students from Colombia for Washington this includes assessing the availability of bilingual staff culturally responsive teaching practices and support services for students from disadvantaged migrant and newcom backgrounds while closing schools is undoubtedly a difficult decision ensuring that our most disadvantaged students transition to more affected environments as Paramount it is imperative that we uphold principles of equity and Justice throughout this process striving to narrow
019achievement gaps and provide all students with the opportunities they deserve Colombia cannot be replaced or replicated as our students staff and leaders are the heart of our school keep Columbia open please have Applause thank you next we have Elizabeth kazemba then Cameron [Music] Wiggins thank you good evening Dr cahart at wachi Schoolboard I am a fourth grade teacher at Columbia Elementary I'm the parent of a student who attends Columbia and I have a student who attends wanci High School I am an alumni of the wanci school district and feel so fortunate to teach alongside many of the teachers who inspired me to become a teacher and made me really want to have my own children attend wanci schools connections Run Deep in our community as we know I have a personal connection to almost every
020single member of the school board and Dr cahart um that's one of the reasons my husband and I returned here to raise our family however since the announcement of the closure of Columbia I am becoming more and more concerned about the and discouraged about the direction this district is heading the disorganization and the lack of transparency around the District budget shortfall the proposed closure of Colombia the shuffling several times of building principles the random order of placement among non-provisional building staff and the overarching message that this is a done deal is bringing anger hurt and mistrust to everyone involved this is affecting the entire Community declining enrollment has been cited numerous times as one of the reasons that all of the proposed changes are necessary however the way the proposed closure of Colombia has been
021handled makes me question as a parent if I want my own children to attend schools in this District after talking with other parents in town that feeling is very much shared if if I were planning on moving to the area I would probably consider alternatives instead of enrolling my children in a district that chooses to shutter a school with some of the highest rates of growth a transitional kindergarten program and some of the most vulnerable children all without seeking outside help or Community input months upon months we spent designing a new logo and coming up with a strategic plan also known as the big six Community involvement was sought a commun committee was formed multiple workshops took place thousands of people were asked their opinion and given them the opportunity to provide input the district
022spent thousands of dollars rolling out the result of this work and took great pride in telling the community of their commitment to the education and well-being of Wan's youth the promise to build a foundation of diversity equity and inclusion from which each student emerges future ready and at Colombia we are a living breathing example of the big six our growth scores are some of the highest in the district for several years now it was mentioned in a previous budget Workshop that there is Beauty in small schools and what they do for children and our growth shows that we provide that we exemplify it in each and every way and the leadership from Mr stuber and Mrs Oaks definitely definitely support that we have a thriving learning community that needs to be allowed to continue to
023grow and Thrive and be a leader in this District so that all students can emerge Future Ready closing Columbia will have devastating effects on this entire community and the future future of our children all we are asking for is the district to take a pause seek the opinion of community members ask for outside help with the budget and talk to other districts who have been facing the same circumstances and got through almost ready almost done we want transparency and honesty from our leaders and like others have said please put the same effort into this decision that you put into designing a new logo thank you hello my name is Cameron Wiggins I'm a Comm teacher and parent at Columbia Elementary I've already shared in a previous statement how I personally feel about the closure of
024Columbia but I recently received an email from a former student she expressed her sadness about not getting to walk through the Halls when she graduate graduates and she was very sad for her little sister who wouldn't get to attend fth grade at her family school see she also has an older brother who I coach way back in the Columbia track team and older sister went through all six in Columbia and a mother who would always point out her own topat pictures when she came to visit the Halls so for this student and for many others Columbia Elementary is a piece of her life story and we are deciding if we're going to sacrifice that piece of story an analogy has been used relating the consolidation of the elementary schools to closing the doors we closing
025off rooms um that are unused in a house to keep the rest of the house warm but this is not closing a door is the amputation of a ly to treat a disease before looking hard enough at the alternative treatments up until the last school board meeting I didn't feel like there was much transparency in the decision-making process regarding other options available a doctor would do a better job weighing the pros and cons of alternative treatments with the patient before deciding to cut off an important body part and while it's a process that sometimes is necessary it wouldn't be done hastily unless it was absolutely necessary to save patient's life so here you are hearing us the arm that's about to be amputated asking you to weigh the consequences that this is going to have
026on the rest of our body very carefully has the district convinced you that this decision is necessary to save the district as a whole because it hasn't convinced me I may not have the same level of responsibility as the District administration I don't get paid as much I don't have the same as I don't have as much education and I don't have nearly as much decision making power however I am an important stakeholder in this decision and I do not recommend closing Columbia [Music] Elementary next we have Michaela saado and an Young Clos okay my name is Miga Salo I am a kindergarten teacher at Columbia since the young age my parents always told me two things no they were right you cannot trust everyone and trust is earned Cory I can only speak for
027myself but many might feel the same I do not and cannot trust trust you were the cabinet anymore here are the reasons why I can't trust that closing Columbia Elementary is a right and best decision for the district and for his students and our families reset number one in an interview with wachi World on January 26 20124 when a world asked you the following would columi Elementary be closing if there hadn't been a budget error in 2022 you said most likely however the same day in an interview with NCW live on January 26th they asked where does the idea of the closure stem from and I'm curious how far back as well you said the conversation I need for school closure is one that is kind of in the back of our mind as kind
028of the worst case scenario so my question to you is which is it is your decision to close Columbia really because we're in a budget crisis and we're in the worst case scenario or is there another reason how can you explain this to the board and the community recent too on January 19th you told Columbia staff that the decision of closing Columbia was a done deal there was no discussion about it in fact you couldn't even tell us a plan in clear words for us to understand some colleagues had to had to ask for your CL for Clarity on what you were trying to say then you quickly went from a done deal to a potential closure was this quick turn around because the district realized there weren't in compliance with the RCW reason number
029three in the fall you stood in our library and told us that elementary schools didn't have to worry they weren't going to be affected with cuts because we were affected last year but in one of your interviews with NCW live on January 26th you said the idea for school closure has been one that we have considered I will say even into the CL if this was if this was one that has been considered to the fall why did you stand at Columbia and tell us that elementary schools were not going to be infected reason number four during the school board meeting on March 12th you stated that WD has been compliant and I quote since start of the process if this was true the 90 days per RCW would have started the day that you
030told Columbia staff that the Colombia Elementary School would be closing not after 25 days of delivering the news if the district was really in compliance then the media release stating that the closure was happening would have never happened or would have clearly stated that it is a possibility Julie Maria Miranda Tucker and Martin I urge that you ask for actual transparency as in how each calculation was made made and request outside support let's do this for our students and family after all that is what we're all about right I'll end with this to the school board members we can trust can we trust that you will make the right choice that will show that you stand by WD promise of diversity all be done equity and inclusion like I said what are you going to
031do to gain back the trust that has been lost by the community families and step we cannot give you our trust but you can earn it at the school board members for the school board MERS you don't only represent District cabinet you also represent the district's families students and the community thank you for your time all right my emotions tonight here are those of many others in this room but instead of sharing my emotions tonight I'm going to take a more logical approach according to the four-year budget projection document on and and the summary page on the full document budget document on the district website our District's expenditures were 8.4 million over this year over their revenues but 4 million of that 8.4 million was for a softball field that leads me to believe the
032budget is missing 4.4 million reoccurring reoccurring yearly deficit not the 8.4 not 8.4 so why is it that our district is taking drastic measures to cut 8.9 million from our yearly budget if this is not accurate then the budget information on the website needs to be more transparent as I have talked to several people with backgrounds in finance that have seen the same thing and came to the same conclusion if it is accurate then are we asking the students of Columbia Elementary to bear the consequences of the district's decision to not sell unused property to finance the softball field by The District's own account col closing Columbia will save $2.7 million ironically a month ago that number was 3.5 million however 2.7 m represents around 2% of the district's operating budget I'm going to say
033that again 2% when this discussion began in mid January was stated by our leadership that this is not a problem that can be nickled and died but I disagree with that statement you see if my family budget was short 2% I would not sell my car a drastic and permanent move to make ends meat I would make smaller changes often not fun or comfortable but I would nickle and dime my budget I don't make drastic changes that are permanent to fix a 2% problem the reality is is that Staffing can be aligned to enrollment without closing a school there are ways to save the same amount through means other than closing schools we could and should be talking about absorbing positions that have already been cut through creating mixed age classes instead of filling two
034schools to the brim in fact if you look at the highest performing schools in our district the two highest performing schools in our district are also the two smallest schools so I ask you at what point did we become a district that would avoid the hard work of nippl and dining a budget at the expense of sense of the achievement of our students there are many ways our district could save the same amount of money many options that we could put together to save a high performing school and still save 2% of the budget when Mr Eagle began the bu cut process he gave three options to the board to vote on you are being given one and that option is simply unacceptable since it does not appear that you are being given options I'm
035going to follow up with an email that has some ideas that I've put together are the options perfect no they're not they are uncomfortable and no matter what cuts are made they affect students staff and beloved programs but our district has cut programs and staff before and will has brought them back in Future years closing a school is permanent permanent solutions for temporary problems are never the answer next is Marcy Wright and Cassie elenas for the important thing about colia is we have developed an effective Community we grow we share we care you can have all the right ingredients and the correct recipe but if you don't have the expertise and experience and priority of putting students first you can't nail it like we do in academic and social emotional growth for the important thing
036about colia is we see parents and Guardians every day because of the proximity of the school to the family's homes parents and Guardians come in person to pick up their children daily this gives us a chance every day to share immediate growth and celebrations with families the wachi school district big six partnership priority relationships between students families schools and communities that enhance student well-being and success action steps engaging students parents and the community we do that pretty well we are a home to students and families Colombia is home it shelters supports and encourages us all it is a home that you can be welcome to walk in the door without waiting for an invitation because you know you are always wanted and seen [Music] we have a thriving environment the W School District big six
037priority thriving environment supporting the social emotional well-being of people with healthy and supportive spaces developing facilities and oper ations that reinforce Equitable learning and opportunities our principal knows every student by name and family connection our smaller school is a safety net for kids which catches students so they don't fall through the cracks like they do in schools with 650 students schools in classrooms fill to maximum capacity or overloading are not supportive spaces in we are Innovative we set the trends in this District TK pug started the transitional kindergarten program to prepare students for kindergarten and is still the only school with bilingual TK teachers the percentage of students coming into kindergarten prepared has almost doubled in the last year at Colombia we have walk to intervention and math Intervention which includ includes students on IEPs
038we have newcomer support and tier three support students new to the US who only speak Spanish receive the specific support they need to learn English and learn in their native language the important thing about colia is we are the cougar team we have a hello my name is Cassie Alan I'm a current first grade teacher at Columbia Elementary I grew up in the Wii school district and I actually attended Mission View Elementary it was there that my kindergarten teacher made me decide that this job was the only job for me although I attended Mission view a piece of my heart belonged to Columbia when my grandmother was a family Advocate there growing up there is so much magic within the community that is columia so much so that I would help out my grandmother with
039projects she had when I was in elementary school I volunteered at Columbia's after school program when I was in Middle School and eventually raised to get a job in their after school program when I was 16 all of this led me to teach at that wonderful building in elementary it is clear that from a young age I knew there was something special about Columbia now I get the honor and privilege of seeing my first students experience that love and Magic that is Columbia every day ever since they got the news that their school could possibly be closing all of that has changed the fear and anxiety that their six or seven-year-old Minds have to process has shown in many different ways from random outbursts of emotion throughout the day and behaviors that have not shown
040up before these kids know there are scary and unknown changes on the horizon but don't have the tools to process them because they are so young putting our students through such trauma is not okay when it was completely avoidable in the first place our students deserve our very best and this is not it through all of this our staff has put on a brave face and continued loving and serving our students I think I can speak for all of us when I say we are tired some of us are losing our jobs or moving schools but luckily we're adults and we have more Tools in our toolbx but it's still hard if you you think you can take the magic of Columbia and replicate it elsewhere you're wrong you can give us all the professional
041development or remind us of our why but that will not reverse the damage of this unorganized and unjust process it should say something to the board that you have so many staff parents and students here late at night after working all day we care and we want to find a solution that works for all I invite you to come into our building and experience the love and Magic that has fostered the highest growth scores in the region and I also want to add that three of those kiddos out there running and having fun I have them every day and I have the privileg of seeing them run and have fun at recess and sometimes in the hall they need reminders but they have so much fun you can't replicate that if you take them and
042put them somewhere else thank you for your time Lois Ferguson then Dorothy Ferguson my name is Lois Ferguson I live in wachi I'm a member of the Columbia parents ad advocacy group's task force on safe walking routes to schools you have the traffic analysis of students Crossing Ferry Street that we have shared with the board previously the first question who survives being hit by a car the Washington traffic safety commission shares with speed kills at 20 m hour 9 out of 10 pedestrians survive at 30 mph 5 out of 10 pedestrians survive at 40 mph one out of 10 pedestrians Sur on March 19th 2020 the Washington traffic safety commission conducted a speed survey at fery Street the results the speed limit is 30 mph 70% or 220 drivers were speeding from 31 to 45
043milph a child hit by a car at 30 to 45 mph has little chance of surviving or escaping life altering injury fairy Russell streets have not been used in the past as school crossing zones there is inadequate school crossing and speed limit signage there is no speed limit reduction from 30 m hour to 20 mph at any crossbox necessary Road improvements will not be installed prior to August 2024 when up to 170 elementary students would be required to cross very Russell Street stre walking to and from Ling Elementary the city of wachi is responsible for road infrastructure their Road Improvement projects are planned and funded one to two years in advance the wachi school district did not consult the city in a timely manner so needed improvements can not be planned funded and completed before
044students are required to cross ferry Russell and Miller streets 5 months from now the city just received funding for road infrastructure from its last last Grant cycle the city does not plan to submit new Grant requests for 1 to two years the district met with city of rachi and traffic enforcement the district's proposed marketing plan and enforcement will not result in adequate school crossing signage or speed limit reductions the district said they might have crossing guards at Major intersections with no speed limit reductions at school crossing that just puts School District employees lives in Jeopardy and when and what happens when they call out sick who replaces them a teacher at Columbia shared at a board meeting that often his students are late arriving at school will there be crossing guards to assist late students
045to cross Perry Russell and Miller Street safely the district's rush and halfhazard planning for closing Columbia School puts our children's lives health and safety at risk the district's cavali attitude to students lives and safety is appalling and negligent hi I'm Dorothy Ferguson I live in wachi I want to thank the board members for your service on the board I'm a member of the Columbia um parents advocacy group we represent 341 Columbia students and their parents that's over a th000 people they're not always able to attend these meetings cuz they're at home with having dinner with their kids and supervising homework I'm disappointed in the interim superintendent's arbitrary decision last Friday at the last minute to not accept citizen comments from the parents and public who are attending this public hearing via Zoom the board has
046accepted citizen comment during board meetings via Zoom for the last 6 years since 2018 the Columbia parent advocacy group requested the school board overturn the district's decision that effectively sign Ence is Columbia parents who can only attend this public hearing via Zoom Julie Norton board president responded to our request she denied the request to allow citizen comment from the public attending via Zoom you've heard the concerns of many Columbia parents that school walking routes Crossing fairing Russell streets are not safe for children the district's responses no problem here we will have an inter agency market education and awareness campaign yet the district has not provided any evidence that the needed school crossing infrastructure for safe school crossing on Ferry Street will be in place and ready in 5 months this attitude is dangerous and negligent
047unfortunately I want to take you back to the past prior to November 17th 2011 over 12 years ago the matci school district proposed budget cuts teachers advised the district that certain proposed Cuts would jeopardize student safety the district disregarded teachers warnings the district went ahead and cut the on duty lifeguard during PE swim classes judge Leslie Allen Wii Superior Court found the school district negligent in the the death of Antonio Reyes 17 years old freshman wachi high school student in a PE swim class hopefully the wachi school district and the school board can learn from the past and not repeat the same disregard for student safety and their lives which had tragic results for Antonio Rees his family his friends and all the community who care about our students safety your first duty is to
048Do no harm to children their children thank you Aaron garinger and Mary thresher good evening everyone um I'm here tonight to encourage the school board to scrutinize the information coming from the district cabinet the information contained in the written analysis and the following addendum is at best one-sided and misleading and at worst an attempt to undermine the hard work of our teachers and students for the sake of a balanced budget here's what I'd like for you to consider one you can align Staffing to student enrollment without closing the school when you look at the breakdown of cost Staffing is by far the largest expenditure we we got that part it's clearly greater than the number of teachers we need got it multi-grade classrooms flexing building Staffing based on enrollment numbers could keep Columbia open and
049keeping numbers in Washington and Lincoln lower has this option been considered two if Administration costs and classified staff costs are the issue what about putting multiple programs at the same building site has anyone considered moving P Academy to an elementary school campus how about us expanding TK offerings at I because of its central location neither of these options would require closing our school and could better utilize the classified staff at each building when possible and still save money third what about some budget gymnastics I remember once upon a time my teaching contract was paid out of a different funding source because I worked with multilingual students couldn't we take a hard look at which funding sources have some flexibility and can be utilized to take the burden off of our J general fund what could
050be done with the reserve fund balance the properties we own even the Partnerships with our larger Community organizations that could lessen the burden we're talking about a few per of our total budget it's time to stop listing all the things we can't recommend and get serious about what we can four School closure should be the very last thing that should be on the minds of those in charge anything different shows a lack of respect for all of us that are in schools working with kids every day what district office positions could be Consolidated why are we taking the 24 and 25 and 25 and 26 school years to evaluate additional Staffing reductions districtwide and restructuring our departments reducing programs and supplies shouldn't those consolidations happen well before we considered closing the school what is most
051important to educate the students of this Valley if this has shed any doubt in your minds as to the necessity of closing Columbia I beg you to vote no on May 14th this plan has been poorly designed executed and without the input of the larger Community we can do better our kids deserve better thank you I knew i' be right good evening my name is Mary V thresher and my husband and I come here as parent Advocates when at school district volunteers of over 30 years earning a heart of the panther award and as taxpayers my husband graduated from Colombia as well as many loved members of our family it was great because after school they could walk to Grandma's house while their folks were still at work it seems there's a lot of talk
052about community that it solves a lot of division that runs rampant in our country for children I believe that Community begins at school they play together they eat together they walk to school together and they learn together the one thing that I learned coming from a large family is that the kids come first the lessons they learn at elementary school will give them the base that will either help them or hurt them throughout their lives it certainly did me but not in a good way I was busted into school and it was awful leaving early in the morning and coming home late at night no possibility of after school sports or other activities because working parents were not able to collect me after school if you don't get on the bus you don't have a
053way home I want to know how we got into this situation was the person that made the millions dollars mistake fired I would have been was there no insurance to cover a mistake like that what sacrifices had the school district office made to help keep our school together what will happen to the school building that my husband and I helped pay for the district tells us that population is going down I read every day now that the threat of Co is over that there are more marriages and babies on the way get busy people let's be ready for those kids that are coming up I see more kids in Portables and less oneon-one time for teachers and kids and I hate it I'm hoping the district can come up with more cuts elsewh just like
054we do at home with our budgets we have a little less meat and a little more macaroni so the kids have a better life thank [Applause] you Maria sandal Kyle r yes okay Mar sandal and Kyle [Music] Diaz [Music] christop [Music] for [Music] for [Music] spee [Music] for hi good afternoon my name is Maria sanal I am the mother of four children that study at Columbia and today I speak on behalf of them because they are not able to speak on their own my children are growing up suffering from the changes that are about to be made they are suffering from insecurities my children are Dominic Christopher and my D they are good students they are good students that are going to school with great helpers with great helpers that are helping my children because
055I am the mother of a special needs child my special needs child is a wonderful little girl who is in preschool and loves her school she loves her school so much that on her day off which would be Sunday she is asking if she can go to school this is a wonderful school with wonderful helpers and teachers that think about our children so today I ask that you think about those teachers and about our children I also have an 18-year-old child who went to school and he is a great kid I think about my children right now my 9-year-old my 6-year-old and my 4-year-old and this is interpreter speaking as you can see my voice is breaking I am also a mother and this really hits I can't imagine a mom having to come up
056here and speak and beg that this school will not be closed I should not be speaking on my behalf I should be speaking on the mother so I will continue to let you know that the mother is saying she should be at home making dinner at this time and not here not here speaking on behalf of our children on behalf of the teachers that are needing their job a job that they're about to lose if the school is closed my children are sad My Children Cry they do not understand why we are going through this so I ask as a parent that you think of my children and also that you think of the teachers because these are wonderful teachers that are helping these children I'm sure that something else can be done instead of
057closing this school thank you good evening my name is Kyle Diaz I'm a father of two students at Columbia Elementary and I have a six big old little girl she's not home with Mom and a future Columbia Cooter Dr kalahar at the school board meeting on March 12th you stated that the district is in compliance of RCW policy because the district provided an analysis your original analysis stated that this closure of Columbia would save the district at least 3 million annually but your latest analysis presented presented it would be closer to 2.7 million are you still in compliance if the amount saved is not above the predicted estimate this level of incompetence being displayed by the Wii school district office is unappealing and or organized and they are not ready to close a school right
058now as you can tell all the information are being shared with here uh we have asked very peacefully for other plans to solve this budgeting problem and yet there has been no her meanwhile we continue to see the ongoing staff re ranging plan several o several overlooked details such as inadequate sidewalks potentially overpopulating classrooms of above contracted amount and to deem that is appropriate for a young child to ride a public city bus by themselves I propose the district needs to show more investment in the education and students it students receives by making sacrifices of their own there are over 40 empty classrooms according to the wsd in my opinion you can fit several cubicles in a classroom if needed for your office spaces in several schools will help with the empty classrooms and increase
059your individual involvement at each School working from different location didn't stop from different Loc didn't stop your work when we were all isolated so we know it can be done uh as for the TK program all of our schools need this program and maybe several classes if you want to increase your enrollment you need to take the risk like in any business situation and spending the extra money for the parent Educators to retain you the next year's FTE amounts so many parents have told me the district turned them away because uh because of full classes the district needs to stop saying no and find a way to say yes last the wsd mentioned duding for the remodel of Valley Academy in the last Workshop what a slap in the face that is for the employees
060and and students showing how much they more they value in in their building every child has the right to receive a quality education but the children who show up every day should not be less value and that is what your actions are telling us remodeling a location where students do not visit every day is not an opportunity to save money however I have mentioned before the value Academy needs to move into a school building board with baking classrooms thank [Music] you Jessica OK Conor and Alicia Hall okay good evening W School Board my name is Jessica you might remember me my Kinder Stacy still thinks her school is closing tomorrow still what are we doing here what are we all doing here I want to thank you all for answering my emails thank you for
061the Q&A but I think you can do better how do we work together we are the adults we are not the children obviously with the new principal information that was released last night there's still much confusion as to where anyone is going to five months this process needs to be slowed down consider this some recommended options where are the recommended options our kids matter at any cost do not close Columbia now this is not a thought out plan but a rush decision to try and save somebody why is that there there was an advisory an advisory Council for such things as the change of the logo or an athletic director but when it comes down to closing a school there's nothing forming an advisory Council now with parents staff board members and community members seems
062like a good move to to start gaining some trust and Good Will in the school district now would be the time to start that trying that change now would be how we approach our future whatever happened to the Davis demographic report that cost $33,000 why was the current Columbia boundary divided between two different school it literally looks like a marker was drone right down Orlando Avenue I thought that the $33,000 Davis report was supposed to change all the boundaries or was this also on the not recommended list instead how many classrooms will be overpopulated but I guess having empty Elementary classrooms is better than empty a whole empty School the public needs to know we need to be shown that you are listening that you care and that this is not a done deal we
063deserve clear communication honesty and our children all deserve a support system that sets them up for Su success we need to work together I thank you for your time this evening and I'll see see you all on Tuesday hello my name is Alicia Hall I have not been here before this is my first time speaking with all of you um I warn you I have been told that I come off as rough so there's your fair warning right there apologies ahead at a time if my questions are repeats from questions that people have already asked these are questions that I feel have not been answered despite numerous of times of being asked so um sorry I do not have any kids at in Columbia Elementary School however I have been following all of this very
064closely simply as a concerned citizen with the brain which brings me to my first question who sat there and said let's have hundreds of students cross these dangerous roads that sounds like a smart idea you've already been given from every from other people the statistics of how many people get hit and the likelihood of survival I don't need to tell you that again you've seen that today at 3:59 p.m. I was on Fairy Street and I seen a teenage boy in a crosswalk with the lights flashing almost get hit by another younger looking probably teenage to 18-year-old boy in a white car this boy that almost hit him didn't even stop I shudder to think what could have happened if this was let's say a 5-year-old who does not walk as quickly would not have
065gotten out of the way as quickly because that driver was not paying attention he was not stopping flashing lights at all um sorry I went out of Border a little so we're not asking or we're not wondering if someone's going to get hit with this these statistics it's a matter of when when someone gets hit are you're going to do something at that point decide oh my gosh we made a mistake when it's too late I would hate to see in the news six seven months from now that a child got struck in these crosswalks I live by fairy street I hear a near accident every single day on Fairy Street because people just drive right through there sometimes multiple times a day I hear a near accident where there screeching of the braks and
066honking it's scary to think that you want hundreds of Elementary schoolers walking through here um Columbia's classroom ratio actually I want to go back I was a kid who was dis place to several times I was always going from class school to school it is very rough I'm almost done it is very rough very rough on these children you feel displaced you feel feel like you don't belong everybody else has been there you do not feel like you belong and it takes a while not to mention these classroom sizes I I am almost done these classroom sizes are going to be what 30 to 35 students after this merger can you imagine how many children I am almost done can you imagine how many children are going to be left behind or just too afraid
067to answer a question and not get it and I will go ahead and Skip most of this because I know you are rushing me and I am done however I just want to I just wonder I just wonder with all these teachers and um parents here giving you alternate Solutions how this can be our solution to make it right [Music] please Sor hi my name is k I'm 12 years old I know that the district is considering I'm closing colia please don't do it I know you guys think of the benefits but with all respect have you guys thought of the effects on that one reason is that um Columbia is the second home for all students kids and teachers even me even though I don't go to school anymore but I still will miss
068it if it gets closed another reason that it will be a longer walk and also it's unsafe there's a lot of bad people out there and you don't know what can happen you never know so if Columbia closes I honestly think that no wants to feel guilty for what has happened thank you [Music] can you guys hear me my name is Emily bork I have a second grader um at Columbia Elementary and we have a daughter who will be starting teer next year I want to thank you guys for giving my husband and I the opportunity have a little impr promptu date night here tonight my mom was able to finally drive up an hour and a half to watch the kid so um that being said I don't have a lot to say that
069hasn't already been said tonight I wanted to thank every um board member for carefully considering all the facts that have been presented as well as everything that's been emailed to you in regards to alternate solutions to this large problem that we faced before us um again to reiterate some of the facts that pointed out there are other small percentage CS that can including looking at reducing district office salaries that has not been presented um to the board or the public as far as time uh lastly I just like to thank the community as a whole um for not just everybody who's here tonight um all the lovely Columbia staff here all the families and community members but I also want to thank everyone who sign our petition so far we have over 1,600 um local
070families and people who have signed our petition opposing this measure um and a lot of those people can't be here tonight because they're working they're helping their kids with homework they're cooking dinner um but I just want you guys all know we have a large amount of support in the community and if we can form a a larger parent advocate group within the W School District I think we have a lot of support not just for this current issue that we're facing but going forward to solve problems together thank you David luo and Mar and toar hello good evening my name is m uh I'm a mother of two beautiful child I have my daughter Kimberly luos she just WR from Columbia Elementary and I have my little son that he's currently on TK uh
071please don't close Columbia Elementary all the vulnerable students will be the ones that were be affected they love them school it's like the second home it's safe and um many of the parents need to work a lot of them they have to across the street they were going to need to walk and then it's a lot of um cars going and going on and on um um a lot of them they don't qualify for the transportation because they don't uh they live a mile away and um also it's a lot of people on the street under alcohol or drugs and they also um the school is going to be overloaded and I think all the students they won't receive the education that they need uh child brain is like a um all the elementary schools
072are the best education that any child can receive is when they age more smart child brain is like a little spch and they absorb everything closing the school is not the best option all the students will not receive the education that they need like I've say before because it will be uh a lot of students and it will be not safe for all the students um any student has uh dreams and goals please don't let them stop the dreaming they are the future for our Valley of wachi thank you hello good evening thank you for being here thank you for the great teachers great leaders thank you uh Colombia has been for this is it's 100 years so we should been celebrating 100 Years of a school that through time has gone to difficulties and
073it Stills flourishing with great teachers and students like my daughter that she went Kimberly and my little son who's in TK right now he loves School uh at the beginning of the year I mean he he was struggling to talk uh you know uh uh for speech right now if you listen to him that little guy it's hard to stop him talking why great teachers great school kids feel like second home so I please listen to teachers to parents that care about our children I think closing Colombia would be the last option I think that instead of closing Colombia right away it's like everybody can relate to budgeting I mean if there's a problem and for budgeting in the house the last thing we do is leave our house we find other Solutions our we're
074uh where's the money going Ian can we spend list here spend list there but the last thing for our children as parents would be leaving the our house and moving into maybe siblings that it's just common sense so please I know that you're here for us and that's why a lot of people have voted for you and you're here and thank you for being here and I know you have a very hard decision but I know that you you might be a parent you might be a grandparent you might be a mother but you can relate what the problem that we're facing but once again please consider closing Columbia the last last option and we as parents and teachers could understand that uh I think if if there's other Solutions first and if those other
075Solutions don't work hey there's no other option for the best for for the all the elementary schools okay let's close columia but please don't take that for the first options and thank you for being here uh hey God bless you I can remember how to get out of here it's still good right now go ahead good even thanks for letting me talk tonight I um you know I've been coming to all the board meetings and listening to everybody and thinking to myself you know I look I've been working at Columbia for 24 years so um I am definitely one of the veteran teachers there um right behind Tammy and I knew that I needed to come and just I needed to say something um I I'm going to be really short um you know this
076school is still special I me I go back to the years when I taught with Gretchen Klein and Mark Wy and we were an awesome team and I loved it and it was magical I mean it was really special and you think that over the years that that specialness would fade away but it really hasn't so I don't know what it is about Columbia but still there it's still there and um I can't describe it in words it's just it's a great place it's a great school it's special um it means a lot to the people that are inside it and all I'm going to say is I just really really hope that you guys think really long and hard about this decision that you make um who going affect the kids who are so
077vulnerable you know we fight all the time to keep them from falling through the casss we just don't want to see that happen um the families and the community you know the community that I moved here to um back in 2000 I I love this fil I love it and what I hate to see is this I hate to see this it makes me so so sad so I just really want you all to think about that think about the the impact it's going to have in the future not just now but when you look down the road what is the effect going to be long term I really hope you look and think about that thank you things but my concern what I wanted to speak to tonight was the community is looking really
078closely at this and that includes myself I'm brokenhearted I feel disrespected um this is the first time in 40 years so I want you to think about this decision that you have in front of you and really think about it because I'm worried that people just won't show up at the polls for the levies for supporting the schools it's got a huge impact and I'm not alone I've been here 40 years 40 plus I have my grandchildren in the schools my my children went to the schools I'm very proud of the education that they got there very proud but I don't know how I would be feeling right now as a member of the community to entrust my family to the school district so I want you to really think about that it's I think
079that has not been considered as often it's why I love Colombia it's it's you know what the children are doing or what the grade point is or you know but it's to me it's the way that things have been done and this is one of the most respectful difficult brokenhearted groups of people I have seen in my 40 plus years as a social worker and I've been in high conflict situations and I don't I don't see people looking for an alternative to shaking their hands instead of following the rules for clapping I see that's creative and it goes by it takes care of that decision and that need to show support so I really hope that you think about this and think about it very very carefully I will be Brokenhearted on May 12th if
080there's a different decision to close Columbia Benjamin Sanchez and then next Adriana name [Music] is [Music] s [Music] for [Music] for hi good night my name is Benjamin Sanchez I'm the father of two children I have a third grader and the kindergartener and I am worried today regarding the sensitive uh topic about closing the school our children are at an age where they are very sensitive and they cannot process change easily for my children it is wanting to think about leaving their friends behind and going to a new school where they will have to find new friends the other thing that concerns me is the quality of the education that they will be receiving if our children are moved to a different School District they will not have the one-on-one attention that they are currently
081receiving and will be in a larger group of students so what happens with that they are at a high level of learning at the moment and we are putting them in a classroom with more students well they will not have that high quality help keep in mind that these are our children and they are the future of wachi I want to thank you for listening to me today that is all thank you have [Music] I'm sorry for you guys I tell you every time I talk to you I want to speak in Spanish because I want people know what I'm saying and so sorry okay for some [Music] for um [Music] resp [Music] for [Music] for f hi good afternoon uh before I begin I would like to say that I will render my message
082in Spanish I know that I have talked to you before uh but I want all the people here present to understand what I'm saying uh including those in the Hispanic Community you have heard my complaints uh before and also my propositions as as one of the people here many times I have told you this one of my questions for you would be where did the $9 million go why do we not have enough to continue with the school and why are we looking at school closures I don't want to attack the board members because I know that you are here with Open Hearts I also don't want to attack the teachers but I do want to defend the parents I want us to work together to make great things possible I know that there are
083200 kids that are special needs children and I'm wondering why these kids are not being sent to our school district because I know that there's more financing or funding when it is a special needs child as I am a provider of daycare and I know that this is one of the things I know that there have been Cuts I also know that many of us teachers myself and parents have sent emails and messages and have not gotten any answers I know the five of you were all working with an open heart but I want you to seriously think of something when something happens to one of our children who is going to be responsible let's say one of the children were put in danger or run over or kidnapped who will be held accountable also
084where did those where did that money go the $9 million who know knows where it went this is something that makes me very sad and lastly why are there these Financial Cuts those $9 million that we are trying to save that we don't know where they went are not going to be enough to pay for the therapist that are childrens will have to go see the childrens and the families will have to go to therapy in in order for them to be able to return to normaly or a life as normal as they now know it I am upset with the lack of transparency with the finances and I I'm also worried about these decisions B being taken so lightly so I want you all to consider today and think about the decisions that you
085are taking for the future of our children [Music] rosar [Music] for [Music] for [Music] [Applause] [Music] hi good night my name is Rosario Gonzalez and it saddens me to be here today uh because we are going through a process where we are working on trying to keep our school open however we need better quality for students we don't need to be here complaining about problems with the Latin Community we have a high level of Education in our school and we need to look at solutions for the school we don't need to look at the amount that is owed we don't need to look at numbers and how much we can save we need to look at that W AI we don't need to know how many millions are needed or what is going to happen
086because we cannot get that money our community and our future future depends on our children today I bring my children here before you because I want them to see the people that will be taking the decision to close a school I want them to focus on the people that they put in certain positions not by choosing who gave you a lollipop or he was kind but who took a decision that kept you in mind so with that I will say that I'm here for the children today and that I want you to consider this for a children [Music] hello hi everyone my name ISO y'all might not remember me but I remember y'all your faces it's so nice to see you after so many years um so today I want to talk about Theory versus
087practice so I graduated and I'm a product from Wii School District I went to johnb Elementary but Hills then wachi high school and then went to wachi Valley College and then went to get my bachelors in Gonzaga University in theory I fulfilled this board and this District's mission to prepare me for a future right but sometimes the doesn't really work well in practice the reason why I want to talk about this was because growing up in the district and the experiences I've had made it really difficult to say that I'm a proud Alum of wachi high school I don't mention it with my peers this is the first time I've been here in years because of how traumatizing this district has been not just to like to have some of a conversation with you we've
088talked about in theory all the dangers that can take place right so children crossing the street walking to school alone and I want to share some things so I used to walk to school and I was in elementary school and well from elementary to high school and there was times where I was followed there was times where I was catall but thankfully I got away because I knew the streets really well so I just ran back back roads that's how I went home I remember one time I was getting ready to ride the school bus and I saw somebody that was not doing well it seems like they had a narcotic issue and they tried to commit suicide in front of my home I was about 7 or 8 when I first moved to wachi
089someone in a truck yelled at me go back to your country you illegal immigrant and I was really confused so I decided to ask my teacher about it I was like hey what does this mean and he just looks at me and say says oh cnia um illegal immigrant is a term for people who don't belong here and I was like oh but don't we all belong here and these are things that now I'm 24 that I still have to live with and things I still talk about um when it comes to having conversations regarding education I have a little brother who's autistic and we struggled a lot because he was locked in a closet he was tied up at Washington Elementary so we moved another issue too was that my brother when he was
090in high school he got pulled over by the police and my brother didn't tell us until years later and he said that he didn't tell us because he turned into a coward and he thought that was a day he was going to lose his life I'm here telling you as a regular conversation that these threats are really real and they Define who we are especially at the ages of 5 to 7 so again I'm just here talking to you as a concerned citizen as a product of this district and thank you all for everything you do cuz I know it's tough to give faith thank you Joshua Wagner [Music] Anda hi evening um this is my first award meeting ever I've never been to one before um but I feel like offer different perspective than
091most of the people in the room U my family and I have lived in wachi for approximately 1 month we are a new transplant to the area we picked this area out specifically because of the strength of community that was here we picked the house that we bought on Rondo Avenue because of its location to Columbia Elementary in our home in Texas so I have two boys a 3-year-old in a in a six-year-old my six-year-old is in my's class he's doing absolutely fantastic we were very stressed about his transition into a new school district at his age and he has done phenomenally the first day that we showed up to the school to register our to register my son at the school we were met by Mr stuber and Miss Young Who introduced themselves to
092my wife and I just right off of that I was very impressed with that and I've been impressed over the few weeks we've been here with my son's acclamation into the school and the community we the house close to Columbia Elementary because my son loves to walk to school he we did it in Texas and we live even closer now to the school than we did then it is his time to decompressed to talk to us when we go pick him up and drop him off to tell us about his day his worries his fears his struggles his hopes his dreams we live right on or more than a mile away from our newest school that will not be an option anymore my wife and I both work we do not have the time to
093walk him to school when it's going to take about a half hour at least to walk there and then back home we can put him on a bus but his commute will increase from 5 minutes to how long I don't know nobody's been told any of that information I don't know how long his bus ride is going to this is going to impact him and it's going to impact his younger brother who is really excited but who often walks to school with us to drop his brother off who says he's going to be a coer when he get a little B he's been excited for years to go to the same school brother is excited to do so that's all I really have to share you know I'm just I wanted to I didn't plan
094to speak when I came into today but realized a different perspective I think was also needed long-term residents are very very important but new residents are also coming and I wanted to offer a bit of a rebuttal to the lack of growth potential in the area I am evidence that that is not true single family homes they are very old in the area I bought a home from the 1940s I am not going to be the only person that's going to be moving into this area close to the schools with children and that's that can't be a new problem that's been happening and solutions are going to continue to come with new people [Music] moving [Music] ES [Music] for [Music] um [Music] for hi good afternoon my name is Teresa Benito I would like to
095say that I wear different hats in this community like today I am wearing the Hat of a neighbor of a person that lives in this neighborhood this neighborhood where new families have come in many of them are here due to Poverty due to violence in their areas of growth and they are looking for a new community a new community with a bright future where their families can flourish many of them are are non-english speakers yet they are looking for a great beginning Colombia is a school that is caring it is a school that is welcoming with teachers teachers who work from the bottom of their heart and they give students and families a sense of belonging and caring this is something that is not often seen and it's not seen in every school that is
096what makes us different the fact that people can come here even not speaking the language not speaking English and still feel that they are part of the community the parents May sometimes only speak Spanish maybe they don't speak in English or their children do not speak in English but yet they come here and they're greeted and they are treated kindly I've been at these meetings since the first time that they started and to me it is very embarrassing that at some of these meetings the interpretation has not been rendered correctly yet I would like to thank the parents because despite this happening parents are continuing to come and speak for their children or speak on their behalf I understand that the parents are wanting their voice heard and I would just like to say that
097I want the parents to continue coming and continue to feel welcomed that's our last one one last check there's any if you would like to speak you can still fill out a [Music] form hello thank you for having this tonight I just wanted to start with a few of the successes of Colombia it's been such a great small school experience my kids are actually only there to serve their IEPs but and to get special end service is but it's been so welcoming every time we get there and there are times when my son can't is so emotional that he can't really get through the rest of his school day but he still wants to see hiscl teacher um so I think and just their you know the fact that they can have the highest growth
098scores in the region with a population that is highly vulnerable highly um it highly marginalized unfortunately and um and I'm really concerned about the plan the written plan that you guys published um on capacity issues because I see that you're planning to max out lincol Elementary with no available classrooms and I'm wondering what is your plan for servicing special ed High cap other special services where are those spaces going to be right now most of those those are served in empty classrooms I also think there is a benefit to smaller schools as we discovered with the pandemic and the more kids you have together the more kids you're exposing all the time the more people your teachers are getting exposed to who knows when our next big illness is coming around um um and you
099know just and I'm also concerned about Equity because Lincoln is the only school that you're looking at maxing at all the other schools according to that plan would have more than 100 student capacity availability and I think that capacity is important in all the schools so that if a kid has a poor experience gets shut in a closet or gets bullied on a regular basis that they can transfer out is still stay in the district I think we need to be looking at other options for cost savings and as I looked at that written plan I saw that leou and Clark had a lot of empty classrooms and what about moving Valley Academy into LS and Clark with its empty classrooms it would be easier for parent drop off I've actually been a parent at
100B and B is really hard to drop off and pick up off of w Avenue and that would be a much easier location it could benefit both schools thank you for your time middle school high school [Music] for [Music] you [Music] for [Music] EST [Music] theat [Music] wow for good afternoon my name is Maria agalar and I would like to say that I am part of the wachi schol School District this is my third year working at Columbia I am also a mother I am a mother of a high schooler and three my three children have gone to the wachi school district my children have attended middle school and high school and they have been motivated they have been taught certain things such as reading and I would like to let you guys know that
101I am very proud of our children I am proud of our children from the age of kindergarten to 12th grade because I feel that that is a foundation for our children that is the best group of kids that we are training to be the best group of adults I have noticed that the supervisor of the school district is a very caring person and they are very focused on our children's future most of all they're invested in the education and safety of our children they are preparing ing them to be the future adults these future adults will be the future doctors the future Engineers the future teachers I am very happy to be part of the wache school district but I would like to let you know that when I am at school I greet the
102children that come to school and I see their little faces when they come in they are sad they are crying they are timid they're going through number of emotions that they are not yet prepared to know how to handle but I have also witnessed the School's staff the school staff from the principal to the counselor to the teachers to the par Educators as well as the remaining scaffs such as myself myself who tend to calm and ease these children's anxiety as we teach them that they must feel that they can be in an area where there is trust and safety these children come in very young many of them do not even know how to hold a pencil yet we place a pencil in their hand and we teach them through trust and security and
103safety that they will be able to be a student who will have progress they become better students they start to hold the pencil they start to write they start to learn and watching this is amazing so I want you to really think is it really necessary to close a school are there other ways are there other options as Latinos we Face many adversities and we are ready to face many more as Latinos we struggle and our families we have gone through many different struggles but as a family we overcome those struggles and we move forward I feel that the wachi school district can do this as well so please consider my words when taking your decision Marcus Marcos col maros uh El [Music] SCH [Music] for [Music] kind uh element [Music] School for El please
104no close the school gracias graas [Music] minute so I would like to summarize by saying that you just saw uh maros here today he would like to wish you a good afternoon and a good night and thank you all for being here he also wants to mention that him his wife and his child at the who you just heard have moved here from Venezuela they moved here about a year and a half ago they have been very welcomed into the school district and the school district is a blessing for them as they are coming fearing prosecution leaving their country however they are here alive and safe and they are being accepted by the school district with open arms the school district which they consider to be a blessing and a very loving community that welcomed
105them when my son came home at di way let me know that his beautiful School the school which he loves which was has been open for a 100 years is going to be closed and I could not believe it I could not believe that because of a budget cut deficit or whatever you want to call it maybe there's not enough founding uh you are going to close the school it is painful for me as a Venezuela to come here and I cannot wrap this around my mind that this Beloved School where Miss Jones and Mr uh sorry Miss alar nie and I apologize if I pronounce somebody's name wrong will were here to help my child who has only been here uh for a short period of time and is now in the second grade
106my child came here is a Spanish speaker and now he is fully bilingual so we have time for for uh rendering a message on behalf of the child uh please do not close our [Applause] schools Jamie John Johnson and Bridget Myers good evening um I came in late and I was shocked when I heard the first very eloquent speaker have some incredible points and I started to clap for them and was told we aren't allowed to clap tonight and I feel that that was an inappropriate request because clapping is the silencing of our communities our asking that is silencing our community members our teachers and our families that are here to be heard by you Applause is a normal and expected part of a gathering such as this and this is not the time to
107comply with any request to be silenced this is the time to be loud for our kids and I encourage the board to have the courage to hear those of us who are kicking and screaming for our children right now I think that was inappropriate and I'm I'm very upset that that was request was made and I'm upset that we complied with it hi my name is Bridget Myers and I am a parent of a student at Columbia I also was a staff there and so these are my people um and I thought maybe Cory I would come up and I would say thanks because last time I was here I asked you to apologize and I feel like within days there was a communication that was put out by the district to Columbia families saying
108hey this didn't go down well so I'm not sure how many thank you you're hearing lately but um thank you it didn't make this process much easier but it was the right thing to do and that's what we do we do the right thing and we take care of Hearts so thanks um and for the board members I didn't prepare anything tonight but I will for next time because I am a brave Mama I'm a brave mama I do things that people think is foolish with my children like take them back to Africa when they almost died first time we went um because I believe in taking risks they're well calculated um and I believe in the pr of prayer that's really why I did that but um I have had five kids go through
109the district my oldest is 24 my youngest is 10 and attends Columbia um we live down by the hospital and my student is choiced into Columbia there is no way I would have let her walk to school about any part of that um when my kids went to Lincoln they rode the bus that wasn't a very positive experience but kids got through the bus drivers were great just a lot of stuff was happening on the bus that was continually needed to be reported and so that'll be new for walking students but we handle things as they come up but my fifth grader has been begging to walk home and so I've walked home with her and I told her after spring break I'll walk home with her um I have the flexibility to do that
110and to try to find a good route for her because going it's scary that's all I I'll give you a report what we've walked home and we've seen the kid almost sit in a crosswalk and we've seen um another kid almost sit in a crosswalk we've seen a kid almost backed up into right in Fr of pioneer so I'll keep letting you know but it it hasn't been good the first two times so we'll see you next meeting and thank you board please vote no I don't think that um I'm hearing 2% tonight for the first time and I've read stuff and I've seen your documents and um I've listened to comments and I'm like 2% we're talking about 2% to close the school so I don't think you have enough information and I'm asking
111you please don't close the [Applause] SCH if there are no more are there any other comments any forms that need to fill [Music] out there are no more uh comments we will adjourn the hearing for the evening [Music] yes