001pledge of allegiance. I'm Brian Aragon, principal at Prairie Wind Elementary School. I'm Amy Allison at Prairie Wind Elementary. This is my second grade classroom reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you to Prairie Winds. Dr. Newton, do we have any adjustments to tonight's agenda? Madam Chair, there are no adjustments to this evening's agenda. Madam Chair, I move to approve the agenda. I second. So, we have a motion and a second to approve the agenda. All in favor, please say I. I. Opposed? Okay, that has been approved. Um we will jump right into recognition of our staff and students for outstanding achievements tonight. Um and we
002are going to kick that off with our student of the week recognition recognition. So, if I could please um call Principal Aaron Moon, um an eighth grader from Johnson who is the student of the week for the week of December 8th, Oliver Fournier, and his favorite teacher, um Ken Johnson, to the front, and we'd love to do that recognition now. Okay, so I'm Dr. Stephen Embryani in the place of Aaron Moon. He had a another place to get to tonight. Uh good evening, trustees. My name again is Dr. Stephen Embryani, and it is my privilege to introduce Oliver Fornay. She He's an eighth grade student for us here at Johnson High School, and he was selected because there's a number of different things. I could go on for a long time, but let me tell
003you the main big thing. Academically, one of the strongest kids we have on our campus. He's a purely dedicated individual to everything he does, including his athletics with us. And I'll tell you he's an exemplary example of what we want for our Firebirds in the biggest way. I do want to introduce uh Ken Johnson, his favorite teacher, and I think Ken might say a couple of words. Uh well, I'd like to thank um the board and Dr. Newton again for continuing this year after year. This is one of my favorite um favorite things that we do. Uh we get to recognize so many of our our great students. Oliver here is uh he's phenomenal. He's one of those young people we look forward uh to working with every day. Um he's one of the most
004intelligent, naturally gifted people I've worked with. I didn't say students. I was I was particular in that choice. Um we could all learn a lot from him. Um not just natural gifts, but his work ethic, his dedication, his just overall friendliness, and um kind of a sly sense of humor. Um I really love having him in class with us this year. Um I'm grateful. It's one of those things that if um if a student like Oliver is saying that you're his favorite teacher, that's about the best uh award as an educator I've ever received. So, Oliver, thank you. Keep up the good work. We love having you with us in class. Member of NJHS, um and member of the chess club. Yeah. Um Oliver is everywhere and does everything. He's everything we could hope for
005from our eighth graders. So, thank you. I'll give you a few words. He's a little under the weather. He's speaking for us tonight. Ah, there we go. Um I don't really have much to say. Uh I just would like to thank everybody who made it possible for this to happen, and those who nominated me. I'm not sure what the process is, but I'd like to thank everybody. Thank you. Uh also, I'd like to I'd like to recognize dads in the in the crowd here. So, Dad, can you step up? This is Cody, his dad. I'm going to recognize him. Next, we would like to recognize um student of the week for the week of December 15th, um Megan Keen, who is a senior at Central High School. Megan will be joined by Principal Karen Delbridge
006and favorite teacher Mary Eisenhart. Eisenhart, sorry. So, good evening. So, I'd like to introduce Megan Keane and so Megan is one of our military students at Cheyenne Central and we are just so proud that we get to to take care of our students from FE Warren and so Megan has been with us came to us actually after her freshman year and she's moved around a lot and has been in 11 states, hasn't lived in a in a house more than 3 years and we have just enjoyed her so much. She has um left an impression on us and we will be forever grateful for the things that she's done at Central. She has contributed to our student body in such an amazing way. She's been part of not just AP courses and all the honors
007courses and having a stellar GPA, but she's been part of lots of clubs. She's been part of the nursing program and she eventually wants to be in the nursing field. Um and she has a heart for it. She has a heart of wanting to take care of others and that is why she is our student of the week. And so if you think we're twinky and we are because today is candy cane day at Central High School. She did a better job at it than I did. So, tomorrow we'll be wearing lots of glitter. So, um so Megan, I'd like for you to take a moment and just tell us what you're going to do and then Miss Eisenhart could not be here tonight, but I do have a statement from her. So, I'll let
008you speak a little bit here. Um okay, I just want to start off by saying thank you. It's really cool to be here and see all the people who keep things running behind the scene and getting things going smoothly for us especially on the board. Um yeah, like she said I want to go into nursing. So, I'm involved in a lot of science and math at our school including Science National Honor Society which has been new for me this year, but it's really cool cuz we do a lot of outreach. So, we've been going to the elementary schools. Actually on Friday this week will be judging the science fair at Alta Vista which I'm really excited about. But yeah, lots of medical stuff for me, lots of math and Miss Eisenhart, my favorite teacher who's
009with her three kids tonight who are super sweet. Um couldn't be here, but she's made a huge impact not only cuz she helps get me through such a hard class, but she offers a lot of support not just academically, emotionally too and make sure we're supported in our extracurriculars and our at home lives and she just makes a huge difference and I really don't think I would be here without her. So, even though she's not here, my heart goes out to her at home. [clears throat] So, Miss Eisenhart says, "Megan, I apologize I couldn't make it tonight as I'm flying so low chauffeuring my littles to their activities. You are an amazing young lady. You are so enthusiastic about everything you do and you work so hard. Your energy lifts my spirits every single day.
010I look forward to seeing you every day and can't wait for the laughs that you will undoubtedly bring. I'm beyond honored to stand with you. You deserve this beyond words. Congratulations, my dear. Keep doing what you do and keep being who you are. You're a rock star and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow." >> [laughter] >> So, Jason and Julie, her parents, if you could stand and be recognized. So, Julie Julie is part of our pack team and she contributes in such an an amazing way for us at Central. So, it's really a team effort with that family. So, and Jason, I've not met you, but thanks for sharing them with us at Central. Well, congratulations to our students and their favorite teachers. Western Vista Federal Credit Union helps sponsor awards for the student
011of the week program. So, at this time I would invite Carl King, member services officer, to come and say a few words. Thank you. Thank you. So, hello everyone. First off, they're a very tough act to follow. So, I'm not going to make any huge speeches, but I just want to say that I myself am honored to be a part of this community and I'm very honored to see that these wonderful students and teachers are making such a dramatic impact to our community. So, I'm very happy for them and thank you very much, guys. So, we're very honored to support this school district student of the week program again. Each week we're delighted to learn about the amazing kids and teachers we have in Laramie County. In recognition of the efforts put forth by the
012student of the week, we are proud to present a certificate and achievement and a Visa gift card to the recipient. We'd also like to present a certificate of appreciation and Western Visa gift card, the recipient's nomination for their favorite teacher. We congratulate you on this honor, and we wish you nothing but the best in the future. Thank you. Our next recognition tonight is for our LCSD 1 employee spotlight, which is an award that we present monthly to a member of the staff with LCSD 1. Tonight, we would be honored to recognize Misty Benstock, who is with the nutrition services unit with East High School and catering. Misty, if you're here and you don't mind to come forward, she will be joined by Holly Colley, who will be doing the recognition for us. Good evening, trustees.
013My name is Holly Colley, and it is my privilege to introduce Misty Benstock, an exceptional leader whose dedication and resilience have made a lasting impact on our nutrition services team. I've had the pleasure of working with Misty for 3 years, and during that time, she has consistently demonstrated unwavering determination and commitment to excellence. Misty is the driving force behind many of the events that bring our community together. Misty is our Smart Spoon Catering Manager. She and her team prepared the meal you all enjoyed this evening. Each May, when teachers receive treats for teacher appreciation, and every August at the all-staff at the all-staff picnic, Misty ensures these moments are special and seamless. Misty's also our summer feeding manager. Every [clears throat] summer, Misty leads a new team to provide nutritious meals to students in summer
014school and children in the community. Her leadership has resulted in streamlined processes and procedures that make summer feeding programs successful year after year. Misty is also one of our production kitchen managers. She oversees meal production for East High and several satellite schools. Always looking for innovative ways to increase student meal participation, she will soon introduce a grab-and-go cart to offer students more convenient options. Misty's work touches thousands of lives. From the meals served at district events to the programs that ensure children have access to healthy food year-round, her ability to lead, adapt, and innovate makes her an invaluable asset to our nutrition services team. On a personal note, Misty is a joy to work with. Her patience, wisdom, and genuine care for others shines through in every interaction. Her contributions don't just move work forward,
015but instead elevates the entire organization. Thank you, Misty. [clears throat] >> [clears throat] [laughter] >> So at this time I would like to call our representative from Western Vista um back up. Um >> [clears throat] >> Thank you. Thank you very much. On behalf of Western Vista Federal Credit Union, we'd like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to you and being selected for the employee spotlight of the month. Your dedication and willingness have made a lasting impact and we truly admire your commitment to always lending a hand wherever it's needed. Thank you for your hard work and outstanding service. We wish you continued success and appreciate everything that you do. In recognition for your efforts, we are honored to you to present you with a service give us Excuse me, certificate of appreciation and Visa gift
016card from Western Vista. And And Misty, before we shake your hand, I was I just I I believe that Ashley Roth also wanted to come forward and say something about you. So if you'll just hang out, we're just going to keep on. Okay. Oh. Okay, my name is Ashley Roth and I'm in cahoots with Darlene and Dr. Newton cuz it's not on the agenda. Um but I'm here to recognize Holly Qualley tonight. >> [laughter] >> Holly, do you want to take a step up here? I know These are the best. Okay, Holly. So Holly is one of our supervisors in nutrition services. You guys just met her. I am very honored tonight to let you know that you are the recipient of the Apron of Honor Award distributed by the WDE. They hand delivered this
017last week. You just weren't there. And so Yeah, I know. But so um so very very cool. This is not something that WDE gives lightly. Um this is something that Holly was nominated for and in good fashion I wrote a little spiel for you as well. And so I'd like to take a few minutes to read it. I'm going to give you your certificate, too. Um And I'm going to read from my paper cuz Holly's just too great for me to miss anything. So I don't want to uh go rogue here. So I said, "Holly is the definition of a go-getter, ambitious, goal-oriented, and resilient. She is never afraid to start early, work hard, fail hard, and try again until she succeeds. What sets Holly apart is her ability to make everything fun while keeping
018the focus on the primary goal of feeding kids. She cultivates positive, rewarding relationships within the nutrition services department and spreads joy wherever she goes. Holly consistently goes the extra mile in everything she does. She revived the district's catering department from its post-COVID slump, transforming it into a thriving benefit to the district. Her attention to detail and creativity brings a personal touch to every event such as the balloon Santa she crafted for a holiday celebration last December. These special touches reflect her commitment for uh to creating memorable experiences for students, staff, and the community. As a supervisor, Holly is supportive, approachable, and deeply invested in her team. She simply doesn't delegate. She rolls up her sleeves and works right alongside her team, whether as a baker, veggie prep, or manager. Her operational knowledge makes her an
019invaluable resource in any role and her leadership style inspires both respect and admiration. She holds her team to high standards while also serving as a trusted sounding board and a source of encouragement. Holly is also a creative innovator, always looking for new ways to engage students and make healthy eating fun. For National School Breakfast Week last year, she designed an I Spy Jell-O cup, hiding fruit inside orange Jell-O, and giving kids magnifying glasses to find the pieces as part of our detective clue-in theme. The activity was not only exciting for students, but also reinforced the joy that food can bring. Ideas like this showcase Holly's knack of combining nutrition, creativity, and fun in ways that leave a lasting impression. Holly's vision for the future is equally equally inspiring. Her ability to dream big and then
020put in the work to make those dreams a reality continue to push the program forward in exciting ways. Holly is the dream supervisor, innovative, supportive, collaborative, and determined. She is a team player who builds ideas with positivity and enthusiasm, embodying the yes and mindset that turns possibilities into success. Her contributions have been invaluable to LCSD1 1 Nutrition Services and her passion, creativity, and leadership make her a truly deserving recipient of the Apron of Honor. Holly, thank you for taking You're going to make me cry. >> [laughter] >> I'm looking at you. Thank you for the taking for the time Okay. Holly, thank you for the time you give even when no one is watching. Thank you for the effort you put in, especially on the hard days. Thank you for showing up with dedication, kindness,
021and heart. You are appreciated more than I could ever put into words, and I am proud to have you as part of the Nutrition Services Leadership Team. Congratulations on this outstanding achievement and recognition. So, Holly and Misty, if we could shake both of your hands, we would love to. Thank you so much, everybody. Thank you. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you so much. Our next recognition tonight is of Gino Hernandez, who is the South High School band director. Gino is being recognized as Music Educator of the Year. Um so, if he would come forward with Principal Carey Gentry. Thank you. What's that? Sure. And if we could ask if we could also bring up Brandon Schumacher, um who's receiving the Wyoming Band Director of the Year award. Um he is the South High School band director.
022So, um I wanted to make sure Sorry, Dr. Carey Gentry. Um to take a second and recognize some of these amazing educators standing in front of you. Um in the small time that I've been Principal at South High School, there is one department that outshines so many because of their passion and dedication to students, and I call these two our dynamic duo because Brandon also works at Johnson, and they work together to build and infuse a really strong music education program for our kids on the south side. And here in a minute, you're going to hear another great South Side educator in music, um that Ms. Montgomery is going to celebrate as well. And what I can tell you is I've never been to a um state marching band performance, and I went this year,
023and I was blown away. I think I probably was the loudest person cheering for this team, um or for our band, and they do it together, and they do it flawlessly, and the kids love them. And I I said it I was able to um they just had a South Triad Band concert, and I said it was a gift because it truly is. It's a gift every day that these guys bring to our kids, and I'm going to let them speak cuz they know all the things and about music, which I do not. Sorry, I can't even sing a tune, but um I know a fantastic teacher, and these guys are both fantastic, so thank you. Well, I'm very proud of our program at South High. I'm very lucky to have a team a teammate
024right here. Uh our administration's been very supportive. Um I'm really proud of my students. They they work really hard, and they kick butt. Uh if you don't know, this past year we got uh second place at state, but we were the only band to receive every caption award for music, marching, color guard, percussion, and marching. So, that's that's a that's a pretty big deal, and these kids are just amazing kids to work with, but uh this guy right here, I've known him since day one. We both started at South together uh 16 years ago, and he's been my partner in crime. I get all the credit, but he's he does most of it, and I'm just lucky to get to work with this guy. So, anyway, this is Brandon Schumacher, great guy. He's a better
025person than he is a teacher, which is it's hard to do, so anyway, he's a great guy. Uh yeah, uh I just kind of echo what Mr. Hernandez said. It's been just a pleasure to work um at Johnson, at South, um with all these great people in admin. Um it's just been awesome. The kids are amazing. Um just blessed, and it's been a blast, so thank you. If we have anyone here in the crowd here to support these gentlemen, can you please stand up, and let's uh give them a round of applause. >> I got this. Now, look at you. Okay, perfect. Really nice. Thank you. Congratulations. It's my favorite thing ever. Marching band here. Uh-huh. And they were It was impressive. Sure, yeah. And that's how it was good. Our next recognition Wait. So
026sorry. Our next recognition is of the Wyoming Young Music Teacher of the Year Award. Uh tonight we'll be honoring Bain Elementary Music Teacher Alexis, I hope I say this right, Peredes? Peredes? Um she will be joined by Principal Katie Montgomery. If you all don't mind to come forward. Thank you. Oh, nice. Perfect. Central Head Candy Cane Day, we had Polar Express Day. >> [laughter] >> She That's how she would dress. Those are her pajamas. It's fabulous. Um hi, I'm Katie Montgomery. I get to be the principal at Bain and I get to work with Alexis Peredes. She's the epitome of uh wonderful. So, I mean I have a few notes that I wanted to say. It's my honor to recognize you, Alexis. You are a reflection of exceptional musical expertise. Um but you have a
027deep, deep commitment to all of our students, which is evident in all of her interactions. You bring a joy and creativity to our students' lives. Us as well. You enrich everything. Um but she also builds our students' confidence and helps them discover their voices, which is wonderful. It gives all of our students an outlet. Um she hasn't yet started to play Taylor Swift, but we'll get there, right? Okay. She is an asset to our district, to all of our students, um and she is making a lifelong impression for all of our students. So, if you ever get to know Alexis, then you um your life is enriched because it's wonderful. So, please welcome um me in recognizing our wonderful young music educator of the year for Wyoming. Um I will sing now. Okay. Congratulations. Thank
028you, ma'am. Congratulations. I should ask if Alexis has any family or colleagues in the audience who are here to support her tonight. If you'd stand. There we go. Thank you. And last but not least tonight in our recognition section, I'd like to uh call forward Amanda Hall, who will be recognizing Arp Elementary School um for their achievement of Model Professional Learning Community School for being named as one. And if I think we may have some folks here from Arp as well. Please all come forward. >> [laughter] >> All right. Good evening, Dr. Newton, Madam Chair, members of the board. Um I'm Amanda Hall. I'm the director of elementary education and I have the honor of working with Arp Elementary as one of the schools that I help supervise and and just get to come out
029and see the wonderful work that they're doing. So, tonight I'm proud to introduce Steve Lloyd. He's the principal at Arp Elementary along with his staff. Um under his leadership, Arp Elementary was recently recognized by Solution Tree as a Model Professional Learning Community PLC school. This honor reflects years of dedicated work by Steve and his team to create a collaborative culture focused on learning, teamwork, and results. Arp is one of only 28 schools in Wyoming to earn this distinction. To achieve it, schools must demonstrate a long-term commitment to the PLC practices, implement them for at least 3 years, and show clear evidence of improved student learning. Steve has guided ARP through this journey, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to exceed or to succeed. This recognition affirms that ARP Elementary is on the right track,
030making meaningful progress toward its goal of high levels of learning for all students. Please join me in congratulating Principal Steve Lloyd and his team for this outstanding achievement. All right. Now, I'm going to hand the mic over to Steve. If we need to we might have to hook him off the stage, but we're going to give him a moment to talk about the hard work that they've been doing. Thank you. Dr. Newton, Madam Chair, Trustees, thank you for having us here and recognize us. I just want to take a little moment. It won't take long, I promise. But, this has truly been a grassroots effort at our school. This is part of our staff that started this. In in 2022, we decided it's time to write a new story for ARP. Um and it was
031it's pretty exciting trip we've been on. It um It was a lot of work, a lot of effort. Including broken bones and some of our work we went through. So, uh that's a real. So, so but I just want to thank our staff. It really wasn't me. I was just there lucky to jump on their coattails and ride along. The staff has been amazing working extra hours putting all this effort in to making this happen for our kids. And this is what it's all about. It's about the students who is who really succeed from this. It's it's a nice award, but it really comes down to our students to see that success. And that's what we've gained. We've doubled our scores in the last 3 years from in our achievement. We're continuing to improve in
032our growth and our equity. And it's just nice to see our students feel that they can accomplish those things. And I think there's a couple terms you'll hear at our school that uh uh I think mean a lot to us. All means all is one of them. There's no kid that's behind. All means all. That every kid. So, I think as of today, we have 349 reasons we come to school work every single day. That's our kids. And we make sure they're successful every single one of them. We also say we learn at high levels. And that's all kids learn at high levels. Not some, all. That all means all. And then better never stops. This is a great award reward to have validate our work and where we're going, but we don't stop here.
033This is just the beginning of where we want to be. And we have high expectations for ourself and our staff and our students to be there. And I couldn't be more proud of our our students and our staff and our families cuz it's all of us working together. And it's a great community at ARP Elementary School. I'm just so lucky that 7 years ago, I think it was now, that they decided to say, "Hey, let's get this old guy on here. See what we can do." Cuz we're changing lives and it's a lot of fun. So, thank you. Thank you so much for the support from the district. We couldn't have done it without that. It took a lot of effort, a lot of resources to get there and trusting where we're going, but it's
034exciting. So, and then huge thanks to our staff. Does anyone want to say anything here? We good? All right. Well, thank you. >> [laughter] >> We'll move into information and reports. reports. The first item under that The first item under that section is section is public comments from public comments from visitors. We did visitors. We did not have anyone sign up not have anyone sign up to speak to speak tonight. So, we will just move tonight. We'll move into information and just move on into upcoming meetings. Um on into upcoming meetings. So, we will Um wanted to note for the board and for for everyone in attendance or listening everyone in attendance or listening later, wanted to note for the board and later, December 22nd through January January 2nd, the district will be closed 2nd,
035the district will be closed for for winter break. Uh Uh January 6th winter break. December 22nd through January 6th is our first trustee meeting our first trustee meeting with the with the superintendent in January. is superintendent in January. I believe the last few months we've been believe the last few months we've been doing the executive trustees first at doing the executive trustees first I the at the that first planning meeting that first planning meeting of the of the month, and then the other one month, and then the other one the second one would be with two other two other trustees. Um Um trustees. the second one would be with I don't I don't I don't know if our I don't know if our executive members do have a preference of whether you'd rather do that
036January 6th, which is when we've been doing it, or the 20th. That is currently on my calendar. As the 6th. Okay. So, we will keep then we're going to just make a change on that January 6th will be the executive team meeting with um Dr. Newton. January 7th is a parent advisory um meeting here in the board room at 6:30 p.m. January 12th, uh Monday, January 12th, we will begin at 5:00 p.m. with a work session here in the board room followed by our regular meeting at 6:00 p.m. Then on January 20th, we will do the meeting trustee meeting with the superintendent. So, I would love to open that up to two trustees. Um It's great when we can kind of rotate through. So, two trustees who have maybe haven't been or would like to
037go. Trustee Humphrey. Okay. So, we have Brooke for that. Um and Trustee Cook. Okay. All right. So, the 6th will be the executive team and then the 20th will be with Trustee Humphrey and Trustee Cook. And then on January 26th, this night is a little bit different. We have added a work session um to that second meeting of the month. So, we'll do a work session at 5:00 p.m. and then our regular board meeting at 6:00 p.m. here in the board room. So, that is it right now for upcoming meetings. Uh the next section is individual board communications and reports. Does anyone have anything they'd like to share? Trustee Bird. Yes, Madam Chair. Um I had the uh privilege of attending two holiday programs this past week. Um I have friends who have little ones
038at Prairie Winds. So, I went way up north. Um and [clears throat] that was very fun. The whole thing was dark and then all the kids had lights and then I hit the pre-K um at Atherton Law and that was really fun because one of the songs they sang in Spanish as part of their dual language immersion program. So, that was very fun. And uh I live off of Cherry Ranch Road. So, Prairie Wind going down 25 is a 25-minute drive home. Which is a long way here in the big city. Thank you. Trustee Classen. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to congratulate all of the We the People teams that came down to compete last week. It was really fantastic to be able to go and watch some of them as they face
039judges and questions and talked about uh our constitutional process and government and all sorts of other issues. And I am especially excited to be announcing um probably no surprise cuz if you read the news, but announcing that our central team actually qualified to go to the nationals this year. So, that was really exciting for the central triad. And I want to just say a shout-out to uh Central High School and our our We the People team. Thank you. Trustee Heinkauf. Thank you, uh Chairman Smith. Um I just wanted to say thank you to you and to um Dr. Newton as well as Sarah Linhart um for setting up a parent meeting uh for the Deming parents to discuss um the closure of the school prior to us discussing that as a board so that they
040can understand the process of what's happening and the options that we will have to vote on. Um and so, I just appreciate you guys setting that up so that we can make sure that um they are included and know what that process is. Thank you. Anybody else? All right. And at this time, I will turn it over to Dr. Newton for reports from superintendent and staff. Thank you, Madam Chair. We just heard great things about Arp Elementary and what great things they they are. We're so proud of them and and I think it's important to note that they've accomplished so much despite the fact they've been displaced out of their building for several years. And so, it's a true celebration for the entire community that we will see the construction of the new Arp Elementary.
041At this time, I'd like to call up principal partner and owner of Stace's uh Will Wiedemair to give us a bit of an update on the construction of our elementary. Mhm. Are we okay? Uh well, Madam Chair, members of the board, Dr. Newton, thanks for having me. My name is Will Wedemeyer, principal architect with Stantec Design. And us, along with our partner firm, Hutton and Mock, have had the privilege to work on the design for the new Arp Elementary School. And I'm here to kind of give you kind of an update on that. So. So, early in the process, you know, we worked very closely with um the staff from Arp, Bain, Lovejoy, Fairview, along with other staff from the district to really develop kind of what we're calling the guiding principles. And these principles
042are are things that really inform the design, you know, as we went through. So, I kind of wanted to share those with you before we get into where the design is at. Um Uh first one, learning for all. Every learner matters. Our school will support diverse needs, styles, and strengths through flexible, inclusive spaces that empower all students to grow and succeed. A unified mosaic. The new Arp Elementary will unite previously separate communities into one vibrant whole. Like a mosaic, the school will reflect the beauty of individual identities coming together in shared purpose, connection, and pride. Honoring the past, inspiring the future. The school will preserve the legacy of the communities' roots while embracing innovation, creating a place where tradition and progress work hand in hand. Warm, welcoming, and inviting. Every space will be thoughtfully designed
043to feel safe, inclusive, and engaging, offering [snorts] a sense of belonging for students, families, staff, and the community. A model for learning. Learning will be visible and celebrated throughout the school. Spaces will support collaboration, curiosity, and adaptability, setting a standard for excellence in education. Student success at the center. The building will be more than a school. It will be a launchpad for every school every child's success, nurturing academic achievement, personal growth, and lifelong skills. So, hopefully you can see that. I don't know if you can read everything on there, but this is kind of the new site layout for the new school. Um It's, you know, located pretty close to where the existing building is. I don't know if you guys can see my cursor or not. Um >> [snorts] >> But the existing building
044kind of sits kind of right here. Um in fact, we're trying to kind of salvage the existing kind of bus loop there on the the west side there. And we utilize that. So. Um knowing that most of the or we think most of the traffic with for parent drop-off and bussing will be coming from the east side. Um then you'll see that there's kind of an emphasis on, you know, the bussing coming in on Hinckley Drive. So, buses will drop off on the north and on the west. Um parent drop-off is there on the south, also coming in from Allison Road. And then we also have a small, still knowing that there'll still be some parents and kids coming from the neighborhood areas west of the facility. We are going to reuse that that parent
045drop-off loop along with the the bus drop-off there. Um play fields are located kind of on the north uh east corner up in here. Uh playgrounds are located on the east there. Trying to, you know, protect that from the predominant winds in the area. And then the the main entry will there be there on the south side there off of that kind of main parking lot on the south. And this is one of the kind of some of the inspiration we used for the design of the of the the playground and outdoor areas. We had lots of different options that we looked at along with the staff and stakeholders. And this is kind of what kind of came to the surface was this kind of rooted in the Wyoming landscape. This is kind of a
046quick kind of video um taking [snorts] you around the building. There's the playground there on the east side, the play fields. And then going around to the north where the buses will drop off there. That's nice. So, it's a partial two-story building. You can see the two-story portion there in the back. And then that's the main entry there. Okay. That's nice. Uh on the exterior, um you know, we're looking at a predominantly brick uh for the facades, you know, something durable. Um we've kind of created this kind of um gradient pattern with the brick with the different colors um through the facade. Um mostly brick, there is some metal we use to try to kind of break up, you know, some of that facade a little bit. But also knowing that, you know, any more
047brick is actually becoming a lot more cost-effective than even some of the artificial metals. So, we we stuck a lot to the brick. Um so, that would be the two-story classroom wing on the top there. Uh then on that bottom, that's the main entry. Kind of we tried to create this kind of kind of front porch, kind of welcoming, you know, the students and and visitors. Uh this is kind of the floor plan. So, south would be the main entry. As you come in there on at the main entry, to the left would be the administrative offices. Um to the right, uh we do have a meeting room that's a um that can be used um to meet with public without having to go through the secure um piece of the the school. Um the
048media center is also there on the right, media center library. Um and then on the east there, that that wing is kind of the uh the kindergarten wing. Um which has seven uh kindergarten Wow. classrooms along with a flex classroom. Wow. And the school as a as a whole is uh going to be designed for 550 students. It's about 80,000 square feet. Um and as you move up through that main corridor there on your right side there, that's kind of mostly the specials. That's your music, art, maker space. And now [clears throat] on the left is the uh um special ed life skills suite. And then we would move up into uh the cafeteria would be on that kind of that tan color on the upper right there along with the gym further to the
049to the east there. Um it'll have bleachers to seat I think 650. The the that um they kind of telescope out, so they fold back into the wall there. Uh the kitchen is on the top side of the the cafeteria. And then to the left um would be the first and second grade wings. Um so, the classrooms they kind of surround kind of a neighborhood commons that can be used for, you know, collaboration and things like that. Uh there are overhead doors in all the classrooms um walls that can be opened up and the kids can, you know, just kind of spill out into those areas to to utilize those. Um resource rooms in every wing. And then this portion is a second story. Um or does have a second story, so then we'll have
050a third and uh fourth grade um classrooms on the upper level. Uh fourth grade because you can have more students within each classroom. There's five classrooms where the others each have seven. So. If you have any questions as I go along, please feel free to ask. So, on the interior, um you know, we really again came up with lots of different options, uh worked with the stakeholders. Um and it was really about rooted foundations, branching features. And one of the slogans we looked at was a tree's beauty lies in its branches, but its strength lies in its roots. You know, thinking of these four schools all coming together, you know, into this one. So. That seemed like an important concept. So, a lot of natural elements uh throughout. Kind of the biophilic ideas. Um so,
051this is kind of showing the the kindergarten uh neighborhood commons. You can see the the kind of neighborhood um where the overhead doors uh into the classrooms with lots of, you know, glass and visibility. Um we tried to um really construe the the floor finishes and the ceiling to really help kind of um make those kind of breakout areas um kind of, you know, separate from the the circulation paths and and kind of get very kind of create these kind of organic, you know, forms throughout. This kind of some of the materials we've been kind of looking at. You you know, on the left there um with the kind of the felt acoustic baffling that we're using there was really to kind of create that kind of feel like you're below a tree canopy. And
052again, down the hallway, the corridor trying to create some more organic forms with, you know, some wood and things to warm things up. Little places where the the kids get a little windows that can look into the media center. And then this would be the neighborhood commons for the first and second grade. Again, you know, those elements up above kind of creating that feel of being below a tree with the branches and >> [snorts] >> And also, we looked at areas where we can create these little nooks where kids can, you know, kind of hang out in small groups or but also maybe have some infographics, you know, about maybe the birds in the area or things like that. So, this is the learning commons or the library media center. And in here, we really
053tried to kind of create a very diverse groupings of of areas. You know, we have the stacks, you know, where the books and stuff will be obviously, but then also create areas where, you know, larger groups, classes can get together, you know, hang out, you know, listen to stories, things like that. And also areas for smaller group work. And again, a lot of play with the organic forms and you know, natural images and things like that. So, and daylight, lots of daylight in this room. And it's right off of that kind of front porch. And we also thought about having an access actually door out to that that porch area or maybe on nice days those classes could spill out into the outside as well. Okay, this is the cafeteria or commons space. A lot
054of taller volume, a lot of daylight into the space. Again, trying to create those elements up above and forms that almost like a large tree trunk moving up into a void up here. Almost feels like a like a Yeah, again, a tree canopy. We like You're playing with this a little bit with the stair kind of kind of a a tree house idea. So, we'll have ropes coming down and things like that. That's uh just something just kind of fun and and playful. There's some nooks underneath the stair where, you know, kids can hang out. And then up above or they'll have a vantage point looking out into the cafeteria commons area. So, right now we're moving towards 65% construction documents. So, we're moving right along. We're submitting that on January 9th and we're hoping
055to complete 100% documents by the end of March. So, at that point it'll go out for for bidding. So, Wonderful. Any questions for me? Anybody? I have Oh, Tracy Classen. I'll just make a comment. Well, actually I have a question, too. My first My first comment is just I like the neat ideas that you're trying to build into this design to make it fun for students and staff to work there. Um my question is how many uh how many classrooms per grade then will be represented in your design? Uh Madam Chair, there'll be seven. Except for the fourth grade and there's five. Because the state allows 25 kids per classroom grades four and up versus, you know, 16 on the lower grade levels. So, there's more classrooms. Thank you. Anybody else? Yeah. Thank you very
056much. Thank you. Yeah, thank you. Appreciate it. The downside is everyone's now just really excited to see this thing go well. All right, at this time I'd like to call forward Jed Sicarelli and partner at MHP, Stephanie Pickering, for the presentation of our annual audit. I'm Thank you, Madam Chair, Dr. Newton, members of the board. Uh tonight we are pleased to present the results of the district's annual financial audit for the fiscal year ending June 30th, 2025. Um in your meeting materials tonight, uh you received a digital copy of our fiscal year 2025 annual comprehensive financial report or we use the acronym ACFR um from our independent auditors MHP as well as the final actuarial actuarial reports from uh the district's consultants GRS. So, um as you can tell, um the finance department loves our
057acronyms. Um just as a quick note, um I always like to mention that um as you're perusing our financial statements, uh Poder and Pass are discreetly presented component units of the district. Um should any of the board members want to see a copy of their independent audits, I'm happy to provide those as well. Um but as you know, Wyoming statute requires all school districts to complete an annual external audit each year, and these results are filed with the Department of Education and the Department of Audit. Um our annual audit was conducted by MHP, um an independent firm of certified public accountants. Now, um there's a lot of different aspects that go into our annual audit engage- engagement, and Ms. Pickering will go over those here in a moment. Um part of that work includes a
058review of our uh financial statements, evaluation of our internal controls, uh compliance testing, and a federal single audit, um which is required when any entity expends more than $750,000 in federal funds. And we know um for our district, that's a pretty low bar. Uh we spend about $20 million in federal grants um every year. Uh it's also important to point out um that the annual audit and ACFR report uh encompasses much more than just the single audit requirements. Uh it includes the financial statements for the district, um and unlike the annual budget uh that's kind of forward-looking, the ACFR is a backward-looking document uh that reports on how the financial resources um were actually used and how the district's financial position changed um over the past year. Now, I'll defer to our auditor from MHP
059here in a minute to go over a high-level summary, uh but before I do, I just wanted to address a quick uh couple of notes. Um the first being the timing of this year's audit presentation. Uh members of the board who were part of the audit committee will recall recall a couple weeks ago um during our exit conference, we talked about um the impact of the federal government shutdown um that delayed the release of the final um Office of Management and Budget OMB compliance supplement, uh which governs that single audit procedures. Um now, since that was delayed, um it meant that um our district auditors and the district wasn't able to complete the required federal compliance testing um until that final guidance was issued. Um I'm happy to report out that um we're going to
060um slide in just right under the state reporting deadlines, knowing that we typically have this presentation in November, um but we'll still meet the state mandated uh reporting requirements and deadlines uh for the current year. Um with regards to the federal single audit, um our single audit included uh detailed compliance testing of selected federal programs. Uh the major programs this year for our district were Title 1 Part A, um Title 4, and our Perkins and Career Technical Education cluster of uh grants to the district. I'm pleased to report that uh there were no audit findings in either the financial statement or the single audit with regards to those programs. Um perhaps probably the the the best part of the annual presentation is just the acknowledgements. I I want to take a moment just to recognize
061uh the many individuals that are involved in completing this year's audit and ACFR. Um first of all, thank you to MHP, um including Ms. Stephanie Pickering, Ms. Taylor Maybe, and Ms. Taryn Springer, um and the rest of the MHT MHP team uh for their professionalism, their thoroughness, and the collaboration through the audit process. Uh this represents uh more than 6 months of work for our district and and the MHP team. Um I also want to uh acknowledge the outstanding work of uh the LCSD1 finance department. Um I think it's important to note that the successful completion of this audit really reflects the collective efforts of the staff across a number of different areas, whether it's accounts payable, accounts receivable, federal programs, payroll, accounting, procurement, and even uh our friends in nutrition services have a big
062part. Um and their daily work ensures that our transactions are accurate, compliant, um and well-documented. So, uh their attention to detail throughout the year are certainly essential in maintaining our strong internal controls and our high-quality financial reporting. Probably um most important to me, and in particular, I want to recognize the work of Ms. Christine Sara, our senior accountant. Uh her leadership, her technical expertise, and her coordination with the auditors are instrumental every year in preparing our ACFR and supporting the work uh that our auditors uh do for us every year. Um her dedication and commitment to accuracy accuracy really continue to elevate our district's financial reporting standards. So, Miss Sarah, if you're watching from home, a heartfelt thank you from me to you. So, Madam Chair, at this time, I'm going to turn the presentation
063to to Miss Miss Pickering, MHP. She'll provide a brief overview of our fiscal year 25 audit results, but I'll certainly stay available for any questions. Well, good evening. Thank you all very much for having me tonight to speak to you about your financial statements and the results of your audit. Um I would like to start with the financial and compliance report, which I understand you all have electronic copies of tonight. I think Mr. Sicarelli did a really great succinct lead-in for you all. So, really what my goal and focus will be tonight is to focus on our opinions, which is really the only three things that we provide to you all in your financial statements. The rest of that big packet of your AFR is really the hard work put in by the school district
064and the finance staff. Our job is just to come in and audit that. So, we will start about PDF page 23 if you're following along electronically. This is our independent auditor's report over your financial statements, and it is the first of three opinions that we provide to the school district. This opinion really focuses on your financial statements themselves. So, we did audit your financial statements as of June 30th, 2025. Our goal is to provide you all reasonable assurance that your financial statements are not materially misstated. So, in the world of attest engagements, reasonable assurance is the highest level of assurance that we can provide to you. We say reasonable assurance because without coming in and recreating every single transaction, it's not possible for us to give you absolute assurance. But, reasonable assurance is the highest
065level that a an independent auditor firm can provide to you all. The second paragraph under the opinion is the result of your audit, and it says, "In our opinion, based on the audit and the reports of Padgett, the accompanying financial statements present fairly in all material respects the financial position of the school district." Succinctly, that is a clean unmodified opinion. As a Board of Trustees and as the general public, that's exactly the language that you all are hoping to read here in your financial statements. Now, I would like to shift to the second of the three opinions that we provide to you, which begins on PDF page 115. Mr. Sicarelli did mention that as part of our audit, we do take a look at your internal controls. We also look at whether or not we
066find the school district to be in compliance with any laws, regulations, state statutes, etc. that we think might have a material impact on your financial statements. Examples of those might be making sure that you're appropriately collateralized in all of your cash accounts, that you have a budget that you are following and tracking, that you're properly invested in investments that are allowed for under state statute. Those would be three examples of those non-compliance areas that we could take a look at. We found no significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in your internal controls over financial statements. If we did, those would be reported to you all through this opinion, but there are no such items of that to note. In addition, no non-compliance with laws, regulations, state statutes, either. So, very clean unmodified internal control opinion, as
067well. Now, the third and final opinion that we provide to you all is your compliance over each major federal program that we audit. That opinion can be found starting on page 117. This opinion kind of has three purposes, if you will. The first is just your general opinion over spending with federal programs. The second is identifying to you all any instances of non-compliance. And the third piece of the opinion would be to provide to you all any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in internal controls over how those federal funds are managed. Mr. Sicarelli had already mentioned the three programs that we audited this year, Title I, the student support academic enrichment program, and then the career and technical education program. Your total spending in those three programs this year were about $8.5 million. In 2025,
068we actually had closer to $26.5 million in federal spending, so a little bit more than that average $20 million a year. With those three programs that we did audit, we had no modifications to the opinion on any of those three programs, no instances of non-compliance, and no items of control deficiencies to report to you all, either. So, a very clean unmodified report on those things, as as well. Now, outside of our auditor's report and those opinions, we do have one specific deliverable that we provide directly to you all as a Board of Trustees. And this is really our way of communicating to you all without any sort of interference from management. Um and if there are any kind of concerns that were identified throughout the course of the audit, we would uh provide those to
069you in a written form through this letter. Um I believe you all have a copy of that. It'll say the report to the audit committee on the front of it. Um but you're going to find when you take a look at that, if you have a few minutes to read it, um that it's very clean, uh no no issues identified kind of a letter. Um we provide kind of three things to you all through this letter. The first is just communicating to you all things that changed. Uh the second is any kind of significant issues that would have popped up, and then the third is just general key considerations for you all to be aware of throughout the audit process. Uh in terms of things that changed this year, there was one fairly large standard,
070um GASB standard that had to be adopted by the finance team this year, and that was GASB 101, and had to do with how the district uh computes and and reports to you all compensated absences. Um for for Jed uh and his team, that was a fairly lengthy process to analyze the PTO and and sick leave patterns throughout the district. Um so that was one big change this year. Uh primarily just impacted current versus long-term portion of your liability, but that was one standard that they adopted this year. In terms of significant issues to report to you all, there are none, uh which I would hope that you all would expect uh from your finance team. So no difficulties with management during the course of our audit. Um there were no significant issues that we
071discussed with your management team. Um we're not aware of any instances where your management team disagreed with us such that they consulted with outside um auditor accounting firm. Sometimes um clients will obtain a second opinion if they disagree with us. No such issues to report to you all. Um no issues that we were uncomfortable with during our audit where we felt we needed to reach outside of our firm for additional consultation as well. Lastly, in terms of key consideration, there are a couple of footnotes that we recommend that you all take a look at as a Board of Trustees. Those are predominantly related to some um fairly large uh long-term liabilities, the net pension liability both with Wyoming Retirement Systems and your internal um bonus retention plan, as well as the OPEB OPEB plan related
072to health insurance. Those are pretty large liabilities. We recommend that if you have a few minutes, you could take a look at those footnotes. Um those also have uh fairly substantial estimates with those. And so anytime there is an estimate in your financial statements, we want to make you aware of those. Estimates by nature could be a little bit more subjective, have um potential for management bias. So as auditors, we come in and really look at those. Um we identify whether or not we think that they um were done in a reasonable manner, and we had no concerns with the estimation processes for you all um related to your estimates. Uh lastly, the third and final estimate kind of just be aware of is the un um the incurred but not yet recorded claims related
073to your health insurance plan. Um again, there's just a little bit of an estimate in that uh through Blue Cross Blue Shield. Um want to make you all aware of that. Lastly, I just kind of want to echo um the kind sentiments that Mr. Ciccarelli gave our firm. Um we are always excited to come out and audit the school district. Um the finance team, all of them from top to bottom, are the most prepared um clients that I probably have. Um we very much appreciate their responsiveness. Um we do audit for a very long time out here, start in June and end wrap up in November or December this year. So appreciate them um and their professionalism. So with that, I am happy to take any questions you all have about the audit process, our
074opinions, the audit committee letter that we provide to you all. I don't have any questions. Thank you. Madam Chair, that is it for our reports this evening. Thank you, Dr. Newton. The next section of our agenda is the consent agenda routine matters. All agenda items listed with a designation of CA are considered to be routine items by the governing body and will be enacted by one motion. There will be no separate discussion on these items. Any item removed from the consent agenda will be considered in its normal sequence on the agenda. Does any board member request to remove a motion from the consent agenda? Seeing none, do we have a motion? Madam Chair, I move to approve all motions listed as consent agenda. And I second. We have a motion and a second to approve
075all motions listed as consent agenda. All in favor, please say I. I. Opposed? It has been approved. Uh going down into new business, uh we should have some motions. Madam Chair, I move to approve the fiscal year 2024-2025 financial audit by McGee, Hearne, and Piles, LLP. Second. So, we have a motion and a second to approve the fiscal year 2024-2025 financial audit by McGee, Hearne, and Piles, LLP. Do we have any questions or discussion on that? Okay. All in favor of approving this, please say I. I. Opposed? Okay. That has been approved. >> I have a statement. Thank you, uh Mr. Cicarelli and um MHP. Um it is a fabulous thing to be able to have a clean audit on such a large budget on the SR. So, thank you. All right. Madam Chair, I
076move to grant permission to purchase VMware Cloud Foundation software from Trace3Gov for an amount not to exceed $600. Second. So, we have a motion and a second to grant permission to purchase VMware Cloud Foundation software from Trace3Gov. Do we have any questions or discussion on this item? Trustee Hinkle? Madam Chair, can we just get an explanation of what that is? Madam Chair, Mr. McKinney. >> [clears throat] >> Madam Chair, Trustee Hinkle. Uh this is a platform we have used for about 20 years and uh if you've seen our data center over here, um we had a room that was once full of servers, racks of servers. Um this platform has let us get rid of you know, 20 servers and put them onto one more powerful server. So, we save a lot of money. Unfortunately,
077they were bought by Broadcom 2 years ago and their pricing has gone from $15,000 a year in '24 to this last up uh last renewal was 49,000 and now it's 96,000. So, if we were Fidelity or AT&T, we may be suing them like I I would love to do. Unfortunately, we have to just stick with them until we find an alternative. Um so, it's been a big shakeup in the market and um we're going to uh hopefully find another option uh by next year. Thank you. That would have been my next question is are we searching for a uh another option? Us along with most VMware customers is is kind of the understanding I'm getting from talking to consultants and whatnot. But, so. Thank you. So, Mr. McKinney, saw in the supreme information on our
078on our platform that we're using the state of Wyoming's contract for this. Does that mean are there state entities I would imagine they're likely buying on the same contract. I'm I'm not sure. Uh unfortunately, um yeah, the ETS, Wyoming Enterprise Technology Services, the state, they would probably they would be the next um largest uh purchaser from them. I would imagine they'd be on the same contract. Often, we are on the same contracts, but uh I'm not I'm not certain. I also know that uh uh even the pricing we're getting uh between different folks, it's just an absolute mess right now. So, I I couldn't say whether they're getting quoted the same things uh we're getting quoted. So. Thank you. Yeah. Anybody else? Okay. Thank you, Mr. McKinney. Okay. So, we have the motion and a
079second. All in favor of approving this purchase, please say I. I. Opposed? That has been approved. Madam Chair, I move to grant permission to contract with Star Playgrounds for new playground at Saddle Ridge Elementary School with base bid amount of $314,902 and removal and disposal of current playground equipment in the amount of $15,500 and $0 for a total amount not to exceed $330,000. Sorry, $330,402. Second. We We have a motion and a second to approve the contract for Saddle Ridge Elementary's new playground equipment. Do we have questions or discussion on this? Trustee Cook. Yeah, Madam Chair. Is there a timeline for when this is going to take place? Yeah, Madam Chair, Trustee Cook. The timeline will be this summer and that that project will replace most of the equipment out there, include some ADA equipment
080and it's Rec Mill funded. Trustee Classes. Yeah, Madam Chair, I was just curious. I thought when I was on the Rec Mill board, we we paid for a lot of playground equipment using Rec Mill funds. Is there a reason why this didn't go through the Rec Mill board? This is Rec Mill. Oh, it is Rec Mill. Okay, I missed that. Thank you. Anybody else? Mr. Napp, I just was curious when they take the old playground equipment and is it truly disposed of or are they able to reuse it or what what happens with what they remove? >> It's usually disposed of. Usually it's getting to the point where it's out of compliance and and not really certifiable under our criteria. We generally don't give it away. Um I don't I know I've had a lot
081of questions lately because we do have some coming off and I'll probably have to look into that a little bit more because of the amount we have coming out of some of these playgrounds. When we've moved it, it has cost about as much for us to take it out of some place and reinstall it at our new place as it did to just put new in. Sure. So. Okay, thank you. All right, so we have a motion and a second to approve the contract for new playground equipment at Saddle Ridge Elementary. All in favor, say I. I. Opposed. Okay, that has been approved. Madam Chair, I move to grant permission to contract with Arcadis Group for owner representative services for the South Triad new 5-6 elementary school in an amount not to exceed $349,920 and
082zero cents. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second to approve contract for owner representative services for the South Triad's new 5-6 elementary school. Do we have questions or discussion on this motion? Trustee Hinkle. Thank you. Mr. Napp, would you mind just explaining what that means to have an owner representative? Sure. Um so, this will be an owner's representative for for 5-6 elementary and as you know, we have one as well on the ARP elementary. Um that those are provided by the state, so the budget for those is in the initial allocation that comes for our design construction budget in the capital construction money. So, they have money in there for an owner's rep as well as a commissioning agent that you're going to see coming up here tonight. Um the difference between those
083uh is basically that an owner's rep represents us, represents the process in the building, looks out for our interest through the budget, the change orders, um the schedule and uh and make sure the ultimate job is to make sure that project stays within the budget and comes in on time. The commissioning agent um is the process of it, so they're in the end making sure that that school works as it's designed. So, they will work with all of the different designers that have designed a piece of it such as mechanical, electrical, plumbing um and and those different trades and they'll test those as they come through and then they will actually ensure that the building's working together and continues working and then they'll test it at capacity when it's complete and make sure it functions
084like it was designed. Okay. And are you kept informed of all those things that happen along the way? Yes, Madam Chair, Trustee Hinkle. The owner's reps will actually have an office based out of our planning construction office and they'll be at our owners owner architect's meetings every week and then if we are not there, either Shannon or myself, they'll bring an update each week as to what's going on and they'll bring anything that any concerns that come up during the week. Okay, thank you. Thank you, Chair. Anybody else? Mr. Napp, I just wanted to clarify. I know funding for this is from the capital construction fund, so that is money that the state has allocated for the construction of these two new schools, correct? Yes, that's correct, Trustee Madam Chair. The original allocation that we
085requested through the state construction department um includes all the design and construction, which includes owner's reps, commissioning agents. Um the The only thing that's not usually included in those is anything off-site that the city or county would require. Okay. Thank you. All right. We'll move to a vote on that then. So, all in favor of approving the contract for owner representative services for the South Traz new 5-6 elementary school, please say I. I. Opposed? And that's been approved. Do you have another motion? Madam moved to grant permission to contract with Bowman Construction Group LTD for commissioning services at Arp Elementary School replacement in South Triad new 5-6 elementary school in an amount not to exceed $131,080 and $0. I second. So, we have a motion and a second to approve the contract for commissioning services
086for Arp Elementary School replacement and South Triad's the South Triad's 5-6 elementary school. Do we have any questions or discussion on that? All right. All in favor, please say I. I. Opposed? And that's been approved as well. Madam Cherry moved to approve the administrator professional contract on the attached list for the 2025-2026 school year and to place them on the appropriate step of the administrative professional salary schedule. I second. So, we have a motion and a second to approve the appointment of administrator/professional. Do we have any questions or discussion on that item? Yeah, Trustee Hinkle. Thank you, thank you, Madam Chairman. Dr. Newton, we had discussed this and you were going to explain uh this appointment for us, please. Madam Chair, uh Trustee Hinkle, yes, um it says administrator/professional. This is a professional position. Um
087it is not new, it is a replacement. The former position was an administrative position. This will be at a lower grade on the professional scale. It has been reclassified um because um well, one, that reduces our overall cost, uh but it also better aligns with uh the role and the department's priorities. So, um technically, it's a replacement, but it is also at a lower uh grade than before. Thank you. Anybody else? All right. So, we have a motion and a second to approve the appointment of this new professional. All in favor, please say I. I. Opposed? That has been approved. And I think we have one more motion. Madam Cherry moved to grant permission to purchase 12 welders, six for East High School and six for Central High School from ARC Solutions for an amount
088not to exceed $154,387 and $0. I second. So, we have a motion and a second to grant permission to purchase 12 welders. Do we have any questions or discussion on this? Trustee Burton. Um Madam Chair, I have a question. Um how long would it how long do these last? That's over $10,000 a piece. Probably closer to $15,000. Chair Smith, Trustee Burton, thank you for that question. Uh tonight, I've invited um the welding teachers from um both schools to to uh speak to any questions that we might have. So, I'll introduce Mr. Trejo and Mr. Hopkins. To answer your question, these are all brand new multi-process machines. So, what we're trying to do with these is we're getting four machines for one. Um as of right now, timeline, um they last a while. I mean, I
089haven't really heard any oopsies with them yet. So, hopefully, the 5 to 10 years is what we're looking to get out of them. But, that's pretty much the answer to your question. They'll be Excuse me. They'll be replacing machines that we currently have. So, the ones that they're replacing at East, I would guess to be around 30 years old. Um and those machines are single process machines. So, all you can do is stick weld on them. Where on these, it opens up a lot more opportunities for students um and more machines, I guess, for each student to work on rather than when we go to like TIG welding right now, they have to share three or four students per machine. So, just allows them to I guess weld more metal. Thank you. Chairman, thank you
090guys. I have one question. Will this be the similar type of machine that they would use out in the community should they go into welding? To answer that one, yes. So, I decided to he kind of tag-teamed it as I started using but the college actually uses very similar machines to this. It's just a newer updated version of them and everybody's starting to go to these kind of machines. So, yes. And industry always tailors specific specific machines but it's kind of one of the more industry leading ones that a lot of companies are going to because of the multi-process functions of them. Thank you. Anybody else? I just had one question and that was I noted in our supporting information that South High School had received already has received four new welders. Are these the
091same type of welders that South has or similar? Chair Smith, thank you very much for that question. Anticipate that question and I called Mr. Wolfe, the instructor at South today. Actually went visit him on Friday. Got to see a great lesson out there. They have received four of their MIG welders and they are due for four more welders which are actual TIG welders that can also do stick welding as well. So, they are actually getting eight welders. They ordered those earlier through two different processes through different vendors and that's why we weren't we didn't present to you guys earlier this year. Okay. Thank you. Anybody else? And Madam Chair, I might add that these will be funded through the Perkins grant. Correct. Uh Chair Smith, Dr. Newton also points out that as a federal grant
092that is dispersed through the LEA what or through the state to the LEA which is Laramie County School District number one. The reason we're doing welding this year just like we did shop last year with the shop bots Mr. Stoneking presented with us is that we do an annual review of program study every year in CTE. This year was welding. Thank you, Stoneking. Very exciting. Thank you, gentlemen. Do you have anything else on that? Okay. All right. Well, all in favor of granting permission to purchase 12 welders, please say I. I. Opposed? That has been approved. All right. The next regular board meeting will be held on Monday, January 12th at 6:00 p.m. The work session will begin at 5:00 p.m. The district or the business of the district is now done. Do we have
093a motion for executive session? Madam Chair, I move to go into executive session prior to adjournment for the purpose of possible student long-term suspensions, expulsions, personnel, legal advice, and litigation. And I second. With a motion and a second to go into executive session, all in favor say I. I. Opposed? Okay, we will break for executive session.