001Good evening everyone. Welcome tonight. We have a large crowd, so we're really excited to see everybody here. This is one of the most exciting even be able to recognize so many of our students. So, thank you all for joining us. Justin, can you please see a few minutes? Doabella here, Greg Cavo, Victoria Salon, Stephanie Coen, Angela Matthew, Alex Mcnalton, Justin Angley here, Jen Pod here, Jane Sergeant, Pete Tagley, Mary Weber, Christine Wig, Dr. Rodrigue is going to present our students. Good evening everyone. It is good to see a full house. We're here and we're always excited to recognize and honor our outstanding students. And Don Shells, the principal of Chaplag is going to help out this evening. And I'm going to start with the Lichfield County Superintendent Award. So, just so you know a little
002bit about the award, the Lichfield County Superintendent Award recognizes all of those students with academic excellence as well as contributions to the community, the entire school community. And we have lots of students u like this, but we're here to honor those that received the award. And students, just so you know how this works this evening, you're going to come on up. I'm going to shake your hand. We're going to hand you a plaque and then just stand here for a moment while I read a blurb about how awesome you really are. So, let's start with Samantha Rue Booth Free School. Samantha is a kind, caring, and hard-working fifth grade student at Booth School in Roxberry. She has shown great determination this year, always striving to do her very best. A member of the school chorus,
003Samantha is known for offering a helping hand and encouraging others. In her free time, she enjoys basketball, spending time with her sister Evelyn, and caring for her guinea pigs. Ember and Maple. Samantha's positivity and dedication make her a valued member of the Booth Free School community. You also have a great mom, principal. Congratulations. You did. You did stay there. Next, we have Charlie Cubisc, a fifth grade student at Burnham School. I'm still going to read about Charlie. She is dedicated and hard-working student who consistently demonstrates a strong academic performance. Charlie is actively involved in the school community and takes on leadership roles with a supportive attitude. This is evident through acting roles, strong performance on the basketball court, and her selection to the Connecticut Leadership Conference. Charlie's contributions to both her academic work and the
004school environment make her a respected and well-rounded student. And we'll make sure she gets her plaque. Congratulations to Charlie. Next, we have Emma Morsy, Washington Primary School, fifth grade. Emma is an exceptionally kind and hard-working fifth grade student at Washington Primary whose talents shine whether she is working alone or as part of a team. Emma is a role model in class. Persevering through challenges. Her quiet confidence makes her a true leader of her learning. Emma is also a devoted equestrian. She competes independently and on teams during intercolastic equestrian association events. When not riding, Emma cares for the horses and helps younger students at the barn pack their horses. Congratulations. And next we have Ren Hutching, Chap Valley School, a senior. Ren is a senior at Chap Valley School. She has been a fixture in the
005theater department for four years where they discovered the perfect blend of creativity and technical skill in the lighting department. Leadership has com combined with love of storytelling has been felt and enjoyed by the entire community. Ren will be taking this passion to the next level at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts where they will study design and production in lighting design. Good job. And next we have Hannah Koelloo, an 11th grade student at Chap Valley School's Agra Science Academy. Okay. Hannah serves as the FFA chapter secretary and is active in the National Honors Society and Science National Honors Society. She is a dedicated student and an active community member who maintains a strong academic record through continuous volunteer work and demonstrated success in college coursework. She strives for excellence and integrity in
006everything she does, making her a deserving award recipient. Congratulations to Hannah. And we'll get our her plaque. And finally, for the superintendent's awards, we have Neie Gritty, an eighth grader at Ship. Neie is a role model and a leader. She joined the Spartan Ambassadors in seventh grade, growing into a strong and exceptional leader. Beyond that, she has been an active student council member throughout middle school. Neie is dedicated in and out of the classroom, overcoming academic hurdles to become a champion advocate for herself and her peers. She embodies the four values Chaplav strives to instill, consistently demonstrating perseverance, leadership, and dedication to excellence. Great job. And I will turn it over to Mr. Michelle. Good evening everyone. This is one of the happiest nights of the year. So that award, that impressive award was sponsored
007by the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendent. The one that I'm about to comment on is from the Connecticut Association of Boys of Education. And for some context, for both these awards, fewer than 1% students in our state received them. They are very impressive awards and our students should be very proud of what they did. But this is Caves award, Association of Boards of Education for Student Leadership. And we're asked to select students who demonstrate exemplary leadership skills based on the following criteria. Willingness to take on challenges. Capability to make difficult decisions. Concern for others. Ability to work with others. Willingness to commit to a project. Diplomacy. We need more of that, don't we? Diplomacy. Ability to understand issues clearly. And ability to honor honor their commitments. So, the award winners this year, first for
008grade 8 is Steve Rolo. Stevie, congratulations. Stevie exemplifies dedication and perseverance, consistently revising her work to improve and refine her skills. With a strong work ethic, she approaches every task with determination and focus. A quiet leader, Stevie leads by example, always doing the right thing and maintaining high standards in all she does. Her consistency in producing quality work makes her a valuable team member, contributing with class and grace. Whether working independently or collaboratively, Steviey's commitment to excellence and integrity sets her apart. Congratulations. Next, also from grade 8 is Connor Karu. Connor Karu is a dedicated and hardworking student who consistently strives for excellence. He quietly leads by example, demonstrating a strong willingness to take on challenges and make difficult decisions when needed. Connor is always ready to help his classmates, showing genuine concern for others
009and the ability to work well with different peers. His leadership skills allow him to guide a team toward success. And his determination and perseverance make him a valuable asset both in the classroom and beyond. Congratulations, Connor. And now for grade 12, we have first Payton King. Payton King joined us here at Chap from California the summer before her sophomore year. From the first day Payton walked through our doors, she carried with her an aura of positivity and warmth that endeared her to both staff and students alike. Her ability to adapt in the face of such change speaks volumes about her character and potential. Words to describe Payton would be driven, loyal, logical, and trustworthy. But more importantly, she is kind and empathetic, always ready with a smile to brighten someone's day. Payton brings a quiet
010confidence and leadership to things like the National Honor Society and the Math Honor Society where she tutors younger students. She's a member of our math leads team as well as our link crew and Spartan Club, which are designed specifically to connect younger younger students to our school community. As if she wasn't busy enough, Payton is a member of our golf team as well as indoor and outdoor track teams. Payton will be heading off to study premed in college this fall. Nobody deserves this honor more and we're all proud to call her a spot. Congratulations. And then finally from 12th grade, Nate Coner. Congratulations, Nate. Nate is a young man who effortlessly blends academic skill with an infectious sense of humor. From the moment you meet Nate, it's clear that he possesses an innate curiosity and
011a desire to challenge himself. He's one of our top students who is always looking to push himself with multiple AP and honors classes. What helps him stand apart, however, is his ability to weave humor into classroom conversations and transform them uh and our classrooms into spaces of deep thought and laughter. A rare gift that enriches the learning experience for everyone involved. Nate shares his talents as a member of the National Honor Society where he also tutors our younger students and has helped with many successful blood drives here at school. I faint when I give blood, Nate. I'm glad you're on that. I'm going to pass the torch to you on that. Okay. Going forward. He's also a member of the link crew again whose mission is to connect incoming freshmen with upper classmen in hopes
012of creating valuable connections in the school community. Nate spends the rest of what's left of his free time as a member of uh our track teams. We look forward to hearing about all of Nate's adventures after graduation from Chapag. You better stay in touch. Congratulations, Nate, on this well-deserved college. Next, I'll have the honor to introduce students who perform very well academically in our school. Uh the top six performers in the class. Of course, we know that grade point averages and grades are only one metric and they don't always capture every nuance of the subtle complexity of a human being, but we're right to celebrate excellence in learning and uh academic achievement, and we're about to do that right now. Um, and first up is Alandre Arcada. Alandre is a truly outstanding student whose achievements
013and character set her apart. Over the past three years, she has demonstrated remarkable ambition and compassion, excelling academically through a rigorous schedule of AP and honors courses. Her dedication was recognized with the prestigious Brandeise Book Award, honoring her commitment to both intellectual inquiry and social justice. That's a winning combination. Beyond the classroom, Alandre is a vibrant presence in our community. She shines on stage in her church's musicals and her teamwork skills have contributed to her field hockey team's Berkshire League tournament victory. As an active model, a UN participant, she has developed strong skills in debate and diplomacy. Her leadership also extends to service. As president of Simply Smiles, she raises funds for an orphanage in Mexico, and she's promoted inclusivity through the Anti-Defamation League and Leo Club. For her senior project, she is raising cultural
014awareness, a cause close to her heart. Alandre aspires to be to a career in business and will undoubtedly continue to inspire those around her. Congratulations. Next, Juliet Eddie. And Miss Eddie is the saludiatoran for her class. It is rare to meet a high school student with the level of drive and passion to excel that Juliet possesses. She is curious, adventurous, and has a ferocity for learning and an eagerness to push beyond what is expected. In the best of ways, success is a necessity for Juliet. It is with this clarity of mind that she heads to the college level and we imagine that her educational journey will experience no boundaries. Juliet is not afraid of taking chances and stretching herself if she knows it will expand her mind and ultimately her life. She is a member
015of the field hockey and tennis teams, a class officer, a participant in model UN, as well as a member of the math, science, and national honor societies. She was the 2024 recipient of the UPUPAN Book Award. To top it off, she's an accomplished pianist who spends many hours a week honing her talent and she plans to continue her education at Salv Regina University where she will study nursing. Good for you and congratulations. Next, Payton King. and Payton is her class's valadictorian. I already sang her praises and offered many accolades a few moments before, but let's just stop and reflect on how impressive Payton has been as a student here in our school. She came here new to us. She was not daunted. She embraced challenge. She turned towards the complexity and ran with it and
016excelled at everything she's tried. She is a scholar. She is an athlete. She is an empath. She is concerned about others. She exemplifies and personifies that poster I have on the wall in my office if you want to come see. It's a quotation from Nelson Mandela. I love quoting it. And it says, "A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination." And in this young lady, we see those com that combination in spades. We couldn't be more proud. Congratulations Nate Con. Some of them are up here so much I'm confusing myself. All right. Again, you see, and it's appropriate that we had to spend a lot of ink writing about these young people tonight. So, for Nate, uh, expanding on what I said before, it said that fun is just another word
017for learning, or we hope it will be. And it's noted by this author as well, who also knows Nate, that he's a young man who effortlessly blends academic skill with that sense of humor that we talked about and an innate curiosity and a desire to challenge himself all over the inside and outside of the classroom. Yes, one of our top students. You can tell that by his transcript. I can probably also tell you a few things that you couldn't see on his transcript. that for Nate learning isn't just about an achievement or a number on a scorecard, even though that's what got him here tonight. It's about understanding something about the mystery of our existence and understanding something about making meaning out of the world and using that using those serendipities to help the rest
018of us forward. So, thank you for being all those things, Nate, and congratulations to you, Aiden Miles. Special shout out paintings in my advisory. Not saying I had anything to do with this tonight, but they get embarrassed when I announce that. Um Hayden is a young lady who is trustworthy, motivated, hardworking, and persistent. But more importantly, she's brave, strong, confident, and ready to move on and pursue her academic career at the next level. Aiden is a top tier student, excelling across a demanding array of advanced placement courses, including AP Spanish, which she embraced not only as an academic pursuit, but as a bridge to connect with other cultures. Her dedication to mastering the Spanish language is not just about achieving fluency. It's a testament to her belief in the power of communication to foster understanding
019and build bridges between people. Aiden is a member of the soccer team as well as indoor and outdoor track. She's a member of the National Honor Society, participates in the Morgan's Message Club, which promotes mental health among athletes. She was the 2024 recipient of the Endicott Book Award. Hayden will be attending Northeastern University where she will be studying criminal justice and political science. Congratulations. And finally, Christa Rickers. Christa's tenacity and charisma are a testament to her character and her engagement in a variety of extracurricular activities. And these all illustrate and prove her to be a well-rounded and dynamic individual. For example, her participation in Model United Nations and her position as student council president exemplify her initiative and leadership skills. Christa's academic achievements are truly remarkable. She has consistently challenged herself with a rigorous course
020load while balancing her responsibilities in various clubs, teams, and other activities. Additionally, she's a member of the National Honor Society and Triam Music Society and the 2024 Brown University Book Award recipient. Her intellectual curiosity and eagerness to learn are qualities that will undoubtedly benefit her in the college environment. She approaches challenges with a positive mindset and unwavering determination to succeed. Christa will be attending the University of Rhode Island in the fall where she will study secondary education. Congratulations, Christa. and to all our fine students. On behalf of the faculty uh and student body and all of us at Chipog, we're very proud of your achievements and we wish you the best for much deserved success in happiness. Turn it over to Mrs. Pod for a short break. Yes, I just take a short break to
021congratulate uh all of these wonderful students in person. So, um there's cookies and refreshments behind us. So, let's take a few moments. So, again, thank you all for coming this evening. Really, it's just so wonderful to see all the amazing things our students are doing. So, thank you so much. Uh moving on now to public comment on agenda items. Is there anybody who would like to say nothing? Okay, seeing nothing, we're moving on to the consent agenda. I always refer to um Alex. So is there anything on the consent agenda that you think that needs to be added or changed? microphone. Sorry, I did not find anything. Okay, anyone else? Nobody. Great. And we're moving on. Terrific presentation for the strategic plan teaching learning council. Harry Snowden and the staff. Good evening everybody. Uh thanks
022so much for giving us this opportunity to talk to you a little bit about the terrific work that the teaching and learning council has done this year to um make progress towards many of the goals on the strategic plan. I'll just tell you briefly, last spring when I first arrived and uh got myself familiar with the plan, I realized that there were many um items on the plan that required teacher voice. We needed teachers to get involved in some of the research, some of the investigation, some of the decision making, some of the planning that was outlined in the plan. So, um, I put an all call out for volunteers and got terrific a terrific group of teachers together. In fact, on the next slide, Ben, you're going to see their names. Not everybody could
023be here tonight, um, understandably, but several are here tonight to to help share uh about their work this year. And so just so you know, the the folks who've been coming twice a month after a long day of work uh in the classroom, they come and work together on different aspects of the plan. So on the next slide, I'll just tell you I'll outline that a little bit. So these are our four strategic plan priority areas. Understandably, the director of teaching, learning, and assessment and a group called the teaching and learning council has focused a lot of our work in that powerful learning category. But you'll also see that one of our subcommittees has dipped into that fourth category of innovation and delivering value. And so on the next few slides, I'm going to stop
024talking. I'm going to have them come up. They'll talk about, you know, what priority, what was the priority area, what was the specific commitment that they were working on. They broke up into subcommittees and some of the outcomes of their work, which I think is laying some groundwork for continued work next year. So, subcommittee number one, come on up. My name is Linda McMillan and I'm part of that working on the powerful learning. Um our commitment was to establish a deep understanding of teaching and learning committed to engaging with students promoting personalized learning and supporting high academic achievement. So what we did is we took it upon ourselves to s information. We developed and distributed a survey to all the region 12 educators um requesting that they review a list of educational practices and indicate
025the top five they understand well the top five they currently implement in their classrooms and the top five they are interested in learning more about. Um we gave them 27 options so it was a lot to read through and they did a wonderful job of that. We received a total of 64 responses which are summarized right down here. Um they were also invited to suggest any additional practices they felt should be included. The number of suggestions was minimal um indicating that the list provided was generally comprehensive and aligned with practices educators consider important. Um so what these two represent these were the top three practices currently used in region 12 which is formative assessment, differentiation and communicating expectations with students. Um and then the top four practices that they wanted to figure some further exploration
026was project based learning, discovery based learning thinking classroom strategies and studentled conferences. So those are the ones we're kind of looking at now and determining next steps. I think that this uh this work is sort of getting us started on coming together around some guiding documentation for our current and future teachers around the teaching practices we use and also helping us decide where we might want to um direct some professional development time and and funds into some of the practices that teachers are interested in learning more about. So, we're just sort of starting this process, but it's a it we got a good start by gathering the information from the staff. All right, subcommittee number two, come on down. Good evening again. And I have with me two of the pillars of our school, Mark
027Peters and Kate Eddie that probably need no introduction. They're important members of our subcommittee along with that husking and um they're the ones who did who were to drive us forward to where we are now and they're so modest they didn't want the limelight that I arm twisted until they would at least come and stand here with me and be recognized for all they do for our for our school. So our subcommittee worked on something called a vision of the learner. Many schools have this and they call it a portrait of the graduate and with all due respect to those fine visions. I think ours is a little more expansive and enlightened because it imagines it contemplates not just the end product but the whole person all the way through K to 12. And um
028a vision of a learner um technically is it's a shared vision that describes the knowledge, skills, and attributes or dispositions that a school or in this case a district believes students should have by the time they graduate to be successful in college, career, and in life. It's a framework then that we use to guide our curriculum, our instruction, our assessment and helps us align um our education, what we're doing here, align it with yes workforce needs, but societal demands and maybe most importantly the self-awareness, the selfactualization, the self-growth of the student. Now I think the vision of the learner touches on all the aspects of our strategic plan because it's going to trigger powerful teaching and learning by virtue of how we uh apply it. Uh you'll see when we talk about the attributes that
029the committee is contemplating, it also envisions students moving out into the community and doing action which connects to family and community engagement. It also will help with diversity and belonging and well-being because it talks about ways students can think about how to become happy actualized persons and it does deliver innovation and value because it helps students move forward into the rapidly evolving world that we see. Okay. So our vision of the learner is um there's a working draft still but it's nearing completion and it was a very democratically instructed document. I just want to describe the process briefly. It started a year ago at our retreat under the leadership of Dr. Rodriguez and um and Miss Snowden and we had many stakeholders there in the room with us and we started investigating the skills and
030the dispositions that students will need to exceed succeed excuse me in the world that we that we see that what I just called that rapidly evolving landscape. And this led then to the formation of a district-wide committee that's been working all year um charged with developing the vision. And that committee received input from our stakeholders, from teachers, from students, from parents. And that led us to the current draft that you see behind me that has four main parts. Some of it's too small for you to see, but the idea is we want our kids to be able to act with courage and character, communicate with reason and empathy, engage in creative processes, and solve problems ethically. Now, those are the big categories that we want for our students. And then how would you describe what
031that looks like in each case? And that became the work very inclusive work of all of our stakeholders. They all got teachers, students, parents got um the big the big ideas, the big concepts and then were asked to write in potential descriptions for what it would look like and how we could measure it. All that information was tabulated and it led to the draft that you see before you um right now. And I just I couldn't be prouder of the process. Everybody was involved. Everybody was included. And I don't think with a project this big with as many stakeholders as we have, you get unanimity, but you can get consensus and we're building it. And I think it's going to be good for our kids. Thank you. I will just say we're um exploring different
032uh graphics that we might end up using to display the vision of the learner. This is just one of several different that we're playing with right now. I think the plan for the vision of the learner next year is really to roll it out with just the adults. We need our adults to wrap their heads around this and do some work with how we're going to embed this in the curriculum. Um how we're going to have students reflect and self assess on some of these skills and dispositions. So, you probably are not going to see, you know, one of those posters next year, but I think the year after then you'll start seeing it sort of out and about as we um do more work with it as a as a team of adults. Um
033so, don't don't expect to see that graphic. I'm sure it'll evolve over time, but we we're just playing around with some different ideas. All right, next subcommittee. Come on down. Subcommittee 3. Good evening. Uh my name is Chris Testani. I'm a fifth grade teacher at Burnham School. I'm joined by Dr. Emily Rue and Suie Baldi. Um we're also missing tonight Rita Gregory and BJ Hos. Take a look here. Focus of teaching and learning council subcommittee 3 is to use student performance data to make informed decisions and modifications regarding instruction after thorough data review star ESVAC and SAT data from across the district. Subcommittee identified mathematics is our area needing additional attention and support based on the student data access knowledge of the programs taught and review of the assessments already implemented. The group noted that
034math fact fluency was a perfect focal point for our research. Mathematical fact fluency is the ability to quickly and accurately solve basic facts utilizing four different operations through the understanding of fact strategies. As such, fact fluency is a cornerstone of the foundational skills that support stronger math achievement scores in students K to2 and is a strong correlation with achievement scores in higher level mathematics. process that we used was an already existing system through database literacy approach that is currently taking place in our elementary classrooms and we decided hey it's already there let's keep using it let's see how we can implement it further and take it to mathematics. It begins with a universal screener to identify students who are at risk all the way over here on the left of our graphic followed by a
035set of diagnostic assessments to pinpoint exact areas of student need. After that, a program of work is then implemented for all students based on their areas of focus that was then identified through the data, followed by progress monitoring to take place to track whether the instruction was effective, ending with evaluations to all that happened that allow us to determine whether adjustment or continuation of the program of instruction was needed to help these students. This approach brings intentionality and consistency to our instruction. When we follow a process that starts with good data and ends with thoughtful reflection, we create powerful learning experiences that meet every student where they're like and once again you can see how a plan has been formulated that will continue the work will continue next year. that subcommittee happened to be um
036heavy on elementary staff and so it's very appropriate that their work has focused there. One another step we are planning for next year is to bring this up into middle school and talk to some of the middle school math teachers about the impacts of fact fluency and how some of the work that we might be doing in elementary could trickle up um if needed. You know, we that's the next step I think in the conversation. Okay. And our final subcommittee of the night, subcommittee number four, it's going to come on down. They're the ones who uh dipped into that innovation uh priority area. Good evening. I'm Liz Blum. I'm a teacher at Chipog. And in our group, we had Amy Tastani, Mary Maher, and Ed Bolinsky. So ours was innovation and delivering value. Our commitment
037was commitment one, create a system of continuous improvement. And with this, we wanted to investigate new creative instructional strategies to deepen student engagement in the classroom. Um, as Liz said, I'm Amy Tastani. I'm the fifth grade teacher at Booth Free School. Um, we focused, we divided our um, work into three parts. Um, interdict district collaboration was one that I personally was very excited about. This year we had the primary partners pro program. fourth and fifth graders have been coming up to Shepog throughout the year. Um, and as we've been coming up, it's been more and more of students leading our elementary students. Um, and Maryanne and I kind of took that to the next level that she came down with some of her math honor society students and a couple almost math honor society students
038as well. Um, I want to make sure they were all recognized. Um, and we worked together collaboratively on a math project. It was more of just a pilot to see how it would work, the logistics of it. um would fifth graders be responsive to high schoolers? Is it going to be that they're a little too scary? Um and it was beautiful. They worked together on a project that they had a million dollars and they had to look up real data um as to the cost of a building. Maybe they wanted to start a business. How much are buildings going for it? They were flabbergasted that a million dollars didn't always get them the building they wanted. Um so to just give them some real life perspective on that. Um, I also have done a little
039bit of it within Booth Preschool. I had um frontloaded some information to my fifth graders telling them that they were then in charge of teaching the kindergarteners and then we went down to the kindergarten classroom and the fifth graders were in charge of then um teaching the kindergarteners how to do just some very basic arts and crafts things, but also um developing that social within our district. We're so small, but we're so powerful um and to really build that um that collaboration that is there. and there's so much potential. So that's that's what we want to move forward with. Thank you. Amy's very humble. She actually put the whole project together including the rubric, the instructions for the students and shared it with Chris to work um with his Burnham students which we went there
040and on Wednesday we are going to Washington Primary School to do the same thing. But I thank you Amy for putting that all together and that's going across all the schools. Um, I have to tell you, um, and then I'm going to get into mine, but on the bus ride back with this juniors and seniors, and normally if they have an opportunity to get on their phone, guess what they're going to do? They did not get on their phone. They were talking about this experience the whole way back to Shap from both schools. And I think that was a really big hit. And as you can see, there's a couple pictures here. Um, both from Burnham and from Booth. And there's right Sam and Sunny. they did their presentation million dollars and um they all
041just look equally excited. So for high schoolers to go back and be able to give back like that um and we didn't know how it would go, right? But they were very very excited and want them to come back. So the second initiative that we looked at, we had many and we had to boil it down to just three is creating uh this is a Carrie Snowden coin phrase um a digital library of human resources. So I've talked to many people we were talking about that Mary and just to say we have like so many contacts and resources in this region extended not just within the region but all of us have a far reach and if we could reach out and put together some sort of digital database that both students and teachers and
042members of the community can access that that would be a great thing and there are many uses that are listed here. Um, senior project TAS is one example. Guest speakers and classes. This is an example of a career panel that I did a few years ago. That's Frieza Herman's daughter who came in on the career panel. I had students organizing it, some parents there. She works for Google in California. She was able to come in and we want to do more of those things because um, this is a Don phrase, but local roots and global reach. There's no reason that we can't be reaching out all over the world for our students. So the main thing that we have to try to do when we're putting this together and using this in many different ways,
043I said career panels and potential internships is to try to get a structure to it, try to get a framework for it. We have to obviously vet these resources. We don't necessarily want our students just going and calling people that somebody says, "Oh, this is a good person to contact." We have to make sure that those are good people. But all of us in the room, I'm sure you can think of many people you would want to add to that that can help our students and help our teachers. and Ed's going to come up and talk about the last initiative, but I also see some of those resources being able to help in some of these classes that we're looking to add. So, that's an initiative that we're going to really be focusing on for
044next year as well. And we have Ed. Yeah, community involvement is always I think a cornerstone of all educational systems. I'm going to be talking about interdisiplinary learning uh within the school and uh I think that's really important. Um, I know that's not a new idea. It doesn't sound innovative. Um, but what we're thinking is more of a larger scale, smaller scale, and then distribution throughout the whole district. Um, one of the ideas that we're thinking of is, uh, maybe going as big as adding some new courses. Um, I know that my students, a lot of our students feel that you learn math and math class, you learn English and English class and so forth. It's all intertwined. Um as an aggro science I teach uh mechanics and engineering. Um and kids are always surprised
045that we do chemistry and welding, we do physics and electrical, we do trigonometry and construction. Um all these concepts are really intertwined. I think there's a lot of opportunities uh within Spark School and the district to really tie a lot of this together. Um one idea, a couple ideas that we have for full semester long classes that we find that we have need um in the math department. Um, one idea that we have is math for the trades. Um, try to bring some of the more concept math into um, maybe some students who are interested in going into the trades or learning some of the basics that you can use in real life. Um, we can draw into that class and then beyond that maybe uh, math and society. Um, and I know we talk
046a little bit more about that uh, you found um, but I think that uh, it could be mixed in. Um, and those are one big ideas that maybe we can develop whole curriculums for. But what we're really thinking is why do we have to stop there? Maybe other different disciplines, different subject areas can get together, teach units together, to teach classes together to somehow tie students in and let them know that what they're learning in certain classes is very important because it maybe ties into another thing or ties into another thing that they're interested in. So we want to look at a lot more opportunities as far as bringing everything together and bringing their education to a little closer. Thank you. So that's it. Those are our four subcommittees. That's uh how a very brief
047description of some of the work and some of the ideas that have been um created and worked on. You can see how the work is going to continue next year. And I just want to thank them for all the hard work and all the creativity that they have put into um these ideas that that will further be developed next year all because the strategic plan you know got it started. So um thanks to all of them and thanks for being a great audience. I guess we also have to acknowledge that there's a little new baby here too. So, so thank you for coming, the Tistani family, and bringing the new little bundle. Congratulations. We're so happy for you. So, you guys definitely did double duty tonight. So, thank you so much for bringing Yeah. Thank
048you. Great. Um, so sweet. Okay. So, so much exciting stuff, Carrie. Thank you for all of your hard work, too. It's really been amazing to kind of watch it all unfold, you know, from the beginning, the infancy to where we are now. And it's really exciting. So, I'm really excited. It's really great. So, thank you. Really great. Um, okay. Moving on to uh the board chair's report, which would be mine, I guess. Um, I'm not going to say much tonight just because I think that we've been here for quite a while. Um, I don't think we did the budget. So, I don't think we've given that, but I guess we are just happy that the budget passed. So, that's something that we can celebrate. Uh, I feel like we're saying this a lot, but it
049was a really wonderful, strong budget, and I'm just really thrilled that our district didn't have to um go back to the drawing board, so to speak. So, uh, as always, Dr. Brad and Nicole Grant, um, well done. So, thank you. Yep. Yeah. And really just again tonight is just a testament to really the extraordinary uh students that we have and and these are the students that were acknowledged but can you imagine how many that we have in our classrooms that have not been here that I just can only imagine. So they're just a taste right of uh of what all the good work that our students are doing. So and that's it for me. No, I also wanted to thank a few people uh your committee that just blow blew me away um to take
050because many districts I and I've been associated with many strategic plans and a lot of times they're they're good for the first year they and then they sit on a shelf and what they did and really drilling down um I I'm sure you saw that is that's inov ative all by itself. Um, so what Ed Bolinsky said was music to my ears when it comes to that. He's right. It's not a new idea, but interdisciplinary education, especially in a a small regional school like this, that's where it should be. You have that opportunity, and it just excited me. Um and uh I'm I'm I was so glad to hear primary partners which we started and now is going into second year and that'll be the arts for for this coming year. Amazing. And then what
051they took and now how they're going to expand that um is really just I'm just so excited about what's happen. they're all invested and that actually says something all by itself is, you know, their investment is because they believe in it and they believe, you know, we didn't just take something and hand it to them. They knew it. Um, we involved them and Carrie, thank you so much because you I couldn't have done it without you this year. I really mean it. She's been amazing. So, thank you. Oh, could I just I I saw that investment in the presentations. That was absolutely spectacular. Thanks, Carrie. I don't know how to say this, but you and your team were are are just really on top of it. You have really done a marvelous job on this,
052and you really made it real, and that's how we're going to get the education lifted even higher here. That's what leadership looks like. Thank you for demonstrating you and your team. Thank you. May I just say yes, Mary? Uh we h we we've kind of gone backwards at Chapang because we used to have interdisciplinary uh classes. We used to have uh two women who who taught women in history. We had humanities was was also taught by two people. And then we had um another class when our kids were in school, art and math and they worked and the art and the math class work together and uh so it's been done before. We It's great to see that we'll be we'll be bringing it back. So, um, to continue to thank more people, um, I
053just wanted to say also, and as you know, we're having the special meeting tomorrow to introduce the the new principle of Chipog. Um, and I did give Chap staff only kind of a heads up. I mean, um, I thought that was important. And then um once there once she's introduced moniar um but the hiring process again Carrie uh Carrie and I worked on that and we wanted it to be a rigorous but fair process and I think uh that was accomplished. I was just talking to some of the members this evening at included um and I think just from the feedback that we're already hearing once they heard um that's what people are feeling. So, you know, it's not often you start with a screening, you go to first round interviews, then you do it
054in second round with a performance task um to make it more rigorous just so you know, we really wanted to know who's passionate and um and ultimately land in a good space and I think we did that. But I wanted to thank uh Angela was on that and Christine was part of that and many many staff and administrators and the union uh with Tara and a student and parents. Um so it was really um I think a a phenomenal process and I I've had a motto my whole career. People actually say it back to me all the time. We know we know trust the process. Um you always get jittery. People always get nervous. Um people, you know, kind of want to put their two cents in, but I always say trust the process. It
055works for the most part. It really does. And they really were thoughtful. I sat in obviously um Don and I sat in um the what would be the third round if you count the screening. Um and just to hear the very professional debate at times uh over top uh candidates and someone just came up to me who was on it who said that was really hard. um you know you had many many good candidates which is a you know that all by itself were attracting really good candidates at every level. Um so I wanted to to really say thank you to everyone that was on um that committee uh and also the hiring process in general. we are um hiring for many open positions and um so we want to continue that kind of rigorous
056process and really make sure that that is the most important thing we can do as you know in the district and I'm putting on my uh HR hat right now but it really truly is the most important um I'm I'm really happy how it worked out so I just wanted to say that um and I have one appointment It's Candace Platt who will be the administrative assistant, the new administrative assistant um to Don, the director of facility. And that's all I have this evening. You Lori, treasurer's report. Alex, um I have nothing to report and I can't throw it off on Nicole. She's not here. Okay, thank you. Uh moving on to committee reports. Aggra Science Committee. Mary There it is. Okay. Um, the one thing that happened that uh we should all know about
057is that Tyler and I think Don was involved in this too was a letter went out to all the advisory committee for the for Agra Science and uh they had said that uh next over the summer they're going to reassess and restructure the uh the advisory committee. um due to some of the problems that we had before. So that's going to happen over the summer. And so that this way it's it's good for the the program and the members of the program. The plant sale that they had that went well. They sold quite a bit of the plants. They made a profit and all the remaining plants will be uh in the garden. Then we had the farm-to-table dinner that the parents, friends, and FFA alumni, the support group put together. um it wasn't quite
058as successful as it was last year. Ticket sales were down, but I think that has a lot to do with the economy. Um but our but the town businesses and sponsorships were increased. So that that made up a big a big portion of the difference. So, all in all, they made about $10,000 that we'll be able to give in. They'll be able to give in scholarships and uh support for the kids. So, that's that's great. And they wanted me to thank any anybody that came to uh to either event. So, thank you if you came. Thank you. Thank you, Mary. Uh moving on to uh curriculum. Um nothing new to report. Our next meeting is June 9th. Thank you. At advance, Joe. Nothing new to report. Finance and operations. How? Um, once again, we have
059not had a meeting since our last board meeting. FNO has I guess we're not really working hard enough. Um, labor negotiations, right? I wish I had a report for you, but we don't have any negotiations till September. So, it's a I've got nothing to say. Uh policy. I have something to say. You have something to say. So, we we just had a meeting um earlier tonight and we went over um three policies. Um let's see. One of them was um uh challenging um books. I wanted to say book. Um, so there there is now a formal process um if a parent or staff member would like to challenge um any work that we have in our curriculum. Um, another one was let you know. Well, it's not policy yet, but that was the first sorry.
060Oh, proposed. Yes. Um, another one was um part of the school climate. Um, it was which is mandated by the state. Um, there is an idea called restorative practices. um that will deal with um how do I say it? So, we're going to get to that on the policy, but um just very quickly, restorative practices is embedded in the Connecticut school climate policy, and it really is just a practice um that uh is to support students rather than use punitive measures um in disciplining. And then finally, we went over some of the proposed changes to the Title N um legislation, which we will talk about later. Thank you, Jess. Um strategic long range planning at the moment. So, now moving on to old business. Uh number one to consider for appro Oh, sorry. Approval for
061second read of policy 1230, school security and safety. Anybody has a copy of it? Yes. Second read. I I'll move to approve it for a second read. Second policy. Second. Is it 12:30? 12:30. Second. Second. Mary. All in favor or discussion? We have a discussion. All in favor? Anyone opposed? Stain. Moves on for second read. Fantastic. Uh, next one. Consider for approval second read of policy 1250 visitors and observations in schools. Everyone has a copy of this. Can I have a motion? Greg. Second. Stephanie. Any discussion? Yeah, I was just going to say that I I like the way these policies are crafted because they give us some guidance. They don't just have us respond to things in an ad hoc manner that we know how we're supposed to go with it. And it causes
062us to make sure that we have a legitimate situation in front of us as opposed to someone who might be uh masquerading as as a government official when in fact they're really just a non-custodial parent or some other third party. And I think that that's important to know that when we do things uh and it does it's not a political statement. It's a question of when we do things we do them right. We do them once as opposed to have revisit. That that's what I liked about the policy. I thought it was even handed out. Stephanie technical question. Um it says if someone does come up in person that they would be directed to communicate with the administrator designated for those interactions. who that's the principal of the building of just a I would be
063for the district and and there's one at every building and that's the principal we've designated them as would it go to you I'm assuming in those moments it would go to principal only if only if they um or had a concern about whatever they were doing there or uh couldn't prove who they were or they were suspicious about it then it might come Any other questions? But that's another good feature of the policy and that it doesn't create some ridiculous bureaucracy that makes it impossible to accomplish the legitimate purposes that may be accomplished and it puts the person on the ground charge and we have excellent principles. Thank you. All in favor? Anyone opposed? Stain. Done for second reading. Terrific. New business. Consider for approval first read of policy 4218 uh-113. Um do we want
064to discuss this a little bit? Yeah. 18. So, in our committee meeting today, we we talked about some of these changes to Title 9. And basically, they stem from um the Kentucky Supreme Court um ruled that the 20 24 version of Title uh was vacated. Um and that version, the 2024 version, um tried to expand the definition of sex to include gender identity and to provide more protection for students who experience harassment or discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation. Um the 2020 version of Title 9, the one that we have to go back to, does not protect individuals from discrimination and harassment on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation. However, um Connecticut does provide some of these protections. So, if you look at uh 5145.5, the red line version, kind of
065like right in the middle of that first paragraph, um shipments changes. [Music] Um under Connecticut law, discrimination or harassment on the basis of sex includes discrimination or harassment on the basis of gender identity or expression or sexual orientation. Um this is one for students. And then there's also uh 4218.113 for personnel under can second paragraph um under Connecticut law in title 7 discrimination or harassment on the basis of sex includes discrimination or harassment on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. So to some even though federal law says no, Connecticut says yes, we can protect that. microphone. Federal government's pretty clear about this. Um there was a letter that went out um from the acting secretary of the department of education ex explaining these changes. And then on January 20th, um the president issued
066an executive order um which basically he ordered all agencies and departments within the executive branch to quote enforce all sex protective laws to promote the reality that there are two sexes, male and female. So it's because of an executive order. But but you see that's at the federal level. And so what the federal government did is it went back to the 2020 version. So it it removed the protections that had been added in 2024 and I believe that the if I'm not mistaken I think the administration said that education should be handled this state matter and so Connecticut law provides protection for these classes and therefore we are obligated under Connecticut law to do it. Um I personally think it's a good idea to do it but so are we going to just talk about
067all of them and then we can just make a motion to do one each separately? I think that's probably that. Yeah. So, we just went through uh 4218-113 and then we just talked about 5145-5. Right. We talked about personnel and students. So then now let's move on to 5144-12 challenging behavior prevention. Um so this one is um again mandated by the state and it basically lays out um what restorative practices are, definitions um purpose um principles and guidelines. It's very comprehensive um overview of how this process would work. And really, it's centered around um restoring relationships and not making it so that if I hit someone, I'm not just automatically suspended. It's it's really um trying to teach kids, you know, the effect that their actions may have on on others. and it was a
068part of the Connecticut right climate policy that we adopted. Um, but they mandated that we had a second we had to adopt this particular policy as well. So, it's mandatory that we adopt this policy. Yes. So, can you just explain it again to me? So if if I'm a student and I hit somebody right now, I would be suspect or or no. So are you saying now that you are that there's going to be a different policy? I'm not understanding what I'm going to have an administrator handle this one. Yeah. No, I'm just I'd like So, first of all, we've had um many people trained already. And so, restorative practices, even though they it's a kind of a new language, I can tell you I think I was sharing with um the committee. We did
069this way back when with what we called restitution. Um they they change, you know, how that goes in education. um the same thing cycle, but it it really is a practice and it's a mind shift and it's a a different approach. And honestly, the reason a lot of the and it goes back I mean you can studied it in college, I'm sure, but it goes back to the thinking that it can't just be all zero tolerance. It can't be you you did something and you get, you know, here's the consequence right away without really a deep understanding on how I impacted that person. That does not mean there are no rules. There's always that misnomer. Does not mean there's no expectations. It doesn't mean there are also not I call them non-negotiables. Everybody has different
070language for it. um for violence or things that are there is no you can still work and support but that's very different. Okay. It's it is a a a typical reaction when people hear this, right? We had that debate. I wanted you to clarify that because I know that there are people who are going to watch this fact, whoa. Yes. And so in in regular terms, you know, explain it in more detail. The other side to make people feel even better, and you really have to learn it first. It's this is not an overnight staff's going to understand it. The other way to think about it is it's um you know how you hear about students and you hear about that cycle where they're just the same offenders, same things, right? Just keeps happening and
071Don will know he's in civil like I was at a high school repeat offenders on and on. If we just keep doing the same thing and with the same outcome, how are you helping? How are you supporting? there's a missing gap in trying to get students to understand actually what that was, you know, what they did wrong, how they offended, and how they can repair that in the future. So, there's a it's much deeper. I will tell you, it takes a lot of time and understanding and training, which I know Carrie and and other have planned for those that haven't yet experienced or understand what it is. Yes, Vicki, I hear the concern. I would like to just dissuade you in the hypothetical mention. It would be very very unusual for one student to hit
072or assault another and um some type of suspension not to be part of the response. Uh but the idea is that that's a necessary part of the response for safety and to deter action and for the school to know that we care about safety. necessary but probably not sufficient. So if you have a restorative mindset, you do that and you worry about how is the actor going to be coached and how to make better decisions and how to assess his or her impact on the victim on understanding what made this happen and how can I build other coping skills that will help me respond in a better way and how do we restore and make the victim whole after what happened. And that's a a more intense and human business than just having a kid
073sitting at home in suspension or in a in a so but usually when this is discussed um people think well we're going to replace some of those safety controls like a suspension when needed with other things that sound progressive but might be maybe a little lacking in common sense and it's not that way. The response is a measured combination of control when needed and also support and restorative coaching. Sorry if I said too much, but I just And thank you very much for your explanation. second. So I think there is from what I understand from restorative practices as like uh a I don't know what to call it a program or a an approach an approach right so there are also specific trainings now like there are programs or curriculum or PD do we have
074a spec have we picked a kind of an area to focus on or that we're going to use as training or people to come in to help not yet the all the principles have and to uh restorative practices workshops throughout the school year. No one um and in fact we have one of our principal going to a train the trainer uh workshop this summer. So we have not this summer will be a lot of planning around this. We're going to be with the training trainer workshop to build out what we think the professional style. So Stephanie more to come. Yes. That's what I was saying because it's as it's pretty lengthy and it looks like there's pretty specific language like how are we making sure we're training and then using it in the way that
075the state intends us to do that. So I'm glad. Thanks. Yes. Thank you. Yeah. No. Will the whole staff be trained or will you have a team that will specifically designated to this new approach? Um the whole staff needs to be trained because it's expected if you you know when you get into it there's the first several pages by the way of the policy is background knowledge. I know it feels really thick and it is but it but there there are several pages of background first but when you get into it what you see is that it's expected to be used at the classroom level as well as at the building level. So all the staff will need to be trained. I would guess there will be some people who may develop more expertise because
076when they may end up handling some of those things that come out of the classroom, but again all of that we're going to work on this summer as we dive into this a little bit deeper. Yeah. The example that we used was kind of I guess on the more extreme level, but to your point and from what I understand that is it is meant to be used kind of daily in the classroom for even very small like an in approach to problematic behaviors or anything else that might be you know disruptive in the classroom or whatever else it is. It's a real shift of different lens a different mindset in how to approach whatever you know like minor complications may be right. That is correct. So, does this also come I mean this seems like
077a really big thing like I I guess this is going to change how we implement all sorts of discipline or I I don't know like how kind of pervasive this is or if it's meant to be used in very specific instances. Um I I think that the I mean Lori and Don jump in, but I I feel like the policy allows districts to decide how they're going to personalize it and use it. And I would bet bet you would see a wide array of methods of implementation depending on which district you go to. So again, we're working that out this summer. I will say it goes handinhand with responsive classroom at the elementary level. So I feel like we've already got a really nice foundation of this type of approach there. Um I I don't
078know as much about, you know, the daytoday in classrooms up here as I know about what's happening in the elementary schools. But yeah, there's a shift for sure and it's going to take time and we're going to have to work with all our staff on it. And um but because it's expected to be used on a daily basis in classrooms, everybody's going to need the training that they they need to make it work. I would say want to add anything else to that? It's natural right now because of the policy you're working on that we're talking about the back end. What happens when things go wrong and how will you create a good disciplinary response? The more powerful policy is the one that you already passed last time that sets up tells us talks about
079how to set up an ecosystem within which you minimize the chance for conflict in the first place. And if that and this all sound really herculean to you or like you know it's polyianish or how the heck do you do this? It sounds like peace in the Middle East kind of thing. There are some pivots you can do in schools that just set up a way of thinking such that if kids are getting along with each other and teachers, they they can learn. And what it looks like when you see it practiced is a teacher might just start a class for two minutes. Two minutes is a science class in a circle. Everybody's in the back. How are you all feeling today? How are things going? Everybody share an idea. Now, here are our learning
080targets for this chemistry lesson. How do you feel about those? you haven't let's talk about how you feel about them and then into the learning. It could be a math teacher saying to kids, how do you feel about that that math quiz that's coming up on Friday? Oh, you're you're anxious, you're nervous. What are we going to do about that? It's okay to have the feeling, but we can also build coping skills in response to that feeling. What are you going to do? Seek me for extra help. Ask for an extension, practice the problems, whatever. In other words, these are things that are not brain surgery, but are powerful and profound. and at the front end they try to create a culture that's restorative in the first place and then as things will in maybe
08110% of the cases when they go wrong this is the policy that helps us figure out how to create an enlightened response right I have a question Don it seems to me what I what I'm see was seeing in here among other things is if you do have a a child that's has been disciplined in some way and held accountable and had to be maybe been uh suspended maybe been incarcerated into a variety of things. There seems to be a systematic approach to inboarding them back into the system. If you suspend someone because they've they've done something and you bring them back in and do nothing and ignore them, this next time the same stimuli comes, they're going to repeat the behavior. And so this says, this appears to me to say, let's take a
082holistic approach. Let's figure out what caused that and let's see how we can spin them in a different direction so that they're not affected the same way and then we have a successful inboarding of the student and and they can be a success at that point. Yeah, that was incredibly well said. And the game is and you know our clinicians, our counselors have had training by a fellow named Ross Green and you could be one of his disciples the way you just spoke. And the idea is you don't want to um punish a symptom, you want to find out the cause for them. So you know you're you're you're misbehaving. I'm not going to take your Xbox controller away and lock it up. I'm going to find out what the underlying problem is by talking
083to you and asking questions and figuring it out. And most of those problems with kids come from what this fella calls either a lagging skill or an unsolved problem. And if you find out what that lagging skill or unsolved problem is, you can often change the behavior in in the long run. So, uh if in the case you're um you're describing, there will be a hierarchy of responses that gets the kid suspended and that and then a re-entry plan that brings them back in with those kinds of therapeutic mindsets. I'm I'm talking too much. I'm sorry. I don't mind. I think you're getting a little too comfortable with that microphone. You're gonna be like, I feel like Freddy Mercury with this thing. What was the game show? The Met. Was it the Met? I don't
084forget it. I forgot it. I was just going to say, Don, if you're successful with this, if this is a successful program, you're definitely going to put Angela job. Uh, it's last point. Ross Green, maybe this is hubris, but he sp he's he's working with the state of Maine right now uh in that kind of um prevention. And they asked him, "How many how many incarcerations do you think you could prevent?" And he said, "All of them." So, we'll see. Yeah. There's a way as a way is amazing. She's amazing. You know, ways to meet their needs. Sure thing. and under the leadership of Ali O'Hara, a lot of our practitioners have studied um lost at school, have gone to see Ross Green. He's a big ticket speaker, but he he is worth it. Maybe
085we could have him here, but the idea of learning how to do that ALS, I won't get into that with him, but learning how to implement an ALP and and peel back the onion with kids so we understand them is is the goal. And the last point is the restorative practices thing. It's very important when we talk about it in my humble opinion to teachers that it's not another initiative. It's a way of thinking about how we teach. That's it. It's a way of thinking believing that relationships and then relevance come before rigor. And if you want to have all three, you have to have the relationships first, then the relevance to the kid, then the rigor will emerge. Okay. Christine. Yeah. Just one point. So, um I think intuitively this sounds like the way
086to go. uh the fact that Lori pointed out it has been done in the past under a different name. I guess what I think would be helpful in the preamble is also including some data around the efficacy of this approach because there's a lot on well what do we mean by restorative practices but presumably if we're adopting this we think it's more effective than whatever disciplinary approach we have right now and I'm not asking uh to drag out this conversation by all of you who are knowledgeable about it telling how effective it is. But I do think having it in the preamble of the policy would be helpful for all of those that come after us and for the public and parents. I think when we were at committee, we talked about utilizing data. What
087I was referring to is I've worked in other districts that that years ago was a different name, but here I think you start with the baseline data. What what's happening now? how many students are right being suspended or what have you and then you look at because this hasn't really been operationalized yet we really need to make sure every teacher and administrator understands the essence of it how it works understood I just to make myself clear there must be other schools where it has been employed and any data that is out there to support why it is that we're this I mean aside from the fact that we have to I guess by the state state law but that must mean that the data is there and again I think just it's a really nice
088package since I'm not familiar with it but having some in the background why we think it will be I agree that's great that's great suggestion um if we can move on to the first read of the um uh 6220 is that okay is that what you were trying to do for uh challenge just to the education. We haven't approved any of them. We're talking about all of them and then we'll go back and then we'll make a motion. Yeah. So, yep, we're on that one. Outlines the process wishes to challenge a work. Um, if you look on the second page, it's got um kind of explains how like who would make up the committee who would explore this challenge and whatnot. And on the last two pages, there's the actual form that the complainant would
089fill out. And what's I mean, what I like about this is that um you have to be either a staff member or a parent or guardian of a child. So you cannot have just someone out of out of the blue with no connection to our schools just openly start challenging books. So this sort of limits that. Great. It Yeah. Greg, I was going to say one thing I noticed about the policy was the way you've structured the approach to it, which is you have a committee that consists of professionals. You do not have the challenge coming to the board of education. So it means that these are less political and more making educators make the right decision. Well, I do just want to ask the question that you had said. So it is only for
090staff and parents board members couldn't apply and fill this out. I'm just saying right that this is I mean I guess in theory since I do have two children in this district um but if you didn't I'm just saying if a random board member wanted thought maybe there was inappropriate material and filled one of these out would that be I I don't think I don't know I think okay I'm just just but I don't see clarifying because I think it's important okay thank you um can I have a Oh, no. No motion. Any other questions about this? Question. Yeah. Seems like policy regular basis. It's Well, we approve them. There's I don't think we've ever not approved one. Is it is this purely just procedural or um or Yeah, I agree that we should understand
091the policies, but it seems to me like it's sort of cart launch, they all get approved no matter what. I would just say that I think it's I think it's fruitful to have the conversation so that we know what it is that we're approving. I mean, I think for me it helps it helps to sort of have contexts behind each of the uh policies. So, I I'm I'm feeling a little bit uh familiarized with what we're approving. I I I feel like it's I think it's important that the uh board has ownership. Well, and some are mandated. So there it's we're going through motions and some but even just in general I but others that are brand new model policies you have the ability when you read them first read and beyond to you know
092debate it or you know say hey I really think we need to look at the language here please don't be shy about doing that because that's part of the process it doesn't mean in the future there won't be a policy non-mandated that is by law that we don't bring forward that you might all agree this is not we don't want this. Yeah. So it is also our job these and raise any questions or concerns that we have but it you know if it's being if it's a law by the state we don't really have a say in it but it is our job to read this and and bring any concerns to the table. Right. I I was going to say about 90 92 out of a hundred of these are mandated by state law
093or or are m or there's been a change in the federal law and that's why we're dealing with it. So we're not turning them down because we don't have a lot of choice. Uh you can't have a policy that is adverse to to federal or state law. But I think on on a lot of these policies that Shipman sends and this is one thing I like about Shipman's policies. They give us options. There are certain things where the law has given us room to maneuver. And that's why we have to pay close attention to it because when they give us an option, do we take it or do we forego it? We've done it both ways. We've done both things. We've taken suggestions and ignored suggestions. And so I think that's part of the process
094that's important. So it's not a complete, you know, blessing it automatically. Um, I think these new policies uh appear to be designed to or at least at least this one that we're talking about now appears to be designed to deal with a potential problem that we have actually encountered. You know, we have had people challenge books and what we have tried to do in the past is to is to let the professionals that we've hired to manage the education group make the decision of whether a book's appropriate. the decision of whether particularly books appropriate is probably best made by the people involved in that policy. And I think there's some parents involved in that as well if I'm not mistaken. But I think that the idea is is that's who you look to to make
095those decisions. It's not a political decision and and it doesn't belong here because the last thing we would want to do is for us to say, "Oh, we don't have a problem with it." And there is a problem with it and and it should be dealt with in a different way or it should be or it should be a book that's only read by people of of ninth grade or above or 10th grade or above or whatever. It shouldn't be read by small children or by middle school students. So those are the kind of decisions that are best made by educational professionals who understand psychology and and in consultation probably with our psychologist when we have one uh in order to figure out whether or not that's appropriate reading material. That's where it belongs. A
096professional decision. Do you remember when I first got here the first time we had we had that that very issue? That very issue and you and I had to read the book and just make right and go through that. It was a high school and it it would have been great. It didn't amount to anything. Don took care of that. But that would have been perfect if we had a a book policy at that time because it exploded in other districts. Maybe not here but elsewhere. It really drew a lot of attention. criticism seriously and we we investigated it. Go so far as to read the book and believe me it was a it was a good book actually but uh you know but nonetheless I think I think this is a good policy. I
097like it. I think it's the the right way to go. Okay. Any other comments Mary? Alex I I think I don't know if you remember this but there was a a policy that came that was actually mandated by the state and five of us voted no. we weren't putting our names to it because we didn't want to put our names to it because it was absurd and it was about um a a parent being able to opt out of um Narcan and Epine if something happens to their child. And I thought that was that was ridiculous and that would that should not be allowed. Um, and I did ask some of the legislature how that got through and they said that was the only way that that that they could get that particular point across
098for um for now. But um we did challenge that. I did challenge that. Five of us voted no on that even though that it was mandated. Yeah. Okay. Any other comments before we move on to um making the motions? So, I'm we're going to do them individually. So, um consider for approval first read of policy 4218-113. Can I have a motion? Stephanie, can I have a second? Vicki second. All in favor? Anyone opposed? Abstensions. Moving on. Consider for approval first read of policy 5145-5. Can I have a motion? Greg Jane second. All in favor? Anyone opposed? Abstensions. Moving on. Consider for approval first read of policy uh 5144-12. Can I have a motion? Did I say that wrong? Second. All in favor? Anyone opposed? Abstensions. Final uh consider for approval first read of policy 6220.
099Can I have a motion? Second. All in favor? I. Anyone opposed? Abstensions? Great. Can I have a motion for adjournment? Mary. No. Um I I I uh asked uh Wendy Young to send up Lori schedule for It's not ready yet. Oh, okay. Yeah, she replied. Okay. She replied. It's not ready. And she's going to not only send it out, but she's going to send it out to the community as well. So we Yeah. Yeah. Thank you. Now, can I have a a motion to adjurnn? All Thank you. All in favor? Thank you, everybody.