001I can always sitting in the front seat of my car. >> Good job. >> We're good. >> All right. Good evening and welcome. um to the board of education meeting uh tonight, December 18th. It is 7 p.m. and um our first agenda item is the pledge of allegiance. Would you please stand? I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the stand with all. [snorts] >> Our second agenda item this evening is a special recognition um for the CAPS superintendent awards. and CAPS does actually stand for superintendent student award recognition program and for that Dr. Zto will be coming to the podium along with our building principles Dr. Zto. >> Thank you Miss Lefredo. So great to see so many folks here tonight. Happy holidays to everybody. Uh this is a
002exciting time of us um for us uh this meeting in December every year is where we recognize the students who truly represent um leadership and community within their schools. Uh we have winners tonight for our superintendent award. The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendent created this incentive program so that we had an opportunity to really recognize outstanding students. Um I'm going to go I'm going to call up each principal individually. I'm just going to read to you uh what this award is about. The award is based on community service and service to others, academic [clears throat] prowess relative to ability and leadership to the school community. These students are role models to their peers and they serve as terrific ambassadors and representatives for their respective schools. So we are very pleased to recognize them and
003I really appreciate the families coming out tonight. Uh we're going to start with uh Steven school. If principal Colado could come up here. Um we have two students we're going to recognize from Stevens. >> Good evening everyone. Um, and I just want to wish uh congratulations to all those students that are going to be receiving this award this evening. So, the first student from Stevens is Leah Krabser. Leah is a vibrant and hardworking third grader whose many achievements highlight her leadership, creativity, and dedication. As an active member and classroom representative on the student council, she takes pride in helping her school community grow and succeed. Leah stays active by participating in soccer where she continues to strengthen her athletic skills as well as in gymnastics where her determination truly shines. She has also explored her
004artistic side through theater programs, taking on fun and memorable roles such as Sleepy and the Magic Mirror in the performance of Snow White. Beyond her activities, Leah gives back to her community through her involvement in Girl Scouts, participating in various service projects and fundraisers, including cookie sales. In the classroom, she is a strong role model who works well with others and consistently demonstrates her personal best in all academic areas. Through her kindness, dedication, and enthusiasm, Leah makes a positive impact wherever she goes. Leah, congratulations. Can you please come up here? >> [applause] >> The next recipient is Andrew Greavves. Andrew is a dedicated and enthusiastic third grader whose achievements reflect both his leadership and his big heart. As an active member and classroom representative on the student council, he proudly uses his voice to help
005make his school a better place. In the classroom, Andrew is a confident learner and a positive role model to his peers, always showing kindness, responsibility, and a willingness to help others. Outside of school, he stays active by playing for two soccer clubs, CFC and Rocky Hill Soccer Club. He also enjoys competing in Wreck basketball. He previously attended a special camp where he explored his love of music by learning to play the piano. Andrew also participates in enrichment school programs, including Mad Science and Running Club, which allow him to explore his curiosity and stay active. Beyond his many activities, Andrew occasionally volunteers with his family at Church Street Eats, a cooperative ministry that provides meals and clothing to people in need. Through his confidence, teamwork, and enthusiasm, Andrew shows what it means to make a positive
006difference both in and out of school. Congratulations, Andrew. Please come on out. [applause] Congratulations. Great job. >> Thank you. All right. Next, we're going to move along to West Hill School. Our principal, Carin Good evening everyone. I'm honored to recognize two students from West Hill School. First, I'd like to like to recognize Dev Patel. Dev demonstrates strong skills and a deep understanding across core academic subjects. He shows a clear readiness to learn and eagerly embraces new strategies to strengthen his skills. Dev is consistently attentive and focused in class, actively participating in discussions and elevating the level of thinking and conversation among his peers. Beyond academics, Dev is a kind and helpful classmate who serves as a positive role model for other students. He contributes meaningfully to both our school and the greater Rocky Hill community.
007as a dedicated member of the running club and the Boy Scouts. Through these commitments, Dev lives out values such as helping others, being trustworthy, and demonstrating leadership. Truly embodying the Boy Scouts motto, which he'll be happy to report what that actually means. Be prepared. For all of these reasons and more, Dev is highly [clears throat] deserving of the CAPS award and exemplifies the values and spirit we celebrate in our students. Congratulations to Dev. [applause] Next, I would like to recognize Olivia Makut. Olivia is a hardworking and thoughtful student who consistently takes great care in completing her schoolwork. When given a task, she gets right to work and approaches every challenge with focus and determination. Olivia demonstrates strong critical thinking skills through her thoughtful questioning and serves as an active participant in classroom discussions, enhancing not
008only her own learning, but also that of her peers. Olivia consistently goes above and beyond to ensure that the work she produces reflects her best effort, particularly in her writing, where her dedication and attention to detail truly shine. She is also a genuine team player who leads with empathy and kindness, always making sure others feel included and valued. Olivia's commitment to her education combined with her compassionate nature make her an outstanding student at West Hill and a very deserving recipient of the CAPS award. Congratulations to Olivia [applause] >> [applause] >> All right, next we have Mr. Cassello. He's going to talk about two outstanding Moer students. >> All right, good evening everybody and thank you for having us here and I'm so proud of all of you who have won the award. It's really amazing.
009Um, the first student I want to recognize is Prrenia Shiva. Uh each day pranaya treats school and life as an experience to savior and experience. To pranaya learning is a journey to arrive at many viewpoints and solutions in the collective company of her own thoughts that she can share and elaborate upon with her classmates. Her love of reading is evident not only in school but by the volume of independent reading and reflection. She has a strong organic desire to fully understand the characters she encounters in her reading and the life lessons they teach to use in her own life. Pranayiah consistently seeks full understanding of the subjects and concepts we learn about at school and truly desires to use each lesson to build upon existing understandings. More importantly, Pranayiah leads by example and quietly improves
010the learning and growth of each of her classmates and the betterment of her community. Outside of the classroom, Prrenia explains that she looks forward to helping her mother select and deliver groceries to cancer patients because it makes me happy to serve people who can be helped by a better cause. She also pursues her passion for karate and is advancing toward her black belt at the Rocky towards her black belt at the Rockill Tennis Club where she enjoys working with others to improve her self-defense while being active. Pranaya will no doubt bring her unique blend of curiosity and leadership with her well into her future endeavors. Pranayia Shiva's high achievement and leadership make her exceptionally deserving of the CAP's 2025 Superintendent Award. Congrats, Pranayia. Come on up. [applause] >> [applause] >> All right, our next recipient
011is Matthew Worzinski. When asked to choose a candidate for the CAP Superintendent Award, Matthew Worzinski immediately came to mind. He consistently demonstrates outstanding academic achievement and a genuine care for others. He excels in all academic areas and is always on the lookout for interesting and innovative ways to challenge himself. He demonstrates respectful and kind behaviors towards teachers and peers, creating a positive classroom climate. In school, Matthew excels at an unparalleled pace in all academic areas. He is well beyond grade level and contributes a wealth of knowledge to our classroom discussions. Matthew's strong work ethic, curiosity, and reliable classroom participation set a high standard for his classmates. He completes assignments thoroughly, seeking deeper understanding and shares thoughtful contributions during class discussions. He approaches challenging tasks with perseverance, problem solving strategies, and actively seeks feedback and uses
012it to improve. Matthew was always reading and has a wit about him and a smile that can light up a room. Outside of school, he always plays soccer and tennis. He invents creative games to play at recess that are never dull and push his imagination forward. Matthew shows empathy and kindness to classmates. He frequently offers to help without being axed. He acts as a role model by calmly resolving conflicts and helping his peers work through their anger peacefully. He is a hard-working team player who actively participates and leads class discussions across all content areas. Matthew Rosinsk's high achievement and sincere compassion make him exceptionally deserving of the CAPS 2025 Superintendent Award. Congratulations, Matthew. Come on up. [applause] Nice job. >> Take my script. >> All right, we're going to uh shake it up a little
013bit. I'm going to ask um Miss Herman, our director of uh special education to come up. >> For the first time, uh we decided to recognize two students who attend Dream and Pathways. They're not able to be here tonight, but I am going to ask Miss Herman to make a few comments. >> Good evening everyone. I have two very deserving recipients tonight. The first is Justin Neu who is a student in the Dream Academy. Um he is a avid worker in multiple job sites and he takes on a true leadership role in the classroom setting by communicating with all of his peers and making sure everyone gets equal opportunities during the school day. In the dream cafe, Justin is relied upon to manage the cash register and communicate with customers. Um from baking to prepping
014and organizing class lunch orders, Justin is always focused and ready to take on a new role. He's an invaluable member of the team, always looking for something to learn when the opportunity arises. So, congratulations to Justin. [applause] There is a another well-deserving recipient at the Dream Academy, uh, Clarence Wright. He also goes by Trey, Trey Wright. Uh, [snorts] he's in his fourth year at Dream Academy and he's worked at a variety of job sites and learned from all of them. Um he's worked at the Department of Veteran Affairs, Uptown Up Uptown Consignment, CVS, Price Chopper, the Core Beldin Library, and he loves to socialize with other transition academy students. Um he's an asset to the Dream Academy, and we look forward to all of his successes in the coming year. Congratulations, Trent. [applause] All right,
015moving on to our middle school. Mr. Maar is our principal. Please come up. [clears throat] >> Thank you, sir. >> Thank you, Dr. Zeter. Zitto. Good evening, everyone. Um, I want to start with uh congratulating uh all the award winners here tonight. Um, we're so proud of each and every one of you. I look forward to meeting the West Hill, Stevens, and Moer winners in the years to come. And congratulations to the Rockill High School uh award winners, former GMS grads. So, we're proud of all of you. Um, and we're so glad there's a big crowd here tonight to see this. We don't usually have big crowds at board meetings and not always the most riveting uh meetings. No offense, but not always the most riveting of meetings. So, we're so glad that you're all
016here to see this tonight because these are some of the best that Rockel has to offer. So, thank you for coming. >> I'm going to start by calling up our two award winners because I promised them I'd embarrass them. So, come on up. Riley Bennett and Emma Santos. [applause] Okay, we'll start with Emma. And these awards uh were given by their team of teachers. So, I'm going to read what their team of teachers wrote wrote about them. The blue team at Grizzle Middle School nominates Emma Santos for the CAPS Superintendent Award. Emma epitomizes academic prowess, leadership, and service to the school community and community service. She exemplifies these qualities through consistent academic effort, a growth mindset, and a natural curiosity that drives her to succeed. She excels in her classes through dedication and perseverance. And
017she is conscientious and diligent in her work. In class, she consistently strives for excellence, and she asks thoughtful questions to improve her work and deepen her understanding of concepts. The effort she puts into every academic challenge is second to none. Emma is an unassuming, quiet leader and a positive role model who is helpful to others and contributes to an inclusive school climate by volunteering with unified sports. Emma is also one of our school's greatest cheerleaders. She enthusiastically participates in every spirit day, demonstrating a love for her school that is truly contagious. She's an active participant in the greater Rocky Hill community and an engaged athlete who plays soccer for CFC and GMS and plays basketball for Rocky Hills recreation team. These activities demonstrate her commitment to teamwork, service, and inclusion. She is thoughtful, responsible, and
018kind, and enjoys drawing, skiing, and bike riding, which reflect a well-rounded student. Emma is a true role model for her peers, is a leader in our building, and personifies all that is good in middle school. We feel fortunate to have the opportunity to educate this spectacular young lady, Emma Santos, our 202526 CAPS award winner. [applause] Okay, Riley Bennett. The Royal Team nominates Riley Bennett for the superintendence award this year. Riley is an outstanding student who is not only academically successful but demonstrates outstanding character in his daily interactions with peers and teachers. Riley exemplifies every quality we hope our students possess. Academically, Riley is an extremely hard worker who is willing to take intellectual risks. He possesses a genuine desire to learn and his contributions to class discussions are frequent and demonstrate a strong grasp of
019content. Riley's also an incredibly well-rounded and involved student. As a member of our student council, he readily takes on extra responsibilities and consistently represents the GMS community with a high level of enthusiasm. Whether greeting shoppers and wrapping gifts at the craft fair or working the concession table at the cross country meet, he shows up willing to help wherever needed. He leads by example, demonstrating positivity, reliability, and a genuine commitment to our school. He was also an invaluable member of the stage crew at the GMS drama club production this year. And in the play's director's words, quote, "Riley stepped into wherever he needed, collaborated seamlessly with his peers, and encouraged others when challenges arose. His steady presence and calm problem solving kept the show on schedule, uplifted fellow students, and made the production a true community
020effort. By giving his time and energy, Riley truly showed a commitment to the school community. Teachers who have the privilege to educate Riley can attest to his many fine qualities both as a student and a person. The teachers on the royal team unanimously agree he is very deserving of this honor and recognition. Congratulations, Riley. [applause] [clears throat] All right. And certainly last but not least, our high school principal, John Fod, [clears throat] before you you're gonna start about these two kids. Um, we want to share this news about this >> 100%. >> I'll give a little talk about that. >> Okay, great. >> Our board chair some information. >> All right. Uh so I just want to um congratulate all the award winners tonight. Um again just to kind of reiterate what Mr. Mazier says
021we have a some fabulous fabulous students and um we all know it starts in a home. So thank you for your support of them all the time. I want to bring up the the first um CAPS winner and that is Alina Jo. Can you come on up here? [applause] So Alina is a superstar. She is an incredible individual and she is basically the absolute complete package. She has worked her tail off to be number one in our class out of 187 students. That's pretty remarkable. [applause] Her teachers describe her as gifted, noting that she is a model student who brings enthusiasm to the classroom and she makes positive, insightful contributions to our class. Her resume speaks for itself. She has many accomplishments and involvement in our school community. If you walk the halls of Rocky
022Hill High School after hours especially, you are bound to see Alina as she navigates her many commitments and clubs. She's a member of the National Honor Society, the National Arts Society, and the National French Honor Society. She has been member of the tennis team since her freshman year, as well as on a student council, the math team, and the science team. Alina has recently joined the newly formed HOSA and premed club this year, earning second place in the statewide ATC biology competition. She volunteers her time as an NHS peer tutor and a writing center collaborating, assisting struggling students. She has completed 124 hours of community service and she has also done that at local hospitals and medical centers. The last two summers, Lena has a volunteer for the Middle Sex Hospital and also at Yukon
023Health. She's also served as an intern at the department of motor vehicles and she interned at molecular diagnostics that works with laboratory research. So, as you can see, she's pretty well-rounded. She's motivated, she's humble, and she impacts others around her. She's applying to schools such as UPUPEN, Princeton, Rice, Brown, and Dartmouth. She's an incredible young lady and she's very deserving this award. Congratulations. [applause] So, this next young man um is um I'm not sure where to start. So, you know how in life, you know, people make you better? >> They just kind of like bring something out of you. They inspire you. They they just you connect with them. Um, but they but they help you in in probably a lot more ways than than you realize until um you just have that moment. And
024so the young man that I want to identify tonight for this award is Adant Bose. Can you come up here? Adant. [applause] So Adant found me his freshman year and uh we've had a very strong four-year relationship. Um he's a constant on my calendar, my Google calendar. And um my uh secretary knows him very well. And so much that she'll say, "Do you have to meet with the Don again?" I go, "Yes, I have to meet with the Don again." In a good way. So um he's just a remarkable young man. um he is the complete package and in many ways he's a he's a very strong communicator. He's a risktaker. He's a doer. He's a leader and uh he's an influencer. And we have a lot of conversations about what leadership looks like and
025how to become that good leader. That was a lot of our talks his freshman years about, you know, what does it take to be a leader? And I would quiz him in the hallway. What are the three things? What are the three things? and he'd recite them backwards, but um he got him down. Um but he is really caring about our school community. Um and that's what he cares about, making an impact and he's made an impact and he's lead he's leaving a legacy on our school and he's made a big impact on me. Um he's um his academic performance speaks for itself. He's a star in the classroom. He's the founder and president of the model UN which has taken off. Um but again, he would be upset with me and and remind me
026that it's his team that has done that. Um with his guidance, he's cultivated a culture of uh curiosity, diplomacy, and critical thinking among his peers. He served as an intern of the state of Connecticut. Um he's just very mature for his age and um he knows what he wants. Um, I love his assertiveness and I love how I can count on him and um, I've got to find somebody who can fill those shoes because he just makes our school community better. I'll call him up and then within 10 minutes he's got some kind of plan that he wants to share and we talk about that. I was very impressed this summer when he went to Taiwan and learned um, Mandarin language. um you know just putting himself in a in a in another part of
027the world and and learning those things um and that culture. He's been influential in the CIC with the student equity advisory board. Um and uh he's a varsity tennis player that I am going to beat this summer because I've been practicing. Um but he's a national qualifier for the international geography. Um again just he's been just an outstanding ambassador for our school. Um again made me better, made me look at things differently. Um he started the student senate this year which is communicating um all our school uh our community passions with our students. Um I asked him uh to start a big terrier little terrier program with our ninth graders. He did that. And so, um, you know, he's he's at top of his game and he's been a big impact and, um, I'm gonna
028continue to make sure that he, uh, follows through on all the promises that he's made with us. But he's a, um, the CAPS recipient for all these things. And again, I just want to thank you for all that you've done. And you still have work to do. Thank you, buddy. [applause] >> Take that. >> So, I met I met you your freshman year because you uh >> wanted Model UN to be the driving force behind that and it's been a great program so far. And uh Mr. Dudis just got the sheet into us for your next model UN trip. So >> uh before the meeting our chair, Miss Lefredo, slipped this to me. This is the Cab Journal where uh you are featured on the front um here at a uh session. you were a
029convention keynote speaker right here on the cover of the the paper and I was hoping um you know you you were highlighted for speaking on the student panel in November and I was just wondering if you could make a few comments to us about what you did at the convention. >> Yeah. So I wanted to thank everyone for coming and attending today. Uh special thanks to the board of education for all of your support and as we're grow growing as you know connections I've been able to connect with so many of you guys and we're building relationships which I feel is very strong for our community and I just want to give a special thanks to my family as well. They've been supportive of me throughout my entire journey uh you know ever since I
030was born in India to moving to here in the US. They've supported me along the way all my passions no matter what it is um as I want to pursue international relations in the future and become hopefully a US ambassador. Um so they've been supportive the entire way. I also want to give a special congrats to my two friends Manis and Anvie over here because they are the team that really makes me a better person and we continue to support our school the best as we can. But a little bit on what I had spoke on that conference was just emphasizing student voice in curriculum building. So I feel that as students we have a say we should have a say in how our curriculums are structured. So I hope that going forward we have
031we take this approach of including students including teachers in the curriculum. So, we build one that's designed as best fit for us because we know what our needs are and we want to fulfill those. Um, I also just talked about how important civics is to our community because as you guys know, we have a declining civics rate. Not many people are voting and overall that might come down to maybe a lack of education and we need to have the extra push so that all students are educated and civically minded so that we can grow and create um, like I like to say a participatory democracy in the sense that all of us are participating to create a better future. So, I am truly honored to to be here today and I I couldn't be here
032without this great town that we live in. And I'm I'm proud to leave now after being in this district since third grade uh after nine years to say that I've left a mark and I'm hopeful and I'm and looking at all the young leaders from GMS, Moer and Westill and Stevens. I feel like they can fill my shoes soon and I'm really proud of everyone here today. I'm proud of our town and I believe our town is one of the best towns in Connecticut. I think we can become the best and uh hopefully the best town in the entire of the state and the entire of the nation. So, thank you guys so much for having me and I have absolutely loved my time at Rocky Hill. Thank you so much. [applause] Most people have
033nerves with public speaking. You're a pro right off, you know, just, >> you know, just I I threw that at you and and you hit a home run. So, congratulations to you and to all of our students, Mr. Alfredo, thank you. >> Thank you. Congratulations to all of our CAPS winners. Wow. Um you make us really proud. Uh thank you so much for exemplifying uh the traits that we really do hope to see in every Rocky Hill student. Keep being leaders in our community. We're so proud of you. All right, moving on to our next agenda item, which is um audience participation. This meeting is open to the public. Um, is there anyone that wishes to address um the board? We just ask that you limit your comments to two minutes and if you could
034please state your name and address for our record. Come on up. >> Uh, good evening. I'm Manis Gansa. I'm also a senior at Rocky High School. I'm here to talk about HOSA, which is an initiative I formed in my junior year. It's a club that is for students who are interested in medicine and HOSA stands for health occupation students of America. And I just want to talk about how important it is that we foster a community that supports these students to pursue the passions that they want. Uh HOSA has had 20 people compete at the state leadership conference last year. Out of those 20, 12 were qualified to go to internationals. That's a great uh achievement. They were all top five winners and they were able to go to this conference. And at this conference,
035they were able to see workshops, different uh healthcare professionals who all play a great role in medicine as we know it today. And they influenced many people like me who want to be in their shoes one day. And when I attended, I made so many connections. I I learned so much more about the field I hope to be a part of in the future. I think it's a great thing that we have this opportunity and we continue pushing students to do such a thing. And fortunately, I placed 10th internationally at this conference. I won 10th place for environmental health. So it was a great opportunity for me and I just want to say thank you and this year we have 99 students and for our school size that is a huge achievement and a huge
036bunch of students that want to be part of this field and I just want to emphasize this point because by 2032 we will be lacking 200,000 physicians that we need. So by having this many students, it shows that there's a able body of people who want to fill this gap and I think we should continue to do so with things like HOSA and other things at the career center at our school that foster these students to a better future. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Hi, Alan Smith, 112 Old Main Street. I'm also your mayor. Um, first, [laughter] >> well, I haven't met everybody, although I've met a a bunch of these students. And I came here first and foremost just to because I missed the first board meeting uh with with the the new group.
037So I want to say congrats to everybody who's new. Uh thank you to everybody who signed up for another two years of these exciting meetings. Sometimes they are a little doldrum but like this is a great example of uh when they can be really rewarding. So I came here to first of all say thanks to that but now I have to follow it. So, [laughter] thank I mean uh thank goodness that uh we have some folks that are going off to college and I don't have to worry about him taking my place in a couple years. But, um so, uh what a testament to all the great uh students that we have here and all the great faculty and the and all the parents here in the room who um obviously show up for their
038kids and and we just have such great outcomes. We were talking in the back as far as uh do we have any less than stellar students? We have 99 uh you know in that one example. I don't know. But anyway, so I just wanted to give a quick update on something that we're working at on at the council level as well. So prior to the election, we have had something on the agenda for a while and it had been talked about a little bit about sharing services and operational efficiencies. Well, it is still on our agenda and we're still talking about it at the council. And uh what we are hoping for is to take some of our uh money that has already been set in our town council budget to go towards taking a
039look at um the largest portion of the town's budget um and see that we are delivering the most efficient uh operational uh system that we've got going on um in town with with the Cool. So, um I know I understand there has been a little bit of uh apprehension about the idea of sharing services. Um I I totally get that and you guys uh have your autonomy and in terms of the board of education versus the rest of the the uh the town budget. Um, but I just uh we are going to be coming up into budget time here soon and um what we're really hoping to do is uh be able to work handinand with the board of ed to make sure that we are delivering on uh operational excellence uh that we are
040delivering the excellent outcomes that we're already doing. see uh if there's any opportunity for improvement there. And so uh we look forward in the the coming months as we're coming into budget period to working with you guys uh hand in hand. And thanks so much and enjoy uh the rest of the meeting everybody. [applause] >> Madam Chair, members of the board of ed, uh I'm Zach Van Luling. I'm on the town council. I live at 18 Boulder Drive and I'm here in a little more light-hearted way. But I I did want to say, oh wow, [laughter] we have some truly impressive kids in this town and in truly impressive teachers and schools. And as a guy with a soontobe two-year-old, I am so excited for her to get into those schools. I I also wanted
041to thank you for uh I really wanted to thank you for honoring Justin and Clarence. I'm the product of excellent special education. I wouldn't be standing here without it. And so it means a lot to me that you took the time to include them here today. Um, you may have noticed I put something on all of your desks. I actually wanted to notice all of you today and mention that I left you a little lapel pin. I had several of them made, about a hundred. And members of the board of ed from here on out and members of the town council as well as the superintendent and the town manager will receive these when they come into office or are hired or appointed. And uh it's just a little reminder that we all share in
042the decision-m for the legacy of this town and we are all working together to see better outcomes for the residents who are here. Um we may end up disagreeing on some issues here and there but truthfully when you think about it we're all on the same team and I think we've seen it play out that way for years here. Let's keep it up. Thank you so much for what you're doing. [applause] I have to break with Robert's roles for just a moment because I do need to add to that. We don't normally speak during public comment, but Mr. Vanluing, if you could come back, I just wanted to um acknowledge your gift to the board and let you know um a little bit behind the story of this beautiful um pin that you have created
043for all of us. Um Laura Licky, who is an educator at GMS, shared a beautiful story with me and this is um this is the conversation that I love having with our community because you just don't know what beautiful stories are out there. Um but this original seal that you notice um for board members that are looking at it currently um for Rocky Hill was actually designed by her mother Joanne um and her maiden name and I'm hoping I say it right, Bumanti. um happens to be um on file at the Rocky Hill Historical Society and it actually was drawn on a town flag, believe it or not. Um and it actually had the words Rocky Hill, Town of Goodwill. Um so I just wanted to share this story. Mrs. Licky's family owned a a
044farm here, I guess, on France and Winding Brook before it was developed. So they've been in town for a long time. Grew up here. Mom and dad met in Steven School, I believe she told me. um got married and had their families here. Um and this is just quite an honor to receive this um lapel pin and I will wear it um every time we meet and think of you and I do appreciate this gift, but I'm also going to think of Joanne and her beautiful artwork. So, thank you so much. [applause] >> Is there anyone else that wishes to come up for public comment? Come on up. So hopefully you're not too tired of me. I'll make it pretty brief this time. I just wanted to update the board on how our student senate
045is progressing. So last Friday we were able to attend the high school leadership conference. So we were able to take I believe 15 of our members to the high school leadership conference where mevi and manis were able to present at that conference as session moderators. And I want to give a special thanks to Mr. Trudeau and Mr. Fod for supporting us throughout the entire way. they were able they just give us this yes as soon as we gave them the students names and they were very supportive in the entire process. As we're going forward, we're going to use a form system to kind of collect all the activities that are going around school and they'll give us some um they'll just give us some updates on what is going around in their communities so in
046their in their clubs and activities so we can kind of you know consolidate what is really going on our school and hopefully we can go there we can go from some place from there. Uh but the student center is progressing really strongly and I we're kind of looking at you guys as a role models how you guys function. uh you know though you guys might not agree agree on some decisions you guys all come together and we're fighting for the same team and same thing serves for our student senate we might disagree on some things we're kind of working in a unified manner of making our school a better place so I'll continue to keep you guys posted I'll come back next meeting and the meeting after that but um till then thank you guys
047um thank you [applause] >> is there anyone else that wishes to address the Okay, seeing no one, um we are going to move on to our report of student representatives. Um so to to ha highlight um the wonderful things that are going on um in our schools, we have students who are going to be speaking from Rocky High School. Good evening everyone. I hope you're doing well today. Um, I'm Ratika Satish Kumar, one of the board of ed representatives from the high school. Um, and I'm back for another recap of the exciting things taking place this year. Um, to start it off, we had our homecoming dance on November 21st and many students showed up. Um, it was Tangle themed and we would like to thank the student council members who put all of their
048effort in the decorations making it feel we were like in the Tangled movie. Um, shortly later on December 5th, the Triumph Sounds of the Seasons performance took place. Um, the music honors society students gave back to the community by performing at the senior center 2 days before the actual concert in the high school auditorium. Along with the Polar Express themed decorations and the holiday songs, um, the students succeeded in raising the holiday spirits of the audience. Um, we then had the civility assembly in the gym which was attended by all of the grades. Um, a guest speaker from Harlem Wizards did a great job in educating the students about civil behavior. Um, some students got the chance to answer questions, play fun games, and even win prizes. As for athletics, we are in full swing
049of our winter season with tryyous over and all of our teams beginning competition. um students and coaches are working hard supporting each other and um we should have some success this season. After many years, we had the Mr. Rocky Hill pageant very recently head by held by the um girls basketball team where the senior boys in Rocky Hill showcased their menagerie of talents to faculty judges and students. From singing to drumming, the event was filled with competitive spirit and surprises. Speaking of singing, um the chorus and band ensembles had their annual winter concert on December 9th. After their hard work since the beginning of the year, um they were finally able to showcase their musical talent. It was filled with eager parents and nervous students who did a great job on stage. Nevertheless, this year
050was quite special because the chamber choir sang a 9-minute frozen medley and collaborated with the jazz band to perform a piece arranged by Mr. Schuman and Mr. Traver. Um, the holidays um are going really well in Rocky Hill and they are the perfect time to make someone happy. So, we had multiple holiday drives and fundraisers going on. the the toy drive held by the assistant principal um Mr. Darly, the food drive held by our principal, Mr. Fod, um the loose coin drive held by the National Honor Society, and the pajama day fundraiser held by the student council where students donated a dollar to their home rooms. Um this money is donated to uh the Connecticut Children's Medical Center. Um, and to keep up with the holiday spirit, the student council had their annual pictures with
051Santa where students can take pictures with Santa and maybe ask him for a pony, I guess. Um, so, uh, during lunch waves, um, we had Santa sit behind a beautiful background arranged by student council and, um, students took pictures with their friends, um, and had fun. So lastly, just to add in, the faculty are having a door decorating contest. Um, if you walk through the the halls, you will know that it is a competition. Uh, because unique festive decorations are popping up all over the school from Einstein wearing a Christmas hat to building an igloo entrance and a Christmas tree forest. Yes, the walls are decorated, too. Um, you can see all kinds of decor, creative decor as you walk down the halls. So, as we all know, the holidays are coming up and the
052students are counting their days until break. Nevertheless, the holiday spirit at Rocky Hill is shining bright and I hope yours is too. Wish you happy holidays. [applause] Thank you so much. Our next student um will be representing West Hill School. Good evening. My name is Zara Sharma >> and my name is Sanjay Dash. We are honored to be with you tonight to share all the exciting things we've been up to at West Hill this fall. >> We kicked off the school year with our meet and greets followed by popsicles with the principal. We had an opportunity to cool off on that hot day with the popsicle while meeting our new principal, Mrs. Glenn. >> In September, we had a back to school book fair which had a lot of great book selections for us. Ellie,
053a therapy dog, began visiting students in her Compass program on Monday mornings. She sure puts a smile on everyone's face when she walks into West Hill. >> Mustang boot camp also took place in September. It was a great way for us to get some exercise and get our energy out before the school day started. This year, we even had a Mustang family day. Our could come run with us. That was really fun. >> In September, we also had a really cool assembly, a traveling planetarium. [snorts] Inside, we took a tour of our solar system in our starfilled sky. My favorite part was when we had to find dragons and princess in the sky. How about you, Sanjay? >> I like the entry because when we crawled in it, it looked like an alien ship. That
054was so cool. In October, our Earth Warriors Club made the outside of West Hill look beautiful. They weeded and planted flowers donated by Sunny Farms. Towards the end of the month, we celebrated Halloween by watching the kindergarten parade and dressing up in our costumes. Even the teachers dressed up. My favorite third grade costume was the third grade teachers dressed up as 67s. >> Always six sevens, >> you know. 67 but sick. >> We kicked off of November with our spirit night. That was so much fun. We had face painting, crafts, games, and even the DJ with dancing. >> I love doing the crafts and dancing with my friends. Even Mrs. Quinn danced. There were so many raffle prizes, too. Our most popular raffle prizes were lunch with your parents principal for the day and riding
055to school in a fire truck or police car. I won tickets to the zoo. On December 4th, Leela was principal for the day. She loved using the walkie-talkie, taking a decaf coffee break, and handing out guest tickets, and calling a few friends to the principal's office for G Stern talking to, which of course turned into a playtime in Mrs. Quinn's office. [laughter] On November 11th, West Hill School celebrated Veterans Day. Our assembly was filled with student speeches, songs, and special gifts for our for our veterans. >> Did you know Mr. Dave, our custodian, is a veteran? I didn't. I'm glad he helped our country, though. >> The students and staff at West Hill School ran a food drive in November. We collected close to,200 cans of food. The food was delivered to our local food
056pantry. We earned many rewards in November because of all our hard work. We earned a crazy hat day, bucket blanket day, and dressed like your teacher day. I loved dressing like my teacher, Mrs. Boy. In December, we clammed a cruiser with unwrapped toys. We donated hundreds of gifts for toys for tots with the help of our S Oh, officer Carol. On Friday, December 12th, we participated in PJ Day for the kids. All money went to the Connecticut Children Medical Center. We raised over $1,000. Wow. We also attended an assembly called Words Matter, a hoops for life assembly. We learned about using kind words and being inclusive. I had so much fun dancing to ABT at the end. This fall, the Kip classroom taught by Miss Chatfield brought back two exciting programs for our school. Structure
057play and must think meals on wheels. During structure structure play, students from grades K to third grade go into the Kip classroom and play with the KIP students. On Fridays through the Mustang Meals on Wheels program, the KIP students collect money and deliver snacks to the teachers who have purchased them. The money raised goes into West Activity Fund. I really wish the students could buy Doritos, too. They look really good. In the closing, we are so proud to announce that West Hill Elementary School is a school of distinction for high performance for the 2024 to 2025 school year. We are excited to celebrate our staff, students, and families, and the amazing teaching and learning that happens every day at West Hill School. >> Way to go, West Hill. Thank you for allowing us to [applause]
058share our most favorite fall highlights of 2025 to 2026 school year. Thank you for allowing us to share our most favorite fall highlights of 2025 to 2026 school year. >> We wish you a safe and healthy holiday season. >> Thank you. [applause] Well done. We love when our students come up to tell us what is going on in our schools. Thank you so much. It is customary at this point for us to take um a fiveinut or so recess um because I know we have a lot of families here that might want to take some pictures with our administrators and we want to allow you to do that. So if there's no objection, we're going to take a fivem minute recess. Are there any objections? like to make a motion for a fivem minute recess.
059>> If there are no objections, I actually don't have to. So, hearing none, we can go right into recess. [laughter] >> We're in recess. Thank you. >> So, yeah. Perfect. How are you? These kids are amazing. Okay, >> I'm going to call back to order our board of education meeting. And um I know our five minute recess went a little bit longer than a fivem minute recess, but uh we had so many people in the room and it was so nice to be able to visit with our students and families um during that time. So, moving on to our approval of minutes. We are going to be looking at and approving October 28th uh which uh 2025 which was amended board of education um special meeting minutes. And I believe the piece that was amended
060was that the wrong chairperson was um noted on the minutes. That was the change that needed to occur. November 30th, a board of education meeting uh pre-election of the board chair. November 20th also uh board of education meeting post election of the board chair. December 9th board of education facilities committee meeting and December 16th board of education special education committee meeting and board members you had a copy of that um at your place um when you arrived today. Can I have a motion to accept these minutes or are there any um changes that need to occur before we do that? Are there any changes that need to occur to the these minutes? Okay. Can I have a motion to accept the minutes for that I have just gone through? >> Make a motion for the
061approval of the minutes as stated by the chair. >> Thank you, Miss Manella. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Shabra. Um, all in favor? >> I Okay, excellent. 90. Oh, >> I will abstain just because I wasn't present for the October 28th meeting. >> Um, okay. >> Um, so then I actually pro probably should go back and we should probably vote on October 28th because we actually had two board members that weren't here. So why don't we go back and I know we ran through this the last time. I'm sorry. So um I forgot that this was the change and that's why it was on the last um board meeting minutes. So, let us um go through and we're going to um go back to October 28th and I'd like
062to take a vote on that amended board of education special meeting. Um >> I'll make I'll make a motion to accept the minutes of just the October 28th minutes. >> Thank you, Mr. Costco. Now, may I have a second, Mr. Shabra? Thank you. All in favor? >> I >> That's seven. Seven of us. Yep. Okay. Perfect. Thank you. All right. Now, I'd like to take a second motion for November 20th. Um there are two pre-election um be for the board of education chairperson post-election board chair December 9th and December 16th um minutes. Can I have a motion, please? >> Make a motion to approve the minutes. >> Thank you, Mrs. D. Dunowitz. Um may I have a second? Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Clemens. All in favor? I >> All right. Excellent. 90. Thank you
063so much. All right, moving on to correspondence. Dr. Zitto. >> Yeah, one item of correspondence. I received a resignation letter from Isaiah Rivera, high school special education teacher. I is leaving the district for personal reasons. >> Okay. [snorts] Thank you, Dr. Zto. Uh, we are moving. Oh, I'm sorry. Go ahead. >> Just do we have any questions for Do we have an opportunity to ask Miss Dr. Zto any questions on the >> I don't know if that's a personnel um [clears throat] You can ask the question. >> I was just going to ask what? Yeah. What his position was? That's all. Just what the position was. You said >> special education. I'm sorry. I just didn't catch it. Thank you. >> Um, any other questions? [clears throat] >> Moving on to the consent calendar. We
064are looking at accepting phases one and two of the Stevens School HVAC project. Do we need some explanation about that currently just so that people know what has happened so far? >> Ron can come up and give a quick uh overview discussed in depth at the facilities meeting, but Ron, if you don't mind coming on up and >> giving [clears throat] a quick overview on phase >> Thank you, Mr. Lamont. >> Good evening. >> Um so phase one and phase two were um HBAC upgrades to Steven's school. Um the phase one was done two summers ago and it took place in the 1957 wing of Stevens School. Um and then the uh phase two was completed this past summer um which uh was the gymnasium. It was replacement of the air handling system and addition
065um of air conditioning to that to that area. Um the reason you need to accept it um as complete is um for state funding um for for grant funding so we can apply for the grant. Um we've applied for the grant. We just have to submit the invoices. So um the board does actually have to accept the project as complete and then we can actually submit the invoices and get reimbured. >> Okay. >> Does anyone have any questions or comments? Mr. Costker? No. >> No. I'll make a motion to accept the phase one and phase two Steven School HBAC project. >> Okay. Thank you. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Clemens. Um, all in favor? >> I I >> All right. 90. Thank you. >> All right. Moving on to
066And thank you again, Mr. Lamont, for I we didn't mean to put you on the spot, but it's always nice when we can have a little bit of background on what's being accepted. All right, moving on to uh committee reports. Uh number seven is curriculum. >> There is no report for curriculum. >> Okay. >> You do have an upcoming meeting though, correct? >> A meeting. Am I on? Sorry. Uh we do have a meeting scheduled for January 13th. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. Facilities. >> Facilities. Uh thank you. Uh we do have an update. We had a meeting uh on December 9th at Moer School. And I'll just quickly go through maybe not as quickly for some of you some the liking of some of you but I will go through kind of what we
067discussed at the facilities meeting. Um first off they gave uh which was very helpful a brief overview of the roles and responsibilities or the duties I should say of the school facilities committee. So the committee um is responsible for collaborating on the um CIP which is a capital improvement plan. um also responsible for reviewing and providing input on proposed capital projects. The committee will also serve as a board uh building committee for major capital projects, for example, like the West Hill roof project that's hopefully going to be coming up well is going to be coming up this summer. [snorts] So, the committee will um uh serve as that on that role. And there are a couple other things that the the um facilities committee is responsible for. The second item on the agenda was acceptance
068of the phase one and phase two that Mr. Lamontine just described. So, we went through that in detail. Um, and just for numbers, the state grant commitment was uh $339,000 is how much we get back reimbured from the state is that respon they're they're responsible for that portion of the project for phase one and phase two, which he described. Um, we next talked about the West Hill roof project which is uh in the process of being planned out. There's quite a bit that goes into that planning process and and Mr. Lamontine updated us on that from getting authorization from the um town council. So there's some motions and motions is not the right word resolutions that they need to make. So there's a couple resolutions that the town council will make in the coming I
069think in January round. Is that correct? They'll make that resolutions in January hopefully. >> It probably won't be January, but >> soon in the process in the works. All right. So those those um uh resolutions will be made. So this is just kind of stepping through the process. Um there's ED specs that will be uh laid out. Um and then they have to actually authorize the money. So the the the town council has to authorize the money to the board of ed to do the project. So those are just some things that are happening that is planned for um this summer that work to happen. Um he then went through this is all around nontain doing all this great work is he went through uh a GMS library and teched classrooms um conceptual designs so
070we're just at the early stages of these projects but just kind of laying them out for the board. There were kind of three parts to this. There's the media center library media center the module collab which is um computer lab and then the wood shop. So there's three kind of parts to that project that'll all be uh are being laid out. those need to be fit in in the um uh CIP uh over the course of the next who knows how many years. Um we then went through the actual draft of the CIP um which is the capital improvement plan and it's a tricky one. We're going to be talking about that a lot more. We actually already have another meeting set for the facilities committee in early January because there's lots to discuss on
071that and that'll be kind of ironed out hopefully through the budget process through this winter. Um but the the the capital improvement plan is is a bit tricky. Um we get funding for capital improvement from the town and it's been a little shortfunded over a few years. So if you look back at the last seven years um there's been some challenging years where we haven't been uh fully funded in that. So it's creating us some challenges moving forward and kind of laying out that plan. But we'll be discussing that in the coming coming months. Um then we got a brief update on the Steven School playground which they're the update I can give is they're shooting for install in the spring this spring. So that's uh been a challenging project though small to to to
072work on but we're getting towards the finish line on that and that's all I have. >> Any questions or comments for Mr. Costco? >> Okay, moving on to finance. >> Yep. So, we have no um finance meetings due to the upcoming budget coming up next month and I foresee our binders will be coming pretty soon. >> Yes, they will. >> And um Okay, thank you, Miss Manila. Um PNN. >> Also, no, >> that's you too. >> Yep. Also, no uh no meetings, >> no contracts. Correct. All right, moving on to policy. Uh, no report at this time. We're working on identifying a meeting for after the new year. >> Thank you. Uh, special education. >> Okay. Unfortunately, you have to listen to me again. Um, both of my committees met this month. So, um, so
073again, we met on December 16th um at Moer School and had a lots of things to discuss. Uh, appreciation to the administration for putting all this together. We have a couple nice little packets that they put together for us. One was an update on the Dream Cafe and Dream Academy. Um just quickly, we have 13 students enrolled in the Dream Academy, 10 students enrolled at the um Pathways program. Um but lots of great stuff going on at the Dream Cafe and the Dream Academy. Lunch deliveries happening, special cookie orders and pie orders and pie sales and greeting cards and pup treats and there's lots of great things going on down there um that you hear from time to time. Had a great holiday bazaar a couple weeks ago with the big guy Santa Claus there
074and the whole bit. So it was really successful. We had a bunch of volunteers and like literally a popup um uh some members of the volunteers were were there from the chorus at the high school and they started singing and stuff. It was really great actually. So um but yeah, so things are going very well at the Dream Cafe and the Dream Academy. Um they then went through um and presented on Miss Herman uh on a bunch of different things and I'll just kind of highlight a couple things just to give the public a general sense of what's happening in special education. Uh and this is as of let's see December 1st. There are 403 students in special education uh throughout the school system from Stevens all the way up through um uh the dream
075academy and also some of those are in uh outplacement schools and magnet schools but two 403 students. We have 20 students on 504 plans which is slightly different but um notable. Um they give a really nice summary of all the different indirect programs which I just want to highlight and they've done this in the past but they did this for the benefit of our new members. There's a lot of great programs that we have in the schools. Some of those were mentioned tonight. The Compass program at West Hill Learning Center, um the KIP program. I've heard them mentioned actually throughout even the student updates tonight. So it was really nice to hear that. Um again the Dream Academy, some of the life skills program at the middle school and high school. So they went through
076a lot of those updates which was really great. I'm going through the little binder that I have that they presented for us. So, um the uh they also went through some uh law changes which I won't go through, but there's a lot of changes in law this year in Connecticut state law that are going to impact special education from the 2005 um uh legislature. And uh so anyway, they're on top of those many many changes. So, it I wanted to bring that up because it's a heavy lift for the administration, for the staff to kind of deal with all those law changes and we acknowledge that and understand that. So, there's a lot going on um for for our administrators on that end. Um, one of which, one of those things is there's a new
077seed grant, special education enhancement and development grant. So, uh, Rockail School System has gotten 93,000 and change dollars to put towards um, some new behavior specialists and a math tutor. So, that's very notable and and uh, helpful for the district. um went through some uh assessment data um some different information on um kind of the state of affairs regarding suspensions and expulsions in Rocky Hill and just looking at some trends and data. So those are things that we're looking at across the different schools um again from West Hill on through the high school and and the rates of suspensions and expulsions over the years. Um also the rate of uh time that students with disabilities spend with their non-disabled peers. So, it's kind of an important measure of how inclusive how included the students with
078disabilities are with their non-disabled peers. So, we looked at some of that data and kind of just reflecting on that and um it's very helpful for us. So, I appreciate that. And um I guess the last thing really was on restraint and seclusion, which is another uh aspect that uh unfortunately is present uh and often for our special education students is um some just some data on the amount of times that students are restrained or secluded. Um so we went through that data and just kind of breaking that down. Um and that was it. It was a very full and packed agenda and I appreciate the work of the administration on putting that together. if you have any questions. >> Questions for Mr. Costker. >> Okay, seeing none, I'm going to move on to correct
079council. Miss Morfa, >> correct council has not had a meeting um in October or November or December. They're going to have their next meeting in January. Um and then I'm also next with school safety. Keep going. >> Sure. School safety. >> School safety. Uh we have not had a meeting. Um, we will be scheduling something soon and I don't see voice on the list, but did you want me to? >> Um, >> I think I have to follow what's on here now and I'll make a recommendation to add that. >> All right. >> Thank you. Um, number 15, technology, and I believe that's Miss Manella. >> We have had uh no meetings for uh technology. So, no no meetings. Thank you very much. All right, moving on our agenda. Uh, unfinished business. We have none,
080but we do have some new v new business and that is interimm assistant superintendent for personnel and student services report Dr. Diaz. >> Good evening board members and members of the Rocky Hill community. Uh happy holidays and I want to congratulate all of the CAPS recipients and their families. Thank you to our teachers. Um I was really inspired this evening. Um, and there's a young lady here who just told me during the recess break that she just uh she's going to Yale. So, congratulations. Um, [applause] and you know, and tonight it's one of my favorite nights and it's a testament to the work that we do, why we do the work, why the work is so important, and these student outcomes are just really outstanding. So I'm really excited and um I take pride in
081being part of this amazing team. So an update from the office during December f uh during the December faculty meetings uh staff were introduced to the civility framework. It was emphasized that this work is in its early stages >> and we will continue to assess our needs as we continue to move forward. this month. You guys um have heard through some of the student reports uh we launched the words matter assembly assembly, excuse me, with Mr. Thompson from Hoops for Life. Mr. Thompson visited all five schools and we received positive feedback from both staff and students particularly at the secondary level. As the next step, we will be serving high school students to gather feedback on the assembly and to inform the future forward. Uh we are looking forward to reviewing the high school student
082survey results and we're also planning to bring back Mr. Thompson at some point in the spring. Um additionally, we have seen a very strong interest from teachers who are eager to participate and engage with us in this initiative. The voice committee is scheduled for January 8th at 6:30m in the high school auditorium. And finally, I would like to take a moment to thank Miss Jesse Herman, SPE director, and Miss Aaron Herold, Dream Cafe culinary director, for their outstanding presentation to the special education subcommittee this week. it. They put together a pretty comprehensive um you know presentations and thank you to both of those leaders. Uh and I will be happy to take any questions. All right. Does not look like you have any questions this evening. Dr. Diaz, thank you so much for your report.
083Moving on to agenda item 17. It's the adoption of the 2627 school year calendar. Um, I'm going to open up the floor for discussion on this calendar to see if there are any questions or comments before we take a vote this evening. >> Looks good. >> All right. It looks great. Excellent. Okay. So, all in uh well, I need a motion first to accept the um Rocky Hill Public Schools uh >> motion. Yep. Motion's make an adoption of the 2 2026 2027 school year calendar. >> Thank you, Miss Manella. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Addie. All in favor? >> I >> Okay. 90. Thank you so much. That motion passes. And I do believe that this school year calendar will be put up on the website, correct? So that
084families can access it. Y. >> Okay. Excellent. Thank you so much. >> All right. Moving on to um agenda item 18, assistant superintendent for finance and operations, which is Dr. Nosik, but I know he is not here tonight. >> So, I will pinch it for Scott. [snorts] Just a couple of quick items on his report. You have the u the monthly financial report for November. Uh two notations there on the report. U at the last report, the pair professional salary line item was in deficit. the uh first installment of the seed grant came in. We actually reviewed the seed grant on December 16th with the special ed committee and a portion of those funds were applied to offset one of the behavior positions that we needed. So the account is no longer in deficit. Um
085tuition line item is still reflecting a deficit. Uh we anticipate that the offsets will be handled when we get I know Miss Manella you typically ask us about this but we'll get the February reimbursement >> for excess cost and then we anticipate a second uh payment in May and those accounts will balance out. The other information that Scott asked me to share with the board is uh as you know the current contract with New Britain Transportation is in the final year of the contract. Scott put out the official bid solicitation for RFPs on Monday, December 15th. Um, that bidding process and those bidding documents and so forth are on the district's website if you want to look at them under the finance and operations tab. Bid opening is scheduled for January 9th. Um, here in
086town council chambers, uh, three vendors have reached out. Nobody's actually submitted anything yet, but we've had some interest already. So we will keep the board uh completely apprised to that situation. >> Okay. Any questions or comments from Dr. Zto? Mr. Costker. >> Yeah, one question and uh if if you can't you might not have this at your fingertips, Dr. Zetto, so I might have to wait for Dr. Nosik. Um on the excess cost grant thing, do you know the number of that like what we do get back from the state on that? Because I know it varies from year to year what our estimate is for this year on that. >> We always uh anticipate about 70%. I don't have anything in greater detail than that. It's typically >> I've been a superintendent 17 years
087and you can almost always bank on around 70%. >> 70% of >> of the of our tuition >> 100% of so when you apply the formula four and a half times the cost the delta 100% of the delta we typically get about 70% of that. >> Right. So the dollar amount we're not sure about right now. >> I don't I can get you some more information. I don't have it at my hand. >> Yeah. And not in so much for me, just for the public, just to see like the state does reimburse us with a good chunk of the money for our outplacement students. That's sort of why I was asking. >> You have your per pupil, let's say in Rocky Hill, it's roughly 18,000. You multiply that by four and a half, >> the
088district is on the hook for that amount. Once you exceed four and a half times the per pupil amount, >> you typically get about 70% of the delta coming back to the school district. And that's been pretty consistent year after year. I know there have been some conversations at the state legislative level to try to increase the amount. Uh but I don't have any additional information. >> Awesome. Thank you. >> Any other questions or comments? >> Okay, seeing none, I'm moving on. Thank you, Dr. Zto, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, Miss Durand. >> Good evening, everybody, and happy holidays to our board and our comm our community. Um, I too would like to commend all of our award winners this evening. Um, this is one of my favorite meetings. We get to see just
089how impressive our students are and we get to see the hard work um that our teachers put into the classroom each and every day um exemplified in those students and their families as well. So um I just want to really say that um I'm also very proud to be a part of of that. So I'll move on to my report. Um I'm very pleased to share the results from last month's seal of biiteracy exams. 41 students participated and 29 earned the seal of biiteracy. Languages that were tested this year included Arabic, Spanish, French, Hindi, Tamil, Ukrainian, and Haitian Creole. This exam requires students to complete testing on a Saturday, and successful candidates will have the seal of biiteracy included on their high school transcripts as well as on their diploma at graduation. I'd like to
090sincerely thank Mr. Ma Matthew Bennett and Miss Lisa Erso who facilitate the administration of the exams and support our students. On December 1st, we submitted our kindergarten entrance inventory data to the state. Our kindergarten teachers at both Stevens and West Hill do an ex an an exceptional job of collecting this data each year and I would also like to thank them for their efforts. For the first time, parents of students in kindergarten through grade three were notified of their child's performance on the state required Dibbles reading assessment. Letters were sent to families ahead of parent teacher conferences in December of the fall administration results. Students will be completing the midyear examin administration at the end of January and letters will be shared with families ahead of our spring conferences. This assessment is required to be
091administered three times per year. I'd also like to thank Dr. Schaefer and our staff for their commitment to our students and families this [snorts] month as the first round of parent teacher conferences were held from December 3rd to the 5th. Over the past month, we have held both district and building level math collaboration meetings. And as part of our play-based learning initiative, we provided all teachers in grades K through five with funds to purchase games that support math skills to be used with students. We also sent both K3 building principles and teacher representatives to a play-based learning professional development offering. Lastly, our literacy coaches at the middle and high school level have been attending the CRE MTSS monthly council meetings to support the work that is being done in their buildings to support tiered intervention.
092The CRE consultant who is working in the district once a week meets with these staff members regularly to support the work they are accomplishing with students. At the January curriculum subcommittee meeting, I will provide an update on three board initiatives, MTSS year two of the educator evaluation system and the safe school climate implementation. Since the deadline to post safe school climate plans to the district websites is December 30th, I also wanted to report that we have created web pages for every school as well as a district web page with all of the plans posted and committee members listed. And that concludes my report. I'm welcome to take any questions. All right. Does not look like you have any questions tonight. All right. Thank you, Miss Durand. And uh moving on superintendent report Dr. Zto. >>
093Uh so again congratulations to all the CAPS award recipients and uh also to you envy for your acceptance to Yale. >> I remarked you've been coming you've getting been getting awards at this meeting uh at least since third grade maybe earlier but I seen you up here all the time. So I'm really proud of you and all of your uh classmates that are here tonight with you as well. Uh Dr. Diaz talked a little bit about the words matter assemblies. Uh I had the opportunity to to u go to the high school assembly on Friday. Uh it was really really important message. U very good buzz. Kids were enthusiastic. Um very engaged obviously the first step in what we think is going to be continuous concerted effort to ensure that everybody in our school community
094treats everybody else with respect, dignity and kindness. So it was it was a great great uh first roll out and as Dr. said more assemblies to come. Um just some some details here on some upcoming meetings. Uh the budget workshops uh kick off on Tuesday, January 27th. Second one is scheduled for Thursday the 29th and then u Tuesday, February 5th. And I'm I'm saying this more for the public. You all have this on the agenda, but I just want to get that out there. would encourage you to come if you have questions about the board budget, any any interest. Uh those meetings are here held here in the council chamber and they begin at 6:30. I anticipate providing the board members with your budget books at the January 15th meeting. So you'll have about 12
095days and what we like to do, we'll go over this in some more detail on the 15th, but uh spend some time going through those books and getting the questions to me in advance. It helps speed up the process. If we know where the interest in questions lies, a lot of times we can get ahead of that and have those answers ready for you when we open up the session. So, uh, important work coming up. And then, uh, on behalf of the whole staff, I want to wish everybody an enjoyable and restful holiday season. Uh, a great Christmas for those of you that celebrate that particular holiday and a very happy and healthy new year in 2026. >> Very good. Any questions or comments for Dr. Zitto? All right, I'm going to um start with
096my board chair report. And again, congratulations to our CAPS recipients and um it was just so nice to see a full room here tonight. December has truly been a a month full of hustle and bustle across the Rocky Hill public schools. Our schools have been alive with activity, showcasing the many talents and interests of our students. I have personally enjoyed cheering on our student athletes at a variety of sports events. I have attended festive holiday concerts like the one last night um where students from GMS truly shined during their choir performance at the high school. We have over a hundred students who participated and they sounded amazing. They performed some of my favorites last night. This month was also the high school holiday concert and the triumph sounds of the season and we had some
097extremely talented choir students all under the direction of Keith Traver. The Dream Cafe at Holiday Bazaar was another wonderful example of student creativity, collaboration, and community engagement with ornaments and cards and dog treats made by our own Rocky Hill students at Dream. Rocky Hill High School students from Mrs. Antl's class also had a very successful plant sale at the greenhouse. Uh I went over, they had absolutely gorgeous wreaths and giant poinsettias. I have a beautiful one sitting in my living room right now. And um they were all in high demand, but I most importantly got a sneak peek at the hydroponics um greenhouse that I know Mr. Lamont worked very hard on. Um and I got a chance to look inside. I'm truly looking forward to the spring plant sale and there will be more
098to come from our green houses. Um because I would love it if our students came in to tell us a little bit more about how the hydroponics are working. Also at Rocky High School, um the executive board was actually asked to judge the holiday themed doors yesterday. Miss Melo could not enjoy could not join us yesterday, so she asked Ms. Morphea to join me and Mr. Shabra. Um can I just tell you this added such an extra layer of school spirit, a very fun way um to celebrate this season. We had a very difficult time narrowing down a first, second, and third place door out of the 45 doors that we judged yesterday. We were very impressed with the amount of time and effort that teachers put into their doors. Um, and many of teachers
099involved students. So, there was some student participation in there as well, and I appreciated that, including the admin team, which probably should have received an honorable mention because they all put something out out on their doors. Um, but this was certainly a fun way to celebrate and we were honored to be able to be asked to judge. Um, so my goal this year is to get over to Moer and Stevens and West Hill in the new year and I'm looking forward to attending some staff meetings and some other events that we have lined up which will be reported on very soon. And while December is a very often demanding month, I'm incredibly thankful for our educators and administrators who ensured that learning has remained meaningful while also creating opportunities for joy, connection, and constructive fun
100for our students. Their dedication and energy makes a lasting impression on our school community. I'd also like to highlight some of important dates that are coming up in January. Thursday, January 8th at 6:30 will be our voice committee meeting at the high school, formerly called the Civility and Respect Committee. We are hoping for a very strong community turnout as we plan to open the floor for comments from families and students. We will be bending the rules on Robert's roles that night um to do that. Um, but we looking are looking forward to families and students attending. This meeting will be recorded. Um, but we help hope that you will help us spread the word. On Tuesday, January 13th at 6:30, the facilities and curriculum committee meeting will be meeting at Moer School. And on Thursday,
101January 15th, we are back here for our regular board of education meeting um, which will also be recorded. The month of January will also be very busy. As Dr. ZTO mentioned the board will be meeting to discuss and strategically go through the operating budget for the 2026 2027 school year. Those budget meetings again just one more time January 27th, 29th, and February 5th at 6:30 are right here in the council chambers. All of these meetings are open to the public and we encourage families, staff, and students to attend so that you can stay informed. As we head into the holiday break, I wish our staff, our students, and our families a restful and enjoyable vacation. I hope our students return in January feeling recharged and ready to continue their learning journey. Thank you to everyone
102who helps make the Rocky Hill public school such a vibrant and supportive place to learn. And with that, I would like to open the floor to any board member that would like to speak also this evening before we close. Just wanted to >> Miss Mora, >> thank you. Um, as we move into the holiday season, I ask you to keep one of our former students, Dominic Violet, and his family in your thoughts. Um, Dominic was actually, if I remember correctly, a CAPS recognized with CAPS award when he was in eth grade. Um, but Dominic is currently deployed. Um, and his mother is a valued teacher at GMS. I also want to say I was a little teary when I saw pictures of the staff at GMS wearing on every Monday army shirts in honor of
103Dominic um to show support for uh the Violet family. Um so I just think that just shows what an awesome community we have and how amazing our staff is. Um, so I just wanted to just ask everyone when we are when you're with your loved ones this holiday season, please remember Dominic, his family, and all those deployed. Thanks. >> Thank you so much, Miss Morphea. Anyone else? >> Okay, with that, we are going to be closing our board of education meeting this evening. Can I have a motion to close our meeting? >> Motion to adjurnn. Thank you, Miss Manella. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Excellent. All in favor? >> I thank you so much.