February 27, 2025 School Board Meeting and Public Hearing on the FY 25-26 Budget

001like to call the order the February 27th 2025 meeting of the Franklin school board thank you all for your attendance and for coming tonight do we have a motion to come out of close session come Ive that we come out a CL session we have a second any discussion all thank favor of that motion signify by saying I I oppose no motion carries do we have a motion for certification whereas the sprinklin city school board has convened a close meeting on this date pursuing an affirmative recorded vote and in accordance with the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and whereas section 2.2 372d of the code of Virginia requires a certification by the school board that such closed meeting was conducted in Conformity with Virginia law and now therefore be it resolved that

002the Franken City School Board hereby certifies that to the best of each members knowledge one only public business matters lawfully Exempted by Virginia law were discussed in the closed meeting to which this certification applies and two only such public business matters as were identified in the motion convening the closed meeting were heard discussed or considered thank you do we have a second second any discussion all in favor of the the motion for certification signify by saying I I oppose no motion carries would you stand for the pledge please I pledge aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy and that's right I believe we have two motions from closed session the first do we have a motion to approve

003our Personnel agenda as presented so Mo second second any discussion all in favor of the motion signify by saying I I oppose no that motion carries do we have a motion to approve the cheer trip to Greensboro I second second any discussion all in favor that motion signify by saying I I oppose no motion carries do we have a motion to approve our agenda I we have a second second any discussion all in favor signify by saying I I oppose no motion carries roll call Miss Davis please Dr Carter present Miss hunt present Miss Council present Mr Holt present Miss boon present Miss Parker present Dr Scott Dr Harrison here thank you moving to our consent agenda item 3.1 first reading of our minutes for February 6 we do not need to vote on those

004tonight our second 3.2 is to approve the second reading of of our minutes on January 16th do we have a motion to approve those minutes second second any discussion all in favor signify by saying I I oppose no that motion carries superintendent's report Dr Carter Miss fair is there some represen all right director Phillips do you have good evening everyone do they have e Dr tendle good good evening Dr Carter Mr Hol board members and all of our guests I have the privilege tonight of bringing two of our outstanding students uh to be recognized for some of their academic Excellence we are participating with whro and the regional spelling be and so we are holding two individual we have one at the elementary school it is planned for March the 11th uh right before our

005touch base event and so at the March board meeting I will be back with our first through fifth graders to recognize them but tonight we have our sixth and eighth grade winners um unfortunately we did not have any seventh graders who chose to participate this year but we're going to get them next year so um we held the sixth through e8th grade spelling beat on February 17th uh we had nine students that participated and when it came down to the end of round seven we were down to just two students a sixth grade student and an eighth grade student uh so we would like to recognize them tonight first our sixth grade student if Richard Lopez could come up here with [Music] me so like I said Richard made it to the end of round

006seven um he told me that I picked one of two words that he had had trouble spelling I apologized to him but he did an amazing job um he received one of these medals um the day of the spelling be sorry the ribbon all caught up it says spelling be on it so he received one of these and tonight he's receiving this certificate of achievement that says sixth grade champion at the 2025 spelling be yes and so the he is joined by his family uh his parents and his siblings if you all will please stand up as well to be [Applause] [Music] [Applause] recognized we're gonna go [Applause] and then our eighth grade student uh she was The Division champion uh she correctly spelled immunization in the last round she um and so her certificate

007tonight says awarded to Tiara Wallace Division champion at the 2025 spelling be um and she has some of her her family members are are sitting in the back with her if you'll stand up thank you come up and take a picture so as The Division champion um Tiara actually competed this morning in a regional qualifying event that was an online spelling be I didn't know they had those until this year um so she competed this morning uh in this qualifier we will know at the end of the day tomorrow and they will take the students that place the highest and that qualifier and then they will represent their divisions and so we know because Tiara is an amazing SM speller that she will be going to whro at the end of March for the live

008spelling be that is broadcast like you like her thank you all very much it is my pleasure to announce the Educational Foundation awards for outstanding teacher and outstanding support staff first honor is Miss Chelsea Sutton [Applause] okay while she's coming up I'll read uh Miss Sutton's SP Morton cafeteria manager deserves a recognition as an exceptional member of our support staff she works tirelessly to ensure that all of our students are fed making a uh consorted effort to guarantee that no child goes hungry Mrs Sutton is gentle with students and generally cares about the well-being she and her team takes time to engage uh with the students demonstrating her understanding of their likes and dislikes her attention to detail gives us confidence in her in her um ability to do her job another round of applause

009for Miss Sutton stay here because we're going to take a picture everybody all right our next Honore is Mr Frank Davis Mr Davis is a highly deserved nominee for his recognition of outstanding education support he cultivates a warm and positive Report with students engaging and meaningful with them each day Mr Davis goes above and beyond lending his support not just in the school but also during enrichment field trips and community events he frequently discusses college and college encer aspirations with students motivating them to Envision how they can contribute positively to our community in our future once again for Mr Davis our next Honore is Miss Hannah Bower Miss bow is recognized for her commitment to equity and equality as a kindergarten teacher she has demonstrated remarkable growth in her leadership skills her teaching abilities encompasses

010both General and special education students making her a team teacher and an outstanding educator she she maintains and demonstrates highly effective teaching skills and manages her students with positivity compassion and consistency despite fa facing personal challenges Mrs Bower dedicated to her work remains steadfast she genuinely advocates for equity and equality for all students leading by example in her daily actions once again for Mrs power our next honor is Miss Susan blly Miss blly exemplifies the Importance of Being a team player going above and beyond to ensure that staff and students succeed and receive support they need all who interact with her feel encouraged values and boyed up she facilitates online courses for students who take classes through virtual Virginia at mum and Paul D Community College furthermore she assists both teachers and students with their

011technological needs additionally she serves as our lead examiner for students requiring special accommodations during testing she is an invaluable member of our team once again Mrs BL next Honore is Miss Paige Drury Missouri is a positive face and background support of all students staff teachers and faculty at Franklin High School she interacts warmly and respectfully with all creating an inviting atmosphere in her main office and a place where all know they can be heard and helped her competence and organizational skills keep FHS running smoothly many don't realize the hour she devotes to make FHS successful unless they drive by daily at her 5:30 a.m. and see her uh solid car this only car parked out front most of it all she is a Believer she excludes a she exudes a belief in the goodness of

012all and the possibility of success then she puts her efforts beyond that belief give it again for miss drw our next honor is Mr David lease Mr Lee is another remarkable candidate for the Franklin City Education Foundation his passion for empowering students with the essential skills and knowledge they need for successful careers and Building Trades industry is truly commendable Mr lease not only deepens students understanding but also stir their enthusiasm and curiosity about the field with his distinct teaching style he can ensure that all every student feels encouraged while continuously raising a bar of Excellence with each project he approaches uh and creates a vibrant learning environment filled with Excellence once again Mr Dave Lee [Applause] talk to minor teacher of the year good afternoon everyone I am here to present our teacher of the

013year for each of our schools and then our teacher of the year for the division so may I have Miss shaana Rollins come forward please Mrs Rollins certificate reads teacher of the year jpk Career and Technical education Academy and recognition of of your exceptional contributions as a high school business teacher and dedicated sponsor of future Business Leaders of America FBA we proudly present you with this teach of the Year certificate your commitment to Excellence and education is evident through your outstanding achievements you have meticulously planned and developed curricula for various business needs of your students your Innovative approach prepares them for success in their future careers your instruction and subjects with Essential Knowledge and Skills you inspire them to explore their interests and pursue further studies in business fostering a passion of lifelong learning you

014evaluate student performance through assessments assignments assessments tests projects providing cor constructive feedback and supports their growth and development your commitment to their assess is reflected in their achievements as an fbls sponsor you provide invaluable educational programs that enhance members business with skills and knowledge your leadership empowers students to excel in competitions and develop Real World skills your dedication to fostering the next generation of Business Leaders is truly aspiring thank you for your unwavered commitment to your students and Community [Applause] it's if Miss Rollins family is here please come join her [Applause] all [Applause] Miss Shonda Turner and family please join me Miss shorney Turner you are being recognized with this expression of our heartfelt appreciation for your exceptional education and exemplary performance as a self-contained teacher your ability to deliver all subjects to a single

015class while ensuring a cohesive and supportive learning environment is truly commendable your specialized instruction tailored to meet the diverse needs of your students has made a significant impact particularly for those facing substantial learning challenges the focused curriculum you provide is designed with their unique needs in mind fostering growth and confidence thank you for your unwavering commitment to create creating a nurturing and effective learning atmosphere your efforts make a difference in the lives of your Scholars thank you [Applause] woo thank than [Applause] you Franklin High School Miss Sharita [Applause] long Miss Sharita long in recognition of your outstanding contributions as an exceptional education transition teacher we probably present you with this teacher of the year certificate your dedication to facilitating the transition of students with disabilities from high school to adulthood is truly commendable you have

016exemplified what it means to be a transition teacher by empowering students you create meaningful opportunities for them to enhance their communication skills through tailored methods that address their individual participation in individualized programs meetings that meetings demonstrates your commitment to developing and implementing transition related goals you ensure that each student receives the necessary services and support for successful outcomes your efforts in guiding students through this critical phase of their lives not only impact their educational Journey but also shape their Futures as contributing members of society your unwavering dedication and passion for your students make a profound difference in our lives in their lives thank you for being an inspiring leader and advocate for students with disabilities congratulations congratulations on this welld deserved recognitions that's Miss long have any family does miss long have any family to

017come up with her come on [Applause] Mr Holtz division teer lastly we have our teacher of the year and I'll read the proclamation whereas the Franklin City public school teacher of the year award recognizes the exceptional efforts of one outstanding teacher within the division awarded to an fpcs teacher who exemplifies teaching with passion leading with con conviction and serving the community every day and whereas Franklin City Public Schools honor Shonda Rollins a business teacher I'm just going to give you [Applause] our teacher of the year would like to make a speech two minutes two minutes give me two minutes I'm truly honored and humbled to receive this award teaching is not just a profession for me is a passion every day I have the incredible opportunity to inspire Challenge and learn alongside my students I

018always tell my students that when they're deciding about their career path think about what that is that you would do for free but that you can also make some money okay then I get them to research that because that's your passion and it won't feel like you're working I also challenge them to learn something new every day every day of your life learn something new um this award is not just a reflection of my efforts but a testament to the amazing colleagues directors administrators and of course the students that we serve because teaching is a team effort and I share this recognition with every educator who dedicates themselves to shaping these young minds it can be very challenging at times but when you see the students experiencing success that's the reward right there in itself

019so thank you Franklin City Public Schools ESP especially my colleagues at jpk CA and FHS and everyone who supports education this makes my 15th year with Franklin City Public Schools and this is my first time receiving such an honor and I'm truly grateful thank you Miss Morrison Dr Carter school board and community members good evening I will be presenting the 2025 to 2026 school year proposed initial budget this proposed budget was designed to align with our strategic plan objectives all of the underlying budget assumptions are subject to change as new information concerning enrollment and state funding becomes available Franklin City Public Schools has three primary funding sources that would be state federal and local Franklin city has a low Composite Index and that means that the state provides a higher share of funding than the

020locality towards the Virginia Department of Education standards of quality you see the budget on the screen the first line under the general fund budget is State funding this state funding of 14,353 341 is based on a conservative average daily membership of 1,67 students as well as elements of the governor's December update to this bium budget this 14.3 million is a 5% increase from the current year State funding the next line would be the Federal funding of the 1.3 million and that is simply the estimated new Grant funds for the new Grant year for City appropriation operating this is the city's required local match of 4.8 million and that is a 12% increase over previous year's local funding due to the fact that we've had a 12% increase in student enrollment over previous years the local

021appropriation capital projects will would be an Ask of the city to establish a capital projects Fund in lie of granting a rollover in 2024 the general assembly amended the Virginia code to authorize School boards with the concurrence of the local governing body to establish a capital reserve fund to capture local funds that were appropriated to the schools but were unspent during that fiscal year lastly the local other line represents all other funding sources and it's primarily composed of JC receipts this would bring us to a total estimated revenue for the general fund of 20,9 42,000 now the incoming revenues I've just presented determine the dollar amount available to fund expenditures in our budget each category of expenditures you will see two lines one for salaries and benefits and one for other uh the other would

022be um purchase services and supplies and materials this proposed initial budget allocates most of the funding to instruction and the next largest category would be operations in maintenance which reflects our ongoing commitment to our Capital Improvement plan the salaries and benefits line items do include a 3% salary increase for all employees effective July 1st 25 um there was no increase in health health insurance rates and the lines listed as other are projected based on feedback from each manager um for their needs and all expenditure lines of course are limited to fund availability moving to the right we have our self- sustaining textbook fund the state and local funding amounts are calculated directly from the state and this 165,000 will be used for new textbooks as those needs arise and those funds will be carried over

023to the following year if they're not expended during the school year finally on the right we have our self- sustaining nutrition fund budget of $821,000 um this Federal and local funding estimates are based on the anticipated number of meals served and like the textbook fund These funds automatically carry over from year to year so the general fund the textbook fund and the nutrition fund combined come to a total budget of 2,929 154 this is the proposed initial budget for the 2526 school year next slide our next steps would be that after the public hearing tonight um the budget will be due to the city manager by March 13th and the city will then consider our budget request the city is set set to adopt the city budget budget which does which does include the schools

024in June and then the school board would adopt the budget thereafter at this time I would be happy to answer any questions regarding the proposed budget any questions from the board there's not a question but it's a comment I'd like that I'm thanking you for the clarification of can you go back to the other screen please yes the budget the budget cuz this is the first time I understanding that the textbooks actually carries over and it's not just physical textbooks it's also digital textbooks yes ma'am I'd like to thank you for that clarification thank you you're fine okay if there's no further questions from the board we can move to the public hearings segment we'd like to open the meeting to public comment on the budget only so if you have some comments that you

025would like to make regarding the budget please step forward speak into the microphone we have a second invitation to speak on the budget I have to ask this three times so do we have anyone who would like to speak on the budget good evening um I was looking at the line items as I often did when I sat in one of those seats and one thing that I never asked and got clarified um but I would ask now as a member of the public is there any way that we can see a breakdown of the line item of the salaries and benefits not by person but by school and by central office like what percentage of the salaries and benefits is going to SP Morton what percentage of the salaries and benefits is going to

026our Technical Center what percentage of salaries and benefits is going to the high school and then what percentage of the salaries and benefits is going to central office staff that's my question thank you [Applause] CH thank you Miss Johnson for that question it's a good question and uh we do have the answers to those I don't have them um available right this minute but we are able to break out salaries and benefits by each school and central office if you will go back to the budget slide please um when you look at admin um the title of that here is ad admin but the formal title of that which is prescribed by the Department of Education is um Administration health and attendance So within that admin you have your central office costs but you also

027have the cost of things such as health services like nursing Services School nurses um the therapy company that we have contracted to do speech and occupational therapy with our students that need that and school psychologists so it would be um all of those things fall under Administration health and attendance um otherwise I think we could break it out by school and by central office um and I could publish that if that's needed thank you Tracy yes any other comments we will declare the budget hearing for the public closed board do we have a motion to approve the budget as presented I so move second we have a motion and a second any discussion all in favor of that motion signify by saying I I oppose no motion carries thank you good evening board Dr Carter

028M Davis if we can start with the uh PowerPoint I think that was the last attachment yes ma'am we got a message that the microphone was not on can you hear it in the audience okay maybe it's not going to the people online apparently people on the broadcast can't can't hear well we need it we need people broad get okay only that need to PR the button heard that should be without a button being can you hear me now okay good I was just saying I wanted to make sure people on the BR broadcast could also hear good evening again board um want to provide you with an update on where we are with Mod c um I'm pleased to share that we did pass final inspection on Tuesday February 18th and now we're waiting

029for uh the city to provide us with a certificate of occupancy uh we believe that that is um on the cusp of happening and so the maintenance team will be finalizing teacher um moving teacher belongings tomorrow um so we're very very excited to be able to move into this space very very shortly um just as a review from our work session um we've gone through the procurement review process with vdoe um and we have provided um corrective action to two findings um and part of that is adoption of an updated nutrition procurement policy um and so that is presented to you this evening for second read um if the board would entertain a motion that was one of the other attachments um if that would be helpful for the board yes ma'am so again this

030template was provided by vdoe and we um made sure that it spoke to the structure within FCPS um but this this was something that was templated for us by vdoe so I bet you'd like us to approve that wouldn't you that would make my even boy do we have a motion to approve the procurement plan as presented by Dr Walters I have a question first okay so are we getting fresh food or processed food what does this mean so we we procure through uh various sources so this this procurement policy includes the purchase of um trays uh plastic wear uh as well as our Our Food Supplies uh so we we do procure uh fresh fruits and vegetables through USDA um and then there are are other food sources that are also purchased so it

031includes both um fresh and and processed foods this is mandated by the state is that correct yes ma'am there there was um a legal reference that was absent in previous policy so this essentially brings that legal reference uh into the policy that we enforce and it also impacts our funding from the state level is that correct so we don't have opportunity to modify this in any way it's basically this is the way it is if you want to get our state funding this this is drafted by vdoe for us um it it really facilitates things on the school side um because it ensures that it speaks to each type of purchase um so in terms of of making sure that it speaks to our structure uh there are certain roles and responsibilities that we had

032to attach um who in Franklin City Public Schools is responsible for particular steps that is that's essentially how we have U personalized this for the division but in essence the the state has spelled out what the expectation is it really is just a matter of who's monitoring these pieces through the procurement process that makesense thank you what's that I never seen this before so can I physically see it because all I'm seeing is page two yes ma'am it was presented at the work session February 6th but it's also um I believe the entire file is is present in board Docs this is actually a second reading correct yes sir do we have a motion to approve I move to approve as presented do we have a second second any extensions all of excuse me all

033in favor signify by saying I I oose no no one no any exstension I have to abstain chair one abstention motion carries thank you sir yes sir and lastly this evening um I'm pleased to present to the board um a draft academic calendar for the 2526 school year um if we can go back to the um the slides the operations update Miss Davis and one more thank you ma'am um so a survey was released to solicit some feedback um from various stakeholders we had 115 responses um it was five community members 56 um employees and 55 uh family members um and so from that uh questions asked about their their preference for the existing uh structure to our academic calendar um and so if we can advance one slide um approximately 90% either liked um

034uh or even more uh like our existing structure um so there were about 13 who didn't like um the the current format out of the calendar um and so that helped to drive uh some of the recommendations that we have uh for you in our our present draft next slide um So based on the survey results uh approximately 90% of respondents uh supported the current practice of Wellness days um about 84% um preferred that those Wellness days be observed on Fridays uh versus Mondays U about 80% preferred the entire week uh for Thanksgiving break approximately 94% uh were in favor of two consecutive weeks um for winter break um and then one question that came out of the discussion from the calendar committee um was about utilizing the current early dismissal day for Franklin High

035School transitioning that into a virtual learning day to provide teachers at uh JP King and Franklin High School with the same opportunity for professional development uh and parent teacher conferences as we have at the elementary school this year um and with that structure we would continue to earn um we would accumulate our typical seat hour it would count as a full instructional day for our students um um and so uh that was um that was explained in the question we had approximately 75% uh of respondents in favor of of that switch from the early dismissal day um to a whole day virtual day for Franklin High School next slide um so highlights from the proposed uh draft include continued uh Wellness Fridays uh again being reserved on Fridays the entire week out uh for Thanksgiving

036break two consecutive weeks for winter break and changing uh the early release day for Franklin High School to um a whole virtual day um so that will occur four times per semester one of the benefits one of the additional benefits of this is that we're going to be able to bank additional time uh for our high school which has been an issue in the past um so it's going to ensure that we have um sufficient time when we have inclement weather as we've had recently um it's also going to allow us to shorten classes by about five minutes each which will shorten the instructional Day by 20 minutes um that's going to help ensure that the buses are able to complete their high school routes and then uh get to the elementary school for an

037ontime dismissal as well um so again this is just presented this evening as a draft uh and I welcome any questions or comments that you have the draft calendar is listed as an attachment on this evening's agenda comment yes ma'am CTE bus the children state that they're losing time going from one building to the other so how does that help us with them in their classrooms so one of the things that we're really trying to encourage is for students to be at the the stop at the high school on time same thing at JP king um because one of the things that we found with transportation is that we're having to do multiple routes to go back and pick up students who missed that bus um so that is one of the things that we're

038we're hoping to uh smooth out as we move forward but if we're shortening the day 20 minutes can't we just leave it 20 minutes and allow that 5 minutes per day so they can make it to the bus cuz there's potty moves there I tripped I fell or or I need to stay back and talk to the teacher sure that that could be an option anything else for Dr Walters thank you sir all right thank you Dr Miner cell phone Mr Holtz board members Dr Carter citizens good afternoon I am presenting an updated a revision to the personal communication device policy I am presenting it as a first read but I am um I'm asking that we adopt this policy the major revision to this policy eliminates green zones during instructional time so that's Bell

039to Bell um and it matches the governor's executive order and students will not be able to use personal communication devices unless there's a documented medical need um and then that is approved that they can use their personal devices if they need their personal device to um monitor health related issues the green zones there will be no green zones students are not allowed to use their personal devices rather the a cell phone whether it is a wearable Smartwatch they cannot use airpods or Wireless or wireless earphones they cannot use them in their classroom in the hallway cannot be used in the restroom cannot be used in the courtyards for physical education nor in the courtyard for the cafeteria there is no place in the school during the instructional time that students can use their cell phones

040cell phones cannot be on their person it must be in a backpack it must be in a a purse a locker or a school pouch students cannot plug in wireless devices unless is plugged into a school allowed device so this is a revision to match Governor yonan's executive order and again this is the first read but I'm asking that we adopt this policy um could you please go through some of the requirements from the executive order so the requirements from the executive order it was updated um as of January 1st that students he's asking for a cell phone free school during instructional time that's Bel to Bell that's when they when at the beginning of the school to the end of the school day after school activities they can use their um their personal devices

041but during instructional time on an instructional setting they cannot use their cell phones based on the band unless it's Health rated so the main reason I was asking that question is I just wasn't sure how much the public was aware of the executive order and how this is something excellent it sounds like this is something that every School Division in the whole state is dealing with is that everyone is dealing with is that a fair assumption that just so everybody's aware yes the entire state is dealing with this executive order and how best to deal with it yes okay so if it is the pleasure of the board I would recommend us adopting this revision of the policy this is a first read it's a first read or you can vad on it any other

042questions Dr merer so do we have charging stations in the classrooms or not so there are some charging stations in The Clash and what we did was we ordered the Yonder pouches and they're here now so we are going to inventory them and pass them out to the students so what the yandra pouch is it's a pouch where the students put their cell phones in it and it locks um so they can do that as they walk into the school and as they leave the school they just put up to the magnet it unlocks they can take their cell phone out in the case of an emergency students can use their phone so we have several magnets that we can have staff members go around and have the students unlock their pouches so is this

043going to be in front of the school in the middle of the school in the back of the school where cuz what I'm understanding is that when we when they walk in the classrooms well walk in the school you're taking their cell phones putting it in a pouch and then they're going about their day but then you have emergencies so how does that so they're keeping the pouch so the pouch would be inventor and um distributed to the students so they'll put their cell phone in the pouch they'll keep the pouch with them they just can't open it until they have the magnet to open it and how much is this costing us Dr Walters we we purchased about 575 pouches um for implementation at the secondary level um and that is approximately $220,000 so

044with it being $20,000 um who's responsible when we lose them for when they lose them who's responsible for that so are we having something given out to the parents say that they're responsible if they should lose it how is this going so we're we're in the the process of um finalizing implementation with Yonder um the the vendor that we've used uh to purchase the pouches um and so we're going to be communicating that information with families and with students um regarding what that process looks like will this be similar to like when you receive a laptop or the Chromebook yes ma'am it so the the pouch will be specific to the student um so and again the the students will be keeping the pouches on their person um through the entire day they'll they'll be

045able to access that as they dismiss school in the afternoon um the the case that um Dr Miner was alluding to um some of our students are diabetic and they monitor their blood sugar through the phone um and so in those cases we want to make sure that students have access um to their their communication devices to be able to monitor that and those pouches don't have a lock well not only that as far as I do know is that our nurses are also supposed to have a work phone and there's supposed to be permission between the parents and the nurse that she also gets a response when the blood sugars are low so that would save us when you're saying about putting something in a lock box or whatever it is you just said

046so um anything else thank you Dr Mr Mr H I just want to make one additional comment and speaking with the staff they overwhelmingly want the pouches and they said it's it's a bear trying to police the cell phones and also teach instruction so this is something that is is definitely wanted thank you please in the audience anything else Dr carer no sir Miss Tomkins good evening board chair Holt Vice chair boom school board and Dr Carter all those assembled I have the task of going through our accreditation accountability and where we stand at this moment for first semester I want to bring to your attention uh what is on the screen which is our accreditation for 2023 this is for SP Morton as you can see that all of the indicators that determin a

047school's accreditation was in a level three this data was for 23 24 school year but it was based on the 2223 school year data next slide for the 2024 25 school year accreditation year this is where uh SP Morton stood based on the 2324 school year they are still a School accredited with conditions if you have at least one level three your school is considered accredited with conditions next slide Franklin Franklin High School 20 324 school year based on 2223 school year data you can see that there are more green than there are red [Applause] however however based on the accreditation model if you have at least one level three your school is considered accredited with conditions next slide please this is for accreditation year 2425 based on the data from 2324 this Academic Year

048uh is what this data will be considered Ed as current however this school based on the three level 3es this school for this current year is considered accredited with conditions next slide please so as we take a look at our current data this is a first attempt first semester this is where there are no retest uh data shown at as of this first semester we had a total of 418 tests that does not mean that we tested 418 students it means that the total number of tests equaled 418 some students took two assessments some may have taken three however if you look at our scores uh Algebra 1 pass rate first attempt no retests 25% algebra two 31.8% biology 133% world history 53.1% us and VA history 0% geometry 33.3 English reading 48% English writing

04935.7 8th grade science 88.1% and Civics economics 12.5% out of the 418 tests we have 175 students who would be eligible to take a retest next slide please now as of February 11th which is what this data is based on includes retests as well as summer school scores first semester as you can see at the bottom we have an overall score for in for math 64% English 56% science 27% and um social studies 56% this is where we stand currently with those who are ret testing next slide please so if we take a look at some of the attempts this gives us a window into how many times our students are taking so tests to get a verified credit which is required for graduation a student must have five verified credits one in Reading English

050one in English writing one in math which can be Algebra 1 one in biology or a science and one in history as we move forward through the presentation the state has changed which one of these particular assessments will be counted in the ACC credibility model so as you can see we have the number of failed attempts we have to monitor how many times students take an so as you can see from this data some students have taken assessments five or six times and have not passed those assessments and one of the things that we have focused on is that the Mastery of the content the first time is the best bet for students to be on track for graduation and moving forward with this new accountability model it is going to be imperative that our

051students are first time test takers and that we get that information correct for them because accreditation will be cohort based as we move into the new accountability model next slide please this is the retest for English and social studies you can see in the middle it shows you on uh my left how many failed attempts how many total attempts to the right and in the middle how many pass and this is just a snippet of how we measure how many times our students are taking the assessment and some of them have passed the course but did not pass the so and have to take the assessment after they have completed the course however they do receive remediation but it is easier to remediate a student when they are still in the course as opposed to

052remediating those students when they're remove when they have passed the course and are far removed but did not receive a verified credit next slide please so what are the opportunities for intervention are provided for our students I won't read all of these as you can see on the slide we have summer programs we have the so Academy we have all in tutoring that we have now added prek through three before um the grant was only for uh grades three through 8 but we have a uh School Improvement Grant from the state which has allowed us to add prek through 2 as part of our remediation program we also use enrichmond Fridays to ensure that students at the high school level have the opportunity for um enrichment for remediation and preparation for assessments and as you

053can see the other uh computerized uh based programs that we have at our schools that offer students also opportunities for realtime interventions next slide please so as we move into the new accreditation model it's is uh tasked now as accreditation and accountability the state used to put both of those uh together however accreditation now is the rating based on a school's compliance with the standards of quality which encompasses of course your instructional time clock hours quality instruction teacher lure the accountability model moving forward is now based on the students performance on so tests chronic absenteeism a smaller percentages based on growth and your cohort graduation next slide please so we move now to a point system instead of a school being considered accredited with conditions the school will have distinguished on track off track needs

054intensive support so those are those are uh how you will get your accreditation uh markers moving forward next slide please so if you take a look at how we are going to wait those as you can see Mastery is what's going to have the highest rate not growth so students have to master the content which means they have to pass the so with a 400 or better they do get a point system so students who are considered Advanced will have a 1.75 point system if they are uh proficient I'm sorry to be to 1.25 if they are considered Advance that's a 500 or better 400 will be 1 uh1 zero so if you move forward we have to make sure that we are preparing our students to master the content not depending on growth and

055not depending on retests to get our students where they need to be next slide please so we have a special school it's a middle school high school combination and as you can see on the slide there is a Mastery 15% for reading 15% for Math and now we have instead of a 4-year cohort graduation rate we're now looking at six years because we are now having to track kids for two years after graduation this is called the three EAS enlistment enrollment or employment so students who go into our Armed Forces they pass the ASVAB test they are employed because they have a CTE credential or they enroll in college that and we have to track them now for two years postgraduation to determine how well our students how well we are preparing our students for

056Life After High School so as you can see the Readiness marker for high school is 30% and the mastery will be 50% so we have 80% of our score for accreditation purposes is based on a high percentage of Mastery only 10% is on growth and for this high school the only area where growth is assessed is in grades seventh and eth in Reading in math not high school coursework starting in grade nine next slide please so here's another change in the accreditation system writing will no longer be factored into the accreditation system for a school however a student is still required to have a verified Credit in writing and take the so however it will not be factored into your accredit even if your school is considered on track based on last year's data which

057Franklin High School is they factored in things that will no longer be factored in the accreditation model moving forward writing will no longer count towards your accreditation score biology will only be the science that will count towards your new accreditation model it will not be chemistry it will not be earth science or any other Sciences however if a child fails biology and takes chemistry because they are going for the advanced diploma that child can take the chemistry so pass it and the and they will receive their verified credit but we will will be we will receive no points because it is not biology it will go over for the student but it will it will be factored as a failure for the school and Algebra 1 will be the only math that will be accepted

058for your math verified credit unless a child takes Algebra 1 in the eighth grade then their first math is what will be used for their verified credit and will go with the school for accreditation purposes so for example if my child is in the eighth grade and here or she takes algebra one and um and passes the so that's great but that child for federal accountability will have to take a math So at their first time as a ninth grader once that child takes that course whether it's geometry or Algebra 2 that's the only opportunity that the student and the school will receive credit for a child's math grade so these are some changes that are being that the state has put together to determine your accreditation status in a school next slide please so

059I know that was a lot of information and a lot of changes to the accreditation and accountability model I would entertain any questions at this time so I have a question do we have any way to extrapolate where we were and where we would be in the new system like last year's data can we put that into today's system and say this is so it has been done and the state has taken the data from the 2324 and put it into a database and so Franklin High School would be would be an on trck school at however how how however that's using all the data sets not this new data set so if we were to use the data currently even with our current re tests we would not be an on track School based

060on our current data and based on the current model that only assesses biology Algebra 1 and English reading we would be an off trck school question so when is this supposed to when is this implemented so it should be going into effect 2526 six however because this is we're now moving to a cohort base which is we're going to start with the ninth grade and follow them to their senior year and two years out we are not sure when we will receive the data that we can use we'll have the numbers but we may not have um our standing with the state because they're still working out how we're going to address and how we're going to show where schools are in terms of the official rating whether you're on track school and exemplary school

061so we're still waiting to determine how the cohort is going to um is going to work out that data but we will have the data of who passes and who fails we will have that as normal but where we fall on the accountability from the state is yet to be determined out of the 17 five retakes how many of them are seniors is there a percentage there there is a percentage I do not have that number at this time but we do have but we do have uh quite a bit of seniors who are on our retake list do you project a larger summer school this year yes and that's because of the test scores so um because of the new model um if students do not pass biology if students don't pass English reading

062they still have to take those Assessments in order for them to graduate high school so we have two things that are at play even if it does not count towards the school's accreditation model um in terms of academics it will count towards our graduation cohort so even so the students have to take writing so if they didn't pass it they're going to have to retest and they'll have to be remediated so those students will probably need to come to uh summer school because once they do the attempts second semester once school is out and they still haven't passed their next opportunity won't be until the summer so I have a question we know that these students are not going to graduate or however you want to say okay I'm trying to be nice about this

063why we as parents wait till March to get a notification saying our child are not going to graduate or any of that and I'm saying that because it's not fair to I'm saying it's not fair to the student when do we tell them when do we tell the family when do we let them know that they need remedial something so they can graduate on time when do we get that so the schools are responsible for ensuring that parents are aware when they do an audit freshman year and they take if they take Algebra 1 freshman year and they didn't pass then parents should immediately be informed I am not sure why that isn't happening but but but but but but every child every child's parents should know if they did not pass an so and

064whether or not they need to go to summer school so it's not in March as soon as they take that test and don't pass they either get on the retake list if they're not eligible for retesting the parents are aware of their so scores so hypothetically speaking if that child doesn't never pass that so then what happens if the child never passes the so we will not get any credit for that student however we can award them a locally awarded verified credit that will that will give them the opportunity to graduate I'm confused on that because if they don't a locally award verified credit means that after looking at the body of work the school board can vote the School Division has a committee that can come together to say that this child is eligible

065this child's body of work they've had five attempts or six attempts did not pass and then the principal was sign off on it they recommend this child for a locally awarded verified credit so the School Division then awards that verified credit to the student to graduate the state gives us that opportunity if the students have have taken all the attempts that they can and that's been around for a very long time every see my face yeah never done any other questions thank you m thank you Dr Ricks good evening um CT is first all right I will be giving an update on our Career and Technical education programs as well as our special programs all right so our current programs at the jpk junior CTE Academy we have Building Trades business criminal justice culinary arts

066we have early childhood education we have electricity in which we partner with Paul D Camp Community College College we have a GED programming we have jrc we have jobs for Virginia graduates which is JVG marketing nursing Aid welding at Camp Community College and we also have World languages now at the Academy okay so one of the main focus that we focus on with our correct Career and Technical plan is our highquality work-based learning areas so we really have um increased our students in the programs increasing their hours in job shadowing Service Learning school-based Enterprise and clinical experiences as well next slide so as you can see here some of the highlights with our Community Partnerships you can see there we have we have Freds Police Department we also our students also partner with the maintenance

067department for our division Bronco Federal Credit Union East Pavilion Southampton County shur office some of our school based Enterprises this year Bronco construction um we also have um you can see there are several several school-based Enterprises right there at our Academy also all of our programs this year have established clubs and these clubs give our students additional National opportunities it gives them opportunities for scholarships and experiences that are outside of Franklin and they and they are sponsored by the teachers who actually run the programs next slide all right again here is you will see a lot more of our highlights as it pertains to our CTE programs building and trades here our students were able to complete service learning projects not just building and trades also in criminal justice culinary arts for the first year

068all of our um students with disabilities were able to complete a service learning projects in the culinary arts program they did a wonderful job the Community came out we had parents that come out and support them we also had staff so they were able to you know obtain the the qualif qualification for a service learning and we're glad to offer them that opportunity next slide um also we had a nursing nursing student again who partnered with East Pavilion and received over 40 hours and are preparing to take the CNA exam our early childhood education program our students actually traveled to SP Morton to begin to have Hands-On experiences working in the prek through first grade classrooms and just being able to work with teachers um and teach the students as well we've had a host

069of speakers to come out to our Academy and actually talk with our students and give them real life experiences about what they do what they see what they will see every day and they were able to ask ask questions as well they have gone on several field trips the definitely the field trips have increased for our students that's on that career track and we are still continuing to expand those field trips next slide this year we are honored to be able to start for the first year our National Technical Honor Society this is where we have had our students to really take a lead and Leadership they've been recognized in CTE they're expanding upon different credentials in CTE so now we're starting a spring induction ceremony which will be March the 20th and you all

070receive invitations for that where we will actually have our students participate and join the National Technical Honor Society which will also prepare them for internships additional scholarships and Leadership opportunities here are a list of upcoming events I would not read each one of them but you can take a look the one I want to highlight two major events that's coming up is the meak educational day and that has been available for open to all of our senior class of 2025 and I believe they're still signing up for that opportunity but they actually um go to the the scope the scope and it's a whole day of live interviews it's multiple companies there they get to interact with different companies and they also get to also attend a game that afternoon so that is a full

071day we have sh own dedicated to that day and this is a definitely a great opportunity for our senior class May the 15th is our career Expo is our grand opening for the puron center we have a puron center um that's that's able to that's going to be able to offer CDL certifications um educational certifications a whole lot of certifications not just available to our students and staff but it will also be available to our to our community and we are the only one that have this will have this Center in a 50 m radius so we have families that can come from North Carolina suffk Virginia Beach or wherever they want to come and just come in and be a part of that taking those assessments and we will have a schedule out when

072when we will have those that Center open another um major grand opening that day May the 15th will also be the ODU Community Health which we will have health services available to our students first and our parents parents and also this opportunity will be open to the community as well so we will have that information out for that grand opening May the 15th next slide all right so of course a CTE plan always have to have future plans so our team is in the process now of working through the cosmetology and barbering program that's going to be at the Academy medical assistant World Language not just World Language Spanish but we move into American Sign Language so we will have American Sign Language at the Academy as well and this will give our students to

073get that to to move more into the bio bio literacy um seal on their diploma so we want to move forward with expanding World languages and we're also exploring Project Lead the Way programs such as biom and Engineering okay and now I'm going to talk a little bit about some of our special programs and interventions that are in place currently right now we have preamp Scholars Program Franklin City Public Schools have partnered with Camp Foundation to offer gr um offer scholarships for a ride to the to the senior cohort of 200 of 225 full scholarships for these students to earn postsecondary Pathways into an associates degree or certified industry certification at Paul D Community College as you can see right now we we have I'm estimating just talking with our the graduation team we have

074about 40 80 students total that will be graduating and we have a total of 40 students who signed up and who are actively participating in this preamp Scholars out of that graduating class currently this is the criteria thank you that's a greate currently this is the criteria for those 40 participants and out of those 40 participants we have teams of Staff that's doing an excellent job to working with our students to overcome some of the challenges that they're having so we have academic plans of success in place to help those students so as you can see right here out of those 40 students we only have four students who are receiving some support for interventions in attendance because that they are expected to attend school they expected not to be treny to earn that scholarship

075so we have those students interv as far as those that 10% participating in enrichment Fridays participating in other ways where they can come in school and make up that time with flexible instruction the next criteria we have is academic interventions this is where they have to maintain that 2.0 GPA for each report card period so we working with them right where they are with their cumulative GPA but we are working with them to um increase that that report card grade level so we have have 2.5 kids out of that 40 one student that we're working on in that specific area discipline interventions that's totally how many referrals that have led to suspension we have two students and we have our tdt counselors therapeutic day treatment counselors in the building that helps us with that and

076also our family engagement team to help those students stay on track with discipline we are part another criteria from Camp Foundation is drug testing intervention we have 20 we have a total of 21 students which is 53% of that population that we're working through with interventions to help them to overcome substance abuse again we have therapeutic day treatment counselors that's supporting with that intervention we also have our family engagement team and we also reach out with the families and set up opportunities that's not just outside of the school with Western Tide Water and also other services that are available far as our volunteer and part-time work that is another criteria that the students have to have for this scholarship and we also have 12 students out of 30 which are family engagement Specialists Mr kield

077has set up a a program where we can work to get those students to complete that 20-hour volunteer requirement so this is just a overview of how we are definitely um putting all putting our hands in working with the students to overcome those challenges so that they can qualify for that scholarship okay and just quickly we also have another program which is jobs for Virginia graduates we have 29 students enrolled um the the minimum is 25 students the max is 31 we we have a current estimate of model services that means these students get push in service they get pull out Services we have a total of 143 hours that those students have obtained so far which is um beyond the basics so they are on the right track they have partnered with Community Based

078projects and Partnerships and you see the list that goes on there that they also work with those organizations and they get service hours volunteer hours and community service all right we also have another program another special program is our G GED Academy which we focus on the major core subjects for GED programming next slide and with that we have had over 100% Meet The Benchmark to take the practice GED so that is an increase we have we actually have staff that's working with the students to increase their reading levels so that they will be prepared to take their GED test okay and far as our Dropout this is I think the last major special programs that we have we have a Dropout team committee that's really reaching out in the community and finding those students

079that have dropped out and providing interventions and support services to get them back on track and I will definitely want to give this great team U acknowledge this great team who's done great work we have Miss Phillips here as our director of of the academy and also our other team that definitely supports all the work that I just spoke of for CTE program and and special programming any questions Crystal Phillips would you stand please she runs our program at JP King and has done a marvelous job in the first year so thank you [Applause] Crystal any questions go ahead so a couple of slides back we saw the um the interventions that were in place for um the 40 students what what is entailed with this drug intervention course like what are we doing to

080help those students well what what we are doing we are recommending them for therapeutic day treatments program within the school once they're identified you know as a as a challenge for them so we recommend them but we do also have to have parent consent for them to participate in those programs what we offer in the school is that we have we have lessons that they can take with the family engagement specialist so we do social emotional learning lessons and we also have everi that we use to um we may teach about vaping or different aspects of that from a school level but for them to get the more intensive support the parents have to approve that when we send the referrals out okay so not only the participation but yeah what is the participation rate

081with that is that is that something that's actually been effective the parents or engaged with the students are or is it just a a blanket type of situation right now like what are we looking at with that right well in most cases when we're offering the opportunity for tdt services we have some parents that consent to it um we have it when they when those cases come to us it comes to us in a and may come to me in a case of a hearing which we see that there's some sub substance abuse challenges or it may come in the case of a program like this where it's a specific criteria and that's we're able to offer that ongoing support however at touch base that's when we have our our community vendors that come in

082that actually specialize in those specific areas and they are giving out information that's from the community to inform the parents as well so we are increasing how we address those so that's an ongoing project um this is just what we currently have now and each in each in our division we have over four therapeutic day treatment programs in the school that's there daily is I'm sorry is nicotine considered a drug under this program nicotine is on the substance abuse as well I would just say that that's not something that we can ever afford to let up off of by any means because not only is the support that they're getting for the substance abuse but even the emotional and the mental um support that is also needed because at the end of the day they're

083still our kids yes and they still need it so yes as long as it's effective mhm and we are truly working to better them yes if not I just don't want a a blanket like oh it sounds good but we're not doing it at all right anything else thank Dr re all right um the next one is the reset ah okay all right so we have um sat down with our students through assemblies and we also have implemented a Reset Program um I want to First of of all acknowledge the team that led that that reset assemblies um Dr White Mr Paul Jackson Dr Ricks and Dr Scott and also Mr Cofield um who's our secondary Community engagement specialist all right so the reset just just a quick overview um that our team our admin

084team and and family engagement kind of went over for each student is what being a Bronco is all about um of course being respectful accountable pride and determination they covered pretty much the bail schedule student discipline our new cell phone policy and procedures to make sure that we are consistent with that The Vaping procedures which they rolled out um consequences for Tes dress code review and disruptive behaviors and one of the things we emphasize with the students is appropriate demonstrations that if you have a demonstration that you would like to demonstrate to notify the school administration set up appropriate time cuz it's our goal to make sure it's our goal and our responsibility to make sure that every student is safe at all times we also did an overview of builing and harassment um physical

085violence fighting inappropriate touching we talked about cheating having appropriate bus conduct attendance information and expectation so that you can be on time and make sure that you're getting your proper seat hours and we also work I also work with the team and REI we Revis the positive behavior intervention Support Program which is something that we have been doing for attendance for a very long time but we have we have determined to also um have that program available for our students to also support them with their behaviors so overall we have we have revised our positive behavior intervention support program to key maximize instruction and remove any um component with a cell phone so we have made those steps and we looking forward to Rolling that out um next week to support student and learning we

086also had a session in our assemblies where we discussed we allow students to have a perspective where students were able to ask questions and answers was provided accordingly next slide any questions about the reset when you said you asked questions from the students did you also get responses from the teachers yes we we we um met with the teachers be uh beforehand and then we also met with the teachers um the following mon with the following Monday we met with them the afternoon and we really um sat down with the teachers and got their perspective accepted their feedback made some adjustments and we're continuing to move forward okay thank you Dr rxs all right and my next slide my final slide presentation for tonight is um I just want to kind of go over our

087guidelines for uniform performance standard and our ex and what we come from we're doing evaluations and how we're supporting staff throughout the Academic Year I want to say that each each year our HR team releases a timeline and that timeline kind of gives an app gives a flow of what what time evaluation should be submitted to central office as far as HR how we should be evaluating teachers how we should be evaluating staff overall and with that evaluation process is a self-reflection component for our faculty they set goals in the beginning of the year then there's a midyear evaluation and then there is a summative evaluation so I'm going to go through the evaluation performance standards for administrators first of all you have standard one which is instructional leadership the administration Drive the success of

088all students by facilitating teaching and learning that leads to student academic progress and school Improvement performance standard two is school climate the administration Fosters the success positive welcoming and safe School climate then we have performance standard three which is human resource leadership the administration provides human resource leadership by evaluating instructional and support Personnel then we have four which is organizational management the administration cultivates the success of all students by supporting managing and overseeing the school's organization operation and the use of resources next slide and our next slide um which is and we have standard five is communication and community relations that's when Administration Fosters the success of all students by communicating working with the family and the community to enhance the schools programs and services six deals with culturally responsiveness the administration demonstrates a commitment

089of ensuring inclusive practices among all populations of students standard seven is professionalism the administration Fosters the success of all students by demonstrating Behavior consistent with legal ethical and Professional Standards and then our final standard which we evaluate administrators overall is the student academic process the administration leadership results in acceptable measurable and appropriate student academic progress and all of those resources can be found that gives more specific examples and dates of the Virginia Department of Education performance evaluation that's what we go by as a guide any more questions thank you you're welcome okay go ahead Miss Davis School quality standards of quality administrator Staffing Okay this may answer some of the questions that was asked at the budget where does some of our resources go principles and this is standard of quality administrative Staffing and this

090is code of Virginia and this is how Cod of Virginia gives us the recommendation of how we staff our schools so it says one the principal one full-time in each Elementary School one Middle School one high school to be employed on a 12-month basis assistant principles in elementary schools one half at 600 600 students one full one full time at 9 900 students assistant principles in Middle Schools one fulltime for each 600 students assistant principles and high schools one full-time in each 600 students and and school divisions that employ a significant number of assistant principles to meet this Staffing requirement May assign assistant principles to schools within the division according to the area of greatest need regardless of whether schools are elementary and middle or secondary now that's the bare minimum that the state is

091saying um Staffing uh should happen in the state of Virginia and some schools some districts in this in state of Virginia actually follow that that model to the T but we do not we see we see that we need to provide more support so that so that chart which you see here is sp Morton and you can see the date you can see the number of students for each year I'm not going to read it and then you can see what JP King was doing and then you can see what FHS numbers are and this the note is you can also add 63 prek students to the total enrollment which brings it to 1,114 students for this Academic School year next slide Miss Davis I know that's small but I'm going to go ahead and

092and translate it for you 2122 uh at Franklin High School they had one assist one principal one assistant principal and I narrowed it down so it says the average of rollan should have been at least 600 but what we had what we did is we only had 292 students but we had one principal one assistant principal so we made sure that we overstaffed there 2223 we had one principal for assister and principles and we had an enrollment of 381.986 24 25 one principal three assistant principles one de and students normally that which normally you would have 1,200 students and we have 501 and uh go ahead Miss Davis askb Mort we had 2223 same thing one principal two assistant principls you should have at least had 900 students we had 420 22 23 24 we

093had three administrators uh you should normally would have about 900 students we had 2425 we have we have four administrators and by with that count you should have at least had about 1,200 kids 900 versus the 550 that are currently enrolled so and then you want to add to 63 um prek students are actually in the in the school and then you see JP King okay you see JP King JP King in the past two administrators I think you get the just 600 students normally a staff of 600 kids normally would have this number of Administrators we had 20 33 students we had 22 23 you had three administrators you have uh 161 students 23 24 we had three administrators five uh 500 158 and then you had JP King right now presently you have

094one administrator additional supports we don't we don't stop there with putting our money into the school all right so additional support we have four vll tutors reading at SPM we have two intervention Specialists reading we have two interventions math we have two literacy coaches one at the high school one at the elementary school we have four content curriculum specialist that would mean English math science and social studies uh the school 2425 school year class to teacher student to teacher ratio are the following now in the state you would normally have uh class sizes 1 to 30 but unless there are special ed classes and then some exemptions for English uh with 24 students in high school English but you see right here we have at SPM the average class size is ranging between uh 1

095to 21 and some classes are a little higher because our population is steadily growing and then at FHS the average class size is 1 to 17 verses 1 to 30 which is in which state recommends that okay once you reach 30 students then you get another teacher but we make sure that we don't we don't do that we put everything that we have into our schools school rankings now if you were going on internet and you say I want to come to Franklin and you decide hey let me go ahead and look at the US News World Report and let's look at our school rankings SB Morton ranked 778 out of 1,137 Virginia schools um Franklin High ranked out of uh nashley out of 13,24 I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm skipping let me look at

096so Franklin High School so Franklin High School out of 13,24 out of seven yes I can see Mr Davis out of 17,6 we5 the national rankings schools are ranked on the performance of state requirements graduation how well they prepare for student College the overall score is less than 25% so we're in the bottom 25% of of that this means this means that 75% of the high schools in Virginia rank higher than Franklin High School and out of 60 in Region 2 which is the S which is Tidewater Franklin suff Portsmith Newport News Hampton Virginia Beach we rank 52 out of out of 60 that means that only only eight Schools rank lower than we are in the region so what am I saying here I'm saying here that we have a lot of work to

097do please quiet we have a lot of work to do and we are pouring a lot of our resources I'm just letting you know where our money where our money is going we're pouring a lot of money and a lot of resources into the schools and so I just wanted to let for everyone to know this is uh the data and so uh Mr H for school board any questions thank you Dr Carter we've arrived at the citizens time comment period citizens time is meant to provide meaningful and respectful feedback to the school board you can speak for three minutes and we ask you to respect the thre minute time frame state your name address when you come to the podium speak into the microphone the board is not obligated to answer any questions or

098make any comments the city has has provided a lighting system to let you track your time there are three lights at the podium when your time starts the light will turn green when you have one minute left the light will turn yellow when you have 30 seconds left the light will start flashing and when your time is up it will turn red and we ask you to leave the podium we have 11 people have signed up and we'll take them in order I'm sorry I need some clarification once again we have 501 students in the high school and 175 have to retake SOS is that my understanding yes ma'am Dr Carter answer the question please yes ma'am that is correct Don [Applause] spinon good evening my name is Don sperin I reside at 1208 Clay

099Street Franklin Virginia I'm here tonight to talk about leadership as it relates to the reassignment of the high school principal there are all kinds of leadership for tonight I would like to leave with you with some questions to consider about building School Division and School Board leadership as a building leader the principal builds a positive safe learning environment relates to and can talk to children and is clearly comfortable with all children a principal nurtures the success of all students has the trust of his faculty clearly values teacher voice and opinion and effectively communicates with teachers parents and members of the community principles must follow legal ethical and Professional Standards this is Mr PHS does Mr PHS understand the strengths needs and challenges of our community is he visitable in our community is Mr Felts approachable

100open to ideas of others and clearly able to effectively communicate with students staff and parents as the division leader the superintendent is responsible for a climate of mutual respect trust Innovation and professionalism with the board staff families and other stakeholders superintendents are responsible for datadriven decision-making instructional systems that promote High student achievement and professional development and growth of State does Mr Carter understand the strengths needs and challenges of our community is he is he visible in the community is Dr Carter approachable open to ideas of others and clearly able to effectively communicate with students staff and parents does Dr Carter understand the practice of strategic so test scheduling so that students have maximum time to master content if needed midyear evaluations B are based on eight uniform performance standards for principles and are rated evident

101or not evident how is it that Mr PHS received an evident rating on all standards and signed a document to that effect on February 15th and February 7th was reassigned to central office as a school board leader the board chairperson sees that board members formally evaluate the superintendent's performance and leads the board's annual review of school system Effectiveness including board policies overall staff performance and student achievement how can a superintendent with all schools accredit it with conditions for the second year in a row be evaluated as this one was according to the information provided in the Ty news by the school board chairman do we have the right School Board leadership is is there consistent messaging from Mr H we have an elementary school that has had at least eight principles since 2012 now we

102have a high school principal that has been reassigned to central office midy year how is Mr Hol communicating the board's expectations to the superintendent about providing leadership and support to building principles in closing Where Do We Go From Here in our schools we have a high school principal that has dedicated his career to the school Division and has been removed for reasons no one can explain and no one understands it saddens me to think of the negative impact removing Mr PHS as principal will have on our community what a tremendous loss Jerry mcquery good evening board um Dr Carter uh my name is Jerry mccre I reside at 509 North High Street can you hear me okay I have to on the citizens time it states that uh I support the superintendent's decision to transfer

103Travis Felts um that's inaccurate actually I'm neutral on the situation and the reason is I'll explain it's not that I felt like I don't have to take sides in this matter simply because I don't have the same perspective as most of the people here I I do have a lot of respect for I have a lot of respect for Mr Phelps just for the time that he is dedicated to the schools obviously the community loves him I moved to Franklin uh at the end of 2004 so in a way I'm an outsider I've been here for 20 years so I felt like I have some kind of uh a right to a Viewpoint during the time uh being in Franklin I did come I I came to love Franklin and the people of Franklin uh

104in mid2 uh 20 to mid 2023 I did serve on the board uh School Board uh at the request of city council uh during my time there I strove to look I learned I learned a lot learned how the board functions learned how the schools function it's amazing as I was saying I do respect uh Mr phelts the issue is I don't share the same perspective because I don't know Mr phelts personally I'm observing him from a professional uh Viewpoint and just as a member of the community because he has a really good reputation but because of my experience on the school board I also respect I serve with three of these members that are that are currently at the day days and I guess four yeah and from my working with them uh reading

105online a lot of online comments um they've been the line because I can see that the community felt a personal insult for the uh reassign of of Mr philps but that doesn't mean they're uh deserving of disrespect either so I commend them for their hard work and uh during my time everybody wor was honest consistent including uh Dr Carter thank you [Applause] Jared Mary y from the past yeah lower the point good evening everyone my name is Mary you or I live at 300 carry drive for at least 38 years I have three children that have graduated from this school system and gone on and gotten degrees and furthered their careers elsewhere so I still have a passion for this school system because I know how successful it has been I'm going to ask forgiveness

106up front I have had um I may have some speech issues just to let you know up front but I'm passionate enough that I have to come and speak as some of you may know when when you're grown children come home for the holidays other children that they grew up with in this town come also it was um a lot of conversation this year about Franklin City Public Schools and it was a lot of conversation about the wonderful things that Mr Travis phelts is doing has done I was just just as proud as I could be you see I was one of many that recommended him 24 years ago and have been proud to tell you he either coached or taught all three of my children and they have a very high opinion of him

107they of course have seen social media it's a wicked thing sometimes so despite my disability they agreed that I maybe I should come up and and speak about this there were three people at my house during the holidays that told me they moved transferred their students from a nearby school system to Franklin High School because of conversations they had with Mr phelts they felt that he had integ ity honesty and compassion for every student including who they brought I later learned that Franklin High School has increased enrollment just over a hundred a lot from a nearby school system with issues not not that I like they have issues but I am proud to say people are listening and watching what Franklin High School is doing by Travis phelts thank you [Music] [Applause] families okay good

108evening school board members and superintendent my name is Pam lease and I reside at 1313 Clay Street and I'm married to a retired educator of Franklin City Public Schools who dedicated nearly 35 years to serving this community it is no secret that my family is very close to the phelts family because Clause of that there's nothing that you can say or do to change my opinion that that the decision that you made to remove him was the wrong one however my purpose tonight is not to debate that decision but rather to express my deep disappointment in how this situ situation was communicated and handled and if you expected a reaction differently than what you've seen you definitely do not know anything about our school system or our community the way this process unfolded demonstrated a

109complete lack of respect not only for Mr Phelps but for all of the students the staff and the families who are directly impacted as appointed leaders you are in trusted with the responsibility of putting our children's best interest at heart the timing of the decision is baffling to me and the way it was executed has left many of us questioning the very priorities of this board board chairman and superintendant education is about so much more than test scores and if that is the decision is based on so scores it is a broken flawed system and it does nothing but instill fear in our children and in Educators by removing Mr Felch you have not only taken away a leader but a role model someone who is truly invested in our school and our community I

110want to share some comments that staff has given us that they just you know didn't want to come forward because of everything that's been going on with some retaliations but these are some quotes from staff I am completely devastated to say this is an understatement I have worked for Mr phel since 2019 I will tell you I have never worked for a principal that loves each and every student the way that he does and who will stand up for his staff his heart and soul is Franklin High School there are a lot of teachers that are at Franklin High School because of Mr phelts and the reputation that he has built a family atmosphere and has created it at the school to hear that this was not his decision makes me lose all respect for

111those who are calling the shots because Mr Phelps would have never have left the school the staff or the students the way that you all had him do Mr PHS a lot of people didn't come because they were scared of retal retaliation it is crazy how scared that the staff is in the situation that they would be in trouble if they brew or said anything is this the culture that you are trying to Foster in our school systems in closing I would like to thank you for allowing me to speak now respectfully request that all of you all resign from your positions and allow the of this community appoint a new school board and one that would truly have our children best interest at heart furthermore I demand as a city taxpayer that you reinstate

112Mr Phelps as principal at Franklin High School where he rightfully belong Liz Burgess good evening Schoolboard name members my name is Liz Burgess and I live at 409 North College Drive when Mr Hol referenced in the newspaper the many hours spent looking at data and documentation you all go through the Educators in this room get it data drives all instructional decisions and as Educators we would spend all year analyzing ongoing data determining how best to provide instruction that would reach students so that they would achieve a success data can be invaluable excuse me with due diligence this superintendent shares data with you regarding a wide range of issues with due diligence the superintendent makes you aware of red flags such as must have taken place with the Franklin High School principal the student the superintendent

113should have shared initial concerns information as to how the areas of weakness or transgressions were being handled what support the central office was providing Mr felt the number of times meetings of meetings that were held with him the benchmarks that were established and how the process was going the documentation should have been in front of you through the entire process you were able to ask questions did you ask questions you were able to see for yourself what was taking place did you do your own due diligence the data pertaining to this red flag at the high school should have been updated at each school board meeting if not more frequently after arduous hours of analyzing whatever data you had been given you made the unbelievable and unconscionable decision mid year to remove Mr PHS and

114then you let parents staff and students know in the middle of the night of that same day the one fallacy with all this data that we gleaned as teachers and that you may have realized as well was how we chose to support our students how did we build each student's confidence to succeed did we believe in the students what was our relationship with to students that's not measured by these charts and graphs and data and numbers you get but these non- measurables are truly what makes the difference Beyond and in spite of the data was that Soft Data presented to you was were Mr phs's actions with staff and students taken into account were you aware that Mr PHS meets and greets the students at the front door each and every day he can measure

115the mood of students addressing any issues with them first thing so they can have a productive day he has strong relationships with these students which has worked hard to build this is a minuscule example of the data you have missed but this Soft Data this soft data can be provided to you by each parent student and Community person that you see tonight and the many you cannot see who have gone through this school system under Mr PHS listen to them and without this Soft Data hard data can really not mean much there are a lot of variables to consider look at the effort Mr phs's constant strategic drive to move students forward his documented push to get his staff to do all they can to help the students meet with success to name a very

116few things that Mr PHS has done consider that Soft Data you should well be aware of as it pertains to Mr PHS look at this community in front of you that you represent for you know what is right to do for the students and our students are what truly matters now it's your turn to be like Mr PHS and make a difference for the students at Franklin High School thank you Carrie [Applause] Johnson if I could before my time started I wanted to thank Miss Morrison for pointing out the line item that showed me the difference between like the administrative salaries and budgets and whatnot your time started when you started speaking that's fine no no no that's okay that's okay um and also uh Dr Carter for showing us all the people that you've

117put into the schools I did some quick math calculations and still the 20 people or so at central office are making about 12 and a half% of that budget but anyway good evening board members and superintendent um my name is Carrie Johnson I live at 205 Cypress Avenue in Franklin Virginia I stand before you tonight not as a current board member but as someone who once sat in your seats someone who understands the weight of the decisions you make and the responsibility you carry the public May believe you're accountable to them but I know that that's not true we all know that behind closed doors the reality is much different you're shielded by confidentiality rules protected by the ability to say nothing and perhaps at times even emboldened by the fact that you don't have

118to answer to the very people that your decisions affect when I was on this board my votes were sometimes unpopular but I never cast a vote unless I was certain that the evidence that I had at that time Beyond A Reasonable Doubt was the right decision for the students staff and community that I served that is what leadership demands and that is what is missing in the decision to remove Travis Feltz as a principal of Franklin High School we can only speculate about why this has happened but I was on the board and I saw how decisions were made behind closed doors I resigned before my term ended because I could no longer be part of a process that prioritize predeter predetermined agendas over the best interests of our students Franklin City Public Schools has

119a clear set of expectations for its principles nowhere in those expectations does it demand Perfection but it does outline the need for leadership vision and commitment to Student Success by every visible measure Travis Felts exceeded those expectations the success of his students the respect of his staff and the trust of the families he served were not accidental they were earned I'm not here to demand that you re reinstate him I don't believe in forcing anyone's hand but I do believe in accountability and I believe in the ability to recognize when a decision was made in error and I believe that there's no shame in admitting a mistake no one will think less of you for acknowledging that this decision was a misstep in correcting it frankly given how this has been handled I don't think

120it's possible for many to think less of you than they already do but you have the opportunity to change that you have the opportunity to lead with Integrity to restore confidence in this board and to prove that this was not just about pushing an agenda you can sit back and say nothing you can hide behind rules and procedures or you can do what you were appointed to do what you promised to do and put the best interest of Franklin students first minutes up Nancy Harold [Applause] good evening I'm Nancy Harold I live at 129 Queens Lane I am very passionate about public education I am a retired principal with 32 years of educational experience I went to Hayden Junior High School in Franklin and graduated in Franklin High in 1976 I was a teacher as

121well as an administrator at Franklin City Public Schools so I just want to give you some background some of you do not know me that I am here because I am so passionate about the students and the community here in Franklin City Public Schools um chairman Mr Holt Schoolboard members Dr Carter I'm also here to speak on a voice that cannot be here tonight is James D JY Jim JY he has a family iCal reasons that he cannot be here but he also wanted me to share some um in a letter that he had wrote some of you have maybe had seen it but Jim also went to Frank he was educated in Franklin City Public Schools he graduated the same year I did in 1976 from Franklin High he is a um former um

122teacher and coach at Franklin High School and also he is the current board member of the the current president of the Franklin Education Foundation which also I'm a board member on the Franklin City Educational Foundation and also he was a former School Board member for Franklin City public school so he has been where you are so I just would like to share that as Jim says the letter BEC I write this letter because I care about our students and our schools and community I firmly believe in the old saying we can agree to disagree and still be respectful as school board members you have the utmost responsibility of making decisions that have the sole purpose of this question what is the best for our students at Franklin City Public Schools uh Jim has served in

123your position many years ago as a Franklin City public school school board members it's sometime a thankless and unappreciated service long hours lot of dedication but yet you have to do what is best for the students at Franklin City Public Schools you set visions and goals you make key decisions and you approve the budget that supports their needs sometimes decisions that the superintendent and the board make are not in the best interest we all make mistakes but when this happens you have to be big enough and know that maybe I need to relook at that the recent personnel change of fhss principal Mr Travis Phelps is one of those decisions ask some questions did we make the right decision was the timing Optimum for transition are you second guessing your opinion thank you so [Applause]

124much Danny Dylan [Music] [Applause] yeah good evening Dr Carter Miss Davis the school board and the who's who of Franklin Virginia God bless you guys my name is Danny Dylan I'm the pastor of Rock Church and I reside at 501 Von Lane and I'm here in support of my good friend Travis phelts when I graduated from college a lot like Felts my desire was to come back and sew into our community and the time wasn't ready for me to go on staff at Rock Church but I found a place at all three schools teaching special web for 10 years and during that time I was able to serve under Travis phelts as athletic director and then principal and I got to see the way that he loved his students I got to see that the

125way that he fought for his teachers and it so blessed me watching even his work work ethic even on Saturday and Sunday when you saw a silver SUV and now black truck up there at Franklin High School hours upon hours a lot of students already live there kind of surprised that Kristen's still married but the reason is is because Kristen realized the reason that Travis was created and that was to serve the Next Generation and be a principal the other thing that I saw during this is the fact that this has brought Unity to our community it has been such a blessing as I see other pastors here for Psalms 131 331 to be fulfilled behold how good and how pleasant it is when bre and sister dwell together in unity and we can even

126turn that version into behold how good and how pleasant it is to see the Franklin High School students dwell together in unity in all the years that I've taught in all the years that I've been around I've never seen students we've had great great teachers come and go great principls come and go I've never seen students stand up and a lot of times students can't wait to get rid of their principle and here they are standing up for their principal one thing that I'm reminded of is our flood in 1999 and how it brought Unity to Franklin you see during that time and as always we didn't see social class we didn't see race we saw a problem and we wanted to solve it you see Mr Phelps is the same way he doesn't see

127social class he doesn't see race he sees the students have a problem and he spent years helping them solve them I'll leave you with this I tell my boys every single morning Jesus loves you and so do I God bless you [Applause] Audrey Lee first of all I'd like to say good even my name is or Le I'm 507 Von Lane Franklin Virginia and I actually you excuse my appearance but I've been so busy today with these elect School Board member petitions I haven't had time to change clothes um I'm here before you you know I've been accused of a few things even one of them was being a personal friend of yours Dr Carter and of having a vendetta against uh Mr Hol for winning the election against me and I made it I

128hopefully I made it clear that I wasn't when I came before y'all I told you that my school boy seat was in the community and that's where it stands I have a love for children that nobody else probably can understand but God and it was who appointed me to do this and I am so thankful to this gentl Mr Phelps I had two young men myself well actually three in his school two have gone on to be successful men and one is finishing school this year and I appreciate him so much the heart he has a heart for kid children like I do when like spirits come together you just can't help but join in the fight to keep them and to have them to help our children Dr Tomkins you did an El eloquent

129presentation but being an education uh major myself I didn't understand a dog on thing you were saying so I'm asking that if maybe it can be explained to the parents a little on a on a lower level than that that they can help in carrying forth this program because the way it was presented I don't know who these parents going to be Mighty upset with y'all wondering what's going to be next because we already have our children at a level of of I don't know they are being set up for failure and we don't want to see that and we're asking y'all to please please let uh Mr F come back because these children are going to raise pure hell in a minute and not only them but you have parents y'all citizens who paying

130y'all the little stiens that you're getting citizens who paying your salary Dr Carter that are very upset by the fact that this man has been pulled out in mid year at that if you were going to do anything wait till the end of the year and substitute put him in another position and even in that the position he was put in I mean we already have people doing basically what he's doing what you asked him to do so I'm asking on behalf of these citizens here if you would do that our goal now is to get rid of the whole school board Mr is up there superintendent and all of invol thank you THS up [Applause] Lamont [Applause] Hill all right good evening uh School Board uh Dr Carter um when we take these positions

131we take it for a reason we take because we have a passion for these kids and we want to do what's best for these kids we want to prepare these kids for the next step um I've been active in the school since I've started coaching and that was six years ago and our kids aren't ready um we talked about resume writing um I can tell you that they're not they're not ready to write a resume I've seen them um we talk about interviewing skills they're they're not ready for that either U but what they are ready for they're ready to stand behind their principal and support him every step of the way so this is me and I'm going to share my story as well oh Lamont Hill 500 v Lane Franklin Virginia so as

132I watched the live stream of the kids protesting the removal of their beloved principal my thoughts were let let it let them keep it peaceful I even text one of the kids that same message I was proud of my kids for using their voice but disappointed by the actions of the of the adults who chose to lock the doors of the school [Applause] which I understand is illegal you fail to make that a teachable moment for the kids because I'm sure that may not be the only time that they protest and it was and it was a Carly act by someone who's supposed to lead the school district maybe you should be the person [Applause] reassigned you lead by fear but my faith is bigger than my fear I've been told that when I talked

133to to a man look at a man my message is for you you thought so little of me as a football coach because I wouldn't be your yes man you posted the position before we ever sat down and [Music] talk where you do that at your mind was made up before I presented you with a 51 slide presentation of our offseason pre-season inseason playing Player Development continual education of myself as a coach and academic success for our kids I even acknowledged the fact I even acknowledged areas that I needed to improve on but it wasn't about the wins and losses wasn't about the wins and losses let's talk about the nine kids that had the opportunity to continue playing at the next level that I gave them on my own my contacts the the offseason

134where I'm emailing coaches I got 20 seconds where I'm emailing coaches that I'm not getting paid for but that's my dedication to those kids that's my responsibility to those kids and you snatched it away get to know the kids cuz it's not about a win or a loss on a Friday night it's that Monday through Sunday when they on the streets you got to know your community [Applause] Regina [Applause] Hill good evening everyone my name is rega H I live at 105 Scott Street I'm one of the parents that they talked about and they didn't even realize that I'm I'm one of the parents that brought my kids here from uh CSC Central on a separation between me and my husband and I brought them here when my kids was going through Mr Fels was

135the one that helped them out my my daughter and my son not even realizing who he is that's what I'm saying y'all don't know him to be who he is and then I watch I watch the I watch y'all and I watch how senseless you are your facial expression it's not for the it's not for the commity we can get up here and say whatever we want but it doesn't matter to you I watch your interaction see so you don't worry about our kids I got 14 kids grandkids in this system through Franklin and Southampton County it it it behooves me to have them here under you I I I you know I'm a judgment of a person according to who I meet and I'm sitting here this the first time I've seen you right

136and I I I my I don't even know how you got there because you don't have a compassion for our kids I'm watching you and and and I T vocational Bible Bible study a whole week so I know where our kids Mentor at and when you present all this stuff all this everything that y'all presented today everything and and I to me it was like a setup because it shouldn't have been said today because okay so school started when so we should have had all this then I come from Ala white so it's it's it's shocking to me and then the fact that we talked about putting the cell phones up but yet and still my granddaughter showed me something where they had a that they could take the cell phone and then take a

137block and miss a block of school and it was okay and and I and I said to her I said well you're already going to school 4 days and a half so if you miss the block who teaches you that that block of lesson do the teacher got to go back and and and teach that thing again or do she just hand you paperwork for you to just go home and the parents have to do it what was you thinking when y'all made that whoever made it that you miss a block oh you get a free pass I mean I'm just asking a question because like I said I got 14 grandkids and I expect them to excel they would not be a statistic so you got to be careful when you going to stand

138up here making these rules see it's not about y'all kids so to me it seem like it don't matter but it's about our kids and our kids matter too so we got to we got to really think this thing out and again Mr Phelps mean a lot to the kids yes have we have we thought about that have we thought about what would happen if we up just snatch him out do we do have we even thought about how many kids he have already saved so we're talking about numbers but right now we're in a state in a position that we got to save the kids cuz kids are dealing with mental illness they're dealing with self-esteem they're dealing with identity crisis they're dealing with issues with parents they're dealing with drugs so we got

139a lot of things that we need to deal with we're talking about our kids thank [Applause] you thank you all for your comments for respecting the three minute time frame board members any comments do we have a motion to a journ I have a comment okay when Miss Hill said it's not about our children I too have children in the system I too worry every night just because I'm sitting back here I do and trust me I have one graduating from the high school that I'm worried about and I have them in the elementary school also unfortunately that's all I can say because he asked for a comment and I'm apologizing for that part myself thank you anything else we have a motion for adjournment second second all in favor signify by saying I iose

140no we're adjourned thank you all [Music]