001And with that, I would like to um say good evening and on behalf of Wayne Westland Community Schools, I would like to welcome Michan Jackson back for the second interview for the position of superintendent. Miss Jackson is deputy superintendent of operations for Detroit Public Schools Community District. And I will just take a moment to describe our format. The interview may take up to 75 minutes. It will begin with a presentation on the topic provided by the board. Following your presentation, there will be 14 questions. Toward the end of the interview, time permitting, we will give you an opportunity to ask questions of the board and make closing remarks. We will indicate if time is becoming an issue and there is a need to pick up the pace of your responses. For those present for this
002interview, we welcome and encourage your feedback. Rather than making public comments about our candidates, we ask that you use the QR code provided for this purpose. Although the task of choosing our next superintendent is the responsibility of the board of education as the elected representatives of the community, we value and seriously consider the input of our stakeholders in this process. I would also like to remind everyone to please silence your cell phones. And with that, Miss Jackson, you may begin with your presentation on the following topic. How will you grow the district with a focus on full utilization of the career tech center? >> Good evening everyone. >> Good evening. Thank you board and thank you for um inviting me back as a finalist. Uh I sincerely appreciate uh your interest and how I presented
003and how I um answered questions on last week. And with that, I'd like to give a presentation now um based on that topic. Growing the district with a focus on full utilization of the William D. Ford Career Tech Center. I think it it's interesting to notice I get into that presentation on where the district stands right now in terms of enrollment. If we're looking to growing the district, I took that to mean grow the district with enrollment primarily. And before we talk about growing the district in the future, thank you. Appreciate it. Uh before we talk about how to grow the district with an emphasis of the career tech center, I think it's apppropo to talk about um what our trend data looks like. And so with that, I'll start by the numbers. You'll see
004these are enrollment trends from 2014 through the from the 2014 2015 school year to the 2024 25 school year. You'll see I took the enrollment data not only from Wayne Westland Community School District but also by the surrounding districts as well. And you'll notice some commonalities here. All of the districts had higher enrollment during the 2014 2015 school year than they did during the 2024 25 school year. In fact, there has been a precipitous drop across not just our particular school district but all school districts. Um, this information shows both in data form by giving the raw numbers and this information was pulled from mychoolled.org as well as showing in the line graph um just the level of impact if you want to take a look at that. It's interesting to note also though that
005what is taking place in this region is not unique to this region. As a matter of fact, as I stated yesterday during uh numerous community engagement sessions or different stakeholder engagement sessions, 90% of Michigan school districts have lost enrollment during that same time period. 80%. Think about that for a moment. And so I know there have been growing concerns with the school board on the loss of enrollment as well as the loss of enrollment during transition. But the 80% of the districts that are represented on this chart, many of them maintained the same leadership. Many of them did not have fluctuations and staffing in terms of staffing at the school board level for the elected officials. um in terms of uh leadership of the superintendency or even principal leadership yet 80% of Michigan's districts have
006lost enrollment over the last 10 years. Also by the numbers you'll see according to research dating back to 2019 uh there have been some main drivers for the uh precipitous drop in enrollment and and these drivers I'd like to say are structural in nature. They include collapsing birth rates. As I teased with one particular group I said you know you all just aren't having babies. I don't know what's going on here but they're just not they're not at the rate that they were in 2014. Also, there have been job losses. And what does that job loss ratio, what does that rate of job loss mean for us in this region? That means that there's been an exodus of residents. That means that people have actually moved from this region. That means that people have actually
007moved from Michigan because they have traveled where the jobs were. And I know this comes as a surprise, but when those adults moved, they didn't keep their children here. The children moved with them. You can laugh. Also, out of state migration, that kind of goes handinhand with uh industrial job losses. We'll see that there's been a net loss of anywhere between 0.25% to 0.4%. Now, recently over the past year, the state of Michigan has reported an increase of 1,800 residents. That has been an increase, but overall we've had a net loss in the past four years. And then postcoid choice has definitely impacted enrollment with traditional districts. You see, parents were not as interested in virtual learning opportunities as they are now. And though this district does have a virtual school, there are competing forces
008that also have virtual schools as well. Also, we've seen an increase, an uptick in homeschooling across the state. 6.6% as a matter of fact, 6.6% more families have chosen to homeschool their children. And what does that result in? Lower enrollment. You'll also see the projections on the right hand side, the historical, you'll see on the left, and the projected burst from 1980 to 2050. This is not something that is going to reconcile itself any time in the future. And that's something that bears mentioning and that's something be that bears researching when we talk about growing the district. How could we possibly grow the district when there are fewer children being born? As a matter of fact, there are more children that are graduating from our schools than children who are entering our schools because of
009the birth rate. Here are some stabilization options that are in my opinion before the board and the district today. How do we stabilize this loss? Well, there's a geographic enrollment strategy to move to a more aggressive schools of choice model. You do have a schools of choice strategy. It could be far more aggressive by backfilling the loss at the higher grade levels, but that's not real popular. That is yet an option. also a retention strategy to really focus on middle school and ninth grade retention because we've noticed for those students who are entering into middle school. That's generally a point of which families have chosen to take their children out rather than metriculating into the two middle schools. And also in ninth grade, we lose a lot of students in ninth grade statewide, not just
010within this district to drop out. There's also an early pipeline strategy. That's a strategy that we're utilizing in my current district. And I'm proud to say that I was uh part author of that work to increase the early childhood classrooms um aggressively um and also to partner with some smaller early childhood centers that only offered education through third or through year three um to really uh connect with them and say, "Well, we want to have metriculation agreements." So once your your families their children graduate, if you will, from preschool, they can have a direct pipeline feeder into our school or into our district um for education. And then we have to keep them there once they're there. We can also market innovative programming, right? Again, as a stabilization option, and that includes, as I mentioned
011before, free athletics for elementary school students. That is really novel. It is not common place and many families do not know even some of the families that I have spoken to on this evening did not know that the school district offers that. And then there is one of the pride factors or one of the jewels of the district and that is the focus on the William D. Ford Career Tech Center. And so for the balance of my presentation, I'd like to talk about opportunities to grow the district through strengthening the enrollment at that center through vertical alignment, through consideration of a training hub, and also through marketing the outcome vertical alignment. So years ago, again, I don't want to date myself, but when I was in school, we didn't have career tech centers. We had
012vot centers, right? And the VOTE centers were really focused on we're going to keen or narrow in on very specific trades. We're going to give you a trade and then you can leave and and you can you can enter into the workforce. Well, the state of Michigan some years ago developed a full career tech model so that students can actually gain credit in core content areas while they're participating in career tech focused classes. Not only that, but the state of Michigan also has a focus on creating a pipeline with not necessarily starting students on career tech conversations in high school, but starting them earlier, hence the term vertical alignment. It bears stating that we could start at the K5 level with awareness, general awareness of the programs that are taking place in the center. And
013that awareness is not only or can not only be achieved through field trips to the center with younger students, but it can also be achieved by connecting and direct partnerships with organizations whose work supports what's taking place at the center. For example, tiny trades. I am involved with a tiny trades program. It's a nonprofit 501c3 program that intentionally works with elementary higher elementary school students to uh expose them to the trades and not just the trades in terms of um heavy construction but also project management and how project management is associated with the trades as well. I'm also associated with the NWAC organization. Nwick organization that is the National Association of Women in Construction. Uh the the president is uh not only a friend of mine but the president and I have worked together to
014bring Rosie to the Riveter uh that program to elementary schools as well. Rosie Riverer uh back in the in the 50s uh was in the 40s um was really known that is the the woman if you'll recall who had a headscarf on or a headband on and she's flexing her muscle. Well, she became the symbol of women working in non-traditional industry. And so when you think of Naiwick and when you think of um those who are entering the trade, they usually associate them with Rosie the Riveter. And so there's a Rosie derivator contest where the individuals go into elementary schools and they talk to students about non-traditional jobs, specifically female students about non-traditional jobs such as being a firefighter, for example, or such as being a carpenter or such as being a welder. all programs
015that are currently in place at the Ford Career Tech Center. Also, cooking with kids. Um, I had the opportunity to tour the large, rather large kitchen where students were actively engaged. As a matter of fact, I don't even think they recognized that I was there yesterday. They were busily preparing there. They were placing their uniforms on and busily preparing their meals as as prep chefs as sue chefs and also they were prepping the meals for the day. And then also I had an opportunity to tour the cafe. Well, we can take that on the road for our elementary school students by not only using the students in our career tech programs but also utilizing the instructors. I met one of the instructors of the culinary arts program and she and her team can actually go
016into elementary school buildings and have cooking with kids a contest so that students will learn how to cook regular meals but also some more exquisite meals that our students are making in the Ford Center. Why is that important? Well, it's about exposure. You see, students are like cat the Kodak film of old. They cannot be developed until we expose them. That's right. >> And so we start at K5 also 68 exploration. We can engage students in hackathons. If you talk to not only middle school age males, but middle school age females are heavily interested in coding. There are girls who code and they're also interested in game design. I met with a student yesterday at Roosevelt who told me that he was really really interested in game design and that is something that he wanted
017to aspire to go into but as of now he'd rather just play games and so I asked him well what about the Ford Center have you considered going there so that you can learn how to create and develop your own video game and also participate in the cyber security program and unfortunately he was unaware that that opportunity is available for him at the school. Also, the Wolverine Bar Association. Um, knowing that we have a a social justice program next door at the Ford Center. I'm associated with them. Um, I know the the current president and I have invited them to come into our schools and talk with our children and the commitments and the relationships and the partnerships that I've developed fortunately will not only remain at my current district, but they will also travel
018with me. and they've already informed me of that commitment as they know that I'm involved in this process. Also, there are drone labs at Michigan Central and again, it's not just taking students next door to the center, but it's exposing them to the endless possibilities that can be afforded to them by going to the center. And then we have 912 preparation. In my research and during my tour yesterday, I learned that the center is currently enrolled by 11th and 12th graders. But now that the state has allowed through the MMC curriculum for us to have all high school students participate in career tech, ninth and tth graders can go as well. And so that's about meeting with principles to redesign the master schedule. Also working with the assistant principal over at Ford to determine how
019can we make that possible to provide exploratory classes for the ninth and tth graders. The second option after vertical alignment is a training hub. That means to market the facility as a community workforce center. You see, I currently do not directly oversee the programs, but I oversee the physical plant of three correct career tech centers in Detroit. And I purposely formed partnerships with workforce development companies that are receiving monies and funding from the state. But many of the companies or many of the organizations do not have a place to provide programming. If they want to work on welding or heavy machinery etc or CAD programs, they would have to actually physically build the program. And so we invited them to come in in the evening hours to run their program and they pay us. They
020pay us rent. And so how could that possibly booster the enrollment of the center? Well, it's about exposure for the community as well. Just as that student at Roosevelt didn't know about the program that's provided for him, I dare say that his parents didn't know about the program that's provided for him. And I also dare say that some of the community members and adults with whom he comes in contact with on a regular basis may not know as well. But if some of those individuals or their friends or family members actually had the opportunity to go into the center through a workforce development program in the evening and then they learn that high school students can actually go there and learn a trade and go through a pre-apprenticeship program which I'll talk about that creates
021exposure and more notoriety for the program. We can also lease the small manufacturing firms with the same intent as my in mind and then pre apprentice. I'm uncertain if there's a formal pre-apprentice um approval for the site, but that's very helpful as well. We know that there was a student who recently obtained first place in the welding program through a statewide competition with over 600 I think it was about 600 applicants. first place first place first place in this district on the welding competition. That student now is going to enter an apprentice program where he will receive a scholarship to enter that apprentice program and within a few years he will have his journeyman's license on welding. Well, he and his classmates can actually go through a pre-apprentice program so that they can earn credits
022now so that when they go into an apprentice program, it will not take them as long to learn and to obtain their journey license. And then lastly, marketing the outcome. Numerous numerous opportunities here, but it's not just about, hey, enroll in the program, but it is marketing what is the outcome of the program. Especially, as I mentioned, there have been so many job losses within this area, but this area is still very much an industrial and manufacturing hub. It is. I know. I have a very good friend of mine, one of my best friends who I met in college. Her mom retired from the Ford plant that is right off of Michigan Avenue. And she also has other family members who work at that Ford plant still. And we're told that that Ford plant has
023issues or does have some pipeline problems in terms of recruiting people, students, graduates who are interested in filling the jobs that they have available. And so we can market the outcome. Did you know that you can not only graduate from our program, but you can go directly into working in any of these fields or for a firefighter, etc., etc., and earn a meaningful salary where that you can maintain a family. Also, we can highlight alumni on the website. Who are the alum who have gone through the program who are very successful now? Who are the alum who have now created their own businesses? Who are those alum who are working at that fort plant that I mentioned who are now giving back to their school district or to the community? We can also develop a
024youth corporate trade advisory committee. Now I know you have numerous committees. You have parent advisory committees and you have student advisory committees but there could be an advisory committee that is particularly focused on the trades and the programs that are being developed next door. And so in closing, I will say um a couple of things here on the CTE programming. We know that intentional focus is not just unique to this particular district. You see, federal funding is available. As a matter of fact, in this year's budget, there's $1.4 billion dollars that's dedicated for CTE programming. Also, we know that CTE programming is one of the few that have bipartisan support. It doesn't matter what side of the aisle you're on. Everyone has agreed the CTE programming is the way to go. And then again, the
025alignment with MME, we know that there are numerous programs that are taking place next door that will allow students to obtain their fourthyear math credit, particularly for those who are like me, weren't really interested in math, but I was interested in some other programs that are being offered next door. Next steps. Next steps include how do we grow the program with an intentional focus of stabilizing first the district and then growing the district. That is analyze the vertical alignment. How many opportunities do we have of kindergarten through fifth grade students to go over and see what's taking place? How often do they go on field trips there? How often do we bring in other agencies to really work with them within a f with a focus on again the programming that takes place at the
026Ford Center? also refine pathways the framework if there is a pathway really refine it. I mentioned how currently 11th and 12th graders go but there are opportunities to explore for 9th and tth graders to go. We can launch a partnership program. I know the district has numerous partnerships, but we can launch a partnership program such as the ones that I've mentioned and also one that could help with the additional youth advisory committee focused on the trades and other culinary art type programs that are taking place. And then we can definitely create a marketing campaign to tell our story. You see also in preparation here, I went on the websites and I I scoured social media with the exception of Facebook because I'm not on Facebook and I saw great things that are taking place in
027the district. I think the communications team is doing a really good job with highlighting what's taking place also on the website. However, there can be additional opportunities to focus on again the alum in that program. These next steps are directly aligned with key levers of my experience. I mentioned not only do I have strong partnerships and a good relationship with Tiny Trades and Naiwick, but I also have a really good relationship with trade unions, which doesn't come as a supplies as I currently have now as of tonight in our board meeting not nine, I'm sorry, 96 million under contract with building new schools and also with renovating them. I also have experience with providing internships as we sought companies, construction companies to work with our district. I mandated that they purposely had a commitment to
028hire students in the district. You cannot come to any district of which I'm affiliated with and you plan to do work at the district without giving back to our students in some way. And so as a result of that, seven students were hired last year and there will be additional students hired this year. Of those seven students, two students went on to college and the other students remaining five students are currently working with the construction companies and pre-apprenticeships. Also, I mentioned my established partnership with Nwick and also my connectedness with CTE leaders. I have a very good relationship with not only the CTE leader in my current district but also the CTE leader at Wayne and Rhysa and also the newly appointed CTE leader for the state deputy superintendent Lauren Carter Nzoma. And that concludes
029my presentation. Thank you. >> Thank you. All right. So, as stated, we have about 14 questions to ask and you have about 50 minutes left. Um, Miss Jackson, since deciding to become a candidate and participating in the search process, what has reinforced your aspiration to be the next superintendent of Wayne Westland Community Schools? Yesterday's visits were very impactful. I I had the opportunity to tour, as you may know, seven of the district schools. Those tours were led by staff members, but they were primarily led by students. I met amazing students, the fifth graders at TAF, for example, who showed and demonstrated their uh paperiermâché um representation of planets and those adoring the halls on the second floor. I talked to them about my experience as a a Michigan Science Center board member and they were
030just a also shared with them the planetarium. Uh it was also very clear that there is a commitment to uh teaching and learning in all of the classrooms that I entered into yesterday. Uh I recall the the 12th grade English class where students were learning they were about to begin working on a novel. And once I announced to them that I was a former British lit or 12th grade English instructor, they quickly asked, "Well, is this book any good?" And I said, "Yeah, it's going to be good for you. It's going to be as good as you make it." What has reinforced is seeing not only the teaching and learning and the commitment to students, but also spending time with the students themselves. There's nothing quite like spending time with students who have a desire
031for learning. I also have reinforced my desire to be here by combing additionally into the data knowing that I can make a difference. knowing based on the experience that I've had as a principal and as a teacher and my current experience as a deputy superintendent and and looking at the gains that we've realized um over this short period of time. I would very much like to continue that work in this setting where I would make a larger impact not only in operations which is my current work and not only in academics which was my former work but in academics as well as operations. >> Thank you. >> Mrs. H is our next question. >> Yes. Good evening. How would you ensure that our district's spending is aligned with our priorities? >> I've taken uh numerous
032notes from reviewing all types of areas from from the district. So, if I may, the the the district's budget should definitely be aligned with the strategic plan, but the district uh budget should also be student centered. uh it should be representative of good stewardship but yet very evident in focusing on the areas that need the greatest attention with respect to student academic outcomes. Um additionally uh the budget should be very focused on operational items as I had the good opportunity um with speaking with Mr. Dino yesterday and was very impressed with of everything that he's doing on the facility side because we know without properly functioning mechanical systems etc. it's very challenging for educators to teach students and so how would I ensure that it's aligned um by first dissecting through a forensic audit the
033budget to determine where our expenditures are placed with respect to the strategic plan. Uh, one such example, I had the opportunity of going online on the transparency report and I saw in February there was $25,958 spent on copier maintenance. There is an opportunity there. There's an opportunity to determine number one, did we budget $26,000 for copier maintenance across the district each month and it could be legitimate? Or is there an opportunity to renegotiate to bring down or reduce the maintenance numbers so that we can put more money in the classroom or we can put more money in the focus areas that are listed in the strategic plan. >> Thank you. Mr. C, >> welcome back, Miss Jackson, and thank you for uh traveling around the district and learning and meeting people. Appreciate your contribution. My
034question is, how do you expect the advent of artificial intelligence to change classroom instruction and student learning and what actions should our district take now to prepare? I'm glad you mentioned me going around the district yesterday because in one of the schools I also saw your name on a plaque when the school I think had just opened or was built and I think that was was that the same one >> I wasn't going to say that but it was early on and so thank you for your continued service to this community. We're currently uh in my district under my direction with the technology team working on an IT on an AI framework underneath our district policy. Um and so I mentioned that because first I would take a look at the district policy. What is
035the the current policy state on how AI is used in the classroom? and underneath that policy, what do the current administrative guidelines state with regard to how AI how that policy will be implemented? Um, we're looking at that through a refinement of our policy. We're also looking at different areas underneath that policy including hardware um as well as software. How would I ensure that AI is used appropriately without just placing students in front of the computers? so that students wouldn't have the opportunity to have meaningful engagement with students or with teachers, excuse me. It's really looking at that policy and and also developing a really strong framework that is focused on core areas. What are the best uses of technology or what are the best uses of artificial intelligence as it pertains to instruction? How
036can teachers use artificial intelligence to guide and lead them not so much in instruction itself but in lesson plan development. Also in grading practices also in determining the best means of differentiated instruction. Also artificial intelligence can be used in student learning through that same differentiation but also for instructional grouping purposes. and also for helping students refine their papers, not write it for them. Artificial intelligence lastly could be used districtwide in the operational areas for greater efficiency. But all of that would not only be rooted in policy, but it would be rooted in a very detailed framework which details the allowances and things that would not be acceptable within its use. That framework would not just be created by central office IT members, but it would be created by a district technology committee. If there's not
037one in place, one would be created in which instructors would be encouraged to talk about some of their fears with its use. We would use research to determine how it is best used nationally, create the framework, and share it in this setting. >> Good evening, Dr. Leer. What are your top three priorities for our district over the next 12 months and how will you assess your progress on achieving these priorities? I I mentioned similar priorities on last week and they remain the same and an enrollment stabilization um attendance increasing average daily attendance and also academic outcomes. Uh that starts day one. Um but that definitely would need to be realized within the first year. Um there there are many avenues to stabilizing enrollment. I did share the trends and and I cannot sit before this
038body honestly and or the community members behind me and say that there would be a focus on increasing enrollment until we do something about that birth rate. Dr. Weaver and so our focus would be maintaining and keeping the students that we have. How do we do that? We do that through parent surveys. We do that through engagement sessions with parents so that they have the opportunity to give voice such as they did during the session immediately prior to this when I talked with many stakeholders and parents as well as staff members who shared some of their concerns so that we can tighten up some guard rails. We also can make sure that we're fully marketing all the good that is taking place in our schools. I'm a fond advocate or big advocate of marketing schools
039as well as a school district schools. You see, parents don't necessarily choose school districts, but parents do choose schools. And so what are some of the glows in the schools so that parents would be apt to stay and so that those students who are metriculating from fifth grade to our middle schools would be apt to stay and the same from those metriculating from middle school to high school. In terms of attendance, there are all types of attendance incentives that are currently taking place. Um, I saw some at McGath and Roosevelt, although McGath has a different population, but I did see some in terms of the bucks that students may use. They can then transfer those bucks into coins and they can use that to get books from a vending machine. All of those types of
040opportunities. But I also saw parents engaged at that same school and for a talent show. There were three talent shows that were being held at school yesterday and those talent shows draw drew families out so that they could see their children. All families, all parents would like to see a production of their children. And so more engaging opportunities during the course of the school day as well as during the course of the school week helps with attendance. And then lastly, academics. Um we want to ensure that there is vertical alignment among all the grades. um particularly with respect to standards. Uh we also want to ensure that not only our principles but our teachers, the deliverers of instruction are fully apprised of what those standards look like. We want to ensure that there are no
041silos. If there is letters training in one school, then letters training should be the mark throughout the district so that we have some commonalities in the curriculum and also so that we have common grade books so that I know if I participate in in Miss Jackson's class versus Mr. Cox's class, I'll have a better opportunity or a better chance of doing well because there are more grading opportunities in my class than Mr. Cox's class. Obviously, I'm using this for illustration purposes. So, those as well as many other uh strategies could be used for academic improvement. How would I be measured on that? Just on all the things that I've mentioned, stabilizing the enrollment, uh reducing chronic absenteeism if it's just one point at a time. Um at least we're making progress and also improving student
042growth and proficiency after a year. Good evening, Mr. Jackson. >> Good evening, Mr. >> How do you think various stakeholders such as parents, staff members, and community members should be involved in our planning process and setting direction for the district? >> Well, the district has a a very robust strategic plan. I think I we need to go backwards to set direction for parent involvement. I'd like to know how was the strategic plan developed? Who was involved in the development of the strategic plan? How did parents play into that? Uh what I would like to do is with the strategic plan take it on a road tour by explaining through quarterly sessions what the strategic plan means and how that strategic plan shows up in everyday work. and parents can very much be a part of
043that by presenting to them as it pertains to other new initiatives. Though I think some initiatives are either brought to us by new laws or new board policy or from a ground swell from the parents that we serve. And with the latter through the parent advisory committee sharing different ideas they have at their particular schools and their district. We pull that data, we compile the data, and then we have meetings with parents to say this is what has been recommended. I'm doing such a process now with the naming of a new building in Southwest Detroit. Um, I pulled the data from various stakeholders. Um, we provided informational sessions what that data looked like, what the results look like, and parents were invited to respond to that data. How would I involve them? by giving them
044multiple opportunities to weigh in on either decisions that have to be made regarding a change of law. Uh decisions that have to be made or implemented due to change of policy or decisions that have to be made due to the ground and the recommendations from parents at large. Thank you, Miss Jackson. Competition to traditional public schools in the form of school of choice, charter schools, private schools, and virtual programs has significantly increased. How in your opinion can we remain the district of choice for students and families within our district boundaries? >> I think I spoke a little bit about that uh Mr. Ambrose during the presentation. It's really marketing everything that's taking place in this district really at scale. what types of programs are of most interest to students such as the one middle school
045student that I mentioned who's interested in gaming and game design but did not realize that he doesn't have to go far he could just go right here on Marquette and participate in such programming. Uh I think also um exploring different communication mediums not only to to our families but to families and surrounding districts. Not only is is communication important through social media and also through our website. Um, but I I think really completing an analysis on all of the current interventions or implementation strategies rather that we're you're using to determine what that return on that investment is, particularly as it pertains to our budget. Uh, what does that look like? For example, if we are passing out flyers to different daycare centers, etc., with the hope that those families enrolled their children in our district,
046but we find that we're not really getting a return on our investment there. Perhaps we can save on our copier cost by not making as many copies, but moving towards a QR code such as a QR code that's being used here today. And so I think it goes hand inand not only thinking of innovative strategies for communication but also appropriately evaluating those strategies to determine if we need to tweak them and what is our overall return on our investment. >> Thank you. >> Good evening again Miss Jackson. >> Good evening. If in a serious safety incident, I'm sorry, if a serious safety incident happened at our school or or at a school event, what would you do in the first 24 hours? Describe how you would keep students and staff safe. Work with the police
047and emergency responders. Tell families and the public what they need to know. and keep the school board informed while protecting privacy. >> This is interesting. in my in my current fellowship at the uh Broad uh fellowship program at the Yale School of Management. During our first week of class, they brought in communication professionals and actually presented a lesson on crisis management, particularly communication and crisis management. And as I I sat in that class, I was drawn to a serious event that took place when I was a principal some years ago. Unfortunately, uh the police department at that particular area uh decided to not only run a a sting operation, but they decided to apprehend someone they had been following uh in front of our school during dismissal. There were about 10 police cars and and
048guns were drawn. Children were were terribly scared as were parent parents who were picking up their children as were our staff members. We were able to pull children back into that building unscathed. No one was injured. No one was hurt. And we did check though to first of all ensure that no one was injured and no one was hurt because there was a separate protocol for notifying families. After we ensured that took place and and after they left, we resumed with dismissal. But I immediately uh notified I was a principal at that time and so I immediately notified our superintendent by giving a debrief of what took place as of what I knew at that particular time. Um, I also sent a robocall message to all of our families explaining to them that there was
049an undesirable incident that happened. Um, not at our hand, but something through the local police department. However, the actions that were taken were to immediately ensure the safety and security of those students um as well as our staff. Uh, to count all students, make sure that they were accounted for, and to also double check and make sure that no one was injured. Um, I also stated that I would have a meeting with the uh local commander, which I did the very next day at the 12th precinct. Um, to explain how disappointed we were that that took place during that time and to ask if they would work handinand with us to repair the damage that was done to those young people in which they did. The next week we had an emergency assembly in which
050it wasn't really an emergency, but it wasn't a planned assembly in which the police officers came in and talked to students about safety, etc. and and then they also issued a letter of apology to our parents because I demanded such. Now, that's a a far different incident than some of the incidents that we could possibly encounter, which I hope not, and other schools, but I think uh full transparency with guard rails is important and and immediacy is important as well. And what do I mean by guard rails? Well, if there's an ongoing investigation in which I'm privy to, I cannot share the results of that investigation or some of the uh intimate details of that investigation because it would compromise the investigation. But I would acknowledge that there is a serious event that took place
051at our campus after first. I would imagine through board policy or board protocols after first informing the board president uh to then determine how the board president would like me to share broadly with the entire board of what took place. that would happen immediately and then I would send the board a draft letter. Just FYI, this is the information that I'm going to send to parents and our staff. And I'm also going to inform parents and staff of the social work and counseling services that will be provided for our students as well as our staff members in the aftermath. >> Thank you. Miss Jackson, Wayne Westland Community Schools has experienced significant labor tensions that have directly impacted staff morale and the culture and climate that students experience every day. As an incoming superintendent who is
052new to this district's specific I'm sorry. As an incoming superintendent who is new to this district's specific union dynamics, the expectation to lead, listen, and build trust simultaneously is considerable. How would you approach building a genuine work relationship with union leadership from day one? And what specific strategies would you employ to ensure that improved labor relations translate into a healthier staff culture, one that students feel and benefit from? I currently work with five unions. I'm saying that cautiously because one unit was absorbed by another unit. So I think that is five now. I've worked with them over the past seven years on some very complex issues. um everything in terms of staff relationships between management and those in the unions and also relationships between union leaders or union members. And through those conversations, we first
053had to to level set in terms of I'm not working against you, but I'm actually working with you so that we can resolve some of the issues and some of the tensions that you're bringing to my attention. uh listen listening number one would be paramount and understanding what is the root of the concern particularly if there are multiple unions who are all stating the same thing you see I believe in compiling data through listening tours and finding the commonalities with those listening tours understanding that oftentimes there are outliers but oftentimes there are some common concerns that need to be addressed also by listening I I think that that that builds trust in and of itself. Not sending someone else uh to listen initially with union leaders as I'm attempting to establish a relationship with them,
054but to listen to their concerns for myself individually, which is listed in my 90-day plan, as well as as a group. I would also share with union leaders not only elements of my 90 plan but 90-day plan but what I plan to do to unite the district as a whole to help teachers and support staff members and administrators know that we're all into in this together um based on the vision of the district. We're not taking individual sides of anyone with the exception of students. And I would also uh create an inclusive process so that every unit member knew that their voice is heard and whatever tensions there currently exist and to do the same thing with management and find the middle ground. You see, generally when tensions exist, it is because people are on
055other side of an issue, but they do have a common interest. And so to to fill the void or to fill the gap, it is to find that common interest through the learning tours, finding those commonalities, um addressing them in open settings with some of their members after meeting with leadership first, um and then stating how collectively we're going to work to resolve them. Thank you. >> When you have an administrative team that may have differences of opinions, how do you reconcile those differences and get everyone moving in the same direction? I >> I think it goes back to the strategic plan and and the mission and the vision of the school district. the mission and the vision of any entity exists so that everyone is clear on where we're going with the vision and
056how we're going to get there with the mission. Also underneath the mission and the vision are the core values of the district and the core values identify what we hold near and dear. What are those non-negotiables? No matter what we do, they have to focus back on those core values. And so though we may have differences of opinion and though we may have disappointments and disagreements, we also have to realize that we're here to fulfill the mission through honoring the core values. The core values are they really should be pervasive. I shared yesterday by walking into every building I would envision that the mission of the district and that the vision of the district are found some way somehow posted in every building just as a reminder. I think also everyone should be familiar with
057the core values of the district just as a reminder as well. And as we're talking through differences and and having conversations to determine why people are separated, we need to ground their viewpoint based on the core values. So how does that viewpoint support the core value which ultimately supports children? What does that look like? I've unfortunately found that oftentimes in squables it is because adults are choosing their wants over student needs. helping them understand that within the fabric of the core values and the strategic plan would be definitely month one. >> Thank you, >> Mr. Jackson. If you had to choose one action or initiative that would improve the district's reputation, what would it be and how would you measure its impact? I think again sharing all the good that is taking place in schools
058specifically sharing the multiple programs that are taking place at the Ford Center um sharing the incredible talent that's at the McGath center that is working with center-based children with some serious health challenges and needs sharing during the the show, the talent show that took place at one of the elementary schools on yesterday, not just on the school's website, but on the district's website as well. How I would measure that is in communication um in social media platforms. You have impressions, you have reaches, and you have engagement. And you can monitor those numbers. You can monitor those numbers by each post. You can monitor the numbers through constant contact which can be sent not only to all family members and all staff but all community members as well. We can monitor how often they're opening and
059then we can take the show on the road. We could show up to grocery stores or to Avenue Beastro or to uh convenience stores etc. and just share QR codes with how to access all the different channels that were sending information about the district and and that assumes that that the district has a a bad reputation which it does not. I think that the district has a rather stable rep reputation. Um that is evident even in your tenure on the school board that contributes to that. But in terms of improving it overall, I would say definitely telling the story, telling the story of the district and telling the story of each of the individual schools. Jackson, how would you assess the effectiveness of our current strategic plan? And what decision making process would you use
060to make adjustments that improve outcomes? I think the budget should directly support the strategic plan and I think um all decision making like a decision-m metric matrix should support the strategic plan how we have relationships. So what does that look like of how the union groups should interact with each other? How should union groups interact with management? How should union members interact with management? How should union How should schoolboard members interact and the superintendent interact with schoolboard members? It's about relationships and having some protocols on communication strategies there. um how that would be measured well by determining how often concerns were brought to this body or would be brought to the superintendent dealing with misinformation and reducing that misinformation and communication. Um staff capacity the staff capacity meaning does everyone fully understand what is expected
061of them? looking at the job descriptions again for central office staff members to ensure that those job descriptions aren't 30 year old job descriptions knowing that so much of our work has changed now due to refined laws new laws refined board policies etc. Um and then also looking to determine alignment with budgetary decisions based on those job descriptions. also staff capacity and ensuring that all of our instructors are fully uh prepared to lead our students through sustained and embedded professional development throughout the year. meaningful systems, ensuring that our ERP system is of the latest upgrade um for maximum efficiency and processing payroll and also processing attendance and creating our budget etc. meaningful systems such as the ones that were showed to me on yesterday with our BAS, our building automation system to ensure that what
062is taking place on Mr. you know's phone is actually representative of the energy bills that we receive. If we're stating that our optimal temperature is between 68 and 72 degrees, how do I manage that or how do I evaluate that? Well, our energy bill should be representative of that. Communication goes handinand with relationships and ensuring that we have clear means of communication. There would be notifications sent out to board members weekly, just a short briefing of what has taken place. I mentioned that before and then there's regular communication that's sent to families. I think families should receive just top core announcements on a weekly basis through a robocall. And we would also measure how often are those robocalls actually listened to by picking up the phone. um and not only the pickup but how many
063of those calls are listened off to all throughout. And then safety um there's safety on many many levels as we talked about the threat assessment last time safety not just the physical safety of our staff and students by monitoring a daily safety report of safety breaches and those safety breaches would culminate in the weekly report that would be provided for the board. We should see a reduction in those safety breaches by fully communicating to all principles. We're pulling this data and do you see how often we're receiving this type of information but also safety in terms of our systems as well to ensure that there are no cyber security track no cyber security attacks etc. Miss Jackson, approximately 21% of Wayne Westland Community School students are served under individualized education programs and are legally entitled
064to a least restrictive environment, meaning many learners alongside their general education peers daily. As superintendent, how would you foster the shared understanding and staff support needed to ensure that all students with and without IEPs thrive in an in an inclusive setting. First, I'd like to say in reflection from last week, I do believe I I stated that uh MTSS had four levels. Um, and it does not. It has three. I I cringed. I think I may have been a little nervous there, but it has three. And I mentioned MTSS because first we have to ensure that everyone is implementing MTSS at scale throughout the district. Everyone should through universal screeners know uh what which students need additional support. But that additional support does not always translate into an IEP and psychological testing. That may be
065uh additional support through additional aids in the classroom or through some pullout services, afterchool services, etc. the percentage that you gave is is a bit high. And so um I think in ensuring that all students have um access to u the free and appropriate education in a least restrictive environment, I I think it bears reviewing IEP and the data to ensure that every child actually qualifies for special education services as opposed to level three intervention. Over and beyond that, I think it also bears noting that what you mentioned is actually taking place at least in some of the classrooms that I visited yesterday. Not only did I visit the McGath Center, which again focus on students with the most severe needs, but I also saw inclusion in classrooms. I had an interaction with an an
066ASD student yesterday, but that ASD student was fully equipped with an aid. In the same classroom, there was another aid providing oneto-one service with a child who also had an IEP. And so, it is ensuring that we can have push-in services to the greatest degree possible because in years years ago when you mentioned special education, educators just naturally assumed that those students would be pulled from the classroom. But we know that they learn socially as well as academically by being in the classroom with their peers. Also, in terms of ensuring the least restrictive environment, that involves fully training teachers. Fully training teachers to know that just because a child has an IEP does not mean that that child cannot learn. That child may take a little longer based on the goals that are listed in
067the back of the IEP. They may take a little longer on numeration. They may be a little slow in terms of fluency, but the child still deserves an education. And these are some interventions that you can utilize in your classroom. And we're going to train you on those interventions that you can use in your classroom. And then lastly, ensuring that all of the the service providers with special special education um are fully trained uh not only through the special education director here in the district, but also additional services that are provided by Wayne Risa as well as Michigan Department of Education. Miss Jackson, how would you meet the needs of college readiness while also providing highquality relevant career focused opportunities for students? I think sometimes we we believe it's either or. either you're going to
068go to college or you're going to go directly into the workforce without realizing that some students go to college for a short period of time and then go directly into the workforce or and then they go back to college or some students go directly into the workforce and then they go they go to college whether it's to pick up a certificate or a a carpenter who goes into carpentry who determines to build his or her business and they want to go to college to learn those skills. It it's an alignment of the curriculum to ensure that we're checking all boxes that is required to ensure that our students are career and college ready according to the Michigan Merit curriculum. It's also providing students with exposure. Uh as I mentioned, students can obtain their their fourth
069year math credit through some of the programming that is taking place at the William D. support center. I think informing our instructors of that, informing our families of that, and informing our students of that as well cultivates a learning environment that says, I'm not just preparing you for one particular track. Although we do have students on a certificate track, although we may have students on personal curriculum, and although we have students on diploma track, I am preparing you for whatever you determine you want to do once you graduate. And that is through exposure. It's through exposure of the curriculum which we want to ensure is implemented with fidelity through sound instructional evidence-based practices. It is monitoring those evidence-based instructional practices. And it is also talking with students about their career goals and aligning ourselves with
070partnerships so that they can not only go into those environments to determine if that's what they want to do, but also the college tour track that will allow students to really get gain an understanding of what that college life looks like. Thank you, >> Miss Jackson. As superintendent, you may promote a open door culture. How do you balance being accessible to individual board trustees while maintaining the governance structure? Wait, that ain't even what word maintaining. is maintaining the governor's structure while honoring the role of the board president as the primary leis. I would first review the board policy and the current administrative guidelines that are in place on what that communication protocol looks like. Um, and I think the review of that would be first initially completed individually and then in a board study session
071so that I would gain an understanding of the board's preference in terms of those communication styles. I would imagine as a former board president um that there is a similar protocol and that is all communication from the administrators went through the board president and me and the board president was responsible for sending the communication to other board members particularly if decisions had to be made etc. But in terms of an open door policy, I would on a weekly basis to send a briefing to make sure that there is a connection between myself as well as all board members. I think if the board president whomever throughout the years the board presidents may be is has an open door policy with me and feels free to say well there's another board member who wants to have
072a one-on-one with you after our initial one-on- ones which I would like to have during the first month. I think that that is uh a a protocol that would need to be decided upon early on through the study session. In addition to sending weekly notices, in addition to sending very targeted information that requires board approval to the board president, there is a board member who would like to go into more detail about the budget. And so I'm informing you of that. I'm speaking as a board president so that I would know that I would receive notification or request from that board member. It really comes down to the board's policies and the stated administrative guidelines. If there are none in place, there's an opportunity. And if there are some in place, there's still an opportunity
073for refinement as we get to know the rules of engagement, if you will, and doing work together. Thank you. >> At this time, we would like to take a few minutes now to provide you with an opportunity to ask any questions you might have for the board. Miss Jackson, I don't have additional questions. I think through the community meetings that were held um on today through the meet and greet, also through the three different stakeholder meetings that were held with staff administrators first and central office staff members and then staff at large and community members. It was very clear that the district as a whole and its constituency is very involved in this process. I think it is also very clear that they want longevity as Mr. Weaver mentioned in one of the other meetings.
074I think it is very clear that they want um a leader who is experienced. Um they also want a leader who is clear. They want a leader who is respectful and they want a leader to lead. And so I have no questions on that. But I do count it as an honor and a privilege to not only talk about my experience, talk about my goals, but also talk about some of the plans that I would have for the district if I were afforded this amazing opportunity. And just as I ended last week, if I may, I'd like to end once again with a closing statement because I do believe in consistency and I'm unwavered with this approach. Again, I say a school district's health is rooted and grounded in a few essential outcomes. And some
075of those outcomes I've mentioned today on articulating my priorities. Enrollment. Again, stability signals that families continue to trust their public schools. Again, I say strong attendance reflects student engagement, such as the engagement I saw during school tours on yesterday. rising levels of academic proficiency as we have seen on some of our scores meep meet not meep MSTEP scores from last year also demonstrates that instruction is improving but there's opportunity for vertical alignment graduation rates show that students are prepared for the future no matter where they go whether that's in a trade program whether that's in college or whether that's directly in in the workforce. And as an undercurrent to all of this, long-term financial stability allows all of this work to take place. I have experience in all of these areas. long-term financial stability, growing
076enrollment, stabilizing enrollment, academic outcomes, as well as graduation rates, as I've been a strong contributor to my current district um achieving its highest graduation rate than it has had over the past two decades. Again, I count it as an honor and a privilege to sit here before you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Jackson. We sincerely appreciate your time and continued interest in being the next superintendent of Wayne Westland Community Schools. We plan to make our final determination on April 7th and we'll let you know of our decision immediately afterwards. Thank you for being here with us again today. >> Thank you all. >> It is 7:15. At this time, the board will take a 10-minute