0014 and I'm calling the business meeting [clears throat] back to order. Um we will be starting we've finished our exact session with no action to report and we will start with the pledge and um I'm going to ask our student member to please lead >> to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. All right, emergency evacuation. Make note of the exit. Leave the building in an orderly and quick fashion if you need to. Um, it's a smokefree and vape free school district. No smoking or vaping anywhere in buildings or on any of the campus. Similarly, it's a hatefree and bullyfree school district. We're starting our agenda and we have uh the board consent agenda number
002or item C. Um I would like if we could just have the recommendation be for one through six to begin with and then we can do seven separately. >> Sure. presents. The administration recommends the approval of board consent items reflected in schedule C1 through C6. >> Um, is there a motion to approve C1 through C6? Trustee Felisetta, second by Trustee Dilo. Questions or discussion? Seeing none, all in favor? C1 through six or is unanimously approved. And now C7. >> Administration recommends the approval of four consent items reflected in schedule C7. >> Okay. Now, is there a motion to approve C7? Get the We'll have the motion, have it seconded, and then there's an opportunity for questions and discussions. So, is there a motion? See seven trustee Calderon. Second by Vice President Dilo. questions or discussion.
003Okay. I have a question and I think the question would be for you and also um Mr. Gilmont. Sure. >> But with regard to the special uh legislation, what we're approving tonight is to set it in motion in case we actually have to take advantage of it. So, this gives the authorization for the administration to proceed with um getting the legislators involved in doing the special legislation. But there's always the option for the district and the board to say we don't need all of this or we only need part of it or we could borrow in staggered amounts. We'll still have that flexibility. Is that correct? >> That is correct. >> Okay. >> And I have sorry I have a follow-up question with regard to that >> that my understanding and whether Mr. Superintendent or
004Mr. Belmonte the this authorization is to merely draft the proposed legislation. It is not to engage the legislators. It is not to push forward nor it is an agreement that this is our chosen path. This is one of the things running in parallel in preparation for this board making that choice as to which process we want to proceed with. Is that correct? >> No, that's not correct. This particular resolution gives the district the authority to go ahead to seek special legislation, work with our legislators to present it to the governor, try to get this bill in the state budget. If this particular bill um and this special legislation does not get in the state budget, giving the district authorization to borrow on its structural deficit, then the district has to seek legislation outside of the
005state um budget and go through a much other different process. >> And can I just I I think I could say it a little bit different. I think what I think the question maybe could be reframed as the district has to engage legislation because the budget bill is being put together right now and it's due April 1st. So, it will be in the bill, but I think the board wants to make sure and everybody understands we're not committing to borrowing this money or the amount that we're borrowing. We're setting up the framework and getting the approvals so that if we decide down the road to borrow the money and what amount we need to borrow, we're available to do so. So is that accurate to say? >> Yes. >> Okay. So I just want to
006make sure we understand that as a board that's what we talked about is everything's in place so that if we say all right we have to do this we can press a button and the process is you know will continue from where we are but we're not committing to a dollar amount or the fact that we're borrowing anything at this point. We're just doing the legislature the legis clarify for the board >> the district will have to borrow before the end of this fiscal year. Okay. Clearly, we have a structural deficit that ran over from the previous school year as well. Okay? And by the end of this school year, we will need to put something in place to close that budget gap and not end up overspending the current voter approved budget. >> Okay.
007So I'm just so there there's the way the finances are going to work on this. We currently have a structural deficit in this school year. We do not have the revenues to close that gap. Something will need to be done and that's part of the three-year recovery plan and that's part of this special act legislation. And we decided to take the longer road, if you will, through special act legislation to give us a little bit more running room or runway, if you will, if the district needed to borrow. We we can spread the debt service out over a period of multiple years rather than short-term borrowing as we went over last time. And if I understand you correctly from the last meeting, one reason to start this process now is to try to get it
008in the annual budget that's being dealt with in Albany right now as opposed to doing it some months later where it would just be like a standalone uh legislation for us. >> That that is correct. timing is really of of the essence when you think about where we are in this fiscal year and as the months just peel away, we get closer to year end and we're making some critical decisions now for the district. Um, and we're very carefully calculating our cash flow. We might not have enough monies to pay our bills to carry us through the end of the year. >> Okay. We have another question >> to rephrase it again. So, we know we have to borrow money, and I should have said it this way, but we don't ne do we or
009or the question should be, do we know exactly how much we need right now? Because when we said the this this resolution is not to exceed a dollar amount, but I guess I'm looking for assurances for the board and for the public that we're not just signing off on borrowing $12 million tonight and in in case we find more efficiencies and we can borrow less. >> This this whole thing is a process. Um, as we go through each day, we're we're going back. We're making uh notable strides in savings within the current budget. We're restructuring things. We're pursuing revenues. So, to answer your question, um, no. What this author, what this resolution does, it gives the district the authorization to borrow up to $12 million. Our current estimate on the restructural deficit can be anywhere
010from 10 to 12 million. Do we have an exact figure on this date? No. As we get further few months down the road, when we get into April, we will have a really good number on what the amount is that we need to borrow. Now, just because the resolution goes up to 12 million, it doesn't mean that the district is going to borrow 12 million for the sake of borrowing 12 million. If we need to borrow 8 million, we can start out by borrowing 8 million. And we can do that in what's called a bond anticipation note. Okay? And then a bond anticipation note gets renewed every year. So by doing it the way we structured it gives us the greatest amount of flexibility to accommodate the district's financial needs. >> Another question. >> Yeah.
011So because we we had some disagreement on what we thought. So I just want to clarify and see if I understand what you just said in terms of what we determined we need. When you say we're we're borrowing up to 12 million is that and you said spreading out the debt service. Are you saying we can borrow different amounts for each year as we need it? >> Kind of like a home equity loan. >> Once you >> like a line of credit kind of deal, >> something like that, once you have authorization to borrow [clears throat] up to 12 million, you can borrow any amount up to that amount as the maximum. So to answer your question, yes. >> So we can borrow as many times we want until we until we max out to
01212 million. you you could renew what's called bonds anticipation notes every year until you get some certain and if that number happens to be 8 million 10 million then and you decide to bond that amount then that's the amount that you bond >> okay I I would just like to say that I think and if the board correct me if I'm wrong is anybody else a little bit confused I feel like we kind of heard a little bit something different from bond counsel and I unless I misunderstood it. I just want to make sure that bond council's answer and Mr. Belmonty's answer are cohesive. >> We >> I guess you guys are working on that email and it is they're consistent. >> Okay. So then my answers my questions are answered. Thank you. >> I'm
013just and I guess just to reiterate Mr. Belmont that this is not we as the board are only agreeing the legislation to get the authorization. This is not the request nor the approval by the board to go borrow $12 million. This just lets us proceed down that avenue which in your anti in in the plans that have been discussed is where we're anticipating going. This is the first step. That does not commit the district to $12 million. It does not authorize going out and borrowing the uh it doesn't cause the money to be borrowed. It allows us to exercise that choice. >> That's a fair statement. Okay. And >> just I could speak to the urgency in reality. Should the board approve the resolution tonight, you know, the work starts tomorrow with reaching out to
014our legislators, getting sponsorship, and that's why sort of time at the very moment is a a certain urgency just to get the process started because delaying it anymore jeopardizes having this legislation be omitted or inserted into the uh year's uh governance budget. >> Okay. Do we have any any more questions from any of the board members? Seeing seeing none, all in favor of C7 unanimously approved. All right. Sorry. Good evening everyone. Sorry, a little technical glitch. >> All right, so let me give it welcome to uh January for 21st meeting the board of education. I do want to start off mentioning snow again as I'm sure everybody's noticing the forecast. Seems like we have a pretty ominous uh snow. Don't smile, Madison. We have a pretty uh ominous uh forecast uh for Sunday into Monday.
015Um, basically we all know how our means of communication, we'll communicate for our parents where as soon as we know if there's a closure required or a school delayed opening required, we'll be sure to communicate with our community and with our staff. Um, right now um should we have to close due to the storm, it will be a traditional snow day. Uh, but we'll keep the community posted um as that information becomes available. But yes, the uh forecast is somewhat obvious for us. Uh moving on in the theme of winter, I had the pleasure of attending Brook Haven's winter concert uh which was delivered in two languages which is always special to me. Um kids were fantastic as was the staff and Mr. Ky who um did a wonderful job just orchestrating the concert which
016was so wellreceived uh given the size of the school. The concerts actually delivered in two rounds um which had an equal amount of parents in attendance um who really thoroughly enjoyed it. I also had the pleasure of attending Belport High School's chamber concert which is the format is somewhat different. These are groups that get together as part of their extracurricular activities and practice on their own. So we we saw everything from uh a full multi-grade orchestra to a quartet of clarinet players uh to choirs and of course our jazz band which I'm happy to report will be performing tomorrow at the uh NISBA joint uh dinner uh in um Melville. So, we're looking forward to seeing our jazz band perform for over 300 people and multiple school districts across Long Island. Moving along with some
017great happenings in the high school, I had the privilege of attending civics days. Uh we had held two days of civics at Bport High School. Day one topics include everything from affordable housing uh to access to a swimming facility in the community, honor society recognition. Uh one of the things I love about this process is that it empowers student voices. I do want to thank all the trustees who participated which included trustee police, trusty Ace, Trusty Calgaro, Trusty Hayes and Trusty Dillo and Trusty Patini who attended. The kids delivered their uh some compelling arguments. Uh one uh subject that keeps coming up is open campus and one of the arguments used was that it increases responsibility and it's about freedom. Who can argue those two things? But it was amazing to engage in those conversations
018with the students. Um they two uh topics included once again open campus uh really interesting take on attendance and how they thought it should be removed from uh grading practices. Um a skate park in the community, nutrition and health and dignity and voice. Um that was a pretty courageous um presentation done by some of our students talking about ICE enforcement in the community. So I took it took a lot of courage for them to speak out and they did it they did so really eloquently and raised some really important points just about the impact it has in some members of our community. So I just want to applaud all the teachers involved um and making these days happen and allowing our students to engage in some critical thinking problem solving and reaching out to um
019legislators and people who were decision makers including our council manscio. I also got to attend uh one of the first ever sidebyside wrestling matches. So, the boys varsity team and JB team competed alongside our girls varsity team and JB V team. I put that championship trophy up because I do expect us to do really well this season. [clears throat] Um but I also want to thank the trust the trustees who attended. Trusty Fetta, Trusty Hayes, Trusty Feliz, Trusty Ross for attending. Uh while we had a board meeting that night, so we have to leave somewhat early. Just the intensity of the matches and the show of support from community was fantastic. And along wrestling lines, I also got to attend a photo shoot with our wrestling teams, which is a lot of fun. Uh Trusty
020Ross was there serving as a photographer. Uh and really was just great to see the student athletes having a great time posing the photograph that they're going to use uh for some of their marketing. Um but yeah, big photograph of our girls wrestling team which is actually comprised of five school districts but the interest in the sport has been growing which is a great sort of uh testament to equity and access for all of our students. Uh moving on the sports team I got to attend our varsity basketball alumni game. Uh we had alumni visiting from classes that who were competing I should say in the early 80s all the way to the present. Great game, great team effort. Um there's basketball doing basketball teams are doing some great things. So I'm looking forward to
021their continued success. In terms of community happenings, I had the privilege of attending uh the town of Brook Haven um co-sponsored with NWACP and uh Zeta 5 Beta Sorority Incorporated um their Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service lunchon where we talked about just giving back to the community and what we can do as community members to um you know help support uh all members of our community. And you know I have a quote from Martin Luther King which is the time is always right to do what's right. And during that lunchon I ran into Dr. Coulson and a couple of students who received scholarships. One who's photographed is Adrien Sent Fort Colin and Samuel Sordo who was not photographed also received scholarships from the association. It's a great event which was held right here
022in the Bport Country Club. And I want to acknowledge our high school staff and all the teachers that lead up to this achievement. For the first time ever Belport High School was awarded made AP school honor roll. We got silver medal which is based on the participation with over 50% of our graduates taking at least one AP exam during their high school careers and 30% earning a score of three or higher. Obviously, we'll keep competing for gold, but this is a great achievement to our teachers and to our staff and especially our students who are challenging rigorous courses. There are a lot of great things happening in our school district. Please follow us at the various social media handles. Um some of these uh posts are highlighting some of the cast of Pippen which I'm
023excited to be coming at the high school. That's February 6th and 7th and tomorrow we'll be hosting our Frank People on Winter concert at Belport Middle School actually. Um sorry I'm going to miss that but I'll be at the NISSBA conference watching our jazz band play in front of the multiple school districts. Uh before I end I sort of want to shift um to talk a little bit about the 202627 budget development process and again just offer reflection from my viewpoint as superintendent. Obviously, we're in a priority situation now and something that, you know, we're facing some serious challenges as we talk about how we navigate not only budget [clears throat] development process ahead, but our current year and looking at business practices. Um, it's hard to separate myself from what's happening. And so, to
024that end, you know, I'm going to reaffirm the community and the board that, you know, we're committed to making this right. And what's going to be different about this year's budget development process is number one, I still have to, you know, sort of share my joy working with Mr. Belmont, who's bringing 35 years of expertise to this district. Um, in a short time here, he's already saved the school district measurable amounts of uh monies in terms of savings and expenditures and securing revenue sources by maximizing aid that's coming to us in the current year. Um despite what we saw with the state aid runs for the following year, we're doing a lot of great work not just in looking at our expenditures or revenue sources but starting guard rails controls and really optimizing our business
025practices. Above and beyond Mr. Belmont's impact, we're also going to be working alongside the controllers's office who will be here in district and overseeing not just the development process of our budget for the 2627 school year, but our business practices and our current year. And this is something we welcome because multiple eyes will assure the legitimacy of the budget we'll propose for 2627. So I'm excited at the work. I'm ready to meet the challenge which begins with our three-year recovery plan and some of the mid-year reductions that um we um are embarking on as part of a three-year reduction plan. First and foremost, I want to go over what these mid-year reductions are. Um the actions reflect the first phase of the district's three-year recovery plan. uh grounded in responsible stewardship and thoughtful decision- making
026to stabilize finances while maintaining instructional content. >> [clears throat] >> Um, I also want to mention that co-curricular adjustments are based on current student enrollment to each some of the clubs and are being reviewed through a multi-year lens to ensure meaningful that programs remain sustainable, meaningful and aligned with district priorities. And above uh beyond everything else, you know, guided by our clical pride, which essentially means being both diligent and ethical in our decision-m, we're remain focused on preserving the integrity of our academic programs, the quality of learning experiences for our students. So, with our academic programs as a focus, um we have to really look at structurally our district. It's an opportunity for us to look at our overall organizational structure, really start focusing on things that are most important and how do we preserve
027the growth and that we've demonstrated over the last couple years. Turn terms to speak a little bit more specifically about the media reductions and Mr. Bonte will speak a little bit about it during his presentation. I don't want to take its thunder away. Uh we did have reductions in our administrative uh unit um including the assistant principal at the high school and our director. Um, in terms of instructional staffing, we haven't eliminated any positions, but we reduced responsibilities. Um, some overages and our English as a language department, which is teachers who had extra assignments. U, we did discontinue um, French as an offering here in the district. This was a decision that was inevitable due to enrollment. Um, and I want to emphasize again that none of these things don't lack value for us. You
028know, you can argue that anything we embark on in South Country has value and has some merit and even if it touches one or two students in a positive way, certainly that's something we we sort of uh value and see the importance. Um so all these decisions are tough. Um in terms of instructional leadership, there are stipens associated with lead teacher positions. Um we also eliminated the uh extra position or teacher in special assignment for restorative practices. That's the coordinator position. Again, not an elimination of position, a reassignment. Uh we're still embarking our restorative practices. We think they're important. Our former coordinator is engaging in some professional development as we move on in the years. And we're maintaining our coaches in our schools. Uh co-curricular programs based on enrollment. We decided to discontinue some of
029the extracurricular clubs at both the middle school and high school and are simply not running some clubs that had no enrollment whatsoever. Um and then there were vacancies that were not filled. So again, this is not a loss of positions or people. Um the vacancies are simply were not filled both in the area of our safety officers without compromising safety. And in terms of an office assistant, which was a result of the reduction of the high school assistant principal and a school north nurse at South Haven, which was a vacancy within that fill. Um again, while we all see the merits of having a nurse, especially in a pre-k center, it's not a mandated position and we're trying to hopefully cover that with our uh nurses and rotation and as needed to work um with
030various mechanisms. And that kind of summarizes our mid-year reductions. Um again, there going to be a lot of challenges ahead, a lot of hard decisions that are going to have to be made. We certainly appreciate the impact this has on people's lives, especially those who are directly affected. Um but, you know, as um Mr. Monte will illustrate, you know, we have a approximately $10 million deficit that we have to navigate over the next couple of years. And so we're going to have to be making some hard decisions. So this is a great opportunity um for us to reassess, make sure there's not redundancies, really establish what's important, and really get the district solving again. And that's the ultimate goal without jeopardizing our academic programs and our student experience. That said, please follow us on our
031website. Um, I wanted to point out that if you click on the menu bar and then click on the district, there is a little link there that says financial information and updates. We're posting all of our financial uh presentations in this one area on our website. We have an FAQ that we're updating uh regularly. In fact, it's going to be updated subsequent to this meeting. Um, an opportunity for also community members to ask questions. So that's located again by going to our main menu, clicking on district, and then clicking on the link that says financial information and updates. And that concludes my report. I want to thank all the trustees for their oversight and their due diligence and meeting our challenges. Thank you. >> Okay. Thank you. reports from trustees. We'll start with our exiticio
032meeting. >> I don't really have a lot for tonight, but student council, we're working on fundraising and I'm just really excited for the events we have planned in the future. >> Thank you. >> Can I ask you a quick question? >> Is there going to be a senior trip this year? >> Mhm. >> There is. >> Yeah. >> And what's the plan? Where are you with the planning on it? Um, that's mostly with like the class advisors and the >> class advisors do from what I've heard is that it's going to be a two or a three-day trip um to Boston, Massachusetts. >> Cool. So, that's what they're planning. The time frame is usually May, right? >> Yeah, I think there's dates. I'm just not too sure off the top of my head. >> Great.
033I I do believe at one point the class advisors sent out something >> um highlight >> there's some comments from some parents about it and there's there's a rumor in the community that it was canceled because of the current fiscal crisis and I'm trying to tell people it's not and >> the board doesn't plan this trip. It's done by the student the student adviserss and there's no financial um impact on the district and >> the information I'll definitely relate to the board. >> I got everything I need from you. So thank you very much. Really appreciate it. Okay. Trusty Talisa. >> Yeah. Um I also attended the uh third grade concert at uh Brook Elementary. Uh kudos to Mr. Kosy. It was very very well done in both languages. I attended both uh cuz my
034niece was in one and my daughter was in the other. Um but he's each of them were very well done and the way he gets that many students together to sing in unison and stay up on the stage in those lights is pretty impressive. Um other thing I want to mention I attended uh the first ever I guess first annual and ever um all girls wrestling tournament. So and again kudos to our athletic director and coach Golie. Um they did an amazing job pulling that off. Uh my daughter begged me to go down there and drag me down and did not want to leave. Was taking pictures all day. Uh and they did an amazing job running that throughout the day. So, I know it's a lot to take on such an overwhelming uh amount
035of schools coming here on the weekend on a Sunday. Um, but it was very wellrun and I think our our team did very very well from my understanding. >> Trusty Ross. >> Um, so I I was able to attend the the dual match that the uh school was able to host. I point this out as I've said before. I usually don't go through my social calendar as I'm, you know, sometimes doing this as dad, not as uh a trustee. Um, but I pointed out because some of our girls took note that they were actually present for history and understand that uh, you know, for those who may not be familiar, Title 9 uh, is a piece of legislation that changed women's participation in athletics. And we do know to encourage girls to participate in athletics.
036Those girls are more likely to end up in the corporate boardroom. They are more likely to graduate from high school, go to college. They are more likely to get a four-year degree. They are less likely to be a teen parent. And they are less likely to do a whole host of other things that other programs do. Um, and while I had opportunities in my life to work for people like Billy Jean King and have those effects, it it just as important for those girls and boys that compete with them to watch history. They won't realize it now, but down the road for them to check that box. I think that's important. Um, and obviously, uh, going forward, I remind everybody, you know, lots of keyboard warriors and lots of things I kind of see around
037town. It does drive me a little nutty as uh just as both a parent and as an attorney when people misconstrue facts and arguments. I want everybody to keep asking questions. Questions sometimes get more questions. Advocate for your position, but there are comments and things that come out that people act like it's a mic drop. you know that for example the you know reports that this board sought out and are still getting numbers for and getting things for the fact that it's not here there's a vacuum they start filling in that vacuum with false information I watch several po postings where they start off with one item and say glorify one person and then they act as if they're the expert by the end of it as an individual they lack the credentials keep asking
038questions keep being critical for what's there it's part of that budget process you need to do the Same thing. I offer the same thing I've said the last two meetings. Number one, I'm avails. The budget is not an easy item and that is for the most educated person who's been through this. Um, but we do need a budget for those of us and I do recall when I was a student here, we face that austerity budget. That is a fearful thing for a student who is a junior senior in high school about the loss of some of those privileges. While it is an academic environment and that's where we need to be, that's their fear. That's their life. So from that standpoint, make it work. Don't accept something that's easy. Um or don't make the
039choice that's easy. That's one of the reasons I got involved on the board. I was given and told on many times this is the way it was done before. This is the way it's always going to be done here. That's simply not an acceptable answer. When there's better options, there's smarter people here. There are smarter people and better people teaching classes, working in our buildings that were here than when I was here. That's not knocking those that were here, but we've stepped up. So, they need to expect some and they need to we need to act like leaders and not just a bunch of followers. And I hope more of people who show up because I see a lot of the same faces here every week. We need you guys to advocate. It's not just
040being a board me questions. Do those things. So my soap box preach for the week. Thank you. >> Sure. Um I also had the privilege to attend civics day. was really incredible to see the work of our students, to see them advocate for issues that they believe in and are passionate about um apply their research skills to real world issues. It was it was awesome to say the least. Um kudos to all the teachers who made that happen. It was really great to be there. That's it. Thank you, Trusty Cheni. >> Yeah. Um thank you. I did want to make a comment on something uh that was said at the last meeting. I had to be remote and then I lost connection so I had to watch on YouTube so I couldn't really participate. But
041there were two speakers who talked um at the at the podium last week about project labor agreements and the current legislation in Albany. And the first speaker um made a comment about advice we were getting from somebody by the name of Bob Beckio. Bob Beckio is the former president of the William Floyd School District and he's the currently the executive director of the Nasso SuffK School Board. Um, and I am an executive committee member of the Nassau SuffK school board. So, I felt compelled to make a comment. I would have if I was here. Um, and I'm not really going to get into everything as if the person was here, but there are a few facts that are missing and I want to make sure everybody understands what the Nasso SuffK school board's position is
042on project labor agreements. The um Nassau Suffach School Board does not specifically oppose project labor labor agreements. The association opposes the legislation forcing districts to have to use project labor agreements. There is plenty of discussion whether or not they are beneficial or not. There are two studies, one done in 2001 by Cornell which says that they are favorable and one done in I believe 2009 from the new New Jersey Department of Labor which says that they cost on average 20% more for school district projects by using a project labor agreement. Um so there's two competing studies. The point is there isn't anything that's very recent. Um, what the association opposes is the loss of local control, forcing us to do this because what people may not understand is that any district is free to enter
043into a project labor agreement at any time that they want. It is not prohibited. This legislature is to make us have to do it. And it's interesting to note that the legislature is only for Long Island and it is not for New York State. So my question would be, if it's so great, why isn't it available to everybody in the state? And why is it just Long Island? It is important to note that yes, unions are they are right. They're losing wages to out of state companies and there are issues with that and that's not an issue I think school districts should be forced to fix. I think there are other avenues for that. I'm not an expert expert there. Um but it's just important to understand we oppose the loss of local control. Okay.
044What the association has asked since these two studies are old. We have asked the state and the the legislature I believe is in Nassau County. I believe it's Senator or Assembly Matero. I don't know him is working to push this legislature through this legislation through. We've asked for a study by the Rockefeller Institute to see if it is cost feasible to do that. They have rejected that because they want it on this election cycle. Right? So, nobody's saying it's bad. It's going to cost more. It's going to cost less. We're just asking for more information and to not lose the the control. We can enter into this whenever we want when we're doing a project. Every district can. So just don't force us through legislation to do something that you're not going to make school
045districts upstate do or in Buffalo or in Albany, the cities where it matters. Out in the rural counties, it probably is a little bit different. So I thought it was important to get that comment on the record to just counter balance um what was uh what was stated. In addition, I think the board needs to one of the speakers was a paid lobbyist and not a resident. And I think that should be noted that that person was paid for their opinion and to and to articulate that opinion here. So, not to say they don't agree with the legislation, but in fairness, the person's a paid lobbyist and he's paid by the um contracted unions to pass this legislation. So, I think that's important to note. That's it. That's all I got. Thank you. >> Thank
046you for that. Trust Doom. >> Um hi, just a couple things. One, civics day. Awesome. Music program concerts. Um they are open to the public of the chamber concert. Uh, I particularly like because it is the smaller groups and it's more I think you get to see the kids more than when there's a hundred of them on the stage. You get to see them when there's five. Um, so you know the cool calendars out so if you have a night come see the kids. Um, again music program I love. Um, I did get a couple of things from Dr. Raymond over at uh, Brook Haven. Um the first one is something that you know is for everybody. Uh they've been selected to do the blooming for good program. Again the reason this is important is
047for every uh bouquet that is sold the food pantry gets a dollar and the food pantry reaches many people not just Brook Haven family. It meets the whole South Country district. So there uh we're selected for February. who does not like flowers on Valentine's Day. So, if you're thinking of doing that, please consider using um Stop and Shop as your florist. Um the second thing which ties into civics day is the social science committee at Brook Haven which is a group that supports um supports and extends social studies initiatives in the school has pro provided staff with some activities throughout this current week that celebrate unity and gratitude that can be done uh within the classroom in honor of Dr. Luton uh Dr. Martin Luther King words out. Um I think it's fabulous that uh
048in the elementary level that the teachers are reaching out to have this uh initiative. We see it in the in the high school and in the middle school, but it's great to see it at the elementary level. So thought that was nice. >> Okay. So I leaving my comments about all the fun things like the music and for me going to civics day both days was fun. Um but impressive also for all the reasons that have already been stated by other trustees. Similarly, the sidebyside wrestling match I went to was um impressive. And now hearing about the historical nature of it, I I'm able to say, well, I was there for the first one at the Bport High School. Um, but I wanted to just focus on some of the uh some of the things
049that as trustees that we've been doing to improve the process. um so that we can show that this budget process is different from the way it's been in the past. You know, picking up on what Trustee Ross said about comments about things have always been done a certain way. This year it is being done differently. the board since Labor Day really has set a tone to ensure that there's going to be professional function, especially in regard to the budget process. And um as we get in in into it in combination with the special legislation resolution that we just did tonight being available in the event we need it. Um I think there's there's a level of confidence I'm feeling now that um right after Labor Day I did not have. So, I'm hoping other people
050are are feeling that as well. I've also taken advantage of uh some continuing education programs that have been made available by the office of the state controller. Um, and one uh I actually went to one this morning, attended one this morning. um they're done online and they will make the program and attachments available by email to me that I can forward to everybody once they come out. But um in particular it talked about the importance of monitoring the management letter that um the external auditor gives every year and this has been the first year when there have been major deficiencies that have been pointed out and it will be um our job to make sure that administration is on top of it which I I have heard they are. But we will be following up
051to make sure that the management uh letter has been responded to and that all of the recordkeeping requirements are being met. And now that we're going to be working with the controllers's office, we'll have an extra layer of support because they'll be looking at the process as well. Um in addition, Trustee Dilo and I um worked to arrange two sessions in a retreat which is an educational opportunity for board members. uh both of them were with Bob Veio and it about governing uh establishing the governance team meaning the board and the superintendent and governing during critical times uh like we're experiencing now because of the uh budget overspend and the ensuing deficit situation that we have. So those are some changes since Labor Day on the governance end that is an improvement um over last
052year and years before. That being said, um we are now up to public commentary and guide to uh board meetings. And this is where it's an opportunity for people uh to make comments. Each speaker is limited to three minutes. Um and we I have one card. Is there any other card? Just one. Um and the comments uh from the audience can be on any agenda item or later in the meeting a non-aggenda item. Um and the speaker there will not we will not entertain comments about personnel issues or an issue regarding a staff member or a student um staff and student privacy is protected under the law. So we have one speaker Gavin Rogers. >> Good evening. I want to be clear at the outset that I'm not here to contest the vote taking place
053tonight regarding my access. I'm here to help you, the board and South Country community understand the real impact of decisions like this one. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Gavin Rogers. I'm currently the assistant principal of Brooking Elementary. As of the vote taking place during this meeting, I will be accessed from my position at the end of next week and will no longer be employed by the South Country School District. Staff reductions often discussed as fiscal necessities and budget adjustments in schools. However, those decisions translate directly into fewer adults available to support students, families, and staff. That reality cannot be separated from student experience or school climate. As an assistant principal, my work has been alongside teachers, counselors, support staff, and administrators to help coordinate systems that ensure students receive
054timely academic, behavioral, and social emotional support. When leadership and support positions are reduced or shifted, that work does not disappear. It is redistributed across fewer people, and it often requires new adults to rebuild relationships and trusts that have already been established with students and families. During those transitions, schools reduce their capacity to intervene early, support staff proactively, and maintain the consistency that students and families rely on. [clears throat] The consequences of that reduction are predictable. Over time, schools experienced delayed interventions, increased reliance on reactive discipline, and greater strain on staff who are already carrying significant responsibilities. These effects may not always be immediately visible, but they are felt daily in classrooms, hallways, and offices throughout the building. I recognize that fiscal decisions are complex and difficult. At the same time, when those decisions result in
055fewer adults responsible for coordinating student supports, it's important for the community and the board to understand what is being lost beyond a budget number. On a personal level, this decision also affects my family. After 10 years of service in New York City schools, I'm now facing the loss of a position after just five months in this school district in South Country. When at a time when my wife and I are preparing to welcome a new child into our lives, I share this not to seek sympathy, but to acknowledge the real uncertainty that school staff and their families experience when positions are eliminated, especially midyear. We are not alone in this regard. I'm proud of the work of our staff at Brook Haven has done together to serve this community and I'm grateful for the opportunity
056to have served in a role here alongside Principal Raymond. [clears throat] I wanted to thank the teachers, some of who are here tonight, support staff, teaching assistants, custodial staff, office staff, responders, the school nurse and Dr. Raymond for their kindness, generosity, support over the last few weeks. My hope for you is that as these challenges continue to be addressed in South Country and as someone who could sit in these positions that these decisions are made with clear understanding of the long-term impact on students, staff, and families, not only financially, but educationally and humanly. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Rogers. Next will be F items for discussion or action. Mr. Bante Good evening. >> This evening we're going to uh introduce the budget development process and framework a as we embark on this journey. and
057um just want to start out with the potential schedule and what we anticipate presenting over the next uh several meetings. Um today is just really a introduction setting the stage if you will identifying the challenges that we have ahead of us and um then moving forward uh in February the first meeting in February. We're going to take a look at the property tax cap and where we are and also a look at the district's available revenues to support our 2627 budget. Um later in February at the second meeting, we're going to look at various expenditure sections of the budget, namely general support, transportation, and employee benefits. And then moving on to March, we'll be looking at curriculum and instruction. And then in later in March, the staffing analysis and uh April 1st will be the
058expenses and revenue update. So that'll bring us to April 22nd, which seems like it's right around the corner. Uh that's the date that we anticipate the board adopting a budget to present to the community. We do have the scheduled budget hearing on May 6th [snorts] and the annual vote and election on May 19th. Suffice to say also is that because of some of the challenges that we are facing, if necessary, um if there's any other meetings that we may have to suggest that to the board that we put in place, um that might be something that we have to do as we get through this process. Um, the other thing that I'd like to just mention is that besides the dates that we talked about for the district, there's other what I call key milestone
059dates that's very important for us to recognize uh where we keep an eye on the April 22nd budget adoption. And that's the March 1st date, which is um just about a little over a month away. And that's the date that we submit our um our property tax report card if you will to I'm sorry not the property tax record or the tax levy limit um to the state and um from there April 27th is when we submit the property tax report card to SED that March 1st date when we submit the uh the tax levy limit calculation to the controllers's office in the state in that submission we need to designate whether we anticipate um exceeding the budget cap or staying under the budget cap. That's a question that has to be answered on the
060document. Um suffice to say that um if we choose either one prior to the actual adoption of the budget, we can always go back and we can modify that information on that report. um April 29th, uh the budget must be completed and ready for distribution. Okay? And that's meets the deadline 7 days prior to the budget hearing, which as we indicated is on May 6th. And again, um June 16th, if a second budget vote is necessary, it's usually the second vote in second Tuesday in June. So the budget process um it really is a collaborative process. It's supposed to be a transparent process designed to ensure the fiscal responsibility and um educational continuity. The key stakeholders is many stakeholders from the board of ed who plays a significant role as well as the superintendent and
061district administration. Um, we involve all of our professional partners, the our attorneys, bond council, um, as you heard the superintendent mention, the office of the state state controller and SED will be our strategic partners uh, in this process as well. Um, we do have a budget advisory committee working with working with us on the 2627 budget. um school administration and all the employee bargaining units as well as community groups and PTAs. Um so once again this is a collaborative process that brings us through the um the ultimate culmination of the budget vote. >> [clears throat] >> Some of the challenges that we uh that we've been talking about over the last few meetings is that uh we have to put in place a three-year recovery plan. Uh and that's the development of 2627 budget is
062part of that plan. It's not excluded from the plan. And the reason being is that school districts are not legally permitted to operate with a structural operating deficit. So um we are presenting a multi-year recovery plan to restore our fiscal balance which is going to include combination of target expenditure reductions and operational efficiencies phase structural budget corrections restoring budgetary balance and deficit financing to stabilize operations while permanent solutions are implemented. And most importantly for the district, we need to avoid the compounding of a structural imbalance. So doing nothing is not an acceptable method for the district at this point. [snorts] As we saw, the superintendent uh presented uh the midyear reductions and as he indicated and I would like to re reiterate, these are not easy decisions. These is these are decisions that we recognize
063affect people's lives. Um they are they are not taken softly. uh we understand the implications but nonetheless um it's something that has to be done to correct the structural budget imbalance. Um, one of the things that's worth noting here on why we might do a midyear reduction is that keep in mind that whatever savings that we generate this year midy year, those savings are doubled as we go into 2627. So for instance, if these particular savings generated a quarter of a million dollars for the district this year, as [snorts] we take these items out of the budget next year for a full year, we've just yielded another half a million dollars in savings. Okay? But we've done it over a period of two [clears throat] years. Okay? >> [clears throat] >> This is um just
064a little something to to kind of emphasize again the limited or lack of other resources that will be available to the district uh as we develop the 2627 budget. And what you have here is something that you probably saw before. This is a schedule of the district's reserves and fund balance. And if you look at the left hand column, that's how we finished up June 30th, 2025. You'll see that we have a remaining $15.3 million as we spoke about previously. The significance of this to realize is that that bottom line above the total unassigned fund balance that has a minus $1.8 million Okay, there is no additional revenues to fund any portion of the district's 2627 budget from fund balance. We do have some existing restricted reserves that could be used. So this partic this
065tells you that we are going to be very limited on the amount of resources and a lot of it is really going to fall on the tax tax rate, if you will, or the tax levy. Um, and that's where district is going to have to make some critical decisions when we get to that point, whether we stay under the cap or we make a decision to pierce the cap. And it's something that um I think uh we we shouldn't be afraid to talk about. It's a reality that we're probably going to be addressing as we get further down the road. And it's just I think it's important for everyone just to be prepared for it. Um to kind of restate the challenges that we have to overcome. Um it's not it's not just budgeting for
066one fiscal year for 2627. We're overcoming what had happened in 2425. We know that we overexpended the uh legal approved budget by about $3.5 million. We know that our revenues were actually less than what we budgeted which compounded the problem. We also know that the uh unassigned fund balance as we previous previously saw is at a negative 1.8 million. Okay. So clearly those trends from 2425 as we talked about has transposed into 2526. And at this particular point in time I can just share with the board that we have approximately it's not a finite number but we have an approximate $10 million deficit. And what that means is is that we have a $10 million shortfall in revenues over expenditures at this point. Okay? I.e. that's where we talked about earlier the necessity for funding
067to come in to have to fill that void. Okay. Um at this particular point there will be no other option. The district will have to do something. So, part of our goal in and part of the three-year plan is that um we're going to present to the board a realistic 2627 budget that represents your program cost, both your instructional and both on your um support side as well. Um we do have an eye on restoring fund balance over a period of years. That's something that has to be done. Um, we are constantly evaluating the district's cost structure to identify areas where we can reduce with minimal impact both the instructional and support programs. Uh, prudent budgeting uh so this because there is no unassigned fund balance. So we don't have additional revenues to support the
068budget from that end. Um, uncertainty with state aid complicates long range planning. I can't share with the board. I'm not going to go into detail, but the state aid runs were recently um released for the school district. And when you look at the pure numbers and you back out UPK because UPK does not belong in the general fund, we have a 1,141,000 less in state aid for 2627. So right off the bat, we're starting out in a deficit position with state aid. The major decrease in that category is building aid. Your building aid has dropped off over $1.2 million from the current year to propose for next year. >> Just make a quick comment. >> Yes, sir. I I didn't mean to show you but this is important because this was a hot topic three
069years ago and people need to understand that when they see that negative that is directly directly related to the bond uh mismatch on the bonds from uh what is it 15 16 years ago. >> So if you remember that from three years ago that you know the revenue from the aid stopped at 15 million but our bills go for 20 years. >> This 1.1 million or 2 million did you just say >> 1.2 2 million is directly related to that and I just want to make sure that that was stated publicly for the record. Thank you. >> That's an excellent point. Um the other thing just to tag on to that to um when you're looking at it in long term or long range, you need to also contemplate what other capital projects you're going
070to put on the radar. So you complete those projects and you generate building aid. Right now your building aid is going in the wrong direction. We do have projects that we're currently in the process of. The EPC is one of them. And as soon as we get those those projects complete and those final course reports filed with the state, uh the district will begin to start seeing some building aid come back up. So, um and again, the reason why I mentioned that because when we prepare a budget, we're not only looking at one year, uh we're also looking at years past that. and 2728 the district does have about $2.7 million of debt service [clears throat] that's falling off. Okay. So that might be an opportunity for the district to look at some capital work
071to backfill [clears throat] that where it doesn't add a significant burden to the budget if you're maintaining the same expenditure level and you'll be able to address continue to address your capital needs and to continue to address um trying to generate building aid as we go forward. um the rise in employee cost centers, employee salaries and health benefits um as contributions to pensions and programs. Um this is something that you know I I can't sugarcoat to the board. Um I I just in health benefits alone, I got done completing the analysis and the projections for the 2627 budget where we are and I could say that between the budget deficiencies this year, between the increase in cost in health insurance, we are looking at a budget-to-budget increase in health insurance of over $3.2 million. So
072the challenges are there. Challenges are real. These are real costs and we have to address them as we put together the entire budget for 2627. But that's just one piece of some of the challenges that we're facing going forward. Now keep in mind when you see those type of increases and we just talked about we have decreasing revenues, we have no unappropriated fund balance to apply. the challenges get bigger and bigger and that's why the budget reductions and the cost savings become so important to bring us back to where we need to be to align our revenues and with our expenditures. Um external factors uh they happen all the time interest rate market conditions the district will be borrowing um our fiscal condition will impact our interest rate. That's just a fact of the market
073that will happen. Um, and again, if we talk about [clears throat and cough] debt financing and debt service, that particular debt service has to go into the budget. It's not excluded from the tax cap, which is very important. It's b it's outside the cap. And you're talking about depending on what you may have to borrow, adding anywhere from 2.3 to $2.7 million just in debt service to carry that going forward for multiple years. And again, as we talked about earlier, we're not talking about going out and borrowing $12 million at once. We're going to do this in a very systematic, logical way which would have the least amount of fiscal impact to the district and to the budget. Okay. Fiscal stress. I'm under this every single day I come to work. Fiscal stress. This is
074a um this is a um I want to say a a guide if you will that the office of the state controller started many years ago. Um it's a it's a wonderful evaluation tool in my opinion because it takes into consideration different financial indicators as well as outside environmental indicators and systematic risk of the district. this a lot of the fiscal well all of the fiscal information in these particular reports are compiled from the district's annual financial statements the SD3 and they come right from there and this really gives you um an indicator if the district is actually going through fiscal stress and it's not meant to be I got you it's meant to be an early warning signs and promote the timely and the and the responsible planning for school districts. And if you
075look at these indicators and you see where you are from year to year, you have a good idea of the things that you need to evaluate or the things you need to address. So, one of the things the controller office does is they give you a three-year um kind of chart that gives you fiscal stress on one side and the environmental stress on the other. This year, finishing up 2425, the district has a fiscal stress indication of 55, which is moderate fiscal stress and it will go into the detail. We are 10 points away from the highest category of severe fiscal stress which would be at a 65. You'll notice that on the environmental side we have no designation but we are on the very low end of that threshold. I know this is something
076that um the audience probably cannot read and I apologize for that but I did not do this. the controllers's office put this together. So, basically, this is the guide that's used for the fiscal stress score. And the fiscal stress um takes into consideration year-end fund balance, your operating deficit, your cash position, and your reliance on short-term borrowing. So, all the way over on the right you'll see is the designation where the district did get its 55 score. You'll see the table at the bottom which gives you the point range of how they come up with that. So we have a clear indication of those things that are affecting that score. And suffice to say we do not want to get up into the significant physical stress area in which we are 10 points away from.
077The next piece is the environmental. I kind of did this in two slides because there was a lot of information on here. And the environmental aspect of this particular report, it shows poverty, student teacher ratio, teacher turnover, and tax base. And you can see all of those things are rated on the far right based on the demographics of the school district and the reporting. And then the lower half of the environmental report basically indicates budget support and that's the percentage that the voters uh support and approve the district's budget and also the last category English language learners which you'll see that we scored 15. So the total points we have on environmental is 28.3 and if you look down at the chart 0 to 29.9 is no designation. So the district does not have any
078de designation in environmental stress. All of our stress is in fiscal at this point. Just kind of um trying to sum things up. Really the final piece in the budget process and this is what everybody really boils down to is the property taxes. Um, it usually generates the most interest to the to governing boards and taxpayers. Um, and it really is a necessary part to balance the budget. And I put a little formula up here, not to complicate it because this is not rocket science. The way this works, and of course, you start out with your total budget appropriations. You subtract out your estimated revenues. you your uh appropriated reserves and appropriated fund balance. Now we know for us 26 27 there'll be zero appropriated fund balance and we know that there'll be limited um
079appropriated reserves and then the balance of that is the amount to be raised by taxes. So very simply, um, usually your tax levy, for lack of a better phrase, that's your plug number on the bottom after you take into consideration your total spending plan and what revenues do I have to fund that plan. And then the tax levy fills in the rest. And at the next meeting in February when we take a look at the property tax capital levy um the the calculation we'll get a better idea on what that number could be uh as we continue into the budget development process. Okay. So, just in uh summarizing what's next for the budget and financial planning uh in February, uh we're going to talk about taxes. As we mentioned, we're going to review the tax
080levy cap calculation. We're going to continue building the 2627 budget. Uh we're at a very very good place at this particular point. We have met with all the various departments. we have all those numbers in. Um I'm happy to say that I'm probably threequarters of the way in budgeting salaries and as I indicated to the board last time. This process is very different from what it has been in the past. The salaries and the people are being budgeted person by person, budget code by budget code. And when I compare that analysis to some of the budget numbers in prior years, there's some discrepancy. Okay. So, as I mentioned earlier, when the board does receive its 2627 budget document, I'm going to be comfortable that it's going to be a credible document and bring credibility back
081to that budget document and represent your cost of your instructional and support programs. Okay. um we are going to anticipate um all costs and their impact and then as we get to that point and we get to a final number in all likelihood we might have to go back and we might have to reduce that number further. Okay. So over the next couple of months suffice to say it is going to be a very intense process to get to where we need to be. balance the budget um in relation to the property tax cap to decide whether we're going to be under decide whether we're going to be over that cap and the strategy of borrowing and when we're going to borrow and how much we're going to borrow. So all of that is happening
082as we speak and as the next few meetings go by we'll be able to finalize and bring closure to a lot of those particular issues that we talked about. um the oversight piece on this. We talked about uh not only are um the people in district looking at this, putting this together, but also um as we mentioned, the controllers's office is going to be working. I spent uh the last week providing three or four years of documentation to the controllers's office for them to do their preliminary work. I expect that probably in the next week I will get a letter from them where they'll come into the district and we'll be able to work hand in hand and I could you know give them what we have so far and have them confirm and assess
083uh what we're doing as well. So the oversight is a big piece. Um, as we go through this, we stay very close to our fiscal adviserss, our legal counsel, uh, both bond counsel and both legal counsel. And, um, that's just the way the process is done. Cannot do some of these things in a vacuum. Um, state support. Um, when we talk about the special legislation, we're going to have to be working with our legislators to go forward to have put something in place. So, we're going to be leveraging um a lot of the goodwill, if you will, on the part of South Country School District um to bring that forward. And then stability. Um our ultimate goal is when whatever we do to correct the ship and to write the ship in this three-year recovery
084plan, we have to bring stability to the district and sustainability. You could no longer anytime that it becomes a hiring question or whatever, a question has to be asked. Do we have money in the budget? Did we budget for it? Okay. And I think that is that is critical to make sure that you don't return to where you were in the past and to fix this and to fix it once and for all and maintain it. So with that um I have nothing else other than maybe ask answer questions concerns >> any questions >> um ju just to Mr. Belmonte with regard to uh pointing out the the numbers and the confusion from years past that some of the corrections that you made the building the staffing on the buildings actually reflect the staffing that
085was in the building that there was some mixing going on there before so that the the ability to make decisions or have clarity in those numbers is improved over prior years. >> That's correct. questions over here. >> Thank you, Mr. >> Gante. Thank you. >> Next on the items for discussion, President Hayes, is our policy 4526, computer use and instruction. This is a second reading. We'll ask for a word approval. Uh just to summize, this policy speaks to anytime we use any of the technology within district, how the district basically owns uh the internet and its usage. And so that we would want to be mindful that our students and staff use our electronic equipment including access to the internet responsibly. Uh we provide training to this regard to avoid fish uh fishing schemes. That's
086ph fish fishing. um anything that may cause some vulnerability to the school district. Sometimes uh much to this the dismay of students or or staff can we block access to certain websites and that's because you know anything that is seen as a potential risk or an access point to ransomware or viruses we make sure we shut down. >> Okay. So, um, as a second reading just to to fill in it, went through the policy committee and it came out for a first reading at a prior meeting and now the process is on second reading. Um, there's a recommendation to approve this policy. So, is there a motion to approve policy 4526? A motion by vice president dilo, second by trustee calderon. Any questions or discussion on this one? Seeing that was no question but so
087I see no questions. All in favor? Um it's unanimously approved. >> Moving on to curriculum agenda items. The administration recommends approval of curriculum items reflected in schedules G1 and G2. >> Is there a motion to approve items G1 and G2? Uh, Vice President Dillo. Um, Trustee Calderon questions discussion. I do have uh just question for clarity so that I understand this that with regard to uh the approval of consent items. You have curriculum instruction and accountability item number G3 that uh we have the title on the page appears to be confusing but am I looking at uh student assessments like that this appeals the the title reads cse CPSE and field recommendations are these based on then individual students the documents a little cryptic >> um I'm not seeing field trip. >> Yeah, I'm not
088seeing that either. >> So G3 G3 is basically a title. We're not voting on that. We're voting on just G1 and G2, which are the CC. >> G3 is like a summary of what's above it of the other two. >> Right. But what I guess what I'm asking I'm using that as the reference point, the numbers. >> So the what we're what we're approving is C1 and C2. situations. >> Those are the CSSE case numbers. >> Those are the case numbers that correspond one and two, >> right? >> Oh, yeah. They tie back to the >> just G1 and G2. Just because that field trip piece was it opened the door for me is reading it. It was a little >> Okay. I still don't see the field trip >> the title under G3. curriculum
089instruction and accountability agenda. >> Agenda items. >> No, you open. >> No, if you open up the document >> itself under like the fifth line down is title. >> It says cse then and then field trip. >> Field trip recommendations. >> Uh >> there are none. >> But there are none. >> There are I understand that. My point is attention to detail makes a difference. You're asking me to look at field trip recommendations and referring to G1 G2 and they are not included. >> Okay. Now, >> am I missing something else that's there? >> No, no, there's no field trip recommendation. >> I'm just ask please pay attention to that. This is been a continuing uh request with regard to just the oversight for special ed. [clears throat] >> Correct. >> Okay. >> All right.
090So, we had a motion and a second for G1 and G2. >> All in favor? >> Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Didn't Didn't we >> There was a motion. So, we open to discussion. >> Didn't have discussion. >> And his question was about that. >> So, Debbie and Erica. >> Okay. I All right. Never mind. Okay. I >> Okay. So, um all in favor of approving G1 and G2 unanimously approved. Moving on to personnel agenda items. The the administration recommends approval of items located in H1 through H16. >> Is there a motion to approve H1 through H16? A motion by Trustee Pelisetta. Second by >> A second. >> Second by Trustee Pacimi. Questions or discussions here? question. >> Yeah. >> Do we know that all of these clubs are going to be filled or are
091these just there? And if they're not filled, I know we talked about, you know, not moving forward with clubs that didn't have enough participation. >> Those clubs are being discontinued. So, um, if you look at the effective date, they have effective end date of 131. >> Oh, these are Okay, that's a little confusing. Why would that be on the >> because they were previously approved to go through the entire year. Oh, so we prorrated these amounts in the last thing to to for what was worked and these being okay >> and these are the ones that were canceled because of lack of participation. >> That is correct. >> All right. So we had a motion and a second and a question. Any other questions? All in favor? Unanimously approved. >> Next we go to business
092agenda items. The administration recommends approval of business items reflected in schedules I1 and I2. >> Is there a motion to approve items I1 and I2? Motion by Trustee Felicetta, second by Trustee Ross. Questions or discussion? Seeing none, all in favor? Unanimously approved. No more parts. person. >> Yes. I want to um acknowledge Tara Diamond who's over here. She'll be joining uh our staff as a permanent substitute. So, I want to welcome you to the district and thank you for coming to the board meeting. >> Thank you very much. I appreciate the opportunity. >> Thank you. Thank you for the introduction. >> Yes. Thank you uh for the reminder. >> Um okay, no more comments. Any closing remarks by any trustees? Seeing none on that side. Any comments? Trusty Calderon. All right. Motion to adjurnn, please.
093Trustee Ross. Second by Trustee Feletta. All in favor. Unanimously approved. We're now adjourned. Thank you very much.