001C. Thank you, Vice President Barry. The administration recommends the approval of consent items reflected in schedule C1 through C7. C6 seven refresh. Thank you. Do I have a motion for Yeah, waiting on line to refresh as well. Sorry about that. Do I have a second? Chery police. Uh, any discussion? All those in favor? The motion passes. [Music] So then now we'd like to uh invite Superintendent Santana for the superintendent report. Thank you. This is a lot of pressure. All right. Thank you, Vice President Barry. Welcome to everyone tonight. Um, we're going to go over some just things that have happened in the school district, but I'm really excited to celebrate tenure and retirements as well. So, we're going to get right to it. I'll begin first with our Vern W. concert that I have the
002pleasure of attending. Um, and art show. I can't say enough about our music staff, our art staff, and the way they inspire our students to perform. Uh, the concert at Chris was amazing. It was the first time I saw our students perform with ukuleles. It was ultra cute. So, big shout out to our music staff, the staff at Chris, and all the students and family members that support our music programs. This was followed by a concert over at Frank Pong for our fourth graders who are just embarking on the string instruments in more formal fashion. And we had a problem. It was a good problem. The problem was we had too many students participating in our music program. So that that basically prohibited us from hosting the concert in the courtyard. So we had to
003move the concert behind the building as you can see. Um there are tons of kids performing and they were fantastic. They did um several scales uh with their instruments and they just challenged some pretty difficult scales but they were like amazing. So big shout out again to our music staff and our staff at Frank D. Long. that was followed not chronologically but just in terms of age order at a concert at our high school our first of two spring concerts which was fantastic. Um it featured various performing groups and again one of the things I always find really outstanding about South Country is just the sheer number of students who participate in our music programs. It really was fantastic to see our various groups perform there. That was followed by our second spring concert because
004one concert isn't enough for all the talent we have in our district. Um um and what I really enjoyed about this concert is they uh performed the symphony which is when we combine our orchestra band together to put some wonderful music together. But one of the selections I picked was called um Godzilla East Los Vegas and I was happy to have made a cameo and a slideshow that was put together by one of our students which is really like brilliant and funny and she actually timed the slides to the ship with the music. So it was a great time. Um really a fantastic evening. So again, shout out to all of our music teachers, but not just our music teachers. We also had student art display, which is equally as fantastic. We then had our
005um third grade moving up ceremonies, getting our moving up ceremonies, which happened today, this morning. In fact, the first one I attended was at Burn W. Prince, which is followed by me attending moving up ceremony at Brook Haven Elementary School. Um, once again, the third graders moving up at Ultra Cute. We did songs for their parents, questions of the delight with their parents. We're really proud of our third graders who are going to be moving on to Frank P. Long. I'll be attending another moving up ceremony at Brookville tomorrow as well as the other moving up ceremonies in the subsequent days. We also had an opportunity to celebrate student achievement. First I had the privilege of attending our annual superintendent um super uh validictorians lunchon um where we honored Kashiva Shaw who was will be
006attending Rice University on the quest scholarship that she earned one of the very few graduate students across the nation to earn a scholarship which earned her a full ride to Rice University. She'll be studying um mechanical engineering. Um and she's one of the three sisters who graduated Belor High School who are all pursuing engineering degrees. So I'm really proud of Kashiva and our staff uh for inspiring her and providing the education that prompted her for this milestone. I also had the privilege of attending our college signing day. We have 21 high school athletes that continue to compete at the collegiate level. Some of them at D1 level, some D2, some D3. Um 21 students is pretty remarkable for a school our size. really proud of all of our coaches and teachers who prepped them uh
007to continue their competitiveness in college. We also had a senior awards night and scholarship night which is amazing to have 100 plus kids on stage all being recognized for various things from their academic achievements to their character traits. It was a great source of Clipper Pride. But I have to show you this little photo here, which is small, but that's not click of pride. And this is a photo of picking pointing at our seats. To give context to that photo, 3 years ago when I first started as a superintendent, this little sophomore girl came up to me and rushed up to me all in. And she said, "Mr. Superintendent, what are you going to do about this auditorium?" And she actually got a petition together, signed my students to refurbish the auditorium. So what I
008told her was school districts, public schools work slowly, but after our graduation June 27th, we'll host an orientation here on June 30th, and then we're ripping everything out and finally renovating this auditorium. So I apologize for the appearance of our seats, but next year at this time, we'll have a brand new and beautiful auditorium. So more South Country happenings and I do want to talk about us celebrating our diversity. First, I want to talk about unified basketball. Unified basketball is just an opportunity for students who have special needs to compete at a high school level. They replicate varsity games where there's officiating and scoring and the kids were fantastic. I mean, one of the things that's most amazing and this is a shot touch shots of one of our students scoring two points. That's two
009points for Bport. But everybody helps out. The opposing team helps out our players. And what I love about it is it's a win for our entire community and it's a win for the sense of community and just being there for these children. So they also feel a sense of belonging and we appreciate who they are. Along those lines, um Red Cove High School and Middle School's uh uh GSA club participated in the pride parade along with our trusty police on um this past Sunday, which is a great event to celebrate just diversity and people and the holiday identities. We all want our students to feel a sense of belonging. It's one of our core values. So really happy that we got to participate in the past pride parade. This is the first time I actually
010missed it because I was also participating in a parade. I do want to share this because I participated in the Puerto Rican Day parade in New York City. I am a member of a Latino fraternity. I am not Puerto Rican. We celebrate Puerto Rican culture. It's just like St. Patrick's Day. Everybody's Irish. Um on St. Patrick's Day in New York City, everybody's Puerto Rican during the Puerto Rican Day parade. So, it's not just to represent not just my fraternity, but um South Country at this event. Uh I've met some elected officials. There were rumors that Bad Buddy was around, but I did not see him. And finally, along these lines, I really want to give a shout out to our mult multicultural club. This was advised by Mr. Revela Green. Two of our students, Melissa
011Vargas and Rosemary and you see photographed there. They won uh building bridges award from the Jewish Community Relations uh Board of Long Island for work they did to sort of create a work that's on anti-semitism. So all these things together really sort of shine a light on the type of different that we are where we appreciate all of our differences. We celebrate each other. We also look out for one another. So I'm really proud of all these accomplishments. So this is only possible through the diligence and hard work of our teaching staff, our support staff, our administrators. So this brings me to our next and more celebratory uh moment in our board meeting is recognizing our tenure recipients. Um just in terms of the way I feel about tenure. Tenure is basically a vote of
012confidence uh uh basically our sort of uh belief in you and the impact to make in years to come. I remember being awarded tenure in various districts I worked in. Um and the feeling I got basically was a feeling of inspiration. It actually made me want to work harder and do more for my community that really invested in me. So u I'm really proud of all the staff members who will be earning this recognition tonight. So, as I call your name, I'm just going to ask they come down um to be recognized. We're going to take a group photo. Um I'm going to call everybody's name, even if they're not here tonight. Some people had some conflicts, but I do want to recognize everybody who's recommended to attend. Um first, we have Sarah Bunk from
013Bport Middle School. Congratulations to her. She could not be here. We have Daniel Walsh from Belort Middle School. Lesie Taylor, Brook Haven Elementary School. [Music] Anamaria Tiknaki from Brook Elementary School. [Applause] Emily Dis from Brooken Elementary School. Erica Hawthorne from Brook Elementary School. Diana Marino from Brook Elementary School. Danielle Merc from Brook Elementary School. and Mr. Anthonyo from Brook Elementary School. Moving on. Uh, she cannot be here tonight, but we want to recognize Claice Porter from Vern. Chris Elementary School. Catherine Janelli from Frank P. Long. Brenda Landetta from Frank P. Long Elementary School. Amy Aluchi from Bel High School. representing our special education department at the South Country annex, Miss Jessica Crush. Also representing in her capacity as a chair for special education, Miss Erin. and from our district office bishop is Jen Sigin. So
014at this point I'm going to defer from our PR to take group photo from our tender recipients and the board members would like to join them. The board wanted How's my congratulations again? [Music] Now we're moving on to a group of staff members who are going through something that's somewhat bittersweet. and that is retirement. Um, when I speak to people who are just on the cusp of retirement, I always feel like they're floating on air, but at the same time, I know it's tough sometimes when you forge relationships with people for many, many years to sort of let those relationships go. But I want to wish all of our retirees a fantastic retirement. Wish you all the best of luck. And this will be a little different. We're going to call you down one by
015one to your respective administrators to recognize you. So, first on our list of retirees is Miss Susan Sip. Come on down. [Applause] All right, here we go. So, Sue has been in South Country Central School District for over 50 years, starting as a kindergarten student at Vern W. Pritz Elementary, then as a parent, a grandparent, and a math and computer science teacher at Belport High School for 28 years. She was the valadictorian of Belport High School and the captain for soccer and volleyball as well as a national honor society and student council officer. Belleport High School was also where she met and later married her high school sweetheart Joseph the third. After beginning her career in engineering, she began teaching at Eastport and Santa Riches and coaching volleyball at Longwood. Her heart was always in
016her alma mater, Belort, and she wanted to help those at South Country. In 1997, she seized the opportunity to teach at Belport High School to help those who struggled in math and to share her love for problem solving and computer programming. She has enjoyed the challenge of teaching both inclusion and advanced math in computer science classes. She has put her heart into developing challenging courses like honors pre-calculus, AP Calculus, and AP computer science. Through the years, she has served as adviser for student council and junior national honors society, founded the AP computer science program and served as the math department chairperson. With the best interest of students at heart, she volunteered on the National Honor Society Faculty Advisory Council, Belport High School Eligibility, and other BOE and BTA committees, as well as as a parent
017representative for teams and classes throughout South Country Central School District. As a Belleport Varsity football team parent volunteer for nine years, she organized golf outings, championship dinners, cookie baking, breakfast, and community service events. When asked about what she will miss most about South Country, she says that she will especially miss the daily interactions with her amazing students and working alongside many dedicated, talented, and caring colleagues. She says South Country and I will always be part of each other. After years of teaching, there's no limit to the number of fond memories she has. Some of her favorites include inspiring her awesome students with activities like Pi Day, video and recipe projects, raffles, and team contests. She has enjoyed volunteering, the faculty competitions, especially volleyball, spirit month, Bport football, and homecoming. Some of her best memories were
018made in these roles where she was able to get to know students, athletes, parents, faculty, administrators, and community members. In retirement, she plans to enjoy hobbies, traveling the world with her husband, reading, and coding. She is especially excited to spend more time with her beautiful family, including her three children, Connor, Jessica, and Cole, all kind, caring, and successful Belort alumni. their amazing spouses, Sabrina Maxwell, and three bright, incredible grandsons, our future Belort alumni. When asked what advice she might want to share with the teachers at the start of a career, she says, "Teaching is a work of pride, spirit, and heart. Work like a captain with diligence and dedication to your students. Play like a pirate with a fun and adventurous spirit and class. Value those who share the storm with you. They are the
019ones who will help you write the ship. Stay positive, work hard, and make great things happen. Inspire, laugh, and have fun. Take it to infinity and beyond. Sue, I know I can speak for the entire Belark High School admin team when I can say that you truly will be missed. I want to thank you for all the pride, spirit, and heart you have brought to our building each and every day. You have been a tremendous role model for not just our students, but also for our staff. We wish you the best in your retirement. You certainly deserve it. Congratulations. [Applause] Thank you. We're going to just quickly recognize two more retirees who could not make it tonight. Mr. Alan Kerman and Mr. William Light. [Applause] We're both Cornell alumni. Big red. Amazing. [Music] [Applause] [Music]
020All right, moving on. We're going to move on to Delport Middle School. I ask Dr. Coulson to join me. First for this evening is Mr. John Eli. [Applause] We're uh we're really sad as far as uh to see Mr. Delaney go. Uh as far as Mrs. Delaney has worked in the South Country School District for 18 years. Uh in his last nine years, he's worked as the chief at Belport Middle School. I was sharing with him this morning that I've uh learned a lot from him as far as his uh leadership. He's helped uh grow a department. He's been able to uh mentor a lot of uh custodians that come in as subs or part-time and they've been able to work their ways in becoming uh full-time employees. And uh that's again to the uh
021leadership of Mr. Delaney often times I would see him in the summer and um you know August comes around the two hardest parts of uh of opening a school is opening a building and closing a building and John always makes sure we're ready to go in August and he's always been able to close out the building uh which is very uh very fortunate for that and uh again for his leadership. uh he is some of his fond memories of is uh I think that he would often wake the rooster up in the morning because he's always there bright and early. And as far as his uh fond memories of seeing the students as a uh send off for the Frost Valley and the DC trips and being able to uh support that and making sure
022the building's open and ready as well as also on the vote days, he's there before 500 a.m. and uh just making things happen. So, we are truly uh going to miss him, but we know that he's going to uh continue to do well. Uh and also, I really would like to honor him as he is a a Navy veteran. Uh he served and I just again uh want to wish him and his family great success as they uh move towards uh retirement. I'm trying to encourage him to be a consultant uh just because of his knowledge base is it takes years to develop that and when you have that you want to hold on to and uh so that he will continue to uh advise it's great I'd be on interviews and he'd be like
023that's right um this one needs a little more work for me here and uh he knows procedures knows protocols has kept everyone safe uh he's also um my uh fourth assistant principal he's a psychologist in the building. He's a social worker. So many times he's a teacher. Uh so many times uh staff would come and he like Dr. Coulson already took care of that. Um and a you know sometimes it wouldn't um wouldn't always be the most pleasant of visits but uh he would take care of those things and again we are truly going to miss you and uh we are very proud to have been able to I've been proud to be able to work with you these last nine years. Congratulations. Mr. Steven Peterson [Applause] I have to say this before Dr. Cton
024talks. Students at Bel Park Middle School love this man. They love this man. He does this trick with a broomstick. That's the last thing. That's okay. Um yes. Uh we this is a it's kind of fitting that the two of them are retiring with no one else in the building. Uh these are these are true heroes. Um if you visited Belort Middle School, you know who Stephen is. Um he makes his presence fell. Uh he's worked in the uh district for 134 years. I'm sorry that was a typo. Uh 34 years. uh I think the 16 on the night and the rest on the day shift and he is just truly just amazing. The energy that he comes in with and has uh from morning till till day is just amazing. He there's nothing that
025uh he wouldn't do for a for a student, for a staff member, for a visitor. Uh it's just um it's uh when I grow up I want to be I want to be like Steve. Um so uh you know so some of his highlights that he's had throughout his year has a lot but uh this year he um was able to uh be in the uh school musical Matilda Jr. Uh I'm not sure how that worked out. I was in the musical the year before. I was waiting for my invite and next thing you know Steven got my part. Um and Steven was the chef uh as far as in Matilda uh Jr. Uh he got autographs. He gave me his autograph and also the uh he kept cooking uh because he then went on
026to the Julian uh basketball game uh and where he's there and he uh said that Dr. Yellow gave a elbow around the foul line. So he went to the free throw line. I'm not sure if him and Dr. have to work something out before you leave. Um we do have HR here though. Um, just joking as far as but he went to the foul line and all the kids were chanting, you know, your shoes, your shoelaces aren't tied. He said he probably would have made it because that's one of uh Steven's line that he will go through. So today I purposely you can't see I have buckled shoes. There's no shoelaces so he's not going to be able to get me but he's like he's always gotten me. And um you know Stephen is just
027truly truly amazing. He says in his retirement uh he's going to go on a sub list not uh in his retirement he's going to spend time with his family his beautiful and lovely wife and uh just be able to work and uh and relax. I don't know about that. See, he's he's a worker. Um, we are truly truly going to uh to miss you and it has just been a real treat for me these nine years working with you and uh there's nothing else that that I can say other than thank you and we're going to miss you. All right. At this point, I'm going to ask Stephanie Rosinski to come on down and we're going to honor the retirees from Frank. I would like to invite Miss Christine Kowski. [Applause] It is a pleasure
028to recognize Christine Kowski as we celebrate her well-earned retirement. Miss Kicowski began her teaching career in 1993 in the Westbury School District where she worked with students from preK through 2 grade. In 1998, she returned to her roots by joining the South Country School District, teaching fifth grade at Frank P. Long, the very school she once attended as a student. Over the years, Miss Picowski served as a math specialist, a fourth grade teacher, and an inclusion team member, always bringing warmth, dedication, and heart to her work. She cherished the friendship she built and often said how lucky she felt to work with such amazing colleagues. Among her finest memories are her years in cluster B filled with laughter, learning, and collaboration. Though she's not sure what's next, we know her future is full of possibilities.
029Thank you, Mrs. Wicowski for your years of service, your impact on students and your kindness to all. You will be deeply missed and congratulations on your retirement. Mhm. I would like to invite Miss Deborah Pedra up, please. It is my pleasure to honor Deb Pedra as we celebrate her retirement and 24 years in education. 23 of them right here in the South Country Central School District. Miss Pedra began as a substitute teacher at Brook Haven Elementary School in 2002 and joined Frank P. Long as a fifth grade teacher in 2004, the same year her youngest daughter started kindergarten. She spent 15 wonderful years in cluster C, forming lasting friendships and creating countless memories and then continued to bring that same energy and care to fourth grade over the past six years. Miss Pedra has always
030focused on helping students grow, not just academically, but emotionally, instilling confidence and compassion in every child she fought. From moving up ceremonies and field trips to cluster C auctions and tugof-war, she brought her heart to everything she did. What she will miss most are the connections she's built with her students and colleagues, and without a doubt, they'll feel the same. As she begins this next chapter filled with travel and time with her loved ones, we thank Miss Pedra for the joy, dedication, and warmth she brought to our school community. Congratulations, Miss Pedra. You will be deeply missed. Our [Applause] next retiree from Frank Law, Korea Glaspus, cannot be here tonight, but I just want to give her an acknowledgement and welcome to this point. I'd like to call up Dr. Rebecca Raymond from Brooken Elementary
031School. [Applause] First, I want to congratulate all of our retirees as well as all of our tenure recipients. I would like to acknowledge Mrs. Lois Harold. She cannot be here with us tonight, but we wish to thank her for her many, many years of service. At this time, I'm happy to ask Mrs. Greta Kiss if she would come up, please. [Applause] [Music] I've had the privilege of working with Mrs. Kiss over the past several years. She began working in the South Country Central School District in 2010. She worked in both Brook Haven and Frank Pong as a teaching assistant. Mrs. Kiss has supported our school in so many ways and always sought ways to provide her assistance. She's also stretched herself. Um, several years ago, we needed assistance with the uh dismissal and having the
032announcements being read. And even though that wasn't something typical that Mrs. kids would do. She did do it very much willingly and blessed us with so many wonderful memories such as her jokes, her beautiful voice, um, and just many, many positive energy that she shared in everything she did. Mrs. Kiss has a way of providing encouragement to both children and adults in their time of need, being empathetic and lending a kind word or support. I was always inspired by Mrs. Kiss's deep faith and resolve in knowing that everything happens for a reason and that things will work out as they should. I thank you, Mrs. Kiss, for everything. It's a pleasure to have worked with you. You'll be deeply missed. Thank you. [Applause] All right. And at this point, I'd like to welcome up the
033king of prayer for Kingdom, Principal Shu, [Applause] [Music] huge. Okay. Now, at this time, I just um like to invite up the very shy, quiet, and timid librarian, Christine Belin. [Applause] I say that because I can promise you the one thing you'll never hear in the Belfish library is that stereotypical silence. because that library is a vibrant place of student discovery, problem solving, and team learning. It's like no other library that you've ever seen. South Country was lucky enough to um uh bring Christo Kristoff on board in 1999. Uh most of that time she was the full-time librarian at Kramer. A little splits here and there throughout the years, but for the most part with us. And um what I love about she's a pioneer for the media blood media center. Um first of all
034Kramer can boast the most modern collection in the district. What's the most modern age up to now? 2015. 2015 is the average collection book. I don't I know I never really cut that. Um not only that we also have the largest circulation building in this school in the library media center. That's because Miss Dolphin instills our love of reading, our love of literature, that love of learning. She's been a true pioneer in her department, whether it was bringing technology into the library media center, the introduction of maker spaces, which is now in many buildings across, and just has really revolutionized what you think of what the library is. So, what I really love about Miss Beloso, despite all that, is her universal love of all kids regardless who unique is and how much time she
035is in her day outside of the library. Whether it's letting kids check in with her, see how they're doing. Whether it's kids who are earning and they choose time at the end of the day with Miss in a library and help out some projects and do some extra maker space. Always willing to do whatever it takes to make a child successful day in day out for the past 26 years. That is what really marshall your career and it was it was last year who were recognized right and you know that of excellence that we have well you can see why she was received that accolade once because of her impact on children they remember it um forever. So Chris, on behalf of the entire Premier Kingdom students, staff, parents, we thank you for your labor
036love on behalf of our kids. We will miss you much. You will never ever be replaced by Congress. Thanks. Thank you so much. [Applause] [Music] I don't believe uh Miss Janine is here this evening. Okay. But gravy Nancy actually retired at late June last year. So, she kind of missed the reception, but we did want to recognize her this year for many years as an in multiple buildings to children in South Country. Right now, I'm going to ask you out and we know uh Cynthia Wilkin who's also unfortunately went unable to make it tonight. Cynthia has been a teaching assistant in the district since 2018. um a huge help uh to this principal voice covering classes and everything to his son and his son couldn't be here tonight but we congratulate Chris Cynthia Wilkin on
037an awesome career and I get supervised tonight and words out about her. So, uh, I'd like to call up right now, uh, someone else has been at Kramer a long, long time, Mr. Denise. [Applause] Denise came to South. She actually came to Premier Street in 2004. Has been there ever since. She has worked as an award teaching assistant and she has been in every class whether special, general ed, every grade level that that we have and each and every assignment is performed just purely exemplary. proof of this. Every teacher wants MSAS in their class. And even more profound, every student wants Missas in her class. It's just incredible. The kids being they run up to her, they see her, they get excited, want to tell her things. Uh just that kind of person. And uh
038she's been almost she's been a right to the principal uh for some reasons. Unfortunately, um you know, I don't sleep, but she gets some morning text. Denise, can you cover my so and so? Denise, can you cover and ding ding ding? Where's your husband's side? I'm waking you up and dinging all notifications. And every single time the answer is yes, yes, yes, yes. So, I'm going to add teacher to her list of skills. The truth is she's a teacher, okay? She has been in front of so many classrooms and taken the helm that you really are a true educator in every sense of the word. Uh, I think one of the reasons why I also feel like I probably know Denise even better than so many of the staff is because uh, all a lot
039of our assistants have like a morning duty. They're not shut the door for arrival and and Denise happens to have the pleasure of doing the kitty on go with with me and I I got to tell you so we chat a lot. We joke a lot. Um, but I mean she is a trooper because you know just like coincidentally every time it's cold out or it's really raining hard I somehow have a meeting. I can't be out there. But Denise Rain sleep, you're always out there beating those kids with that smile no matter how bad the weather. And I'm sure and I'm feeling terrible that I couldn't be out there with you on that time. It's just pure purely coincidental. But no, thank you for your 21 years of service here. Thanks for moving her
040family to South Carolina. They have a wonderful house. She made it a point just to rub in that there for three cars for coverage. It's only $167 a month. do that. But now we you deserve this wonderful retirement. Thank you for being so much to so many. [Applause] [Music] Thank you. And to run out of tires, I want to call out Miss Carrie Carson. [Applause] I'm going to call Kimberly. [Applause] We had it planned differently, but it's okay. We're flexible. So, it's both a joy and a bit of a challenge to find the right words to celebrate someone as unforgettable as Kim Swenson. Kim has worked as a secretary at South Country for 24 years. And for 22 of those years, Kim has been a steady force in the special education office, bringing dedication, precision,
041and a spark of personality that kept things running like just for the past 13 years. I've had the pleasure not just of working alongside Kim, but also her job isn't one you could just pick up overnight. It's a finely tuned, complex symphony of responsibilities, managing IEPs for every student from kindergarten through fifth grade, setting up all related services, and coordinating outside evaluations. It's a lot, but Kim made it look easy, and I'm sure Kim would like to add to that, but she met every challenge head on and kept us on track. Her laughter and her dedication have been a vital part of what made our office run. So, Kim, we are all really going to miss you. So as you step into the next chapter, we wish you [Applause] all. May the next chapter of
042your lives be a fantastic one. And before I close out the report, I do want to honor the service of some of our uh board of trustees that are going to be moving on. First and foremost, our ex official. Thank you for leading this trip, Miss Laura Lamrea, who could not be here tonight. I just want to wish her well as she embarks on her college career down Florida. So, I just want to uh congratulate her and thank her for her service as serving as a board official for the last year. Secondly, I want to acknowledge and has to come up as Tara Kavanagh's [Music] [Applause] tenure as a board trustee is really for me been defined by her poise, her intelligence, uh her even killed approach to sometimes we got into difficult conversations. I
043think her expertise um being an attorney just really came through and she really was a great support to the school district and uh really it's been a pleasure working with you. So sorry being formal a little bit but I feel like we've to know each other. So we thank you for your service and provide you with a nice little momentum to remember us by [Applause] finally I want to thank our vice president Mr. Joseph Barry for his service to our school district over the last three years. Joseph Barry, come on up. Joseph Barry and I have walked and got into some debates because he's such an advocate and uh for this community, our school district, his kids. Um I really enjoyed working with him and it's just his candid way of approaching sort of issues
044and many times we've had conversations just about things that could be better, things that are fantastic and things that we should look forward to doing in the long term. So, I certainly will be missed working with you and having you as a member of our team. I wish wish you all the best. I promise I'll keep my eyes out on your daughter, Charlotte, as she finishes out her career here at Billport High School. But once again, thank you for your service in the district. I also want to thank Miss Camille Mason, Elizabeth Blandro, Patrick Williams, our culinary arts teachers for the fantastic spread we had at our reception and all the students who participated in preparing the food as well as our spring ensemble which was arranged by or teacher Miss Julia Valenci just around
045There's a lot more commentary by following our various social media uh pages. What's we hate social media as educators? We do use it to promote a lot of the good things that are happening in the district. All of these social media handles are available on our website and I'm also proud oops uh so just by logging on from community members when they log on and get uh messages from the district. log on to the community portal. All of our social media links are located on the front page of our website as well as my superintendence portal which is updated on a monthly basis. My contact information, my social media handles, as well as my weekly update or blog that I provide to school district which is available to the public as well. And I can't
046wait because our next board meeting will we would have been logged for our brand new website. So I can't wait to unveil our new website. It really is beautiful and such an upgrade from what we have now. So, I want to thank Miss Christopher Alrech and our IT team and all the teachers and stakeholders that participated in our website committee to make this a reality. Thank you again for your support to the Central South Country Central School District. And that concludes my superintendent report. [Applause] [Music] Wait, hold on. I think the trustees may want to say some words of encouragement. So, just bear with us. It's another like five minutes. That' be fantastic. Thank you. Thank you, Superintendent Santana. Before we get to that, I did want to um remind everybody, anyone who is interested
047um in addressing the board this evening to please complete and submit a yellow comment card to the district clerk at the end of the table. Uh and at this time actually we'll start from our left uh and move right. I'd like to invite invite uh Trusty Hayes uh to make any uh comments at this time. Congratulate everybody who's retiring for all the years of service that you provided to this district. All the good things that you see around here are a result of your efforts and we thank you very much for that. For the people who just got tenure, got some big shoes to fill. So we're looking forward to seeing all the good changes. Trustee. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh yes, just to echo the comments again, you know, tonight are bittersweet uh moments
048for the people who are retiring and uh you're you're going to find soon that you will not know how you had time to work. And I hope those uh those moments come very quickly to you and that you enjoy all the moments in retirement. And for the people who obtain tenure, we hope that you have a a very long um time with us here at South Country and enjoy the time that you spend with us. Congratulations to you all. Now, Trusty Doo. Hi, I just want to echo the sentiments of my other board members. Um, to those retiring, thank you so much. You've made an impact on so many children's lives and not only the children that you had in their in your class, but any of their siblings and their parents. So, the impact
049that you've had is just magnified that much. To those retiring, thank you so much. Uh you guys are great. Um and those who've had tenure, um congratulations. Thank you for choosing South Country. And again, just think of all the lives that you're going to impact. Not just the students, it's their families that you touch as well. Thank you, Trusty. I'm sure many of you would like to uh go home. So be short and sweet. My congratulations, my sincerest congratulations to all. Thank you. And absolutely uh you know everything that they have said I certainly echo. Uh it has been a pleasure and thank you uh for your recognition uh for having served on the school board for the last three years. Uh to the retirees, what an impressive uh display uh just hearing all the
050impacts that you've had throughout the years of service. And to those who have earned that tenure, you've only just begun. Thank you for your service and hope that it continues to be everything that you would want in your careers. Uh excuse me. Okay. Uh so like to move on to item F items for discussion. First uh item for discussion is uh F1 which is policy 22485. This is the state mandated ex official student member of the board uh board policy. We're putting this up for a second reading. So, in a moment. Okay. So, I'd like to u see if there was any motion uh to um discuss first or Yeah. A motion to pass uh item F1. Can I get a second? Uh Trusty Hayes, any discussion? Just a reminder, we discussed this at the
051last meeting and I wanted to point out you had the opportunity to see the sample from New York State School Board Association and the final result after it went through the policy committee that made it more streamlined and directly applicable to us. So, um I'm glad to see it coming back for a second. Thank you. Absolutely. And I think uh South Country is is one of the early districts in terms of having an exopicio member. I don't know how long that has been the case here. Uh but it's great to be pioneers and to adopt such a policy here. So well any other further discussion I'd like to we don't need to roll correctly. Yeah. Okay. All in favor? Unanimous. The next item for discussion at two is policy 5695 students and personal electronic devices.
052This is actually a first reading so we will not be voting on it. Um we presented a draft uh along with the NISBA sample policy. We also have a draft policy that we're currently working on which will finalize um before the next meeting when we present it for a second reading. Uh for those who are not familiar, this is our cell phone policy that must be adopted by August 1st. So we wanted to present it today uh for first reading. Some of the uh edits and language you see in the draft that I provided the board is a result of meetings we've had with stakeholders by self committee meetings. Uh we're also going to bring this policy to our policy committee meeting next week prior to our next uh board meeting. Terrific. Uh so this
053is the first reading. So um I'd like to uh take a motion for to acknowledge the first reading. There's no motion necessary. Has any discussion? Okay. Any discussion on this item? Just just one question. So so many steps have to go into into this uh policy to make it work for our district. We we we have the ability to tailor it to make it work for us. Correct. This is a question to the superintendent. Try again. That's okay. that so we we tailor it to make it work for us. So basically the policy is the overall general guidance with regards to the use of cell phones. So we're having subsequent meetings to talk about what it's going to look like in practice. We're going to be scheduling a parent meeting in July and another parent
054meeting in August once we have solidified plan. The first meeting in July will be solicit parent input to see how they feel about if they have any concerns with what this might look like. Um but you're correct there's a lot of steps to it. The first is the policy which again is a broad sort of stroke again that basically captures our position in terms of cell phone use or electronic device use and then we're going to modify our code of conduct which will be approved by the board in September and then establish the practices. Another thing that we're working on too is to provide resources because letting go of cell phones can be somewhat difficult for our our students. We want to make sure that we provide them the tools and coping mechanisms to help
055navigate the day without cell phones. But I think by and large the general sentiment is that it's this is long overdue and I would imagine rank and file staff members administration I'm sure they they're so freaking out by now I would imagine. Uh no I think we're all ready to do this again. This is a state so they're looking forward to this day. Yes. All right. Okay. Uh so then um the next is to approve um I'm going to seek a motion to approve item F3. Trusty Hayes second. Trusty Dilla. Any discussion? that there's no uh attachment to this an electronic evaluation tool. So that's the one we just previously used. Correct. Yes. Okay. Any other discussion? All in favor? Unanimous. The next item for discussion actually before we do that uh I didn't want
056to Oh, no. Continue on. Uh next item for the discussion is the South Daven preview suns. So to give some context as to why this is on the agenda. As we're navigating our our budget process, we decided not only to look at means by which we can sort of cut down an expenditures but to try to increase revenue. One of the ideas that was floated was the possibility of leasing out South Haven, the current building where we house our prek center to Boseies. So we did some um um research and we met with Boseies to see if there's a possibility of there having some interest in leasing out that space and they are very much interested. What this represents for us is the potential of generating um close to 300 or $250,000 in revenue that's
057represented just by them leasing the space and paying for the square footage. but also in terms of the savings would get um from some of the costs that they would assume in the terms of the operation of that building. Um the rental income would be about $260,000 a year um less of the um the maintenance cost was about $65,000 plus custodial salary. So the net fund gain from something like that is close to $100,000. Um, another thing is that moving our prek program and we would potentially move it to crits where we have space to house prek program would be the fact that we would be able to offset some of our expenditures by virtue of the UPK grant. That would move our expenditures on that side. We're talking about the prorated custodian or nurse.
058Uh, and the total grant funds now freed up by this potential move would be about $112,000 which again could be used to offset several fund salaries. Then some additional general fund salaries that we're contemplating is a savings in FIA because we won't be having employees at South Haven and the family health insurance estimated savings are about $25,000. So the total estimated financial benefits for the district is running somewhere around $245,000. The reason I want to bring it up because while we're not really restructuring the school district or changing our programs, uh the YMCA will still be running our prek program. will still have a before and after care programs but I wanted to um see whether or not the board would be interested in us pursuing this further so I can have a more formal
059proposal for July again the reason there's a certain urgency where we're trying to expedite this is because we are confident we can make it happen for September that's what the board wishes but that's what I want to discuss today excellent uh so we need a motion no motion just sort of a green line to pursue this further and then we can discuss it uh July 1st. Any comments uh from the trustes? Comments? Yes. Um I'm very apprehensive about this program. You and I, this the superintendent and I spoke about this on Friday. We met for two hours, not about this topic in particular, but uh we did have a meeting and I asked him to walk me through burn crits on where the prek center would would is slated to come. Um, I was on
060the board when we worked very diligently to create the prek center and had a ribbon cutting. It was the year that I left the board for one year in 2019. Um, actually, Miss Hayes, it was the first year that Trusty Hayes was on the board and she she actually did the ribbon cutting there and we were so proud of the prek center at South Haven and um and what it represented for for this district. And I was so heartbroken to hear that we were moving in this direction and moving in this direction without any discussion with the board of trustees. So I'm pleased that we're talking about it now, but not so pleased that we're talking about doing it for September, especially with the fact that our reorg meeting is on July 1st and our
061next meeting isn't until the middle of August, August 13th, I think. Um, and the district is looking to do it is looking through it for September. And um I we've seen nothing in writing. The numbers that you just uh um laid out, we have not seen in writing. I'd like to see a written proposal as to how this is going to happen. I'd like to see a written commitment from or just a a written um proposal or idea from Boseis that they're interested in looking at it. we've seen nothing in writing and um I don't know if the parents know of your intentions of going in that direction. So I would just like to see a little more concrete information as to what the plan is. Uh drop off and pickup is is uh already
062cumbersome at um at South Haven. We've appealed to the county to do a traffic study to perhaps get a traffic light over there. I think it's going to be even more cumbersome at central office because the drop off is going to be uh where your where your 30 some odd employees are going to have to park and um it's going to be right in the middle of uh of your administration office. So, I just don't know how it's going to happen so so soon. And I I think the uh one of one of the gems in our district is our prek center. And I um that's what I feel so far. Appreciate that. Uh Trusty Fiz. So basically the point of today's conversation is whether or not we want to get rid of proposals. This
063was an idea uh that basically manifested itself when we first started realizing our financial challenges and we started looking at revenue streams. So we reached out to both they expressed interest. Uh but the idea tonight is whether or not you want to sort of us to start formulating an actual plan that we'll put together and provide the board in our weekly updates and certainly start communication campaign with parents. Again, we're not changing the program. We're changing the location. Obviously, all the sort of uh the practical items would have to be worked out, drop off. Um but there are also benefits that will sort of articulate in writing. But at this point, uh the reason is urgency because there's a certain amount of urgency that we felt during the budget process. So whether or not we
064want to try to make this happen in September and have that sort of revenue come in for the 25 26 school year or the potential of delaying delaying it for the 26th 27th school year. But I do think it's something that we should really consider considering our financial public uh moving forward or defining enrollment as a means by which we can uh raise. One one of the other um one of the other issues that we discussed when uh when you provided me with the walkthrough is uh the uh prek center has a very nice gymnasium area where they do their group activities where they hold their prek graduations and burnt crits has a gymnasium that that is is pretty well utilized for the for the students that are already there. And this this area where
065the the prek center is is slated to potentially go doesn't have that area and doesn't have that that uh that gathering center. So I'm concerned that they're just basically being like stuck in a corner and not and not able to have their own identity in that in the uh in the wing in the yellow wing over at at Burn Bridge. And I just don't think they'll be get given the attention that they already have at the prek center. the way it was designed for them. Um, another concern and too much too soon and if the if the revenue that's being generated is not going to really well and again while I think we need to see a RIT proposal and just how much it's going to generate if it's if putting good money after bad,
066how much is it really going to save us? That's that's what I think the board needs to see and needs to evaluate to to determine if it's something that's really worth looking at. Is it is it going to harm our program more than help the financial uh dilemma that we may that we may be facing? That's what we really have to evaluate. I I just I'm just afraid that it's going to hurt the program. Another thing that we discussed too is the enrollment. And if we I think you mentioned that we that over the next several years we're going to be losing about 66 um 66 children and I do forget how you explained it. So perhaps if you could review what you what you said to me and put it in the update. Um,
067as far as enrollment goes, one one of the other issues is that I think we were losing enrollment that that families were participating in our prek program but then not not enrolling their their children in our school districts and going to other school districts. We do still have the dilemma that people are not that that we've learned that people are not enrolling their their children in Frankie Long for the two years of Frankie Long and then bringing them back in the middle school. So, we really have to look at those enrollment numbers if enrollment is really affecting our um uh the amount of children that we have in in our district and if that is controlling some of the revenue issues that that uh that we have. So, if you could provide that to the
068board of education this week and and and this week, you know, one of one of the issues that that you and I are going to go through is adversity. We had a lot of diversity over our budget process this year. And adversity is indication and and we can't be afraid of that and and we're not going to be afraid of it this year. We have to dive deep into our numbers and and if we're and if our numbers are going to start with looking at the prepaid program, then okay, let's start there, but let's really dive into those numbers and what they mean. And let's not ruin a program that is stellar. I mean, we have people on a waiting list to get into that into that program. Do we not? I mean, we have
069people on the wait list every year. We have the people on the waiting list every year because it's a great program. And so, let's not let's not forget that and let's not forget that we have a stellar program in our program. So, let's not let's not be Penny Wise. So, thank you uh Trustee. Uh the other thing uh that I want to add is um you know certainly I think you're actually supporting the uh superintendent even though it may not sound like it uh is that it's good let's bring forward uh ideas uh you know obviously I'm not part of that decision making uh for next year uh but I do think it's important it's urgent uh and it really is uh what a lot of people are calling for is to make sure that
070we're investigating all of these ideas and you know I applaud Superintendent Santana on bringing forth an idea uh to consider and to flesh out. So I for one uh certainly would applaud uh bringing forth a uh a proposal on what that could mean for our districts. Thank you and it is it's sort of uh expedited. I appreciate that. Um, you know, I think one of the first benefits of having a prek program in one of our elementary schools is that students will already be enrolled in our building and will have access to more facilities at current because they will have access to our gym, our cafeteria, um, and our playground. So, there's a little principle benefit on that end. Um, in terms of enrollment, you know, I want to thank the BTA. I'm going to
071acknowledge them July 1st. They also went over to Head Start to talk to families there to encourage them to register their students in our kindergarten programs here. I'm really thankful for Pat Brady and his um team for a head start this week. I wanted to include it in my superintendence report. I just got the photos uh yesterday, so I was a little delayed. Um and just to explain the the enrollment piece, our high school classes are over 300. So each time a high school class graduates, our enrollment goes down. So it's not necessarily families not registering or hoping their kids out for long, even though that's true for a handful of students. Um it's just the fact that the the sizes of our overall classes are small. So our ninth grade is 200 and change
072and every subsequent grade after that is in the 200s versus what we've been accustomed to uh students. Any other comments on this? I would appreciate hearing more about the proposal um because there's a part of me that how that could work to the benefit of the district both financially and um getting the children and their families more directly involved in our elementary schools right from the beginning. Um, and if I heard your numbers correctly, um, it's close to a million dollars a year between the savings and the revenue that I think one correction. It's about $300,000. $250,000. 250. Is it 250 plus 55? Those I was itemizing it, but in the end, I just want to be clear. It's about $250,000. That would be the net. The net. Okay. But there were other issues that
073I mentioned with you when we last spoke about other savings that could be looked into, namely the food service and things things like that. We currently deliver food to South Haven for our preschool students. We don't have access to the cafeteria. So that for benefit. I would like I would like more information. It seems on the one hand like six years ago when there was the ribbon cutting. In one way it feels a long time ago but in a in another way it feels very not too far in the past but there have been big changes within the district in that sixyear period. So, I think it's certainly worth evaluating and looking into what alternatives there may be, particularly if it's bringing in some money and streamlining services. And in moving forward, we're going to
074have much larger discussions as to what the future of the school district is going to look like in response. But that has to involve obviously conversations with board trustees and community members and stakeholders as this anticipate continually drop. Thank you. Any other comments from this? Yes. Um I too would like more information but I also you know had the benefit of my children attending prek when prek wasn't Brook Haven. So I saw how it worked in an elementary school not as a separate building and felt that it was um very inviting to the kids to be in a school that some of them were going to be staying at for the next three or four years. Um so you know I do see a benefit and how it worked um how the kids reacted to
075being in the building but I would love to see again more information on how it would work. Absolutely. We'll put that together for you. And let's be honest, safe a safe South A is a beautiful space. So, it's not an easy decision, but you know, we have to make some difficult decisions. Certainly, I don't think we're going to compromise the integrity of the program. It's a matter of like how do we make it work and how do we maximize the space and certainly consider all those things that we mentioned trust like the drop off, our start times, etc. Perfect. Thank you all for the this uh important discussion. Now I do need to retreat on our agenda uh because um of public commentary. I did receive a card u following that agenda point. Uh excuse
076me. So uh public commentary occurs twice uh during our meetings. First in the beginning of the agend the uh agenda on agenda items uh to which I have one and then second at the end of the meeting for non-aggenda items. Um, comments from each speaker or the speaker in this case are limited to three minutes. The total time for a public session is limited to 30 minutes. Comments relating to a personnel matter or individual students will not be entertained in public. Public commentary is a time for the board to hear comments from the public. It is not a question and answer period between the public between the board and the public. If asked, informational questions requiring short answers will be addressed. However, the board will not enter into a dialogue with the with a speaker
077during public commentary. District residents who seek additional information will be guided to an administrator who will address their questions or concerns. That being said, I'd like to ask BTA president Patrick Brady to come forward. Yes, I think so. Sorry. Thank you. Uh my name is Patrick Brady, president of Bport Teachers Association. First, I want to congratulate everyone who uh received uh attention this evening and those individuals who have uh retired. What I want to address is what's coming up is between the BTA and BTAAA there are 20 people being accessed today. 17 of them being my members. You go further on in the agenda, there are increases to central office hours salaries. My concern is this. I think everyone deserves what they should be paid. But is right now the time for them to earn
078these salaries. I'm asking the board to pause, revisit, and look again. I have people who are worried about paying health insurance, paying their mortgages. When I'm asked to negotiate deals, I do it to benefit the community, to benefit my organization, to benefit the student. Please put a pause on these raises. Everyone deserves their money. Just do it at a different time. Right now, we cannot afford to lose so many educators. That's all I wanted to say. Again, I appreciate everyone. Congratulations again on your tenure, on your retirement, and hopefully we can work together to bring some of these people back. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, moving moving on to curriculum agenda items. The administration recommends approval of curriculum items reflected in schedules G1 and G5. Do I have a motion for G1, Trusty Dilla? Do
079I have a second? Trusty Gavin. Any commentary discussion? Perfect. All in favor? It is unanimous. A breaking of the next agenda item. So, the administration recommends approval of personnel changes reflected in schedules H1 through H25.25 25 and age 26.3. Excellent. Do I have a uh a motion? Trusty Kavanagh. Um do I have a second? Trusty Dilla. Any discussion? H1 through H25.25 25 and H26.3. Any other discussion? We all set. Okay. All in favor? Um passes unanimously. Administration recommends approval of personnel changes reflected in schedules H 26.1 and H26.2. Do I have a motion? Trusty Dilla. Second by Trusty Kavanagh. Any discussion? All in favor? Um uh against favor. Yes. Yes. Who is in favor? Um any no obsessions? So the motion passes. One. Yes. Uh what is it? 4 to one. Okay. Moving on to
080business agenda items. This is also broken up. The administration recommends approval of business items reflected in schedules I1 to I29. [Music] Excellent. Uh do I have a motion? Can I repeat that? Oh, right. Let me just I'll I'll say it. Yeah. The administration recommends approval of business items reflected in schedules I1 through I10. [Music] Okay. And we use we'll do multiple votes. Okay. All right. Um all in favor of I1 through I 10. Trusty Kavanagh. A second. I apologize. I follow that up. I have a motion from uh Trustee Kavanagh. Do I have a second? Trusty Hayes. Um, any discussion? All in favor? And unanimously passes. I'm going to go back to item 11 at the end. So, next, the administration recommends approval of business items reflecting schedules I 12 through I 29 in addition
081to I31. Can you follow that? Can I get a motion for uh that trusty Kavanagh second? Trusty Dillo. Any discussion? All in favor? It passes unanimously. Allies. And finally, the business uh agenda items. The administration records approval of business items reflected in schedules I1, which requires a roll call vote. as the district clerk to leave the roll. Did we get her microphone turned on? [Music] Administration recommends acceptance of the tax anticipation note resolution set forth in the agenda before you. We're doing a roll call vote. I'll start with Ann Hayes. Yes. Cheryl Feliz, yes. Tanner Cavan, yes. Douggee Dillo, yes. Joe Barry. Yes. Chris is absent for circumstances. Thank you. Thank you, district clerk. One more recommendation. The administration recommends approval of business items reflected in schedules I30. Right. Uh do I have a motion
082for item I30? Trusty Dilla. Second. Trustee Kavanagh. Any discussion? All in favor? opposed and no extensions. Item passes. So now we have the second public commentary. Do we have any cards? No. Okay. Thank you. um like to uh begin actually on the other end of things with any uh closing remarks by uh board members. So we'll start on your right, my left with Trusty Gavin. Uh yep, just starting briefly. Um I'd like to say thank you to all of my colleagues for the past three years. It's a great pleasure and honor. Um, I've been so impressed with the dedication and expertise of our staff um and and teachers and uh our uh central office staff. Um I'm sad to leave and I'm glad that I have no and thank you. Thank you. Trusty go down
083to trust next. Yes. Since the last time we met, um I uh enjoyed the Bel Memorial Day parade and want to say the parade was made uh was what it was because of the participation of the students of Belport of South School District, the Belport Middle School Band, the Delport High School Band, the dance teams, um those who uh provided taps at the memorial service at the cemetery, all were fantastic addition. um to that parade and did a wonderful job. Um the Vernon Critz concert, the Frankie Long concert, and as the superintendent said, we outgrew the courtyard already. Truly, truly amazing. But um wonderful, wonderful time. Again, the meeting that I had with superintendent this week. Um we've made some meaningful progress on I think the direction that we will go in for the next
084school year and looking forward to it. Um again, not with an adversary adversary uh adversary I can't say it adversity adversity yes um you know we adversity is is a is a great sparring partner and uh and we have a lot to discuss going on uh for the next year and uh I look forward to that with great anticipation. Uh Pride weekend this this week was remarkable. We have a lot to be proud of. We have a lot to be afraid of. Um we have um I I was really welcomed by a parent that grad from a student who graduated last year who had a lot of struggles and I really want to thank the staff here at the high school who gave that family the support that they needed for their student who was
085struggling and they came to that uh that pride parade last year and helped their family member identify with what they needed to identify and they were back at this parade this year and were just so happy and loving and accepting and it's a credit to this high school for what they did for that family. I can't express to you enough what you did for that family and they were back there just as happy as they were last year if not happier. So, uh thank you for what you did. Our presence is very needed because they identify with people who they identify with and uh it makes for it makes for um a good camaraderie that they know that they belong and that's all that's all they need. They just need to know that they belong
086and people see them for who they are. Uh so that that's a little bit about pride weekend. Scholarship night. How did you get it done in less than two hours? uh principal. I I it just went off without a hitch. It was so it was so great. Um another scholarship night, you know, job well done. Today was work haven moving up ceremony and again went off without a hitch. Two uh committee meetings that took place um facilities and finance and health and safety. A lot was discussed that were the same. Uh, sorry that kids are causing practical jokes in our in our schools that are causing much damage to our restrooms uh through Tik Tok jokes. Not funny, but uh you're handling it well and I appreciate the work that is being done. Um, also
087our um district emergency response plan is up on the website and is is required to do for the 30-day requirement and uh that we will adopt this year. So, anyone who needs to look at that, please do so. And uh happy to see that the camera and door readers are being installed that we approved through our um capital improvement um our capital reserve vote that was approved so overwhelmingly by our district. And that concludes my report. Thank you. Uh Trusty H. It has been a year with a lot of changes and a lot of um some difficulties, but I think I want to commend our administration for navigating the difficulties with as much grace as possible under the very trying circumstances. So, I want to thank you for that. Um and I again every time
088I come to an where we've got music or we have the culinary program. I'm just really um gratified to know that this is something available to our students. I think that Belort High School has an exceptional program particularly in the music department. Um, so I'm gratified for that and I do look forward to going into next year with whatever changes need to be addressed with the confidence that it it they will be addressed in a careful, thoughtful and caring way. So thank you again. Thank you. And lastly, um, you know, it certainly has been a pleasure to uh, serve uh the district in this way. Um three years ago uh I ran for the school board uh because I wasn't happy with what uh I was seeing in the classroom and some things that uh
089I've experienced uh with my children. Uh I still think there's so much more that can be done, but equally there are so many things to be proud of and so many things that uh the the uh district is doing and the people in it. Uh, you know, I certainly want to thank uh all of the uh the teachers, the staff, uh the administration of the district. Uh it has been a pleasure uh to serve. I'm not going anywhere. This is a community that I think chose to live in. Uh this is a community that I care about. Uh and uh you know, I'm going to continue uh to do that and to continue to be uh involved. uh and the experience of serving on the board uh is one that uh certainly opened a lot
090of eyes uh open my eyes wide. Um but beyond that uh you know it has been a pleasure to see those who truly care. I certainly want to thank Trusty Kavanagh uh for we came in together and we're going out together. Uh but uh from from that standpoint uh certainly want to wish uh my fellow board members uh success uh in continuing blessing. Uh and also want to welcome and uh and wish all the best uh to the uh the the new uh board members. Uh and may you have continue uh my one wish for everyone uh is to continue on the strategic planning uh to continue on the efforts to engage the community and all of the stakeholders uh of the district uh to make it the best district that it can be. And
091then my hope is that uh overall we'll continue to grow and better serve uh the next generation of Belor players. Thank you. Just a quick words since this is our last board meeting of this uh school year is I'm super excited about the implementation of our strategic plan our action plan which will launch um you know we'll start putting the final touches on you know we'll talk about it tomorrow our strategic planning meeting uh we do have a final plan together and we're looking forward to launching it uh conference day basically it's going to be our northstar for the next five years we have very specific goals and measurable goals that we'll be working towards um I also want to give sort of credit to my cabinet who really uh came together during this really
092difficult year. Uh we engaged some really difficult conversations and debates. Um I also want to acknowledge my administrators who are still here. Um it was not an easy year. Um but you know one of the things I heard from a fellow superintendent which I sort of uh subscribed to is that the um the road to purpose is not paved in comfort. And we're going to have challenges ahead and adversity as people said, but I'm confident that coming together all of our stakeholders and community, we're going to be able to accomplish great things. We're looking to do a lot more uh sort of things like sort of seed out community input and we start forecasting what South Country is going to be sort of embarking on in the next few years. Um but adversity inspires me.
093It's been the story of my life. Not that I enjoy it, but I'm in the middle of it. You know, certainly sort of suffer through it. Um but at the end of it you come out of it you feel a sense of accomplishment and um I do want to give sort of an empathetic sort of a gesture to all the people who are adversely affected by our sort of challenges this year our financial challenges um but I'm looking forward to a more robust um you know budgetary process that's going to start a little earlier that we sort of go through this together but I'm confident that we're going to continue doing those great things. Uh we're still going to be making improvements. And finally, the uh the road to excellence has no pinch line. This
094will be not going to work forever. Thank you all for your support. With that in mind, can I get a motion to uh conclude this evening's meeting? Trusty Dav, a perfect uh way to do that. Seconded by Trustee Dillo. All in favor? Thank you and good night. Okay.