001I pledge allegiance 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. >> Want to thank everybody for coming tonight. um obviously necessitate necessitated a change of venue. Uh I honestly wish I was sitting down where you are. It's a little weird up here, but we will make it work. >> We will make it work. Uh Michelle, any agenda changes uh for this evening? >> I do not have any changes for this evening. >> Okay. Then we have a proposed executive session to discuss the medical, financial, credit or employment history of a particular person or corporation or matters leading to the appointment, employment, promotion, demotion, discipline, suspension, dismissal or removal of a particular person or corporation. May
002I have a motion? Tina and a second. >> Melanie. Discussion. All those in favor? >> Any opposed? We stand in executive session. or at least the ones that respond. get it. Um, we are on to the uh public comment section of our meeting tonight. This is agenda related comments. We want to remind everybody that the public comment portion of the board of education meeting is designed to give members of the public the opportunity to address the board related to school district operations. The board will not permit in public session discussion involving individual district personnel or students. Persons wishing to discuss matters involving individual district personnel or students should present their comments and/or concerns to the superintendent of schools during regular business hours. All speakers are to conduct themselves in a civil manner. Obscene language, lielless
003statements, and threats of violence will not be tolerated. It is not the practice of the board to respond during the meeting to questions posed or comments made by speakers. Therefore, while the board will certainly take any questions or comments you might have under advisement, we will not be responding to any questions. I want to make this part clear. We're adding this as a matter of procedure. The board of education does not engage in public discussion regarding personnel matters. These issues are handled in accordance with applicable laws, contractual obligations, and our district's established procedures. While we understand that there may be community interest, it is important that we respect the privacy of individuals and the integrity of the process. The board will have to shut the public comment section of this meeting if there is a
004violation of this proclamation. Oh, and we need a motion to resume. Sorry. >> Motion in a second. Motion to resume. Coey and see any discussion. All in favor? I. Now we're officially back open. I'll get it right one day. Um, so we did have several people that had reached out to the board clerk to talk. Uh, I'm not sure if some of them were agenda related items or some of them were for uh open session at the end of the meeting, but I do know do know um that Jesse Roberts was one of the uh interested parties that had reached out. Is Jesse here? agenda related or end of the meeting related. >> Okay. Y our Y. >> Yep. Right to the microphone if you would please. Thank you. >> Hi. Good evening members of
005the board. My name is Jesse Roberts. I want to remind this board of the oath each of you took when you accepted your position that you would support the Constitution of the United States and the const the Constitution of the State of New York and faithfully discharge the duties of your office to the best of your ability. One of those duties is to uphold the rights and safety of students in the district. Recently, students at Case Middle School were repeatedly exposed to material in art class that was inappropriate for their age and caused discomfort over several weeks. Many students felt uneasy but stayed silent because the material came from an authority figure. There were they were taught to trust When concerns were finally raised, the material was re removed, proving it could have been prevented
006from the start. However, the response to the situation, including administrative actions taken does not fully address the concerns of parents and the impact on students. Paid leave alone is not accountability. I am not here to attack teachers or our education. I'm here to ask for transparency and accountability. Parents and students deserve to know what review and approval processes were in place for this material. What steps will be taken to prevent age inappropriate content from appearing in classrooms in the future? You you sit above us tonight, but your duty is to stand with us and protect our children. Your oath binds you to protect students, not protect the system that ignores them. Do the right thing. Investigate this truly. be transparent, take real action, and protect our students. >> Thank you for your time. Okay, >>
007Stephanie Boyansky, you had also reached out to the board clerk. >> Good evening. Members of the school board, we come before you tonight as deeply concerned, disappointed parents of students at this school. Students who are 11 and 12 year olds and who were subjected to content in their art class that are inter entirely inappropriate for their age group. Let us be clear from the very start, this happened in a classroom. It's not a matter of interpretation or a gray area of the curriculum. It was a breach of professional responsibility of educational ethics and most importantly the trust we have placed in the school system to protect our children. As an adult and educator chose to display or discuss these images that have no place in the middle school classroom. These are not age appropriate materials.
008They are not aligned with any reasonable academic standard for children of their age. And the result, we have confused, uncomfortable, and in some cases, visibly shaken students coming home asking no these questions that no parent ever expects to answer after an art class. We understand that the teacher involved has been placed on administrative leave, but with all due respect, that's not enough. Administrative leave is a temporary measure used to pause or investigate. But the facts are here not to dispute dispute. The materials were shown, the damage is done, and our trust in that teacher has been irreparably broken. >> Please, please be careful about referencing any specific teacher. >> I didn't. I made sure. Our ask tonight is simple and it is firm. We are calling for immediate termination of this teacher's employment. Not a
009punishment rooted in a motion, but as a necessary action that reflects the ser seriousness of what has occurred. This is not a matter that can be addressed with a warning or a second chance. This is a line that must not be crossed when it comes to safety, dignity, and psychological wellbe feeling being of our children. And that line was crossed in the classroom. To be clear, we support our education. We understand that art can challenge, provoke, and inspire. But we also understand that context matters, age matters, and boundaries matter. And in a public school setting, those boundaries are not optional. They are essential. This is not just about one teacher. This is about the message this board sends to every parent in this district. Will you stand behind our children or you protect an adult
010who exercise profoundly poor judgment? We urge you to take action as this situation demands. Do not allow this innocent to be minimized or swept aside. Do not ask us parents to quietly accept a temporary suspension and just move on. Our children deserve better. This community deserves better and we will continue to speak out until we see appropriate and decisive action taken. I just want to say thank you for your time in this matter, but we ask you to take this very seriously as this situation deserves it. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> And the only other person that reached out to the board clerk was Kevin Todd. I don't usually speak from a script, but I'm going to in this case. Um, I'm speaking today in my official capacity as the elected president of the
011Watertown Education Association. I'm here to address the attacks on public education and public educators that are happening all too often in this district and around the country. I'm going to start with a little story because that's what I do. I'm a social studies teacher, but I think it's symbolic of the current state of our community. In October of 2018, the WA, my union, built little libraries all around Watertown. I have one in my front lawn. I live on the north side of town. Over the past seven years, I've placed literally thousands of books into my little library, and others in the community have placed thousands more. It's a beautiful thing. It provides nothing but joy and imagination, exploration, and more to our community. I'm proud to have it. However, however, over the last seven years,
012I've also had to replace the door of my little library six times. It has been stolen twice with nothing remaining. It's been snapped in half and left on my lawn twice. And twice it was simply ripped off and destroyed and nothing was left. I often question why anyone would go out of their way to destroy such a wonderful thing. Such a great support for our community members in need. takes great effort to destroy something like that. And yet some of the members of our community choose that path. They go out of their way to do this. The reality in our world today is much like my little library. The vast majority believe that our public education system is a beautiful thing. It supports students who otherwise would be left behind in the world of private
013education. Students who struggle academically, students who struggle behaviorally, families who struggle economically. However, there is a small destructive segment in our society who weaponize selective outrage to target educators. These attacks go against the very bedrock of our society and in in essence are unamerican. In the United States, we believe in uh the idea of innocence until proven guilty. We believe in the privacy rights of the accused. We believe in fairness and ultimately due process. Now, a small group of internet warriors spewing nothing but negativity are calling into question the action of hardworking, dedicated people and are trying to deny these people basic medock rights. Under state and federal law, the district must conduct a full and fair investigation into any complaints made by concerned parties. With few exceptions, the district cannot simply fire individuals. And
014I'm not sure why anybody would want that to happen. People making claims every day come to our door. And due process works to find facts and hopefully conclude a fair result. That's a good system. It weeds out unfair claims and addresses those with merit. I want to thank the district for always conducting full fair investigation before deciding on an outcome that is fair in the specific case. There's been quite a lot of talk about transparency as well in the pa past few weeks. And I want to be clear, both state and federal law, as well as my collective bargaining agreement, require the district to conclude a full, fair, and private investigation as part of due process. Often members of the community demand to know the outcome investigations and imply the district is hiding things because
015they don't don't uh get the specific information they need about the in outcome publicly. They simply are not allowed to do that. Employees have the right to privacy in an employment decision. Demanding information about specific employees is not transparency. Because the district is not able to provide information to the public, members of the community are now filling the void with their own versions of events. As a union, we will confront these rumors and innuendo innuendos used uh to attack our teachers. We will challenge the media printing these accounts as if they were the truth. We will support the good, hardworking teachers who are under attack, for making mistakes, or less than that, simply encouraging kids to explore and giving them opportunities to do so. Some students may use the opportunity for evil. And let's be
016clear, recent events um happen despite our district having an expensive AI system to monitor student use and to block harmful content. Teachers like all humans are not perfect and we make mistakes. However, there are there's a chasm of difference between an honest mistake and intentional actions. It'll be be the beginning of the end for public education if we start down the path of allowing teachers to be attacked because of honest mistakes, because our technology fails to block evil intent or because we accept internet rumors as though they were fact. It speaks volumes that my words here tonight were considered news by our local media. One person speaking at a public meeting has never been and should never be newsworthy. I'm here for my members and I speak for them. I only wish our local media
017had put as much effort into reporting actual news like Watertown's uh 84% graduation rate last year. It's a 15% increase year-over-year. Some investigative reporting would have found that that was due to the innovative thoughts of our superintendent, the dedication of our teachers and administrators. The this great increase happened because of the creation from ground up of Cyclone Academy and thousands of hours of work by teachers, administrators, counselors who had already worked a full day and gave up another three hours to work at Cyclone Academy. The increase happened because of the addition of a graduation success coach, many additional special education teachers, the work of our portrait of graduate committee, the addition of AIS at the high school, and many, many, many more factors. Instead of hearing this, our local community got the news that I
018had something special to say. Well, here it is. We, the teachers of Watertown, are tired of this. We work hard in this district. The challenges facing public education over the past decade have grown to levels previously thought impossible. But we continue to provide for our students without complaint. Kindergarteners are arriving in classrooms who are not potty trained. Elementary teachers are being attacked by students leaving serious injuries such as broken noses. We watch middle school students apathetic about their own education who claim it doesn't matter. I'm going to drop out. Our teachers deal with this day in and day out and we do it for the benefit of our students. We do this without complaint, without the need for great fanfare in the press, without added monetary compensation. This is a long-winded way to say educators
019are not the enemy. A quality public education, regardless of income level or zip code, is the bedrock of a free and open society. I'm proud of the work I do here in Watertown, and I'm proud of my fellow educators. We're moving the needle and improving every metric possible. We have the support of an innovative and thoughtful superintendent who works as hard as anyone I've ever met. We have a self a selfless, gracious, unpaid board of education that acts rationally and effectively. And we have dedicated, highly effective public servant teachers who could go elsewhere in a heartbeat, but they don't. They've chosen to stay here out of love of our students and our community. I'll end with a sad one. My little library can only have its door torn off so many times before it becomes
020too much of a burden to me. And at that point, I'll remove it. Sadly, those in the teaching profession are making the same calculation. I beg you to consider your choices. Thank you, Kevin. Uh, Mrs. Grall corrected me as she often does. Uh we had also had Heather Traham reach out for comment this evening. >> Hi. Good evening. My name's Heather Traum. Um I graduated from Watertown. I had many teachers throughout my high school years that kept me in school. You know, I didn't have the greatest upbringing. I came from some of the families, you know, that he referred to. Um, so I truly understand, you know, what a good teacher can do. And this is not an attack on a teacher. This is parents being concerned about an action that took place due to
021the negligence of a teacher. Um so a teacher is expected to create a supported and safe learning environment, deliver educational content effectively, foster critical thinking, personal development. Um teachers have a responsibility to understand and assess the maturity level of their student ensuring that the material presented is appropriate for their age and their development. When teachers fail to fulfill their their responsibility, our children are left unprotected. This raises serious questions and concerns about their ability to use sound judgment and adhere to ethnical teaching practices. I acknowledge that there are systems put in place to help teachers such as limitations on what kids are able to access on their Chromebooks. However, in the event where inappropriate material passes through, the teacher is obligated to then serve as the buffer in the second line of defense. Their duty
022is to ensure that all educational content encourages a safe and respectful learning atmosphere. In September of this year, my daughter started seventh grade. I sent her to school with the expectation that she could trust the teachers and staff to keep her both physically and emotionally safe in her new school. However, mine and her trust were both broke when the teacher exposed children to sexually explicit material. The teacher had prior knowledge of the explicitity. Um, she had prior acknowledge of the explicit nature that the images would portray. She did not uphold her obligation to maintain a safe environment. With prior knowledge of what children would be exposed to, she had adequate time to contact it, to manually block the explicit artwork, or to make changes to her lesson plan. She could have created her own picture
023library of his age appropriate artwork. She chose to do none of those things. She left her responsibility to the seventh grade children to determine what was appropriate for them. By providing the link to our children, she knowingly distributed sexually explicit material to minors. Not just breaking our trust, but also breaking the law. The exposure to these artworks left many children feeling confused and uncomfortable, wondering why their teacher would provide them a link to such images to complete this assignment. This issue can have significant implications for students, including lasting effects on their relationships and their understanding of sexuality. Additionally, we do not know the past experiences of every child and exposure to these images can be triggers for those have who have experienced past sexual trauma. While the teachers are the primary people responsible to assure
024all material is age appropriate, the school administration and district polit policies should and need to be the second line of defense to keep our children safe and hold teachers accountable. I am asking the board to do their duties to asssure that proper training and resources are put into place to au future avoid future issues. Thank you. >> Thank you. Is there anybody else tonight that would like to speak to agenda related items? It's tough to see up here. So, I've not seen anybody rise to the podium. We'll move on. I'm sorry. Truly is hard to see. Um, good evening. My name is Chris O'Neal. Um, I'm also a prior student here at Watertown. Um, tonight I'm here on behalf of not only my own children, but other parents and community members who have reached out
025to me for answers after an article that I had published about this situation with my niece being one of the students in the classroom at the time. Um, over the last few weeks, a lot of families in this community have been forced to fight for information, excuse me, that should be freely and transparently provided from the start. We've seen incidents brushed aside, go unanswered, and decisions made beyond closed doors while people most affected, our children, our teachers, and the taxpayers are left in the dark. Transparency is not an option. Not when it comes to our children. It's not something that just happens when it's convenient or flattering. It's the foundation of public trust. When the district hides information, delays communication, shields accountability, it erodess away the very relationship that's supposed to be between the families
026and you. We shouldn't have to file foil requests to find out what curriculum is being taught in the class after an incident like this happens. This district belongs to the people. These are our schools, our children, and our tax dollars. We expect our administrators and board members to uphold the same transparency that we demand from every other level of government. Because if you have nothing to hide, then there should be nothing to conceal. Tonight, I'm asking, no, I'm insisting that this board commit to a higher standard. Make transparency the rule, not the exception. Release the information that the public has asked for. Communicate openly, consistently, and honestly. Because when you shut the public out, you're not just avoiding criticism. You're betraying the trust of the community that you serve. The truth will always come out.
027You can either stand in front of it or be run over by it. Thank you. Thank you. Anybody else for agenda related items this evening? >> Hello. Um, you all know who I am. I'm Amy. Um, and I'm a proud graduate of Watertown High School and now parent of five children within this district. And I want to first start by acknowledging that there are many positive things that are happening here in our district. The pep band playing at our games has brought new energy to our schools. Improvements in graduation rates are very encouraging. Those accomplishments deserve to be recognized. But good news doesn't erase the serious concerns many of us have about the direction the district is heading. In recent months, we've seen troubling incidents. an educator publicly celebrating the death of Charlie Kirk and
028suggesting that the the president of the United States should be next. An art teacher allegedly is exposing young students to >> can't reference specific features. >> I'm sorry. inappropriate contact content and a confusing poorly communicated roll out of the universal prek program that lack transparency and community input and also really poor layout with our um metal detectors as well. Great that we did that, but the the roll out of it was very lacking. This is not the Watertown City School District that I was brought up in. Um, and I don't think that it should continue this way. We need to just get back to the basics of education, teaching our ch kids to think critically, read, write, do math, not pushing boundaries or ignoring parents' concerns. Many families are upset, but too many are afraid
029to speak up. I don't blame our teachers. They are doing their best under difficult circumstances. I blame leadership. This is a top-down problem. We elect school board members so the community has a voice. So decisions about our children's education and how our taxpayer dollars are spent reflect the will of the people who live here. But too often the board sits silent. Aside from an occasional comment, it feels like no one is truly standing up for parents and the students. That needs to change. The board must start asking hard questions, pushing back when necessary, and standing up for the families and students in this community, not just following the administration's lead. If that doesn't happen, the community will ensure we elect people who will. Thank you. >> Thank you, Amy. >> Anybody else for agenda related
030items? Okay, Michelle, do we have any communications? >> I do have one communication. Mrs. Atkinson has asked that I let everybody know that on October 23rd, the National Honor Society induction at the Watertown High Library, the time has been changed to a 400 pm start. Um, that even Okay. Um, I have one communication from Mrs. Atkinson, the principal at uh, Watertown High. Um, on October 23rd at 4 PM, the National Honor Society induction will be at the Watertown High Library. This is a change in time from the 700 p.m. that is on our calendar. >> Thank you, Michelle. >> You're welcome. >> Board and staff reports. Uh, Michelle, board of education recognition for board of pre Whereas the New York State School Boards Association has designated October 14th through the 18th, 2025 as school board
031recognition week. And whereas the observance serves to promote awareness and understanding of the vital work performed by the local school boards. And whereas the local school boards play a a critical role in enduring uh student success and maintaining strong public schools, the foundation of our communities and democracy. And whereas the school board members devote countless hours to studying educational issues, making informed decisions and upholding accountability to meet the needs and expect expectations of students, families, and community stakeholders. Now therefore, be it resolved that the Watertown City School District hereby recognizes and appreciates the commitment, leadership, and service of its members during school board recognition week and throughout the year. >> We don't have to vote on that one, do we? That seems a little self- serving. We do. I >> I'll take a motion then.
032Cena in a second. >> Melanie discussion it does seem so all those in favor any opposed thank you Michelle um FAFSA report Mr. Holy Ore earlier this evening and we're able to get through our entire agenda without um we started discussing a special meeting that we have first meeting so that the auditors will be able to view their findings at that plan internal audit support response [Music] so far a little bit more detail on the application directly action plan discuss assessment updates um credit card policy policy implications update for next and they're hoping there's a possibility of the update from the facilities. Um I think there were evaluation people maintain [Music] pretty good for off the top. Thank you, Kelly. Superintendent of Schools report, Dr. Larry Smeaggel. >> Okay, the beginning of my report, I'm
033gonna ask Beth Mau to come up. I'm very thankful to be here to share some prek positives tonight. So, um, just so you know, our littlest learners, we know that early intervention is key. And so, we work very hard, our team works very hard in all of our community- based organizations that we work with, and you will see them highlighted here. Just to keep up the facts, um, eight community-based organizations make up 25 out of our 25 27 classrooms. These CBOS include Bright Beginnings, CAPC, First Step, JCC, Little Loops, New Day, Treehouse, YMCA, and I'm additionally thankful for our two districtrun special classes in an integrated setting. How does the ocean say hi? It waves. So, we learned uh from Devon um our speaker the first day that laughter equals safety. And I think we
034all need a little bit of that right now, right? Including me. So, what I the reason I did put this slide in is not only to make people laugh a little bit, but to realize that really what we do at preK is we align everything we do to what the district mission and vision and strategic plan is. So that is the work that we've been doing for many years. We live by the guiding principles which are also really core values and two that really speak to me and um our children are born ready to learn. Another one is children are worthy of the same respect as adults. And you're going to be able to see this as we as we continue this. Our preky it's the who research says that high quality prek increases graduation
035rate and I believe that we are doing things to help the graduation rate. I'm very excited about it. So, we believe in a multi-tered system of support and supporting all of our students. And I have Dr. Amy Gearharts to explain the work we've done. So, this triangle represents um how we support students at all levels. Um the bottom being the core curriculum and then as you go up the triangle, the supports get more intensive as the needs get more intensive. Um, what's really cool about preK is even before I arrived in this district, they were doing the pyramid model, which is how they support students uh, social, emotional, and behavioral needs at all levels. Um, this year, we're going to be fine-tuning the academic supports and interventions. And we're also going to be focusing on
036attendance. And with that, everything is linked by family support and how we can build relationships. Um, I have to say that I am really excited about all of this work because I have a plethora of experience um in uh implementing MTSS across several districts and this is the very first time I've been able to do it at the prek level and help lead that process. So, I'm super excited. Um, thank you. So, what Amy said with our MTSS is really that our prek families, they're critical parts of the littlest learners education and we focus a lot on our families. And I do have a story um of why my passion project with the podcast came about. And it was because when I first started at prek, I had a family uh engagement act night with
037Betsy Henan and Cornell Cooperative Extension. As you're going to see, I I work with a lot of partners. And we had a family that had traveled across Port Street Bridge to walk to Massie Street. She had little kids and she walked there. And I said, there's got to be a better way for equity to get these families to be able to give them something that they need. So that is why the podcast started and I noticed a lot of things that we're just going back to the basics and this year are we're going to do the podcast is going to be for the love of literacy which is going to go ahead and align with our science of reading uh curriculum that I'll be sharing. We also work with the Flower Memorial Library for Library
038Card Day with Susie Renie Fal and she's amazing and every year we get more people and more families to come to start their library card day. We also have the Dolly Parton's Imagination Library with the prenatal paranatal center and this really gives books to birth to five years old and you can get them every month for free and we do that through the paranatal. This is all on the website. We also have a system of support um so that families know this goes out the first week so they know who to call and when um because there's a lot of resources that we have and we really want them to be engaged in school. Last but not least, we have our family activity calendar that aligns with our creative curriculum that our instructional coach from
039the past, Heather White, who Peg uh Drapo was the former principal and Heather White was the instructional coach. And uh I've this is my fourth year in preK, but before me, they built this program from the ground up and they taught me a lot about early education. So, hi, my name is Mackenzie and my name is Sophia and we're here through the Family Opportunity Center. It's a program through North Country Prenal Parinatal Council. We are a community-based program dedicated to supporting families by providing parenting classes, child development activities, educational workshops, and fun familyfriendly events, including arts and crafts, field trips, and sensory friendly hours. We also help families with everyday needs like housing assistance, school supplies, back to school clothes, sports uniforms, and even practice support. We're proud to work closely with Watertown City School
040District and the preK um to connect with families and make sure that they have the supplies and the resources they need for the school year. The preK sends us a lot of referrals throughout the year, so we're very grateful to work with them. You're going to see in the next few videos just really our partners. It's not just the PreK Dream team here uh and our district. It's really a lot of other community partners that we appreciate. And our next one is North Country Family Health Center. >> So, hi, my name's McKenzie. >> My name is Heather Lupia. I'm the schoolbased health director here at North Country Family Health Center. Uh we are so thankful for our partnership with large city school district prek program. This program started with us approximately 3 years ago. We
041provide medical, dental, and behavioral health services at each of our schoolbased health centers. We have schoolbased health centers in four of the Watertown sites. We are at North Elementary in Watertown. That serves as our hub site for all of the elementary schools. Um this has been a great addition for the prek kids um since we started. We have a lot of kids accessing those services. um and they otherwise may not get those services outside of the schoolbased health center. My name is Heather Lupia. I'm the schoolbased health. We also partner with the children's institute from Rochester and we do a project called primary project and it is a tier 2 intervention so that we can really meet the needs of students that have minor school adjustment issues so they don't become major. Um, we have
042done a lot of work with North Country Family Health Center. Uh, and I would say that the people at Rochester Institute have been amazing. I have also written the grant for North Elementary. They are in the second year of implementation. And I and Bridgetette helped me with that one. And then I also wrote the grant for Nickerbacher. So they are going to be in their first year of implementation. And I will continue to write those grants until we can get all five to get this intervention. Hi, my name is Aaron Cooney and I'm a licensed clinical social worker and registered play therapist here at our school-based health center for North Country Family Health Center. I serve prek through fourth grade students and their families. I am also privileged to be the mental health supervisor for
043the Watertown City School District prek primary project program. In this role, I get to meet with our child associate weekly talk about the play that the children have done in the playroom and I also meet with Beth. So, we actually made the blog on Children's Institute website and it's called Primary Project Proud Proud in the Watertown City School District. I want to thank Lynn Smith, the co-director of Primary Project, and Lindseay Dryden, uh, the Primary Project coordinator. But one of my most proudest moments in the Primary Project has been witnessing the impact of our exceptional child's associate, Carrie Fitzgerald, whose dedication and meticulous attention to detail have elevated the program in every way. Her commitment to ensuring that each part of the program operates smoothly has been instrumental, particularly as we participate in a research
044study where accuracy and consistency are paramount. She is diligent in making sure every eye is dotted and every tea is crossed which will contribute signific significantly to the research team's success and our students success. She also regularly um reaches out to all the families so they're very aware of this project. As you can see the results are amazing. Um so students were at risk and that's the blue and now they have risen many many points in task orientation, behavior control, assertiveness and pure social. We also have a literacy initiative which is really the science of reading but at the prek level. So uh it just so happens that my passion is also literacy. So it's not just a podcast but there's also um the literacy piece. I've been working in the district for 23 years
045and I want to see kids reading. So we're going to be working on that. Um, so basically I developed the top 10 daily doses of literacy to align with the state and district initiatives in the science of reading and to incorporate within all of our 27 prek classrooms. I want to thank Lynn Gaffne for trusting in my leadership and Dr. Schmeaggel and really the entire board on this passion project and the reading league for ensuring that this supplemental curriculum coincides with the vision of the district. The survey says in in the post PD survey that we just had in September, the teachers said that 100% believed the framework was developmentally appropriate and 90% believed all activities would be easy to immediately incorporate in their existing schedules and curriculum. The key word here, you're going to
046see that when you look at the top 10 daily doses, which you have at your table, is is basically really we're going to be embedding these things with play. It's word play. It's fun. It's rhyming. It's singing. It's exposure to the ABCs. There's a lot of cool research. You can teach capital letters and lowercase at the same time. And we have an ABCI chart where when you sing A B C D, you go to the next line, E F G. So that the kids learn that when you're singing, they can point to the letters so that they start to recognize the letters. There's a lot to it. It's really fun. So what you're going to see is I I'm not going to talk for these slides. These are basically all of our partnerships with our
047CBOS. And what I asked them at the director's meeting about three weeks ago was, "Hey, can we, you know, spotlight you for some positives?" And they all said yes. And Mr. Shaneley and I went around. And I didn't know how this was going to work out, but organically, you basically can see exactly what prek is about because every place we went, they kind of did something a little bit different. So, here we go. uh starting this new school year and having to learn and take everything in that my coach has taught me this year has been so easy and has been a breeze. >> Let's go look for bugs. You >> like them, too. >> Oh, I found one. >> You found a worm. >> Is this a caterpillar? >> What is that? What does
048it look like? Oh my goodness. >> That's a spider. A tarantula. Do you think we can collect them and put them in our pockets? Let's see what else we can find. We found a beetle. What is that? >> A butterfly. Good. Good job. Where's your magic? >> You look like a spaceman. >> It's blue. >> It is blue. >> What else do you have? A hat on my head. >> On my head. >> Does it fit? >> Big hug. [Music] You can hop together. No, Bubbles. Remember >> our friends are going to sleep. [Music] >> Yeah. But when they're all done right, you can go in there. Okay. >> Right. Come back with me first. >> Oh, good job. That's a J for Jameson. >> First story we're going to read is Whoever You Are.
049And it's written by Mim Box. And then remember I told you the pictures are drawn by an illustrator and her name is Lesie Stop. Okay, >> we ready. >> Okay, let's see. Whoever you are, little one. Whoever you are, >> wherever you are, there are little ones just like you all over the world. What do you notice about this? What's this? >> Christmas. >> It's not Christmas, but it's like a globe. Okay. Houses. And people have what? >> What's on a farm? >> Cows. Horses. What else can be on a farm? >> Pigs. >> Look at me. Hold up. >> What's your name again? >> Ellie. And what are you working on in the playground? >> What's your favorite thing to do? >> Play what? >> Play toys. Um, >> and this is Play-Doh. >>
050Oh, that's cool. What are you going to make of the Play-Doh? You ready? >> You got to make sure you spray that really good. Okay. Spongebob. >> Cool. And I'll make the eyes. >> What are you making? Is that bird? [Music] Hey, mine is [Music] already something. I step on the gas and the engine drive my car. Yeah, I'm going to drive my car. >> You guys are doing a great job. I'm so proud of you. High five. Okay, here we go. >> Good job. right here. >> Red. [Music] You have a piece of paper. What are you going to make? >> The gingerbread man. >> A house. >> Okay. What color is your house? >> It's going to be red. >> All right, let's see. You going to draw your house? >> You going
051to draw it? >> You draw. >> Go ahead. [Music] Then they sniff the wonderful. Good morning. Um I'm Beth Harris, the YMCA daycare director and we participate with the Watertown City School District prek program. We have four classrooms with them. Um two here at our daycare facility and two at Ohio school. Today I have Missy who is a parent and she's had several children go through our prek program. It's just I think it's been an awesome experience for the children and um for me as well. Um they have learned, they have grown. Um they get a lot of interaction with other children. Um all the teachers and staff are very very helpful. Um if there's any issues or if they need any training or if they're um needing any therapies, that has been offered as
052well. And it's been very um very very convenient for us um as a family that everything can happen here and um the children have really grown tremendously by coming here to the YMCA and they come home and they do like little parent activities with us as well and show us all the stuff they've learned like their counting and ABCs and oh I got friends and they get invited to birthday parties And we've actually made a lot of friends um throughout the years that we still keep in contact with. >> I'm making I am making a lot of daddy, >> right? You got to use your finger muscles. We all have finger muscles. Did you know that? Oh, forgot our muscles. >> Wow. >> Can you show me what you did this morning when you came
053in? What did you do? What is that? >> Prank. >> That's your name. >> Did you write that by yourself? >> Yeah. Great job. >> Good job, buddy. >> What I think is so impressive is it's September, right? So, they they did all of that in September. You can see the routines. You can see it is a quality program. Um, and I'm very proud of our CBOS, the teachers, the pair of professionals that work with the children every day and the directors and the families. So, our website really has a lot of it's really a hub for the families um so that they can go there to get what they need. Um, and we update it yearly based on feedback from families. professional learning. We started with letters training last year which coincides with our
054new literacy framework. We do monthly professional development for all lead teachers every month and and I couldn't have a better instructional coach Kristen Damoda who um really does that side by side with me and we meet with the teachers every month and it's one of our favorite things is to do the professional development with all of the teachers and pair of professionals. We also have monthly director meetings so that we're keeping in constant communication. We have TA and aid professional development three times a year. We have P3 committees and we'll be talking about our P3 committee who's done a ton of work this year. uh since I actually since peg communitywide pyramid model meetings which we invite the community in and you can see we have a lot of partners director data days and teach
055teacher data days we really use the data that we collect to uh drive instruction and decision making for a lot of things. Valuable visits are just like the glow and grow again aligning to the district. We have new teachers that visit some of our um more veteran teachers or even some just teachers that are highlighting something and they go and visit each other in each other's rooms and they love it. They said they love that. So safety is first. Um I do the health and safety checklist every year from New York State and I also do physical environment at the same time. And as you can see each month I'm going to all 27 classrooms to either do a feedback loop and also an evaluation. But really what we focus is on are the indicators
056and what what they're doing right. Um so it's a beautiful program in that I get to say look what you're doing. You're doing this and this and this and then let's pick some one area to grow and the teachers usually can do that. It's it's really very nice. We also have worked extremely hard and this is where it was a P3 initiative where we did um really 15 steps. So in three years we've worked on 15 steps. Uh we have student folders. We've worked very hard on that. We continue to adjust. We have a lot of work to do still with our prek tok transition. Uh what we notice when we notice something works in prek, we try to gift it to the kindergarten. So we did sensory bins at first. We noticed, you know,
057a weighted dog was nice to have in the classroom. when there was some gross motor needs. If you give the kids a dog, they actually slow right down because it is a little bit heavy and the cups are for balance. So, we just saw things that we thought would the kids would use. Um, so the next year I wrote the grant for safe to schools endeavor uh with the Northern New York Community Foundation and they it was a buddy walk project where we noticed there were some students that had alop issues which means they you know travel they'll they'll run away. So this really helped our prek and and uh that's what we purchased with the safety schools endeavor. This was great and I think this was I think this was a Dr. Smeaggel uh
058idea and Lisa Blank and Tara Elmer. Uh and then I know Gretchen Manet helped me that she's done a transition. Uh and then our North teachers um Robin Chapone and um help me Autumn. Oh Nikki Patrick, thank you. I forgot. So they really worked hard on this and helped plan it with me. And these were our families and our students. And we're going to do this um in all five elementaryaries starting this next year. We do a lot of state work at prek. Uh we wrote uh standards, three-year-old standards. We did the P3 summer institute. So this was Peg Draco and I, the former principal, and we also are on the state website for our P3 work. Um so that can be viewed on our website as well. We presented in 2023 at the National
059Association for Education of Young Children convention in Nashville on language charting and interactive readalouds and I hope to get to one another one soon. This is my prek dream team. They're small but mighty and I couldn't do anything with without them. But I really want to thank a lot of people because I I want to thank the board of ed who've been very supportive this year and I appreciate it. It's been a little bit of rough waters, but we'll get through them. Uh we're going to continue to work hard. Uh I'd like to thank the district leaders for always being so supportive. Um, and I would say our 35 teachers, our 54 pair of professionals, our directors, our assistant assistant directors, the office workers, the kitchen staff, the custodial staff, elementary principles, uh, Peg Drapo
060and Heather White for teaching me so many things. Um, I have a lot of people to thank and, uh, I'm very thankful to be where I am. >> Thank you, Beth. Thank you, Beth. Just a few more announcements. Um just to um update the board. On Sunday evening I had the opportunity to represent the north country um with the chancellor Lester Young and our commissioner Betty Rosa at Syracuse University. So some great conversations happening there. Um also as was mentioned earlier um bringing back uh pep band. So, we're excited about that. The last time that that group performed, well, not those students, but different students that are now adults, uh, was the fall of 1998. So, a huge kudos to everyone that played a role in that to include our board and they presented at
061Hener versus Watertown High School here on our turf. So, kudos to them. The next thing I'd like to shout out is a big shout out to Dshar. uh if you know her, she is in her 47th year of teaching. The lady will not quit. Uh not that we're trying to get her to quit. Um but she was selected to participate and lead our educators rising initiative here at Watertown High School to look at future educators. So we're excited about all the work that she has done and the anticipated work that she will do. The next thing I'd like to mention is FEMA. We are still working with FEMA. We had another correspondence this week. Fingers crossed. They are hoping to update us by the end of this week. Um our project with FEMA could be
062up to upwards of $7 million which would reduce the burden of our taxpayers and um our aid and so we're hoping to get more information. Right now that is still at CRC. And then uh as I said we hope to hear more by the end of this week. I do have good news Beth that is Beth you're still sorry. Taking a little vision adjustment. um the capital project. So, we're underway with our $110 million capital project and we have some exciting news. So, that project when we went out to taxpayers, we said that we would not begin that project into until the summer of 2027. Uh fingers crossed we we're going to be able to launch a year earlier with this summer us beginning at Ohio Elementary School and also Starbucks Elementary School. In the
063um spring or summer of 2027, we will begin the other schools that are on that list. So, we're excited about that. Um this morning, I hosted our coffee and conversations with the superintendent. I want to thank those uh who participated this morning. Uh we had a wonderful dialogue that was scheduled for an hour but lasted a little bit longer. We're excited about more of those. And um I also want to thank we had a school board member Melanie Stano and also our student board member Caleb who attended along with Tina Lane the Jeff Lewis School Board Association dinner. And that was a wonderful opportunity last week to hear about how other districts are incorporating student board members. I'd like to end with a comment. The Watertown City School District has a bright future because of
064the talented, dedicated people who show up every day to make a difference in the lives of every children child we serve. Let's keep our focus exactly where it belongs on providing the best possible education for every child. Our district's motto is our children, our future. And that's it. >> Thank you, Dr. Smeaggel. Michelle, items for consent agenda. So all that consent agenda items A through G are hereby approved. >> Motion please. >> Tina and >> Melanie. All those in favor. Any opposed? Motion passes. Items for board action. Item A, approval of a settlement. >> Resolve upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools. The board of education hereby approves a settlement between the district and plaintiff in connection with index number EF 2021 and hereby authorizes the president of the board of education to execute
065the settlement. Be it further resolved that the board of education, which has received court order approving the settlement in this matter, hereby authorizes and directs the transfer of the district's liability reserve fund in the amount of $250,000 and directs this transfer from the district's general fund in the amount of $150,000 for payment in connection with a settlement. >> Motion, please. Melanie >> Melanie in a second calling. Discussion. All those in favor? Any oppose? Motion carries. Item B, approval of the settlement. >> Resolve upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools. The board of education hereby approves a settlement between the district and plaintiff in connection with index number EF2021 and hereby authorizes the president of the board of education to execute the settlement be it further resolved that the board of education which has received
066court order approving the settlement in this matter hereby authorizes and directs the transfer from the district's liability ility reserve fund in the amount of 1,750,000 for payment in connection with the settlement. Motion please. >> Tina and a second. >> Melanie discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item C, approval of regionalization plan. >> Whereas the Watertown City School District Board of Education has carefully reviewed the regionalization plan and associated opportunities presented by the board of cooperative educational services. And whereas the board has taken a conservative and measured approach in evaluating which re re regionalization efforts align with the district's educational goals, fiscal responsibilities, and available human resources. And whereas the board recognizes the importance of maintaining flexibility to adjust participation in regionalization initiatives based on their effectiveness and the district's evolving needs. And
067whereas section 124-2.5 of the commissioner's regulations allows the dis the Bosey's district superintendent to submit amendments to the regionalization plan on behalf of component school districts after the state education department's approval of the plan. And whereas the board wishes to formally authorize the submission of the district's regionalization attestation while preserving the district's ability to modify uh participation as circumstances warrant. Now therefore be it resolved that the board of education of the Watertown City School District hereby authorizes and directs Dr. Larry C. Schmeibble, superintendent of schools to sign and submit the Watertown City School District's regionalization attestation to the Boseis District Superintendent of Schools and be it further resolved that the superintendent is authorized to communicate the district's selection regionalization commitments as determined by this board and be it further resolved that the board pre reserves
068the right to request amendments to the regionalization plan through the Bosei Boseies district superintendent pursuant to section 124-2.5 of the commissioner's regulations. Should the district determine that withdrawal from certain initiatives or participation in additional initiatives is in the best interest of the district and its students and be it further resolved that this resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption. >> Motion please. Tina in a second discussion. >> So this is a new initiative from the commissioner of education and I just want to thank Steve Todd. He is retiring at the end of this month but I want to thank him in his effort uh and working with all of the 18 school districts um in this region. um the list that we have and I'll just read them so that you hear what the titles
069are. Um which was on board docs. Um but 1.4 is the regional substitute pair professional training and recruitment. Um so what we did we took kind of a conservative approach. We looked as a team to decide what we felt would benefit the Watertown City School District. But we wanted which is what you heard in the resolution. We wanted some language to protect so that if the board in the future, the district in the future wants to add something to the regionalization or take something away as it's not beneficial. Uh 1.6 is the regional parent and community engagement series. 2.1 is aidable shared staffing. Uh they talked a lot about um AP courses uh to increase AP course offerings. 2.4 is performance-based assessments as regents alternatives. as you understand that's the commissioner's uh guidelines there and
0702.5 of the regional workforce residency to employment and that really is like a grow your own program >> any further discussion >> and this is more to just share resources ideas and potentially thoughts >> yes absolutely so if there I'll give you the AP example if there's an AP teacher that maybe we need one section of the AP teacher, but self Jeff could use another section. It gives an opportunity to explore that without requiring it to take place. So, it really just it brings us to the table for discussion. Any other discussion? All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Approval item D, approval of personnel report. >> We resolved that upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, Dr. Larry Schmegel. The board of education hereby approves the following resignations retirement leaves of absence
071appointments probationary instructional term non-probationary instruct instructional cyclone academy lead teacher tutors after school programs permanent permanent part-time provisional substitutes instructional substitutes non-instructional motion please. Melanie >> Melanie in a second. Randy discussion. >> All those in favor? Any opposed? I am an extension. >> Item E, approval to amend personnel report. Whereas a resolution was passed by the board of education on July 1, 2025 approving the part-time instructional science teacher appointment to Philip Ples to be.39 FTE and be it further resolved that this amended resolution reflects a change in the FTE to be 44 due to a scheduling change and is hereby approved. >> Motion please. Calling in second. TN discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item F, approval of a paid administrative leave. >> Resolve that upon the recommendation of Dr. Larry Smeaggel,
072superintendent of schools, the paid administrative leave of an instructional employee effective September 23rd, 2025 is hereby approved. >> Motion. Tina in a second. >> Melanie discussion. >> All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item G, approval of tenure appointments. >> Not sure if these two teachers are here still. Lynn Bates and Aaron Canelo. Why not? >> Be it resolved that upon the recommendation of Dr. Larry Schmegel, superintendent of schools, the following tenure appointments are approved. Uh Lynn Bates, elementary effective date October 4, 2025. Uh Aaron Canella, um social studies, effective date is October 19th, 2025 and are hereby approved. >> Let's make it official. I need a motion, please. >> In a second, >> Tina, any further discussion? >> Congratulations. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Team can speak about this. >>
073Sure. Item H, approval of an MOA. resolved that the approval of a memorandum of agreement between the Watertown City School District and the Watertown Educational Association in effect with uh in effect through June 30th, 2026 regarding student extracurricular wellness uh coach stipend is hereby approved. >> Motion please. >> Melanie in a second. Coley uh Tina, you might have a little bit more information about this for us. >> Very excited to to add this new position uh to our team here in the district for the in the best interest of students. I'll just read a statement of the position. The student extracurricular wellness coach provides specialized support, wellness programming, and performance enhancement services to students who participate in extracurricular activities, including but not limited to athletes across all three sports seasons. This position integrates evidence-based mental
074health practices with extracurricular activity participation to promote student retention and extracurricular activities, participating in extracurricular activities as well and overall well-being while maintaining appropriate therapeutic boundaries within the educational environment. And this position really came about through the work of our students on our superintendent's advisory council. So, we give kudos again to our students. That's why we're here. And we're again very excited about adding this position. Thank you, Cena. Any other discussion? Okay. All those in favor? Any oppose? Motion carries. Item I, approval of a jewel agreement. >> I resolve that upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, Dr. Larry C. Smegel, the agreement dated uh September 18, 2025 to extend the probationary period of an instructional employee. The probationary period is hereby extended to and including October 12th, 2026 in accordance with the terms
075and conditions set forth in the agreement signed by the superintendent, the instructional employee, and the Watertown Educational Association president is hereby approved. >> Motion, please. See, I hate it's not a good setup. Uh second, please. Melanie discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Approval of a board policy and regulation. >> Resolve that the following revised board of education policy and regulation are hereby approved and adopted. Uh 4601 use of credit cards. Uh 40 uh 454.1 expense reimbursement regulation. Motion Tina and second Randy. Thank you. Uh discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item K, approval of an extracurricular adviser. >> Resolved that the approval of extracurricular advisor D. Shear for the newly created ed educators rising at the Watertown High School is hereby approved. >> Motion please. >> Coy and a
076second. >> Jason. Thank you. Discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. L. Approval to dispose, recycle, or donate unused textbooks. >> Resolved that the disposal, recycling, or donation of damaged, outdated, and unused textbooks from Ohio Elementary, Nickerbacher Elementary, and Watertown High School per the list provided to the board is hereby approved. >> Motion, please. Tina, and a second, Randy. Discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item M, approval to discard, dispose, or recycle outdated and unused books from Case Middle School Library. >> Resolved that the disposal, recycle, or donate donation of damaged, outdated, and unused library books from the case middle school library as per the list presented to the board is hereby approved. >> Motion, please. >> Melanie. and a second. Randy discussion. All those in favor? Motion. Any opposed?
077Motion carries. Item N, approval to discard, dispose, or recycle outdated and unused books from Watertown High School. >> Are resolved that the disposal, recycle, or donation of damaged, outdated, and unused books from the Watertown High School library as per the list provided to the board is hereby approved. >> Motion, please. Tina and a second. Randy discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item O, approval to discard, dispose, or recycle outdated and unused books from HT WY Intermediate School. resolved that the disposal, recycle, or donation of damaged, outdated, and unused library books from the HD WY Intermediate School Library as per the list presented to the board is hereby approved. >> Motion, please. Tina and a second. >> Colleague, thank you. discussion >> quick question. >> No. Um I think uh it's a good
078idea if it's okay with you all that I do include all of them. I think just in the past I wanted to be sure if you had any questions on each one separately that we addressed them separately. I think it was HTC WY. I saw on the list there were books on Jeff Gordon and Dale Nhard that they were excising and that feels like a little bit of my childhood is fading away in there. So >> that was the list. >> I knew it was on one of them. Uh all those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. Item P, approval of a donation. resolved that donations from the Scholastico Educational Consulting Firm for ongoing needsbasis donations um to support the get ready room at Case Middle School. These donations are gratefully accepted and approved and
079will be acknowledged in writing. >> Motion, please. Calling in a second. Tina discussion. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. And Q. Approval of educational trips. >> Resolve that the educational trips as presented to the board are hereby approved. >> Motion please. Tina and a second. Randy discussion. I did see that one of those trips was a trip for 180 of our students to go to Jennese County Village and Museum from the Daisy Marquee Foundation which involves uh Shannon Whitney. Uh they've added more and more kids every year to that trip. I think they've got what is it? Seventh grade they're taking. Yeah, seventh. >> Seventh grade all of them. Right. >> Yeah. >> So, uh what an amazing opportunity. So, thank you to Shannon for that and thank you to the Daisy Marquee
080Foundation uh for that opportunity for our students. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. >> And that is the end of the resolutions. >> Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> Um we're at the portion of our meeting where we'll accept any uh public comment for nonaggenda related items this evening. We apologize. My name is Paula Feast. If you don't remember me from last month, um I spoke at the board meeting about accountability and transparency, two things that I feel are still sorely missing in this district. After my last letter to the board, the superintendent responded with a generic statement that failed to answer any of my specific questions. My questions weren't complicated. They were about professional conduct, ethics, and policy, issues that fall directly under this board's responsibility. Three board members did respond to
081me. Two told me only the board president could reply. Mr. Kaine, I still have not received a response from you. One board member took the time to answer personally and directly. That member has since resigned, citing the same lack of transparency and trust that many of us in the community have raised concerns about. Her resignation should be a wake-up call, not brushed aside as another inconvenience. On that subject, I'd like to know what plans you have in regards to that empty board seat. That's one of my questions. Um, and another thing I just wanted to bring up about the last meeting, um, another speaker was permitted to name specific teachers and speak about them positively without interruption or objection. Yet, when I asked to recognize and commend great teachers in this district, I was told
082I couldn't name them. That's a blatant inconsistency and a clear example of selective enforcement. This double standard speaks volumes about the control and bias that have taken root in this district's leadership. Now, new and serious concerns have come to light about um the teacher uh recently that conducted the Keith Herring art project that linked uh sexually explicit material. There's no reason, none, that middle school students should be exposed to that kind of content, especially with without parental permission. To be clear, I am not asking for details about specific personnel, discipline, or individual actions. I am also not here to attack teachers. Our teachers show up every single day for our kids. They deserve respect, support, and protection just as much as our students do. The responsibility for clear standards and safeguards lies with the board
083and the administration. Not the teachers who are left without proper guidance or direction. There have already been two very public incidents since the school year began. And yet, not one of you has stood before this community and clearly stated whether a policy was broken or what steps are being taken to prevent or repeat. That silence does not build confidence. It deepens mistrust. Parents and teachers alike deserve clarity, consistency, and leadership. What I'm asking is what policies or safeguards you believe should be put in place so that something like this does not happen again. Parents deserve to know what standards guide the classroom and how this district plans to protect its students from inappropriate conduct content, excuse me, and protect protect its teachers from being left vulnerable in the absence of strong leadership. Because these questions
084go beyond a single classroom or a single teacher, they point to a deeper problem, a culture of fear, favoritism, and avoidance that has taken root. It's a culture where board members are afraid to speak or respond. Why is that? The superintendent is accountable to the board and the board is accountable to the community. That accountability chain has been broken. Until this board has the courage to restore it, to speak openly, act decisively, and put students first. Public trust will continue to erode. Leadership is not about protecting the system. It's about protecting the people it serves, especially our children. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Is there anybody else that would like to speak to non-aggenda related items? Okay. We had no items for discussion or information. Upcoming dates. October 13th, Monday, is Indigenous People's Day.
085There will be no school. October 21st, Tuesday, policy committee meeting starting at 5, we will be at Starbucks Elementary. And October 21st, the regular board meeting will follow at 6 o'clock. Um, look around the district. Halo, >> many opinions, but I also have opinions. These board members, these administration, this administration and these teachers show the dedication and the core values of our public education. And that's putting the children first. We always focus about the adult issues. We have to focus on the issues that face our students every day and to find solutions to help them out. And that's all I have to say. Thank you. >> I don't have much. I want to congratulate um and thank everybody that came forward and commend our teachers. I appreciate every single one of you and our aids
086and assistants and everybody else. And I'm excited about March. in the works. >> Thank you. Ready? I just encourage my Don't really know. that um if you have you feel the weight of that all the time um you feel it in your heart and you always find grace in all the work that you do but you don't take it lightly um it hurts to hear the things we're hearing um but I think um we have a board uh that has um that in them to want to do the right thing and I'm just speaking on behalf of myself that again I I think it's really important to have the community involved in the dialogue and the discussion and um help guide our pathway forward. >> Well stated >> um hard to follow but I will
087be very brief. Um one or I guess two little quick things. Um one already stated the pep band is back. I love it. Um that addition is um very welcome. Um and the second is also has to do with athletic events. um the student performance of the national anthem. I don't know if you've ever been to a a game at our stadium, but um that is a simple change that adds a great deal the experience. >> Agreed. >> Jason, >> um well, I want to take a moment to acknowledge and thank my friend and colleague Lori Converse for her incredible service to this board and our community. Lori has been a passionate advocate for students, steady voice of reason, and a tireless worker behind the scenes. Her insight, compassion, and commitment have made a lasting
088impact to the district that we serve. While I fully support her decision and understand the reason stated, her resignation leaves a void that will be deeply felt both personally and professionally. Lor's dedication has set a high standard for what it means to serve with integrity and heart. Um, I wanted to follow up on Mr. Cashman's remarks to the board approximately a month ago. Um, and recently we learned a hard lesson when we decided not to incorporate local professionals for our universal pre kindergarten RFP process. And we can't afford to repeat that mistake. This year, we need to prioritize working with local community-based organizations and local professionals who understand our families, our schools, and our challenges. Relying on the Asiggo Educational Leadership Certificate of Advanced Study Program would only put us right back where we were,
089as disconnected from the very people we're supposed to be serving. I think it's time we invest in our own community's expertise and not outsource critical decisions to people who don't live with those outcomes. Um, on a positive note, I was invited recently to read to Mrs. Kelly's Sherman Elementary class and I wanted to thank her and her entire class for having me and everybody who was involved in that opportunity. Uh and finally, as a member of this board, my approach to public comment is deliberate. I listen carefully, reflect, and consult so my responses are thoughtful and informed, not necessarily immediate. That deliberate pace is intentional, uh though I understand it's very frustrating. In the meantime, I want to offer my personal apologies to anyone who was hurt or upset by recent activity within our district.
090I take responsibility for any wrongdoing and I'm committed to learning from this and making things right moving forward. Thank you. >> Thank you, JC Melanie. to the New York State School Board Association dinner. Um, it was nice to be around other board members, other administrators, and to be able to talk about incorporating our student members. So, um, I look forward to having some more of those conversations and seeing how we can include Caleb even more. >> Well said. Um I I guess the only comment I want to make this evening kind of echoes some of the comments we that we've heard and that is that Lori Converse will be severely missed on this board of education. She brought a unique perspective uh to this board um that provided all of us an opportunity to see
091a differing viewpoint. All of our members bring very different perspectives uh to this board and that's what helps us to be um better than any one of us can be by ourselves. Um no decision is made in a vacuum. No decision is made without thoughtfulness. Uh and just like a a family losing a member, um it will never quite be the same up here without Lori here. Um, and this board will have to make a decision about what we do about that seat moving forward, but that is a discussion for another day. Um, so I just want to thank Lori for her service, her um, time on the board. It's not easy. It is not easy to take time away from one's family to be up here and to be torn in multiple different directions.
092I mean, everybody wants to talk about transparency, but we all took oaths of office to respect the Constitution of New York State and the Constitution of the United States government, and it is really, really hard sometimes to follow our hearts and follow the law at the same time. Um, so please, please show some grace. It's not that we don't listen to all of our community members, because we most certainly do. Uh, and we take all of the comments we get, all of the emails that we get very seriously. Paul, I'm sorry I did not get back to you. If you would please email me any questions you have, I will do my best to answer uh any of them. I I don't know where that slipped through the cracks, but that is absolutely on me.
093So, um and with that, I'll take a motion to adjourn. >> Tina and a second. >> Melanie. All those in favor? >> Any opposed? We are joured.