001Good morning. Thank you so much for inviting us to perform for you today. the students in front of me are our performing coral ensemble seminal singers. This group consists of highly motivated sophomores, juniors, and seniors who have auditioned to be a part of this advanced performance group. U my name is Maya Barios. I teach chorus, musical theater, and guitar at Semino High School. Next up, I actually have our chorus president, Shaya Chico, introducing our next piece. Hello, my name is Shaina Chico. I'm the chorus president for the 2025 2026 school year and this is my fourth year in Semol High School Choir. Our next piece is DSSE Day by Ryan Maine. This heartpounding setting of the DSE day is becoming a favorite in our class as we prepare it for our fall concert in October.
002Driving rhythms overlap with flowing lines to create a piece that presents its own unique challenges for a high school choir. We hope you enjoy. dance. Do you see the coming for me? There it belonged to condo. Oh, you susp. And S Ter. Damn it. Tru That was wonderful. Thank you so much. I bet it was even more fun to sing than it is to listen to, but it was great fun to listen to. That was really wonderful. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you, Miss Barios. The next item on our agenda is a video around how one elementary school celebrated Say Hello Week. It is part of the Sandy Hook Promise program that we use here at Penllis County Schools. And we use it, yes, at the beginning of the year with Start
003with Hello Week, but also throughout the year, our see something, say something application and many other programs through this incredible organization called Sandy Hook Promise. Let's see how this elementary school started off Say hello week. So, I'm going to put a staple in the chain. And that's our first link. We have start with hello week, which is really about looking out for others and including others. We have a special theme called kindness is a chain reaction. Give someone a hug. I wrote stand up to bullies that will make them stop bullying. Smile at people and hold the door for someone. A recipe book for kindness. All right, our chain is ready to go get put with the rest of the school when they see you in the cafeteria to remind her let's have be kind.
004Why is it such a good thing to be kind and include others? I saw a lot of really good ones. I saw helping others. I loved hearing they're going to help cheer somebody up if somebody was down. just really encouraging others. There was a lot of really good ones. It's teaching them what to do. If they see somebody alone, what is a helpful? What's a friendly thing to do? Tell a friend to never give up. If you were having a hard time and somebody came up to you and said, "Hey, don't give up." Wouldn't that give you like this amazing feeling that makes you just want to keep going, right? And keep pushing yourself. We're trying to prevent student violence. And one of those things is making sure we're including others. Because a lot of
005the time when we choose to do kind things, it does it inspires others or makes somebody feel good and then they pass on that kindness. In an ideal world, it would be a nice thing to have a daily practice where we're kind every day. Just out of choice to do that for us, but also for others. It's really beautiful. We're all those links in the chain and can just pass that on. I love seeing that in our schools. The next item on our agenda is item 1.6, introduction of professional and community organization representatives. Isabel Mascarinis, our public information officer. Good morning, Madame Chair, members of the board, Mr. Hendendrick and staff. It is my pleasure to introduce the following representatives of community and professional organizations from the Penllis Classroom Teachers Association. Lee Bryant, President representing
006the North Panelis League of Women Voters, Vivian Posey, Nancy Cohen, and Gene Reynolds from the Penelis Arts for a Complete Education Coalition. Maria Cantonis, members of the media in attendance from News Channel 8, photojournalist Avis Bradley. Today we have a presentation from the student rights and responsibility committee. Please welcome students Ella Bidd and Adrien Munos from Semino High School and their principal Alana Brown. Good morning. It's nice to have you here. Hi Mrs. Brown. Nice to see you. Good morning, Madame Chair, members of the board, Mr. Hendrik, and staff. It is our pleasure to present the student rights and responsibility report for Seminal High School. My name is Ella Bidd, and I'm a senior at Seminal High School. I currently serve as student council president, secretary of National Honor Society, and I'm a proud member
007of the Cell program. My future goal is to attend the University of Florida and major in premed. Good morning. My name is Adrien Munoz and I am also a senior at Seminal High School. As a sophomore, I had the opportunity to attend the leadership summit which gave me a whole new perspective on collaboration. That experience taught me strategies for working effectively with people from diverse backgrounds, showed me how to adapt in different settings, and introduced me to new leadership opportunities. I am grateful for that experience because it helped me grow as both a student and a leader. I am also a proud member of 5,000 role models of excellence, a program that allowed me to engage with the community, connect with mentors, and continue developing the leadership skills I use today. After graduation, I plan
008to attend the University of Central Florida and major in aerospace engineering. Thank you for this opportunity to share some of the incredible things happening at Seminal High School. Last year, we earned a B school grade and we are excited to share how we are constructing our way to an A-rated future. Our e-commerce program had a record-breaking year. Students earned over 200 industry certifications. They hosted the largest taste of seminal ever with 30 food vendors and more than 500 guests. In our Warhawk shop, our state sponsored, the only state sponsored studentled online business, surpassed $1 million in net lifetime sales. Our center for education and leadership, Cell, continues to shine. Cell was named an Academy of Distinction with distinguished honors, the highest recognition award by Penelis County and Panel's Education Foundation. Nationally, Cell was recognized by
009Magnet Schools of America, earning the Academy of Distinction Merit Award for the second consecutive year. Cell students contributed an impressive 14,373 community service hours, supporting feeder schools, and giving back to dozens of organizations across Penllis County. The arts at Siml High School have never been stronger. Our Warhawk band had an undefeated season, winning the Florida Class 4A state championship. They also made history marching in front of 800,000 people live and 28 million viewers on national TV at the 136th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. Our visual arts students earned recognition at district, regional, and national levels. Their work was displayed in exhibitions and museums, and they brought home multiple awards, showcasing the creativity and talent of our student artists. Our jazz bands and orchestra earned superior ratings at music performance assessments and performed throughout
010the community at district events and even for government ceremonies. The SHS Big Man continued their tradition of bringing the campus together with their popular weekend sendoff concert series. Our course program had a record-breaking year with 12 students selected for all county choir, 21 students participating in the Ignite Honor Choir experience under the direction of Victor C. Johnson and one student earning placement in the SSAA Florida allstate course after three rounds of competitive testing. In drama, Troop 3039 performed the one act play disaster by Donalitis at the district festival, earning a superior rating as well as best actor and best ensemble cast honors. For our athletics, Warhawk Athletics Sports and New Heights football had its best season in over 20 years. The girls soccer earned their third consecutive district title. Volleyball claimed the district championship and
011advanced to the top eight in the state. Wrestling had four regional qualifiers, the first in over a decade. We celebrated state champions in swimming and diving. Baseball and girl girls tennis both brought home district titles with girls tennis finishing fourth at state in doubles competition. One of the biggest changes we've experienced this year is the construction happening on our campus. Even though we deal with new traffic patterns, classroom relocations, and changing building access almost every day, we've learned to adapt and keep moving forward. It hasn't slowed us down. In fact, it showed us how resilient we are as Warhawks. We love our new classrooms and collaborative spaces. They make learning feel more interactive and give us a chance to work together in ways we couldn't before. We use these new spaces for student council meetings,
012group projects, and collaborative work in different classes, which has helped us become more engaged and connected as a student body. It is exciting to watch our school transform right in front of us, and we can't wait to see what is what the new Seminal High School will look like when everything is finished. This whole experience reminds us that we really are constructing an A-rated future together. At Semino High School, we are preparing for life beyond graduation. We leave high school with industry certifications, dual enrollment credits, and AP credits. We gain real world experience through partnerships with local businesses, giving us a competitive edge whether we're applying to college, starting a career, or enlisting in the military. As Warhawks, we live but sorry. As Warhawks, we live by the values of soore, show respect, own our
013actions, act safely, and remain engaged. These values guide everything we do in the classroom, on the field, in the arts, and in the community. At Smol High School, we know we're more than just students. We are future leaders, innovators, and difference makers. Thank you to our teachers, families, and the school board for supporting us and helping us design an A-rated future we can all be proud of. Ella and Adrienne, that was an excellent presentation. Thank you. and Adrienne, it was great to hear you mention the leadership summit. That's something we started just a few years ago. You may have been one of the earliest classes and so it's really great to hear that positive feedback. Principal Brown, they reflect great credit upon you and your school. Well done. Item two, amendments to the agenda. Mr.
014Hendrick, are there any amendments to the agenda? Yes, Madam Chair. There is one amendment to the agenda. That is item 7.4. There was an added change for a principal transfer principal an Caparazzo from Skyrest Elementary to Fairmont Park Elementary School. Thank you. Board members, any amendments to the agenda? No, we just have the one from Mr. Hendrick. As as board chair, I find good cause to amend the agenda as suggested by Mr. Hendrickk. May I have a motion and a second to adopt the agenda as amended? Second. A motion from Mrs. Kaine and a second from Miss Edmond. All those in favor say I. Any opposed? Passes seven to zero. We have two items on our special order agenda today. The first item 4.1, presentation of the proclamation observing disability history and awareness weeks during
015the first two weeks in October 2025. May I have a motion and a second to approve this item? A motion from Mrs. Long and a second from Mrs. Meyer. Mr. Dr. Hendrick, would you please introduce this item? Thank you, Madam Chair. We're excited to celebrate students with disabilities, not just in the month of October, but meeting the needs of students everywhere they are all the time. And so, here to talk more about these weeks and the proclamation is our executive director of exceptional student education, Lynn Mitt. Thank you. Good morning, Madame Chair, board members, Mr. Hendrik, staff, and community. During the first two weeks of October, we will celebrate disability awareness weeks. During this time, schools should engage in activities that support the history of disabilities and promote awareness. In Penllis County, we serve nearly
01614,000 students with disabilities and exceptional student education with other students having eligible disabilities who receive accommodations through section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We continue to provide opportunities for inclusion and quality programs and services. We place a focus on universal de universal design for learning, highlighting the importance of access for all. Many of our students who graduate go on to become employees of Penllis County Schools. Throughout these two weeks, schools support should support activities that promote positive attitudes towards the successful inclusion of students with disabilities, increase respect and acceptance of individual differences, increase understanding of disabilities and related social issues, and facilitate the development of literacy and language arts skills through activities about disability awareness. Thank you for acknowledging the importance of our students and adults with disabilities and the positive impact they
017have on our district and our community. Thank you, Mrs. Mo. Mrs. Long, would you please read the proclamation? Proclamation Disability History and Awareness Week. Whereas the Penllis County School Board recognizes the important contributions and achievements of individuals with disabilities. And whereas during this two-week period, students may be provided intensive instruction to expand their knowledge, understanding, and awareness of individuals with disabilities, the history of disabilities, and the disabilities rights movement. And whereas the goals of disability history and awareness instruction include a better treatment for individuals with disabilities, especially for youth in our schools, and increased attention to preventing the bullying or harassment of students with disabilities. B. encouragement to students with disabilities to develop increased self-esteem, resulting in more students with disabilities gaining pride in being an individual with a disability, obtaining postsecary education, entering the
018workforce, and contributing to their communities. and C reaffirmation of the local, state, and federal commitment to the full inclusion in society of and the equal opportunity for all students with disabilities. And whereas public awareness, knowledge, and understanding of disabilities promotes full participation by students with disabilities into the school and community activities. Increased knowledge of individual contributions by people with disabilities advances inclusive communities. Now, therefore, the school board of Penllis County does hereby recognize the first two weeks of October as disability history and awareness weeks in the Penllis County schools. And we call on all citizens of Penelis County to celebrate the many contributions individuals with disabilities make to Florida, to our nation, and to our world. Sign this 23rd day of September, 2025. Thank you, Mrs. Long. Board members, any discussion before we vote? Mrs.
019long. I just want to say thank you as a ESC teacher who fought this fight for 35 years as a mother of a child that went through Penllis County Schools with the disability the success that he's gaining and it was because of the foundation of here in Penllis County schools. It means a lot and it means a lot to society. We don't have communities filled with special education children. They're amongst us and they're human beings with feelings and thoughts just like everybody else and they have the right to participate in activities and show their skills. And this is a very important time. I'm going to start crying. But this is something that I'm passionate about and I thank you, Miss Mo, for the hard work that is going by our teachers, our support staff, administration.
020This is an incredible time. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Edmond. Thank you, Mrs. Mitt, and your team. I really appreciate the innovative efforts to streamline streamline the processes from elementary, middle, and high school as it relates to ESSE transition as well as all of the additional new efforts that are in place to support childrens with disabilities. So, thank you and your team. Thank you. We have a motion and second on the floor to approve item 4.1. All those in favor say I. I. Any opposed? Passes seven to zero. Thank you, Miss SM. The next item on our agenda 4.2, presentation of the proclamation designating October 2025 as National Principles Month. May I have a motion and a second to approve this item? Motion from Mrs. Kaine and a second from Miss Peters. Mr. Hendrick, would
021you please introduce this item? It would be my pleasure to introduce Miss Paula Texel, one of our area superintendents, who's going to talk a little bit more about the important role principles play in our schools and for our students and to celebrate them in the month of October. Miss Texel. Good morning, Madam Chair, schoolboard members, Mr. Hendrik, and staff. It truly is an honor to stand before you today on behalf of the area superintendent and chiefs to recognize and celebrate an extraordinary group of leaders in Penllis County who guide our guide our schools, inspire our educators, and help shape the futures of our students, our school-based administrators. October is officially National Principles Month, and we are here to recognize them today with this proclamation. But I know our principles would agree wholeheartedly that they could
022not do the job that they do each and every day without the support of their assistant principles as well. School-based administrators wear many hats. Instructional leaders, problem solvers, mentors, and sometimes even cheerleaders. They are the ones who set the tone for the school's culture for fostering environments where curiosity thrives, where every child feels seen, where teachers feel supported, and where learning is not just a task, but a joy. Schoolbased administrators balance countless responsibilities, but at the heart of all of it is their belief in the power of education and in the potential of every child. So today, we say thank you. Thank you for your leadership, your dedication, your unwavering commitment to students, teachers, and our families. When assistant principles and principles lead with passion, schools thrive, and so do our communities. Thank you so
023much. Thank you, Mrs. Texel. Mrs. Kane, would you please read the proclamation? Absolutely. National Principles Month of October. Whereas principles are educational visionaries, instructional and assessment leaders, disciplinarians, community builders, budget analysts, facility managers, and administrators of legal and contractual obligations. And whereas principles work collaboratively with teachers and parents to develop and implement a clear mission, high curriculum standards, and performance goals. And whereas principles create school environments that facilitate great teaching and learning and continuous school improvement. And whereas the celebration of National Principles Month honors elementary, middle, and high school principles and recognizes the vital role that they play ensuring that every child has access to a high quality education. Now therefore, the school board of Penllis County hereby proclaims the month of October 2025 as National Principal Month signed on the 23rd day of September,
0242025. Thank you so much. Thank you. Any discussion? Well, it certainly is welld deserved. As we know, principles are the captains of their ship out there, and it's an exciting and wonderful job and also a very difficult one, but it makes all the difference. So, thank you for bringing this forward to us. We have a motion and a second on the floor to approve item 4.2. All those in favor say I. Any opposed? Passes seven to zero. Public comments on agenda items. Mrs. H, do we have any speakers? Madam Chair, there are no speakers for agenda items. Thank you. We don't have any unfinished business for today. Item number seven, our consent agenda. May I have a motion and a second to approve the consent agenda? Motion from Miss Edmond and a second from Mrs.
025Meyer. All those in favor say I. Any opposed? Passes seven to zero. Item 8.1 on our non-consent agenda today. Setting a public hearing and authorizing the advertisement of the public hearing to consider the amendment to policy 2250 fundamental in magnet schools. This is the first reading. May I have a motion and a second to approve this item? Motion from Mrs. Kaine and a second from Miss Blackburg. Mr. Hendrickk, would you please introduce this item? Thank you, Madam Chair. As you know, the board takes a look at the policy for district application programs each year and it is that time of year where we're looking again and even getting ready for the district application program process to begin soon. Here to talk more about that is the director of student assignment, Ella Trescowski, who also presented
026to you at the workshop last week on this information and, you know, is out working year round on school choice initiatives for our district. Mr. Troskowski, thank you. Good morning, board chairman Hine, board members, Superintendent Hendrik, and the community. Thank you for the opportunity to present the changes for the magnet and fundamental policies for the 2627 school year. As we reviewed on the September 16th workshop, these updates reflect ongoing commitment to enhancing clarity and ensuring alignment across our programs. Just going to review the changes. We have two clarification updates. We've refined the definition of unique application area to consistently use Gulf to space south and north reducing confusion for families. We also changed the appeals language now directly references policy 5500.13 in the code of student conduct streamlining the grievance pro. There are four program
027name changes to reflect a new accreditations and consolidations. McMullen booth is now an accredited IB program primary programs. Cambridge Conservatory for Academics will no longer be used as an additional offering. It will be the Cambridge Conservatory for the Arts and the Academics at Tarpon Springs Middle. The Automotive Technology Center is now the Automotive Academy at Northeast and Panelis Park High School is combining program names to create the Criminal Justice and First Responder Academy. There is one program addition. We're excited to announce or introduce the Automotive Academy at Largo High School. Transportation adjustments. transportation eligibility has been clarified for several programs, including the removal of arterial transportation for Ocola Fundamental High School and transportation zones have been updated for multiple high school programs and appeals process rather than automatically voiding invitations. High school transportation revisions, application
028area expansions for the center of literacy innovation to now include up to Elmorton, increasing access for midcount students, general language and grammar improvements include broad edits for clarity, defined acronyms, and removing of repetitive language throughout the manual. These updates are designed to improve transparency, streamline processes, and ensure access to our diverse and rigorous DAP offerings. We appreciate your support and look forward to implementing these changes to better serve our students and families. just for some updates next week we'll we'll be doing on October 1st navigating our school choice options live streaming. Our fairs are October 25th, October 29th and November 5th with the application period opening January 6 through the 16th. Take any questions you may have at this time. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Troskowski. Board members, Miss Edmond, thank you. Thank you very
029much you and your team for all of this hard work as well as responding to some of the questions that I asked. I'm just going to just share so the public is aware as you mentioned transportation changes and it's that there's an estimate of about 450 students that will be impacted and this includes the produ proposed reduction at Oyola High School which is about 250 students. So, some of the things that will be done to solicit feedback is once they've determined which students have fallen outside of that transportation zone, some may be seniors which will not be impacted. I just want to let the families be aware that they can provide feedback on this policy. This is the first hearing. the estimated savings or the annual impact in transportation alone with the reductions you just
030mentioned is to a tune of 2.5 to3 million as a best estimate which includes the reduction at Oyola High School. So when we think about the financial impact of things to come the district is not only looking at efficiencies but they're also soliciting feedback for how to best serve and improve our programs. So, thank you very much, Mr. Scowski. Any other comments or questions, board members? Thank you. I know this is a lot of work, Ellen, and we definitely appreciate it. we have a motion and a second on the floor to approve item 8.1. All those in favor say I. Any opposed? Passes seven to zero. Item 8.2, to request approval of the school improvement plans. May I have a motion and a second to approve this item? Motion from Miss Edmond and a second
031from Mrs. Long. Mr. Hendrickk. Thank you, Madam Chair. just as the board took a look at its district strategic plan a few weeks ago and reviewed last year and look towards this year, schools do the same thing through their school improvement plans. And so here to share more about the process and how that gets relayed to the state is our director of strategic planning and policy, Leon Eisen. Miss Eisen. Good morning, Madam Chair, board members, Superintendent Hendrickk, staff, and community. Today, we're bringing the 2025 2026 school improvement plans for approval. All school improvement plans are posted on the district website. The state deadline to submit school improvement plans is August 1st each year. Schools submit their plans, implement their school improvement plans, and are expected to make continual improvements to the plan throughout the year
032in an effort to improve student achievement. Throughout the summer, school leadership teams work alongside the teaching and learning staff, their area superintendent or chief, the climate and behavior, student services, title one, and federal projects departments to develop their plans using the state template. Schools are provided support through written resource guides, online office hour sessions, an in-person work session, and one-on-one support as needed. When staff and students return to campus, the schools review their plans with the staff and their school advisory councils. Their input is collected and the school improvement plans are adjusted accordingly. Most of the school advisory committees have approved the school improvement plans for this year and the remaining schools have the school improvement plan approval on their upcoming SAC meeting agendas. Schools will submit their mid-year reflections in February and we encourage
033schools to share these mid-year reflections and any updates to the plan with their school advisory council at that time. Upon completion of the mid-year reflections, the school improvement plans will be updated on the district school improvement plan website. Thank you for supporting the 2526 school improvement plans as a key component of our school's continuous improvement process. Thank you, Mrs. Eison. Board members, any discussion? As a member of the SAC boards at both of my children's schools, I've looked closely at those two, but certainly I've looked at a lot of the other ones, and they're very thorough, and I appreciate the work and thought that goes into them with those school-based leadership teams. every year. We have a motion and second on the floor to approve item 8.2. All those in favor say I. Any opposed?
034Passes seven to zero. New business items introduced by the superintendent. Mr. Hendrickk. Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to start today with really good news that came last evening and that is that the district and the panel's classroom teachers association came to a tenative agreement and concluded negotiations for this year. We'll be putting out a joint communication later on today to employees to announce that and then go through the timelines for ratification, eventually bringing it to the board. In a difficult budget year, I'm especially grateful that we were able to reach a compromise before the October 1st deadline for the teacher salary increase allocation that needs to be given out to our teachers. So, I want to thank Mr. Lee Bryant and his team that are here and Stephanie Woodford led our team. Mike Vigu,
035Lori Dart, many others that contributed. Gary Jeeperson as well who's up here with us. and get us to the finish line through I don't know 20 25 negotiation sessions over the course of the last several months at least that many. moving on I want to thank the Panel Education Foundation for a fantastic changemakers breakfast last week where they honored a number of change makers in our community including our own Michael area general manager for his efforts last year cleaning up our schools and repurposing and reimagining them through hurricanes. I want to thank Mr. Olrich and the team at our maintenance division and facilities division for the great work. they also honored Jim Meyer, the chair of Crown Automotive for his lifetime achievement and as well as Chris Devine, a Penel Park High School alum who
036went on to become an owner of a nearby Chick-fil-A store after he began working there in high school. He was a take stock and children recipient and continued working all the way through and a great story. Congratulations to all the change makers winners last week. I'd like to also congratulate students of Penelis County schools who were recently named National Merit Scholars. 30 Penllis County students were named National Merit Scholars recently. and they are now in competition for $26 million in scholarship funds. It's also rewarding that of those 30 students, they come from 10 different Penllis County high schools representing North and South and everywhere in between in all kinds of academic programs. The students qualified for the scholarship program by taking the PSAT in 2024 in October of 2024 about one year ago and they
037represent less than 1% of all US seniors in the country. So some of the most brilliant students right here in Penelis County schools and upcoming in just a few weeks students in 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th grade will take the PSAT at different grade levels for different purposes but are going to have that chance again of those 11th graders in Penel County schools this year. And I want to thank our schools, our college and career centers, and others who are helping prepare students for those upcoming assessments. Last week, we had another successful Penllis County Administrative Building art show with 1,600 pieces of artwork on display in this building. I can assure you, we had a wall-to-wall, shoulder-to-shoulder participation from parents and students. Hundreds of students and parents walking around the building, finding their artwork through
038our maze of of locations. It was great to see students and celebrate with them. I want to thank the Panelis Art Education Association, our teachers who came out and volunteered to put on that event as they do each and every year. It's a tremendous event and made possible in part by the referendum and we're grateful for that. about a week ago, we also had our first ever Penllis County Schools Raider Challenge as JOTC Raider teams from across the state, 22 different schools participated in this inaugural event testing strength, endurance, leadership, and teamwork. They had to go across rope bridges, team relays, endurance challenges. And our own Northeast High School, who hosted the event, also won the event in its inaugural challenge. I want to thank Miss Edund for being out there. I saw her in
039pictures cheering on our students early in the morning last Saturday. Is a great event and we look forward to seeing more of those events as we've built more obstacle courses at our schools across the district. Some upcoming events to keep on the calendar. Our annual North County College and Career Fair will be held on Monday, October 6th at Countryside High School. representatives from various college and careers will be there as well as military branches, employment, and more. Check the website for more details. And also coming up, although it's still early in the year, is the deadline for students to submit their application for Walker's Rising Stars. Juniors and seniors can compete in that scholarship application. And we look forward to seeing students participate in that. And as you heard Mr. Troskowski just mention, our upcoming
040magnet fairs, parent nights, more on our website about those opportunities for parents to listen in and then participate in those opportunities. And finally this week, I want to recognize our students, our teachers, superintendent standout. And this month's recognition goes to art teacher Gwen K at Pon DeLeon Elementary School. She was nominated by one of her colleagues who notes that she consistently goes above and beyond both inside and outside of the classroom to create meaningful experiences for students. She doesn't just teach art, she brings it to life. During evening events, she transformed her classrooms into a black light gallery, showcasing students artwork in a magical and engaging way that excites children and families alike. And in her lesson, she integrates math, science, reading to ensure that art is across all subjects. For example, she brilliantly connected
041Hispanic Heritage Month with National Dot Day, weaving together culture, creativity, and literacy in a way that inspired her students. Thank you to Mrs. Kay and all of our teachers for the great work they do. emphasizing our core values each and every day. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Hendrich. Items introduced by the school board attorney. No items today. Thank you. Thank you. Items introduced by the board board members. Miss Edmond. I did have an opportunity to attend the Raider challenge and it was just it was amazing to see all of the students or cadetses out there preparing at 7 a.m. Some family share they were driving from Dun Eden at 4:00 a.m. and the excitement was just h it was refreshing. they were cheering each other on, exercising, and I had the opportunity to
042speak with some of the parents and they are really excited about the program. I even told Northeast Penllis Park High School parents that they'll soon have an obstacle course. They were they were just really excited and they expressed that it's great to see that the district really is caring about the JOTC program. I ran into Mr. hunt as well and we have every branch of military represented in our JOTC programs throughout the county which is very impressive. So that was the highlight of my Saturday arriving at Northeast at 7 a.m. to see happy faces. so and to see the things that we're buying in action like that obstacle course. So thank you Superintendent Hendrick, Mr. hunt and team as well as the parents and volunteers and the kids that were up early this early in
043the morning getting ready to run and do obstacle courses. Another highlight I like to share is the innovation lab. That is a bus that will be going to seventh grade to middle schools for seventh grade students. And as a former science coach, being on that bus reminded me of the science lab. I like yes, more hands-on learning opportunities. So, kudos to the district for continuing to provide opportunities to increase hands-on learning. Thank you. Any other board members? I was at a a high school baseball game at Northeast High School last night and saw that obstacle course. I kind of wanted to get out there and try it. So, we got to make sure we keep that locked up. You're gonna have people out there playing on it. It's awesome. It's awesome. It's really good. I
044too I know Mr. Hendrick mentioned it, but just wanted to raise up the Penelis Education Foundation event last Friday. It was it was truly inspirational and your discussion was inspirational, Mr. Hendrick. We're we're very proud of you, but proud of the success that this district has had and being able to share it in a group that's growing and growing and growing. Penelis Education Foundation, as I think you all know, supports our district in an extraordinary way. And it's a way for those of you if you don't currently have children in schools, so you're not maybe engaging in your PTAs or your boosters or your Sachs or those kinds of things, it's a great organization to get involved in. as well as of course mentoring with us there. There are there are lots of ways. So
045I just wanted to acknowledge the education foundation is the board chair. We get to serve on the board of the education foundation. So I've really enjoyed the opportunity to get to know more about it in the last couple of years than I than I had seen before. And it's truly an extraordinary organization with great leadership I would mention as well. I I also just wanted to say how grateful I am to be in this work with the six of you schoolboard members. I respect you. I value you. I appreciate your ideas and your perspectives. and I'm glad to be in this work with you. So, thank you, Miss Peters. Thank you, Madam Chair. Oops. I wanted to briefly mention we had our leadership retreat yesterday hosted at Eard College and thank you for the efforts
046Miss Edmund, Miss Hal, Miss Hine for really making that happen. It was the best retreat. I mentioned yesterday I was in corporate America for 15 years and we had to do retreats like that all the time and they just were not Yesterday was outstanding. It was I think it really brought us all together and reinforces my feelings of how how much I value working with each and every one of you and we're we're really lucky in this climate especially throughout the state and the United States and the universe as Mr. Koperski said we have I think we have the best school board and school district around. So I just I do really value our differences of opinions, the conversations that happen around those and I just value working with with all of you. So thank
047you. And in the end the ability to discuss those differences yields the best result for our students and our community at the end of the day. Any other discussion from board members? Okay. Review of board requests. Mrs. Woodford. I did not note any requests, but because Mr. Hendrick mentioned half the team, I feel like they would be slighted if I didn't do a shout out to Mike Vigu, Carly Spicer, Dave Richmond, and Dena Collins who were also on our negotiating team. And it was a really collaborative experience, but I didn't want to leave the four of them off. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Important work. Okay, with that I adjourn this meeting and we move to public participation. Mrs. Hal, are there any speakers? Yes, Madam Chair. There are two speakers this morning. Please
048go ahead. the first speaker is Lee Bryant and the second speaker is Curtis Compon. Good morning, Mr. Hendrick and staff, Chair Hine, and members of the board. it's nice to be back. I'm Lee Bryant, president of the Penllis Classroom Teachers Association. Again, I would like to express our thanks for meeting with the bargaining team and coming up with a an agreeable contract. I think we work well as a district. my team just could not be more proud of them and enjoyed working with your team. for a state that claims to be third largest economy in the nation, the funding of our public schools is shameful. 50th in the nation for average teacher pay for the second year in a row. some of the lowest per pupil spending in the nation. Year after year after year,
049the state of Florida gave 0.7% for teacher raises across the state. 0.7%. In a state as prosperous as Florida is, that is shameful. It is insulting. It is sad that our district had to come before their employees and say this is what we have in a very difficult year for Penllis County Schools. We know it. We went through last year. We know what's going on this year. It is difficult. The cost of living in this county is outrageous. and to expect our teachers and educators, all of our employees to be able to keep functioning when the inflation rate is 3.3% in our Bay Area and the offer from the state is 0.7. That is insulting. It is shameful. Our communities deserve better. Our educators deserve better. Our students deserve better. Thank you for your time.
050Hello everybody. How you doing? My name is Curtis Campony. I'm a dad of two children adopted through the Florida foster care system and are in public school. And on that note, since this is public, Maggie Frankie, how you doing? Do your homework. I'm also a vice chair of the circus 6 advisory board and I am the Florida state rep for SETA, one of the largest workforce agencies in the country and I'm also a business owner. Because of that, I am at the legislative delegation meeting tomorrow and I submitted way too many speaker request forms. I then looked at the speaker list today and there were over 140 people speaking. So I called and I was like, does this mean I'm going to get like maybe 10 minutes only? And they said, no, you're going to
051get one slot in one minute. So I want to discuss some of the items that maybe I will will not be able to discuss tomorrow. The first one is strategic empathy. I train and teach on empathy all across the country for adults and demographics and students of of all all across the world across the country. You would not believe how often people believe that in order to empathize with someone it means that you have to agree with them. You would not believe that how many people believe in order to empathize with someone it means you have to condone their actions. None of this is accurate. None of this is true. Empathy means just prioritizing someone else's perspective even if you don't agree. Imagine our students and our high schoolers understanding that we can take in
052ideas that we don't agree with. And it's okay. Empathy reduces defensiveness and reduces anxiety. I would be willing to pro bono teach every single high school about strategic empathy so that our schools and our students could go into the workforce understanding it's okay to think differently. The second part, declining in our school enrollment. The superintendent did a phenomenal job articulating all the reasons we're declining as far as in our public schools. I love public schools. Public schools are amazing. My mom is a public school teacher. But what I think we can do is do a little bit better job of telling the story of why public schools. All of these students that come up here are phenomenal. They're inspirational. They're motivational. And they are very skilled in social media. Better than you, better than me.
053Why are we not leveraging our students all across Penllis County who are skilled in those areas? partnering them with PEK, partnering them with SPC, allowing them to create YouTube shorts, Instagram reels, Tik Toks, so they can tell the story of public schools. I think the community is a little exhausted of hearing it from adults. Let's hear it from our from our students. And my last idea, this might be too big, too big. But when tax season comes, we have tax credits, we have tax breaks, you give donations. All of this money is available, but I cannot find one tax credit where we reward families who have students in the houses that are achieving academically. Why not give tax credits to students who have a GPA 2.5 and up, three, 3.0 and up, and 4.0 and
054above? Let's advocate for getting some money in the pockets of families who are wrapping around that community engagement with their schools and helping their students achieve. 10 seconds left. I just want to let everybody know that's watching, the school board is legally not allowed to respond to public comment. So if they don't respond, it doesn't mean they don't care. They do care and I appreciate your time. Madam Chair, there are no more speakers. Thank you. Thank you so much for being here today.