Poquoson City Public Schools - School Board Meeting 2025-12-16

001All right. Good evening everybody. I'd like to welcome you all to the December 16th Picosen Public Schools School Board meeting. I'd like to open this meeting. Okay. Uh the first item of business is the call to order. Uh second, uh Miss Stud, are you come up and lead us in the pledge to the flag? Please stand for a pledge of allegiance. I 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. Please pause for a moment of silence. You may be seated. Today our quote comes from Gandhi. Be the change that you wish to see in the world. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Dud. All right. >> So, moving on to item three, uh,

002additions and or modifications to the agenda. Uh, Miss Carol, are there any additions or modifications? >> Um, there is one addition on section 8E. The proclamation of the school principal week was omitted from the board documents. It's on the dis in front of you. We'd like that to be approved tonight. >> Okay. Thank you. Um in order to do that, uh can I get a motion to amend the uh agenda package for tonight? >> So moved. >> Thank you. Uh second. >> Second. >> Uh all in favor say I. I. >> I. Okay. Uh, moving on to section four recognitions, Miss Pertie. Uh, here we've got quite a few tonight. >> We do have some this evening. Thank you, Chair Burbage, members of the board, community members, and colleagues. Thank you for joining us this

003evening. Our first celebration of the evening is our senior of the month. Academically, our December student of the month is among the strongest students of the class of 2026, maintaining a 4.39 weighted GPA while taking a rigorous schedule that includes advanced placement courses and dual enrollment coursework. She serves as the executive representative on the student council and historian of the National Honor Society. She has played a central role in large-scale school initiatives such as homecoming, prom, and multiple community outreach events. Notably, she assisted with their school's powderpuff tournament, organized a senior citizen golden gala through the Chick-fil-A leadership academy, and led the schoolwide classic bag drive. She's also a two-time varsity field hockey captain, earning first team all region and first team all state honors in 2024. And then this year, she earned first team

004all district, first team all region, and first team all state in the hockey field hockey defense. Beyond her own team, she volunteers as a coach in the Pixie Sticks Youth Field Hockey Program where she serves a as a positive role model for rising players. Additionally, the December senior of the month is a Red Cross certified lifeguard and swim instructor. She also works as a field supervisor for Coasten Parks and Recreation, ensuring safe and supporting environments for our youth athletic events. Please join me in congratulating Miss Casey Law as the December senior of the month. Don't finish. Thank you. PHS has another shining moment as they are once again a wise blue star school. Being a wise blueest star school means a high school has demonstrated exceptional student achievement in personal finance by having a large

005percentage of the students pass the wise financial literacy certification exam which earns them the YCFL. is a designation showing a deep understanding of financial concepts. Schools achieve this by teaching personal finance using the WISE curriculum and resources and leading the high pass rate which is often 80% or more on the standardized test. In addition to this, PHS once again has a recipient of the WISE gold star teacher award. In order for a teacher to achieve this gold star award, their students must have achieved a 93% passing rate on the WISE financial literacy certification exam which was given last spring. The working and support of education organization which is the acronym wise is committed to helping students become financially literate adults and passing this financial finance exam is an important graduation requirement for students in the

006commonwealth. The wise goldstar teacher this year is Mr. Timothy Sofus who has been a part of the school the social studies department in PHS since 2016 and is a passionate educator teaching many classes that range from AP psychology to US history to economics and personal finance. Mr. Sophus Picosen schools applauds your accomplishment and is thankful for your success with our students. question. Okay. The teacher of the year program provides an opportunity to shine a light on the exceptional work happening every day across Picosen City Schools. Our teachers of the year are nominated and selected by their peers and represent the dedication, innovation, and positive spirit that defines our schools. Instead of me sharing all the reasons why they were selected, please enjoy these vignettes. First, we have Tori Alws from Picosen Primary. Please join us

007in congratulating Miss Tori Alves, whose leadership, dedication to early literacy, and genuine care for students has made a meaningful impact at Picosen Primary. We are very proud to recognize you as the 2026 Picosen Primary School Teacher of the Year. Continuing in alphabetical order, our second teacher of the year is Miss Britney Baker from PHS. Heat. Heat. Miss Baker had a family conflict for her son's event that got rescheduled to this evening because of the weather last week. But I would still like to congratulate her on being such a dedicated individual um for her students, her leadership among her colleagues and commitment to Picosen. The comm um to the Picosen community is extremely wonderful. So thank you very much Miss Britney Baker for um all of your service and for being our 2026 Picosen High School

008teacher of the year. Our next teacher of the year, Miss Lara Blau, comes from PES. Thank you. for her instructional leadership, commitment to student growth, and positive influence on the school community. We are proud to recognize Mrs. Laura Blau as the 2026 Picosen Elementary School teacher of the year. And last but not least, we have the middle school teacher of the year, Mr. Randall Lawson. All right. We congratulate Mr. Randall Lawson whose passion for students, commitment to relationships, and leadership of the arts that have made a lasting impact on PMS. Furthermore, for his outstanding leadership, dedication to students, and excellence in music education, we are proud to recognize Mr. Randall Lawson as the 2026 Picosen City Public Schools Division Teacher of the Year. Congratulations. That concludes our recognitions for the evening. Next we have Mr.

009Charlie French and others from Kuanas of Pakosen that would like to come up and do some additional recognition of our teachers of the year. >> All right. Hear me? Okay. Good. Well, good evening everybody. uh chair Dr. Burbage uh members of the board, Superintendent Tilllet, uh and certainly our teachers being recognized this evening. I'm Steve Brochious and I'm the president of the Picosen Kuanas Club. Uh you may know that the Kuanas Club of Picosen is is the largest and probably most active civic organization in the city with approximately 100 members. The continued growth of the Kuanas and Picosen is most likely because the Kuanas primary objective is our school's students in improving the lives of children and enhancing their future in the community. We recognize that teachers have a similar mission to improve the lives

010of our children. The Quanis focus is on being a positive influence in our community so that the children will grow up in a community that believes in them, nurtures them, and provides the support they need to thrive. It's an honor to be here tonight to recognize the dedicated efforts of four of our outstanding teachers. And I'd like to read a letter of recognition we are presenting to these four educators. As you know, while the Quanis are making this presentation, it is really on behalf of the Picosen community uh who thinks so highly of our educators and social system or school system. I'm sorry. To the four teachers, congratulations on your selection as Picosen Elementary School's teacher of the year. Picosen is blessed to have one of the highest quality school systems in Virginia due to

011the dedicated efforts of all of our teachers. Being recognized as the top teacher in such elite company is truly a testament to your commitment and proficiency in educating our youth. The Kuanas Club of Picosen is a local organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the lives of children and enhancing their future in the community. Kowana strives to be a positive influence in our community so that children will grow up in a community that believes in them, nurtures them, and provides the support they need to thrive. Your exemplary efforts for 2025 and 2026 school year mirror our own to be a positive influence on our youth and our community. We therefore are pleased and honored to present you with a check of $250 in recognition of your outstanding efforts. And we'll call each one of you up.

012You want to Oh, Laura. Congratulations. >> Thank you so much for congratulations. >> Thank you. and Rand and we'll hold we'll give Kelly his papers certificate and check is here but you know but I don't know if Steve mentioned it but this money that we're giving you That's for you. That's not for your classrooms or for your school. That's good for you. For all your excellent work. Okay. >> Thank you. Thank you to the Kanas of Picosen. They are valued members um within our community and definitely are proud supporters of our school division. So we thank you very much for encouraging our teachers and supporting them in that way. Additionally, we have the Picosen Education Foundation which would like to come up and continue to support and um celebrate our teachers of the year. Thank

013you board members, Mr. Tlet and your student advisor or representative for giving us the opportunity to honor our teachers of the year because we're so proud of them. I want to say a little bit about our education foundation which I think by now most of you know who we are but we raise monies. We're a small group but we're very mighty and we have several members who are very good at raising money. And the reason why we're able to raise the money to honor our teachers, our students, to support our students and teachers through grants and scholarships, is because we have a community of ed of people in our community who are very invested in the education in the schools. And so I applaud the business, the families and the community members who support us.

014Uh we would like for the teachers of the year to come as a group to honor you and to recognize your achievement. We are going to be installing a brick in the legacy walk at Picosen High School. Um, it's not ordered yet and most likely it will be in the spring of this coming year when they're actually installed, but we always uh notify the principal when those bricks are installed. And the other thing that we're doing, which I hope you will like, is we're giving the teachers of the year, three of you, $100. Now, this $100 has to be spent for classroom needs. Sorry about that. You can't go out to eat. Um, Tori Thank you. >> Of course, Britney will receive hers later. Laura, thank you so much. >> And Randall, you are being

015awarded $200 for something that you most likely need for your classroom. >> Thank you so much. >> Congratulations. just a little bit. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mrs. Stallings and Mrs. Harper for coming out to represent the Coasten Education Foundation and for all that you do for our teachers. Thank you very much. That concludes all of the recognitions for the evening. >> Thank you, Miss Party. >> Y'all want to stick around and go through the rest of it? You're more than welcome. Or we can just wait a second. And y'all have a good evening. All right, Miss Miss I do you want to I'll tee you up for the instructional report. >> All right. Good evening, Chair Burbage, school board members, Superintendent Tilllet, staff and community members. Tonight I will be discussing

016our advanced coursework, the recently released accountability data, and some exciting news about grants we have recently received. I will begin by sharing our advanced coursework enrollments. The new accountability system underscores the need for strong student outcomes. In Picosen, we focus on meeting that challenge through rigorous and advanced coursework, ensuring students are prepared for college and careers. PCPS has a long-standing commitment to expanding opportunities for students to engage in rigorous college level learning through advanced placement, dual enrollment, and honors courses. Total enrollments across these courses for the 2526 school year is approximately 152, an increase over the past four years. In addition, we have students enrolled at the Governor's School of Science and Technology pursuing advanced coursework and additional dual enrollment opportunities. For this school year, we currently have 180 course enrollments and 158 students enrolled

017in dual enrollment courses. You can see for year 1, we have a cohort of about five students pursuing that associate of social science. It's just year 1 and we anticipate in year two that will increase to 15. And ultimately over the next four years, we hope to get to our cohort of 30 students as more learn about the program and encouraged to participate. This chart provides an overview of our dual enrollment credentialed staff, the courses we currently offer, and what we anticipate for the 2627 school year. As you can see, we expect to double our credentialed staff and more than double the amount of courses available on campus here in Picosen to allow our students to stay more on our campus versus traveling to Virginia Peninsula Community College. As we enter the hiring season, we

018will prioritize filling any vacant positions with dual enrollment credentialed staff whenever possible to further support our dual enrollment goals. In addition to advanced coursework, Picosen City Public Schools offers a robust CTE program that includes in-house programming and opportunities through New Horizon's Regional Education Center. Students gain advanced training and earn industry recognized credentials in high demand fields such as healthcare, skilled trades, cyber security, and public safety. Many also earn dual enrollment credit, preparing them for success in both college and career pathways. Our CTE programs continue to expand with more than 230 middle school enrollments and over 600 high school enrollments including including students participating at New Horizons for a total of about 830 CTE enrollments. This is about 130 more enrollments compared to last year. Building on the hands-on training and certifications provided through New Horizons,

019students can participate in the Good Life Solutions program, which connects graduates directly with local employers for full-time employment, training, and mentoring. Participating employers commit to supporting students, providing a smooth transition into the workforce with competitive pay, benefits, and opportunities for career advancement. This collaboration not only helps our students launch meaningful careers, but also strengthens the Hampton Roads economy by supplying local industries with a reliable pipeline of skilled talent. PCPS students can still also access the Dimby Aviation Academy, a CTE magnet program in Newport News that offers hands-on training in aviation, engineering, and aerospace technology, equipping them with skills for careers in aviation and related industries. I'm now going to transition to our accountability and accreditation data from the VDOE. I shared this slide in a previous meeting, but as a reminder, Picosen continues to perform

020higher than the Virginia state average in all categories on so assessments with most categories outperforming the state by 12% or more. You might be tired of seeing this slide at this point, but we're going to review it one more time. um as we are actually going to review the results tonight. So, it's going to be more meaningful. Just as expectations for students have increased through more rigorous standards and assessments, expectations for schools continue to evolve as well. That shift is reflected in the Virginia Department of Education's new school performance and support framework, which changes how schools are measured and supported. Unlike the previous system that combined accreditation and accountability into a single designation, the new model separates compliance from state requirements from student performance outcomes. Now, schools will receive two distinct labels, a performance category

021label that reflects student outcomes and an accreditation label that reflects compliance with state requirements. Prior to the meeting started, I placed a handout on the dasis just for you to reference if you would want about the school performance and support framework. I won't necessarily reference it in my presentation, but it might be something you could draw to if you need a definition of what a certain category means. For review, these are the categories the state used to determine our school performance and support framework score. You will see the actual actual numbers in the next few slides. The elementary and middle schools will be scored on mastery, growth, and readiness, while high schools will be scored on mastery, readiness, and graduation. Oops, I moved too quick. I want to pause here and explain more about growth

022and how this term is used in Virginia. I want to clarify that Virginia Department of Education uses the word growth in two different ways. The Virginia Growth Assessments or VGAs, sometimes we call them SGAAS, student growth assessments, are throughear computer adaptive assessments in grades three through five for reading and math administered once in the fall and then in the um in the winter, midyear, and at the end of the year. They are designed to help teachers identify needs early, monitor progress, and adjust instruction during the year, similar to progress monitoring. On the other hand, the school performance and support framework growth is different. It is a state accountability measure that compares a student's expected learning based on their previous performance on so assessments to the learning demonstrated at the end of the year so assessment

023and in relation to academically similar peers. So, VGAs inform instruction during the school year where the school performance and support framework growth is the state's year-end accountability lens. To expand on this, to give further context, in 2425, Virginia used a value added growth model which estimated how much academic progress students were expected to make in one year based on their prior performance. Students growth was then compared to the growth of academically similar peers across the state rather than being measured solely on a fixed benchmark. Just as a reminder, here are the categories for the points and what the designations mean for each one. So starting with the primary and the elementary school, mastery reflects performance on state assessments and go growth reflects expected performance from one testing cycle to the next compared to academically similar

024peers. Because the primary school does not administer so assessments which begin in third grade, it does not have a unique school level data for mastery or growth only the data from the elementary school. As a result, the primary school's only unique indicator would be from chronic absenteeism or attendance. It's also important to note that the primary and elementary schools are connected for accountability purposes. It's a K5 process, meaning the state's accountability determinations are linked across both schools. To start, all Picosen schools are fully accredited by the state and the account accountability measure is separate from this accreditation standing. At this time, the state has categorized both the primary and the elementary schools as offtrack. As shown, our total points were sufficient to be categorized as ontrack. However, because one student subgroup fell below a state

025identified threshold, the state lowered our performance category by one level. More information to come, I promise, in the f in the slides right after this. Importantly, we want to emphasize that prior to December 4th, there was no indication that we would be categorized as offtrack as our framework scores were well within the on-track range. On December 4th, we were notified that we would be deemed offtrack and federally identified for the subgroup of students with disabilities based on a threshold that had not had been publicly shared with the public or school divisions prior to that date. The notification prompted us to re-review the data to ensure it was accurate and reflected actual student performance, excuse me, actual performance of our students and staff. During that review, we identified data errors that resulted in students being included

026in the data who should not have been based on VDOE guidelines. A deeper analysis showed that cor correcting one of these errors would raise our students with disability score above the state threshold, meaning we would not be identified and the schools will be categorized as on track. I'll walk through this detail specifically when we review that data in the upcoming slides. I also want to pause to note that we are not the only school division suffering from this incorrect data. We have spoken to our neighboring divisions and while our error might be different than theirs, many of our surrounding neighboring divisions are also experiencing the same issue. First, our mastery indicators which reflect how can't see it at all. Sorry. Okay. Um, at the end I can share with you what the numbers say or

027I can do it now. It says in reading performance we scored 21.43 out of 22.5 points and it tells us you know where they pass advanced, pass proficient, fail basic, below basic and then it breaks it down into subgroups. First are mastery indicators which reflect how students are meeting academic and English language proficiencies. Factors that make up performance scores include standards of learning assessments. Virginia alternative assessment programs in reading, mathematics, and science. And EL progress English language learner is measured by um annual growth on the WEDA access test. Our EL population is too small to count for us though. We have less than 15. So, as you can see, the elementary school earned 21.43 out of 22.5 of the reading indicator points. and 21.27 out of 22.5 for the math indicator points. This highlights the

028strong academic performance of our students and reflects the effectiveness of our instructional program in supporting high levels of achievement across both areas. I would like to pause to clarify that the subgroups that you see up here are federally identified. This is these screenshots come straight from the VDOE. Um we thought why recreate the wheel? They've already put it in chart form. We're going to show you exactly how they presented it to us. And each of these subgroups requires 15 or more students in order for it to be counted as uh as part of our data. This slide demonstrates our performance in science earning 9.69 out of 10 points in this area. Again, highlighting the high academic achievement of our students. As we had fewer than 15 students in the EL category, the weight of the

029EL progress category was redistributed to growth. And how that works is actually one of the handouts that's attached to the papers I gave you. It shows when you are missing an indicator like students, English language learners, how they redistribute um that per those points or the weight, excuse me. This slide highlights our growth performance in reading and math. As shown, growth is our greatest area for improvement. As a reminder, growth is a unique measure for each student, taking into account their past performance and academically similar peers. We earned 11.76 out of 17 1.5 points for reading growth and 11.24 out of 17 and 12 points for math. It's also important to note that demonstrating high levels of growth can be especially challenging for students who are already performing at higher achievement levels because there's less

030room to show large year-over-year gains on standardized assessments. Some supports we have in place to help grow all students include reading and math specialists to support small groupoup instruction for any student who needs additional support. Gifted classes for eligible students in the area of reading and math and new for the 2526 school year in reading. All students have access access to and are expected to use Lexia, a personalized reading platform that adjusts instruction based on each student's current skill level. Lexia provides targeted tutorials and guided practice and students progress through skill modules based on their performance. At the elementary level, we have already seen a reduction in students performing below grade level according to Lexia data. In addition, we have added IXL, a computer adaptive learning platform for math practice, which all students have access

031to and are expected to use regularly. Based on November's data, we are already seeing that about 53% of our students have advanced to performing at or above grade level expectations on LL, which are aligned to Virginia State standards. I want to caveat that that these are supplements and do not replace direct instruction. These are a small part of the students day to help differentiate that instruction so that every student at all times has access to that differentiated instruction. But what we're most proud of is our high quality direct instruction coming from our teachers. And these programs are just supplements and that we look forward to seeing our progress as a year continues. For chronic absenteeism, that's the percentage of students who miss 10% or more of the school year for any reason. The primary school

032has earned 8.86 86 out of 10 points and the elementary school earns 9.38 at um excuse me out of 10 points for this category. So to get to any school's final score, they take the sum of all point values from each of these categories, then assign the performance category based on the points earned. In our case, the primary school earned 84.2 points and the elementary school earned 84.7 points. both resulting in an ontrack designation based on points alone. However, I mentioned that due to the subgroup of students with disabilities not meeting a state threshold, our performance category was bumped down one level, taking us to offtrack. I also shared that we identified errors in the data and have submitted these findings to the state. Our first correspondence to the state came shortly after we received

033notification of our performance category and our federal identification just two business days prior to the data being released publicly. As of this morning, we received our first response back acknowledging that they had received our email. They stated they would review the data and provide an update once the review was complete. However, there is no timeline associated with that process. Ultimately, correcting one error would lead to the primary and elementary school being categorized as on track and not federally identified. The next slides will share more about how the state used the thresholds they provided to us to determine our performance category and federal identification. We're also going to share with you some corrected data. So this slide shows corrected data for students with disabilities in the area of reading. This is the only error that needs

034to be fixed to remove the federally identified subgroup and to take us back on to ontrack. This chart explains how the state determines whether student subgroups are considered on track or subject to federal identification. The state provided threshold indicator percentages for each subgroup, reading, math, and science. We received them for the first time on Friday, December the 5th. The expectation is that each of our subgroups be above this threshold. If a subgroup falls below the provided threshold, we would be federally identified and our overall designation would be bumped down one category. In our case, the incorrect data had us below the threshold and therefore our on-track designation was bumped down to offtrack and we were federally identified for students with disabilities. It is important to note that having just one score in any of these

035subject areas above the threshold means that you're not identified. So the one score above the threshold in reading would mean that rule of bumping down one level does not apply. You don't have to meet this threshold in all three subject areas. Just has to be one of them. Again, we identified errors in the data set used by the VDOE. I think this is a good time to note that these these thresholds are moving targets. These are provided after testing has been completed across the state and the state has completed their data analysis and only then will these thresholds be provided to divisions. So, we don't know what the next threshold will be that they're going to base the 25 26-year uh accountability designation on. Those will not be provided to us until sometime around the

036same time next year if those are still in use. The issue with the original incorrect data set is that the state included students who should not who should have been excluded under VDOE's own participation rules. One particular student, excuse me, one particular rule is that students should only be included in schools accountability data if they were enrolled for more than 50% of the school year. The one exception is that students enrolled for less than 50% may be included if they have a positive impact on the school's data. This rule or the intent of the rule is to ensure that schools are not negatively impacted by students who were not enrolled long enough to have received a meaningful amount of instruction from the school's teachers. In the current incorrect data set, at least one student was

037included who was enrolled less than 50% of the year and therefore should have not been counted. Correcting and excluding that one student's data would result in us meeting and exceeding the threshold for students with disability in the area of reading. We are not asking for this rule to be applied out of convenience. We're asking for it to be applied as written in VOE's participation guidance. This is a standard that should be applied consistently across every school's accountability data set. Another factor that significantly impacts our results regardless of the state error is parent refusals. Families have the right to refuse so testing. However, refusals can negatively affect accountability calculations because schools are required to meet a 95% participation rate. While we met the 95% participation requirement for all students, meaning all groups of students, no matter

038the subgroup, participation was lower within the students with disability subgroup. Families of students with disabilities may be more likely to refuse so testing due to concern concerns about the testing experience, the appropriateness of the assessments with students with individualized needs, and the time and stamina required even with accommodations. Using reading as an example, participation in the students with disability subgroup was an 89% below the 95. To adjust for participation below 95%, the state applies its participation rule by adding nonparticipants into the calculation to bring the particip participation rate up to the minimum requirement of 95%. In this case, the state added four additional participants to reach the 95% threshold. These additional entries reduce our indicator percentage. To expand on how they reduce the indicator percentage, parent refusals do not earn points to the framework score.

039For context, a student who tests and earns a failing score, even a zero, they open it, submit it, and they get a zero, can still earn partial credit, 0.25 points. Whereas a parent refusal generates zero points. Parent refusals are not within the school's control as families have the right to refuse testing at the elementary and middle school levels. Moving forward, we will provide clear communication and counseling to families about how refusals affect school accountability so they can still make an informed decision that is best for their child. We want to provide context of how significantly these parent refusals impact our school performance and support framework report. If the four parent refusals that were added to ensure we met the 95% participation had not been applied as a negative participation adjustment and had the zeros not

040been applied towards the indicator percentage, the students with disabilities subgroup would have a 76% reading indicator percentage which is an actual true reflection of students with a disabilities performance. So we have shared that up there with you so that you can see um just for context for clarity this reflects data excluding parent refusals meaning they have no impact on the indicator percentage report or the framework score. While this is not the way the state calculates accountability, we felt it was important to share this perspective so you can see the actual reading performance of students with disabilities separate from participation penalties that are outside of the school's control. It is also important to note that as a small school division, our accountability results are highly sensitive to very small changes in student counts. In divisions with

041larger student populations, the inclusion or exclusion of one or two students has minimal effects on indicator percentages. In our division, however, the per performance or participation status of a single student can shift subgroup percentages by several points and in some cases change an accountability determination entirely. This magnifies the impact of data errors and parent refusals in ways that are not reflective of actual instructional performance. Regardless of the factors I have just described, improving outcomes for students with disabilities remains a priority with a continued focus on both academic and growth academic performance and growth. To better support this subgroup, we have adjusted staffing to ensure teachers are strategically placed to meet student needs. In addition, we have expanded instructional opportunities for students with disabilities at the elementary level by creating additional classroom options and supports. So,

042before I leave this page, the 71.3 represents the reading indicator percentage threshold provided by the state. They told us we needed to be higher than this number in order to not be identified. The data set they had had us at a 69.8, which is incorrect data. fixing one student would take us to a 71.87. So our target is that third column, a 71.87. And we believe that accurately reflects where we are, taking us out of federal identification. And again, the last column is just for context. That's hopes and dreams that parent refusals did not have a negative impact and just showing what our actual performance of with students with disabilities. We did not want that to be skewed by the participation rules from the VDOE. To wrap this up for the elementary and primary school

043based on correct data, we should be categorized as on track without any federal identification. PCPS will continue to work to grow all students, including those achieving at high levels and those who need more support. We will continue to provide professional development to our staff to grow their expanding tool belt of highly effective and engaging teaching strategies so that all students have access to highquality instruction at all times. We're now moving on to the middle school. The middle school is designated as on track and fully accredited. As you can see, the middle school secured nearly all of the points possible for mastery and readiness. One area we continue to improve is the area of growth, and I will share how we're supporting this shortly. As you can see, the middle school earned 19.79 out of 20

044of their reading indicator points and 19.14 out of 20 for their math indicator points. This again demonstrates that our students are performing at very high levels academically and that our instructional program is effectively supporting strong achievement in both areas. This slide demonstrates our performance in science, earning 9.84 out of 10 points in this area. As we had fewer than 15 students in the EL category, the weight of the EL progress was redistributed to growth. So for growth, our students earned 9.93 out of 15 points in the area of reading and 10.02 02 out of 15 for math. As we have identified, growth is the area where we have the greatest opportunity to improve. To strengthen growth for the students, we added a math specialist new for the 2526 school year who provides targeted small groupoup

045support in both general education and special education classrooms or excuse me, resource classrooms serving general education and special education students. Similar to the elementary school, all students have access to a platform called Delta Math, which provides personalized learning based on each student's needs. In reading, all students have access to Lexia. As I shared earlier, we're already seeing strong results. As of mid November, 60 students advanced at least one Lexia level or zone, representing significant acceleration in reading skill development. Of course, we continue to have our reading specialists providing similar support as our math specialist to general education and special education students needing additional support in the area of reading. In addition, the Virginia language and literacy screening system or vowels is new to the middle school and strengthens our growth efforts by providing more precise

046information about why a student may be struggling in the area of reading. This allows us to target instruction and intervention earlier and match supports to specific skill needs and monitor progress over time. Readiness indicators reflect how schools are preparing students for what's next. For middle school, this includes chronic absenteeism and advanced coursework. For chronic absenteeism, Picosen Middle School earned 9.33 out of 10 points for this indicator. for advanced coursework measures. The performance of middle school students who are eligible to take high school endofthe-ear course mathematics while still in middle school. Picosen offers algebra 1 and geometry, both high school courses, and we earned 9.9 out of 10 points for this indicator. Together, these results show strong academic readiness and a continued focus on student engagement and attendance. New supports connected to these indicica indicators include

047a partnership with the check and connect program. This program provides targeted support for at risk often focused on truency but also addressing other barriers that contribute to miss school and disengagement. We have also begun expanding advanced coursework opportunities. This year we introduced accelerated history and science which positions us to bring additional high school level courses in these subject areas down to the middle school level in the 2728 school year. This proactive work strengthens our advanced coursework pipeline and keeps us ahead of the curve and preparing students for more rigorous opportunities. We are pleased to highlight that Picosen Middle School was designated as one of the top five middle schools in the category of chronic absenteeism by the VDOE in region 2. We are pleased to share that the high school is designated as distinguished and

048fully accredited. As you can see, the high school exceeded the points in the category of mastery and was very close to earning all of the points possible for graduation and readiness, earning 99.1 out of 100 points. At the high school, they had an almost 24% pass advanced rate and 69% pass rate. combine those two together for for full pass rate with a very low 8% failure rate resulting in them earning more points in the mastery category for reading. For math uh for reading that was 17.3 out of 16.7. So they exceeded for math they secured nearly all of the points earning 16.17 out of 16.7 points possible. This slide demonstrates our performance in science with high school earning 11.4 4 out of 11.1 points possible again exceeding as a result of the amount of past

049advanced scores that we had and again we had not enough EL students so that was redistributed. This first chart reflects a six-year graduation rate including students who earn an applied studies diploma. For this category we earned 5.21 out of 5.6 points. And in the area of chronic absenteeism the high school earned 5.03 03 out of 5.6 points. I know this one is smaller. Uh in the area of 3E readiness which is broken into three categories of enrollment, employment and enlistment, the high school earns 28.43 out of 27.8 points again exceeding the maximum number of points. For example, a student may earn 1.25 25 points as a CTE completer who earns a state approved industry recognized credential in a high demand high wage field. So put all of that together, you can bump up to the

0501.25 points. As we continue to grow our advanced coursework options, the points we earn in this category will only increase. We are pursuing a military leadership course to support the area of enlistment for the 2526 school year. We also offered the ASVAB more broadly so that more students had the opportunity to test. In the new program of studies for the 2627 school year, we're increasing our courses that offer a high demand credential. Our goal is that all students have the opportunity to explore readiness options that best prepare them for their college and career. Here is the high school graduation rate. It is important to note that students who earn a GED are not counted as earning a standard diploma and therefore as classified as a non-graduate for accountability purposes by federal definition. Moving forward, we

051have expanded our virtual course offerings to provide students with pathways to earn a standard diploma rather than a GED. We anticipate that these options will increase our overall graduation rate while more positively supporting students long-term goals and future aspirations. Again, because we're a small division, our graduation rate is highly sensitive to small changes in student counts. Even a few students earning a GED instead of a standard diploma can meaningfully affect the overall graduation rate. That was a lot. Should have brought water up here. Uh we we are looking forward to working with the state to ensure we have accurate data that reflects the actual performance of our students and staff. In the meantime, should there be questions from any stakeholder, parent, teachers, community members, we encourage you to submit those questions to our let's talk

052platform which is linked in our website. We have already set up a category called accountability and accreditation report. We will use these questions to prepare an FAQ document to share with everyone. Once we have the updated information, we look forward to updating you all. Once again, we have a couple of good news pieces here. We have been awarded a $10,000 STEM grant. This notification just came. And the idea behind this really thanks to Miss Jen Kapper, our K5 literacy coach, is to support um connecting STEM and literacy in an event called learning under the lights. So be looking forward to us reaching out to you as volunteers and supporting this as I know many of you are members of the STEM field and trying to connect that so that all of our families have access

053to activities or ideas about STEM related careers. Save the date for April 23rd. This will happen at Picosen Middle School on their athletic fields back there. So, we'll be looking for volunteers soon. And was this just today? It seems like it could. Who knows? I believe it came today that we were awarded $72,264 as part of a comprehensive state literacy grant. Um, and this is to partner with Toach Global, which is a nationally recognized leader in inclusive education and evidence-based development. Our goal here is again to strengthen our instruction for students with disabilities in the general education classroom, but this professional development would target all teachers, thereby supporting all teachers with any student that they may support in their classroom. We were just notified of that. So more information will be to come on that.

054And tonight we are asking you to approve the 2627 program of studies. As noted in the reading file, we have made updates to include course additions for college now, additional career pathways, deletion of obsolete courses, and refinement of course prerequisites and more. The full program of studies was also included with markups for your review. >> I am ready for your questions. So related to growth, um do we feel that there is any are we are we are we seeing an error in the way that the BOE is actually accounting for points and how they're bucketing stuff? It it seems really odd to me that, you know, we have the primary, elementary, and middle school that are showing so much issue with growth. >> Yet we we in in high school, we show, you know, s

055such mastery in everything that we're dealing with. the two don't seem to go together with >> well they're they're calculated very differently% and we don't uh see any error with the way that they're calculating growth um and I cannot remember it's been so long ago since I started this presentation if I said this or not that um you know previous to the value added system where they use a student's performance and compare it to academically similar peers we used um standard growth bands before so it was very much if you scored in this range we expected you to grow in this range and it did not account for the differences in each individual student. Only for the 2425 school year was this new growth system used. We have been told that that growth system will

056no longer be used and that we'll be going back to these uh growth tables, these growth bands that they provide to us. Meaning, if I score a 400, they're going to expect me, let's say, to score a 401 to a 450. I'm just making those numbers up, but they're set bands that they would expect. Um there's a lot of information that goes into that value added system that happens behind the scenes, but it gives you a deep insight into the student and it really looks at taking the student where they are to the next level. Um we've only had the system for this one year. So it's it's hard. So especially when we are high performing, I can understand the concern that we received almost all of the points from mastery um but they're calculating

057growth so very differently. Um, so what we have to continue to do is to stretch our teachers to enhance our conversations that we're having at the school level by the student level instead of broad groups of students. And our schools are doing that. Our advanced tiers teams is very well-rounded and has these discussions. It's just a continuing ongoing discussion coupled with professional development. >> Let me let me add this one piece um to what Ashley just said. Um the program she's referring to is called um GEOS. Virginia names everything with a V. So it's affectionately called Vivos in Virginia. But uh it's a program that I'm very familiar with. We used it and it was invented at SAS in North Carolina and um I'm sure Dr. Bartlett knows it well. Uh the EVOS systems been

058used down there for 15 years or so. a very complex system that measures students against students who have historically performed just like them all over the state. Takes a minute to wrap your brain around that. In the old band she's talking about where you're talking about growth bands, you take a test, then you measure on the next test the growth that happens in that particular curriculum area. This is actually measuring students all across the state who have a similar testing history. It's a very again complex system um that um is extremely accurate when you have a large data pool. If you're taking a third grader who has very few tests in their bucket, so to speak, of testing history, it's hard to make an accurate analysis. And I would venture to guess that's one of

059the reasons the state is no longer planning to move forward with Vivoth. We are told that the state did not repurchase that um very expensive program and so I don't anticipate that being the growth measure moving forward. Now again I'm not knocking EVOS Vivos I worked with it for a lot of years. It's it is a uh extremely accurate tool to measure a student's growth over a continuum if they have a large pool of previous test data to make that determination about where they should be in comparison to similar peers um across the state. The second piece I want to me uh stress and um that's something that Ashley mentioned as well. Um when you're looking at the performance mastery numbers that we're looking at in Picosen uh in the '9s, it's very difficult to

060show growth. Not that it's an excuse. We expect to show growth. All students should grow 180 days worth of learning. But when you're performing in that at that level consistently, the growth measure is hard to achieve. We have historically seen the most growth from our most struggling learners. you see a lot of growth in that area. They may not be proficient or master a particular subject area, but they show significant growth. Where we see the least of our growth is in our highest performing because it is more difficult to show growth in that area. Uh the the second piece is um what we're doing about it as Ashley mentioned is we're using what I affectionately call stretch learning. We are adding more rigor to all of our curriculum across the board. That's where that growth

061happens with our advanced students. An AP student, for example, taking a state standardized test is is going to perform at mastery, but it's difficult to show growth in that um that area when you're performing at the top. That adds a little sheds a little light on the growth piece. It it is an area we identified initially as we need to to increase the rigor especially for our highest performing students to stretch them into that growth area. And um when you look at our mastery numbers you'll notice that the majority of our kids are in high mastery um on state standardized test. I guess that's where my question is is like, you know, we're talking about stretching the that that that upper band, right? >> Exactly. >> And is that being is that, you know, being

062disproportionately applied against us? it. And you know, looking when you dig into the data, you could see to your point, a student who earned a past advanced score last year, uh let's let's call it a 530, and their growth band says they need to be higher than that, they could score a 510, still pass advance, and not meet their growth goal. >> And it could be the test, >> whatever factors you want to call it. It's a different course, it's a different test, it's a different environment, it's a different year. the student is one year older. But that's just an example that of of how that could be applied. So to your point, we're going to still see that high mastery. We're going to see that pass advance, but their score is maybe 20 points

063less than last year and we would not meet their growth goal. and and to specifically use the Vivos um calculation for that that score would be determined what is this target score for this child >> and that is based on this child's testing history >> every test this child has ever taken that's in in that computer model will then generate this is where this child because of how they have historically test should arrive. It's a it's a probability and it's a very um u everybody would love to have the the formula and of course that's how they make their money. >> But um it is a it it's it's an incredible program. I was trained by the SAS folks back 15 years ago when the program first came out um as a a principal in

064that state and um as it has been sold and refined over the years, it has even become more accurate. Um so there I I'm not disputing the evidence. I just think we don't have enough historical data in the system to give us really good predictors. we will have over time if the program exists but again we're told that uh EVOS is not being purchased for the for the upcoming school year. >> A question relative to that. So so the state of Virginia purchased the use of EVOS for one year. >> Correct. >> Well we've had it for more than one year. This is the first year it's been a >> year it's been used. Yeah. That's right. Good point. >> Okay. So, they've used it for one year and now they're going to drop now

065that they've got results. I find that very interesting. >> Have they always counted parent optouts against you in scoring? >> If you fall below the 95%. Uh, however, there was a rule in a previous handbook where they at least counted as a positive participant, a one over one, a one in the numerator, one in the denominator, and now they count as a zero over one. I find that rich that they let you opt out of something and then hold it against you because I know my child I have opted out >> but having a bad test score would break her. >> Mhm. >> These teachers are working hard >> and something like that would really hurt her. So to me that is just unacceptable. And so we find it a fine line of respecting parent

066wishes and and their choices to make that decision and also informing and you know what are the options um there their intent is I understand the intent to prevent us from encouraging students to not take the test right so the intent would be we wouldn't want to encourage students who we think may not perform well to not take the test and so they put in this 95% participation rule but in our case. Um, our largest number, all of our parent op refusals came from students with disabilities, which then those four counted against us. >> And again, it's I didn't mean to interrupt you, but um, when we're talking about the numbers we're talking about with subgroups in a small school division like ours, um, one kid counts >> uh, more than you would in any

067larger school division. So um in a case like this I think there were 75 students. >> There were 67 who tested out of 75 >> potential eligible participants >> for students um it it takes to meet the four opt outs and you no longer meet the 95% >> threshold. Is that >> correct? >> I'm sorry you had I just want a clarification on that. So I mean to your point state doesn't want teachers to discourage students from taking but it is the parents >> it is the parents choice >> that make that decision. >> It's the parents who've made that decision. >> Some form of documentation that parents fill out. >> Yes. Well it's very informal but yes it has to be documented. >> Just wanted to thank you for I can't imagine the time

068that went into making that as understandable as you did. I have been reading and you know researching independently and considered myself educated on this information when we came in but you have really connected a lot of the dots and thank you for that. I want to say thank you to Kim Montalvo while I'm at it, director of accountability of assessment who worked very closely to make this presentation happen. >> And thank you too for also clarifying you. You've answered all of my questions actually. And I mean on I guess as a takeaway here too. I mean maybe for right or for wrong, the growth scores could indicate an area of improvement. So regardless of any >> regardless of I I mean I I hear all the calculations and and am not sure that >> I

069would necessarily think they are reflective you know given our numbers and everything that you've already discussed. However, clearly as just a target for improvement and a focusing of efforts, I appreciate you sharing what was being done in that area specifically as well because um it rather than just say, you know, well, we don't think it's accurate or maybe not accurate or accurate reflection. >> Um I appreciate the thoughtful ideas and professional development and attempts to look at that area and see where we can do to improve going forward. and and we agree that when we look at the all students category, even our one correction wouldn't change what we could pick up in the area of growth. And so it's important for us to see that take action and continue to stretch our teachers and

070our students. >> I guess one just last point of clarification, I know you said it that changing one student who was I guess wrongly >> included. It's our assessment that that was just one instance of that or was there There was one instance in the students with disabilities category that resulted in our offtrack designation. There was other instances in our data, but they were in the all student subgroup and that would not make a significant that would not change our designation or being federally identified. What we have to focus on is the error with the students with disabilities subgroup and that one student being changed would correct that. >> And I know you said that we received this information back I think it was December 4th. you said without prior notification. >> None. >> Last

071meeting you were talking about errors that were found in the data and >> respond to that. So this is completely >> this is you know when they we've had so many conversations and at no point did they indicate that we would be identified as offtrack or federally identified. And so when that one piece of paper, it was a PDF that was emailed to us that said offtrack identified students with disabilities without any context. I think we were all a little confused and wondering maybe we're what are we not understanding? The next day they hosted a webinar with very short notice. We attended that webinar and that's where they provided these thresholds. At that point that caused us to dig into our data and that's when we found wait they have counted a student who should

072be excluded based on their participation rules and immediately notified the state with today being the first time that they have responded. Mr. Tilllet has reached out to his many contacts reached out to the state superintendent himself um and today resulted in someone responding to us. >> So this was an additional error. this was an additional error >> and we're confident that the errors we previously reported were >> I don't I don't want to say we're conf Yeah. When you're referring to when we reported before that the state withheld this data or this release I should say of accountability that there were errors all over the the state. um some reports I saw that that u over 80% of the school divisions had reported errors in their data. Um we were not one of those school

073divisions at the time ironically that reported data errors. We uh felt like our Yeah, that's right. We had a few points >> six times right of of major but it didn't affect our >> our accountability. >> We still believe we were going to be on track. those errors didn't take us out of the off track on track range. Sorry. >> Right. Yeah. So that and then we were told all of these data points were corrected and um it took quite some time. We're used to this coming out in October. >> Yes. >> And um here we are >> early December before we got the fir the first indication was the fifth. The fourth was when we received the email and the fifth uh I think they sent out an email scheduling the webinars on the

074fourth and they were available on that Friday and that Monday. >> Y and uh again and I think Ashley mentioned this there are other school divisions in the same situation but this is high stakes for us because again one student changes your your whole accountability. Um, in some cases, um, these data point corrections may not change the accountability banking. Um, in a lot of school divisions, I've had I've been on the phone for the last two weeks with other superintendent, you know, struggling through this. I will give this disclaimer. Remember, this is a brand new accountability model. Having been through multiple um changes in accountability systems over the years and how we measure our success, um uh it takes some time. The challenge in this one, and you've heard me say it multiple times, is

075it feels like we're building the ship and painting it and sailing it all in the same day, is this just happened too fast. um this should have in my estimation been vetted, tried through several pools of data before um it turns out to be you know a high stakes assessment of of student performance. So that's just my I guess one last I guess point of clarification too. If true the offtrack designation is harms your reputation more than anything financially. >> Indeed. financial connection with this. Now, what the the the actual framework is supposed to be the the S in the framework is support. It's designed as a support mechanism to pour support into school divisions that struggle with student performance. Um, Kosen is not one of those school divisions that um has ever or probably

076will ever be a support school system um that needs intense support. Um many schools, school divisions around the state and the country have needed additional support. Um and that comes in the way of money and resources and even staffing. Um so there is supposed to be elements of that. That's one of the other criticisms of this model that that has not yet been fully defined what that support may look like for those divisions that are really struggling to get um students um performing at the level they should. >> In this case, uh that email received put us in the targeted support category. Uh again, as Mr. Tilllet said, they haven't defined what targeted support means. Um and it is also important to note that in this particular case let's say this was correct data which

077we believe it's incorrect. This is a status that a school division can come out of in one year. So uh there are some categories like comprehensive support or additional targeted support. Some more serious categories that re require uh extended periods of time to demonstrate this ongoing progress. And this is not one of those. But however we don't believe it's correct. But um we hope to see them correct it very soon. >> Okay. Thank you so much. >> Thank you, Miss >> Mr. Roberts for the operations report. >> I don't know how I follow that >> very quickly. Touche and great job. Well, good evening, uh, members of the school board, superintendent, Mr. Tilllet, staff, and community members. Um, where I want to start, uh, my update would be with the transportation department. We did sign

078our bus patrol contract as we stated that we would back in November. Uh, we're excited about that. I'm meeting with them on Thursday to discuss next steps for the install. So, very excited about that. that would give us the stop arm cameras plus the additional um interior and exterior cameras that we can have for surveillance. So really happy to to get that thing started. The parent app uh we're kind of looking to boost the percent of use. Uh the app allows us or on our side of the app we can get a lot of good data on who has actually signed up um how many people who were invited and the the usage that they they have or they they use. So um it's roughly 33% right now. definitely want to get that number bust

079uh boosted up. So, we're going to be sending the invites out again. We've done this periodically uh but this time we're going to do it through par parent square as well with a message with a a little survey with some questions to help us gain which email the parents are really focusing on because uh the um bus patrol, I'm sorry, not bus patrol, but the uh parent app actually pulls what they call the primary email uh which is not really a designation. and it's just the first contact that's listed in Power School. So, uh depending on which email the parents are watching, they may be missing that uh email invite uh from the uh uh Transfinder Corporation. So, um just be on the lookout for that email through Power Square and we'll try to get

080more um usage for that app. All right, the uh safety update. Uh the committee did not meet this month. It's a short busy month, so we we kind of took it off, but we'll be resuming in January. Uh we did continue our fire drills and a couple lockdown drills in different buildings. Uh we did some additional shooter attack film installs uh just due to you know surveying and seeing some areas that that could definitely use it um in some of our buildings uh specifically the middle and high schools. So uh pleased to announce that we we finished that up this week um and all looks well. Uh we did also finish up the inter interior door badge readers to hightra doors. We we couldn't, you know, fund all of the doors in each one of

081the buildings, but we did ask the principles to identify some interior classroom doors or just high frequent uh used doors to to try this out and to see and and so far, you know, based on the feedback, everybody loves it. This will be something that we're looking to fund maybe um in the long term for for all doors. Uh it's a very secure system. All right. So, here's the, you know, the whole reason why I love this job is the improvements. Um, this is a big list. I mean, if you really look at this, this is a, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's lofty. It's impressive. Uh, but it's much needed. And, you know, first I want to say I really appreciate the board approving uh, the funding. Um, this

082is a mix of the capital improvement and also carryover funding to achieve these as as well as the city uh, for approving the appropriation of these funds. So, uh, really appreciative there and, uh, can't wait to see all these things because if you notice, everything is happening, you know, sometime in in the this coming school year or actually this year in 2026. Um, I won't bore you reading all those, but, you know, take some time look at it. Um, anything from the AC and the gym, the middle school that has been long awaited. I see one fan over there. Um, to the roof, which uh, I'll get to here in a minute. We do have some reps from the Garland Corporation um for questioning if needed. But uh very excited to get some of these

083projects started. It's kind of hard to believe uh this next slide is even present right now, but we have been meeting to talk about the school year 2627 calendar. Um we've already went through our uh staff committee uh last week to get their recommendations and starting to to get the input there. uh tomorrow actually the uh uh parent input committee um happens we'll take it to our DT with all the administrators from the division on Thursday um and then we'll be ready to present with all the input and recommendations for u you the board in our February board meeting for approval so um excited about that it it definitely is going to be aligned with the region and we'll get more in detail of that in February but uh that's in the works currently it's

084hard to believe all right you did have a reading file um inside the board packet about the um high school's roofing project um we are proposing that you um you know grant the approval to superintendent Mr. Tilllet to sign a contract uh with the Garland uh company. Uh that's the reps here is Colin Daniels and Zayn Hume. Um they'll be available for question after I be quiet for a minute um if you have those. But I did uh bring a sample from their company as well so you can see the system as you can see here. Um, our team did consider other options from other companies, so this just wasn't a, you know, shot in the dark. Um, Colin and his team, uh, presented a very strong solution. Uh, we're very pleased with it. Uh,

085they just got done with the bids and we're getting ready to go over all that data to make the selection who actually does the labor section of this. But the system that we chose was a fluid um system and it's called Liquitex. Um, you can see the the bullets here. Very durable. Um, it's exactly what we're needing. It it presents a fully reinforced system that is going to give us a watertight seal um that they have found success with with any small and large uh jobs. The duelist airport um actually is coated with that to to give you perspective on how much it can cover. So um very excited to see this if it's approved and uh like I said at my feet that I keep on kicking. Um I do have a sample if

086anybody wants to see it. It shows the different layers and even gives a test strip of what the product that's applied feels like and and shows the durability. I mean, you cannot rip or break this stuff. So, um it's it's a polyurea and it it kind of mimics like a bed liner for a truck if you're familiar with that. Um it does not allow water to penetrate at all. Um so, it's it's a really cool product and I'm excited if we get the opportunity to pursue that for the high school cuz uh I know one fan back here that will greatly appreciate not having any more wet selling tiles or buckets everywhere. So, um much needed. Anyway, so any questions for me or anyone from the Garland company >> for >> the roof? And I

087think we talked about this last time. I just want to make sure I'm thinking about it correctly. What are we doing about any substrate issues with insulation cover deck? >> Sure. >> Any of that stuff. >> Yeah. So Colin, do you want to take that or you want me? Okay. >> Uh everything will be replaced like con that is up there as is. Uh we did a extensive uh drone thermal scan of the roof and then myself and Zayn uh my uh quality assurance manager we're up there for four hours one evening making sure that every data point that we presented to him uh was correct. There wasn't anything that we found outside of that those parameters. There wasn't any false readings either. Uh so we went up there. We went over every inch of

088that roof. We presented reports back to Mr. Roberts uh going over every every area that was annotated on the the primary report or I should say the first initial report uh was confirmed um and there were some areas that we found that uh were of um >> concern >> I shouldn't say concern the way the report is is read a thermal scan can't be confirmed unless it's been cut into into the the resection you have an efficacy rate over 90% where where a thermal scan company will tell you that we are 90% confident that this is wet. The only way to be 100% is to cut up the whole roof, take every piece as a sample and test for hydrogen molecules. You can go an extra step further with nuclear scan and that is testing

089hydrogen molecules. But once again, you have a displacement that roof that is over top of the high school was done in hot asphalt. If you have too much hot asphalt that is built up in your seams at your penetrations at the edges of your roof system, those will hide hydrogen molecules. You might have extremely high high hydrogen molecules in that asphalt giving you false readings. The reason I'm getting a little bit scientific into this is that we have we had stated to picosen schools that there was a possibility of 23,000 square ft of wet uh insulation in there. So you water that got into your system. It was about 23,000. There was 11 It was approximately 11,000 square feet. I think it was a little bit less than that. Um that was confirmed wet, over

09095%. Uh Zay and I were out there. We had cut cores in some of the areas that were concerning um confirming that it was wet. And then we went and looked at all of the uh potential wet is how they categorize it. Um so when you see a thermal scan, any sort of differentiation from from cold blue color to a white red hot any change in between there. So you your greens and little bit of a yellow there potentially could have been water that was there previously or there is water there there currently uh it was just not hot enough the sun did not get on it. Maybe there was a potential unit that blocked that that assessment. So you need to have further uh investigation. that further investigation was done by us. Um and

091then and then also put it to a report categorizing every spot that we checked uh that was potentially wet, confirming that it was wet or dry. Um and then as well as confirming all the uh um confirmed wet from the thermal scan that was previously done from the third party. Um usually I don't like to get on a roof and do the thermal scan myself because I'm selling you guys a roof. I'm telling you, oh your roof's good or your roof's bad. I need to replace the whole thing. I think uh I I think of myself as a very honest person and I hope that you believe that, but I'd rather the third party test. Um therefore, that's why we went with the thermal scan from a third party at the beginning. Uh and then

092Mr. Roberts and I had discussed, you know, this needs to have further investigation. I need to go up there. I need to give you exactly what I see up there uh in conjunction to confirm everything we saw. Um sorry, that's a long explanation for a very simple question. Everything will be replaced like in kind that you have up there. Um, and the only addition to it will be the all your reinforcement uh fluid applied roofing system. >> I just wanted to make sure that we did more than just a just a wall. >> They definitely spent a lot of time on that roof. Promise. >> I um Anybody else have any questions? Um mine are much less sciency. Um the question is is uh how long well first when do you plan on starting and

093then uh how long will it take? >> Yeah. So the the beauty about this is where it is low odor and the the VOCC's are just not there. And as far as the um noise level um it's basically nil except when they're replacing those uh sections that they're going to have to cut out. Um so much like the HVAC project I hope to get them started around the spring break time. um let them start cutting, doing the noisy stuff, um replacing and that way that um when they're they're to the fully reinforcement with the seams and just the the coating, they can start that before the school year is over. And um you know, I'll let him speak to the timeline as far as the total project, but definitely within the summer. >> Okay. >>

094Yeah. The the only reason the timeline might be long would be because they start at a time. The demo aspect of it to of the replacement of the wet damaged parts of the roof that cannot be coated. Uh that has to be done without students and staff and um not only is it uh disturbing as far as the loudness, I don't want anything to happen. Heaven forbid any any disruption shakes any sort of old debris down into a classroom. You guys are working on growth. I don't want >> Thank you. >> That's all I had. Anyone, >> Mr. Roberts? All right. >> Thank you. >> Thanks a lot. >> Um, next up is Miss Spence for the financial update. All right, let's see what we're up to here. Okay. Um, good evening, Chair Burbage, members

095of the school board, Mr. Tlet, and the school community. This evening's report includes information on the state rebenchmarking for the new bienial state budget as well as information on our school's fiscal year 27 budget. Rebenchmarking begins the bianual budget development process and involves the board of education, the governor and the general assembly. Every two years, the direct aid to public education budget is updated or rebenchmarked. The rebenchmarked budget represents the state cost of continuing the existing direct aid to public education programs with bianial updates in the input data and formulas used to determine the cost of the programs. And I will not be going over how the input data is done tonight. During the rebenchmarking process, the local composite index or LCI is what it's called. It's updated for the next bianial budget. Okay. The

096local composite index or the LCI determines a school division's ability to pay education cost fundamental to the state's SOQ with local funds. The general assembly established this composite index formula in its appropriation act. The formula uses three indicators to estimate the locality's ability to pay. These include the true value of real property in the locality, the Virginia's adjusted gross income in the locality, as well as taxable re retail sales in the locality. Each locality's index across the Commonwealth of Virginia is adjusted to maintain an overall statewide local share of 45% for education cost and the state will share 55% of the education cost of whatever is appropriated by the general assembly and approved by the governor. As previously stated, it's recount every two years. the for the 2628 bienium it is now the locality's ability

097to pay of 3.3466 went up to 3806 under this formula as the locality composite index rises as it did for the uh city of Pakosen the state funding typically decreases that's typical therefore or PCPS may receive less less state revenue due to this change in LCI. However, the actual impact on this funding will depend on the total state revenue that is appropriated in the bienial budget that will happen next spring that's uh proposed by the house and senate and approved by the governor. The this graph illustrates the the trend. The last we are now at 3806. The last time we were this high or in that area was around uh 2012 to 2014. Uh we have previously reviewed key dates. I just wanted to give one last look at that to let you know where

098we're at. Tomorrow is the anticipated release of the governor's budget. So with that, typically, as you all know, that our budget is usually based on the governor's proposed budget because we don't won't even know what's happening at the state level until March. So we'll have that tomorrow. We'll have the calc tools what they call and that will actually show us the effect on the uh Kosen City Public Schools. It'll be around the first week of January before I even have that information. The January 20th, uh, Mr. Tlet will present a budget update at the work session. The next month, midmon, he'll present the proposed budget. And on March 17th, we'll have the public hearing for the budget. And that concludes my presentation. >> Yes sir. Uh, forgive me if you explain in the calculation, but

099um, so our LCI went up a pretty good chunk. Is it is there >> comparable areas that where they're seeing that same jump? Are we kind of an outlier or >> No, I think we've had about 50% of the of the uh, localities within the city within the Commonwealth of Virginia went up. and around our region. I just did a kind of a straw poll at a regional superintendent meeting last week and it it seemed to be about about that same percentage in the region about half uh went up LCI went up some a small amount some larger amounts uh regarding the the governor's budget. So I this is the current governor >> will be vacating the office and then the next governor will be signing >> Yes. it usually it delays it. Th >>

100this uh bienium budget is uh in a change over in administration is always an interesting time. Um I've learned since I've been here. Um the the new governor will also send a message about the budget. Um so there'll be two governor's budgets sort of in the works that the general assembly will address. It's it's a it's an interesting thing to watch. Not so much fun when you're waiting for the actual dollar amount to build a a concrete budget. Um so it's a challenge and if you'll recall the last two or three years we didn't get a finalized budget until summer. Um so it it it's an interesting process and I um anticipate some ups and downs. I'll just leave it at that. Okay. >> Thank you. >> Okay. All right. Um, moving on. That concludes

101presentations and reports. Uh, Miss Carol, do we have anybody signed up for a public comment? >> Uh, we have one person who would like to speak tonight. >> Okay. Is that you? >> Okay. All right. Let me I've got a thing I've got to read. Um, so let me just You can stand up if you want and stretch your legs, but let me just get through this. All right. Um, the Picosen Public School welcomes public comment during regular meetings. Schoolboard members do not respond to public comment during a meeting. All comments should address a matter related to Picosen Public Schools. School board will not hear public comment that involves an individual student related matter, the disclosure of which would violate applicable confidentiality requirements. School board expects that each speaker will be courteous, modeling for our

102students how one can respectfully disagree with others views. Speakers will address their comments to the entire school board and not to one individual school board member, nor to the superintendent, a staff member, or the audience. Speakers are encouraged not to engage in personal attacks. Speakers will present their comments from the podium to follow schoolboard policy. The time allotted to the speaker shall be three minutes. Got our timer over there. And we fixed the buzzer so it won't buzz until the end. So that's good to know. >> This is Mr. Branson Mat from MadiRaa Drive. >> Uh yeah, York County, actually. Um you >> Good evening, members of the school board. My name is Branson Mat. I'm the volunteer techn technical director for the evolution show choir at the high school. Uh thank you for allowing

103me to share my passion with our school pro choir programs at Picosen. As a high school alumni and formerly show choir member, I know firsthand how powerful those programs are. Eight years ago, I returned to these programs as a volunteer stage crew manager when my son joined the choir, and I found an amazing community of dedicated students and inspiring leaders. My involvement grew over the years from stage crew to technical director and now showband director as well. Throughout it all, I've supported Mrs. Wade at the middle school and Miss Reed at the high school as they have nurtured these thriving programs. Each year I develop well over 300 hours volunteering, teaching music, building shows, guiding students through lighting, audio, and stage management, and supporting concerts and productions. I've also contributed financially because I've witnessed the

104tremendous impact these programs have. Working with these students is truly brings me joy, and it's one of the facets of my life I'm most proud of. Our choir programs continue to achieve remarkable success and steady growth. At the middle school, Miss Wade now leaves leads 120 students, helping them discover their voices and a love of music. At the high school, uh, Miss Reed leaves the Evolution Show choir, which swept their division last year. Go us. Our music programs consistently get superior assessment ratings and awards, and we are a blue ribbon school for music education. Through these successful programs, students gain much more than musical skills. They build confidence, discipline, and creativity. These achievements are a direct result of our exceptional educators, Miss Wade and Mrs. pour their time, energy, and resources into our students. They

105teach more than music. They foster teamwork, responsibility, and leadership every day. Their dedication shapes young lives. However, excellence requires resources and competitive compensation reflecting teachers time and commitment, quality musics, costumes, equipment, and opportunities to attend competitions and festivals. Most importantly, we should ensure cost never stands in the way of a student's participation so future generations can continue to enjoy these opportunities. Over these eight years, I've watched many students blossom into confident performers, find their calling, whether on stage or behind the scenes, and realize that every role matters. These programs change lives. Students not only build academic and social skills, but also develop discipline and time management, life lessons that will serve them far beyond their school years. Looking ahead, I urge the school board to continue championing these programs through funding, fundraising, and advocacy. Your

106support keeps us benefiting from outstanding music education. Also, thank you for honoring me personally as a school champion and for your ongoing support as it means a very great deal. To Miss Wade and Miss Reed, thank you for your tireless dedication and passion. You are creating a legacy that will shape generations. As somebody who's been a student, a performer, a parent, and now a volunteer, I know firsthand how vital this investment is. Let's keep the music alive, the tradition strong, and ensure every student has a chance to discover their voice and confidence. Together, we can continue building this legacy. Thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. Okay. All right. Um, next up is the consent agenda. Um, we have four items on the consent agenda. There's approval of financial reports, authorization to

107change appropriation and to accept and expend funds in accordance with the attached request. There's approval of a personnel action and approval of minutes for November's regular meeting. Uh, can I get a motion to approve the consent agenda? >> So moved. >> Can I get a second? >> Second. >> Uh, any questions or discussion about the consent agenda? Okay, Miss Carol, can I have a vote, please? >> Dr. Bartlett, >> I. >> Mr. Dow, >> I. >> Vice Chair Dubose, >> I. >> Miss Jones, >> I. >> Mr. Maxwell, >> I. >> Chair Barbage, >> I. >> Vote passes 6. >> Thank you. Okay. Uh, moving on to section 8, other matters for consideration. Uh the first item up is consideration of program of studies for 2026 2027 school year. Uh can I get a motion

108to approve the 2627 school year program of studies? >> So moved. >> And I have a second. >> Second. >> All right. Any questions or discussion about the program of studies? I know that Miss ID gave a very detailed um instructional update. Um I don't know if there's anything left. >> Oh, okay. Um Miss Carol, the vote. >> Dr. Bartlett, >> I. >> Mr. Dow, >> I. >> Vice Chair Dubose, >> I. >> Miss Jones, >> I. >> Mr. Maxwell, >> I. >> Chair Burbage, >> I. >> Vote passes 6. >> Okay. Thank you. Uh, moving on to the next item is adoption of math textbooks for PCPS grades K through 12. Uh, can I get a motion to approve the new textbooks? >> So move. >> Can I have a second? >> Second. >>

109Uh, discussion questions about math textbooks coming to our schools for next year. I have something I'd like to add. Um, I sat down and went through fifth grade because my son's a fifth grader. I went through the sixth grade textbook because that's presumably the math he's going to be taking next year. Uh, I think it's a quality uh set of textbooks to cover math. It covers everything from kindergarten all the way through calculus. There's statistics. Um, it's an entire I think it covers the entire curriculum, doesn't it? >> We did a a full review of our math textbooks. Yes. >> Okay. Um I think it's a quality um company that produced the textbooks. I think our children will benefit greatly from it. So I just wanted to add that. Um any other questions? Okay. Carol

110the vote. >> Dr. Bartlett. >> I. >> Mr. Dow. >> I. >> Vice Chair Dubose. >> I. >> Miss Jones. >> I. >> Mr. Maxwell. >> I. >> Chair Burbage. >> I. >> Vote passes 6. >> Okay. Thank you. Uh, moving along is item C, approval of item disposal list for December 2025. Can I get a motion to approve the disposal list? >> I move we approve the item disposal list. >> Thank you. Uh, second. >> Second. >> Any questions or discussion about the disposal list? >> Okay, hearing none. Miss Carol, the vote. >> Dr. Bartlett, >> I. >> Mr. Mr. Dow >> I >> Vice Chair Dubose >> I >> Miss Jones >> I >> Mr. Maxwell >> I >> chair Burbage >> I >> vote passes 6 >> okay thank you moving along

111to item D is approval of motion to authorize superintendent to sign a contract with Garland company Incorporated for the Picosen High School roof project. Can I get a motion to approve the contract? >> So moved. >> Can I have a second? >> Second. Any questions or discussion about the roof replacement while we've got the folks from the company here? Okay, hearing none. Uh, Miss Carol, the vote, please. >> Dr. Bartlett, >> I. >> Mr. Dow, >> I. >> Vice Chair Dubose, >> I. >> Miss Jones, >> I. >> Mr. Maxwell, >> I. >> Chair Burbage, >> I. >> Vote passes 6. >> Thank you. All right. Last item. Uh, approval of proclamation of school principal appreciation week. Uh, can I get a motion to approve the plarkation? >> So moved. >> A second. >> Second.

112>> Okay. Any questions or discussion about school principles week? >> Thank you. >> Yes. Uh, and just so everyone is aware, it is January 12th through the 16th of 2026. So, um, we'll be prepared for you. Um, so, uh, hearing no other questions or concerns, uh, Miss Carol, the vote. Dr. Bartlett >> I, >> Mr. Dow, >> I, >> Vice Chair Dubose, >> I, >> Miss Jones, >> I, >> Mr. Maxwell, >> I, >> Chair Barbage, >> I, >> Vote passes 6. >> Okay, thank you. All right, moving on to communications andor other matters by school board andor superintendent. Um, Miss Stud. >> Okay, to start off with our primary school, the excitement is building as we head into winter break. Our spirit days are here giving students and staff a fun chance to dress

113up, show their pride, and enjoy a strong sense of community throughout the school. Our students did an amazing job during our snow days as they transitioned to virtual learning with very little issues. It was great to see all of our students safely at home interacting with their friends and teachers. Thank you to all of our families who helped support our kids behind the scenes. We could not do it without you. We were delighted by the first grade students at our winter concert where our talented students will fill the evening with music and seasonal cheer. The special event was a wonderful way to kick off the season and celebrate our students hard work and creativity. Adding to the excitement, we are thrilled to welcome our middle school band to join us for a concert. This collaboration

114brings our school community together and showcases the growth of our music program. We look forward to sharing these memorable moments with our school community and thank you for your continued support. To move on to our elementary school, we are enjoying the holiday season with spirit days to fill our classrooms and halls with candy canes, green for the Grinch, holiday movie characters, festive sweaters and accessories, and comfy holiday PJ pants. We are looking forward to our winter break sendoff by the PMS band and chorus on Friday. Our staff has enjoyed surprising students with a few secret staff spirit days to include the 67th day on December 3rd and sending reports to the North Pole dressed as Santa's Secret Service. Our PTO gifted our students with a schoolwide assembly from Jack's Jungle to learn about animals and

115their adaptations. Our PTO set up a holiday shop last week to give students the chance to shop for gifts for their family members. The students loved both opportunities and we are grateful for the work DO put into coordinating these events. Our PES student council association has been very busy with creating float decorations for the Posen Christmas parade. We are excited to have our PESC SCA students participate and look forward to seeing them ride along the PES Express. Thank you to our SCA teacher sponsors, Miss Blau and Miss Turo, along with our SEA parents for making this possible. PS wishes everyone a safe and happy holiday season. See you in the new year. This month has been a celebration of the arts at Picosen Middle School. Our talented band and chorus students have delivered outstanding performances

116at several events. The special comp concert for retired teachers. Um the sixth grade band and chorus students honored our dedicate dedicated educators with a heartfelt performance at PMS showcasing their hard work and musical talent. For the Frosty Fest, our Korea students performed beautifully at the city hall event, spreading holiday cheer with their music. for our winter concert. The core students impressed audiences again last Thursday, and we eagerly anticipate our band's concert this Thursday evening. For holiday school performances on Friday, December 19th, both the band and chorus will perform holiday music at the primary and elementary schools, inspiring younger students with their enthusiasm and talent. Congratulations to Randall Lawson, our Picosen Middle School teacher of the year. His tireless energy, deep commitment to his craft, and steadfast belief in every student create an inspiring classroom community

117where young musicians flourish and discover their true potential. Applications for Battle of the Classes and National Junior Honor Society are due this month. These programs provide students with opportunities to engage in friendly competition and demonstrate academic excellence, leadership, and community service. Congratulations to our December Golden Bull students of the month. Lily Kosen in sixth grade, Olivia Chapman in seventh grade, and Sari Goretas in eighth grade. Picosen Middle School wishes our school community a very happy holiday season and a wonderful winter break. Lastly, we have Posen High School. We have been very busy and congratulations to the varsity football team for achieving their fourth consecutive regional championship and com competing in state semifinals. Winter sports are now in full swing and we look forward to an outstanding season for all teams. Last month, studentto student hosted

118a Friendsgiving during one lunch, bringing students together in a spirit of connection and gratitude. PHS has also been in a festive mood as we celebrated a themed spirit week. Prepare for awkward family photos tomorrow. On December 10th, the chorus presented its winter chorus concert and the PHS band will perform on December 17th in the PMS auditoriia. Looking ahead, on January 15th at 6 p.m., PHS will host its second annual Chart Your Course Fair in the PHS gym. This event is open to all students who will attend PHS next year, including a special presentation for rising freshmen, as well as an information session on college now with representatives from VPCC to discuss dual enrollment opportunities and the option to earn an associate degree. This is an excellent opportunity for students and families to learn more about

119the scheduling process and the many pathways available throughout their high school experience. We also extend congratulations to our teacher of the year, Miss Britney Baker, for her outstanding work both in and outside the classroom. Finally, we wish all PHS students and families a wonderful, restful, and enjoyable winter break. As always, please check the island Times on Parent Square for important updates from PHS. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Maxwell. >> Right. As always, I'll begin with the uh preemptive echoing of what my colleagues will say and I will inevitably forget. One of the things I continually forget is to wish everyone a happy holidays. So, if there are holidays coming up, whatever celebrate, I hope you enjoy it and enjoy the break. Um, also wanted to start off too with um given the recent headlines,

120this is a sad note, but I want to give a special thank you to our school SRO's work they do is is invaluable. the the services they provide. Uh special shout out. I got three kids at Picosen Primary School. We're big Officer Pete fans. So, um thank you to them for what they do. Um also, you know, another outstanding student of the month, u Miss Casey Law. I wrote down here a 4.39 GPA. I' I'd like the state to show me how we can get some more growth out of her. another outstanding resume both academically, socially, and and athletically. It looks like um congratulations gold star teacher uh for Wise, Mr. Sofus. I hope I'm pronouncing that right. Congratulations to all the teachers of the year. Um Miss Alves, Miss Blau, Mr. Lawson. Uh special

121recognition for being the division teacher of the year. Um, thank you to all the fall and winter sports volunteers for the athletic programs. Uh, special congratulations to the PHS football team and their state title was fun to watch. Um, special thank you to the Kuanas Club for their support of our school teachers. Uh, as well as Picosa Education Foundation. A special thank you to those involved with that STEM grant for another $10,000 coming into the school system as well as the comp comprehensive state literacy grant $72,000. Thank you for that. Um and a special thank you to Miss I to Miss Montalvo for your sole through those accountability and and accreditation. Um >> that's all I have. >> Thank you, Mr. Dow. >> Well, Mr. Maxwell covered everything. So, merry Christmas to everybody and I

122thank all the teachers. I don't care what any test scores here say. I know you all do a great job. I got two kids and they are growing more than I've ever seen this year. So, thank you guys. >> Thank you, Dr. Bartlett. >> Thanks. Um, this is the, you know, last week before everybody's going to be going home for winter break. And I know it's, it always for me was one of the most exciting times in the school because I had four days left. But, um, I just wish everyone um, a really joyfilled and healthy winter break that allow you to come back re-energized, refreshed, and ready to rock and roll. Happy New Year. Thank you, Miss Jones. >> Yes. Uh, Mr. Maxwell, you did a wonderful job covering everything. And in the essence

123of time, I did just want to give a a second or I guess probably fourth actually, congratulations to our teachers of the year. Um, I actually have had the privilege, my daughter had Miss Blau when she was Mrs. Carr before she was married. Um, but I can just speak to all four of them. Um, just what a wonderful accomplishment and that is a tremendous deal. Um, as well as a thank you to the Kuanas Club, which you also hit, and the Vicosen Education Foundation. Uh, thank you for recognizing and supporting these teachers that, um, I see them both out in the community so much and that makes such a difference. Uh, Miss Kapper, we look forward to assisting you and supporting you in this awesome event that is going to be coming up. So, thank

124you for being here. And the last thing I'll add is thank you for the public comment. Um, I agree music and the arts are so tremendously important and Picosen just has such a history and example of excellence in that area. So, I hope we will be able to continue to support any and all needs in those programs. So, thank you for your time and being here and um wishing everyone merry Christmas, happy holidays um and a wonderful winter break. >> Thank you, Mr. Devose. >> Don't know if I have much more to say. Um I do want to comment about um the arts um itself and it's very appreciative of people stepping up. Um you know I think everybody knows Randall and and his experience and he's also a byproduct of um uh the passion

125that um our school system has uh for the arts. um you know he was he was in school with me and we both were greatly influenced by Doug uh Sproul and you know and he continues that everything he does. So um thank you u for all of that and thank you for uh everything handle does and thank everybody else here uh for everything as well. So and uh holiday. >> All right. Thank you. Um, I just wanted to I yesterday I had a very positive meeting with our new delegate elect, uh, Mr. Virgil Thornton. Uh, he'll be our new delegate starting January 14th. Uh, it was positive. Um, we talked about funding for schools. Um, that's always sort of the the big concern. Um, obviously he can't print money and it doesn't grow on trees,

126but I reiterated our concern about increased funding. He can make something happen. Uh, I want to congratulate our student of the month, uh, Miss Law. Um, I'd also like to thank the teachers of the year. Um, all of them, you know, these are the group of people that make our students exceptional. You know, it's exceptional teachers create exceptional students. and I can't say enough thanks or praise on this year's teachers, last year's teach, all of our teachers. We really appreciate everything you do. Um, I don't really have anything else to say other than uh merry Christmas, happy holidays. I hope everyone has a safe, relaxing winter break, and uh comes back in January uh ready to get back to business. Thank you. >> Uh I concur. Happy holidays. Thank you. Um, Miss Carol, are there

127any other materials for board review >> tonight? We have no additional materials. Journs the meeting.