001hold on hold on good evening it is um Thursday January 26th it is 6 33 p.m this is the only Teenage Board of Education regular meeting I'll call the meeting to order uh Mr Jenkins please call the roll Mr Lester here Dr dabaco president Mr O'Brien here Dr Wise here Dr Wallach here all right please stand and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance uh [Music] one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice all right um now I'll move to the approval of the agenda could I have a motion to approve the agenda as written we have no amendments or changes correct so moved to a second please a second all right uh we had a first second annual discussion on the agenda seeing none please call the roll yes Mr O'Brien yes Dr
002Wise yes Dr Waller yes Mr Lester yes all right the agenda is approved we'll now move to the board president's report we've got a few things to cover relative to the agenda we do have two executive sessions tonight we have one right after the presentation we'll try to make it quick and we'll come back we'll take action then we have a second executive session at the end of the meeting it will probably take longer and on that one we will come back only to adjourn and we won't have any any action after the second uh executive session um so as as was announced yesterday and I think Mr Ray full cover and his superintendent's report we will be dealing with the retirement of Mr Rafe in uh talking through how we want to approach the
003process to replace these via a search and a process that you know in the past we've had a search from help us will typically take between two and three months to get it from kind of selecting The Firm building a candidate pool screening the pool doing interviews with the board with key stakeholders and then finally hopefully coalescing around a successful candidate that will choose I would guess I mean we targeted maybe spring break I think that's aggressive I would probably assume early April is a more likely timetable of when we would get through that entire process but we'll talk about that a little bit more in the executive session I will say you know we understand and respect Mr Ray's decision you know it's time for move on to the next chapter of your life
004and we appreciate that more to comment Mr Rafe as we'll have time between now and his last meeting to um you just properly send him off um there's a bunch of people sitting on this side of the room to line up for that that's right that's right but certainly uh you know with mixed emotions you would certainly appreciate the 20 years and all changes to eight years of superintendent um really navigated what you could argue is unprecedented challenges uh with covid and everything else so navigated it very successfully so we appreciate that very much um next item uh Mr dabaco we've got some comments on school funding 101 cannot wait next Tuesday the 31st at 6 30. as I talk to stakeholders throughout our district there's lots of issues that we disagree on but one
005we don't and that is the issue of fair school funding our district has been slighted by the state for decades and we have a unique chance now to um to make a difference to have our voice be heard last year uh speaker cup was in our district and encouraged our folks in our district to let their voices be heard and it makes a difference when you talk to your legislators when you talk to your Governor um we're going to do some teaching we're going to do some celebrating our success with what we've done and then we're going to do some advocacy again the 31st um 6 30 to 8 30 at Olentangy high school and you're going to leave that event with action steps so you can make a difference to bring Fair school funding
006to our district next Tuesday thank you Mr O'Brien all right great and Brandon you've got some updates yeah I got a few things so first of all we had our facilities committee meeting Berlin Middle School is is moving on very well we're on track despite all the challenges with the supply chain that is coming along nicely we expect to be able to get in around I believe around April or so to start putting in the furnishings and start really building it out it is a beautiful school it's going to be a wonderful learning environment for all the students that are moving up there there we just can't wait to show it off we also talked about planning for some of the next few elementary schools that are going to be coming we're growing rapidly and
007there's a lot of planning that's happening there so we're looking forward to that we also had the mental health committee meeting where we're continuing to make recommendations and build up our ideas around a broader District Initiative for awareness you know to reduce stigma and build up some supports there so we'll continue to present some ideas as we go along additionally there's you know been some coverage recently in the media about the district and about you know your books and and things like that that we heard relative to the NPR story I know a few of us have some thoughts on that that we'd like to present based on some of the conversations that we have I'll turn over to Dr Wise first to go ahead all right so um the NPR Podcast has had an
008impact on many families including mine in the district um the stage classroom that conducted a six hour recording the students and teachers interactions surrounding the topic of Economics that parents consented to turned into an organic conversation of discrimination and race first I applaud the students who made the connection from the story to history although the conversation was stopped I do want to stress the support and to the teachers and the students to have a discussion of equity and inclusion in the classroom while of course adhering to the controversial issues policy these conversations they do align with our mission to facilitate maximum learning for every student too thank you and I certainly agree with that and I want to highlight you know as part of this we've had a lot of discussions with community members whenever
009an issue like this comes up I think having that dialogue and really hearing where people are and what they understand and what's important to them is vital to that process it's really part of building up that understanding as a community of what's important what are our values how do they play out in practice I know all of us have had some of those conversations over the past couple of weeks and one of the most fundamental questions that that came out is you know are we what is our commitment to Dei what is our commitment to discussion discussing issues of discrimination and you know as Dr Weiss said I think is um you know superintendent Ray facet and zetty and in their Communications to the staff these are foundational issues or foundational values of the district
010um you know talking about diversity Equity Building an inclusive environment these are things that we uh hold it's very very important to us in the district right and if there's ever any question about it if you ever feel like there's a concern where you aren't able to talk about those things talk with your students teacher with the principal with the district leadership team with the board but know that those are foundational parts of who we are it is part of building up and formed citizenry right it's part of education so that we learn and grow from the mistakes of the past and all of those issues and become better people so those are very clear values for us I know that the district leadership team has stressed that we wanted to stress that as well
011and again if there ever any concerns bring up you know have it dialogue with us let's talk through it and and learn how to be better just real short I don't want to take up the space but um I really appreciate folks in the community that took time to meet with us and share their heart with us and when we're talking that's a good thing and I really appreciate Mr Rafe um and Miss Eddie sending out a staff communication reinforcing that our strategic plan declares our commitment to creating a culture of inclusive Excellence that's who we are so I appreciate that and and I want the staff to know that um that's a really big deal and um the NPR story is I won't comment on the story I'll just say that we are committed
012to inclusive excellence and that includes thoughtful classroom discussions okay all right very good thank you um last Quick item is a little bit of an awareness for the board we'll be bringing forward two policies so we Treasurer Jenkins will be shepherding that process but two policies through the policy committee the first reading second reading the whole process around a more formal cash balance policy as well as a more formal policy on adequate reserves in the Insurance Fund these are practices that Mr Jenkins had put in place in the prior District that I think we're at a point now in our maturity that we're ready to adopt the same and so I think it's important that we start to think about that and as the drafts come through that's we'll work it through kind of a
013parallel path socialization with the board with the policy committee and then we'll bring them back for a first reading the second reading and then ultimately we'll decide if we want to move forward with them so I just wanted to make the board aware that that work is underway and we expect to get that done you know over the coming whatever six months six months six weeks well most of the policies I might Target for July one okay um but you know if we felt like it needed to be quicker certainly could be four to six weeks okay I wanted to make sure we took the time to digest it and everyone understood okay what we were doing okay anything else members no all right we'll now move to our first and only presentation item I'll
014turn it over to uh Miss Davis all right good evening everyone um on behalf of the district in general um it's really an honor to thank all of you it is board appreciation month and so we wanted to take an opportunity during this meeting to show you our gratitude for the work that you do as elected officials for the school district and folks who spend a lot of time giving back to your community through your position in the school district and so we're going to start we have a couple things planned but we're going to start with a video that features students from Shell Meadows Elementary Hyatt's middle school as well as the four Olentangy high schools and this was created by the Communications Department with the assistance of Hyatt's Middle School journalism students and
015teacher jimeta that we'll go ahead and share this with you thank you for letting us learn about math thank you for my teacher and my principal thank you for letting me lunches thank you for our playgrounds thank you for gym class thank you for our class thank you for our teachers thank you for watching Dusty math thank you for our school thank you for our books thank you for our musical instruments the school board determines days off and I love days off organize the great students their students do the school board allows teachers to be hired and I love the teachers here both really rules to keep us safe the school board makes the district a better place today we are here to celebrate the Olentangy School Board of Education they do many things for
016our district including establishing and setting policies creating the district goals and approving the school calendar they also hire the superintendent and Treasurer they allow hiring of teachers principals aides Specialists Food Service workers bus drivers Etc the school board is in charge of the financial health of the district and they approve large purchases as well they work to approve funds for lunches breakfast and School meals and the final thing they do is approve funds for technology classroom materials and textbooks they understand and support public education and always approve student support services and recognize student achievements the last thing they do is approve seniors for graduation [Music] Board of Education [Music] for athletics and thank you board of education for our wonderful teachers thank you for letting us pursue our interests through a variety of clubs thank
017you for the amazing teachers that you have hired over the years thank us the opportunity to participate in sport and sports and activities [Music] to succeed in my classes thank you board of education for the opportunities in our Deca program allow me to get a head start on my career 30cc thank you board of education for creating a friendly atmosphere in our schools I'm thankful that the board is letting me graduate this year [Music] so thanks to all of you I know that the students thoroughly enjoyed being part of that video especially the first graders over in Shale Meadows they were very excited to participate so we heard from our students but we cannot move forward and not include in our thank you performance from our students and so tonight we are thrilled to have
018our Olentangy High School Keynotes with us class of 2023 singing rise which is from their competition shows so with that I'll turn it over to them [Music] because my roots [Applause] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] don't think about tomorrow we've only got today there's no time for sorrows and there's no such thing [Music] and you cannot defend actions that betrayed in the world should end the sky tonight is [Music] foreign [Applause] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] a friend I can see what will become [Music] [Applause] alive [Applause] thank you [Applause] thank you so much that was wonderful they are going to pack up thank you so much Mr Smith and our class of 2023 Keynotes and then finally um I wanted to share that the coasters at each of your places at the table were designed and fabricated
019by freshmen Ian boblitz Harrington from the Olentangy Academy under the supervision of teacher Chris Cohen so you can go ahead and look at those The Coasters they are beautiful for those of you who can't see them they have their names on them and the district logo so they're they were again designed by Ian boblitz Harrington at the Olentangy Academy Ian is a freshman and so those and the flowers are for you and I think there might be something else in that bag not sure if not I'll get back to you but anyway thank you again I hope this um just gives you a small glimpse of how much everyone appreciates the work that you do for Olentangy schools we're very grateful for you and appreciate you thank you all right thank you okay I'll now
020entertain a motion to enter executive session as permitted by the hypervised code section 121.22 to consider the compensation of public employees if you have a motion please so moved second second any discussion on the executive session anything I'll say again a couple quick items we'll try to be back as quickly as possible to do um Mr Jenkins please call the roll you're Brian yes Dr Wise yes Dr Wallach yes Mr Lester yes Dr dabaco yes all right excuse us but yes all right it is uh 707 I'll call the meeting back to order um next item is the superintendent's report Mr Rafe all right well good evening everyone thank you all for being here took me to have to retire to get some of our teachers to show up to a board meeting that was
021my what I'm making fun of my wife who supported me she's been two in eight years so it's no one's immune right no one's immune so this is you know obviously I'd like to extend my thanks and and um uh congratulations and appreciation to all of you board members um present and past uh who are here in attendance uh you know I I say this all the time when I'm when I'm up here I always feel like a proud parent when I'm I'm doing these living the mission slides or then to see such an incredible performance by our own TNG Keynotes uh students so um I really appreciate the communications team putting together that uh performance and the video was was amazing just again I'm always so proud and honored uh with the work that
022our staff does and and what our students are able to achieve annually we share the congratulations Elementary Middle School students who participate in our spelling bee as our spelling bee winner so you see a long list of um uh students here that are outstanding spellers I it always brings back a horrible flashback moment for me in fifth grade when I got knocked out of the spelling bee in the second round for misspelling the word cereal the food um so obviously I would not have been on this list of uh outstanding spellers but very very proud of those students as you know we have a very strong invention uh convention program here and our students participated in that so these students presented to the board in September and they were our state finalists and they were
023recently invited to present at the state house so congratulations to those students for their work with Invention Convention um as you you know we had our Martin Luther King Day of Service so thank you to our equity and inclusion team for the work that they did this was the third ML King Day of MLK Day of Service donation drive we had a great turnout we're still waiting on the final donation Counts from our uh that we donated you see there the long list of Community Partners uh that benefited by the work of our Equity inclusion team and the generosity of our community um Olentangy senior kashav s Keisha Keisha thank you Mr Griffis okay Chef s has been selected as the national student Delegate for the uh U.S Senate youth program so he will go
024and join Senator Jared Brown and Senator JD Vance in representing Ohio at this program in March and then he'll come present to us on his experience so that is a tremendous honor it's he's one of two students from the state of Ohio so obviously there are 104 delegates from Across the Nation who were selected so we're very uh proud of this young man and hit that accomplishment um as you know we're having our community engagement sessions all through uh out this year so our last session was um where Dr Alicia Behrens and Dr Katie Branson presented to over 30 community members and answered questions and engaged in important conversations around mental health uh was featured in the local news so thank you then again for for that our next session is February 28th and it
025will be focused on school safety security and preparedness so we're hoping for another good turnout for that event um our curriculum team's been working with the Powell Liberty Historical Society for a local history plunge uh this winter so that was a new initiative that allows students to learn about the early days of Olentangy and what school was like back uh in the early days of Olentangy so thank you for the curriculum team for putting putting that program out and starting that initiative uh as we know our annual one Community Conference is on um for this set or Saturday February 4th it will be held at Berlin High School it will be our Ninth Annual one Community Conference so I encourage everyone in the community to attend and participate this year's uh feat excuse me keynote
026speaker will be the national teacher of the year uh Kurt Russell so we're looking forward to hearing from from Kurt Russell I always want to take an opportunity to give an update on Calamity days obviously we had two of them this week so I was very popular on Instagram with our students I I've been told um you know so obviously Mr actually Mr Meyer Mr Right Dr fetty Mr Griffiths um I'm outing all these people on the weather team Lori Carter Evans they go out we start typically we go out sometime between 3 30 4 o'clock depending on on what's what we're seeing out on the road for about an hour trying to assess the weather conditions whether the weather is getting worse or getting better the road conditions again are always changing what's happening
027with the temperature um you know contacting the sheriff to see what kind of weather advisory where we are in that process and it's it's you know oftentimes there's it there really is like yesterday was a no-brainer he's that was that was an easy call Monday was a little we we went out on Sunday afternoon for about an hour anticipated that we'd be in school on Monday but it snowed more over uh in the evening and our um County Roads the Township roads and a lot of the roads and the developments were just we did not feel they were feel they were safe so we uh we're always going to err on the side of caution we try to make the decision to delay or cancel by 5 30 if it's the day of on on
028Sunday into Monday we delayed Sunday evening which I tend to believe people like that Assurance of knowing that there's something coming but then you know so if we are on a two-hour delay we push the decision to open or close to 7 30. so um any questions on Calamity days foreign as you know I do have um we do have a board action item for um to accept my resignation for the purpose of retirement so I just would like to take an opportunity to um thank all the people and I I really appreciate Amanda putting this picture together um with various activities that I've been a part of all throughout the district that one on the top is actually my daughter who was here for uh military appreciation out at Orange High School and the
029kid in the on the right picture is Joe bidorkman he sent me an email today actually thanking or congratulating me and I let him know there was a picture of him in uh in this uh presentation so he's the Berlin high school graduate he was in the first graduating classroom Berlin but I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have helped and supported me during my 20 years in Olentangy and most specifically during my time as superintendent you know I'd like to begin by thanking the four board members who initially voted to make me the first internal candidate to be promoted to superintendent and that would be Mr Kevin O'Brien uh board vice president Dave King Mr Roger Barnes and Mrs Julie Wagner feasel so thank you um I've also
030had the honor to work with Mrs Patrick so thank you for being here as well obviously uh Dr Wallach Dr Wise Mr Lester and Dr dabaco I've always been been very appreciative of how all of our boards have supported me supported our leadership team supported our staff our students and the community most importantly you've challenged me and held me in the leadership team to the highest standard possible because that's what our students and staff deserve that challenge fueled me and our team to always try our best to meet your expectations in every way possible we have a great District because we've always had outstanding Boards of Education who represent the entire community and work to serve the best interests of our students so thank you thank you for your service and your leadership and and
031for giving me this opportunity in 1998 Earl vote was the principal of Bexley high school and um he gave me my first job as an administrator and he worked I worked with Earl for two years and he really taught me a lot about how to do this job of school administration so I actually got a call from him today and was very appreciative of Earl um I wouldn't have had the opportunity working on Tangy if it hadn't been for um Olentangy principal Mrs Mindy farring Mindy was an incredible educational leader and a better friend so thank you Mindy for giving me the opportunity to be your assistant and begin my career here in Olentangy excuse me I know Mr O'Brien you're going to make fun of me our current uh success as a district has
032been built on the work of many in the past I like to say often that I stand on the shoulders of giants when I think about the past superintendents who gave me the opportunity to learn and grow into this position today uh Dr Bill Reimer was the superintendent who hired me and I think the person who really set us on our path to becoming a highly successful suburban school district Dr Scott Davis uh gave me the opportunity to be the principal at Liberty High School and while we worked together for far too short of a time I learned a great deal from him and Dr Wade Lucas brought me to central office to learn the whole District perspective and has had the most profound impact on my work I learned far too much from Wade
033to mention in this short time but his support and encouragement are what got me here today having been in the district for 20 years has afforded me the opportunity to work with an incredible group of bus drivers Food Service workers AIDS custodians maintenance workers field techs clerical staff support staff teachers and administrators and I'd like to mention so many people individually because so many of you hold such a special place in my heart but obviously that is simply not possible I hope you know that as I'm saying these words I'm seeing so many of your smiling faces I know you all give everything you have each and every day to facilitate maximum learning and to care for our students so thank you for your work and support of me and our district I work most
034closely with the leadership of the four associations we have in the district so I do want to mention Mrs Sue capretta Mrs Mr Rob Comstock uh Mr Kevin vagilov and Ms Elaine Eddie thank you thank you uh the work you do for your members is inspirational and instrumental to our success as a district to our entire Community thank you our district has seen unprecedented growth which has required unprecedented support at the ballot time and time again you've stepped up and voted to support our district as we've become the fourth largest and highest performing District in the state so to the army of volunteers who did the work necessary to pass those issues over the past 30 years your impact on our district is immeasurable we've had a number of exceptionally strong leaders uh perform the
035work necessary to organize and Lead our campaigns these people gave their time and talent to inform the community on the needs of our district and help build the Great District we have today so I'd specifically like to thank thank Sue Mahler Mark ionata Tracy McDowell Carol Dorn Bell Emily Robinson Holly Hansen Dean praul and Steve kuckler for many great years of service to our students staff and our community to our parents our students first and most important teachers you make all the difference in your child's education send us your children every day you have high expectations of them and you have even higher expectations of our staff the partnership we have with you in supporting our students along their educational Journey both academically and socially creates the outcomes we achieve together to our students thank
036you thank you for providing me the inspiration to wake up every day and be happy to come to work for you our students continually amaze me in so many ways as you saw tonight I hope you all know how seriously everyone in the organization takes our responsibility to facilitate maximum learning for every student it's what you all deserve I have every confidence in the future of our district our state and our nation because I have faith in our students people I want to talk about are my family which includes my personal family and my work family my work family includes uh this is Michelle Cox Mr Randy Wright Mr Todd Meyer Dr Jack fetty and Mrs Krista Davis Michelle and I've been together since 2006 Michelle 2006 you've been putting up with me and I
037could not have ever done any of this without you everything about you've been a joy to work with I can't think of a time I've not been proud to work with you Michelle's dedication to our district our board and our staff and to me personally is their most redeeming quality and it should never be taken for granted I'll always cherish our friendship and our time together I love you Michelle I do I get you I get you crying there you go [Music] I often say the best thing that happened when I became the superintendent was I had the opportunity to build an entire leadership team from scratch and we as a district could not have done any better than this team individually their talents are impressive as each work to serve in their leadership roles
038within the district but collectively as a team the way they function is simply amazing they challenge me and each other to perform to the highest level possible they hold me and each other accountable for every decision while constantly assessing our success and opportunities to continually grow and improve I know you value each other and me and your loyalty to our board our district and me truly makes you special I really would love to mention something specifically about each of you individually but it is as a team that I value you the most and I'll always appreciate all that each of you has done for me and I will value our friendship and our time together love you team [Music] go team uh excuse me as for my personal family I have to start by thanking
039my parents who inspired me to become a teacher they were both successful Public School teachers my father for 31 years as a teacher coach and athletic director and I was always inspired by the relationships he had with his students my mother worked for 50 years as a teacher principal and college professor she was actually my principal for one year when I was teaching and also the head football coach and after a one in nine season my grandfather told me you better get better or Christmas is going to be really bad the year she has to fire you so I decided I'm meeting to look for a new job on my own I was actually at the school first but so my mom was a high school principal in an era when it was very rare
040for a female to be in in in an Administration especially at the high school level so I have a great deal of respect for the way she did her job my family and I have lived in a district for 19 years my children experienced a cumulative 37 years of voluntangi education and I could not be prouder of the people that they've become I appreciate that they are all thriving in their chosen professions and they are off my payroll I know it wasn't always easy having their father work for the district especially when I was making snow day decisions but they seemed to carry the burden well and to my wife Katie who's worked for the district for 18 years and in my humble opinion is one of the best teachers we have her decision to
041retire from teaching will be more of a loss to the district than me she inspires me every day by how much she cares for the success of her students and for as great as she is a teacher sees even better mother and wife her patients kindness and gentle caring Spirit are the glue of our family I know it wasn't always be easy being married to the superintendent and I appreciate you serving as the first lady of Olentangy Katie I'll Always Love You ah sorry so in closing some people know that I'm actually a fan of Broadway musicals and if you didn't I'm sure you're surprised to hear that one of my favorites is wicked because I love the song for good I always requested it from our choir director Doug O'Neal to have it as
042a commencement song while I was a principal of Liberty because I love the line because I knew you I have been changed for good I think it captured the relationship that I wanted to have with my students my staff and our community so in closing because I knew all of you I have been changed for good and I hope you feel the same thank you I thought he'd be able to get through it but not on the action items you did fine what you did fine yeah so um Patricia heater follow that Patricia heaters our new assistant Treasurer I know Mr Jenkins is going to talk a little bit about her his report but thank you and welcome um we have three other retirement resignations uh Deborah Haas James Porco and James Russell congratulations and
043best of luck to all of them as they move on to the next phase of their lives and then we have quite a few large purchases our all ever your favorite uh asphalt District Paving improvements phone systems for Berlin which is another sign we're getting closer and closer there at Berlin we're going to start working with CT consultants for off-site roadway improvements at elementary 17 and then um Dayton Cincinnati technology Services we have computer ViewSonic equipment for Berlin and then replacement classroom devices for uh the rest of the district and then there are Point important dates coming up um bus driver interview day it's a new thing we're trying to uh recruit more uh bus drivers they're going to hold an event at Hobby Lobby and Gemini place so anybody looking for a job as
044a bus driver you can find our team there uh we have the school funding 101 Master Class coming up so I look forward to seeing many members of the community there our one Community Conference and our next board meeting uh what are you crying about on February 9th so any questions we will have our opportunities yeah our peace thank you well done all right Mr Jenkins you get to follow these superintendent's report I can do that um thank you board members as Mr Rafe mentioned I'll kind of go a little bit out of order I first want to welcome Trisha heater Trisha would you mind standing Trisha comes to us from Reynoldsburg City Schools a great interview she put the entire team at ease I've teased her that this is the week she gets to
045walk around and smile and wave because she still doesn't know what she doesn't know yet but she's done a fantastic job and we're pleased to get her here that I was so pleased that I put out an email to over 4 000 people and spelled her name wrong thank you and welcome additionally Leah Douglas who is just a fantastic employee in the in the treasurer's office but you know felt like she didn't really want to come make a big fuss and that just shows you the kind of character that Leah has Leah was nominated for and is been honored with the 2023 Londa schwerking Treasurer support staff award that name may seem random I knew Londa personally tragically Londa died very unexpectedly about I think it was about six years ago now but London was
046a Treasurer in Champaign County when I was at Graham local schools got to know Londa very very well just a joy and a wonderful person to be around so to honor Londa each year a support staff person in the business office of a school is honored and our winner is Leah Douglas so I'd like to say that she's just doing a wonderful job and then we get to give a 500 scholarship to a graduating senior I've already worked with Dr fetty on talking with some of I think what seems fitting would be to identify somebody in one of the high schools who maybe is looking to pursue a business possibly a school business career so I'm going to be reaching out to the high schools possibly talking to their Deca Department that seems like a
047a good match also the the items that are more mundane but necessary the Appropriations for fiscal year 23 yay budgets the December 2022 financial report our donations which we have many generous community members and we always want to recognize and honor them uh the approval of the board minutes from December 12th and then finally a restatement of our 403 b plan with the accompanying adoption agreement effective January 2023 there was a lot there if there's any questions about that particular item or any of those items just let me know all right any questions from strickens nope hi thank you very much thanks so we will now move on to public participation so if we could have the first Mr Jenkins is going to call the first yes uh the first speaker is Allison Vite uh
048I hope I got that right Allison wants to speak about facility rentals and policy hi my name is Allison Vite I'm the owner and director of a large local dance studio Powell Dance Academy currently in its 17th season my business hosts over 500 olsd students my own four children all attend an Olentangy school I'm a pal resident and taxpayer my studio is an annual Platinum sponsor at Wyandotte Elementary and recent recipient of an Olentangy communities partnership award my primary agenda my business and its 500 plus Olentangy families are in dire need of a high school theater facility to host our annual recitals in June sorry Mr Rafe had me all like emotional I've been recovered unfortunately my request has been denied by the facilities Department the blanket reason given was we don't book outside of
049the regular school year after reaching out to school administration personally other reasons included theater staff are unavailable custodians have the building torn up for maintenance and building wide changes in temperature controls for energy saving I feel Olentangy should make their facilities available when the opportunity for viable income is offered based on the posted facility rental rates and my needs my rental would generate over fifteen thousand dollars in gross income Plus cover their costs of custodial and professional fees I went so far as to offer an additional large donation or sponsorship to any school program that may need funded the answer was still the same as a local sponsor letting that income pass you by is very disheartening I'm sure the hundreds of fundraising committee members PTO volunteers and boosters would feel the same way regardless
050of the district allows us use of a theater I strongly urge the board to look deeper into how much money is being turned away please consider the absence of alternate performance spaces in the Olentangy area and how restricting access of its own theater facilities leaves residents and business owners forced to look at other districts or miss out on high quality Performing Arts experiences altogether ladies and gentlemen I need four days the various reasons for Denial in my opinion are pretty easy to dismantle theater theater technicians are gone for the summer allow me to bring in my own professional insured crew the building is torn up for maintenance I highly doubt all four high schools are completely torn up and unusable the temperature control gets adjusted to save money then charge me the overages ultimately your
051school funding goals can be positively affected by revamping your facility rental policy restricting the use of our public school buildings and Facilities from those who need them pay the taxes pass levies and donate is not appropriate please consider allowing us to use any of the high school theater facilities in adjacent dressing room space for our show in June thank you appreciate your time I'll call you yes could you please next we have Julie feasel who is going to be speaking on school advocacy committee and school funding 101. doing either I know the I know the policy good evening I'm Julie feasel of 7636 Holderman Street here in Lewis Center Ohio I am here to talk about something else I would be remiss if I didn't recognize the leadership of Mr Mark Rafe I will tell
052you that this district has excelled under his leadership whether he was an assistant principal principal executive director of secondary funding or whatever we called you back then um secondary learning whatever and as superintendent I remember interviewing you and we were really Blown Away [Music] this is a better school district because of Mark Rafe and we will truly appreciate his leadership for years to come but the real reason that I am here is to talk a little bit about school funding 101 which is next Tuesday night January 31st at Olentangy high school starts at 6 30. the fact of the matter is that the state is sitting on I'm going to bold this if I could 3.5 billion dollars in the state's rainy day fund that's a savings account month over month since the pandemic they
053have brought in more in taxes than their projections it has never been this high before I remember when it was 89 cents back when Governor Kasich came into office what could that be spent on you ask well let me tell you back in 2001 the general assembly thanks to a lot of advocacy but the people in this room finally passed the fair school funding plan which finally put into place a school funding formula that is fair for all school districts in the state however while they passed a formula they only approved the funding for two years so now we have to Advocate again for the full funding of the fair school funding formula the cost to do this to fund a formula for all 610 districts in the state of Ohio is a mere 375
054million remember I just told you there's 3.5 billion sitting in the savings account in November at the Ohio school boards Association Capital conference in a room full of superintendents treasurers and school board members I asked Senator Brenner if the school funding formula would be fully funded in this next biennium budget he said no that is not acceptable that is not okay we still do not receive the amount of school funding on a per pupil basis that private schools receive for too long we have been advocating for fair funding we will continue to advocate for fair funding until it is fully funded I don't care if they get sick of hearing from us but now this time we have 609 districts going to the state house with us so next Tuesday night we're going to do
055a program with Mr Rafe our news our new treasure Mr Jenkins Kevin dabrakau and myself we are going to do this we're going to educate our community again on what the fully funded Fair school funding formula means to Olentangy and how you two can get involved in being a voice for Olentangy I think it would be a great going away present if we were able to get this formula fully funded and passed not only for Mr race advocacy over the years but also for the rest of the school districts in the state thank you next is Brooklyn rumbot wanting to talk about the superintendent search okay hi my name is Brooklyn rambat 6349 Alum Creek Drive in Galena I'm speaking today on the upcoming search for a new superintendent but first I would like to
056thank Mark Ray for his years of service here at Olentangy I also want to acknowledge the unprecedented challenges of the last few years and I wish you a happy retirement filled with more time for relaxation and fewer emails to read looking forward it's time to search out new leadership for our district and this search is critical because we still face many challenges the country and this community have become increasingly polarized in recent years and it's so important we don't cave to the very vocal minority that doesn't have the best interest of all students at heart I'm asking the board to expand the search far beyond Olentangy I'm also asking you to consider expanding the definition of qualified to also include a wide range of qualities perspectives ideas and experience and since no one knows everything
057about every topic we need someone who will turn to solid research data science and experts to good to guide decision making as challenges arise we need someone who will surround themselves with other other administrators that offer complementary Knowledge and Skills because when the decisions fall on Solid Ground it's much easier to lead from strength and not fear in the face of so many strong opinions and loud voices we need someone who understands the importance of an education that encompasses more than just high quality academic achievement well that alone is so important and is where Olentangy really excels equity and inclusion is another crucial part of a well-rounded education as you begin this search I have three questions for you to consider number one how can you incorporate Community input and ensure transparency over the process
058number two how could you involve the equity and inclusion team here at Olentangy and number three how can you ensure a diverse hiring pool as our community grows more diverse I want all students to feel like they belong and that their needs are being met also my hope is that graduates of Olentangy leave ready to combat big issues like systemic racism other types of discrimination and More in many different ways and along many different paths let's make Olentangy a leader in truly promoting an environment of inclusive Excellence for students staff and Families all right so I guess just as a clarifying comment we will make the process very transparent it will include input for various stakeholder groups across the community both District leadership team as well as key groups across the community so we fully
059intend on having a transparent and open process so all right that the next next is Melissa femia who wants to speak about Sneetches Melissa Familia 3210 Abbey Knoll Drive Lewis Center Ohio sorry a little nervous thank you so much for the opportunity to speak tonight tonight I speak for myself and a large group of other concerned parents in our district Olentangy local school district had an opportunity to really shine in December when NPR came to Shale Meadows Elementary School to highlight our amazing teacher Ms robek and speak to the kids in her class on economics for the podcast for anyone who doesn't know the story a national podcast on NPR third graders were listening to stories read by the teacher and discussing simple economics with the podcast host that is until one third grader recognized
060discrimination within the story The Sneetches by Dr Seuss and connected the story to what happened in the past with how white people treated black people the teachers skillfully acknowledged the student and went on with the story trying to bring the student back around to the lesson but soon after the class was interrupted by an assistant communication director who expressed concern about the content of the book even though Olentangy had already approved the use of the book for this lesson the story was then shut down by that administrator she didn't trust a teacher with 15 years experience a teacher NPR wanted to highlight for her Excellence to stay on topic teachers need to feel confident and supported by administrators in their efforts every day instead this innocent discussion became a blunder when communication shut down the
061conversation sending a mixed message to our staff throughout olsd I believe more diversity equity and inclusion training for upper level administrators is necessary to prevent this embarrassment in our district from happening again the students need to feel welcome to have discussions regarding discrimination and differences especially as it relates to history and if it comes up while discussing a different subject that's even better history is cyclical if people don't learn from and correct their mistakes then we are doomed to repeat these mistakes again teachers need to feel confident and supported by administrators every day if there was an apology to Ms robek and her students why not make it publicly to show a sense of transparency and to build trust Martin Luther King said Darkness cannot drive out Darkness only the light can do that yet
062many in the community feel left in the dark about what's being done in response for this embarrassment olsd Communications stated they were making no more statements on the topic why shut down that discussion within our community why not learn from the mistake publicly are the third graders and Mrs robek's class still left wondering how The Sneetches ended because I know I along with many others are still wondering how this story will end will we learn and improve or try to forget and do nothing thanks for your time and thanks Mr Ray for your service and congratulations foreign ly Mindy Patrick thank you Mr Ray for your service exactly hi it's nice to be back it is a little nervous on this side of the podium and I miss the cushy chair but I'm here tonight
063because uh Mr Rave called me and shared his that he would he was resigning and I am very disappointed in that but I am so happy for you to start the next chapter of your life thank you is too small of a term to describe everything you have done for the district and thank you to your family for sharing you with us for all these years I am so grateful that my children went through the district under your leadership as a former board member my lens is probably a little bit different than the rest of the community but I thought I would share my perspective of your career that I was had the opportunity to work with you with you shared your vision and you carried it out you we realigned our strategic goals and
064our mission under your leadership and you lived it every day you built an administrative team a leadership team that is Stellar to any other in in the state and great teams are built they don't just happen so I recognized that um you were a superintendent 24 hours seven seven days a week it never ended I have a husband in Corporate America that makes a very good living and he doesn't work nearly as hard as you do or your leadership team so I am grateful to everyone's dedication for that you never shied away from anything I know you're a football player and I know the term that you carried your linebacker you protected maybe or was it Blind Men sorry um but I watched it I saw it I saw you struggle with the decisions I
065saw you try to Shield your team I I would look at you after redistricting meeting and I would just say are you breathing like you you carried a heavy load you made tough decisions and you couldn't always make the decisions that were best for everybody but you made the decisions that were best for the community [Music] and you have been an excellent leader for our community [Music] you remained rational when that concept seems to be on the endangered list and most of all I have to say your most redeeming characteristic is how much you care I saw it I witnessed it and I also would like to thank you for making my job when I was on the board of education easy I always felt informed um you answered every question that I asked if
066you didn't know you I knew within minutes you found out and I would also consider you probably the bravest person I know and strong men do cry so I will leave you on it's a message to the to the community actually as I am a an advocate for public education without without an educated population we are really in trouble and I I feel that public education is also on the endangered list so I hope that future community members bring um really relevant topics to the board in relation to curriculum mathematics mathematics is a hot mess in this country and I would love for that to be the focus rather than what books are in the library and um I just I pray for the future of public education but you have left this place better
067than you found it and thank you for your service thank you very much all right that's all for uh public participation yes all right we'll now move on to the board action items I'll present board access items a through D which would include um the acceptance with regret of Mr Williams retirement the set salary schedules for non-classified Union I'm sorry non-classified employees as well as non-classified food service workers in the settlement with our former Treasurer so that of a motion with uh for superintendent actions a through d should move a second please second thank you discussion I ain't seeing none please call the roll Dr Wise yes Dr Wallach Mr Lester yes Dr dabaco yes Mr O'Brien yes all right Mr Jenkins will you present the treasure action items yes as noted before um fiscal
068year 23 Appropriations it's just the budget at a very very high level uh the financials for December of 2022 the donations that we are so blessed to get from our community board minutes from December 12th and then the restated 403 b plan if there are any questions from board members I will gladly entertain them oh see so could I have someone for make a motion please treasure action items so move second okay any discussion see none please call the roll [Music] Dr Waller yes Mr Lester yes Dr dabraco yes Mr O'Brien yes Dr Wise yes all right Mr Rafe you present the superintendent yes sir yes sir I'd like to present superintendent action items a through J for approval okay you have a motion please second all right any discussion let's call the roll [Music]
069Mr Lester yes Dr dabaco yes Mr O'Brien yes Dr Wise yes Dr Wally yes all right I'll now entertain a motion to enter executive session as permitted by the Ohio Revised Code section 121.22 G1 to consider the employment of public employees as well as section G8 to negotiate with other political subdivisions are respecting uh requests for economic development assistance so that could have a motion please some in the second second any discussion the only discussions we will return to adjourn and we won't take any action yes Mr O'Brien yes Dr Wise yes Dr Wallach yes Mr Lester yes all right thank you everybody back in Liberty all right all right good evening it is 9 51. I'll call the meeting back to order um I'll entertain a motion to adjourn second second any discussion on
070the adjournment seeing none Mr Jenkins please call the roll when you're ready it was my motion was it um Dr Wise doctor the dubious Mr Lester yes Dr dabaco yes Mr O'Brien yes Dr Wise yes Dr Wally yes all right