001[Music] oh good evening everybody it's 6:00 time for us to begin this meeting is a meeting of the Board of Education in public for the purpose of conducting the school district's business and is not to be considered a public community meeting there is a time for public particip ation during the meeting as indicated in agenda item three um if you would like to participate in public participation there should be uh sheets yes on the table on the table in the back all right so if you if you want to do that fill those out and then bring them up either to me or to Valerie uh Valerie would you call the RO yes uh Mr Dylan here miss Griffin here Mr red here Mr Skidmore here Dr Smith here miss Mohler here miss mlin here
002and Mr woman is not had got called into work all right uh let's do the Pledge of Allegiance stand together 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 Roman numeral 3A High School curriculum uh 20 25 and 2026 Mr mcke thank so much um it's that time start talking about next school year already which is hard to believe um a lot of changes at the high school coming next year but there's only two I wanted to highlight if you guys have questions about any others please let me know one is the concept of work-based learning uh which is a little bit newer to our school um we've done it in other areas
003like CBI but we're really trying to expand that work based learning is essentially kids getting firsthand experience in a career uh during their school day sometimes this could be a pain internship sometimes this could be right here in our school so we are working to expand that next school year we have a couple opportunities this year we actually started a media and film team so we have three students who are running all over the place and they're doing videos for the school whether that be Sports academics um so those those are all work-based learning hours that those three kids are um accounting for throughout the year another one is going to be a teacher Academy through our Youth Science interest we've had a lot of kids interested in teaching so kids are going to take
004a class and then they're actually going to be volunteering in the elementary and during that time they'll be getting work-based learning hours for that we also have it Solutions looking at some students helping out our it Department here um we have school-based Enterprise our new business program this year is going to be starting their own business they've started doing some stuff recently with t-shirt designs for senior night for basketball um I was up in their room the other day they were it was really cool to see they're they're printing out the um the screen print they're putting it on the shirt it's all right there in our classroom really cool to see that all the way through we also have this has already been happening in FFA and then our CBI and our mentorship once
005again kids are going to be accumulating hours for every 80 hours that they accumulate they'll get a half a credit and they're also getting firsthand experience at a career um that could lead them into a future career pathway so that's one thing we're really excited about the other is we've been working with Sinclair and they have actually developed an associates degree pathway for our students at valy view now so we're really excited about this that way when our kids are taking CCP which is just becoming more and more popular we're actually giving them a guide of what to take now up until now kids just kind of take what their friends say they should take um who knows what they're taking who knows if it's going to be of benefit but they've learned to play
006the game a little bit and they know what classes might be of benefit but then they also kind of figured out that certain classes maybe I don't have to come to the building as much so we want to make sure we're giving these students a guide so to summarize this kids have roughly eight different categories that they have to earn hours in if they earn the hours so for example in Social and Behavioral Sciences they have to earn nine hours there is four different classes that we're going to have right here on campus and then there's also other options through St Clair whether that's on their campus or online kids can graduate high school with an associates degree uh so we're really excited about bringing that to Valley VI so those are our two big
007changes that we wanted to highlight however we also have some others uh some AP courses we're trying to increase the rigor with those types of courses we have the teacher Academy classes like that we have an ACT test prep to support our students as they prepare to take the ACT hopefully gain more scholarships going into college thank you for your time thank you so much appreciate your effort at work and making those opportunities available um Roman numeral 3B uh public participation um Valerie would you give a quick description of um the uh idea cap Big B and little B uh allocations yes these are our federal grants that we are allocated and one of the requirements of these grants is that we give the opportunity for the public to uh comment on on the the
008spending of these grants so we want to do that at a public meeting to satisfy that requirement um um do we have any other public participation yes uh there's one right there next to you thank you so much Mr lamb hello where' you like me uh right there so that that microphone can pick you up and so that the people out there can hear you just fine okay um facing you guys sure whatever you're most comfortable with yeah it doesn't matter um yeah so uh just recently uh Village of Farmersville just posted a um or actually put together and posted a vision plan for the Junior High Sight um it's if if you're not aware of it it's culmination of several meetings this summer with uh residents local business owners um and then we just
009finally put it all together and um just presented that recently so um and talking to a school board member uh Mr Dylan he just suggested that it would be helpful if maybe we were to present this tonight um not the whole thing obviously I'm not going to read it it is available um I know it's on Farmer's Facebook page can sent it to anybody that that wants to see it but essentially um you know one of the things that the village uh residents want um and they've been asking for this for like 25 years so this is nothing new but a patio Community similar to what was built just off of Weaver Road Germantown recently um that site would be a excellent opportunity for that um and then in addition to that we just wanted
010some type of community space Not only support that Patio Home neighborhood but really for local business owners to continue to get um just valy view families into Farmersville um so one of the things that was eye openening to me this summer is we had a local business owner just share um he said you wouldn't believe how many people that go to The valy View Community live in germ toown have never been to Farmersville and I said no that that can't be so just you know I have a seventh grader and eighth grader and I was asking around with parents and I was surprised to hear that he was right um that a lot of parents just shared with me that yeah we've actually never been to Farmersville until we dropped our kids off at the
011junior high building for the first time um and but you think about it Farmersville small community it's not really on the way to anything from germant town so you know not not totally surprising so the goal is really for us to use this site to continue to get families especially in our community into Farmersville um Metro Basketball has been a great um addition to our community this year um that's one of the things we were really worried about talking to local business owners the amount of traffic in Farmersville has really decreased since the junior high uh moved here right um and we we expected that we anticipated that it's not a surprise um but it's you know Metro is a big pickup for us and and for them um so if you think about it
012when the building was there drop off your kids roll through the coffee shop drive-thru right and move on then you come back at night drop your kids off for sports maybe grab Village in um and then head home um so we just don't have anymore other than you know things like Metro so um we would love to save the gym somehow someway this Vision just included building a new uh facility for that like a pole barn type facility nothing big or fancy or anything like that um just the house maybe even the current gym if we could relocate that work with a professional to do so the bleachers is the scoreboard and that's about it um another option that you know is not included in here but the goal is really just to kind of
013save some gym space so um I know that you guys have applied or are in the process of applying for a Brownfield Grant uh one of the other things feedback from the community is man if we could just save the gym that's there that would be great and of course we'd all love to do that too but I know the grant right now just includes tearing it all down but if the grant were to come through um you know I think it would be worthwhile just having a conversation with my govern canland Bank the consultant Andor ODOT whoever that may be um to just say hey can we use those funds to maybe tear down everything just um east of the gym keep everything West um and we would still you know have that community
014space so um just some ideas again it's just Vision nothing set in stone but um again just thought it'd be worthwhile to kind of share that in the meeting this evening thank you so much all right thank you appreciate it R numeral four approval of minutes uh we have the organizational meeting of J January 13 in the regular board meeting of January 13 uh I make a motion that we approve those minutes do we have a second second any discussion Valor would you call the role yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr skore yes Dr Smith yes R numeral 5 building project update Eric so the building is fantastic everybody loves it there's no nothing you can complain about right it's all brand new um I did want to throw in
015there today we did change the key keys on the primary building and put up no trespassing signs uh there will be no one else entering other than after we go through the auction given your guys's approval tonight um when it comes to the junior high Valerie and I have been working diligently with our consultant trying to get through this grant process takes a lot of documentation and a lot of time and meetings to get through um we've came back with a total estimated price of $1.38 million um if we didn't have the land bank involved in it was just on our chest we're asking you tonight to commit to $278,000 and 20 $278,500 write a check for that much but our all-in price will be that much um these documents need to be turned in
016by the 12th to the land bank um so it's very Tim restrictive process okay that's all I got all right thank you um room numeral six Farmersville building update I think that's the same I got to roll it together yeah absolutely um R numeral 7 Financial reports and requests uh subp part A recommend the board approve the financial statements for the month ending January 31st 2025 which is attachment number two do we have a motion to that effect so moved do we have a second second any discussion Valor would you call the roll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr skidor yes and Dr Smith yes R numeral 7B recommend the board approve the following donations Germantown Lions Club uh Mary and Dan Hill and Susan and Frank kazer um Valerie
017could could you give some detail as to what the donation word so we can acknowledge them certainly these uh donations are for the Valley View Educational Foundation naming rights program uh these are additional uh donors to that program thank you would someone like to make a motion that we approve those donations so moved do we have a second second any discussion obviously thank you to the donors Valerie would you call the role yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral 7c recommend the board approve the donation from the Germantown Lions Club for the 8ighth grade trip to Washington DC in the amount of $1,000 do we have a motion to that effect so moved do we have a second second any discussion do we
018know how that will be dispersed Valerie uh that is a we are not able to direct it to any particular individual it is just for the the the students on the trip as a whole I just want to make sure it's Equitable across the board so it sounds like they'll find a way to do so yes okay great um any further discussion Bor would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral 7D recommend the board approve a $40 per month cell phone allowance uh for the board policy authorized staff for calendar year 2025 Valerie could you give us a quick description of of just who that is and and how long we've been doing that yes um this is exactly
019the same resolution that was on the board agenda in February of last year um mostly it's the staff members who are required to keep their phone and U be available 24/7 essentially to receive phone calls and conduct business all right mostly administrators but not the conflicting I make a motion that we approve that we have a second second uh any discussion Valor callor rooll yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes from the numeral eight new business subs Part a Personnel approve the Personnel action as recommended in attachment number three uh do we have a motion to that effect so moveed do we have a second second any discussion valer would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore
020yes and Dr Smith yes Roman numeral uh 7even I'm sorry 8B recommend the board approve the resolution authorizing the sale of personal property owned by the board and no longer needed for school purposes I know this will elicit questions um Valerie could you give a quick description of what it is we're talking about here yes this is in order to bring our um uh biders in to look at the primary building um for for get bids for demolition the building needs to be empty and this is to sell the Furnishings in that building that are left in the primary building so what the what the resolution is approving I think this is what you you were referring to earlier about changing the locks is that that we'll have a room by room auction and that
021we were working with an auction company to to ensure that every one of the rooms is cleared out correct um do we have a motion that we approve uh that resolution so move we have a second second any discussion now the money will go back into the general funds yes just want to make that clear for everyone else I knew the answer but thank you good point um all right valer color roll Mr Dylan yes M Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes enumeral 8C recommend the board approve the resolution approving the construction documents cost of work of construction and issuance of an invitation to bid for General Contracting Services associated with the district um uh valy View Primary School abatement and demolition project uh we have copies of of that
022resolution I make a motion that we approve that that do we have a second second second any discussion Val valer would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral uh 8 D recommend the board approve the resolution authorizing closure of the former Valley viiew Junior High School in accordance with Revised Code 33134 N I make a motion to that effect do we have a second second any discussion valer you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral 8e recommend the board approve the resolution waving competitive bidding based on urgent necessity and approving contract uh with bantes LLC for the removal of three underground oil storage tanks
023before we make a motion to this uh Eric can you just give a quick description for everybody of what that is and why so we believe there are three tanks Underground up there and in order for us to qualify for the grant the site has to be clean outside of ASB bestus essentially um so we don't even qualify for the grant that we're trying to get but they're they're saying because we're in process that we will okay and so the urgency uh described in the resolution is that we need to move on this to get the grant money to to uh to hopefully get the the building down in a timely manner I need your signature tonight to enter the grant documents for the 12th or we're at y thank you you can I do
024you mind if we make a quick comment on that sure it just might be helpful um I know that those tanks were empty filled and um basically it's the uh EPA told us that the local fire department um kind of just say good to go I don't know what the official terminology is but if you want to check with the fire station seats there's some documentation you may not have to remove them we do have to remove them okay because of possible strips got it thank you very apprciate um I will look at it thank you that helps um all right I'll make a motion that we approve that resolution do we have a second second any discussion Val call the RO yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes
025Dr Smith yes R numeral 8 F recommend the board approve the resolution authorizing memorandum of understanding with Montgomery County Land reutilization Corporation regarding an application for Ohio Brownfield or mediation program Grant related to the former Valley VI Junior High School I make a motion that we approve that do we have a second second uh any discussion valer would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffith yes Mr rud yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes Roman numeral 8G recommend the board approve the match commitment letter um I make a motion to that effect do we have a second second any discussion um if we could just capitalize Brownfield I noticed there was one part in the letter where it had Brownfield as a lowercase and I didn't want it to come across
026this in any way disrespectful I don't know if there is a Mr Brownfield out there it's like in the second sentence yeah so if we can just make sure that we're using Correct punctuation on that but otherwise that I'm I'm good any other discussion I'll just say I'm thankful for detail people um and also um folks I don't know if you realize how much work that that Valerie and Eric do to get us to this point and and that's not the work that that that you see every day um and we have some amazing people that are working really hard on this and and I don't want to not recognize them um do we did we get a motion in a second we got a motion in a second but no roll call all right
027Valor would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes R numeral 8h recommend the board approve the View Elementary literacy plan with board copies um Miss Cook could you give a quick description of yes of what that entails yes Nicole has been working very hard along with Lindsay on a literacy plan for our youngsters who are on a rim and we are doing morning sessions where the youngsters come in twice a week and this literacy plan is that plan in on paper for the state so we're addressing the needs of our students who are struggling would someone make a motion that we approve that so move do we have a second second any discussion valer would you call the role yes Mr Dylan
028yes M Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes ran numeral 8 I recommend the board approve the Valley View District gifted identification and service plan uh I make a motion that we approve that do we have a second second any discussion Val would you call the role yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes R numeral 8j recommend the board approve uh the Valley View uh Middle School 2025 2026 course of studies we have copies of those I make a motion we approve that do we have a second second any discussion valer would you call the rooll yes Mr Dillan yes Miss Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes R numeral 8K recommend the board approve the Valley
029View High School 2025 2026 course of studies I make a motion uh that we approve that do we have a second second any discussion valer would you call the role yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral 8 uh L discussion of policies um uh first of all was 5463 uh credits for state chartered special and non-charter schools um Miss Cook or or Valerie would one of you like to to give a quick Miss Cook would be description of of that first one yes um that that policy calls for any student who is coming in from a non-public chartered non-charter school including hom education that their credits will be transferred into their Valley View transcript currently as a pass fail um we have had
030a request from a family that that that we transfer in grades as opposed to the Past fail on the transcript so currently that the policy does not allow us to transfer in grades um we've talked quite extensively with regards to the possibility of transferring in grades if students participate in our end of end of the year exam in semester exams that's that's an option that's still open for consideration right right so so so so adopting this policy doesn't change our policy from what it is but we are considering an option that would give people to essentially the ability to show that the quality of Education that they've received in their homeschool environment um is substantially equivalent to what our children are tested on here at Valley that's correct okay all right um I make a
031motion that we approve policy 5463 um uh as it uh is currently put forward do we have a second second any discussion it the the current verbage does not allow us to bring those grades in so we would have to do a modification to that policy correct correct and and and I think part of part of the discussion is is that I I do think that that I would like to hear from the administration um you know uh and you know having having given this the the kind of thought that that it deserves and I'm not saying you haven't but I I think I think the board probably needs to have a convers about what it entails to test the students coming in so that we can see or okay well you got to you
032got to a in biology but did you really get an A and biology do you know your biology because while while there are some homeschool families in the community that I have no doubt uh are providing a very rigorous uh education for their their students I I the fact is I just don't know that for everybody and so but this is just discussion we're not approving any policy it's just discussion so we don't have to vote on this we're just discussing can I ask question has there been any discussion of maybe like a probationary period like math example a student had algebra one on a home school grade they take Algebra 2 at the high school they get an A in Algebra 2 can they could we possibly consider then letting them keep their Homeschool
033grade if we make that the policy that that's something we could add into the policy that's what I'm saying I know we can't do that now but is that something that has been discussed or could be thought about maybe that has not been discussed but we can certainly put that in as a bullet point for discussion yeah it would seem like it would seem like if we if we were willing to do the work I mean it's going to be it's going to be work to do those individualized assessments but frankly you get a better result when you don't have a one- siiz spits all and and maybe if people are willing and I I don't I'm not in education I don't know what that work looks like to make that individualized assessment and say
034well do we give credit you know going backwards for someone who's demonstrated a proficiency going forward but I mean I'd like to hear more I think the cleaner version would be to have them take a final exam that we could proor because you could essentially get a B in Algebra 1 and get an A in Algebra 2 potentially so I think the cleaner version would be to offer them an opportunity to be Proctor that's just my thought sure and I understand Algebra 1 you know you can't do well in Algebra 2 you don't have the foundations of algebra one that part I get but I I think that might be a cleaner version but that's that's my thoughts yeah and and the the only the only thing I see that might cause difficulty on that
035is the student who comes in without that without you know that temporal proximity to having taken the class right cuz like you know you know Algebra 1 better the day you finish it than you will any day the rest of your life and so there might be considerations there but but at the same time there's trade-offs in deciding to homeschool your children then have them coming to public school later and so plenty to think about all right um discussion on oh pediculosis um who wants to handle the pediculosis discussion Miss Cook miss cook okay this is headlight um Sarah pickerel did some research for us with regards to different schools in the area in Southwest Ohio that have um a headlice policy that allows students to remain in school if they are identified with nits
036currently our policy requires us to send students home whether they have live bugs or knits however the CDC recommendation and most of the schools around us with the exception of one District keep their children in school for the remainder of the day notify the family and explain to them how to eradicate the nits and check them the following day so the discussion at hand is are we able to keep children in school with nits but not live bugs that would be the change I can give some feedback um having been in another District as a school nurse for a short time um here nearby close by Oakwood to be exact um um when we run into those situations you know the first and foremost thing you want to do is you don't want the child
037to feel dirty or different or embarrassed and that's tough you know because you so you want to be discreet and careful about that the other what they've done is often times they will get a hold of a parent or guardian and say Hey you know we found this most parents want to come immediately pick up the child and go try to treat the child and then they do allow them to come back the next day because is after they have been treated um it it's not 100% that all of those knits that may still be remaining on the hair shaft um aren't live but there's a good chance that the chemical has done its job and so and we know that there are some kids with really really thick hair and it can take a
038long time to get rid of all those knits or the shells of the knits and so um the the key is to try to get the kid back to school as quickly as possible not be singled out or felt to be you know made fun of or separated or whatever so um when I first you know encountered that I it was totally against what I've ever known usually you don't come back until your hair is like squeaky clean and there's nothing in there and the more I thought about it the more I realized you know some kids are at a disadvantage especially if their homes have been infested and it's just very very tough for them to to get it under control and there are a lot of Community Resources out there to help amilies
039especially if there's a financial need this stuff is expensive to treat so uh but anyways I think the bottom line is is I think we need to be just really sensitive to those kids out there who who potentially are at a deficit and even those families who who are well to do it's still expensive and it's a lot of work on the Family's part to take care of it at home on the home front so I think anything we can do to get our kids back into school is a good thing I am not a huge fan of letting them hang around the school all day long though with active lice oh no that part I would not be a fan of um because that's just going to potentially cause a bigger problem for the
040district so my two cents were so I was surprised when I found out that we were in the minority like when I when I when I found out that we were in the minority I was surprised and um have have have have our uh our School nurses weighed in on the process of the daily inspections and what that I mean what does that look like and what kind of a drain on them is that they are behind this change our School nurses are so they do work with the families and they do check the children if they've been sent home currently they check them when they come back the next several days to make sure that that they do not have an infestation and this is this is typically more at the elementary level than
041the secondary level do not have as many cases at the secondary level but we do have some youngsters who have been missing quite a bit of tool with nits the hope is to be able to get them back in school so they're not missing instruction time the sad thing with that is we don't know if those nits are even viable anymore right and so these kids are missing out because they potentially have not the right tools or equipment to to get rid of any of the nits that are still attached that are nonviable it's a it's a disservice to our students all right any more discussion all right am I the only one here who's itching this smokes uh Roman numeral 8m recom recommend the board approve the Valley View boys tennis team trip to
042Hilton Head South Carolina over spring break 2025 I make a motion that we approve that do we have a second second um any discussion have we figured out how they're going to get there that was my question they're working on parent okay right so the the is is just because of the distance there are restrictions on using our our district Vehicles correct um all right any more discussion Val would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffith yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes ran numeral 8 and recommend the board approved continued membership in the ohsaa for 2025 2026 I make a motion to that effect do we have a second second any discussion valer would you call the rooll yes Mr Dylan yes M Griffith yes Mr red
043yes sister Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes uh Roman numeral 80 recommend the board approve a series of policies um uh a substantial stack of policies uh that have been provided to us um by niola um Stephanie I understand that there are three that you would like to discuss separately perhaps or maybe less than that um two for sure uh which policy numbers of those so 01 42.1 the oath yep and then 5780 student parent rights okay all right um and so um I'm going to make a motion you've all had a chance to review these uh I'm going to make a motion that removing from consideration for now policy 01 42.1 and policy 5780 but everything else uh that we approve the policy uh as uh put forth by Neola second second any discussion Val
044car Mo yes Mr Dylan yes Miss Griffin yes Mr red yes Mr Skidmore yes and Dr Smith yes um with regard to uh proposed policy 01421 uh the oath uh Stephanie what what concerns do you have with the policy as is written so the policy is regarding uh board members swearing in and and I will read the policy real it's a very short one so it won't take us long um says each member of the board shall before entering and they're striking out his or hers to put the word the duties of the office take an oath to support the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of Ohio and to they're striking out the word perform faithfully and adding in and impartially perform the duties of the and taking and
045striking out his her office the the oath of the office shall be administered to new members by the treasure or a member of the board that's new verbiage that last sentence the issue that I had with this was the the verbage that says and impartially perform I understand I think to a certain degree what their intent was but the reality is and we knew when we when we decided to run for board and when we got elected that we were going to have to make some tough decisions and I think it's very very hard to use the word impartial several synonyms of the word impartial are that you're going to be fair and sometimes it's very hard to be fair because it can be a very polarized subject or topic you say yes there's going
046to be a lot of people who may be very upset or if you say no it's the opposite to be true I think using the word impartial sets us up as a board to potentially if we remain impartial On and On Any tough subject we're not going to be able to to Really perform our duty we're not going to be able to come to some type of a resolution or a decision without somebody crying out that we're being impartial and um I I think the better verbiage instead of using that is that we respect respectfully consider varying viewpoints on it each issue brought before the board I really feel like that's the most important thing that we need to be respectful and hear from everybody who has varying viewpoints and then from there we have
047to make the best decision that we can but that word impartial is just that's really really tough to do sometimes as much as we I know I personally do try to be um as open to all viewpoints and really be respectful and listen to to to them and really actively listen but at the same time to put it in there to be impartial I think that's really just that's just not good policy that's that's my thought I'm open for more discussion here I like Faithfully reformed that we already have okay I mean that that I think that encapsulates what our role is is to have an allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and to the state state of Ohio and to Faithfully carry out that Duty I don't know that we need more
048words any other thoughts do we know why the change was made is this a legal issue of some sort don't yeah I I have I haven't asked but but I I'm unaware of any mandate that we would use that language so we don't have to adopt the new policy if we don't want to um but since it's on the agenda if someone wants to make a motion that we adopt 1014 2.1 they can and if they don't we'll move on all right no motion um propos policy 5780 uh Stephanie what your thoughts on that so on this this is a much larger policy um there is a section in here that um it does talk uh about parents right to inspect instruction materials and and certainly we've had some issues come up regarding a survey
049recently from the tobacco industry or on on tobacco use I should say um and then also we've had um some some curriculum or some additional reading materials um that parents had brought up concerns um and and in in in my thoughts um and I did talk to Andrea C before we had this meeting I believe that we could do a better job as a school district in identifying any additional material whether it's a textbook pamphlet survey additional reading whatever the case may be that we could do a better job at at least knowing whether or not there may be sensitive information within within the reading and then from there make sure that we're making it extremely transparent to the families when we when we post a list of books or curriculum information or whatever that
050we put if there is a particular book that does have sensitive information in it that we're putting what that s sensitive information is um sexually explicit material or this or that or whatever the verbiage is we need to we need to not just list what we're going to offer for books to read parents don't have time to read all those books and far at them out ahead of time some may I don't know um I know I wouldn't have time to do that but I do think we could do a better job at at letting families know these are the book choices we have to offer there may be some sensitive information in here um and making sure they're aware of that I I think that's the kind and the right thing to do um
051I'm I don't want to get into a discussion about banning books I I am not for Banning books um I'm just not but I also feel that we need to be very careful um as a board and as a district what type of educational material we offer and making sure families truly know upfront hey this book they've written here there's a there may be an issue that I might have concern with and I think families need to have that right up in the Forefront to know hey G U maybe I just don't want my child to see this book that's great there may be other families who want their child to read that book that's fine too but what I don't want is a book to just be you know available without the parents really
052not knowing I think the parents put their trust in us and assume that we've done the vetting or the screening just like if you take your kid to the movie you'd like to think that the ratings on those movies are somewhat accurate um they may or may not always be but I think we could just do a little bit better job about that um th those are my thoughts anybody else so this this has kind of been The Perfect Storm of a month um in terms of issues like this coming to the Forefront uh one um with regard to the the the uh um very poorly named tobacco survey um the CDC should be ashamed of itself and so should the Ohio State Board of Education um in passing that on to us and frankly
053we we we should have done a better job reviewing that and vetting it um I would like to thank uh Miss cook for her very prompt um addressing of that issue when it came came along I don't think that's going to be an issue going forward um and then the the question of of of reading and what reading material is appropriate I happen to agree with Stephanie on this uh I I'm not I'm not a book Banner um but I I do believe in parents and I do believe in parents being informed um and I I recognize that there is value on in considering who is to Bear the burden of informing the parents um and I see both sides of that of that of that coin um you know as a parent I see
054people having an obligation to be proactive at the same time if a class room is going to put forward something and let's be honest we all we all know what's objectionable um if I were going and I read Huck Finn in in school like everybody else and if I were going to have students read that I would make sure that I told the parents listen there's going to be some language in this that you're not going to be comfortable with and that you might not want your student to read um same thing with the book that came to the Forefront recently um I think we can identify what that is and I don't think it's that big of a burden uh for someone who's going to be assigning something uh to take the initiative and
055say this is what we're going to be looking at in class it's can be available to you but Hey listen page 143 might be trouble for you and and again I'm from the generation that watched Romeo and Julia uh in freshman English and and probably shouldn't have um but but but somebody decided that this was appropriate for the ninth grade students at northw high school and and I think here it it's not not that big of an Ask uh to put the burden on a teacher who's assigning something to make sure to be proactive in identifying what may be problematic and and I I don't think I don't think that there's really any gray area as to what we we know what could because when it comes forward we've seen it any further discussion so
056I recommend that if we if we do accept this policy and they've add is some information in here additional information which I have no issue with but I do believe that there should be a statement within this policy added that administrators and Educators at within the school district will in written format email or otherwise notify parents of any sensitive topics within their material and then I would be on board with approving this policy uh so I make a motion that we do nothing with this policy until we've reconvened and had an opportunity to draft that language okay would someone like to second that motion I'll second that discussion can I ask a question on this maybe probably yes quickly um why isn't there a policy across across the board that doesn't allow sexual content drafting
057that see this is where you get into and and and this could be a long discussion um this is this is the difference between uh for example common law and code law right so like in most of the country like the way we evaluate things is by a reasonable person standard whereas in other parts of the country particularly the state of Louisiana they still use the Napoleonic Code and if there's not a specific description of this is okay this is not not okay this is okay this is not okay then it's not against the law right and so most of Western Civilization has adopted kind of a common law system that's going to look at something holistically and you're going to look at okay well who is my audience and what are the issues and
058what is the curriculum goal and is this Germain um I don't know that at the board level that it is listen we could we could we could we could pass a we could pass a policy that says sexually explicit is forbidden right and frankly we have obscenity laws that make us not have to pass that policy it's it's it's where you get into the question okay well what is that and and and Justice Potter you know one of the greatest one of the greatest quotes we've had handed down in jurisdiction was um what's obscenity and his response was I don't know but I know it when I see it right and it's really really really hard to to to govern and regulate when you're dealing with things that are somewhat amorphous but I totally understand
059where your question is coming from um I'm not sure what the answer is other than I think that I think that setting clear expectations uh and then what you do is if we if we do end up passing a policy to where the parents are having to or the the teachers are having to show the parents ahead of time well then then then that's going to give the parent the the the the opportunity to say here this is what I think about this they can talk to the they can talk to the administrators and they can make those decisions because I don't know that we're going to ever get agreement on a CommunityWide basis again on the types of on most things um on some things we ought to have really really strong agreement and
060I would like to think that those things never come to the Forefront in our schools but but in terms of passing a policy that just says yes or no I mean we're we're we're way more on an analog scale than a digital scale when we're trying to analyze things like this I will add that it's not all about sexual stuff that's why I use the word sensitive in nature because there was more than just that right um you know when you're taking poor people and calling them ignorant or stupid I came from a very poor family very very poor family I take great offense to that um when you're using nword um that's very offensive language so s yeah sensitive for sure I just want to make sure because I think some people's Focus went
061really really in that direction and that that that was kind of oh gosh yeah it was a lot it was definitely a lot um but I will say that um it's going to be tough because like he's just describing you know um what is sensitive what might be sensitive to me may not be for you or somebody else so it's tough should feel safe that our kids are not going to be dealing with sexual content in school I just don't think there's any place for that I agree there's no place for the in word there's no place for a lot of things I just wondering I I I app I appreciate your sentiment I really do I think if we're going to put like a written you know policy that's stating what Stephanie was alluding
062to that we need to also put in there that there's you know going to be options for those students um that you know might not be reading that book or their parents might not be comfortable with them reading that that there will be options that they can choose from sure and they did have that option but the problem was my perception of the problem was is that the parents were given a list but there was no warning or statement issued attached to any particular ones that hey there might be sensitive topics so so yeah I mean like maybe need to point out that there's you know okay yeah you might not want your uh child to read this book and this book because of XYZ on the stage but here's options that have been beted
063and we know that there is no sensitive you know material or well and I would like to think that we could reach a point to where we can find curriculum appropriate texts that don't cross those lines I agree at the same time I read Lord of the Flies when I was in high school and you know what that crossed a lot of lines for a lot of people and same thing with catcher and the Ry and same thing with a lot of other things all the Judy Bloom books I read them all it turned out okay so we we understand we understand and and I I think I think what Stephanie has proposed is a really really good step in the right direction and you know there are other things that we can think about
064too I mean we can think about identifying specific potential categories so that so that our so that our teachers know what to look out for and they say okay well this Falls in with violence maybe there's a violence issue within the book Lord of the Flies I mean they're dancing around a pig's head on a SP on a pike right there's violence issues there there could be any number of things and maybe we find ways and this is going to involve talking with administrators talking with teachers to facilitate the carrying out of the the types of disclosures that ought to be there but but I I agree with Stephanie I don't I didn't read all my kids books in high school now my my my oldest my younger daughter is a poly sign major I
065read all her books now and we talk about them and we have a great time but not everybody has the time nor the inclination nor the initiative to do that and so putting that burden on the teachers is something I'm very comfortable with I agree I don't think that it should fall on the school board um all right so if we don't have a motion do we have a motion to table that um did that get seconded yes did we vote on that Tyson and you to we actually don't need a motion we'll just not approve those okay and then we'll come back change or whatever we'll work with the administrators awesome change and bring it back all right Roman numeral 9 superintendent comments right thank you Mr rud I just want to thank Mr
066mcke for his presentation tonight with regard to work based learning more CCP courses increased rigor in the classroom um more AP offerings for our students I know they can do it and I think it'll give them a great platform when they're doing their applications for college as well as career center coursework when they're going off to the career center as Juniors so lot of information that's going to be available to our students in the future that is going to be very good information for them for their Futures as well as that in the Middle School offerings for next year I know we didn't have a presentation on our Middle School offerings but you'll see some electives there that have shifted a little bit um also with regards to getting students ready for career and college
067readiness so we're excited about both of those um the associate pathway I think is an excellent direction for our students that is not something that we've seen in a lot of high schools but it is an opportunity for our students and families to save money as our students go off for postsecondary education and lastly I'd like to give a big thank you he's not here but to Mr kazer for he and his family have been in education and Valley viw schools for over 60 years so this is I was talking with him this is a bit of an end of an era for that family and they have served our district and they've served them well and um we will will be looking for qualities in our next leader of our middle school for next
068year very soon so you'll see some information coming out on that thank you board member comments I think let's go left or right here Kylie you go first um the tickets for the musical went on sale today so come out and support us we've been working for a few months now and it's uh exciting show so I hope to see a lot of you there oh um so there's various activities going on in the high school right now um it's hope week for Hope Squad um which is basically just kindness week we spread kindness um we're passing out hot chocolate to students just to like brighten people's days um and then also a lot of clubs in the school are coming together to raise money um for heart disease and at the basketball game on
069Saturday we're going to present a check to our trainers just going towards that so if anyone in the community would like to donate that' be greatly appreciated thank you Tyson Farmville people so we're at that point right now we had to vote tonight um to take the next steps in the Grant and that will be done by the 12th right so um after that then we'll wait until we hear what we're getting um thanks to the donors one more I'll think about it we can always come back toad So yeah thank you to the cazer um for 60 years of investing in in our students that that's pretty impressive and definitely appreciate Their donation as well um um also wanted to mention something um I have seen a lot of embarrassing Behavior by adults on
070social media social media is not usually my I I'm on there but I I I don't talk or get out there and put a lot of stuff out there that's just not who I am and that's not how I operate but some of the horrible behavior um the name calling um when you get behind a keyboard and decide that you are going to take a little partial bit of information and run with it and and call one of our teachers in this District a horrible name and you don't even know that person and you do not know the situation surrounding it you don't truly know the situation surrounding it I was absolutely completely embarrassed to think that there was a parent out there willing to name call a teacher who has dedicated their career their
071life and chose to work here at Valley View for our children to be called something like that I was absolutely mortified no teacher should have to be attacked like that if you have a concern go to the teacher please always be respectful I'm sure most of your parents taught you that I hope your parents taught you that I try to be respectful I may not always agree with what others have to say but I agree just you know I try to agree respectfully and agree to disagree it's a polite thing to do when when you have when you have people out there who are referring to their Board of Education as something that your dog drops as waste on the yard okay yes we knew when we ran for board that this was not going
072to be an easy role and it is not an easy role but we're here because we all care about these kids we come here we we do our work we give all we have okay and we all give it in different ways we all have our strengths and weaknesses but to to to talk about your board in in a manner that's that ugly it it it's embarrassing our community is better than this it it just is okay and um I just it's embarrassing that I even have to have this conversation really but um and I'm a tough cookie so they can bring it all day long to me I worked with neurosurgeons so I'm good but I can tell you right now no one deserves to be disrespected you can agree to disagree respectfully but
073please anybody who's in any public service I'm sure America speak too it's tough you're not going to please everybody but don't attack our teachers try to get to understand respectfully the situation don't take a little bit of rumorville or partial truth or maybe 100% truth and run with it thinking you are now the expert please do your due diligence be kind our kids are watching please all right did somethingone really call us dog stuff oh know what I'm looking at video I know what I'm looking at when I get home T um Tyson do you remember your third it um e e e about Safety Committee yes Safety Committee has had its second meeting and we have identified and begun to implement um low cost of very very low to zero cost Safety Solutions to
074keep the building safer that was it all right um to be honest I don't really have that much to say uh but but but uh Germantown we haven't forgot about you um you know we got the Germantown building issue to take care of as well and so you know folks need folks need to understand that there are irons in the fire there there there are options and that um I think I think everyone's goal from the cities to the boards is for that building to remain at the top of the hill in German Town and I think everybody's on board with that it's question of how do we do that in a way that is the best stewardship of the of the district's resources and at the same time uh take seriously what I believe
075to be a real moral obligation to the to the people of German Town and so that's that there there's still there's still in the works on that and so um and and I will say I've said this before um whatever we do can be crafted and I think should be crafted to have a right of reversion if it ever stops being used for the purposes that it's intended to be used uh that it would come back to the district um it can be organized that way so that at the at the very least sometime down the road after we've given it a chance to work the very least the worst case scenario is it just becomes our problem again and then we're in the same boat we are it's just we're further down the road
076and maybe maybe the the economic realities have changed a bit so I just don't want anybody to think that while we're talking about Farmers real that German Town is out of mind because it's not I'd just like to follow up with Mrs cook as well I I really like what I read about the course of studies both the middle school and the high school um just so many more opportunities than what the students have had in the past I like the preap in junior high which is new um some of the Life Health classes in the high school I thought were impressive so I'm just excited to see how they turn out so um I don't have much to say either other than uh congratulations uh to Mr kazer for his retirement um he actually
077um was my science teacher in the eighth grade and so I remember I actually remember some of the projects He had us work on so so that can tell you like years later that he actually does have an impact you know teachers do and so congratulations um I I also want to say I've read um very thoroughly over the um the forthcoming academic plans I'm very impressed with what the high school is having to offer also um my daughter came on very excited like telling me about all the the classes and options that you know she now has to choose from so hearing that firsthand and the excitement is uh you know very promising and I'm I look forward to see what what we have offer years to come so thank you thanks all right
078uh numeral 11 I make a motion we adjourn do we have a second okay discussion Valor would you call the role yes Mr Dylan yes Mr Griffin yes Mr red yes yes Mr Skidmore yes Dr Smith yes all right thank you everybody we're adjourned Eric I have things to sign for you yeah [Music] I true