001Good evening. >> Good evening. I feel like I should do the quiet coyote. I'm in a good crowd. [laughter] Um, no. Uh, thank you for attending the June 8th, 2026 regular meeting on the Westerville Schools Board of Education. This evening's agenda will be displayed on the screen in the front of the room. Printed agendas are available for you at the back of our room or you may find the agenda on your mobile device by connecting to the district's website at www.wcso.org. Click on our district link, select board of education, and follow the board docs link to our current meeting agenda. And with that, Miss Marshall, will you please call the role? >> Mrs. Alman, >> here. >> Mrs. Brown, >> here. >> Mrs. Lee, >> here. >> Mrs. Meyer >> here. >> Mrs. Valentine, >>
002here. Would you please join us in the pledge of >> 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. >> Thank you. All right. [clears throat] Next up, we have an exciting um award to talk about. Um we are moving along to district highlights in 3.01, the OASBO awards and awarding our own uh district treasur and CFO Nicole Marshall. And so I'm just really excited to share that we're recognizing her tonight. Um, she has served as our district's treasurer and chief financial officer since 2018. In April, Nicole achieved a rare feat during the Ohio Association of School Bo officials state conference. She received not one, not two, but three state and regional awards, including treasure
003of the year. She also earned the Chuck Gosset Advocacy Award for advocacy efforts on behalf of public schools in the Central Region Distinguished Service Award, which recognizes a member from each of the five OASBO regions who have made a significant contribution to their profession, their schools, and their community. These awards honor her incredible behind the scenes contributions that keep our district strong, forwardinking, and student focused. Through Nicole's leadership, the Treasur's office has been recognized by the state of Ohio with the Otter Award with distinction for 13 consecutive years, following a clean audit with no findings or citations. She also has been a dedicated advocate for the Westville City Schools and public education across the state by traveling to the state house to champion for fair funding and engaging with lawmakers to ensure the district's needs
004are met. There are not enough awards to express how grateful we are for her commitment to fin fiscal responsibility and her dedication to serving students, staff, and the Westerville community. Thank you so much, Nicole, for your tireless service, your steady leadership, and your unwavering dedication to our district's future. And with that, I would like to um uh welcome Katie Johnson, the executive director of the Ohio Association of School Bo officials. >> All right. Well, thank you and good evening and appreciate the opportunity to join you this evening. Uh like uh you said, I'm Katie Johnson, executive director for the Ohio Association School Business Officials and we represent the treasur CFOs, business managers, and other finance and operational staff across Ohio's K12 public schools. And I'm here this evening to recognize your treasur CFO uh for
005her outstanding accomplishments. And as noted at our annual conference this spring, Nicole received not one, not two, but three of our statewide awards. And that's what you're seeing um displayed here up front. Uh she received the treasure of the year award. Uh that is uh to reckon schools business officials who demonstrate exceptional leadership, professionalism, and service to their districts and community. the regional distinguished service award which recognizes individuals who have made a significant contribution to their schools, communities and the profession at the regional level and then the Chuck Gossip Legislative Advocacy Award as an Oasma member who exemplifies excellence in legislative affairs and advocacy on behalf of public education and any one of these awards would be a significant accomplishment. Receiving all three in the same year is really quite extraordinary. Um, and as part
006of the nomination process, uh, Nicole's colleagues and peers described her as a leader who really set the standard for professionalism, leadership, and advocacy in school finance. Uh, they highlighted her commitment to fiscal stewardship and transparency. They spoke about the countless hours she has devoted to community engagement, attending neighborhood meetings, hosting town halls, speaking to PTA groups, leading finance committee meetings, and helping residents understand the complex financial issues p uh facing public education. And uh even beyond Westerville, she's been recognized. uh she's a tireless advocate uh at the state house and uh she works to ensure policy makers really understand the realworld implications of the funding decisions and even just last week I think she really made um the difference in stopping some legislation that was uh being fasttracked that really would have some serious um
007implications for schools all around Ohio. And so thank you Nicole for your advocacy even as recently as last week. Um, what impressed me is the consistency of Nicole's nomination. So whether the nomination came from a colleague here at Westerville or a fellow treasurer in another district, they all described the same qualities. Uh, they described her integrity, her courage, her professionalism, and then her commitment to public education and the students we serve. And as I read those nominations, uh, I found myself thinking about like what really matters in a leader. And it's not really someone who is seeking the spotlight, seeking the recognition, but is someone who steps forward uh, when the challenges arise. Uh, someone who takes on the difficult conversations, who help people understand the complex issues, and they do the work that needs
008to be done even when it isn't easy. And that's what Nicole does. That's what she does every day. And um over the past several years, we've consistently seen her demonstrate that willingness to lead through challenging circumstances while keeping the focus on where it belongs. And that's it with our students, our staff, and the public uh communities that we all serve. And so the work of a treasure often goes beh uh unnoticed, right? Behind the scenes. Uh when things are going well, most people never see the countless hours spent planning, forecasting, communicating, problem solving, and advocating. But um Nicole's peers and colleagues here and all of us here see it. So um Nicole, congratulations on behalf of OASBO and all the members we represent. Uh we would like to congratulate you for these three honors and
009for thank you for all the work you do. So you make a difference. [applause] >> [applause] >> We gonna make you hold them. Congratulations. [laughter] [applause] I just wanted to say something real quick. So, um, first, thank you to Katie for, um, being here tonight and for the kind words. And, uh, thank you to anyone that, um, sub submitted a nomination for me. I was uh definitely overwhelmed when Katie called me and told me that I won all three of these awards. Uh certainly not something I was expecting at all. But I also want to thank um the board and our leadership team and the staff that I work with every day because I'm able to do these things because of the support that I h have here in the district and because of the
010encouragement that I get from the board and our leadership team and our staff. So, uh I don't I obviously can't do these things on my own. Um, and we do have a lot of great folks throughout the state that are working really hard to make sure that we have the resources we need so that the kids can have what they need so that we can have our staff provide what they need. So, um, thank you and thank you for the constant support in uh, doing all of this work. >> Well, congratulations again. [applause] It's a nice way to start off a board meeting. Um, moving along to 4.01, we have our superintendent's comments. Miss Hamburg, >> thank you. Um, I too would like to congratulate Nicole for all the awards and a big thank you
011out to Katie Johnson. Um, immediately when we asked, she was excited to come and join us. And I just want to thank you, Katie, for your leadership as well. Um, it's been a a tough time in public education, especially on the funding side. And so, we appreciate your leadership and advocacy. and I know um you're someone that Nicole really counts on when when she needs a a thought partner. So, thank you. Um I would also like to thank our community for three wonderful graduation ceremonies. So, since we were last here, we were able to celebrate our our three classes at Westerville Central, Westerville North, and Westerville South. Um big thank you to all of our senior class adviserss who put a ton of work into making sure that ceremony goes the way it does. Um,
012appreciate our building administrator teams, all of the office staff, and the team here for all the work that goes into uh, graduation. Um, it was really, really fun having been here a couple years now. I knew a lot of the kids, so it was fun to celebrate them and see them get their diplomas. Our spring athletes had a great showing this past weekend. Several of our track athletes at our high schools made the podium for state championships and central softball team uh, were runners up yesterday. So, congratulations to all those kids. I know we'll probably have them in soon for a recognition which is a little bit challenging in the summer, but just want to share that news. And then kind of shifting gears a bit, just in case you notice, especially if you teach
013at Emerson since we have some teachers here tonight, um we were sad to report that uh we lost one of our huge legacy historic trees outside Emerson. So, if you hear people talking about how we cut down a big old tree, it was not because we just wanted to cut down a big old tree, but the storm on Saturday got the better of it and we found some rot in it as well. So, if you drive by Emerson, it will look very different without that big tree against it. So, that was kind of sad this weekend. Um, other than that, we're just in summer mode. Lots of planning, lots of um meetings and planning and professional learning sessions and getting ready for our start back on August 18th. Wow, that feels very near. Too near.
014Um, thank you. Any questions from Miss? Okay, thank you so much. Next up, we have um 5.01 public comments and we have a few tonight. So, the board of education welcomes public comments on educational issues of interest to our school community. The board does not discriminate based on the identity or viewpoint of the speaker during our public participation. However, the board president may limit comments that are obscene, abusive, or harassing. In an attempt to protect the privacy interests of our students, the board asked that speakers not identify students by name during their comments. Persons having public complaints about district personnel, programming, or operations will be referred to the process set forth in board policy 9130. Finally, the board reminds speakers that their statement should be directed to the board as a whole and not to
015individual board members. Each speaker will have three minutes to address the board. A timer will be shown on the screens up here and Miss Dennis will call time when three minutes has elapsed. Our first speaker this evening is Miss Sarah Crompton. Welcome. Hello. Good evening, members of the board. My name is Sarah and I am the parent of two children in the district, a sophomore at Westerville Central and a fifth grader at FA Elementary. I am speaking tonight regarding my fifth grader and the staffing needs of our current fifth grade class. I have written to many of you requesting consideration for adding an additional teacher to our grade level. Currently, our grade sits at just under 90 students, which I understand is the threshold that would allow for another classroom and help create more manageable
016class sizes. I'm asking the board to strongly reconsider denying this request. Our grade is very boyheavy and with that comes unique challenges. This specific group of students is highly competitive and include a number of strong personalities and behavioral needs that require space and support to create a productive learning environment. As with any large group of young boys, when one student begins making poor behavior choices, it can quickly create a domino effect that disrupts learning for the entire class. My concern is personal as well. My family has spent countless hours in addition to his teachers helping my son reach a point where he is now at or near grade level in both reading and math according to the assessments from the district. He has struggled academically since early elementary school and has benefited tremendously from the
017individualized attention provided by his amazing teachers. Much of that success has occurred in classrooms with relatively small class sizes of 19 to 22 students. I believe increasing class sizes will directly impact his learning and his ability to receive instruction tailored to his unique needs. When teachers are responsible for more students, more time is inevitably spent managing classroom behavior and less time is available for individualized support. For students like my son, that extra attention can make all the difference. Our family has invested significant time and energy supporting his academic growth, and it is difficult to accept a decision that appears to move us further away from the district's commitment to smaller class sizes. I personally spent time advocating for the levy because it was presented to the community as a way to protect programs and reduce
018class sizes. Now, it feels as though additional conditions are being placed on that promise, leaving upper elementary students without the benefits that smaller class sizes can provide. Fifth grade is a pivotal year. These students are preparing for the academic and social demands of middle school, and they deserve every opportunity to succeed. They deserve classrooms where teachers have the time and capacity to support their learning, address challenges proactively, and build the skills necessary for a successful transition. Thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. [applause] >> Next up, we have Mr. M. Taylor. Mr. M. Taylor, welcome. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. members of the board almost said council uh came to your last meeting a month ago about the 64A walnut project and was still in its very very infancy at that point.
019Um superintendent Hamburg was nice to remind me that you aren't responsible for that and you know still aware of that. Um a lot's happened since then. Um you know I think the there's a couple council members in the audience today. You know very very happy that they've decided to put a pause in the project. I won't say it's been even though they rejected it. I don't think it's dead yet. Um, so I think my my my two asks to the board and I very much appreciate seeing some of you at the open houses or some of the other city events they've got they've had um is to continue to stay engaged with the city uh as they do the larger planning process. They've got a number of events throughout the summer and throughout the fall
020as well as on the 64 East Walnut project which you know I think no matter what ends up being there is going to have a major impact on how the district operates with three elementary schools and you know the the district's kind of operational hub right there. Um the second thing is that I you know I think one thing that that I took away from this from the city's process and and I think others did as well. Uh one of the frustrations that that I had was that I felt like the residents were left out. Um the you know our voices by the time the uh by the time our voices mattered it didn't matter anymore. The decision already been made. So I think my ask of this board is that you know you can't
021possibly have too much public engagement. Um it goes for any kind of decisions being made is that you know that one of one of the things that I think bubbled up and came came out of that was that you when residents feel like they're ignored people get angry people get upset people start coming out in big numbers which is you know not inherently a bad thing but you know a lot of that could be headed off if there was just more public engagement up front. So that's my only ask to the board is to stay engaged in the project and do everything possible you can to let public know what's going on. I appreciate it. Thank you very much. >> Thank you. [applause] Um, next up we have Miss Gwen Joseph's. Joseph, welcome. Hello. I
022am also a parent at FA Elementary School and let me start by saying I understand your situation is difficult. The state funding is not easy for this for the public schools. And while I 100% understand that as a parent, as a taxpayer, as a voter, I also, similar to Sarah Crompton, personally helped to write postcards to help pass this levy. As part of the levy, our understanding was smaller classrooms, not just for K through2, but smaller classrooms for the district was going to be a priority. I also have a son in fifth grade at FA Elementary School. The school faces its challenges specifically for this grade for the number of boys that are in this classroom. We have experienced not only behavioral issues but educational issues in which the FA elementary school has been great
023in servicing my child and helping him to get to where he needs to be educational wise. We have finally achieved that in third and fourth grade. Fifth grade is a pivotal year for these students as they head into sixth grade. My concern is my child's education. Not only did I help to pass this levy for the school district because I believe in the school district and I believe in what you all are doing and I know it is challenging. But my child's education is important. It is important to me and it should be important to you as a school board, as someone who's helped to advocate for your passing of this levy. I am concerned about education and whether or not my son will be able to receive the education he should and not be
024disrupted with behavioral issues due to classroom sizes that are too large. We are aware of the classroom sizes at other schools. We are aware that FA will become one of the largest class sizes. Throughout his entire career, he has had four teachers. I do not understand why now in his fifth grade year it has to be down to three. I am aware that he's under 18, but is allowed to ask questions per this board meeting. I believe that it is unfair to lose a teacher and I am the big I have the biggest grade in the school. I feel like we deserve a fourth teacher and I believe that it's going to be a nightmare for the fifth grade teachers that are going to have like 20 to 27 kids in their class. I believe
025that they should have only 19 like they should like they've had for their entire teaching career. Thank you for your time. I realize we went over it is very important to our family. Thank you. >> Thank you. [applause] >> Thank you for coming out. Um, there are no more public comments, so we're going to move along to 6.01 and approve. May I have a motion to approve the minutes of the regular board of education meeting held on Monday, May 11th, 2026? >> So move. >> Second. >> Any changes or Okay. Will you take the vote? >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Lee, >> yes. Mrs. Alman, >> yes. Mrs. Valentine. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Meyer. >> Yes. Moving on to financial 7.01. Is that too loud? Okay. Um, may I have a motion to
026approve the purchases in accordance with Ohio Revised Code 5705.41D1 in board policy 6320. >> So moved. >> Second. >> And there. And Miss Marshall, will you talk to us about these? >> Yes. Thank you, President Meyer, members of the board. Uh so we have the three then and now purchase orders. Sorry, we have three then and now purchase orders on tonight's uh board agenda. So just a reminder, a then purchase order is where we have an invoice that is dated after a purchase order date. Um so we have one for pres from our preschool department uh for nursing services with nationwide children's and this was just a matter of the PO being open to the wrong vendor. We have several nationwide vendors and so that was um just an error in which Nationwide Children's that
027was being open to and because of uh some stuff being paid against the previous uh purchase order, we weren't able to change the vendor on that. And then the other two, one for technology with uh Dayton Cincinnati Technology Services for repairs out of warranty and uh transportation for Tristar Transportation for uh disability transport transportation services. um those were just it was just a matter of missing getting the purchase order opened because we already had one open that and there was more expenses than what covered for those purchase orders. So, it was just a matter of timing and getting those opened. And all of these purchases have been budgeted and I do recommend the board's approval. Um which we would need to get those paid since they're in excess of $3,000 if that makes sense. >>
028Any questions? Okay, we're ready when you are. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Leean, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. And may I take personal consent agenda as one? >> Okay, great. May I have a motion to approve the personal consent agenda 8.01 through 8.11? >> So moved. Second. >> Welcome, Mr. Reeves. Thank you and good evening. Uh you will notice like last month's consent agenda, tonight's agenda is also very large, which is not unusual for this time of year when we're doing a lot of hiring. So allow me to present a highle overview of tonight's consent agenda. Resignations. We have 12 classified and 10 licensed along with one administrative resignation for the board to consider this evening. We also have a supplemental
029resignation due to a retirement. We wish them well in their next chapter and thank them for their service to Westerville City Schools. I'd like to note a few of our resignations. One of the classified resignation is WESA president Kim Millington and we thank her for her service in WESA. But Kim will be transitioning to the teaching staff at Westerville South High School as a business teacher. We also wish Alcott principal Earl Ram the best of luck in his next chapter in Southwest Licking Schools. And three of our MTSS coaches are resigning their roles in order to transition to assistant principal roles in our elementary schools and we'll meet them in just a moment. Leave of absences and contract status changes. We have four licensed unpaid leave of absences to consider this evening and six classified
030contract status changes due to work schedule adjustments. We also have one license contract status change as Wilder assistant principal Katie McHune will be taking over as the next principal at Hanby Elementary School. And I believe Katie is here this evening. Katie, are you here? Would you like to Don't be shy. You're a principal now. Go on. >> [applause] >> We have several one-time pays for the board to consider as many summer professional development sessions are now underway. Employment along with several requests for extended days for the necessary summer work that happens both in the licensed and classified world. We are happy to recommend the hire of three new classified and 24 new licensed employees as well as four licensed administrators. With us this evening is new director of special education Chidity Trumpower. Chassity, want to
031say hi? [applause] Chassity joins us from Canton City Schools as well as the three teacher leaders I just mentioned moving to elementary assistant principal roles and I believe they're here and that's Marcy Larose who will be assistant principal at McVey. Marcy, are you here? [applause] Whitney Pike who will be an assistant principal at Wilder. with me [applause] and Liz Reichley who will be an assistant principal at both and Alcott. [applause] We are also starting to trickle in the supplemental positions for the following year for the board to approve. However, we anticipate in the next two board meetings the bulk of the fall activities coming before the board to approve. We have a memorandum of agreement with WA for the board to consider regarding payment for middle school related arts teachers for evening performances. And after
032all of that, we have no retirements to consider tonight. I'll be happy to take any questions you may have. >> Thank you. That might be the first time you didn't have. >> Oh, I know. >> But 24 24 teacher hires, that's a that's a record. And I I've got quite a stack. will have every bit that many to join our staff in the next board meeting. So, we're excited about that. >> That's awesome. Yeah. Any questions or comments. >> All right. Thanks so much. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Levan, >> yes. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. Now, we're going to move on to nine, old business 9.01. And um may I have a motion to approve the policy 6423 use of credit cards?
033>> So moved. >> Second. >> Miss Marshall, have you heard anything about this or >> No, just a reminder this was um from an auditor bullet bulletin update that we're adding to the policy. >> Yep. Thank you. Well, then I think we're ready one more. >> Mrs. Valentine. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Alman. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Brown. Yes, Mrs. Leian. >> Yes, >> Mrs. Meyer. >> Yes. And 9.02, the final. May I have a motion for um to approve policy 4162, drug and alcohol testing of CDL license holders and drivers who perform safe safety sensitive functions and are subject to um department of uh transportation testing. >> So moved. Second. >> Any questions? Anything come up? Okay, looks like nothing. All right, we're ready. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >>
034Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Lee, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. And then 9.03. May I have a motion to approve policy 8500, food services? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All right. Anya second. Okay. Um, any comments? Anything come up? Okay, looks like we're ready. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Lee, >> yes. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. Next up, we have new business 10.01. We have the first reading of the course of study changes. Welcome, Miss Toba. >> Good evening, everybody. I'm back with revisions to um some courses. So, we'll start with our K5 school counselor course of study. This was headed up by Jesse Martin, who's also in the audience. She did a great job working with our elementary
035school counselors um who've selected the responsive counselor curriculum, which will align all of our curriculum or school counseling lessons in our elementary classrooms K to 5. It also directly connects with our morning meeting structure that we have at the elementary level, working on our social, emotional, and learning standards. So, we're really excited to continue that work and um put forth that course of study for your consideration. Tonight, I have three updates for um the high school level. First would be financial literacy, which was updated with a teacher group to um based on Ohio Department of Education Workforce Standards. We are recommending to continue using NextGen Personal Finance as the primary resource for instruction. So again, we had to update that because of changes that were made to state pieces. Um same with American government. So
036we did have um some pieces in our American government that were part of financial literacy that could be pulled out with our financial literacy work. And so that course of study was updated. Uh they have not selected a new text since 2013. So it was time for us there's there's been a few changes. Um so we needed to kind of look back at those standards and review curriculum resource materials. So teachers selected TCI government alive power politics and you which is um part of the TCI programming that we use in social studies 67 and 8. So again looking at that vertical alignment piece that you've heard us talk about throughout the course of this school year. And then last is a revision to the AP statistics course uh due to AP's requirement. So again, when
037we have our AP courses that uh when they update, we are forced to update our curriculum pieces as well to align with the requirements of our AP courses. So that work happened as well this spring. So I have put forth all of those recommendations after approval from the curriculum councils for you to review. Well, I'll just start by saying thanks to all of that work. Um I know you didn't do it alone, so thanks to the team, too. It's a lot of work. Thank you. >> Um if I can just ask a a clarifying question because >> this is something I am not equipped to answer but have been asked. So I'm going to ask you um which is about government. So since the AP [clears throat] since the um American government course of study
038is up. >> So we have AP gov, we have um our American government course of study that's in front of us and then there's CCP gov. Yes. Can you just like for me and the rest of the world explain a little bit how the curricula might be different but they're all hitting the things they have to hit? >> They all hit the required state standards. We know that but the requirement of the work that comes with it is different and the entity that approves those courses is different. So if it's AP or if it's CCP, those requirements shift and change based on what institution it's coming through. Um, all of those pieces are available online to review in our high school academic planning guide. So, if people really want to dig in to exactly what
039differences, we're able to provide that as well. >> Thank you. I know that's that is a course that sometimes is a little confusing when students go to sign up because there are a few different options there. So, >> thank you. >> Yeah, thank you. Um, I did have a more data specific question regarding the course of study changes. Sure. Um, >> and I do appreciate those alignments. I guess could you help me also and help us understand what key indicators um we should monitor over time to determine whether this curriculum is producing the student outcomes that it is intended. Could you just kind of speak um to that? >> It it varies based on what the course is. So some courses um will have end of course exams or they'll have Ohio State test different
040pieces and parts that we can use to monitor that. It is difficult at times because you can have the greatest curriculum resource, but that doesn't mean that it is or is not working. It's really working with our teacher team and the data that we're able to see about student success both while they're here and then where do they go after our programming in terms of have we done what we need to do to prepare students. So, we do look at all of the data that's available. We're working right now um and over the course of the coming years to align our courses across our different schools so that we can have conversations about how are our students doing in these different spaces and honestly what can we learn from each other to provide the best
041opportunity to our students as possible. >> I did have a quick question related to um costs that are associated with this. Obviously switching to new materials or getting new materials in comes with some costs. >> Um for the American government, it says that that is actually going to be a textbook. Is that a actual textbook? Is it an online textbook? Yeah, we looked at both options. Um and the teachers selected that they still wanted a hardback textbook. Um and so we will be purchasing full class sets for um that textbook because that's what the teachers recommended. They do also have the digital access as well. So for students who prefer to see it online or see it in a book form, we do purchase um a small number of additional books too for some of
042our students that need a copy readily accessible in different environments. We try to make sure that we're prepared to meet that need as well. >> Is that the same with the AP stats? >> Yes. All right. Great. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. >> All right. I don't think there's any other questions. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thanks for all that work. Um, next up we have 10.02, the first reading of policy 2431.06, name, image, and likeness or NIL in athletics. Welcome, Mr. Reeves. >> Yes, thank you. Um, as you mentioned, we have a new policy for the board to consider. First reading tonight, policy 2431.06. Name, image, and likeness in athletics or what has become a big acronym in our culture. NIL on November 24th 19 or 19. Wow. [laughter] I'm still the teacher
043that likes the textbooks and papers. Okay. [clears throat] On November 24th, 2025. Uh just this past fall, the Ohio High School Athletic Association member schools passed an emergency referendum bylaw allowing high school athletes to be paid for their name, image, and likeness or NIL. This includes payments for appearances, licensing, social media content, endorsements, and other form of personal branding linked to their public recognition. Notably, these rules still do not permit students to be paid to play the sport in which they compete in as amateurs. This change was triggered by a case that was filed against OSAA challenging their prior ban on NIL. And this new policy is consistent with their updated bylaws. OSA's website has an NIL a very robust NIL resource center with frequently asked questions and proper processes and paperwork with which to
044follow. There is no responsibility to monitor student athlete NIL deals at the district or school level. So how are things that we can do to educate our student athletes and our coaches? um we will update one as a resource center, our athletic websites to direct families and coaches to that very um userfriendly NIL resource center. And one of the things that we are required to do prior to every athletic season is have a parent meeting and NIL guidance will be a part of those parent meetings. And to this point, since OSA changed their bylaws, there have only been about 45 NIL contracts given to OSA to approve for a compliance. Um, and all of them are like $200, $250 rule high schools. Joe's Deli gives a kid, you buy his sandwich, we'll give him a
045dollar. It's literally things like that. So, we don't have the big LeBron James yet, but that's coming. Thank you. You answered my questions. I don't know if anybody else has any. >> All right. I Sorry, I did have a quick question. I don't know if you can answer this or not. Um, but it does state in here that, you know, the student does cannot display the sponsor's product or otherwise advertise for a sponsor during official team activities. This is kind of a hypothetical, but let's say [snorts] that somebody was being paid by Gatorade and said student was on the field drinking Gatorade. >> Yeah, there there's a that's a great question. Where does that fall? That's a great question. You can use your branded licensing if it is essential to the performance of your sport.
046Okay. >> Um there were some athletes that really pushed the NIL envelope and and put um OSA in this situation. We have several amazing golfers in and around central Ohio and around our state and titist wanted to sponsor some of them with balls, clubs. Those are things that are necessary to compete in their sport. You could have a young uh student um there's some fantastic football players coming up in central Ohio that'll be fun to watch on Friday night. Let's say Nike wanted to sponsor one of those. Well, you need Nike, not Nike shoes, but you need shoes and so that would be permissible. U now the kid couldn't wear like a Gatorade backpack, you know, patch on their warm-ups. They couldn't do that, but surely they could they could drink Gatorade. So, >> okay,
047that makes sense. Thank you. >> That's a great question. >> Any other questions? Okay. So um next up we have uh the first reading of policy 514 or 5410 promotion academic acceleration placement and retention. Welcome Mr. Cooper. >> Yes. Thankfully we have uh Mr. Reeves who's very involved with OSHA and has all that level of knowledge. I was not one of those people to get the golf uh scholarship [laughter] as much as my golf game. Um good evening. It's recommended that the board approve revisions to policy 5410. So we have that before you this evening for our first reading. This is on promotion, academic acceleration, placement, and retention. This includes two key updates. First, the policy is recommended to have language regarding both subject and grade level acceleration requirements. This additional language will codify current
048practice within the district for referral evaluation and the decision criteria for students to be accelerated in a grade level or a specific subject area. Second, the state legislaturator's passage of the budget bill, House Bill 96, rem removed the provision of the law which mandated retention for students who miss at least 10% of the school year. It is therefore recommended the language related to retention for attendance concerns be removed from the policy. At this time, I'm happy to take any questions you have. >> I just I have a quick question. Um I know and I asked this question I and I think I know the answer but um when a child is accelerated who is checking in on this student to make sure that they're doing okay that they're you know not just academically but also
049mentally emotionally like that they're leaving behind you know and not that they may not be leaving the school but they're leaving behind their grade. >> Yeah. So with an acceleration uh request comes evaluation and testing for that. Um it comes often times with a gifted identification um and therefore a WE or written education plan. Also within there can include a transition um plan and so there's a time period for which they review. I think it's typically 45 days um which kind of aligns with a quarter there. Um and so they are looking back to see is is there any concern with this decision. Um that said, it's a team that meets and talks with both the parent um the student and the teachers with that to determine if there are concerns. If there aren't any
050concerns that generally that transition plan goes away and they just continue on that web at that time. >> Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> Thank you so much. I also have a question and and I know you and I had this conversation recently as well, but I'm really curious to learn um how a policy like this in terms of placement, it's prompting a broader question for me how this impacts those students in those cross excuse me categorical uh unit classrooms >> and how we're assessing or evaluating their readiness to move on to the next level. Um >> sure. So there are two parts to that. First with promotion and retention of students um that is a conversation that involves the teacher and parents. um if there are concerns where they're believing that the student may
051be uh possibly a candidate for retention, there are conversations that typically start as early as the beginning of the second semester. Um that said, we will convene a meeting towards the end of the year if we believe that retention is um something to be on the table and discussion with the parent. Um we also have parents who will sometimes request to retain their child. Um that said, the team meets, they discuss that and from there a decision is made or recommended. Uh parents do have typically final say with that. Um if they are going against what the school district believes is the choice for the student that is correct, we will have them sign off on that decision noting the recommendation of the school and then the parent signing off noting that that is the
052decision that they are making for their child. With regards specifically to special education, the second part of that um the in within special education, we're we're looking at that IEP, that indivi individualized education plan. You're looking at the least restrictive environment for the student, which basically says that we're looking for that student to be in the environment that is most conducive to learning for them to ensure that they are meeting their goals um their individualized goals. So in an SLC or a student with u very intensive needs and I will say that the ultimate goal of all special education is that a student can be successful in a general education environment. That's the ultimate goal of special education. Um we don't always get there with every student. We get students as much as we can
053to make as much progress as they can in a time period. Um, with that said, there is always a team meeting annually to review their IEP to look at what other goals are we making progress toward those goals and then looking further at any transitions to the next grade level placement that least restrictive environment and then also looking at um the decisions pieces there involving parents as well for any change in that placement for the child. >> Thank you. Um, so I have a a quick question that might be sort of more on the philosophical side. It's a I have a history brain. Um, so I'm wondering, you know, when we think about academic acceleration and then we like think about MTSS, right? So has there been sort of a shift in in thinking um,
054you know, as we bring in MTSS in terms of thinking about like grade level accelerating kids? Um, I know it still is necessary sometimes, but I feel like maybe that, you know, was a little bit different approach back in the day. If you could talk about how maybe that's a little bit different now. Yeah, I think with um acceleration and being a former gifted teacher and a gifted director myself at one time um you know there is very much a um for our parents growing up and even my own education what I knew then um is kind of what I operate off of unless I'm in the educational environment. So our teachers kind of have that connection more to understanding today's world and how how things work. um our parents don't always have that lens
055to be able to look through and so I think it's very important that we always educate that we talk through and that's oftentimes what our gifted facilitators our gifted coordinator um will oftentimes talk with parents through here's what this looks like today here's what the classroom looks like it's very different from a one-sizefits-all approach where we're just going for the average and students that are above that are kind of stifled with their creativity and their their abilities. Um so very much today when we look at the classroom the expectation is that we're trying to meet individual needs. Um that sometimes includes um teachers who will coordinate or consult with one of our gifted facilitators to look at what else can I do to extend the thinking and the learning for our student. Um that said
056sometimes there are students who are far and beyond um that level of knowledge. And so um at times whether it's a parent referral or a staff member referral um that student may be considered for the acceleration point in which we believe not only will they be are they successful at their current level but they have the abilities to be successful at the additional level. So you're really looking at not just the end of this year thinking but you're looking at kind of the end of next year thinking. Um and that's where that gifted testing often comes into play that we're ensuring that that student is capable of going above and beyond um just the additional pieces that we're able to provide in the classroom >> and those scales they look at also it's not just
057academically. So maybe if you want to talk a little bit I know that was a concern that was brought up. the, you know, the typical gifted child, if we were to look at their overall development, um, you will oftentimes see some idiosyncrasies with their ability to not only have the level of knowledge, but not necessarily have that level of social emotional being. And so oftentimes your gifted student can be a problem student, what some would label a problem student, only because their level of thinking and knowledge is so far beyond that they're not caught up yet with the ability to take that all in from a behavioral standpoint. Uh again, having taught some some of those students where, you know, they're they um you know, aren't always within what you would consider the average. Um
058that said, you have some students who are twice identified where they maybe identify gifted but also identify with a learning disability. And so again, you have some idiosyncrasies in their overall development. Um that said, as well, I think um you oftentimes want to look at that social emotional being to say if we're accelerating a child beyond the current level of of grade, then you want to consider that piece too of how are they overall developing? Will they be able to make that adjustment socially and connect with others? We don't want to kind of leave them, you know, in that really tough spot of having that level of knowledge but not having that level of connection with relational skills. So I think that kind of goes back to the question that I had, right? Like um
059if there is a child that is accelerated and gets promoted, they maybe 45 days are masking, right? Like who's checking in on them? I know that that, you know, there's um school counselors um you know, like who's doing the hey, how are we doing? Are we are we really succeeding emotionally and socially? >> Yeah. Again, I think when we look at this, I will say typically when you are at that level of thinking that you are being grade level or subject to area um accelerated, you're not typically in a state where you're going to have those concerns. I mean, a lot of things have been checked and and um reviewed before you would make that kind of a decision. That said, typically that red flag is going to come first from that classroom teacher. They're
060recognizing, hey, this this student really isn't performing at the level that we would expect. I'm having certain concerns and then that teacher has the ability to reach out to gifted facilitators or gifted coordinator the principal and to have that conversation around I'm not so sure this is the right placement for the student and then that would convene the team including the parent to have conversations around what they're seeing. So again it's not typical that you see many students who are accelerated to have those concerns but it could potentially happen. Yeah, I was going to tag off of that. Just knowing the highly competitive environment that we're in, especially with high school and competing for scholarships and competing for that, you know, 5.0 and 0 GPA and all of that if we're accelerating students because they're
061knowledgewise able to be accelerated but they are I don't want to say struggling to keep it together but they are just working themselves to death trying to achieve these standards that they have in their head. [snorts] I think that's to Christiey's point, that's kind of where I'm thinking like, okay, but is it is it good for them to be in that accelerated state? And where would that come from? Is that like a parent thing, a teacher thing? Like >> how is that identified? Like, sure, they can complete all this coursework, but they, you know, >> right, >> this is not good for them mentally, >> right? Absolutely. At what cost? And and I think that's part of that conversation when considering the acceleration is again that whole child view. And so it's not just saying,
062"Hey, your academic uh performance level is through the roof. Let's make the decision to accelerate you." It's really considering what does this do for the student and their capabilities. You even look at things like do they have a sibling in the next grade level up. >> There's [clears throat] a whole scale that the team goes through. The parents weigh in, the teachers weigh in. So it's not a common practice. >> Yeah. It's not I mean we're not accelerating students left and right. It's it really is a individualized conversation specific to a student and discussing with their parent of what is best by the student that does include obviously that parent input but also our teacher input there of what they're seeing. >> Okay. Thank you. >> And I think to tie it back to the
063policy, we are required to have a policy just to so it's not necessarily we're going around promoting this for every kid, but we have to have a process in place. And so it's really about cleaning up as the laws changed and making sure we have a clear policy for our families to understand. >> Yeah. Again, this is current practice. It's just a matter of putting this into the policy language. >> Are we any other questions? All right. Thank you. Okay. Moving along to 10.04. 04 the first reading of policy 7540.09 artificial intelligence. Mr. Stifler, welcome. >> Thank you very much. Good evening. In front of you for consideration are revisions to policy 75409 for artificial intelligence. So these revisions bring our existing district policies in line with Neiola recommendations along with recommendations from both House
064Bill 96 and Senate Bill 29 for the state of Ohio. Uh these revisions include, excuse me, updated AI definitions, um creation of an AI workg group to help us uh establish policies and standards, um protocols to handle student data privacy, uh along with procurement and evaluation of the tools. um acceptable and ethical use standards for both staff and students, training uh requirements for staff and students, and academic integrity requirements for the use of AI. So, uh that's a lot to cover with a very small so I'm excited to answer whatever questions you guys will have for AI. >> Yeah, go ahead. I have a question regarding um in the policy where it talks about acceptable use. Sure. >> Um who all will be involved and how will it be determined which um when a student
065would need to focus on independent skill versus acceptable use of AI? >> So there's a couple things that we take into consideration for acceptable use. Obviously the input of our curriculum and instruction team. Um my team handles the implementation and a lot of the standard setting from a security standpoint, but their input um input from our uh district advisors. So we have a team um that helps with AI both including legal um and members of the central Ohio technical leader group along with an AI coalition that was set up by the state. We got to go to a um conference at Dennis University earlier this year to go through a lot of that stuff and then just being able to rely on the expertise internally of both teachers and staff and the districts around us.
066>> I I know I've asked you a number of questions already. Um I do have a question about uh AI tools and um so when students are using Chromebooks are they able to access outside AI tools that we have approved in the district? >> So there is one AI tool that we have approved for student and staff use within the district. We are a Google Gemini district. >> Um it is covered under our student data privacy agreement with Google. So students have the ability to access that tool and all of the Google families that rely on that tool. The rest of the tools, we sent out guidance to both staff earlier this year and we've put controls in place to limit access to other tools outside of Google. >> So if I was to type
067up chat GBT on my on a Chromebook, I wouldn't be able to access that. >> If you are on one of our Chromebooks and one of our networks, no, you would not have access to that. >> Could you explain why in terms of a close and open system, we do that? >> Sure. So for AI, you really have two models. You have a closed model, which is an AI model that we don't control the backend for. So the code, how it's written, how the tool learns, how that information is shared is not under control of the district. The big advantage of a tool like that, we don't have to maintain it. So a tool like that would be Gemini. Um why it's not a risk to us is because we are paid licenses for Google
068Workspace. we get a specific data privacy agreement with Google that says none of the information that our students or staff put into this tool will be used for any purpose outside of our environment versus an open system would be we run everything. So the nice thing about that is we're in total control. The risk with that is we have to pay for everything and we have to maintain everything. So >> thank you. Any other questions? All right. >> All right. >> Thank you so much. >> And then um Oh, well, you're up here again. Moving along to 10.05 is the first training of policy 8305, information security. >> So, policy 8305 is a revision to the district's information security policy. Um this policy uh comes to fruition as a requirement for um Ohio House Bill
06996. So this requires the district to establish a cyber security standard uh a cyber security program including uh national institute of standard and CIS or center for information and internet security standards to make sure that we are compliant for cyber security. This also includes requirements for how we establish cyber security incidents, how we report incidents with the state, how we report incidents with our community, um, and what policies and processes we use to remedy those situations. This will also require the district at some point later this month to adopt a formal cyber security policy based on the work that we've done over the last year to get the district within compliance. So, >> thank you. There any questions? All right. Thanks so much. Um, moving along to 11. Recommended action and standing business. 11.01. May
070I have a motion to approve the looking Regional Educational Service Center General Services contract for uh fiscal year 27 in uh school year 2627. >> So move >> second. >> Welcome back, Mr. Cooper. >> Hey, good evening once again. Each year we maintain our partnership with the Licking County Regional Educational Service Center um by purchasing seats anticipating that an IEP team may determine the need to place a student outside the district to ensure a free and appropriate uh education for the child. Uh oftentimes this is for alternative learning environments for a student to be most successful. Um I would like to request the board's approval this of this contract to continue this valuable collaboration that we have with them. >> Thank you. Any questions? All right, we're ready. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs.
071Zman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Leian, >> yes. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. And moving along to 11.2, may I have a motion to approve consulting contracts? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Mr. Reeves, will you talk to us about these? >> Thank you. Uh before the board is a resolution to approve the consulting contracts with the employees Christristen Kettlehake and Chassity Trumpower that are listed that have been presented to and reviewed by the board and to authorize the superintendent and treasurer to take such such action consistent with the included agreements uh on behalf of the board. >> Any questions? All right. See, >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Lee, >> yes. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. And moving along
072to 11.03, may I have a motion to approve the 2027 annual tax budget for the Westville Public Library? >> So moved. >> Second. >> And Miss Marshall, will you remind us why we have to do this? >> Yes, I will, President Meyer. Thank you. Uh so just a reminder, we are the taxing authority for the Westerville Public Library. Uh the board appoints the board of trustees that serve for the public library and we also adopt their annual tax budget. So it's just a structure under Ohio Revice Code um to allow them to collect taxes at the local level. >> Um any questions? All right, >> Mrs. Almond. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Leean. Yes, >> Mrs. Brown. >> Yes, >> Mrs. Valentine. >> Yes, >> Mrs. Meyer. >> Yes. And moving along to 11.04. May I
073have a motion to approve the settlement agreement? >> So moved. >> Second. >> And Miss Marshall, will you take the role? >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Lean, >> yes. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. And moving on to board comments. Who would like to start? I can kick us off. I want to um congratulate and welcome all the new hirees. Um and I I think it's been a really busy busy busy month, but it was really great attending the graduations and I don't think I had an opportunity to formally thank all of our educators for their hard work and congratulate the students post uh our ceremony. So, I want to make sure that I take time to do that. Um and you know, just
074kind of reminding parents to stay safe, stay stay engaged. Sure there's a lot of great resources on the ground in the communities to ensure that our children are you know staying academically enriched uh but also staying safe from violence and a lot of the things that we're seeing right now in various parts of the Westerville city school district. Um and I absolutely wanted to wish so many members of our community happy pride month as well and again just making sure that folks have a really wonderful summer. Yeah. Um, so I'll just uh repeat a couple of things there. One is um I want to thank all of our teachers and educators. I know that you're just hopefully some of you getting a little bit of of a break here, but it's it's not so much
075of a break as everyone thinks it is. So, in any case, thank you all for all the ongoing work that you do um over the summer and continuing to even update your own credentials and um we just really appreciate you. And then um I wanted to also um just mention real quickly that um so I have a high schooler um that some kids are in summer school right now. So I want to just remind folks that that's happening and that some kids are working on their on their learning this summer and teachers are working with them. So we're out there all year round. Might not be as many kids as always, but we have kids who are working on um their learning this summer as well. And then so many things that happen behind the
076scenes um in the summer. I just really wanted to send a shout out to our human resources department. It is an extremely busy time in the summer. Um [snorts] and they are doing such a great job of vetting candidates and getting new folks in the right seats. And so just a shout out to them too because all of that is invisible work, but it's what makes the magic happen when the kids come back in the building. So thank you all for that work as well. Um, I just wanted to congratulate everyone who's taking on new positions. Um, what an exciting opportunity and time for everyone and for the team that is Car's team that is working so hard this summer on getting our parking lots and everything repaved. Um, if you've been driving through Westerville
077lately, it is very hectic with lots of construction going on. But this is the construction that's going to be super impactful. not construction, but paving work that's going to be super impactful um in August for our students when they get back to school. So, thank you to everyone who's working hard on that. I'll echo everything that they all said. I also wanted to just say another congrats to our graduates. Um it really is it's a very long day for all three of those graduations at the Celeste Center all in one day. But seeing those graduates come across the stage and the smiles on their faces and their parents and loved ones all cheering for them, it is really fulfilling. And thank you to all of the educators, all of the, you know, speech therapists and
078everybody who has helped them along the way to get there because it's it's such a rewarding moment for um those graduates. So that was really a special day and uh I will echo Miss Lee Bon and saying happy Pride Month. Unfortunately, the Pride celebration on Saturday had to get cancelled due to monsoon, [laughter] but um for those of you celebrating that out there, uh happy Pride. >> I um there's a lot to echo here. So, this community, I've said it in the past, is just amazing. Um you guys make everything work. and um my own child walked across the stage this past uh uh well just a couple weeks ago and it made me think about all the people that touched her in her life and so thank you to all of you for all
079that you do whether it's janitor you know counseling teaching administration it takes a village um and this community is truly a wonderful village one of the reasons why I moved my family back here um but I want to just say congratulations again Nicole Thank you for all that you do. I know last week we all sent you this frantic like email. Hey, this bill is coming up and you went down and testified and I it sounds like you stopped it. So, just thank you again for being I know very vigilant. We do appreciate that. Um but with that I I don't have anything else. Just a lot of gratitude. Um so, thank you for coming out tonight too. Um, the board of education will meet in regular session on Monday, June 29th, 2026 at 6
080PM at the Early Learning Center, which we're at, which you guys know, which uh, address 936 East Drive, Westerville, Ohio 43081. And with that, may I have a motion to move into executive session for the purposes of considering negotiations, employment compensation with public employees, and to discuss details relative to security arrangements share where disclosure of the matters discussed could reasonably be expected to jeopardize the security of a public body. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Ready. >> Yep. >> Mrs. Valentine. >> Yes. Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. >> Mrs. Leian, >> yes. >> Mrs. Meyer, >> yes. Thank you again for coming out tonight. You're welcome to stay, but >> 710. >> All right, we're back. It's 9:33. May I have a motion to adjurnn? >> So moved. Second >> whenever
081you're ready. >> Mrs. Alman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Valentine, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brown, >> yes. Mrs. Lee, yes. Mrs. Meyer, yep.