0014:31. Um, hello everybody. Are we ready? Uh, Director Englesman is joining us online. Um, but I'd like to start with introductions. Just, um, Stephanie, do you mind going first? >> No, not at all. Hi everybody. Sorry I have to appear online with the pre-h holiday schedule. I don't have a car um, available to me today. So, I am appearing uh, virtually. Hi, zone six. Sharon, >> Michelle Chase Miller, Michelle Depass, Carara, >> Cara Bradshaw, executive assistant. >> Awesome. So, we know who's in the room. Um, we've got a short agenda today. Um, we're going to be talking about um our policy uh review. Um, we've got a policy tracker that has I believe the first three or four sections. Oh, it's got all of them. It's it's got all of our sections. So, the idea
002is that we are so we are to ideally review our policies every four years. And as I'm looking at this tracker, we have some things that have been reviewed. It doesn't have exact dates but greater than four years. And when you look at the policies themselves, some of them go back to 70s, 80s, the 2000s. And so, um, one of the things I want to get through this year personally is and with this committee is to go through those policies and modernize the language um modernize the language and also talk about, you know, um, if they're getting the outcomes that we want, etc. So, do you have anything you want to add about that role or that work? >> No, I think you've said it well. >> So, the idea is we're going to kind
003of go in numerical order. Uh we're going to start with uh 1.10.010 P and that has to do with the board of education. Um it looks like there's about uh 12 or 15 policies that talk about uh board member duties, the role of the board of the education, the orientation of new board members, board committees, attendance at state and national meetings, um reimbursement of expenses, board of education. If I if I could um amend what I said earlier, never ask a lawyer if we have anything to say. No, I'm going to um I I do think instead of I think we had suggested instead of numerical order that you that the recommendation from staff is that you take all of section one and then all of section seven. And that way then staff can spend
004some time going through each of those tanches of bodies of working bringing you recommendations to react to for um if you tell us if tell if you tell us one and seven then we will start working through one and seven and bringing you those in >> um I don't want to say buckets of work but it seems like that would be easiest tranches. Yeah. >> Okay. >> For the staff to bring you recommendations. We also have the benefit of OSBA's policies, model policies, and we get X number for free every year and we also have the ability to purchase more of course and so we would like to understand where your priorities are and then we can bring again I don't mean to be presumptuous. This is really your committee and you all tell us
005but I think the staff could serve um in a pretty uh helpful way if we knew the direction you all want to give us. >> That that does help. So the the tanches will be by by section number. Um and then I think as a committee um I'd love to have a conversation about that. I I assume that we would start at one and I think one is important to start. I'd love to hear my committee members um feedback on that because we're a new board and I think it'd be the timing is great. Some of these uh policies go back to it looks like 2002 so 23 years ago. Um um but but that's just me. That's the board of education. Uh if if Director Englesman, Director uh Chase Miller have looked at these
006buckets. Um do you have any um input about what we should do? Like let's say one and excuse me, one and if there were another section you'd like to address. Yeah, I looked at the buckets, but I have not looked at individual policies yet. Um, I think that one is a good place to start. Um, I think for obvious reasons. Um, and then I mean if seven is the recommendation um from from legal for what to tackle next, I think that that's fine. That's fine with me. It looks like also as we're looking back that these are uh the section 7 has quite a few that go back as far as 2002. Director Englesman, did you have any uh chance to look at the different tanches? >> Yeah, I did. Thank you. I want to
007just start out by saying I think it would be really helpful for us to have a list of policies that were rescended in the last let's say 10 years but um my understanding is that there were a lot 30 plus maybe that were rescended. So I think that would be good in in uh understanding what was taken away as well. So if we could um get that drawn up for us that would be helpful. I um I think starting with one makes sense. Um, I think I would probably like to just start with one rather than tackling more and see how much work needs to be done there. And if it's an extraordinary amount, we can get through one and then start looking at the next one. Uh, if it's a little bit, then we
008will know that really quickly and then we can just choose another another bucket. Uh, but I'm fine starting with one. I like going numerically. So to it would be the staff's work to go through the it would be the staff's work to go through the policies and make recommendations. And so our role would be to review, discuss, and hopefully approve, you know, the version that we can all settle on. >> Absolutely. Yeah. No, I understood that. I just don't know that we have to take on more than just one. I mean, this has one, two, I think you said 12. too. >> Looks like 14 maybe. Um I I would be happy with just starting with one. Um having staff look through them. I will of course look through them more more clearly than I
009was able to over the weekend. Um and then I mean if if it looks like it's going to take us a month then at the next month when we start discussing this and approving or talking about then we could sort of settle on another one. uh or if it looks like it's going to take a lot longer then at our next policy committee meeting we get that update and then we can decide which way to go forward. Um I frankly don't know that I have had enough time to go through each and every single one of these to be able to say what else to take on um without perhaps missing something that is more important because I haven't spent the time clicking on every single link and reading every single policy. So, I think
010I'd be happy with just starting with one and going from there. >> Um, I was going to ask about um would you be okay I h I I'm curious about what you um your thoughts about it. I almost always go with the staff um recommendations on these again because our role is will be to you know uh digest, approve, review, edit, make edits. Um I I think that and also I think some of the work is for staff that is is really to look at things that have happened since 2002 like the No Child Left Behind for instance to make sure that we are either in compliance or maybe that's one that was rescended. Um to to make sure that our policies align with federal and state and so it's that technical review and then
011we'll have a chance to uh weigh in on those. And does it is is it sounds like you can take on two tanches at once. >> I think that that's what we were trying to do is just sequence the work for the staff to be able to say okay we can go through these. The other thing is we'll be looking out externally trying to find comparators that might be helpful as well OSBA. Um so it really just we were trying to do like with like and the board and the community. >> Yes. as we are out, as we are looking at other policies, those are often near one another. And so we were trying to just schedule our work. We can frankly just assume you're going to do seven next and then if you don't,
012when you decide on another one, we can go from there. We're just really I'm I'm big about planning out the work in buckets and trying to keep ahead of where you all might be and to be responsive. So, >> but it it's not critical you decide tonight. Okay. I'm I'm fine with that too if that works um for workflow. Um are are you okay with that too? Okay. It sounds like we'll start with one and we'll um try not to start on seven. We'll do them sequentially. Um >> it's hard to see when my hand goes up. I'm sure I was not wanting to interrupt, but that helps a lot. Me understand why you chose seven. I was looking through these and seeing there's some sections that have a lot of 1970s and 80s >>
013um and 90s and I was trying to figure out why we would not focus there first. But yeah, let's start with one and then we can probably plan maybe to go to seven next depending on what we find with one. >> Yeah. And I think again it sounds like staff wants to kind of um put them in tanches and also do like with like um just for workflow. So as they're doing their uh their their work planning >> and then just for awareness and I know the committee is aware of this but the all of section five is is in um need of tone redo and substantive redo and so that one will be coming and I I'll defer to you all when you want it but that is another trunch that is well underway
014being looked at maybe that as you're thinking about it you want to do next or maybe not it it could be whenever >> and those are the personnel yes HR related. Okay. Yeah, I think the timing is great on that. Um, okay, we will move forward with section one and then seven and we'll talk about five um ongoing. Um, do we have public comment tonight? >> We do. >> Sorry, just one sec. Um, we have Sarah Childers, Liz RH, and Soy Albertie. Please all come up. >> [clears throat] >> Whoever's ready first can just go. >> Yeah. So, you have um two minutes each and um there's a timer um on top of the on top of your uh desk that will turn red when it's time to stop talking. And you can go in
015any order. It's it's just us. >> Okay. [clears throat] I'm Sarah Childers. Um, I'm a parent of two Le Man French immersion students and a PPS High School freshman. I'm here as part of a parent working group to advocate for French immersion students in Portland public schools. Lemon serves students from across the city who have spent their K through eight years learning French and becoming bilingual or multilingual. By 8th grade, many pass the STAMP assessments, earning some high school credit. But there is no clear pathway within PPS for these students to continue French at a level that meets their learning needs. Only five PPS high schools offer French and only two um that build greater fluency for students passing similar assessments. We're advocating to fix the absence of a French pathway for Lemon students and
016find a way for them um to continue their language building at the high school level together. Without a continued pathway, students lose equitable access to French learning, an important cultural and educational need for many families and heritage speakers. This can result in less than ideal outcomes, including opting for private schools, neighboring districts, navigating the hardship transfer process, or attending neighborhood schools with no French. Last February, I wrote an open letter signed by over 250 supporters asking PPS to add French to the dual language immersion pathways. Since then, we've learned DLI is not adding new languages at this time. In [clears throat] light of that, I'm asking the board to introduce a policy that allows Lemon students to continue their language building at a high school with the most advanced French. This would not require creating
017a new program, but would meet the needs of 30 plus PPS students graduating Leond each year. Providing a policy that allows advanced French at a designated high school would strengthen equity, increase student retention in PPS, and affirm Portland's commitment to global citizenship. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hello, my name is Alberti. Thank you for allowing me to speak at this board meeting on behalf of my children and my community. My two boys are referred as a heritage students as I am a native French mother who sincerely wishes for them to maintain their fluency in French enabling them to communicate and thrive within French culture. My entire family resides in France and each summer Benjamin and Phelix visit and stay with my parents and get to play with their cousin. It is important to note
018that neither my mother or grandmother speak English. Since kindergarten, they have been enrolled at Lamont Immersion Charter School and I am eager to assist them in continue to speak my language and that of their family. I'm also here today to represent all families who find themselves in similar situation whether they have from Belgium, Switzerland, Haiti, Sagal, Algeria, Morocco or Quebec. As parents, we have continually required to advocate, write letters, request favors, or simply plead for our children so uh we can hope to offer them a better education. It would be beneficial to simplify this process, allowing us to take a breather and return to advocating for our children on other matters. Lemon 8th grade class typically consists of 30 to 35 student each year which perhaps 20 or fewer attempting to apply to the high
019school with an AP uh French classes. Establishing a clear pathway would not only assist family but also not impose a sign significant burden on a school with 1600 student. This particular high school is the only one offering such a level of French language. It is the only institution where our children can continue to develop in this subject in the public system. I urge you to listen to us families for whom it is essential to ensure our children continue learning French whether they converse with their grandmothers or to have the opportunity to pursue higher education in a franophhone country. You possess the ability to make this direct pathway a reality. Can you help us? >> Thank you. >> Good afternoon. I'm good afternoon. My name is Liz Rodie and I'm also a parent of two Lemon
020students, fifth grade and eighth grade. Leamond is a French immersion public charter school K through 8 open lottery district-wide IB school. Lemon students spend nine years immersed in the language and culture of the franophhone world. Only five PPS high schools offer French. Just one offers French up to level 910, the level of which would provide Lemon students 3 years of additional high school language and cultural training. We're asking PPS to implement a policy providing Lemon students and families the opportunity to continue language and cultural study of the franophhone world as a at a defined school contributing to that school's population and making the most of existing curriculum. Implementation of Lamont public or pathway policy is supported by PPS policy precedent and policy goals within the areas of educational options, student assignment to neighborhood schools, charter
021schools, student enrollment and transfers, and parental involvement in support of academic achievement. Distinguished from globally available focus options such as STEM or art, the proposed Lemon pathway policy is more akin to wellestablished dual language immersion programs whose students are provided an opportunity to continue language study at a defined school in the highest course level currently available in PPS. PPS re-imagined designates a goal of increasing the number of students reaching a post-secary readiness benchmark. One of which is the seal of by biiteracy. A policy would better poise the lemon student public students public school students to achieve a seal of biiteracy through access to ongoing study at the most advanced level PPS provides. Let's keep Portland kids in Portland public schools. Thank you. Thank you for coming in. French is important to me. I actually took
022it in high school, but I have uh French heritage also. So, um I know it's an important tradition to carry on. >> Thank you. Do we have additional public comment? Okay. I believe that is our agenda. Unbelievable. It's 10 to 5. It's the shortest meeting in six years I've ever attended. Um so I appreciate you coming. Thank you for coming. Um Effie, it's good to see you. Thank you for coming too. And I think we're adjourned. >> Good night, everyone. Thanks. >> Thank you, Director Englesman.