001Good evening. Um, we're here for the regular meeting of the Mount Lebanon Board of School Directors. Tonight is Wednesday, May 21st, 2025. It's 7:34 p.m. Uh, and we're in room D205 of the Mount Lebanon High School and participate public participation is also available via Zoom. Uh, before we begin, can everyone please rise for the pledge? I pledge algiance 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. Roll call, please. Mrs. Berdick, here. Mrs. Crrael, here. Miss Flecher, here. Mrs. Gellman, here. Mrs. Gensel, here. Ms. Guth here. Mr. Hoffman here. Miss Johnson here. Mr. Wland here. All members are present. Mr. Wland is attending via Zoom. Excellent. I move that it be resolved that the board approves
002the minutes of the discussion meeting held April 7th, 2025 and the regular meeting held on April 21st, 2025. Second. All in favor? I I. Any opposed or abstensions? Okay, we're now at the section of our agenda for board uh reports. First up, we have uh students Ena Rev Kenan and Adriana Oliveros from Jefferson Middle School presenting a report on behalf of the student [Music] council. Good evening. Good evening. My name is Anna Riffan and I'm here to offer our last update for this JMS student council this year. Our organization has just finished up the last of our projects and we are proud to end the year on a strong note. During the weeks surrounding spring break, our service committee sponsored a clothing drive to benefit our local Salvation Army. Students and community members donating gently
003used clothing of all types for all ages. The goal was to collect at least 600 clothing items. We are proud to say JMS Far exceeded that goal. Thankfully, the Salvation Army sent a representative pulling a box trailer, which we gladly filled with donations. We are grateful to our JMS family for their generosity and participation in helping the Salvation Army provide the necessary programs they provide for our community. Our final project of the year allowed us the opportunity to show our immense gratitude to the faculty and staff who give all their students who give their all to their students all year long. To make teacher appreciation week special, each of our committees were tasked with coming up with one project and following through on its completion. The first teacher was The first project was a teacher
004helper coupon developed by the service committee, which offered each teacher and staff members the chance to request students help for the tasks of their choice. The requests rolled in and students spent time gladly taking on various jobs such as collecting pencils in the hallways, removing stickers from Chromebooks, cleaning chalkboards, and a lot of alphabetizing and packing away book collections for the summer. Next, the advertising committee spent several meetings putting their artistic talent to work making cards to thank each adult at JMS. The spirit committee greeted our staff with a breakfast card of goodies. And finally, the random acts of kindness committee, our committee, distributed hand decorated cups filled with candy as a final thank you for the week. This was a great opportunity for us as eighth graders to plan our projects that show our
005gratitude to the people who have spent the last three years with us. Thank you for your kind attention. I would like now I would now like to turn the podium over to Audriana Oliveros to tell you about the end of our end of the year celebration and share some final details. Hello. As this is our last presentation for the school year, I would like to sum up our efforts as a student council for the 2024 2025 season. We end the year with 72 members. The way our council is structured, any student interested in trying the student council has the opportunity to do so. We are so proud to boast a 96 retention rate for our membership this year with weekly meetings for our executive board, bi-weekly meetings for our general student council members and committee
006meetings almost every week. It takes dedication of substained efforts part of of part of students who choose to participate. This is a lot about our members. As reported at the beginning of the year, we formed four committees led by eighth grade executive board members. Each of these committees sponsored their own projects and events throughout the year. The co-chairs proved themselves to be leaders and honed those skills for their roles as leaders in the high school. They also served in aspiring role models for those sixth and seventh graders who choose to take an executive board position in the coming years. Our executive board this year was able to go above and beyond because we became a very close-knit group which inspired us to collaborate and support each other across our committee obligations. To celebrate an exceptionally
007successful year, we're planning on an afternoon of outdoor fun for all our members. On Thursday the 29th, we'll head out to the field for the last two periods of the day. Festivities will include water cup races, water balloon toss, cornhole, spike ball, parachute games, hula hoop challenges, kickball, and there'll be plenty of popsicles to go around. Overall, the 2024 2025 JMS Student Council ends the year feeling confident that the leadership skills we have fine-tuned this year will serve us well in the future. Thank you and have a good evening. [Applause] Thank you both and best of luck for a great end of the year and next year we'll see you here. Um, next up, our high school student council has created a video to present to us. Hi everyone. I'm Sophie. And I'm Kate. And
008we are your senior class presidents. I'm Joelle. And I'm Max. And we are your senior class vice presidents. I'm Sophia. I'm Claire. And we're your senior class secretaries. I'm Ra. And unfortunately, Mario cannot be here today, but we are your senior class treasures. Good evening. Unfortunately, we cannot be at the school board meeting in person tonight, but we still wish to say our final goodbyes. However, first we have a quick update. While underassmen are busy with Keystones, us seniors are looking forward to the bittersweet senior activities like senior reception, prom, and of course, commencement. It's still hard to believe we have made it to this time. We would also like to say thank you to everyone sitting in the room today who has made everything possible this year and believed in the eight of us
009to lead our school. I am certain I can say this for all of us, but this year has definitely been unforgettable with memories to last a lifetime with all of our very very early mornings and our late nights. Whether that was preparing for PASC or planning for our latest fundraiser, we are truly thankful to have been given a chance to leave our legacy in the halls of this school because at the end of the day, it wasn't about the title or the leadership. It was about the fact that we got to grow together, learn together, and lead together. Even when we were exhausted and couldn't give 100% individually, we knew we had each other and as a group, we would be able to give the school everything we had. At the end of our junior
010year, we had started off as just eight officers with a common goal of making the school a better place. But I can say today that we are all leaving here not only as a team, but with friendships that will last a lifetime. The Mount Lebanon School District has given us the opportunity to lead, learn, and to love something bigger than ourselves. We would like to express our sincere gratitude and heartfelt thanks to every person who has made this year unforgettable and have given us the opportunity to be the voice of our school. My fellow officers and I would like to express our most heartfelt thank yous and appreciation to Mrs. Gray, who is an absolute beacon of light and is always willing to be a shoulder to lean on and is somehow the only person
011who managed to get us out of class every day. To Mr. Johnson, our unwavering supporter over the last two years, who never questioned our insane ideas and is always willing to get on a ladder and hang a million lights for us for a school dance. To Mr. Sangel, who somehow managed to get eight seniors to school at 7:00 a.m. on a Friday with zero complaints and would never turn down a good bagel. To Dr. Thompson and Dr. Mitchell who said yes to just about everything we wanted to do simply because they believed in our commitment and our judgment. And finally to Mrs. Tankovich who has made this all possible and for believing in our potential when we made it quite difficult some days for always telling us the funniest dog stories to brighten our day.
012This year we all came into this with different ideas and perspectives. But we all living with so much more than we would have ever imagined. Leadership, growth, and friendship. And from the bottom of our hearts, we would like to thank each and every one of you for every opportunity. This is the class of 2025 signing out. [Music] [Applause] [Music] A is it raining on my face? Gosh. All right. Um now it's time for the board president's report. Um quick update on budget and finance. Tonight uh the board will be asked to adopt the final budget for the 2025 2026 school year. I want to thank Dr. Fes, Mrs. Connelly, the team in central office and the business office, and the dozens of budget managers across the district for their thoughtful and diligent work on this
013year's budget. I'm proud that together we could achieve our shared goals of a balanced budget with minimal impacts on student experience that does not rely on the use of fund balance or on furlows. Um, an update on strategic planning. Tonight, Dr. Dr. Freeze will share the draft strategic plan outlining a comprehensive and ambitious long-range plan for the district. I want to thank Dr. Freeze, the dozens of volunteers from the administration, faculty, staff, board, and community who served on the planning committee and the thousands of stakeholders who provided their input throughout this process through surveys and f focus groups. I'm excited by our collaborative plan to lead for the future and by the strong team we have in place to implement it. As I do every month, I'd like to highlight a few items from the
014district's inclusivity calendar. May is April, sorry, May is not April. May is AsianPacific American Heritage Month. This commemorates the immigration of the first Japanese people to the United States on May 7th, 1843 and marks the an anniversary of the completion of the trans transcontinental railroad on May 10th, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks on the project were Chinese immigrants. May is also Jewish American Heritage Month which is held in May due to the highly se successful celebration of the 350th anniversary of American Jewish history in 2004. This month recognizes the diverse contributions of the Jewish people to American culture. Um, May is also mental health awareness month or mental health month, which aims to raise awareness and educate the public about mental illnesses and reduce the stigma that surrounds mental illness.
015And with Memorial Day on the horizon, uh, we honor and remember the brave men and women who have served our country. Your sacrifice and dedication to protecting our freedom will never be forgotten, and thank you for your service. A few highlights from the district. Huge congratulations to Rebecca Shoilter, the vocal music teacher at Lincoln and Hoover elementary schools, who's been named one of 12 finalists for the for the Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year Award. The Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year Award recognizes outstanding teachers who make an exceptional impact on students, schools, and communities across the Commonwealth. Pennsylvania's 2026 teacher of the year will be announced at a state awards ceremony in early December 2025 and will represent the Commonwealth at various local, regional, and national functions, culminating in the national teacher of the year ceremony
016at the White House. Mount Lebanon has earned the best communities for music education award for its 18th year. A round of applause for our students, staff, and supporters for their commitment to music education. It says round of applause. On May 13th, our students and staff joined the Mount Lebanon Police Department for the annual law enforcement torch run for Special Olympics Pennsylvania. For more information or to donate, please visit Special Olympicspa.org. The Mount Lebanon Summer Enrichment Program is open to students entering grades 4 through 8 for the 2025 2026 school year. We invite you all to explore this year's exciting offerings in the chorus catalog which is available on the district website. And that concludes my report. Next up, we have Dr. Freeze for the superintendent's report. Thank you so much, Mrs. Blazer. And as she
017mentioned this evening, we are very excited to present our strategic plan that will take us from 2025 through 2031. You will see that this is a pretty aggressive plan. Please do not anticipate that it'll all be done by the end of next school year. As a small disclaimer, um our theme is leading the way. As you remember, if you've been listening to any of the board meetings or um have participated throughout the year, starting in October of this past year, we embarked on our strategic planning process to shape our future. A strategic plan is a comprehensive document that outlines the district's goals, objectives, and strategies to ensure we achieve our vision for the future. Our planning process was pretty intense in terms of making sure that we were hearing all the voices from our community.
018And at this time, I'd like to thank all of those individuals who took the survey or participated in a focus group or gave us feedback throughout the process as we created this plan. This is most certainly not just one person's plan, but a plan that takes into consideration all members of our community. Just a reminder about the strategic planning timeline. We started with community input. We shared out data related to the survey. We conducted focus groups directly related to those survey responses, presented those findings, finished up with a planning group work sessions throughout the course of the last few months and then finally this evening is to present the strategic plan and to vote on it in June. So just before we get started um there is a total of 48 slides in our presentation
019this evening. So I promise you that I will not read to you but I will give a highle overview. So before we get started, I just want to go over some quick key terms that you'll see throughout this plan. The first thing that you will see is focus areas. These are clear high-level statements that define the long-term outcomes we aim to achieve for our students, staff, families, and community. And they're basically the big picture of the plan. Next are objectives, which are statements that describe the overall results we want for our students, staff, families, and community. The objective descriptions are a broad overview of how the district plans to address the focus area. Tactics are concrete actions, programs or initiatives implemented to achieve the stated objectives. And then performance indicators and targets is the standard
020we set to help us determine our progress towards meeting our goals. We will set specific measurable targets once we've determined our priority objectives for the year and collected baseline data. We will monitor and share our progress towards reaching our goals annually with a focus on transparency and continuous improvement. So let's get started. Uh every educator really really likes a good acronym and so our acronym is leads and if you want to hashtag that it's Levo leads. So first up is L which is leading for the future. cultivate an environment that prioritizes leadership development by strengthening programs, enhancing professional learning, and equipping all learners and employees with future ready skills. Um, I did not set it up before that the students talked about how important leadership was to them. Watching that video kind of got me
021emotional that perhaps we're moving in the right direction in terms of focusing on leadership. It means a lot to them and it means a lot to us as adults as well. Next up is E, which is engagement. Foster strong partnerships between students, families, staff, and the community through transparent communication, collaboration, and opportunities for involvement, ensuring every voice is valued. Next up is A for academic excellence and innovation. Deliver a highquality, innovative education that meets the unique needs of all learners through a rigorous and relevant curriculum that empowers students to reach their full potential. D is district systems and supports. Advance long-term student success by supporting staff, improving technology and infrastructure, and ensuring efficient operations and fiscal management. And then finally, Safe, supportive, and inclusive environment. create a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment by prioritizing both
022physical safety and emotional well-being and building a positive culture where every student and staff member feels respected and inspired to grow. So, at the beginning of each focus area, you'll see a slide like this and then it'll move into a slide that gives a general overview of our objectives. So for leading for the future, our objectives are related to student development and empowerment, program review and equity and opportunities, professional learning and leadership development, and future ready skills. As you'll see, for each of these objectives, we will break them down into a general statement about the work that we will do um within that objective and then list out the tactics. So, for instance, in this one, student development empowerment, we'll be working on a clear vision that defines the skills, knowledge, and mindset students should
023have when they graduate from high school to guide instruction, culture, and student growth. We'll be defining an instructional model. We'll be advancing peer-led tutoring or orientation programs and mental health advocacy, increasing community engagement opportunities for our students, and increasing the number of district level and school level councils that students can participate on, and then highlighting students stories and achievements through communications and events to elevate the voices within the district. Our next area is objective 1.2, program review and equity and opportunities. You'll see in here that our goal will be to um conduct a comprehensive program review of athletics and extracurriculars as well as clubs and activities and then create consistent practices across those groups by creating handbooks or shared documents. In addition to that, making sure that we're providing equitable support across all of the
024programs that we offer here within the district, continuing to champion our arts and music programs as a core part of our instruction. making sure that when we resources are available, expanding opportunities for students to participate in extracurriculars and then increasing awareness of extracurricular opportunities for our English as a second language students, students with disabilities or students who currently are placed in outside placements with the goal of increasing their participation. Next up, we have 1.3, which is professional learning and leadership development. In this one, you will see the goal to develop a long-term professional learning plan for all of our staff members. Um, to promote staff modeling of social and emotional as well as e executive functioning skills. Creating a leadership development program for aspiring teachers and administrative leaders. Making sure that we have an induction
025program in place for all staff roles within the district. Making sure that we are effectively and efficiently using staff as a resource to manage our student needs throughout the school day. Fostering cross department collaboration. Exploring professional learning learning opportunities with external providers. expanding our artificial intelligence program, developing and offering advanced training to staff for English language learners, developing professional development on tier one instruction and differentiation, and then providing ongoing training for staff on social and emotional well-being, bullying prevention, and social inclusion practices. Our next area and final area for leading for the future is future ready skills. And in this section, we will take a look at implementing consistent experiences to build AI literacy and ethical technology use K to2. Engage students in conversations about data privacy, informed consent, and algorithmic bias. Bless you. Support
026project-based learning focused on solving community embedded programs or I'm sorry, problems, and student agency through curricular enhancements and instructional practices. and then provide ple clear pathways and tools for students to analyze problems, critically assess different types of media and evaluate evidence and innovate collaboratively. And then the last page here, what you'll see is just a list of performance indicators related to the different tasks that are listed or tactics that are listed within the first objective. move on to engagement. In this particular section, we have three different objectives. Um, communication, family engagement and community partnerships and transparency and feedback. The first objective, communications. In this area, we'll focus on the following tactics. Maintaining and continuously improving a comprehensive strategic communications plan. Streamlining communications toward a consistent platform for families. reinforcing and rein reintroducing staff and families
027to communication tools offered in the district, maintaining K to2 consistency in communication, launching a redesigned user-friendly district website, and enhancing language accessibility in district and school communities communications to better serve multilingual families. Next up is family engagement and community partnerships. In this particular area, we're going to look at a comprehensive onboarding program for new families, um, especially those with limited English proficiency. Collaborate with local organizations, universities, and businesses to provide opportunities for student, staff, and families, including learning, internships, volunteering, and fundraising. Explore potential collaborations with the municipality to enhance shared spaces like playgrounds, athletic fields, and safety infrastructures. expand parent education through initiatives like Lebo University and PTA sponsored events and increase outreach to community members without children currently attending in the district. The next area is transparency and feedback. Host annual forums and quarterly
028superintendent coffees for open dialogue. Use surveys and focus groups to gather feedback on major district initiatives, the calendar, strategic decisions. Develop a system for collecting ongoing input. Create a plan for summarizing board meetings to be shared with the community. And foster a community culture that proactively anticipates crossf functional issues such as coordination between departments or schools. Then you'll see on this last slide a list of the performance indicators and targets directly related to that objective. Our next section is academic excellence and innovation. And in this particular section, the focus is on curriculum and instruction, student centered support systems, special education and gifted education, and technology integration and digital wellness. The first section, curriculum and instruction. We are planning to implement a comprehensive curriculum review, development, training plan, and evaluation cycle across all content areas. Explore
029additional personnel resources to guide curriculum innovation and adoption. Explan expand interdisciplinary learning and performance-based assessments to connect content to real world applications. Continue implementation and refinement of the universal design for learning principles and evaluate and consider alternatives to our current English as a second language staffing model. Our next area is student centered support systems. In this area, we hope to establish a district-wide multi-tered system of support framework with clear procedures for academic and behavioral supports. Expand executive functioning, social and emotional learning, and career ready skill instruction at all grade levels. Refine assessment and differentiation practices. Conduct a comprehensive review and development of curriculum benchmarks, student skills, and expectations for transition from elementary to middle and middle to high school to ensure students have the tools necessary to be successful. And then create a clearly defined
030process for teachers and families to discuss and request support for struggling learners. U Mr. Stangle, I it's not advancing. It's too much. That's too much. Yeah. 3.3. Okay. The next area is special education and gifted services. If you tuned in for last week's um meeting, you do know that we provided an overview of our special education as well as student services review. And you will see all of that information captured in this plan as well. So for instance, exploring and implementing a response to instruction and intervention model for eligibility and special education as a part of our multi-tered system of support framework. Reviewing to enhance progress monitoring benchmarks as well as regular family communications. Increasing opportunities for co-eing. Establishing an emotional support classroom at the elementary level. Updating the enhanced gifted education program to ensure
031academic rigor and social and emotional support. Research, develop, and implement ways to increase inschool enrichment opportunities for gifted students. Review the staffing model of special ed services and collaborate with the IU AIU to ensure adequate support. Evaluate research, develop, and implement district-based transition program options for students ages 18 to 22. and then explore the possibility of adding acceleration opportunities in ELA and science. And then our next area is technology integration and digital wellness. In this area, we will research, develop and implement standards for developmentally appropriate technology and device use, including iPad, laptop, and cell phone guidelines by grad span. educate students on digital organization tools to support executive functioning and provide learning opportunities focused on digital wellness and tech integrated instruction to students, staff and families. And then you'll see for this objective again a
032list of performance indicators and targets. Our next area is district systems and supports. In this area, it has five objective areas. The first one is to optimize operations and infrastructure, strengthen financial stewardship, strengthen technology systems for efficiency and access, consistent systems and professional resources, and centralize enrollment and improve onboarding experiences. For the first section, optimize operations and infrastructure. Our goal within here in terms of tactics are to create a 10-year facilities capital improvement plan aligned with district priorities and fiscal management. Evaluate facility safety devices and equipment in partnership with Mount Lebanon Fire and Police Departments. Partner with the municipality and other community assets to explore opportunities to grow and advance the district and our community. Establish clear procedures for the use of facilities by community partners, including modernizing our application for permits. Evaluate research and
033implement additional sustainability measures and projects. Evaluate, develop, and implement updates to the food service program K to2. Conduct a program review of health services and then develop and implement improvements. And then research, evaluate, and implement a digital district-wide volunteer clearance system. Our next area is to strengthen financial stewardship, maintain zerobased budgeting and increase transparency through regular community updates on the budget planning and challenges. Develop a 10-year financial recovery plan. Rebuild and preserve the district's fund balance while investing in high impact areas aligned to our strategic priorities. Communicate clearly about factors influencing funding, both state, federal, and local. continue to refine practices to improve efficiency and internal control control associated with expenses and revenues and then continue to evaluate open positions and revise job descriptions. Our next area strengthen technology systems for efficiency and access will
034focus on implementing a single sign on and automated rostering for all district systems. Improving system integrations between the student information system P school and learning management system schoolagy to reduce redundancies and increase usability. Evaluate all internal forms and communication channels, digitize and centralize them for better staff and family access. Launch a district internet and develop a secure user-friendly data system to centralize student staff and operational data. Our next area is consistent systems and professional resources. In this area, we'll focus on evaluating, researching, developing, and implementing district procedures for communications, technology, finance, human resources, employee relations, facilities, curriculum and instruction, special education, health services, student services, athletics, activities, registar and contributions, and then train our staff on it so that they know what the procedures are. create asynchronous training opportunities for departments, continue to update and
035provide training on school district policies, and make them readily accessible to students, staff, and families. And then our last objective for district systems and supports is to centralize enrollment and improve onboarding experiences. And this area will expand centralized student registration using our student information platform to streamline the experience for families and staff. Create a welcoming and unified enrollment experience with clearly defined steps, multilingual support opportunities for school tours, and early engagement touch points. And then establish a system for ongoing onboarding and communication for newly enrolled families to ensure a smooth transition into the district. And click too fast. And this is the list of performance and indicators related to objective 4. And then our final section is safe, supportive and inclusive environment. And in this particular area again you will see five objectives. The first
036one is strengthen district-wide culture of inclusion and belonging, promote student well-being, proactive safety measures and responsive supports, continuity of services and access to student services and behavior supports, and expand access to academic and career pathways that support all learners. For the first area, strengthen district-wide culture of inclusion and belonging. We'll build awareness and appreciation of our school community through schoolwide and districtwide events, various forms of communication, and instructional resources. Establish a who's your person program K to2 to help students identify a trusted adult in the school. Develop intentional transition supports between grade levels such as 5 to 6 and 8 to 9 to build relationships and reduce student anxiety. Provide additional training on neurodeiversity and trauma-informed practices to staff and families. Develop a recruiting and hiring framework to staff schools with adults who are representative
037of our community. Develop a plan for ensuring equitable access and meaningful participation for K to2 students receiving special education services in athletics, arts, music, and extracurricular activities by removing barriers, fostering inclusive practices, and promoting a supportive environment that nurtures nurtures individual talents, social development, and a sense of belonging within the school community. And then finally in this area, analyze data for students and other special education settings and develop a plan for including students in district schools. Our next area is promote student well-being. In this area, we'll employ the curriculum review cycle focused on the development of social and emotional skills to help students manage stress, set goals, and communicate their needs effectively. Maintain and expand partnerships with regional mental health services. Provide clear and consistent communication about mental health services available to students, family, and
038staff. Provide ongoing information to students, family, and staff about managing and balancing the academic demands of the school experience. Annually advise students on how to report incidents of bullying, harassment in accordance with the schoolboard policy and procedures. Revise, provide training to student, staff, families, and implement a new district code of conduct that is developmentally appropriate, consistent across schools, and centered on restorative practices. Monitor and address chronic absenteeism with tier one interventions across the district. And then expand the number of trained student assistance program team members at each school. Our next area is proactive safety measures and responsive supports. In this area, we'll focus on continuing regular collaboration with the local police, fire, and emergency response departments. Evaluate, revise, and provide training on the district-wide emergency operations plan. Continue to design, conduct, and evaluate best practices
039and school safety skills with safety drills with faculty, staff, and students. Expanding on our CPI training, verbal intervention, and safety certifications for relevant staff. Provide deescalation training to all staff members and intensive intervention training to selected building teams. Provide timely, clear, and factual communications to families during emergency situations. Invest in security infrastructure and conduct ongoing evaluations of safety procedures, staffing, and equipment. And use tools like safe to say, gaggle, and go guardian to proactively monitor and respond to safety concerns. Our next area is continuity of services and access to student services and behavior supports. And this area will provide professional learning opportunities for student services staff to revi refine their knowledge, skills, and abilities. Research, develop, and implement new student support systems for students in grades K to 12. Implement district procedures for student services.
040Evaluate and update procedures for 504 evaluation, documentation, and case management. and then implement and enhance communication tools to be used between staff, students, and families. And then our final objective is related to expand access to academic and career pathways that support all learners. In this area, we'll expand access to career and technical education, dual enrollment, shadowing, and mentorship opportunities. Expand career readiness programs K to2, including vocational training, real world school skill development, and career exploration. Promote inclusive narratives to all stakeholders around post-secondary options. Provide information sessions and workshops for students and families on diverse academic and career options. Evaluate and update the K to2 guidance plan to ensure relevant services and post-secary opportunities are referenced. And then evaluate design and implement improvements to the individualized graduation plan. And then we have our list here of
041objective 5's performance indicators and targets. And that takes us to the end of our presentation. I just wanted to say to the public that online in board docs and then later on the website under the strategic planning links all of this information will be there. There's a presentation along with a um almost like a booklet that describes everything that we've done throughout this process and then also documents the draft plan that we have moving forward. Tomorrow staff will get an email with a link to provide feedback and families will get a link to provide feedback as well as that link will be listed on our website. We're truly invested and interested in feedback on the plan so that we can get better. So, if you see something that you'd like to have um added or
042you think could be um you know, an added addition that could really help us to grow, we would greatly appreciate that feedback. And how many minutes did that take me? That wasn't too bad. Less than a minute per slide. That's pretty good. All right. Uh and uh I want to thank, you know, Dr. freeze, but really as it was mentioned, this is a a group project. Um so everybody involved in um really taking an open-minded and datadriven approach um listening to all different groups of the community, students, faculty, staff and the board um and presenting I think a very ambitious um timeline, a very ambitious plan, but one that I think is going to really position the district well for the future. Um, I just wanted to open it to I know this is not
043a discussion item, but just to the board for any additional comments or questions. I just wanted to say thank you as well. I mean, I I don't think I could add anything different other than to say, you know, specifically about the listening. Um, I think you all managed to cover every single I wasn't in every focus group or anything like that, but it's it's just so comprehensive. Um, and I think that's important. You know, I think, you know, sometimes when these things are made, they're more general and, you know, leave some sort of room for interpretation, but I think it's it's great to be very specific. I think it will make um everyone in the community feel heard. And it's super exciting. I mean, I I'm I was counting, okay, how many more years do
044I have with my kids in the district? And I'm like, okay, like I, you know, I'm just excited about the next uh for me five years. Yeah, this is really exceptional work. Thank you so much to everyone in the working group and then the um amount of people that went to focus groups. It was like 500 plus people. 500 for the surveys and I think it was Brandy was it about a hund 200 300 that did the focus groups between student staff and families something like that feels like a really long time ago though it was only three months ago. But again, like echoing Val's comments that this is really data driven and it's based on community feedback, not just based on people sitting at the board or the people in the working groups. It's
045based on the community, which is really exceptional. So, thank you for all our hard work. Thank you. It's also very exciting to see uh community pieces added to it as well as our local organizations and businesses. So, I'm just very excited to see that gap close and see what's next for us and our students. So, thank you. Thank you. Um, quick question. How and when like for the priorities for the year like when how how are you determining that? When when are you determining that? Once we have a final um basically go ahead with the tactics, then we'll put those in place and show them to the board because these will be this plan will guide superintendent goals and executive um council goals, principal goals for the next seven years. So, uh, we're going to
046make some recommendations as to what we think needs to happen immediately and things that, you know, we could maybe wait a year. Look, everything would be amazing if we could do it like right now, right? But, um, we have to be realistic. Dr. Schulu, um, told me that I needed to take a deep breath and, um, allow the process to occur. Uh, because the work is great work and it's actually it's fun work for us to really think forward about our school district. So, um, once we have the tactics completed, everybody is comfortable with those, then we have a document that's a planning document that'll say what years we plan to work on it, and then the board will get a chance to look at that, and then we'll go from there. Awesome. Thank you.
047Now, so if this plan or will a plan will be approved in June, I'm sure, like Dr. Free said, we'll be soliciting input. It will not be this exact plan but hopefully this acronym will survive. Um you know we will have a process also with the board that I'm excited like our next set of annual goals that we adopt um together with Dr. FZ and her team will be based on this new plan. So it won't be very long. Any other questions or comments? Excellent. Thank you, Dr. Freeze and many others. Okay. And we are at board member reports uh policy committee. Miss Guth. Great. Um we went over a lot of policies so I will not detail all of them but I will give a high level overview. So we uh tonight are trying
048to adopt policies 121 which is student trips 313 which is evaluation of employees 317 which is conduct and disciplinary procedures 317.1 which is educator misconduct 324 personnel files 325 which is dress and grooming 326 which is complaint process 333 professional development 334 sick leave 335 family medical leaves 336 personal necessity leaves 338 soatical leaves 339 9 and compensated leave. 702 gifts, grants and donations. 7021 which is crowdfunding. 707 which is use of facilities. 708 which is lending of equipment and books. 710 use of facilities by staff and 824 maintaining professional adult student boundaries. And we'll also be retiring policies JJH which is travel of school groups. GCBD leaves for professional development and sbatical. KCD fundraising and gift acceptance. JJ, student fundraising, and KJ KG, community use and leasing of school facilities, and KFA, which is
049public conduct on school properties, and GBE, which is student communications. One more time. No, wrap that next. The numbers sound really good after you say all those letters. GBE. Yeah. Yep. And uh Excellent. Ah, I need to get back to my list. Next up, we've got uh PSBA and board development. Mrs. Gman, thank you. Um I don't have a PSBA update, but I just have a question slash suggestion. Um, as we're improve approving next year's schedule, um, later on today's session, um, would it make sense to build in time for board development, goal development, um, even on boarding because we'll have some new board members for next year like ahead of time, like just kind of planting that seed because it's always hard to coordinate everybody's schedule. That's a great idea. And maybe, you know,
050we don't necessarily have to vote on those dates because the the the meeting um dates need to be public, but uh I think it would be great to kind of have a maybe board operating calendar that includes on boarding and orientation and training and development and things like evaluations and that we know we have to do. Exactly. Um that kind of goes along with it. That's a great suggestion. Thank you. All right. Next up, um, MLF and PTA council. I'll just announce those both together since they are both Mrs. Gel. Yeah. Okay. Well, I'll start with PTA Council. Today we had our last PTA council meeting of the year. And it started off with the Georgia Pogue Awards ceremony. And um perhaps some of you saw um on on social media um I'm not sure,
051but there were seven students that are honored each year. And um just in case um you don't know what this is, I'll just read just a second. and the Georgia Pogue Personal Achievement Award co-sponsored by the PTA and the Poke family honor seven students each year that have significantly improved their academic performance during their high school career are all-around good citizens and are always there dependable at doing tasks or helping others but not necessarily in the limelight and the honores this year recipients were Andrew Hartung, Sunonny Hickey, Sophia Manzetti, Michaela Matthews, Esther McMahon, Leila Pulot and Joshua Talico. So that was a nice reception and we had um well they had cake um afterwards and then we continued on with our our meeting um and the meetings we'll have people from the library and the
052fire department and police, you know, all give updates. I can't think of anything um that's that's standing out to me today other than um we should not be mailing our mail in any dropboxes. So, not the one outside hometown mail and not the ones outside your post offices because people are breaking into them and stealing mail. I texted several people I know including my mother. Um but anyway, so I thought that was actually useful. Yeah, I saw that on the police social media. Yeah. Yeah. the library is doing their um big reading kickoff soon. So, you know, updates like that. And if you have any questions ever, you can let me know. Um and then uh really exciting update from the MLF. Maybe some of you came to the art show. It was amazing. Huge
053success. We made $7,141 um by selling around 115 pieces of artwork. It went over really well. Um Dr. Freeze I know took something beautiful home and um uh a few others of us did as well. Um so that's exciting. We'll continue to do this. We'll make some adjustments next year, but it's going to be a great partnership. So, thank you to um Mrs. Rodriguez for coming up with the idea. And um we thanked the students um for providing their artwork by giving them a donut breakfast. And and we did drop off something to Mrs. Rodriguez this morning some flowers just to thank her as well. And then tomorrow night we are reviewing five grant submissions for the spring grants. So in June I'll probably know you know which ones of those are accepted. It's my
054longest update ever. Thank you. Um municipal uh liaison and the parks and recreation um board. Mrs. Crrael. Yes. So the municipality and parks and wreck is currently busy. Uh their bond has been approved. So a lot of the projects that we have been talking about uh are getting started. So the pool filtration, the ice rink chiller replacement, a few things have been added. So there's some 88 upgrades happening to Metocraftoft Park. Uh some pickle ball court installations are happening in a few other places as well as an upgrade to our tennis center lighting. I know. Sorry. Sorry. um woodland sidewalks approved and funded. So you will start to see um that work soon as well as some curbs are being redone in Sunset Hills and a few other areas. And they are also starting to
055review their entire fleet for efficiency and hopefully um moving some of the fleet into electric. So there's more to come with that. And if you are a parent that has been lovingly playing hunger games with some of us looking for camps, uh, make sure you check out our parks and recreation link. A lot of the camps are up. There are still some availability for those as well. Hodsby in your favor. Yes, it was a struggle, but but we're in. All right. Uh, Parkway West, Miss Johnson. Um the update I have is that we celebrated last week on May 13th the Parkway ceremony for graduates from all 12 um district schools that attend Parkway and it was a really nice ceremony held at RMU and I'm just really proud and happy for our graduates. Thank you.
056Um Pathfinder School, Mrs. Berdick, they are meeting simultaneously right now. So I do not have a report. Excellent. I did see the draft budget came through, so we'll probably have to consider that in June. It did. I'll have a further update next time. Excellent. And I do not have a Shazda um update. Uh civic engagement, Mr. Hoffman. So, the civic engagement board met a couple weeks ago on May 1st. Um couple of items from that meeting. There are regular sessions called coffee with a cop, open to the community. a lot of really good uh positive feedback coming back from those sessions. Uh leadership opportunity for students. There are uh there's an opportunity for junior commissioners to apply through the mun municipality. Uh really uh we had two junior members this past year and it was
057a really great way to get some student voice uh at the municipal level. Uh there's a lot of planning underway for summer activities uh coming up in June is both Junth and Lebo Pride and the next meeting is uh coming up in just a few more weeks. It'll be Wednesday, June 4th at the municipal meeting uh building. Thank you very much. All right, we do not have any residents who've previously requested to speak. So the next agenda item is questions or comments from residents um on action items for this meeting. Uh these are the agenda items sort of listed below for uh consideration and voting this evening. Do we have anyone who wishes to speak on action items? Anyone online? Mr. Stingle? No. Just hang. Okay. We do not have any unfinished business. Um, so
058we're going to move into policy. And I'm going to start this way because I feel like Mr. Hoffman always gets stuck reading. I don't know. I'm sorry if you practice this lengthiest of resolutions. So, with apologies, Miss Berdick, would you please read uh resolution 6A? Um, yes. I move that it be resolved that the board adopts policies 121 student trips 313 evaluation of employees 317 conduct and disciplinary procedures 317.1 Educator misconduct 324 Personnel File 325 Dress and Grooming 326 Complaint Process 333 Professional Development 33 34 Sick leave, 335, Family Medical Leaves, 336 Personal Necessity leave, 338, Sobatical leave, 339, Uncompensated Leave 702, Gifts, Grants, Donations. 702.1 Crowdfunding, 707, Use of School Facilities, 708, Lending of Equipment, and Books. 710 use of facilities by staff and 824 maintaining professional adult student boundaries and retire and this
059would retire policies. JJ Hig Ja travel by school groups GCB DD leaves for professional development and sabbatical leaves for restoration of health. KCD, fundraising and gift acceptance. JJ E, student fundraising. KG, community use and leasing of school facilities. KFA, public conduct on school property, and GB, student communications. Second. Okay. Um, any questions, comments, or discussion on the policies? Okay. Roll call. Uh, roll call, please. Mrs. Berdick, I. Mrs. Crrabel, I. Miss Flecher, I. Mrs. Gellman, I. Mrs. Gensel, I. Miss Guth, I, Mr. Hoffman, I, Miss Johnson, I, Mr. Wland. I Okay, the next section of the agenda is related to finance. Um all of these items were publicly uh previously discussed and publicly um they include the treasurer's report, monthly lists of bills, the list of tax refunds, budgetary transfers for May, the 2025 2026
060homestead farmstead resolution, the 2025 2026 real estate tax resolution, the 2526 act 511 tax resol resolution, The 2526 final budget, the 2526 list of contracts in excess of $100, the appointment of the school district treasurer, the exoneration of real estate tax collection for listed properties, the municipal real estate tax office audit, the American fidelity supplemental benefits, workers compensation insurance for 202526, the insurance renewal for 202526, the Quadant postage machine lease, the 202526 food services student meal prices, the agreement with UPMC for athletic training services, and the high-speed duplicating and cover stock paper bid A through F. Um, resolution, please, Miss Johnson. I move that it be resolved that the board approves the finance agenda items. Second. Any questions, comments, or discussion on these? All right. Roll call, please. Mrs. Berdick, I. Mrs. Crrael, I. Miss
061Flecher, I. Mrs. Gellman, I. Mrs. Gensel, I. Miss Guth, hi. Mr. Hoffman, I. Miss Johnson, I. Mr. Wland, I. All right. Next on the agenda is the human resources section um including the personnel report, appointment of the board secretary and employee discipline resolution. Can you read the resolution please, Miss Guth? Certainly. I move it be resolved that the board approves the human resources agenda items. Do we? Okay. Roll call, please. Oh, no. Sorry. Questions, comments, or discussion? I just wanted to note that there are two individuals in there for this month. One is to um replace our unit principal which is really really exciting. Um and the second is to congratulate in a few seconds um our director of facilities Jeff Kaiser. Roll call please. Mrs. Berdick I. Mrs. Crrael I. Miss Fleer I Mrs.
062Gellman I Mrs. Gensel I Miss Guth I Mr. Hoffman I Miss Johnson I Mr. Wland I Well congratulations Mr. Okay guys, [Applause] and the uh Vincent Bouters will be joining us um next school year uh as a high school unit principal. The next section of the agenda is related to curriculum and instruction. Um, this includes the act 80 request for 202425, the text a textbook adoption, two textbook adoptions, the AIU comprehensive services agreement and special education addendum, the AIU waterfront learning addendum, the standardized testing schedule for 202526, the marching band and wind ensemble trip to Orlando, Florida, and the concert choir trip to Nashville, Tennessee. Uh, Mrs. Crapel, can you read the resolution, please? I move that it be resolved that the board approves the curriculum and instruction agenda items. Second. Excellent. Any questions, comments,
063or discussion? Okay. Roll call, please. Mrs. Berdick, I. Mrs. Crrael, I. Miss Flecher, I. Mrs. Gellman, I. Mrs. Gensel, I. Miss Guth, I. Mr. Hoffman I Miss Johnson I Mr. Wland Mr. Wland want to try again Mr. Wland. [Music] I'm sorry. I lost you for a second. Hi. Did you hear everything there, Mr. Wland? Yes. We're approving the curriculum and instruction agenda items. Yep. Okay. Thank you. Okay. And the final uh section of the agenda, the other section um includes the designation of voting delegates to the PSBA conference uh and the board meeting schedule for the 2025 2026 school year. Can you please read the resolution, Mrs. Gensel? I move that it be resolved that the board approves the other agenda items. Second. Roll call, please. Mrs. Berdick abstain. Mrs. Crrael I. Miss Flecher I.
064Mrs. Gellman abstain. Mrs. Gensel I Miss Guth I Mr. Hoffman I Miss Johnson I Mr. Wland I and just to clarify um I believe Mrs. Berdick and Mrs. Gellman abstained as they were being appointed voting delegates to the annual PSBA. I love voting for myself and do it often, but I understand. Okay. All right. Uh we are now open for questions or comments from residents. Presentations or comments are to be limited to three minutes. Is there anyone who wishes to present or comment? Anyone online? Okay. I'd like to announce that the board did meet in executive session on May 13th for personnel matters and on May 21st this evening for litigation reasons. Um upcoming public meetings are on June 9th, 2025 at 6:30 p.m. the policy committee will meet in G205 of the high school
065and on Zoom. June 9th at 7:30m, the board discussion meeting will take place in room D205 and on Zoom. And on June 16th, uh the board's regular meeting will take place in room D205 and also via Zoom. Do I have a motion to adjurnn? So moved. Second. Okay.