001The first item on the work session agenda is the pledge of allegiance by Bwood Elementary School students Alia Starchia and Elizabeth Amosul and Gford Elementary student Jane Fel. >> 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. >> The second item on the work session agenda, if I have it correct, is a presentation by Gaford Elementary School principal, Mr. Alan Bridges, and assistant principal, Miss Kelly Menserites titled Walking School Bus. >> Uh, good evening everybody. I just found out a few minutes ago, I know Dr. McGary used to be an athlete back in the day, but we just found out that Jane made it to states in swimming. So, I want to congratulate
002Jay and she came. So, congratulations, Jay. All right. Good evening, everybody. Good evening, Superintendent McGarry, members of the school board, students, staff, and community members. For those of you that I have not met, my name is Alan Bridges, and I have the privilege of being the principal of Gaford Elementary School. I'm joined tonight with our wonderful assistant principal, Miss Kelly Manzeras. And tonight, we want to talk about the success of our walking school bus at Gaford. It's an initiative that was made possible through a grant written by our school social worker. The goal of this program was to foster a sense of belonging among students while also improving attendance and reducing latenance. I'm happy to report that we have been seeing incredible results in all areas. As you will see in the video, both students
003and staff love participating and has strengthened our school community. One of our key objectives, like I said, was to improve our attendance. Gford's average daily attendance is 95%. But on walking school bus days, that number rises to between 96 and 98%. Lateness has also significantly decreased. Our average lateness rate is around 5.7%. But during the warmer months when our walking school bus is really going, it drops to about 2.8%. So this program has had a measurable impact on our students, not only in getting them to school on time, but also in creating a stronger connection to their school community. If you guys could please show the video. >> Our school counselor did a survey um for our third, fourth, and fifth graders. And in that survey, it was discovered that the third and fourth graders
004felt like um there were some worries about walking to school in the morning. We are such a walking neighborhood. We want to make it safer. Even the safest child is not safe walking. We have to cross Marshall Road and I'm not happy having my child cross Marshall Road without an adult. So, makes me nervous. I used to do this walking school bus with my previous school and I thought that would be a really nice way to remind students that they have other students in their neighborhood that they can walk to school together. So, kind of building that community. I put out a survey with families to see if there was some buyin and if they'd be interested and they all were really excited. We thought, hey, this is a great way to get involved. So
005now we have walking school bus. >> I was like confused like what the heck is a walking school bus? >> Each classroom has a flyer with their bus stops that are there what time to come and the teachers are reminded the day before. Mr. Bridges sends out an email as well to parents. >> I'm like oh I kind of want to do that. So I asked my mom, "Can we do it?" She said yes. I saw that the Upper Derby Arts and Education had these grants available each year and I applied for it hoping that it would help kind of balance the cost of the stop signs and the walking vests and um they granted us the grant and we were able to spend it and use it for all of those things. Me and
006all of the other staff members who were involved, we will meet at the front lobby. We will get our vests on, our walking vests, we'll get our stop signs and we all disperse to our corners. They have designated different meeting spots throughout our Garrettford area. So on those days, you can meet an adult from Garrettford will meet you at your closest corner. >> People from like different grades would show up and then that we would tell them our names and then we would like get going. >> We'll take our little group of kids. We'll line them up in a single file line. One staff member in the front, one staff member in the back and then we'll walk to school together. I was really excited because that meant I didn't have to walk by myself.
007When we're walking with the teachers, we can really talk without anyone judging anyone. And the teachers, they stayed with us. So, we knew where we were going. >> And they're also teaching them at the same point, you know, what they should be looking out for. Let's look before we cross the street. Let's move out of the way if someone else is coming. Just, you know, basic walking etiquette. But it's always good to hear it from somebody else other than mom or dad. Then once they get here, we have a little prize for them for thanking them for participating. They get a bucket buck. >> I love it cuz you just walk and you get a prize for just walking and it was really fun >> and it motivates them to keep wanting to do the
008walking school bus. It's amazing. I'm thankful for our teachers who continue to volunteer every month that, you know, they're giving up 30 minutes of their morning time to do this and they've really enjoyed it. The kids have enjoyed it and it's been a really great community builder for for the school. >> You get more people every time like you do it and you get to meet new people. >> If you don't do the walking school bus, I think you should really join it. >> Walking school bus is the best. So, we just wanted to give a special thanks to Jason Taylor for making the video. And we already mentioned Jane, but we also wanted to thank Mrs. Felmy, her mother. Jane's a fifth grader, so we're losing her, but we're also going to be losing
009Mrs. Fel who's done a awesome job bringing back our Gford home and school. After co, we were kind of struggling a little bit. She grabbed the reigns and we're back as strong as we've been a long time. I mean, two months ago, I think we had like 24 25 parents at a home and school meeting, which is awesome. So, and that's all because of her hard work. So, thanks Miss Feling. The third item on the work session agenda is a presentation by Bwood Elementary School principal Miss Kristen Man and assistant principal Miss Janet Nubbie titled student center student centered goal setting and making learning fun. >> Good evening school board president Mr. Desoyers, members of the school board, superintendent Dr. for McGarry, educators, community members, and Upper Derby staff. Thank you for the opportunity to
010speak with you this evening. My name is Kristen Mian, and I am pleased to present a video created by our dedicated staff and students, which highlights two key areas that are shaping our school's approach to education. Student centered goal setting and making learning enjoyable for all of our students. This video showcases how our students are taking an active role in setting both their academic and personal goals. It illustrates their growth understanding of their strengths and areas for development and how this process is making their learning experience learning experiences more meaningful and engaging. By empowering students to set goals that are personally relevant, we foster greater motivation and cultivate the essential skills needed for them to take ownership of their own learning. However, goal setting is only one piece of the puzzle. The other critical element
011in ensuring that learning remains exciting, dynamic, and above all enjoyable. We have worked intentionally to create an environment where students are encouraged to explore their passions, experiment with new ideas, and feel enthusiastic about the learning experiences each day. This video provides a closer look at how our students are thriving in a setting that not only celebrates their individuality, but also prioritizes the joy of learning. When I was growing up, I just kind of would sit and be like, "Okay, this is what we're learning, and you need to know it. You need to learn it." Something at Bwood specifically that I love is that we really get the students involved and immersed in their learning. When you do fun things or hype things up, it really pushes them to do their best. And reading is a
012big part of everybody's life. Every single student in the building has their own data binder in their classroom. Our data binders start at the very beginning of the year. >> We kind of look at their data and then that's kind of how we set achievable goals for our students. >> Each student has a goal whether it be letter sounds or how many words they're reading per minute. And we have the kids color a graph so they can see I grew seven words this month and they get really excited to see those bars get bigger and bigger. And then we continue to do those things monthly to see how they're growing. This system helps us get our mindset in the right place and like my class we're really competitive so like we really want to get
013higher than what we got before. So we really practice to make great success and then once they reach the goal that we had set, you know, we make a new one. That smile and they've reached their goal, you know, it's really amazing. >> Me and Nicarina Gilpin, the uh reading coach for the district for first grade, we were looking at my data from the fall and we were trying to brainstorm something that we could do to dedicate 10 minutes a day to deliberate fluency practice. And what that means is with someone that tracks the text, they read accurately, they read with expression. So I go around the room, I look to see if they are trying to do those things by being a fluent reader, and then if they're caught doing that, like doing the
014things that we talk about, they get a sticker on their sticker chart. So we do lots of different things. Um whether that's in a mirror challenge. Amira is a reading program and it's this character, her name's Amir, and she's kind of like the students guide and helps them with reading. She gives them stories and things to practice and all of that counts towards like their story count. Every week on Fridays, I'll calculate how many stories each classroom has read and then Monday morning, Mrs. Neon will announce our top classes in each grade and then also the top student in each grade. >> In second grade, big news here. Big news. We got a new winner with 289 stories. Miss Lawren, >> every time they win, I put like a little box on their board and
015we have two classrooms who have reached 10 wins. >> My class has been fantastic at Amir this year. We have won, I think, 10 weeks in a row now and they've really bought into if they can read on air and we get our minutes. We celebrate each other. fourth and fifth has a different competition um that uh Mrs. me and runs for Il you have skills and lessons in my class and other classes we're really competitive about it so like we stay on track and we keep doing what we're doing >> student of the month is another fun time we get to celebrate one student for a specific characteristic each month like working hard or growth mindset different things >> and we do something really fun we do minute to win it games we pick
016random names out of the drum that has all the scholar dollars in them and students can earn scholar dollars by being caught doing good things and just being amazing. >> Kids really look forward to trying to earn those, knowing that they have to do those correct things in order to to get up there. >> There's just always a fun minute to win a game. It gets the adults excited. It gets the kids excited. It's something always to look forward to at our student of the month assemblies. I signed my class up for the fanatic about reading program through the Phillies at the very beginning of the year. So, she had her kids um participate in this program and we were lucky enough to be chosen. >> So, we had the fanatic come and do an
017amazing assembly. The kids loved it. The fanatic is always so fun. >> Everyone was laughing and stuff cuz the way he was moving his stomach and stuff. They did like a whole story. Mrs. Nian read the story and the Philly Fanatic acted it out. Miss Brooks got to play his mom with a wig and all. >> I got to be the fanatic's mom in the assembly. So, it was really fun. It was a good time. We often talk about the importance of our relationships with our students, which obviously is so so important, right? Building those relationships with your students that you're with day in and day out, but I think it's also super important to build relationships with the people you work with. So, we thought we were having a meeting with Mrs. Mian and
018Dr. Simpson and we heard an announcement to go to the library from the gym. We changed locations. >> Sorry, everyone. We have to change locations. I apologize. Uh, we should like to have us in the library. >> And then there was a announcement about the first people up there would win. And because we know Mrs. Mun so well, we knew that we were off to something very interesting. At that point, we were so surprised. We really thought that we were going up to the library for a meeting. And we went up and Kristen and Janet had decorated the whole library with all of the colors of the houses. >> The house names are all uh gems. And the reason that uh Mrs. Mean and Mrs. Newbie did that is because we we call ourselves here
019at Bwood the hidden gems of the district. >> Each staff member got to choose where you think you would fit what you thought was most important. >> So there are four houses. Um I brought a little cheat sheet so I could remember them all. Obsidian, the color is black for power, resilience, and competition. Citrine, their color is yellow or gold. It's positivity, success, and fortune. Adventurine, which is green for luck, compassion, and creativity. And we have the great amethyst team. We made bracelets for ourselves as well as t-shirts. We're the purple team, and we're for royalty, relationships, and wellness. And then whatever we chose, we ended up in that house. So, you're working with people who you're kind of like-minded. And then we went down to the gym and we had our first like house
020competition. It was hungry hungry hippos. So we got on these like scooters and we had to pick up balls like with a basket. It was just so fun and it was a much needed laugh. We all were cracking up. >> It was really fun to do those games and get to play with some people that we normally wouldn't. A lot of times it's really easy to kind of get isolated on your own little island with just your grade level team, but I think it's been a really great opportunity to get to know people that maybe I don't really talk to as much on a daily basis. This really forces you to kind of work together and come up with different and unique ideas. I uh created a class dojo just for us here with the
021four team names. It has become a little bit of a healthy competition among the houses on who has the most points. You can earn points for all different things. Some of the points you can earn are for the Amira winners who get announced every Monday. They earn points for their house system. >> My house team Satrine, we brought in pretzels for the whole staff. >> One of the things that earns the house's points um is actually attending a schoolboard meeting. So if you look out into the crowd right now, you probably will see a bunch of Bwood staff. And although we are really here to support the school board and the community, we're also earning some points. At this point in the year when you're counting down towards spring break and you have PSSA's coming
022and all this important stuff, it brightens up the day and happier teachers are going to make happier kids. >> It would be boring if we didn't have fun things to do. But this this school is not more at all. We know this by now. We're paying attention in class doing homework and stuff and that's why we get to do these great fun things at Bwood. >> That's about it. >> First, I would like to we would like to thank Jason for always going along with our fun ideas and he always goes with it. So, we love that. Um, but that's not all. So, I hope that you felt the laughter and the true happiness that comes every time someone steps foot into Bwood. But the only way for you to truly understand that and to
023ensure the happiness that you would feel is to experience it. So, would my Bwood royals please come forward and select your school board member? >> Good luck. You're done. The guy has an advantage. >> Is somebody getting pictures? Oh, he is getting pictures. I see. All right, ONE MORE that we have to do a t stand up. >> Are they coming back up here? They just >> Okay. After that diversion, um the fourth item on the work session agenda is the presentation of certificates for 25 years of service by assistant superintendent of recruitment, retention, and culture, Dr. John Counsel. >> And thank you so much. Good evening members of the board, uh, President Dez Norris, Dr. McGary, uh, members of the community. As we continue to, uh, celebrate and recognize excellence, we know that celebrating
02425 years of service is a is a significant m milestone, uh, an awesome achievement. So, this evening, uh, we are thrilled to celebrate Susan Harris Pinto for her incredible 25 years of service. So, please give her a hand as she makes her way to the front. Dr. McGary, President Des, if you can make your way down to the floor, please. Susan, make your way to the front. Uh, S Susan began her career as a special education assistant at Hillrest Elementary School uh before joining the team at Gaford Elementary School in 2008. Susan's colleagues describe her as caring and a patient individual who makes a a meaningful difference in the lives of her students each day. Uh Susan's commitment to supporting students reflect the heart of our district's mission. When asked what kept her here for
02525 years, the conversation that we had to today, uh Susan shared that it's the wonderful people she's had the pleasure of working with and she gave a special shout out to her principal, Mr. Bridges, uh whose leadership she deeply values. Susan, thank you for your hard work, your dedication, and Susan, we like to uh personally thank you for every door that you open in that car line. We say thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Please give her another hand for 25 years of service. Congratulations again. Congrats. The final item on the work session agenda is a message from UDA UDA leadership Linda Fox UDA president. First, I wanted to say that I was really upset earlier this well actually at the end of last week when I heard that several board members are stepping down.
026And it is bittersweet when we hear that board members are leaving because there's a great deal of time and energy that goes into building relationships with a school board and building relationships with the central administration. The central administration cannot build those strong relationships with us as a teachers union unless they have the foundation that the school board provides. So, while it is bittersweet on one end, we're we're thrilled. If you are leaving school board, we are so appreciative for you. We want to say whatever it is you choose to do, best wishes. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you so much for your volunteerism for a job that is seemingly never ending sometimes. So that being said, I do I I would like to make a request and I know that you as
027board members do not have much power in the choices as far as who takes those o those open school board seats. If you do have any say or any voice, what we are requesting is that candidates for school board are willing to come to this board and they are willing to continue building the relationships that we have currently. They are willing to put aside whatever preconceptions they have, whatever ego they might have, whatever their thoughts and feelings are. Because at the end of the day, the work that is set for this school, this school district is for our students. We need board members, and I mean we need board members that are going to come to this board and that are going to be willing to work with us. We need board members that are
028going to come and celebrate the diverse community that each of us celebrates every day and every second that we work here. We need board members that are willing to work with Dr. McGarry as he does this incredibly challenging job that he's trying to do with over how many students at this point. Dr. McGarry? >> 12,000 students. And I know in my teachers union I have 894 members. So he's working with that and much more. So if you have a voice, all I'm asking is that you use that voice to let incoming board members know or people who are being nominated that this job is very serious. We need good people. We need people who are going to come here and work with us with an open mind and with a caring heart and celebrate what
029we are as a district. Thank you for letting me come up and speak. Have a good evening. Dr. Fox, I would like to thank you and UDA leadership for a very thoughtful uh message and uh board leadership would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that it is the role of a school director, a school board member uh to act in the best interest of all children and families. Thank you. There was a closed session this evening from 5:30 p.m. until 6 pm for matters to be discussed within the limitations for closed deliberations as prescribed by Pennsylvania Act 93 of 1998. For this evening's meeting, there were personnel and litigation matters. Before I ask Mr. Rogers to take role, I will note that I have communicated with board member Pentino Picatini KO uh who
030is prevented from attending tonight's meeting due to a necessary absence from the district. As a result, board member Picentini KO is excused from tonight's meeting. Roll call. Board Secretary Mr. Rogers, please. >> Miss Britney Williams, >> present. >> Miss Deborah Williams, >> present. >> Mr. Osine, >> present. >> Mr. Fields, >> present. >> Mr. War Savage, >> present. >> Miss Glenn, >> present. >> Miss Murphy Mercy, >> present. >> Mr. Desawyers, >> present. The district posted this evening's agenda to board docks at least 24 hours prior to the commencement of this meeting. Is there a motion to approve that previously posted agenda? >> So moved. Second. >> Are there any amendments to offer? >> There are no amendments. >> The agenda has been moved and seconded. All those in favor, please say I. >> I.
031>> Those opposed, please signify by saying I oppose. >> Those abstaining, please signify by saying I abstain. Motion carried. The minutes of the combined work session regular meeting of February 11th, 2025 are in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for its adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? >> Yes. The minutes incorrectly reflected Miss Pency and Tini Cal Ko, Mr. Fields and Miss Glenn were present at the February meeting. I move to amend the minutes to reflect that they were not present. >> Do we have a second? >> Second. >> All those in favor of the amendment say I. >> I. I. >> Any opposed? With that correction, are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say
032I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The report of the secretary is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. Oops, I'm sorry. The report of the secretary, uh, Vice President Murphy Morrisy. >> The report of the secretary is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public and I move for it adoption. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. I. >> I. >> Oh, did I forget a second? >> Do we have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you. Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those
033in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The report of the treasurer director Brittany Williams. >> The report of the treasure is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for it adoption. Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. We will now have the report of the student representatives, Tessim Yasmin and Timothy Beiju. Take it away, guys. >> Good evening, board president, vice president Murphy Morrisy, members of the board, Dr. McGary, and our wonderful community. For this month's meeting, we visited
034Primus and Westbrook Park Elementary School. >> Primos Elementary is an outstanding school in the Upper Derby School District. It has a lengthy history, diversity, and a strong dedication to helping kids succeed. Primos Elementary was built in the 1950s, shut down for a bit, became a YMCA and a library, and finally reopened as a school in 1992. Since then, it's been going strong with a mix of veteran teachers who have seen it all and younger teachers bringing fresh ideas. It serves kids from kindergarten to fifth grade and even has dedicated autistic support classrooms with about 75 students in those programs. Primus doesn't mess around when it comes to learning. Teachers focus on personalized learning. Students can get help where they need it and aren't thrown into the deep and without support. Oh, and parents are involved
035too because nothing says motivation like knowing your mom might check your grades at any given moment. >> Now, let's talk about the real MVPs of Primos. Principal Mr. Rogers and assistant principal Mr. Cassertano. Not only do they run the school with transparency and strong leadership, but they also have great personalities. This dynamic duo makes Primos feel like a family, not just a school. Oh, and they gave us free t-shirts. That alone earns them bonus points. Not just leadership, but all the staff focus on building a strong community, staying ahead of educational trends, and ensuring kids are ready for whatever comes next, whether it's middle school or just figuring out how to survive another day of homework. Our next visit was to Westbrook Park Elementary, an important part of the Upper Derby School District, serving around
036470 students from kindergarten to fifth grade. Westbrook Park is home to the district's multiple disability support program, providing a great providing great autistic support for fourth and fifth graders. The school is built for accessibility, ensuring that students with mobility challenges can navigate the space without issue. The environment is structured to support all learners, reinforcing the idea that education should be inclusive and adaptable. Rather than separating students with disabilities, Westbrook Park integrates them into the classroom environment whenever possible, fostering a culture of understanding and support among all students. >> Westbrook Park's design is honestly pretty amazing. The classrooms are spacious and the school's layout is unique, featuring an octagonal library. The gym is another highlight. It's not just a standard space for PE, but comes equipped with gymnastic equipment and even a rock traversing wall, making
037gym class way more exciting than just running around in circles. In recent years, Westbrook Park has gone undergone major renovations, including new LED lighting, ceiling tiles, improved air conditioning, classroom fans, and a fresh coat of paint. All of which have given the school a muchneeded refresh. And the upgrades aren't stopping anytime soon. Floor renovations are planned for the summer, ensuring the school continues to provide a comfortable environment for students and staff. >> Leading the school is principal Mr. Comfort, whose experience and leadership helped create a positive and welcoming environment for both students and staff. Alongside him is assistant principal Mrs. Bush, who despite this being her first year, has already made a huge impact and loves being part of the West Park community. Whether it's in whether it's in the hallways, classrooms, or even at
038recess, the staff works hard to make sure every student feels seen and supported. A conversation that came up with our friends at both Primos and Westwick Park was the excitement toward the incoming Clifton Heights Middle School. It's clear that both communities will greatly benefit from having a middle school in the area. Both staff and students are eager to experience the new middle school, and we are looking forward to see how the district changes with the new addition. >> That's all for March. Thank you the board and our wonderful community for your time. Have a great evening. >> TNT out. >> Taz and Tim, thank you for an informative report. You are now excused. Okay, moving on. The budgeted personnel and enrollment reports have been made available to the board and the public and are recorded
039as part of the record. No vote is required. We will now have the report of the superintendent, Dr. Daniel McGary. Good evening, board president, Desire's, Vice President, Murphy Marcy. My uh friends here on the school board, thank you so much for all that you do. Kyle, Craig, thank you. The two student reps that left, uh they're beautiful kids. I I hope you get an appreciation. And so some of the elementary school teachers, I mean, that's all your how all your hard work pays off. I mean, they're just amazing amazing kids. Every year we probably have the best and brightest, you know, kids that come up here to represent the student body and they they do an awesome job. Um, I see some familiar faces in the back of the room. I want to start off
040by just saying to to Allen, you're not only a great coach, Allan coaches uh varsity basketball at at a rival at Ridley High School, so we won't boo him about that. Um, but he's also an excellent principal. So, I appreciate, you know, you and and and Kelly, what you guys do at the school. It means a lot and the staff that's there. So, thank you. And I agree, Miss Felmy. You didn't get us. If you could stand up, we would like to applaud you for for what you do. Definitely a strong voice and and is out a lot. Last night was on was on a call asking good questions on the district home and school. So, I appreciate your involvement. It takes a lot. So, I want to say thank you. And to the Baywood
041crew, you know, for me, it's it's like a homecoming. Although it's been a long time since I've been there. Time time flies. Uh to to Janet and to Kristen, awesome, awesome job. We should have won. The student uh that I partnered with was involved in student administration day and she walked up to me in the performing arts center and she told me, "I'm coming for your job." Uh so that was refreshing and we lost so she has to work on it. I would I would I would let her know to do that. Uh we don't like to lose. I'm happy to see data still matter matters at Bwood. So that that's good to see. Um, good good stuff with both those schools. So, I appreciate it and thanks for leading us in the pledge this
042evening. I hope to be as brief as I can. I know there's a lot of folks that want to get home and get on with the rest of the conversation tonight. So, I'm going to recognize students and staff and and just celebrate what we do here in the school district and recognize the excellence that exists in the classrooms and out of the classrooms. Um, talk to you a little bit about this the um music that takes place in this district. Typically, that's who usually fills up the room most of the time. I I want to say that a lot of our our music students are so talented that I don't think there's a month that goes by that we don't recognize your efforts and I appreciate that uh in the room. And then I'm also
043going to talk a little bit about, you know, recognizing some teacher accomplishments, but also the budget uh budget updates. Just keep that at the forefront of what we do here in the district and then and then close out my report. I'll begin this evening with, you know, recognizing the great effort of teachers and staff. Uh, Miss Beck, if if you can stand stand up and if we can get the microphone uh and bring it front and center. Yeah, come on. Come on up for a second. So, it's really whenever you're a superintendent or or an administrator in the district and probably a schoolboard member, you really sometimes early in the morning, you you you grasp on positive emails because there's a lot of emails that come through and tell you what what what a job
044you do that might not be great all the time. So, I usually get unbelievable emails from Doug or or Mr. Bchure or Miss Nelson, you know, all the awesome first place, you know, excellence that happens in the music program. And this time I clicked open an email and by the way, Miss Becket, we started our careers together. I was an English teacher at the same time when I came to the school district as a graduate and we worked together. And I had this email and in bright bold highlighted capital letters, this is what the email said for it was yelling at me literally and she's a former English teacher. So, for the first time in the history of Upper Derby High School, the Upper Derby ethics team won the Delaware Valley Regional Ethics Bowl. And
045you know, I I don't want to steal the thunder of giving some of the comments and the updates. First, I want to say to you, thank you for staying committed to this district, for all that you've done with the kids. You have an unbelievable energy. By the way, Sue is also a drummer. Did you guys know that she plays the drums? Um, unbelievably cool. You know, right? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, she plays the drums. She was in a band. She's she's the real deal. Um, and so if you can, Sue, I if you can just share I know we blew the doors off of uh some schools and we don't want to overly brag about that, but I understand the score of 154 to 147 and the topics that the kids were were covering are
046pretty out outstanding. Can you just quickly grab the microphone and just celebrate it? I I could read it myself, but >> can I read it? >> I'll read it for you. Your your piece. I just wanted you to get the credit for your effort. That's all. Students research the facts of the cases and study philosophies of Aristotle, Bantham, Kant, Hobbes to formulate their their responses. And they they had to talk about rigorous demanding content, right? 15 cases. And they had to cover things such as vegan pet ownership, deciding which nations are deserving of hosting international sporting events, the ethics of tourism, social bonding with AI models, boycotting as a tool of for activism, and the ethicality of voting third party or choosing not to vote at all as a form of civil protest. Could go
047on and on. They entered each round winning and and and really dominating and then it came down to the final round and as I understand it uh you won the judge over so much that you dominated the final round and took home took home victory. And so the email you should know was probably more enthusiasm that you felt she felt. You could feel it from the email that came through from her to central administration and to the team. So Sue, I want to say thank you to you um to uh Chris Nielsen. And I don't know if Chris I didn't see Chris come in this evening. >> Okay. Awesome teacher at the high school who works with us as well. Just an awesome accomplishment. So, if we can get the students to come up. I
048remember the first time I heard the Quillin family when you moved into the community, we created a a unique situation for you to attend and participate in the program. So, John Peter Quillin, I was assistant superintendent at that time when your mom called. I remember like it was yesterday. Um, Sabrina Galott, Khloe Thompson. Khloe I've known since her freshman year is uh a go-getter to say the least. Uh, Sylvia Langston and Delaney Jordan. If you can come forward, we'd like to recognize you and then get a picture with you with the president and vice president of the board and then we can have your family and Sue come on up and get in the picture. Dr. Parkinson. So, just continuing with the academic excellence that exists in the school district, we have three National Merit
049Scholarship finalists. Just want you to hear that. Three National Merit Scholarship finalists, Azain Aban, Abdullah Iloi, and Emily Fishbach. Emily, I know you're here. Is everybody else just just you tonight? Come on up. We'll get your picture. You deserve to be recognized. >> Emily, you might as well stay there. You're gonna be honored again next. So, I know the the the music teachers are with us and you you can certainly come up with when we call the students up to get in the picture, you deserve to be a part of that. S, you too. Even though you're the new guy on the block, you can certainly join the crew. So, just recognize the PMEA award winners. Uh, Pennsylvania Music Education Association Region 6 Ensembles. Uh, congratulations. They were selected through their audition process. Um, it
050seems like every single month, you guys must be exhausted. Every single month, uh, the talented students come forward. Uh, and I really appreciate what you do, the dedication that you guys provide the kids. So, region orchestra. So, we can have you come up and then we can clap after. That'd be great. Uh, violin Emily Fishbach region. Or or you could clap now, dog. It's okay. You're excited. Clap. Go right ahead. Emily Emily Fishbach, violin. Benjamin Davis, French horn. Sarah Gentiel, bass clarinet. So, that's regional band and regional orchestra. And then regional chorus, Josiah Marker, bass 2. Uh Cole Macintosh tenor two, Michael Olania Olani base one, and Jinu Hangma Ry, which is alto 2. Now we can clap for those guys. Come on up. So, we also have two two al outstanding teachers to recognize.
051Franklin um mint credit union winners and they're they're usually nominated by staff or administrators in the buildings and we have two. I want to first selfishly recognize Miss Elizabeth Galley who works and has worked for years at Bowwood Elementary School in the EL department. So, if you can come forward, Miss Galley, it means so much. All your dedication. You You could call me Dan for the first time tonight probably if you're okay. Yeah. Listen, Miss Galley to this day calls me and asks me asks me if she could take the students out on her own uh and work with them on the yell. It was a constant fight when I was the principal at Bwood. She has so dedicated to work with the students. She's outstanding. Just an awesome awesome teacher has been here for
052years. Can't thank you enough for the work that you do at Biwood. You're always happy and so so so awesome to work with. So, thank you so much. I appreciate it. and you deserve this award recognized by your your colleagues and and obviously uh the dedication to this district. It means a lot. So, thank you. And then another famous teacher in the district that is winning an award with you is I don't think he's I don't think I don't see Shawn. Is he here? Oh, we're hiding back there. How could I miss you? So Sean Kerry, who worked in in many different roles in the district, was a lead teacher at one time, was thinking about becoming an administrator, but his love for art drew him back into the classroom, uh, and then went back
053to becoming an art teacher and has been an art teacher at Garford for a long time. Also, you should know Sean's mom spent many, many, many years on this school board as a president of the school board, too, back in the day. But Shawn Kerry, awesome job, awesome teacher at Gaford Elementary School. Good job. So, the final part of my my comments this evening are about about the budget. Some key comments of the state budget. Um, as teachers, you might want to you might want to hear this, but maybe not. Um, key key components of the state budget. Um 526 million for underfunded schools in the commonwealth consideration. 75 million be distributed through the basic education form funding formula. 40 million for special education. This is in addition to what we we were trying to
054get last year in the state. 25 million for school facility improvements totaling 125 million. 40 million allotted to fund student teacher stipens. That's up from 20 million last year. Uh interesting fact that when the teacher stipen for student teachers opened this year, 3,000 applied and the system couldn't handle that's how many future teachers want to be compensated to be student teachers. And it just there wasn't enough money to cover that. $111 million for safe schools, 5.5 million for career technical education, and 41.6 million for pre preK students. Also, the conversation in the budget is about setting cyber tuition rates for $8,000 per student, which would have a significant positive impact here for the school district. That's been discussed probably for the last several years, and from what I hear, has had bipartisan support, but never
055seems to get across the finish line. What does this mean for the Upper Arby school district? If the proposed Shapiro budget were were to pass, we could be looking at potentially $9 million more in in uh in funding. We have to keep in mind that we're anywhere between 16 to $21 million short every single year in state funding. Nonetheless, there was a promise that over the next six years, we would have an increase in funding from the state. So, I'm going to continue to come forward and provide these updates as we navigate our budget with also the state budget. There's also rumors out there of possible federal funding cuts. I promised the home and school last night, the district home and school, and and I promised the public and the board if there's any information
056that comes out about any federal funds that would be were to be cut, title one through title 4, I'll be sure to bring that forward and talk about plans we would have uh to implement in order to balance our budget if that were to take place. Also want to give an update that I participated on February 24th uh 21st at a public advocacy event hosted by Children's First in Wallingford. Um, and I was joined in that by many schoolboard members from around the county were in the audience and I appreciated their support. Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanland was there, State Representative Leanne Krueger, um, Delaware County Council President and former board member Dr. Monica Taylor uh and community member Cynthia Isles also participated and we were advocating for increased funding and the need for funding uh
057in the Upper Derby School District, William Penn School District, Chester Upland School District, Southeast Delo, school districts in the southeastern part of the state that are among the most 100 underfunded in the Commonwealth. I'll continue will continue to advocate for increased funding here in Upper Arby and I'll continue to come forward and provide those updates uh on a monthly basis if not a more regular basis. We have a lot to be proud of here in Upper Arby that obviously you saw as the room kind of left. I wish they would have stayed for the rest of it, but I understand. Um, and board president Deser, this ends my report for this evening. Thank you, >> Dr. McGary. Thank you very much for your report. We will now have an update on the February 25th, 2025
058Education and People Services Committee. >> Okay. >> Uh, >> yes. will uh read the summary. A detailed summary of the meeting including public comments can be found on board docs. >> Okay. So the education and people's service committee meeting took place on February 25th. Um going through the agenda, the adoption of resources for art and music, which does require board action tonight, was discussed. Um the K12 guidance plan which also requires uh board action was discussed. Um classroom diagnostic tools CDTS uh for secondary science classes which also requires board action tonight. And then we have the U. UDSD certified teacher uh registered apprenticeship site and possible grant opportunity which also requires board action tonight. And then policies uh 200 and is enrollment of students. 202 eligibility of non-resident students. There were no public comments. And
059are we okay with moving forward with tonight? Okay, that concludes the review. Thank you very much. We will now have an update on the February 25th, 2025 Finance and Operations Committee meeting. Miss Murphy Morrisy will read the summary. A detailed summary of the meeting, including public comments, can be found on board docs. >> On Tuesday, February 25th, as mentioned, at 6 PM, there was a finance and operations committee meeting. All board members were present. Um the items discussed with a 2025 bot issuance which requires board action. The report on annual water testing which wasformational policies were um are for board action is policy 005 organization and there were no public comments. >> Thank you very much. Director Murphy Morrisy Director Hussein. The instruction and curriculum report. Uh the instruction and correlation report is in the
060hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for this adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The person uh the personnel report uh uh director Deborah Williams, would you like to read it in Director Pentini KO's absence? Sure. >> The personnel report is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for its adoption. Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those
061abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The policy report first reading. Uh, director Wor Savage. >> Thank you very much. President Dawyers, there's only one policy for consideration for a first reading during this particular meeting. As a reminder, a policy must be considered at a future meeting, committee meeting to and then undergo a second reading for a before a policy is ultimately adopted. Uh the policy undergoing a first reading this evening is policy 14 regarding gifted education. A brief summary of the updates to this policy uh are available on board docs. But just as a brief summary since we're having a conversation right now, policy language was added to multiple sections including the authority section which address which addresses pardon me tongue tied which addresses uh the district's gifted program including the following components. The
062district's process for identifying gifted children in need of spec es specially designated instruction. gifted special education programs offered by the district and reports of gifted students, personnel and program elements and costs as required by the department education. Again, there's a summary that is available on board docs. There is a lot of useful information and any kind of feedback that we can get from the public as we have these conversations about our policies because they ultimately affect who you guys would be much appreciated. >> Thank you, Director Waravage. and you may now continue with the policy report second reading. >> Thank you kindly, Mr. President. The policy report is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for its adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments
063from the board? >> President Dawyers point of order. Do would it be necessary for me to read the summaries at this point? >> Uh if you mention a summary is available on board docs, that's fine. >> Yes. As a friendly reminder everyone regards to these policies as well, summaries are available on board docs. >> Are there comments from any other board members? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The supplies report. Director Fields. The supplies report is in the hands of each board member. Has been made available to the public. I move for it adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the
064public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The transportation report also director fields. The transportation report is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for its adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. >> Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. >> The facilities report. Director Glenn. >> The facilities report. The use of facilities report and the donation report are in the hands of each board member and have been made available to the public. I move for their adoption. >> Second. >>
065Are there any comments from the board? >> I just want to personally thank on behalf of the board anyone who made donations to Abra School District um in this in this report. >> Thank you, Director Murphy Morrisy. Are there comments from any other board members? Are there any comments from the board? All those in favor, please say I. I. I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carried. The finance and budget report. Director Deborah Williams. >> Thank you. The finance and budget report is in the hands of each board member and has been made available to the public. I move for its adoption. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >>
066I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. >> Motion carried. We are at the time for collateral assignment reports. Does anyone have a collateral assignment report? Director Wars Savage. I just want to remind the board if they can before this coming Friday to share with me their ideas for programming at the UDAF's new arts center that is coming up. Um, also the next meeting for the foundation, which I will be attending and look forward to providing a robust update at that time, will be I was going to say August, April 1st. >> Thank you, Director Deborah Williams. >> Yes, thank you. Uh, I have a report for the IU. Um, the IU appointed a new board member, uh, Kevin Henry for Walling for Sworthmore. Um, also I wanted to
067let people know the legislative breakfast um is on a calendar for Friday, May 16th at 7:30 a.m. at the Morton Education Center. So if you'd like to attend um put that on your calendar now. Um also just wanted to remind everyone also DCIU has a great ESL program specialist program. If anyone is interested in getting their certification to teach ESL, just throwing that out there for the public and for our fellow board members up here. And um finally um the IU got a grant to support student mental health. It was a CHOP grant via the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Uh pediatric research grant was awarded for a little over $400,000. Um so that's all the information I have for DCIU. That concludes my report. Thank you. >> Thank you, Director Deborah Williams. Now, now Director
068Glenn, thank you. >> I wanted to make sure she was recognized first. Um, I want to say thank you to uh Dr. McGary because you read my entire legislative council report. So now I don't have to do it. Um, the only thing that I do want to mention from communications is that this month we are going to be celebrating and honoring women's history month and also um I encourage everybody to read the um school director's newsletter monthly because we have an advocacy corner and it can give you directions on where to go to help advocate for the funding that we need and to make sure that um we continue to receive the federal funds that that are necessary for our school. So, thank you very much. Thank you, director. >> Uh, Men and Hall Tyson
069Scholarship Committee. >> Yes. Um, I'll provide an update. We did have a meeting on uh in February, February 21st, I believe. Um, and I was not able to stay for the full meeting, but I did stay for the beginning and introductions. Um, and they went over various agenda items I can forward to the group. Um, also I participated in the wellness committee. Um, was my first meeting on Tuesday, February 11th. I attended virtually. Um, I thank Dr. Brian your son for welcoming me. Um, and they are putting out some great lessons the first week in April um, for wellness week. >> Excellent. Home and school director Murphy Morsy. >> So there was a home virtual home and school meeting yesterday evening. I was not able to attend. Dr. McGary did um let me know this
070evening um in an executive session that it was a a good meeting. The um community had lots of questions about um about uh brain freeze about the Clifton Heights projects about the potential uh other other projects that are happening around the district. Let's say that. >> Thank you. And uh director Glenn also mentioned uh communication in her when she spoke. Uh Mr. Wars Savage addressed the foundation and uh technology director Hussein. On February 27th I had an opportunity to virtual meeting with Mr. Director Mr. Kiten and our school superintendent Mr. McGary. I gained comprehensive understanding school district technology infrastructure. uh this discussion provided the highle overview district IT frameworks and covering the critical areas such as networking, iCloud computing, cyber security and system administration. Uh during this conversation I explored how to district manage the
071network architecture support shameless connectivity across the school. Uh ensuring reliable access to digital resource for the students, teachers and administrative staff. Uh we also discussed the role role of the cloud computing enhancing efficiency, data storage and remote learning capabilities. Uh cyber security is the key focus uh as we examine district strategies safeguarding sensitive information meeting uh cyber threat maintaining complaints industry standard. Additionally I gained uh insight in the district system administration process including the user management software deployment and IT support uh service that helps sustain day-to-day operation. Uh this session provide valuable knowledge about the technology backbone support our schools and proactive measures uh placed to ensure secure efficiency IT environment. I reinforce the importance of the continuous innovations and investment technology to enhance educational outcomes in the operations operational. Thank you. >> Thank you
072very much. We are now at at the time for old business and I will say there is one item of old business on the agenda and if you give me a moment this is lengthy. Um I would like to put forward the following resolution. Be it resolved that the Upper Derby Board of School Directors reapprove all reports and related agenda items that were approved and voted on during the February 11th, 2025 combined work session and regular in-person and virtual meeting. I move for the adoption of this resolution. >> Second. >> Are there any comments from the board? Are there any comments from the public? All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed, please say I oppose. Those abstaining, please say I abstain. Motion carries. Is there any other old business? >>
073President, I have gohead a couple items. Um, a few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of going to Beverly Hills Middle School's uh production of Moana Jr. It was personally my first time seeing a show in the renovated uh auditorium. Um I performed there many many times as a student and just to see the transformation of the stage, the engagement of the parents, the lights, the sound. Oh my god. Every time I would go there previous to the public investing uh its funds in bettering our infrastructure and our schools, the the the sound would just simply keep on popping. I could never pay constant attention. And as someone who is a musician who enjoys the art of performance, when your concentration is broken by something as b that might be benign to other people but
074isn't to some sound quality that has an impact that makes a difference. And to just enjoy uh that production in that space that evening uh was was a joy. Uh last week I also had the pleasure uh as well as many of us reading at Bwood Elementary School. Uh it's always a pleasure being there. I also was able to run into a few of our members in blue uh the Upper Derby Police Department who also came to volunteer and read to our students. And earlier today, myself and the amazing Dr. Kelly have visited our family consumer science class uh this morning for something that was called their quickfire competition. Um there's there's a there's a bigger plan in place for this kind of activity on a community scale, but for what myself and Dr. Kelly
075had participated, it was a quickfire challenge. And so Chef Wyatt, the teacher, uh gave the students less than 30 minutes to prepare a meal with a specific ingredient. This time it was breakfast and the ingredient was potatoes. So there were five or six different class uh groupings of students that were in the kitchen making these uh beautiful presentations on a plate and I literally felt I was living my best life in a Hell's Kitchen episode because every time the the teacher would say check the time or do this or do that like you would hear on the show minus the no no swear words it was yes chef yes chef yes chef and it was just amazing to see that the the leadership of our amazing teacher and chef FY uh being responded to by
076the students like that. And another uh observation myself and Dr. Kelly made among many uh was the fact that students uh took it upon themselves to become leaders within their groups. We were able to hear the conversations that were going on as they were cooking. And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't say that the food was just awesome and I went home with a happy belly. So, it was great all around. Dr. Kelly, did you actually want to add anything to that experience? Thank you very much, Director Waravage. We are now at the time for the public hearing. We will call on Upper Derby School District residents who signed in to address the board in the order in which they signed in, followed by emailed and phoned comments. We would ask that
077you come forward, give your name and address, and present your comments in the 3minut time limit. In accordance with policy 903, the time allotted for general comments, both in person and submitted comments, will not exceed one hour. So I have two two names on the list for people who signed in to speak in person. The first one is Aaron Guard. You may come forward, state your name and address and uh present your comment in the threeminut time limit. Aaron Guard 2413 Devon Lane 1 19026. Good evening board of directors and superintendent McGary. I am here on behalf of the Upper Derby band and Orchestra parents known as Udibbop. Last March, I attended a school board meeting to draw your attention to our concern that the Upper Derby High School Music Department was receiving insufficient funds
078to pay for the marching royals and indoor indoor percussion competitive seasons at that time. And for years prior, UDubop was being asked to provide the missing funds to cover the staff, musical equipment, show fees, props, and uniforms needed for our students participation in these ensembles. We did this by fundraising and by charging student dues. Dues are unfortunately a huge challenge for many families in our community. I am pleased to share that due to the support of the board of directors and of the outstanding high school music department, some expenses for the competitive seasons that were previously the responsibility of families have been covered. Udbop has also received reassurance that the payments for marching royals and indoor percussion staff will be revisited at the next teacher contract negotiations. While UDub still needs to require dues, because
079of the district's support, we have been able to charge less in the 2024 to 2525 school year. We expect to continue dues reduction for upcoming seasons. UDBOP will be happy to meet with you to elaborate if needed. The Upper Derby Ben and Orchestra parents extends our gratitude to the board of directors and to superintendent McGarry. We invite you to visit our spiritware table at an upcoming music event. so that we can offer you mu a music shirt in your choice of size and color. Thank you for continuing to recognize the success of our music students, including the four-time state champion Marching Royals. Thank you also for increasing financial support for these programs. During a time of uncertainty when so many families are worried about making ends meet, you have helped us to make music programs
080more accessible to all of our students. Thank you. >> Thank you. The second speaker, I believe the name is Angie if I have it correct. Uh, an address on Maple Road? >> No. Uh, Miss Buford, are there any submitted comments? >> There are no virtual comments. >> Is there a motion for the adjournment of the meeting? >> So moved. >> All those in favor? I >> I >> Meeting is adjourned.