GFSD School Board Meeting 5/28/25

001Hello. Okay. Good evening. Um, the time is now 6 PM and I would like to welcome you to this meeting of the Granite Falls School Board. Um, I would ask that you all stand for the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. like to hand it over to our superintendent Dana Gies for our land acknowledgement about this one. Maybe we honor the first peoples of these lands by acknowledging that the area in which we gather is within the within the traditional territory of the Stilt Gomeish tribe of Indians. The Stilgish people have inhabited these lands and waters since time in memorial and their descendants have remained in this

002territory to this day. The Stilgish people have continued to practice the traditional ways of their ancestors of fishing, hunting, and gathering. The Still Gish tribe has had these lands and cultural traditions passed on to them by their ancestors who believe that everything has a spirit and that they are the caretakers of these lands and waters. Thank you. Tonight in attendance, uh, starting down at the far end of the table, we have director Gaulner, director Dne, director uh, Leoo, Director Kerry, myself, Director Cancane, and our superintendent, Dana Keies. Um, before we get started on success in Ed, um, we wanted to introduce uh, the new principal for Monte Cristo Elementary, Maria Losi. She's in our honesty stand up. Welcome. Welcome. Um, and then I'm just going to hand the mic over to Miss Gizland, and she's

003going to kind of MCE the rest of this for a little while. All right, we will start tonight with our success in education. I see many bright shiny faces out there. And this is such an amazing time to honor um our students who are doing it right in the classroom. And it's about um their hard work and their perseverance and who they are, their character, and all of those things. So we will start with Emily Moore who will um present about Crossroads and Open Doors High School. Thank you. Good evening. It is my pleasure to introduce two students from Crossroads High School. The first is Stand by. Let me open the notebook. Jaden Sadino Mather. Come on down. Jaden is a remarkable student whose dedication, kindness, and passion shine in everything he does. Known for

004his artistic talent and creative spirit, Jaden brings a unique perspective to both the classroom and our special and amazing Crossroads community. His intelligence is matched by his humility and his willingness to help others. Always uplifting those around him with a generous heart and a positive attitude. Jaden approaches every challenge with determination and grace, excelling academically while also pursuing his love for fashion. It has been an honor having him at Crossroads. For Mr. Davis, he says it's an honor having him in his check and connect and watching him succeed in so many different aspects of life. Welld deserved and proud of you, Jaden. Congratulations. Hold on. We'll have you guys come up in a little bit for a great big picture. I wanted to see if Kaia Henson is here. Ka, are you here? Ka's here.

005Yay. Come on down, Ka. Ka is an amazing student. She is the class of 2025 validictorian and she has worked so hard. Yes, please do give her a round of applause. Ka has a truly kind and compassionate soul. Her deep love for both people and animals shines through in everything that she does. Always willing to help and never one to judge, Kaia is a loyal friend, a thoughtful listener, and a constant source of support to those around her. Despite working full-time, let me say that again. Despite working full-time, Ka has achieved the honor of validictorian while maintaining an impressive 4.0 GPA. Did I say working full-time? Kaia is dependable, hardworking, and consistently brings warmth and positivity wherever she goes. Her quiet strength and unwavering dedication are nothing short of inspiring. So proud of you, Ka.

006Congratulations. So proud. Wait for your certificate. I would like to invite the principal of Mountain Way Elementary, Reora Dela Cruz. All right. Can you hear me? Okay. Okay. So, Mrs. Dowy, she's our kindergarten teacher. Are you out there? Okay. Do you want to come down here? And of course, Tayy, we need you to come down here or up here, I guess I should say. So this is Tyle Swanson and her kindergarten teacher, Miss Dowy. Can you guys see Kaylee? Okay, Taylee is an incredible student both academically and socially. She has become a strong reader and you can often find her reading one of our decodable readers when she finishes assignments early. Ty also has a passion for writing and trying to stump her classmates with trying to read words. Most of the time this ends

007in constant giggles from all students. Ty is one of those students a teacher is so grateful for. She's a helper even without being asked. A student spilled their snack. Tay is there. Someone needs help zipping up a coat or walk to the office, she's the first one to offer. Tayy is kind, compassionate, friendly, and just a little bit sassy. This is her teacher speech. She is what I like to call my Velcro student. Wherever I am, you can find Tay. She has grown leaps and bounds this year, and I'm so proud of her. She likes to tell me often that she isn't going to do going to go to first grade, but I can't wait to see what she accomplishes in the future. Congratulations, Tayen. Okay. Really am organized. Okay. So, our second wonderful student

008is Tiffany Biole. Tiffany, are you here? Tiffany. All right, Tiffany. Mr. Campbell and Mrs. Grabbner both couldn't be here due to family reasons, but they are so excited for you and so proud of you. Do you want to stand by Mrs. Gillet? So, Tiffany consistently demonstrates an exceptional commitment to learning. She remains fully engaged in learning from the moment she enters school in the morning until she walks out the doors in the afternoon. Tiffany is considerate and helpful to her classmates and teachers. When a neighbor needs support, academic or otherwise, Tiffany is always willing to lend a hand. When a teacher needs a reliable helper, she is eager to do her part. Tiffany's commitment to fully engage in lessons has resulted in significant learning growth. She has successfully gained academic skills that will help her

009moving forward. Tiffany takes pride in completing her work to a high standard. She completes tasks with patience and diligence, ensuring that her work meets her own high expectations. Tiffany's teachers are thrilled to work with such an outstanding student who understands the importance of learning and who works diligently to reach her learning goals. By the way, Tiffany's a first grader. Let's give Tiffany a hand. Okay. Our second grader, Miss Steinbrick, are you here? Okay. So, Mrs. Steinbrick is the teacher of Isabella Carmona Barrera. Isabella is a shining example of a positive role model in our second grade class. She consistently demonstrates kindness, compassion, and a willingness to help others, creating a welcoming and supportive classroom environment. Her thoughtful actions and respectful behavior inspire her peers to follow her lead. Isabella approaches every task with determination and

010a strong work ethic. Always striving to do her very best. Whether working independently or collaborating with others, she makes responsible choices and can be counted on to do the right thing in every situation. Her positive attitude and integrity make her a valued and admire member of our class. Isabella's favorite subject is reading. Her favorite specialist is music. When she grows up, she would like to be a teacher. I am lucky to have Isabella as a student this year, and I can't wait to see the amazing things she achieves in the future. Congratulations, Isabella. All right, Monty Cristo, come on up. Is this principal Newent? Good evening everyone. Thank you for joining us. We have our very first recipient. Please come down. Oilia PVN. She's a third grade student. Her teacher is Miss Schmidt. Oilia truly

011embodies the qualities of an MCE minor. She consistently demonstrates dedication and commitment to her learning and has shown remarkable growth across all subject areas. This year, Oilia approaches every task with enthusiasm and always puts forth her best effort, giving 100% every time. As a student council member, she has showcased her leadership abilities and her passion for making a positive impact in our school community. Oilia's love for learning shines through in every subject and she's always eager to share her ideas and offer support to her peers. Her teacher and I are incredibly fortunate to have her at our school and we are extremely proud of the progress she has made this school year. Oilia's favorite part of the day is PE and when she gets to spend time with her teacher, Miss Schmidt A. She loves

012playing hockey and always enjoys lending a hand to her teacher. Oilia's favorite book to read is Matilda, which her class is currently exploring through a book study. Oil Oilia loves spending time outdoors, especially riding horses. During the summer, she enjoys attending horse camp where she can do both of her favorite things. Oilia has a passion for horseback riding and loves being outside. Congratulations to you, Ailia. Our next recipient is Sophina Sion. Please come on up if you're here. Okay. She is not available tonight. So, we'll move on to our next recipient, Luke Thurby. Please come on up if you're here. It seems like the sunshine is keeping people away tonight, and that's okay. Please give them both a round of applause. Please welcome our next speaker, Miss Ward. Okay, this evening we have three wonderful

013middle schoolers. The first one is going to be Danielle Lind. Okay, so this sixth grade teaching team is excited to announce Danielle Lynn as the success and education winner for fourth quarter. Danielle is a positive force in the classroom through her strong work ethic, kind attitude, and willingness to help others. She shows dedication to each of her classes and is a hard-working student who consistently puts in the effort needed to excel academically. Her determination to succeed drives her to stay focused on her goals. She's prepared for class, completes her assignments in a timely manner, and checks in when needs um clarification on new concepts. Perseveres when additional assistance with assignments is needed. She even makes sure to find out what assignments she's going to miss before planned absences. What a responsible kiddo. Likewise, Danielle shows

014respect to both her peers and teachers, creating an environment where everyone feels valued and included. Always polite, positive, kind, and respectful. She helps others understand concepts and skills and works kindly with them to complete their assignments. Danielle creates a better classroom for everyone. and her positivity and leadership truly stand out, making her a true success in education. Congratulations, Danielle, and thank you for all that you do to make our school a better place. Congratulations. I would like to welcome up our seventh grade recipient, Maddox White. So, congratulations to Maddox White for receiving the success in education award for the fourth quarter for the seventh grade. Maddox is a truly special student. He is consistently kind, respectful, soft-spoken, and has a great sense of humor. He is also intelligent and always puts effort into his work.

015Maddox earns excellent grades and always checks in if he is absent to find out what he has missed or what he can do to get his grade up. His teachers admire Maddox's strong sense of right and wrong. He always chooses kindness. Maddox has lots of friends and is very involved in his education. Every day he brightens our day by sincerely asking how his teachers are doing and wishing them a good day. The simple gesture says so much about your character. Just seeing Maddox bring a smile to his teachers faces, he doesn't just make our day better, he makes Granite Falls Middle School a better place for all of us. We are excited to see all that Maddox will accomplish throughout his middle school years and beyond. Once again, congratulations to Maddox White for having a

016stellar seventh grade year and winning the success in education award for the fourth quarter. Thank you, Maddox. Congratulations, kiddo. Thank you. You're welcome. And for our eighth grade, I would love to invite up Amaya Rhodess. And I have to tell you, she's pretty like amazing that the eighth grade team wrote a book. So bear with me. Okay. Amaya. It is our absolute pleasure to recognize Amaya Rhodess as a recipient of the success in education award. Amaya is truly one of a kind, an outstanding student, teammate, and friend. From the moment she walks into a room, she brings a quiet strength that uplifts those around her. Whether it's offering a helping hand in the classroom or encouraging her teammates on the volleyball court, Amaya consistently shows up with kindness, grace, and determination. Amaya exemplifies our rock

017standards in everything she does. She is respectful, takes advantage of opportunities, is a part of our community, is full of knowledge, and is always ready to serve, not just in the classroom, but in every setting that she's a part of. She is everything you could ever hope for in a student. Thoughtful, dependable, hardworking, and always willing to do the right thing, even when no one is watching. Though she tends to be on the quieter side, Amaya is always tuned in. She listens closely, learns deeply, and when she chooses to speak, her words carry weight. Her classmates respect her, not just for her intelligence, but her genuine thoughtfulness and care she shows in everything she does. Amaya is the kind of student who makes teaching a true joy. Hardworking, considerate, and always striving to do her

018best. A dedicated volleyball player, Amaya pours her heart into everything she takes on. Her perseverance and work ethic shines through both on and off the court. She is a kind person who leads by examples, not for recognition, but simply because she knows who she is. She values her education, respects her teachers and peers, and shows day after day what it's meant to be a well-rounded, compassionate young person. The eighth grade team is going to miss her more than words can say next year. Granite Falls High School is incredibly lucky to have her joining their community. We have no doubt she'll continue to thrive and inspire everyone around her. We are so proud to present this award to Amaya Rhodess. She truly represents the best Granite Falls Middle School has and we can't wait to see

019all the amazing things you do next year. Congratulations, Amaya. Thank you, kiddo. And I would love to welcome up interim principal Dave. I'm gonna try to say this Ban Keiny. So, we have four outstanding uh recipients tonight. And our first one is our freshman, Winchester Aurman. Come on up here, Winchester. And as he's on his way up here, I I break these up into three different parts. They write a little biography about themselves, what their goals are, hopes, dreams after high school. And then the teachers say a little bit. and then I kind of dig a little bit deeper into just some what their name means and and for your parents to see if if what your name means truly is his character. So Winchester, he is off to a great high school start. He's

020a one of our uh 4.0 students. So he's number one in his class. Um he's a writer and a contributor for our Tiger Tribune, which is our school newspaper. Uh in our last play, The Pink Panther, he had for a freshman, he had two major roles. He played coach Comet and Jarvis. And if anybody got to see the play, you got to see him do a wonderful lipsync of Madonna in full costume. It was great. He self-proclaimed himself as Miss Sullivan's favorite freshman. He loves playing video games, loves to draw and write both for the newspaper and just for fun. Loves reading. His favorite series is Terry Pratchett's Discworld. After high school, he wants to pursue a field that will allow him to write or make visuals for games or books. Winchester, here's what the

021teacher say. Winchester is a dedicated is dedicated to his education, involved in the high school experience through his involvement in the theater department as well as the Tiger Tribune, and as a role model for classroom engagement. He is very deserving of this award and I have no doubts he will go on to have a fantastic high school experience and be a leader of his class. Winchester is a joy to have in class. He asks great questions and is always willing to help his classmates. He demonstrates deep curiosity and I enjoy seeing the different strategies that he uses in order to solve math problems. Now his name Winchester. It's an old English name meaning the dweller at the fort. Winchester is charming and persuasive. They make the best out of any social situation. He has an

022aura of intuition and inspiration. A personality that goes along with others easily wanted stability in all life aspects. His greatest emphasis is on real connections and devotion and trust are his core principles. Pretty accurate. Mom, where are you? Pretty accurate. Let's hear it for Winchester [Music] Aman. Our next sophomore is Joy Nean. Joy, come on up here. So, I when I was chatting with Joy yesterday, I just kind of remind her, hey, today's a big day or tomorrow's a big day. Wednesday is a big day. You got um you get to go to get success in Ed. And she looked at me and she was like, uh I was going to get a car that day. I can't make it. She got her car before and so we're okay. two weeks ago, um she came

023to me two or three weeks ago and she said, "How come I'm not winning any awards? I'm a 4.0 student, number one in the class. I do everything right, and I don't have anything really to do with these awards except get to announce them to you guys." The next day, um the nominations for success in Ed come out and she is one of the nominated ones. And so, um, it certainly when I, um, got to tell her that she won the award, um, my secretary had to come in and like, what's going cuz she was screaming so loud with excitement. So, it's an award that she truly wanted and she truly deserves. Like I said, she's a a 4.0 student for the sophomore class. She's number one um, for our sophomore class. She takes AP

024world history, preAP English, marine biology, and geometry. She plays libero on our volleyball team. She was inducted into the National Honor Society. Um she's applying to be one of our school board representatives and I think she'll be an outstanding uh candidate for that. She plays on the Summit Sports Northwest volleyball team, plans on getting more involved at her church. She volunteers at Crossroads helping teachers sort, file, and organize. She's also done a lot of volunteering at our food bank uh this summer and in the past. She helps coach volleyball at the middle school and during open gyms. So you you can see she does a lot of things to keep herself involved. Here's what the teachers say. Joy is an outstanding student who consistently demonstrates a high level of dedication and excellence in our ELA

025pre class. She is an active and thoughtful participant, contributing insightful ideas and helping to elevate the classroom discussions. Joy is always ready to learn and excited to help those around her. I can't always count on her to be engaged and prepared for class. Joy Neman has been a great student to have in Spanish one and Spanish 2. She strives to be successful in everything we are lean learning. She contributes her answers in class and always asks for clarification when she doesn't understand something. She is a great student. Her name just like what you would think it would be. It means great pleasure or happiness. They have a deep sense of obligation to maintain high standards. Check. Warm charm, intuitive intellect and a strong sense of responsibility. Check. Solves problems with ease and logic. Caring and

026sympathetic toward their friends. Always ready to offer a help and support when needed. A powerful force for good, bringing joy, love, beauty, and a sense of justice into the lives of others. From what I know of Joy, um, that's pretty accurate for, uh, from my perspective. So, let's give a big round of applause for Joy [Music] Nean. Our next two candidates are two seniors who um really when I look at their four years here and knowing them in middle school, they've accomplished just about everything you could imagine through their high school careers. Fantastic athletes, fantastic students. Uh they're involved in just about every aspect of the school. uh without them next year um somebody's really going to have to step up to fill their roles because both of them have had a huge impact on

027uh Granite Falls High School this year and the past uh four years that they've been here. And I'd like to bring up our first senior and she is our ASB president, Ava Arga. She's also the lead producer for um our advanced multimedia class. Just about anything that comes out at Granite Falls High School in video, Ava has had uh input in it and it's always very stellar. She can even make me look good as an actor. She's a National Honor uh Society treasurer. She played varsity softball and soccer. She's a band lead uh and plays the snare drum. Uh so you can see just kind of how busy this young lady is at Granite Falls High School. But there's more. She was a food drive coordinator. Um and here's she is involved with Wangi. What

028is Wangi? Washington National Guard Youth Camp counselor, devoting over 500 hours throughout her high school career. After high school, she plans on attending Shoreline Community College and study film. She then plans to transfer to a 4-year school out of state. She must not like the weather and want to get some better weather. She plans to study film also. She also plans to continue her work with Wangi as an adult. Ava is funny, bright, and ambitious. She always is a hoot in class and giving and gave a stunning performance as ghost in our class reading of Shakespeare's Hamlet. She will surely shine in her film career. What else can be said about Ava that hasn't already been said? She is a creative force for the AMM department, an outstanding student academically, and more importantly, a good

029person. Her humor, her strength of character, and her work ethic are just some of her finest qualities. Her name Ava means lively. All her activities prove that for sure. You are not a builder but a planner. Bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. Cooperation, partnership, and association are key attributes. Fostering harmony among those they encounter. They are peacemakers. They have a fear of being alone, but she is patient and natural ability to nurture others. And I think that's pretty spot-on for Ava also. So, let's give a big round of applause for Ava Arson. Congratulations. And again, our final senior um just about has done everything you could hope for from a student at high school. And that's Isabelle Fry. Come on down here, Bella. This young lady has really had quite a month. Um she

030was our first of two Herald athletes of the week. Um won a scholarship for the Rotary last week, success in ed winner, all conference softball. Um she's two weeks away from graduating. Tomorrow is as our um scholarship night where kids get um other scholarships. She was invited to that. Um, so what a way to end her senior year going out in style like she has all four years here. She's a 3.9 GPA, top 10 in her class. She played volleyball for four years. She was a key player in their run to being one game away from making it to state. She's played softball for 15 years. Uh, played for the Granite Falls High School softball team for the last five years. When they were eighth graders, it was right at the co time. um eighth

031graders got to play. She was a uh pitcher and they a group of them got to come up here and play. And one of my favorite memories and I've shared this with her parents. She's an eighth grader um and she got to pitch a game and it was against Sultan. Um she strikes out her first batter ever and just runs off the field and jumps right into her dad's arms. Um and I just like man this she's going to be a great one and and absolutely has turned out to be first team all conference in softball four of the five years that she uh participated two-year captain on softball. She's the vice president of honor society. She's a member of HOSA our health occupation students of America. She loves hanging out with friends golfing during

032the summer. Loves attending theater productions with her mom. They're an active member of the Father's House church, attending every Sunday. She volunteer coaches at the Boys and Girls Club for volleyball for three years. After high school, she plans to attend college to pursue her dreams of becoming an occupational therapist. After she earns this degree, uh, Superintendent Geese and I have already decided that she's coming back here um, and be our occupational therapist. So, there's a job waiting for her. She's quiet, thoughtful, a rock star of sixth period English 4. Always ready with an insightful answer when you need one. She's a great person, a friend to her classmates. The work ethic is top-notch, and the follow-through of accountability is impressive. She not only performs at a very high level in softball, but in the classroom

033as well. She put in extra work with her busy schedule to do extra review for the AP psych test. I'm sure she did great on that. Isabelle means pledge to God. Bella means beautiful. Deep desire for partnership and harmony. A sense of fulfillment, a dedication to service and a deep connection to universal love. She aspiring to make the world a better place. Example of sympathy and compassion. Natural ability to acquire money and independence. Individuals who have experienced a wide range of personal and spiritual growth. And from what I know again about Bella, that's spoton. So congratulations Bella. You are well deserving of this award. Give it up for Bella. There you go my dear. Congratulations. All right. if we could have all of the success in Ed award winners um come to the front and

034the board as well and we'll get some pictures and another round of applause for all the amazing things our students are doing. We got to fix this. a lot. Careful there. Let's go. Board in the back and younger's in the front. And parents, feel free to do whatever you need to do to get pictures. You're going to have to squish it a little bit, guys. All right. I'll go up here. All right, we'll move on to the next part of our program and we have four awards for our bridgeuer awards and our bridgeuer awards recognize the amazing relationships that so many adults in our system uh make with our students and we know that it starts with adult student relationships. The the research is very very clear on that. So we are so looking forward

035to honoring uh four people tonight. Um also a special thank you to Pillchuck Espresso. they um have donated generously without us even asking um a nice gift card uh to each of the winners. And so not only do they get an amazing wood um award, but they also get a gift certificate from Pillchuck Espresso. So thank you, Pillchuck. So we will start off um tonight we have the joy of honoring someone who exemplifies the heart of our work with students, Miss Lissa McGee. and Paris, if you could get the wood awards. I think they're over on the uh Marissa Lissa is a student supervisor at Monte Crystal Elementary and one of this year's Bridgebuilder Award recipients. Lessa's presence on campus is one of connection, consistency, and care. She meets every student with warmth and intention,

036creating a space, especially during recess, that feels safe, inclusive, and full of joy. Whether she's organizing a group sport, inviting a student into a new game, or simply offering a smile and encouragement, she ensures every child feels seen, included, and valued. And she doesn't stop there. On fun Fridays, she rolls out a speaker. I have seen this. I sort of want to be in fourth grade when this is happening. She rolls out a speaker and plays music, transforming the playground into a celebration. It's just one example of how she adds creativity and heart to everything she does. Her effort efforts helped shape a positive school climate that lifts up students and staff alike. When Lissa found out she was receiving this award, her response was a perfect refle reflection of who she is. She shared

037how humbled she felt, how much she loves every student, and how grateful she is to be part of the Monte Cristo team. In her words, she's just one part of a group of caring people who show up for kids each day. And she made sure to thank her fellow student supervisors for the collective work that they do. That humility, that heart, that deep understanding that our work is stronger when it's done together. That's what makes Miss Larissa a bridgeuer. She reminds us that having the right people in front of kids matters. And she's exactly the kind of person who makes school a place where students feel like they belong. It truly does take a village to help young people grow into who are they who they are meant to be. Miss Lissa is not only

038part of that village. She's one of its brightest lights. Congratulations, Miss Larissa. We thank you. We honor you. And we celebrate the difference you make in the lives of students every single day. All right. For our second bridge builder award, we honor someone whose classroom radiates joy, compassion, and deep connection. Emily Williams, Emily Williams, a beloved teacher at Mountain Way Elementary. Emily starts each day the same way with a big smile and a warm good morning for every student who walks through her door. It may seem simple, but that daily welcome sets the tone for everything that follows. Her students feel safe, loved, and excited to learn. Because they know their teacher is truly there for them. Emily has a gift for seeing each student's unique strengths, especially those with more complex needs. She approaches

039every child with patience, kindness, and an unshakable belief in their potential. She's not just teaching. She's building trust, cultivating confidence, and creating a space where every child feels like they belong. The proof of her impact can be seen in the long line of families who request her year after year. Because once a child has had the Mrs. Williams experience, they want that same joy and care for every sibling who follows. And it's not just within the walls of Mountain Way. Mention Emily's name in the community and hear stories of her extraordinary teaching, her warmth, and the lives she's touched over the years. Emily, you are a teacher every child deserves to have and every parent hopes for. You are a true B bridgeuer, connecting hearts, growing minds, and inspiring everyone around you. We are so

040lucky to have you in Granite Falls. Please join me in celebrating Emily Williams, an educator who continues to make a lasting difference one student at a time. And we will move on to our third bridge builder award recipient. Someone who has a quiet strength behind so much of what makes Mountain Way Elementary feel like home. While Sue's Parish couldn't be in person here this evening, she did, in true Sue's fashion, send a heartfelt message of gratitude. She wanted me to share how truly honored she is to receive this award and how sad she is to miss being with all of you tonight. But I can promise you this, her presence is very much felt. Suz is one of our incredible secretaries at Mountain Way Elementary. But if you've spent even a single day in Granite

041Falls, you know this title barely scratches the surface. Suz is without a doubt the heart and soul of Mountain Way. Her colleague said it best. Suz is the heart of Mountain Way. She has done incredible work this year in helping Mountain Way run each day. Whether it's greeting families, tying little shoes, or comforting a nervous student or a worried parent. And perhaps most powerfully, Susa's been in Granite Falls for a generation. We now have families enrolling their kindergarteners who once sat in the in her office themselves. Her deep connection to this community is unmatched. She doesn't go just go above and beyond. She lives there. Let me tell you a story, one that says everything about who Suz is. Not too long ago, I was walking down the hallway at Mountain Way and a young

042student fell into step behind me. She looked up and she said, "Where you headed?" I said, "I'm going to the office to see Miss Suz." Her face lit up and she said, "Me, too. Miss Suz is my grandma." I smiled and said, "You're so lucky." And without a hesitation, she looked at me and said, "I know." That's Suz. Whether you're a grandchild, a student, a staff member, a parent, or even a delivery driver, when you walk through the doors of Mountain Way, Suz welcomes you in and makes you feel like you're hers. On behalf of all of us in Granite Falls School District, we say congratulations, Suz. Thank you for being the bridge that connects hearts, homes, generations, and we are so proud of you. And our last bridge builder uh that we're honoring tonight

043is Miss Eileen Brower. All right. It's my honor to present our our fourth bridgeuer award to someone whose work has truly opened doors for students. Special education teacher Eileen Brower of Granite Falls High School. Eileen has created a powerful and engaging transition program for our 18 to 22 year old students. Through her leadership, this program is rich in experiences, hands-on in learning, and real world skill building. Her students are gaining essential tools that will serve them in their post-secary journeys, whether in employment, further education, or independent living. Eileen builds bridges not just into adulthood but into possibility. She makes sure her students feel seen, heard, supported, and successful every step of the way. One nominator shared, "She actively engages with students to make them feel seen, heard, and supported, and successful. She offers emotional support

044and encouragement while helping a vulnerable student population achieve their potential." A future Granite Falls High School transition program parent wrote, "She has already made my son feel a part of the program. Even though he doesn't start until this fall by inviting him to evening events and checking in with him when he attends." That's who Eileen is. She doesn't wait for the official start date. She starts building and belonging early. She creates opportunities for students to try new things, connect with peers, and feel confident in stepping into the next phase of their lives. Eileen, your deep care, strong leadership, and relentless commitment to your students futures define what it means to be a bridgeuer. You're not just guiding students across the bridge. You're helping them build it step by step with the tools they need to

045thrive. Congratulations and thank you for all you do for our students and families. Granite Falls is better because of you. Go back maybe two slides. Uh, we wanted to announce also, we're going to transition here. Actually, sorry. Could we have the bridge builders come up? Let's get a picture really quick in front of the bridge builder sign and honor them once more. And you get to come up and actually stand behind this amazing sign that um is on the stage. And we might move that TV just a smidge. to be able to get that picture. You can come up on the stage behind there. Jen, could you help move that just a little bit to the towards the door? All right. And one more round of applause for our bridge builders. And one more quick

046um thing that we wanted to update everyone on and then I know I'll turn it back over to Director Kinc Kaid. Uh we are starting a a golf program for um the fall at Granite Falls High School. We offer two more girls sports than we do guys sports. And we're trying to balance that out a little bit. And tonight we'll be ex um presenting to the board a check for $5,000 from Mark Pigot who donated to the program to help it get off off and running. So thank you to Mr. Pigot for that. And thank you to the parents and Mr. Manini who have really lifted this. We are really excited to offer this opportunity um as a fall sport and we have a golf course that we've secured a partnership and a pro that's

047going to help us as well. So, thank you to everyone who's stepping in on that. And then spread the word. If you would like to go out for golf, see Mr. Manini. He can definitely give you the details. So, I'm really excited to get the opportunity to um honor some students today who have accomplished something pretty extravagant. Um this evening we proudly recognize a group of exceptional students who have demonstrated not only academic achievement but also linguistic and cultural fluency. Established in 2014, the Washington State Seal of Biiteracy honors public high school graduates who have achieved an intermediate mid-proficency in both English and at least one additional language, including American Sign Language and tribal languages. This distinction celebrates the power of communication across cultures and affirms the value of multilingualism in our global society. It

048also refle reflects our belief that all graduation pathways should honor diverse talents and skills including the ability to think, speak, and understand in more than one language. These students have met rigorous standards to earn this recognition. And in doing so, they enrich our schools, our community, and our world. So, I'd like for you to please join us in congratulating them on this outstanding accomplishment. The first student that we recognize tonight. Some of them might not be here and also I apologize if I butcher your name so I might try hard. All right. First one is Genesis Flores. Is she here? No. Okay. Um, Alexander Vargas Reed. Congratulations, uh, Jeremiah or Jerry Umans Ualdi. Congratulations, Manuel Carmona, Eric Diaz. Oh, oh, yes, there's a track mate. So, some are not here. Uh, Nadia Dur, Michelle, uh,

049Aalos Reenega, and Crystal Lopez. Congratulations. Oh, we're going to take a quick picture. While we're doing that, we're going to go into a five minute little recess. So, if you guys want to stick around, you can. If not, you can take off and enjoy the rest of the sunshine we have for today. Thank you guys for coming. also was uh participated um came by for the dedication of the Um some amendments that were recently passed. There were uh seven that were recently passed. Some that we already mentioned uh the sanctioning of girls flag football in high school. So that went through. Um another one that I found interesting. So middle school players can now participate in three contests per week. So if we want to get them out there working more, we can do that.

050Um, and then also for soccer, both middle and high school, if you are up by eight or more goals, high school after 60 minutes or middle school after 45 minutes, the the contest is off. So, score early, score often, go fast. Um, but those are just a few of the things from WIA. Uh, in terms of comments, um, right, it's going towards the end of school here. Everybody's winding down, but there's also a lot of exciting things going on. Um, I know my daughter is always the most excited. She has a a ice cream event on Friday in class. Um, and then I can't go a day without hearing about field day, which is fantastic. Um, field day is always so exciting. Uh, obviously at the the secondary schools, we have graduation. Um, it is

051that is their day, a day for, you know, to celebrate their achievements, everything that they've gone through. they've been in this they've been in a school system for 13 years um if not this one for 13 years and so really want to you know applaud those accomplishments there um and you know success in ed too you know just each one of these nights it's just a great reminder the the amazing students that we have I mean you know most of the students that came up too you know you could say you know Ava was also she was sitting next to the board a few years ago as well provided great guidance um you know we have a a ton of amazing students and the bilingual um or multilingual even um you know having that capability

052I could not I took three years of Spanish in high school and God bless them they are they are fantastic um to be able to to learn that and so I just really want to you know applaud all of our students and everything we're getting here towards the end of the year graduation field days all sorts of fun uh and celebration coming So, um, yeah, I'll start with a legislative update. So, I serve the board as the legislative rep. Uh, in that volunteer role, kind of my my job is to, uh, advocate for Granite Falls, Gran Falls students at the state level and to also communicate back to the board what's happening in Olympia as it relates to education. And, uh, I haven't given my end of session report. So, I uh I thought I'd

053um do it today. So, um a couple of of well, I I will say that the results for public education um with the close of the session is kind of a mixed bag. Um some good, some bad. Um, just to start with the good and I guess I should preface this with saying that, you know, nothing that I say after this is is saying that I am not highly appreciative of Olympia and um their support of public education. Um, it it was a very very tough year fiscally and you know to get any increases in K12 funding uh with a tough tough budget is outstanding. And so I'm I'm certainly not sour grapes about that, but you know, I certainly have other opinions about some of the other changes. So, um, just going over the

054numbers real quick. Um, we, uh, K12, um, got an increase of about$2.46 billion dollars, which is a fantastic sounding number, and again, it is. Um, but, uh, most of that about 2.1 million billion was already allocated. It was money that was already committed and spent and stuff like that. So, um, you know, not a huge gain as it relates to budget, but better for sure. Um, about $321 million of that was for special education. Certainly money well needed. Uh, 78.9 million for MSOC. MSOC stands for material supplies and operating costs. uh and about $113 million for LEA um local effort assistance for smaller districts. All great stuff. Um fantastic. But I guess a couple of of just asterisks that you know certainly want the board and and anyone watching to know. Um there was a

055lot of discussion um before the beginning of the session relative to the amount of the uh the state's budget that was allocated for K12. At one point um it was in the 50s 50% of the budget um which you know the uh mccclary and and and all of the things that kind of led us up to this um you know if it's the paramount duty of the state right you would you would assume that that would be certainly a paramount part of the budget and so there was a real push and what felt like a lot of movement um in Olympia initially to write the ship in that to get you know K12 funding back closer to 50%. Um the unfortunate news is we actually dropped went from 43.4 to about 43.2. So movement in

056the opposite direction. Um not great. Um there was also some uh some cuts um that really sting. Um uh the transition to K12 or K to kindergarten funding um was capped um saving the state about 74.6 billion or million dollars, sorry. Um the uh they also took about $8.4 million uh from uh ESDs reduction to career connected learning as well as um about $138 million in OSBI grant eliminations which is dual language support, homeless student support um which we certainly have a lot of unfortunately a lot of homeless students in our district which is heartbreaking. So, um, again, just kind of going through the reality of the numbers for us, you know, there was there's about a billion dollar shortfall statewide in special education funding. Um, and we got about um, hold on, I always

057like to be specific in the numbers that I give. Um, I believe we got about uh, 274 million million dollars. So, about a quarter of what was what was being asked and what is uh uh unfortunately um lacking. And then uh there's over a billion dollars of loss in MSOC funding. And so MSOC is basic operational needs, food, electricity, insurance. I'm sure as everyone knows here, just like my own personal insurance, insurance costs lately have just skyrocketed. Um something we don't have any control over. We just have to pay the bill. Um there's over a billion dollars statewide. um shortfall in that and we got about $90 million. Um also uh there was a big push to um redo update the student transportation student transportation formula um that uh doesn't really meet the needs of

058a lot of communities. I would say us being one of them. Other communities like Sultan smaller have a small mill districts like us. um the legislature didn't even touch that and they increased the gas tax which actually unfortunately goes the opposite direction. So like I said kind of a mixed bag. I I don't I hate ending on a pos on a negative note. Like I said, we got with K12, there was a greater amount of money provided there. And thank you um specifically to um our legislators here in the 39th um Carolyn ES um Sam Low and Scott Wagner. Um uh they are they've been fantastic. Anytime I've called them, they've always picked up the phone. Uh they're going to be here tomorrow for to to tour our school. um they are uh they are

059very supportive of of some of the things that we're trying to do. Um so I I certainly don't want to cast any dispersions about them. You know, we we got I think the best that we could kind of get this session. So um other than I bet I'll just take some questions if the board or anyone has any. No. Okay. That's all I've got. Okay. Excellent. Um, as far as my comments go tonight, um, I will I don't have anything prepared, but based on what's next in our, um, agenda here, I thought that I should say a little something. Um, so I have decided, uh, not to seek another term on the school board. Um, so this will be kind of my last run. January will be the end of me. Um, but I have

060to say that my reasoning for this, um, you could blame Granite Falls because it is not I don't want to cry. Why am I crying? Um, I wouldn't be here in here or in my job without the influence of Granite Falls School District. I started volunteering in classrooms when my daughter was in kindergarten. She's now in sixth grade. Um, I found my love of education volunteering in those classrooms. Um, and then I became a substitute teacher and I got to actually teach in those classrooms. And it was because of that I went back to school because I joined the school board as a stay at home mom. I went back to school um, and I got my master's degree in elementary education. And now I am a first grade teacher and I'm going into my

061third year of teaching um, this next year in second grade in a different school. But I wouldn't be there, I wouldn't be here without Granite School District because that's where all of this passion started. Um, so I just want to thank the whole school district for just being a huge inspiration to me. Um, so I just wanted to address that and say no, I will not be running. Um, and I've loved every moment. I've made lifelong friends, family, um, and I'm going to miss it, but I haven't until January. So, I'm not going to cry yet. I have until January. So, um that's all I wanted to say about that. Um so, moving on to item number 4A is our reorganization. Um where we discuss electing presidents, vice presidents, etc. So, Mike, please please. Okay.

062So, I I couple of things on this. We've um obviously we have to elect new members of the board and it has to be a roll call vote. So we'll have to go you know I I I or whatever. Um and uh um then um obviously the if whoever is elected for chair will facilitate the rest of the meeting. So we'll have like an official pass at the gavl and and stuff like that. So um during this anybody can make any nominations or anything along those lines and then um we'll I believe that you have to ask if there is anyone else you have to ask I think is it three times like before we go to vote or something like that. So that's it. So if you want wherever you want to start chair

063um yeah we'll start with that. Uh, I would like to nominate uh Peter Leoo for board president. Second. How many you are there any other names? Are there any other names? Any other names? Any other names? No. Okay. So, now we go down and vote on it. Okay. So, director Carrie I. Director. Hi, Hi, Director Goff. Hi, myself. I Okay, congratulations. So, now you call for votes. That was a quick turn. Passing of the gavl. Okay. So, now we'll look for any nominations for the vice president board. I would like to nominate Bill Dane for vice president. I second. Okay, there's been a second. Are there any other names? Any other names? Any other names? Okay. As we'll start down with director conc. I. Director Kerry. Hi. Myself. I gain. Hi. Okay. Okay. And then

064we also there's quite actually a long list not just listed here, right? There's prom. Yes. Oh. Yes. So, is that not in here? It's It's on the computer. Oh, okay. Yeah, it's I do believe that uh that it is next, but I'll tell you for sure. Oops. Okay. Um, yes, President Pro. Okay. So, I'd like to call for nominations for president prom, which is effectively third acting as presidents when president and vice president are not available. nominations. I would like to nominate Can I nominate as president? Right. Okay. I'd like to nominate Director Cochner Evans Pro. Second. Okay. Any other names? Any other names? Okay. Uh we'll start down. Director Concaid I. Director Gary. Hi. Director Dane. Hi. Director Gner. Hi. Myself. I Okay, that's enough. So, the good news is for the rest of

065them, we don't even realize. Okay, perfect. Okay, so now the next is a call for nominations for the legislative rep. I'm happy to continue servicing this till January. I certainly think the board is okay with that. We'll appreciate that. Yeah. Yeah. Don't you have to give an official nomination? I'd like to Carl Kerry to stay as our legislative representative. Okay. Second. Okay. Motion's been made and second. All in favor? I I Carl is my Okay. Uh nominations for WIAA representative. Um and I'm happy to continue that unless somebody else would like to do that. I nominate Peter Leuke to remain as WIAA representative. I will second. Okay. Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? No. Yeah. Okay. And then uh community liaison. So any nominations? I'd like to nominate Carly Cage for being leazison.

066She's awesome at this. Second. Okay. Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? I I unanimous. Okay. And then this one is a little bit more kind of voluntary, right? Do we need to vote for schools or No. So, we just we just kind of select so that there's any preferences um on which schools that you would and again um the schools that you're assigned to, right? You're kind of the point person for the school. We have works out perfectly because we have five board members, five buildings. So Mountain Way, Bonnie Cristo, middle school, high school, and crossroads. Usually we give preference to where your kids are. If your kids are in a certain building, probably easier for you to do that. So yeah. So then I would take preference toward Monte Cristo. You want

067Mountain Way? Mountain. Um I'm happy with any of the three. So if any you guys have a strong feel what do you want? to middle school. All right, I'll do half. Okay. Okay. So, that completes 4 A. So, now we move to 5A items from the floor. Do we have anything? No, we do. No. Okay. Okay. So, then that moves us on to new business. Uh 6A, high school sighting repairs and painting prepared by Marshall Creams. clicker. Um, so I in your packet there was a presentation that had a lot of pictures in it and some descriptions. So I hope you guys got a chance to look at it. Um I'm going to try and breeze through this a little bit, but um we're asking to do a larger than normal project this summer at

068the high school. Um the sighting of the high school um has fallen into disrepair. We paid off the high school back in December. So that bond is completely paid for. It's fallen off our books. It's off the taxpayers bill. But there is some maintenance that needs to be done on the high school. Um, when the siding was installed originally, and I'm I'm not a sighting expert. I'm relaying the messages I got from the people that came and gave us quotes on repairs. There's supposed to be a gap between where the cement cinder block um brick is and the start of the siding. There's supposed to be a gap of about an inch with a metal flashing. And the reason for the gap is that there's a little um lip on the cinder block that collects

069water and the water seeps upward into the siding and the siding essentially becomes like wrapping paper or the skin of an onion. It is just so brittle and wrinkled and it becomes far too tempting. The wind will blow it off, but kids also like to peel it off. It just it's just tempting. So, um, in part of the quote, there's a there's replacing the first two the bottom two rows of the siding in the entire high school because they need to pick they need to pull off two rows to get to the bottom row just because the way it overlaps. And they'll put in a gap. They'll put in the metal flashing and they'll they'll make the siding um transition into the cinder block correctly. Also while doing that they're they're gonna a lot of

070the because of settling of the building because of water in the ground a lot of the seams have split all over the building in the siding. So they're going to reccock the siding. They're going to pressure wash and then um on the previous slide it's you can't really see it from far away but close up all of the pillars are made of um a metal substance and they're all starting to rust. And from far away it just blends into the background. But when you get within, you know, 10 ft of it, you can see the the rust on every single metal pillar. So it's remove that and um repaint it, repaint the building in its original colors and um make the necessary repairs to the siding. It's a big job. It's going to take a

071month to six weeks for a company to do it. We're soliciting three bids. I included one bid in the packet. The first bid we got just kind of for scope of the work. And the first bid was about $220,000. We received our second bid today and it was about $300,000. And we expect to get our third bid next week. Um this is not being paid out of general fund. We have some money in capital projects that we've kind of set aside to tackle a large project. And so this would come out of capital projects and so it doesn't affect the day-to-day operations of the schools, anything like that. It's just capital projects money that's designed to make necessary repairs to our buildings. Um we recognize that the other building that's in need of repairs soon

072is probably the middle school. So, we'd also then like to spend next school year figuring out the direction we want to go to repair the middle school because it's the stuckle falling off and painting and all those things and stuck is is reuckling it the right idea is siding a better idea. What what's the proper way to repair it to make it last a long time? and what our direction is as a district as far as growth because we're also working on growth projections right now and the growth projections are looking pretty impressive which that'll be a soon to come study session probably. Anyways, um we need to get started on this before the next board meeting happens because they they really need to get started probably as soon as school is out because it

073is going to be six weeks to even maybe two months. Um so what we're kind of asking is the scope of the work is going to be somewhere between probably 200 and $250,000. it's going to be completely um renewing the exterior of the high school and rather than come back at the end of the month and say here's the bid we'd like to choose and get approval, we'd like to just kind of get a thumbs up that okay, if it's within that scope that you're describing and the work is going to be done similar to the bid that we've we've attached, let's do it. That's the direction we need to go. We need to maintain our high school. It's kind of the it's it's the jewel of our school district and um it's paid for

074now and let's celebrate that with renewing the exterior. Any So, if we we made a motion tonight to approve um a renovation project of up to $250,000, would that cover what we need? Yes. Okay. Um, we have $400,000 in our capital projects fund right now and it'll to last the next two and a half months, which is is plenty to do this project and still do everything else we need to do. Where where is that? Because the the ending balance is like 134. We just got our um our April levy money for capital projects. So that April levy money is $360,000. So that is the last the last last um budget status report is March I think. So when April's budget status report comes out on my next board report it'll show that we have

075$450,000 or something like that. We had a but our budget was 183,000 in April. Is that um we did we did a budget extension. We had we got we had a little more timber money than we were expecting. So, we have a little more money in our capital projects fund to spend than we were expecting. We did a we did a budget extension last board meeting to allow us to spend more money in capital projects because we have more money. So, so with that um extension updated balance in April is going to be 400. Yeah. I mean I think it is is important to note too and again not to repeat but for anybody new listening or anything the capital projects does not and Marshall you alluded to it does not impact people processes operations.

076Yeah. We can't we can't pay for salaries. We can't pay for benefits. We can't pay for school supplies. It's literally used for stuff like this or it can only be used for stuff like this. Um, and I will say also, I mean, it's a lot of money, but I think the last architectural firm that we had in here just replace recommended replacing all of the siding, and it was like $1.6 million. Um, so I mean, so long as do we have an idea of this investment, what's the longevity and scope of it? Um, I don't I don't have that answer, but it really is the if you go up above about two layers of the siding, the siding's in very good condition. So, it's really the bottom two layers because the water is seeping up

077from the bottom resealing and everything. Yeah. Um, can I ask another um, uh, are any of the bids um, grandf [Music] um, I don't believe so. I think the scope of the work I think there are Snowish County companies but I don't know that they're in I don't know if their home office is in the city of Grant Falls and I don't know if there's any we locally have any people they engage in this work but you know just trying to keep the money local if we can. Um, so, so essentially, and I'm I'm not saying this, Kurt, but essentially you want us to vote to approve not a bid, but a number, a blank check. Not a blank. I feel not not to exceed Don't feel super easy, but um is are you I

078mean, we have a bid in front of us that's $225,000, right? What what makes you think we need the $250? That could be um there there could be us I think it's going to be $225,000 but there could be a um the well the second company came in at $300,000 and it wasn't any better. Um their scope was not anything higher just their costs were higher. This third company they they interrupt we don't pay tax right we pay tax on some things. Okay. Sorry, I see some Yeah, we pay we pay tax on service on um supplies and services. We don't pay tax on things we resell, but we don't resell that stuff. Got it. Sorry to interrupt you. We contribute to the coffers of the state of Washington. Get it from taxes and give

079it back. And um just through my experience the fire services that when we're looking at something like this we're out bid um it it is general practice to uh approve a motion to limit the amount spent on a project but waiting and I'm heading Marshall right now is we don't have we won't have the luxury of waiting till the next meeting to consider this. So by limiting their ability, the other thing is that this bid may have come in low at 220,000. The next bid may come in just under the 250, but there might be exceptions that a contractor the our our group is going to have to look with contractors, see what they offer, see um do do essentially a resume search to make sure that they're appropriate. And in this with the state,

080they can they can take out the lowest bid if it doesn't fit what we need. And they don't have a resume that we trust to do this project correctly. Got it. Thanks for that clarification. And based on that, I feel about it. Yeah. Is there um assuming if we approve X dollar amount that cannot be exceeded without borders? Correct. Correct. Okay. Um because and then I mean director Dane you bring up a good point. I know how construction works how if you come in at 222 and it ends up yes there's always being 235 because my mind initially goes to can the board approve 215 and we go back and say we only have board approval for 215. Um, you know, just because I'm I'm trying to think like in the grand scheme of this,

081you know, even even $7,000, right? I like we have we have things that add up over time. Um, but yeah, I think it would depend on the language within the actual bid that comes in in terms of expected versus actual versus like a limit on overages or something along those lines. Um, so if I don't know, I'll kind of defer to the board here. If we think that 250 is the number, then we can do that. But if if two if it's 250 because it's a nice round number and it sounds good, then let's let's try to be more conservative. To director Dne's point, just because we approved 250 doesn't necessarily mean we're paying 250, right? Correct. Just giving you updated. what we're doing is putting a limit on our administration to say you can't

082stand over this. Yeah. However, right, they'll have to come back. I think that our our uh administrative group will do what they can to minimize the costs of whatever we're doing. I think they do a fantastic job with that. Now, um this is an this is an all of our buildings, I should say, are expensive buildings to maintain. If we don't maintain it, the next bid, believe me, like you said, replace a million half dollars. Yeah, this this isn't just putting a patch on it. This is doing a repair and a repaint that will could last 10, 15, 20 years, especially if it's done correctly, but it sounds like they didn't do it correctly initially. And that's why in 10 years we're paying for this repair. It makes me feel better that you said we're

083not going out of the norms by doing so. Yeah, I think if I could add one more thing, I think I'm I'm confident in the in the quality of the bid that the low bid is if we were going to exceed that, it would be something that we discovered during the process. It would be a change order and we would then have plenty of time to come back to the board on the 28th and say, "Hey, as we were getting into this project, we discovered something that we weren't aware of and we need to do a change order." Yeah. This outside wall needs to be rebuilt or something like that. Yeah. Okay. Um any other questions, comments? I'll make a motion that we approve um this renovation project for the high school at a maximum

084uh cost of $250,000 or not to exceed $250,000. I'll second. Okay. Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? I I Thank you guys. Thank you. Okay. Now to 6B 6 through 12 curriculum adoption presented by Emily Moore. Good evening everybody. Thank you for being here on this long hot evening. Of course, it's the hottest day of the year so far. Um I am joined by um some amazing colleagues who have been alongside each other in this curriculum pilot um including John Thompson, Katie Leanin, Sher Green, TJ Countryman, and I know Mick Kimble with 101 Fever is watching from home. Um in front of you, you have a packet and let me just keep going here. And that packet starts with something called form C1 which is part of board policy 2020. And uh this

085is uh the package that we are going to be looking at um for this evening's discussion about the adoption. So um I will direct your attention to uh the slide deck and um one of the things that I really want to ground us all in and what we have been speaking about as an ELA team. First to say real thanks to the team for coming together. Um 612 teachers really engaging in deep conversation about not just the curriculum but uh engaging instruction. And we hold a belief that curriculum alignment partnered with robust professional learning and high quality and consistent instructional practice will improve student achievement, increase effectiveness of curriculum conversations and teacher practice and ensure educational equity for students across their grade level experiences. I cannot overstate the need for guaranteed and viable curriculum for

086students in our ELA programs from 6th through 12th grade and in special education. I look to John Thompson who is a longtime Granite Falls school district teacher who states that we have not had a guaranteed and viable curriculum across 612 in more than 31 years. I wanted to highlight a little bit of where we are with the process to also highlight for you that um the process of ELA adoption started well before my time. And um so here in front of you the timeline where we are today is end of May. I'm excited to let you know that due to the hard work of people that came before me, we have guaranteed and viable curriculum at K5 CKLA Amplify. And now it is our turn to create that standardized guaranteed experience for our 6th through

08712th graders. So, um, we've done a little bit of resetting. We paused at the end of the summer because I was looking at the ticket price and um it seemed like a lot and there was not a lot of definition and there was this promise if you'll remember that we were supposed to buy we had to buy if we were going to pilot last fall and I didn't want to do that and I wanted to be really careful about our fiscal stewardship. I brought our team back together in the fall and we determined to move forward with a true pilot. We received materials in January. They jumped right in. They got a couple of professional learning experiences and they just jumped in. And I'm so proud of their work because their work is heading us

088towards an experience where all Granite Falls School District students will receive the ark of the English language experience. So just to highlight a little bit of the process that we followed in stage one, we did a lot of communication and built our committees. Um there was a choice that we could have made to have one or two teachers at the middle school pilot and one or two teachers at the high school. I didn't want to do that. I wanted everybody who was going to wear this, as my dear old dad would say, I don't have to wear it. But we got it all, try it on. And I think that it was an important decision that we made. And so all of our 612 teachers were in the room. We selected our committee. We took

089a look at board policy. We determined a decision-making protocol. We defined our consensus. We'd already had our selection of pilot materials though middle school was headed in a different direction and they we talked about the true value of having one curriculum one set of academic vocabulary and internal curricular uh vocabulary and we decided on HMH into literature. We've been working to assess our digital learning tools. We held a caregiver review night. We all along the way have been gathering input from our students and we conducted a robust staff review process that included a very long, if I might say, team uh rubric uh and scoring process. We reviewed our input. We voted using our decision-making criteria and we made a recommendation to CIA, which is our new instructional materials committee. And so on the next

090page, you'll see where we are in the process today. On May 20th, we had um a caregiver review uh meeting where we had materials out. I'm um sorry to say that we did not while we had four staff members attend, we did not have any parents come. And I'm I'm going to say coming from a large district where you're adopting K12 curriculum, it's just not really a thing. the other events at school districts are like way more fun coming and looking at English books. Our students um use this curriculum from January through today and will continue to use it for the rest of the year. They report that the material is relevant to them. They like the stories. They like um the content of the readings that they're given. Uh they have topics such as

091selfies and horror and that interests them as readers. The staff review rubric. I've encapsulated this down to this table. Total positive ratings. It is predominantly positive. Couple of places where we still need to learn a little bit more are around constructing knowledge and the assessments piece. But I want to disclose to you that there are some challenges with the digital platform right now. It is inexplicable to us because it's the 21st century. and we should be able to click this box over here and have it linked to Canvas over here. We are still working that through amidst and I'm looking at my team amidst the digital platform issues. Um they truly believe that this is um the right curriculum at the right time and the right place for our students. Upon their vote, we made

092a recommendation to CIA on Thursday, May 22nd, and we recommend adoption to the board of directors. So, just a quick list of what we see here for a five-year cost proposal. So when quotes for curriculum come in, they come in at one year, usually fiveyear, eightyear, and they're trying to give us a really, really good deal for uh for our dollar. Um we have looked at the five-year cost proposal, which for every year per student would be $61 per student for five years. On the left side of the table you'll see into literature that is the general education curriculum for 612. There is a digital platform. There are consumables. We would receive those consumables every year for 5 years. There are novel points. There are teachers editions that were part of the pilot that we

093already own. and then some robust professional development services. Roughly $35,000 and change a year for 5 years for the into literature gened curriculum for read 180. That is the curriculum that is for special education. And I also cannot overstate the need to have curriculum specific to special education. It is sometimes the ugly stepsister in the conversation around curriculum. And with an eligibility rate the likes of 22ish% Rachel 22ish% what that means is that curriculum is written for students to access it when they're reading at grade level. So we have roughly 22% of our students across the system that are not reading at grade level. And so this gives us an opportunity to have guaranteed and viable curriculum for our students on special education. And if you hear my excitement, imagine being a 12th grader reading

094at a fourth grade level. And the reading choices that you're given year in and year out are limited to subjects like PJ Masks and playing soccer on Fridays and Iron Man Sam. This option, read 180, gives every teacher a classroom independent reading set that is at students developmentally, cognitively, like their issues, the things that they want to read about, the things that they want to talk about, but it is at their reading level. Um, again, we already own the teachers editions. You can see the PD services that are offered. The other piece that we're looking at is E3D or English 3D. This is same company um but materials for our multilingual learners. There are 20 languages of multilingual learners currently in the Granite Falls School District. That number will continue to increase. And so it

095is really a great idea for us to consider at roughly $8,400 a year resources for 85 and growing K12 students who speak another language. You can see the list of things there. Um, one of the things that I would like to say is the the ticket price seems really high. It is quite reasonable um for what we are purchasing which is five years of materials for students across our whole system. The piece that we also would like to talk about is that into lit the left hand side of your column could be paid for out of basic read 180 which is specifically for special education could be purchased using special education funds and that change of cap or the the the sunsetting of the cap helps us in that way and E3D for our multilingual

096learners could be paid for at least partially out of title three funds. So, we are working to find ways to be innovative about how we spend the dollars. Um, but just so that you know, um, it's meant to come out of possibly a couple of other, um, a couple other places, too. At the back of your packet, you'll find some staff testimonials, and I'd like to read two of them from Kimble, second page. And you're welcome to read these at your leisure. Mick says, "I would use performance to describe student engagement. I piloted the HMH curriculum in 9th grade only and we did epic journeys unit. The summitive task for the unit had students produce an expository essay about what drives students to take on challenges. Students had already completed formal writing assignments earlier in

097the year. So, this writing task was building on their prior knowledge and prior writing experience. But the essays that students turned in reflected solid growth in their writing skills. I think the topic was accessible to their worldview at 14 and 15 years old. The variety of sources students were able to pull from allowed for thoughtful connections between secondary sources and the primary source experiences they were connecting to in their own life. We are now reading through Romeo and Juliet, the fourth unit, and a literary analysis writing piece asks them to speak to universal themes by applying nearly 500year-old customs to what dating in the 21st century looks like. I have already begun frontloading students with material that will help them produce that writing when we get to it in the coming weeks. For fourth quarter

098summer break being weeks away and many students being newly introduced to Elizabethan literature, the interest level is is high. I attribute this in part to careful consideration on HMH's part, HMH's part to embed personally relevant writing as unit assessments. And from our friend Katie, who as a reminder, she teaches special education here at Granite Falls High School. Read 180. Phonics is not explicitly taught beyond fifth grade. True story. And every year, Katie has three to five students who are significantly delayed in their phmic awareness, which affects their ability not only to read, but to write clearly with no curriculum to support them. Read 180 has provided me with tools and instructional sequences, tips and tricks to help reduce the achievement gap for those students. One student this year was reading at a first second grade

099level with writing at a pre- primmer kindergarten level. and this student just scored a level two on the ESPback for ELA. I appreciate the ability to have independent activities geared toward individual students while being able to focus on reading comprehension and writing strategies for the large group. Katie also did some work with HMH. HMH was intended for gened curriculum, but I've also been able to use it with differentiated levels of access and support built in to provide a more comprehensive learning experience for students on an IEP. The current and more relevant topics and passages engaged more of my students on a consistent basis which reduced some of the more disengaging types of behaviors. And there is more. So what we are asking um is your careful consideration to adopt um HMH into literature and its

100partner programs. Um and I have brought some of our team here if you have any questions for them or have any questions for me. I have a question. Um, so third through fifth grade, they're on Amplify, correct? How is the segue from Amplify to this? And was there any thought on keeping Amplify in sixth? I'll have to defer to the team on that, John. Yes. Yes. level. the other ones that we looked at. Do you think they can go from fifth grade then to sixth grade and kind of flow into that? Okay. Going from Amplify to this like with terminology and all that. From everything I know of Amplify, um, we'll actually have students coming into secondary with being more skilled readers. Um, so they will be should be closer to grade level, if not

101at grade level. Um, and that'll take a little bit of time for them to age up, but um, yeah, from everything I know that transition should be fine because Amplify builds uh, people into readers and once they're readers, then we can grapple more with the ideas and the themes that the units in HMH um, present. Thank you. Just moneywise, did we for this adoption. I would I think on the board a long time right now but um we went on last time we promised that we would do our part to adopt and I think we all know we haven't had any curriculum in anything probably in 20 plus years and the last three years the math thinkur adopted reading curriculum school and now we're going to do 12 and I think that that's something our

102community we ran our last levy and so I personally I mean I'm not that curriculum I'm proud that we're doing something we haven't done in 20 years and that's a real curriculum adoption initiative did we allocate though for we did okay What bucket is that coming out of? Just like that. Little bit of a special ed which is about $175,000 and that's And then these this proposal here, so we we pay it on an annual basis. It's not an upfront at all. And that gives us a really big price break. I mean, it's almost five years. Yeah. And I can answer a little bit of that, director Leoo. Um, the one-year price is I thinkund like if you were do to go like alakart one year at a time, it's about $113 a student for

103the same package. So by doing the five-year plan, it's $61 per student. And then help me understand. So like I said, haven't done this in 31 years. I think you would mention we're looking at a fiveyear proposal. So then is the expectation that in five years from now we're readressing it again is like or is you know because I I love that we're actually that this is something that will actually move our students forward. Um yeah, just understanding like as we're looking at it, is this is it fiveyear costs, you know, paid for and then in four and a half years or I guess four years we should be re-evaluating it again and then potentially like is is this is this typical within districts to do an allocation like this every five years for a

104612? Yeah. Though I what I would say is we would not expect to to rerun another pilot four years from now for another ticket price of this size. We would likely if the materials continue to be we we I hold a belief that we do reevaluate our practices and our things every few years right because we are needing to stay ahead of of a digital world. Yeah. But that said, um there would be opportunities. Well, the only things that we would need to purchase if we were to go after five years would be the consumables and that comes with another negotiation, but just for consumables. Okay. So, we would we would we already own most of the teacher textbooks and it would be the access to the digital site. And I would challenge um that

105sometimes when we do these things and we adopt these things that we then use them and as we use them they become like our clothing and they're part of canvas now and those things like that. So, um, then is it, um, as of tonight, are you asking for a vote on this or consideration? Because what, and I don't know if the rest of the board thinks the same way, like it sounds like there's out of the 393 or whatever it is, there's opportunity there there's there's opportunity to clarify more of like what specific buckets that's fun coming from funding. Um I don't know if there are any grants or anything too that can go behind this like are we expecting that like very clear like 393 right now however this is how much is going

106to come out of this bucket this much is going to come out of here that's specific so basic is the bucket okay um special education is the second bucket and then title three we could even use TVIP money for um the third the the 41,000 Um, I will speak to this from a teacher point of view and I've been a special education teacher and I've worked with lots of multilingual students and to have materials in front of you specifically meeting the needs of unique learners is really exciting. Um, it is so difficult to do the work when you don't have the right materials in front of you. Yeah. Yeah. And and for me, I'm not questioning I I trust the the adoption group and I obviously there's a dire need. just making sure that we

107can afford it because this comes out of the general fund which always makes me a little bit more hesitant. Not saying that I don't support it. Marshall, will we still hit our 5% fund balance goal for this school year? Yes. Great. It's good enough for me. Then I I want to just pipe in a little bit. One is I want to say how much I appreciate you and the group of of teachers that came together to do this. I got to sit in on one of the sessions and the interactions that were going on guided by Emily Moore was amazing um because we did have our employee participation in evaluating this system. The other thing is I I I have to tell you that after coming on the board and and finding out that we

108actually have had teachers have to make up their curriculum for for decades because there wasn't a strategic plan to educate from K through 12. Um we were doing a disservice to the to the community to the to the kid. Uh I know that all of the board members share in um our concern when we look at our test scores uh over the last couple of years and seeing not just a stagnation but but a reversal in in in our in our progress. Um, and I think as as a a a an a father of of four kids, watching them progress through school, it it's hard for me to grasp that. We didn't have a strategic curriculum to follow. And I think that what we did do was we did a disservice to the teachers by

109not providing them the tools. We hired them to come and do a job and said, "Okay, but bring your own tools to the job and do the best you can." But as we get elected into the board, we are up here with expectations that all of our students are moving forward and without a structured curriculum, I think that we've been failing. I I really do support what you as the group did here and and and I and I and I completely understand. I'm I'm hearing Marshall. That was one of my concerns was, hey, how are we going to pay for this? Sounds like we can pay for it. Sounds like it's not going to impact our um our staffing. It's not something that's going to impact it, but it's actually, you know, we're here for

110the students, right? We talk about every student um deserving the right to an education without curriculum. I think that again, 31 years is what I read in this packet. It it sounds like there were teachers that were struggling with this. I could see as a as a as if if in in the fire service I wasn't given direction on how to do my job or wasn't given the right tools to do my job, I would get frustrated with it more and more to do it. And so, um, I I appreciate again one more time the group that came together to analyze this. I I John I I appreciate your um hander as far as how transitioning from fifth to sixth grade and that we've got structure in K through five. We need the structure 6

111through 12 it and at $61 a student. Yeah. And I I say too, I've mentioned this in the past where we're up here, but I lean so he like the testimonials are what I focus on because you're the ones that are using it. Like all that I care about is do you feel like you are getting the tools to help you help the kids, right? I mean, that's that's really it. And so the testimonials really do help. Um, and so yeah, I mean this is this is the more exciting stuff that we get to talk about is actually improving children's outcomes within schools. So I appreciated Emily talking about the technology aspect of it. I have a curriculum that I have to teach in science, but the technology part is a pain. So can you

112you guys can faithfully say that you can get past any technology issue then and still teach the stuff. Yeah. Teaching it. So well I'm just saying because like for me and my my teaching team like the technology part of that curriculum is just the worst and we just the whole time. So I mean as long as that's not a factor I can I ask a dumb question. when you say the technology piece getting everyone online and stuff like I just want to make sure I understand. Well, so for example, my my my it's science and even creating like a lesson plan you have to grab from all these online sources. They put it together and then the student workbook is like workbook but online but this and that and we're first grade and first graders

113like trying to get like you would think in this day and age they could be on a tablet like and no thank you and it's a mess and so you know it's having to kind of go around the curriculum and and stuff. So it can get hard sometimes. So I'm in I'm I my experience is in little so not you know the older but it it can be a pain trying to balance all of that. So it's really teachers navigating. Yeah necessarily. Yeah. Yeah. Mostly teachers navigating. There's there is a little bit of both. Yeah. But also you know some robust uh PD that gets all the teachers in the room because they they've just had kind of the dip into how to use it as part of the pilot. So I'm confident that we

114can get to a space. Again, it wasn't a deal breaker for them. Um, this is my 25th year. I've never met, and they'll nod with me, I've never met a curriculum that solved all the problems. Um, but this is a pretty darn good one. And, um, the impact that we're seeing from students already, I think, cannot be uh, over. Okay. So, then we're seeking action on this tonight. Okay. So, is there a motion for I'll make a motion that we approve the um curriculum packing test. Second motion's been made and effective. All in favor? I I approve against your teams. Yeah. And I just want John to say his three words and a thank you at at the end of it. John, go. Got your two card. I got it. Ready? Yeah. No, we we

115do need this. It's you know that developing curriculum is an engaging thing, but it's not the way that you create an educational system and we need to operate as a system that's cohesive. So, yeah, absolutely. Thank you. Yeah. Thank you. Y Okay. The board is going to adjourn to a close session. Uh the time right now is 8 o'clock. I believe we need what 25 minutes 15. Okay. So we're going to adjourn. Five minutes there, five minutes back. So 25 minutes total. So we'll return here at 8:25. Hey, we are rejoining our regular school board session after the close session. Are we back online? Okay. Okay. Um, so we'll take action from the close session. I move to approve the non-renewal provisional teacher Michelle Taylor and Andrew Thor. Second. Motion's been made and seconded. All

116in favor? I. Okay. And now we will move to the consent agenda nine. Uh any additions on there that aren't? No. Okay. Any discussion on the consent agenda? No. Okay. Consent agenda uh passes by unanimous consent. And now we will be returning to a separate close session. Um yeah and this is regarding contract negotiations. Um Dana 30 minutes. Sure. 30 minutes. Okay. So we'll begin with 30 minutes. Um 5 minutes in between. So we will uh return here at 9. All right, we are re-entering the session after our close session. Um, actions from the close session Carl Curry. Yeah, I move that we extend the superintendent contract for a year and uh direct the board chair to execute a uh agreement with the superintendent. Second. Okay, the motion has been made and seconded. All in

117favor? Hi. Hi. Okay.