001Um, first of all, I would like to know if there's Nothing. public comment. We are required to follow these rule whether what you are saying is positive or negative. If you have something that needs to be addressed, I would point you first to the administration and then if you need further board members will receive letters, phone calls, emails, but not in individually. They are not individually in a position to respond to a concern or a compliment. If you want to discuss a program or an activity, it can be addressed as something like this. This is just a weird example, but it's an example. The picture of Lake Superior. You might like it or you might dislike it. And you can say why you like it, why you dislike it, what benefit it has, or what
002it hurts your student or the community. You can offer it that way. Um, but what we don't want is something like the person that put that up there did it wrong, did it bad, did it great, did it wonderful. Um, so it's not about the people, but you can address a program or a project. I hope that makes sense. Um, I know that it seems a little weird that we're asking you not to say something positive, but to maintain the public comment, we have to do it both ways, both positive and negative. So, we can't address anything about a particular person or a group of people. So, please keep that in mind when you present your comments. Um, you do have the three minutes. And Heidi, do you have a list of people that are
003want to Okay. Do you want to um Carla and Julie, will you do the timekeeping? Absolutely. I didn't really mean to sign up first. So, um I'm Carla. Nice to meet. I think I know some of you. Most of you hopefully. Um, but I spent the morning at the school forest with my daughter and her third grade uh classroom and uh we prior to moving here had been in a big city and this is not something she ever would have gotten in the big city. So the ability for her to grow and to learn and the fact that she is growing her own garden is far more talent than I will ever have. And I think it says a lot about the type of school washness and the fact that it nurtures and grows and
004um has kids really being involved in their backyards in the community and there's I also work in the criminal justice system and there are so many kids who need this. Um so many kids who are trying to escape whatever they're going on at home. It is the great equalizer in terms of kids who have no money. you don't need money. Um, and it is so much more valuable for our kids to be doing this than a lot of others. So, understand that, you know, sometimes, you know, there's budgets, but this is not. This was extremely disappointing. Um, if that's a negative comment, I don't know, but it was um hard to have a school as warm and loving as Washburn. And if there is anything that I can do, I'll be the first person to
005raise my hand of trying to find the money, whether it's through grants. And every four years, I mean, they run that there's this huge budget surplus in in Madison. And if we can do anything for our rural schools, to grab a portion of that so we can protect our people and our gardens. And um a lot of these kids are going to grow up and stay around the area. And it's just invaluable. Daniel Edward, I'm not as eloquent as her, so I'm just going to read off my phone. Good evening, and thank you for the opportunity to speak. Sorry. My name is Danielle Penny Edwards, and I'm here tonight as a concerned parent. I also want to share that I'm a teacher in a neighboring school district, so I understand how complex budgeting can be
006and how challenging these decisions must be for all of you. That said, I was deeply surprised and concerned to learn that five to six positions may be cut next school year, including Oh, the thing I can't say at my child's school due to a projected $360,000 budget deficit. As a parent, I have to ask, why didn't the district pursue an operational referendum this spring, especially knowing that these cuts were on the horizon? The capital referendum that passed in the fall was an important step forward for our buildings, and I supported it. But a building alone does not educate our children, the people inside it do. Frankly, I'm also wondering why this has not been more clearly communicated to families and the community. As of now, I haven't seen any formal messaging about the positions that
007are being considered for reduction or elimination. I only heard about it informally. That worries me. We as families deserve transparency and trust. Certain people's presence in the environmental education that is provided here has had a clear and positive impact on my child. That was one of the key reasons I chose this district. So, I come here not just with questions, but with hope. Hope that the district will consider the value of people. I hope for more open communication about staffing and budget issues. And I hope we can remember that while bricks and mortar are important, the heart of a school is its people. Thank you. Uh my name is Nori Schwinspire and I'm a parent of two students at the elementary school and have been a teacher at the elementary school for the last five
008years. Um uh this is off my script, but I was moved by Carla's statement about spending the morning in the school forest. I spent the afternoon dissecting tulip bulbs with my class. um they've been doing a unit on pollination and uh we had the microscopes out, they had the all of the tools out and they were so engaged and so um focused on the learning. I had zero behavior issues and this was a unit that was entirely planned and supported through green healthy. um it's not something that I have time in my day to get the supplies and materials needed um in order to provide that level of a uh lesson for my students at this point in time. So without the program that would not happen. Um I'm here to express concern about the
009continuation of the green and healthy program in our school district. The program is a part of what drew me to teaching in Washurn. Compared to area schools, the program was prioritized by the district by having someone allocated to run it. Garden based learning and outdoor learning have been a central part of our district's culture and mission for as long as I can remember. This is a source of pride for our district and draws families uh to move to our area or to open enroll. Garden based learning and intentional outdoor education in our beautiful outdoor learning spaces are experiences that are top on my priority list as a parent. I want my children to be outdoors, hands in the dirt, learning how things grow, experiencing Lost City and the school forest consistently and with the support
010of their experiences to be thoughtfully planned and tied to learning standards. The current green and healthy program is just that. It provides classroom teachers with a support and a teacher to provide lessons and materials so that outdoor learning happens in a consistent manner for all children. Without the green and healthy program, it would be up to whichever teacher your cl your student had whether outdoor learning was prioritized in that classroom or not. And that is not equitable um for all students in our district. Uh outdoor learning and time in nature is critical for youth today as an antidote to uh the high screen youths and a way to connect kids with nature. It also builds community. Um, some of uh I've taught sixth grade in this district and second grade and in my time in
011the classroom uh some of my students who struggle the most with behavior in a traditional classroom excel in a garden based learning program. It can be a way for kiddos uh as car Carla mentioned, students that are at risk, students that have uh special needs, behavior issues, uh when they're able to be in an environment like the garden, lost city, uh the school forest in a structured setting can be they can excel and thrive at school and that can build confidence and life skills. Um as a district, we need to build upon this program and not cut it down. I know the financial situation is uh difficult, but we just cannot afford to lose this program for our students and for our district. Thank you. Definitely a hard act to follow through very well. Um,
012I put this together in my kitchen which is a little while ago because it's not as professional as maybe you might be expecting. That's fun part. I retired a few years ago after four years of education and I feel the green and healthy program is very valuable. It makes a big difference in the lives of our washman children. It brings to life the joy and excitement of gardening which I love. um planted seeds, watch them grow, harvesting just like young children. It brings a love of nature to our children with educated lessons and outdoor experiences they might not otherwise have. Excuse me. Provides our children with the knowledge of the forest and everything within it. It encourages exploration, curiosity which you want our children to have. It is valuable to our district. Can I ask
013you please consider your decision? um grat. Um so knowing that our district is facing this budget major budget problem and knowing we cannot go forward in the same way um I wanted to work on problem solving and so I was looking back through um different ways that we've arranged the green and healthy programs in the past and I went back to 2012 when um I took the earth partnerships for schools action research uh project with a team of teachers And my ex research topic was how can I support and this is when I was not a teacher um and was an Americanore member like running the garden program without understanding the standards and how it all fits together and um the survey for teachers and then I did the you know the action research has
014to involve um the the you know like the literature review and and then the surveys for teachers and the results that I got back about how can we use and how is it integrated and what's in the way and eight out of the 14 teachers and this was um at the time middle school was at the elementary building so it was K8 um that they did not have time to plan the lessons and align the curriculum and um and so at that time 2012 we kind of developed the green and healthy program to include um that additional support for teachers and I do think that it's kind of the same situation. Now, um after becoming a teacher and being able to align it um with throughout the school year, it's much um more effective and
015I think more efficient. Um but I think we're going to see the same some of the same problems that we saw before, which is situations where you even when teachers independently have the passion and they're like, "Okay, I'm going to build this lesson. and I'm going to go out there and I'm going to harvest my raspberries with my kids after we do this lesson indoors get outside and the raspberries are already eaten by a different group. Okay? Or like for example science and grade band standard so it's K2 and they're all doing the same you know monarch lesson you know we do not have the vertical alignment it's not going to be cohesive and it takes like we don't have as many opportunities to do any vertical alignment in our curriculum. So we need time
016to do all of that and then the outdoor learning component required additional staff. So those are some of the pieces. Another um piece that um we in the in the beginning why why we created the position in the first place was that we found that our school was not ever going to like qualify for um for um like the governor's school health award which they don't have that anymore but one of the reasons was because we didn't have um enough physical activity and so when I came back later to do the green and healthy I wanted to prioritize activities where students could get that physical activity in addition. So that's my timer. Hello, my name is Alison. Could you just The mic is right here, so I just want to make sure everybody online can
017hear too. Yeah. Hello. Uh my name is Alison Stardy Phillips and I live in the city of Watchurn. I have two kids in the district. Um one's in middle school and one's at the elementary school. I wanted to make a brief comment to the board. Both of my kids have been with the district since the 4K program and have had very positive experiences. The students in the district are incredibly fortunate to have dedicated and talented educators and staff. One of the programs that is so special to the district is the green and healthy schools program. Just a few weeks ago, my fourth grader shared how happy she was that she got to collect sap and learn about maple syrup. When my kids reflected back on their favorite parts of the year, it often included time
018spent in the garden, the lost city, and the school forest. The children of the Washurn Elementary School get incredible opportunities to learn about the natural world themselves as individuals and as a community through nature and learn to be stewards of the earth. Green and healthy schools align program aligns with the mission of the district which is to enable students to enter the global society with the knowledge, skills and habits and attitudes to be required to be contributing citizens. So, I recommend this program be supported and continue to thrive. Tanya, could you do the first thing? I can't read some of them. Okay. So, I can read the first. I don't know what her lesson. Simeone. Okay. Good evening, members of the board. My name is TA Simeone and I'm here tonight as a concerned parent
019of two Washurn kids, elementary school kids. I want to speak about the recent decision to um let go of certain staff members and effectively eliminate the green and healthy program. The green and healthy program isn't just a nice extra. It is a meaningful, deeply rooted part of our school's culture that brought learning to life for our kids and centered their health and well-being. Um in that program, the school garden was built with the help of community volunteers and students. Um the coordinator connected the garden to our cafeteria to classroom learning and there was a rich curriculum of hands-on learning that was happening with our kids that engaged them with the natural world in age appropriate and fun ways. Um this work also earned the school national recognition. Uh, Washburn students in this program weren't just
020getting read tests. They were regularly learning outside, tapping maple trees, planting vegetables, observing ecosystems, asking questions, and exploring. Teachers had the support to bring their lessons outdoors. And kids got the chance to thrive in new ways. It's hard to understand how removing this role aligns with what I thought was a shared goal. More outdoor time for kids, not less. The research overwhelmingly supports this and there aren't too many studies to site here today. But just to name a few, a report by the College of Natural Resources at W Stevens Point synthesized findings from across the country and confirms that outdoor learning improves academic performance, enhances student engagement, and supports physical and mental health. It also builds social emotional skills like confidence, empathy, and problem solving and boosts enthusiasm for both students and teachers. The CDC
021and American Academy of Pediatrics both emphasize the link between outdoor time and students physical, mental, and cognitive development. And internationally in Finland, a country known globally for academic excellence, schools build 15 minutes of outdoor time into every hour of instruction. And the result has been better focus, fewer, better academic performance. And yet, we are eliminating a role that embodied all of these benefits. Many of us in the school community have supported and celebrated this program for years and have been pushing for its expansion. Almost all of the Facebook photos posted by the Washurn Elementary School account are of students time in the garden with their teachers and in the forest. I find myself asking if that is what we show the world about the school. Is it not what we believe is important, valuable, and
022unique? Without a program like this, what is the school's vision that ties it to the community's values? It's a loss that affects not just one staff member and the current students, but also undermines years of community support and collective effort. I hope you'll reconsider the direction this decision takes us or at least communicate clearly how the school plans to uphold its commitment to research driven whole child education even as we face big challenges like budget cuts and unique political circumstances. Um we need to double down on what we know is most important and not abandon what sets us apart. Thank you for listening and for your dedication to our students. Thank you. Don Vanel, I'm gonna pass on my mind more for administration probably now that I see what's going on with the public. So
023I can give the administrator that Jamie Beth. Hi. Um I'm a parent here of a kindergarter and a ninth grader. Um I also um do odd jobs at the elementary school. I'm a substitute teacher, but I started out um actually as the green and healthy um farm to school volunteer or um it's a long one, nutrition educator. And so I got to work in that program specifically. Um I also my entire career has been has revolved around outdoor education, environmental education, science education, and elementary students. Um what we have here is um something very special. Uh what has been developed by our green and healthy program over the last 16 years can recognized as the essence of our school community pride. Each year when our families are pulled and the results are shared back to
024uh parents, the results are that every that there's like 65% or more something a large percentage of families um value outdoor education and the things that we're doing with our curriculum in the school forest and um all of our outdoor learning infrastructure. Um this value, this is a value that cuts across political and socioeconomics. Um it sets our students up to go out into the world as ambassadors of nature and the outdoors. And I think this is not to be undervalued especially in a rural program where we don't have access to um other educational um entities like uh nature uh nature centers or zoos or places like that. We do this all here and that's what green and healthy is doing. um green and healthy responds to um the best practices dour regarding educating our
025students for science and environmental education. Um, we tackle things like where does our food come from and um what is it like when you uh dig in the soil and what lives in the woods and how do things uh coexist and all the the standards that science um should be covered in science. Um and then not to mention all the integrated lessons that occur in ELA and math. Um it's rare and unique in um in especially in a rural setting to um I remember when I went in service 20 years ago um it was what will our 21st century schools look like? And I really think that um outdoor learning and and all of the things that Green and Healthy does in Washurn is part of that 21st century school quarter of a century. And
026um let's see. And let's see. That's all. Kevin back. Um I'm the director of the teacher education program at Northland College. Sorry. Prepare teachers. Um I was a former teacher. I've been teaching for 25 years and I've dedicated my life to environmental education. and I'm also a parent and have two kids in the district and one of the reasons that we came to this district is because of the green and healthy school curriculum. You're an envy as a district to many other districts in terms of the types of resources and the people that you have in order to utilize those resources. And as a teacher educator, one of the things that I think is so important, and there's been so many people that have spoken so eloquently here, one of the things that I teach
027future teachers about is how to teach them outside. And you have that here. And when you lose people, again, you add more burden to the teachers. They're already taxed with a lot of, you know, other things that they need to be doing. and having someone to coordinate all those efforts. Use your wonderful school forest, use the lost city, use the garden. You need a person to do that. I've worked in school districts that have had it and I've worked in districts that haven't. And those that have it are amazing. And so, if you're cutting that position and that program, you're really doing a disservice to one of the strengths that you have as a district. You really should be going the other direction. And you really should be thinking about how do you expand it
028because it's really the essence of this district. And so the children and nature network. So other people have talked about research. It's one of the things that I do in my job. They've got all of the research that backs up the importance of getting kids outside, how it has improvements to test scores, how it improves behavior, how it anything that it's here. So I'll leave that for you to consider. Thanks for the advice. Anybody online? Was there anybody online, Cody? No. Okay. Um I I just wanted to say that when this board um was looking for a new superintendent, one of our priorities was to maintain the green and healthy school. We also have a passion for it and I appreciate your passion for it. What I can't guarantee is that it's going to look
029exactly like it is. It might look differently, but we are going to do our very best to maintain that whole essence of green and healthy school because we too feel it's very important. Um so as much as um you know we would like to tell you everything that we can tell you but we you know we're we're limited to a degree on what we can say out loud. Um, but we too have a passion for um the outdoors and for making sure that our kids are out outdoors and getting that education. We're going to do our very best. Thank you all for showing your passion. All right. Thank you. Um, we're going on to the board reorganization. And first of all, I'd like to congratulate Tina. Welcome back. Um, thank you for agreeing to do
030another three years. You've been an important part of this board, so we're glad to have you there. It is humbly and deserved. So, thank you. Um, now we're going into the election of officers. Um, we need nominations for president. I'd like to make the right to nominate standard. I'll second. Are there any other nominations? Any other nomination? Any other nominations? Would anyone like to um make a motion to Did I just have a unanimous ballot? I don't know. Should we have everybody's okay with that? Yeah. All in favor? I opposed. Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Um, vice president. Um, I I move to nominate Ellen or vice president. Any other nominations? Other nominations? Any other nominations? Would you like to cast a unanimous ballot for Ellen? I move that we cast a unanimous ballot for
031for Is that what you're looking for? Yeah. Okay. Second. Second. All in favor? Opposed? Motion. Congratulations, Ellen. Thank you, clerk. I'd like to nominate the clerk board. Other nominations? Any other nominations? of the nomination or do you like to pass the unanimous ballot for move to pass the unanimous ballot? Is there a second? All in favor? Opposed? Motion carried. Congratulations, Julie. That's a big job. Yes. treasure. I'd like to move that Phoenix. Second. All in favor? Yes. Any other nominations? Other nominations? Other nominations? Would you like to cast a unanimous ballot for Tina? Yes. Make a motion, please. Is there a second? Second. All in favor? Opposed? Motion carries. There you go. It looks a lot like it did the last year. Um, all right. We're going to move on to committee reorganization. Um, Julia,
032you have been the CIA 12 representative. Is that something you would like to consider doing again? Absolutely. All right. Is everybody okay with that one? Yes. All right. Um, long range planning. that's kind of in a um limbo state right now, but we think that we should continue with a couple of members and Tina and um Stephanie have been on that. Is that something that you're willing to continue? I am. Okay. Is that okay with everybody? All right. And then policy committee um has been Ellen and I. Is that Are you okay with that, Ellen? Is that okay with everybody? All right. Then we'll go on like that. All right. Thank you. Um, and now we get to have a cheerleading presentation. So, this should be, you know, exciting. to the [Music] earth. How will
033the That was very roying. [Music] Okay. So, while we're getting all this out of the way, um, my name is Shay I am one of the assistant coaches for our cheer team. This is Heather. She is the main the main lady. Um we were also assisted by Paige and Heidi here. Um I'm going to stand over here so that way they can all see. Um the goal of this presentation is for the Washurn School Board to approve cheerleading as a program for our high school. Um, this will be a dynamic a dynamic team which will embody school spirit, athleticism, and community pride. Our cheerleaders will play a vital role in energizing the proud at games and events while promoting a positive school environment. With rigorous practices and team with rigorous practices, the team will develop
034not only not only cheerleading skills, but also leadership and teamwork. Um although it has been 30 years since uh the Catholic guards have had a cheerleading team, the approval to bring this presentation before you was supported due to the volunteer coaching um and working to fund raise and seek donations for uniforms, palms, and practice space. The Washurn community was reintroduced to the cheer team at the homecoming in the fall of 2024. As stated in the previous slide, the board approval was given for the above factors. Since the first practice on September 24th of 2024, there have been over 37 practices. In review of the boys and basketball admission sales, we do believe that the che that the cheer team has brought an increase to paying spectators. Um, so our largest fundraiser included over 30 cheer
035team members with an entry fee of $25 each. More important than the funds that were raised, the school spirit and pride was majorly developed here. Um, at the start of the camp, only one participant knew what the school song was. By the end, our cheer team had all participants singing it word for word. Um on February 8th, we had loaded up one of our school vans with six of our cheer members and coaches. We headed to the University of Minnesota DUTH campuses where um cheer was not only a thing here. We refined skills and demonstrated the ability to carry on cheerleading into college. Um, many of you might not know, but cheerleading as a sport is not a WIAA registered sport, but rather a WACP sport. Um, we would like to um identify the health
036and safety risks. Are we there? Yep. Perfect. Um, cross country swimming and diving reported fewer injuries in 2023. So, those were the only ones that reported the fewer injuries. This makes cheer a safe sport for students who might otherwise choose to sit out of a sport. Um, as we finish up, we'd like to keep in mind all of the important ways that school sports impact our student body. Not only are they being held to an athletic and academic standard, but according to the NCAA, it improves academic academic performance. suggests a positive correlation between athletic participation and overall academic achievement like time management, increased motivation. It improves self-disipline and we'd like to add attendance. They are more likely to attend all of their classes. Um, also the National Institute of Health shows that athletes versus non-athletes
037were at lower risk for dropping out. Um they perform better ac academically, fewer disciplinary action. Um they may imply success through increased retention and increase the possibility of moving on to college. Um we ask that you show your commitment tonight in support of our cheer team and demonstrate the pass the passion for the castle guards. Um, voting yes means that we're recognizing them as a school's board and a board approved budget. Um, it would allow us to register with the Wisconsin Association of Cheer. Um, we would also like to hire two coaches. Um, but most importantly, um, your support [Music] everything. Here we go. Let's go. Here we go. Let's go. Here we go. Let's go. Here we go. Let's go, guys. [Music] Thank [Music] you. Thanks, ladies. Well, that was fun. I think they
038should come every time we just livens it up a little. Yep. All right. Um, winter sports extracurricular spotlight. Great. Yep. I'm just going to wait for my slideshow to go up. I can't believe I'm standing here the last whole week of April. Is he moving by so fast? It's not the usual, so it doesn't work. It's a little crabby. Get a few pictures up. Yes. And then if you want to head on over to the next slide, I was just going to run through what our winter sports are as a reminder and then kind of what we had for participation numbers this year. Um, so for our middle school sports, we had girls volleyball and we had boys basketball. The girls basketball of course is offered as a fall sport, but just between those two
039sports, we had over 50 kids participating, which is a pretty good chunk if you take in consideration of the size of our middle school. That of course includes some sixth graders as well, but it's still a pretty good group of kids participating. Um, boys basketball this year had 23 and as per usual, it had enough for both a varsity and a JV. The girls was awesome this year because last year we were fighting to get kids to sign up to even had have a team. We had maybe eight or nine kids. I think this year we had uh 20 girls show up. So we have also had enough for a JV team this year. Um so that was really awesome to see. This was our first year bringing back wrestling since co. We had two
040kids um we opened that up for um middle school to practice and we had about five four or five middle school kids that showed up on the regular to practice with wrestling too. Um our Nordic ski had six kids. We usually have a few more participate, but they're not competing. Alpine Ski, just off of the kids from Washurn that were rostered. If you remember, we also co-op with Northwestern, Bayfield, and Ashland, but just um Washurn kids, we had 23 rostered. Um hockey and gymnastics, our co-op, we co-op with Ashland, and we had uh two hockey hockey players finished the season. And then our first year in the gymnastics co-op, first time having um a gymnastics team in five years. And previous to that, we had one girl. We had uh eight kids, which was more
041than what Ashland actually had. So, we had a good showing. Yeah. How many in hockey did you say? I'm sorry. What's that? Two in hockey. We had two in hockey. Yep. But, um co-op teams, we had Ka Warner. She's our one of our gymnast. She went to state, which will be on the next slide as well, but she was the conference athlete of the year. So, huge recognition there. Wyatt Milik was all conference for hockey of our two kids participating over in Ashland. And then um the screen kind of gets in the way a little bit, but we also had a lot of um conference second team honorable mention third team for basketball as well. Okay. And then like I said, Ka Warner qualified for state. So she went, we had Nordic ski, we had
042three qualifiers, but the one from Washburn was Kelvin. And then the Asha Bay ski team went to state as well. And so since kind of taking on athletic administration, I've really been trying to tighten up the program and this year I've been able to make like really big strides in terms of what we're doing. We've um added to the sports website. I know there's been some issues with people not particularly liking the ads. We're aware of that and we're moving forward with um getting that better, but we still have it's um the sport pages are nicer. we have better access to the calendars. We're linked up to our school. So, it's just we're moving in the right direction. Um, starting this season, everybody is able to register online. So, now you can go on. We're
043not trying to track down all the paperwork and getting it to coaches or district office or me. It's all being able to go online. They can upload their um physicals and then they can also pay online, too, which it's making it a lot easier to keep track of fees as well. Um, our school calendar this year was probably one of the bigger ones because before we were just trying to kind of uh piece things into Google and then it would be a call from Dwayne. And I don't know if you guys keep track of what happens during the spring, but it's insane. Um, trying to fit in all the sports and cancellations. Then we get one day of sunshine and all of a sudden everything's happening at once. And with the school calendar we have
044right now, it's updated pretty much instantly and you can pull this up and then we've got all the practice times. We've got anytime really the school is being used. It's linked in with our facilities now, which makes it nice, too. Um, improved coach communication. This is there's a number of things we've been working on here. Um, we're requiring seasonal meetings so I can touch base with all the coaches. The coaches are having parent communication meetings to go over expectations. Um, updated practice time is reflected in the calendar. So, as there's changes being made, it's not just happening uh the coach communication to the kids and the parents, but also online as well. Uh I I also have a shared drive that had so all the coaches have access to forms, files, and all the student
045eligibility and that's being updated daily. So that's been a huge improvement as well. And then finally, this summer I'm going to be I've already started putting it together, but I'm hoping to put out a seasonal newsletter three times a year with each new season. And it'll have um signup dates, uh information about registration, um first practices, parent meetings, uh picture dates, all that stuff. So, I'm hoping it'll just be another nice way for people to get information and get those dates that they need. So, and the other Yeah. Well, we have time for questions at the end. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Go ahead. Absolutely. The next thing just real quick, we want to talk about some of the things that have been happening throughout mostly the winter right now for our extracurriculars. Um, looking at You
046can flip to the next one, please. Go. So, we have a few up here, but there's a few that are not pictured up here because I just didn't have pictures of them at the time. So, our forensics team did really great this year. They actually made it to state Madison. And so, you can see the people up on the screen. Gifty had a silver in poetry. Kora had a silver in poetry as well. Sailor got a bronze in poetry. Is it Izzy up there, she got a silver in oratory. And Vleta all got a bronze in oratory. So, our our forensics crew has done a great job and they're continuing to build and we're working on building it. How do we get the middle school kids in to be able to compete and keep building
047that program? So, that that's been doing well. Um, visual arts classic is something that's been going on for a number of years. This year, our kids did pretty well with that as well. Um, I don't know who got what cuz at the time we were putting this together, we hadn't gotten exact results. Um, but we know that we had um a few kids who scored first before they came out and then some of that other stuff is still kind of rolling in. So, they did really well down at state as well. Um, bottom corners are all conference choir. So, we had certain kids who were chosen from our choir to go and participate. I believe it was at Northwestern this year. Um, so that comes from our choir. We also have one that's for band
048that they also get chosen to go participate in that as well. Um, and then our fire and ice, which is always extremely popular. They've had a number of competitions. Most recently, their like big competition that they really wanted to do well at was in Medford. Um, and they got third place there, which is kind of their biggest competition of the year. Obviously, the goal is to win, but they beat another school that was the one that they always compete really hard with, and so they got a higher placement than they did. So, they were like, "Awesome." Um, and then at the same time in that same competition, Calder, one of our high school students, was awarded um, best bass clap soloist. Best B. Yes. Bass clap soloist. So he got individual recognition as well. So
049our music program is going really well going grow growing fast. Other clubs that have been doing things our international club they have been doing a lot of things together just as a group to make sure that our exchange students are feeling really welcome and taking them out on different things. They're working on setting up presentations for classes individually as students so they can come down to the library during health when they present them and they learn about those countries. Um another one that's not pictured on there is our ecology club. They do a lot of field trips to go help. Um, last year I think it was some kind of mushroom that's invasive, but I can't remember the name of it right now. I didn't write it down. So, they go on trips to help
050clean that stuff up. They go up and they help clean up um along the shorelines after winter is is settling out. They clean the trash there. So, they're doing a lot of great stuff. And then the last one that just happened is our it's not really an extracurricular, it's extra buttcurricular. Um, our welding, we had a welding team go to a competition just last week and they brought seven students. Four of them placed in the top 10. Um, and so Flynn he took first place, Dylan took fourth, Terrence took fifth, and Azure took eighth. So of our seven, four of them placed in the top 10, which is really amazing. Um, so it's a great job to Mr. Earing teaching and helping all that stuff, too. So, a lot of really great things happening with
051our extracurriculars as well. Questions? Yeah, I'm hoping that you can like uh maybe make some distinctions for me between like a club versus a sport because my understanding was our Nordic club was a club. The Nordic ski team was a club or is that a is that a school? That's a school sport. Okay. Thank you. that there's club level through middle school. Okay. And then as of high school, we recognize it as a school. Okay. Um and then uh and yeah, it was the same along like the activities like because you mentioned like the choir and then you mentioned the welding. So like I knew that those were kind of like in school with extra like competitions available. Yeah. So that like that's Yeah. It's kind of like a hybrid. It is. Some of them
052are a little bit hybrid like our ecology club. They do a lot of things through some of their classes as well, but it's the stuff outside of that that's the extracurricular part. So kids in the classes don't have to do it. They can choose to do it and that makes it an extra curriculum. Okay. And then um you started out talking about like you know being able to um like 50 kids in the sports which is pretty great. Um but do we have like a plan or do you know in general how many kids are participating right now? As of our last YBS survey. So that was YBF. YRBF is the youth risk assessment. Um the last time we did that, it stated that we had about 80% of our kids participating in some sort
053of extracurricular whether it was a club or whether it was a sport or music or whatever that was. And that's a survey that the kids themselves take. We don't do anything with it. They put in their own answers. And so it was about it was like 75 or 80%. We just redid that survey this year. Um, so we should have a better idea that I think that might come out in the summer or early fall and then we'll get those results and we'll see what is that every five years? Two. Oh, every odd years. Yeah. So, according to at least that survey, we have a lot of kids participating in different things. Do we have any like house numbers? I don't have any on me. Okay. We've talked about that once before of trying to
054keep a an idea so we can see each year whether it's going up or down or how but like you know like quite a few. So, it's like, "Oh, I wonder if you're making that data yet." But and I think with the changes that Shandra making and organizing pulling those numbers and getting that information, it's going to be 100 times easier than what we had in place before. So, that'll be much easier for us to pull. Awesome. But I do have them because I have to report like the WIA sports, I have to report them every year and we've been having to do that right along and I keep all the end of the season paperwork. So, I have it all. Right. Is it a matter of like getting it in one place? No. No.
055How hard would it be to put it together so we could see kind of a if there's some type of trend per year, you know, is it going up? Is it going down? Is it back and forth? I could start organizing that. That would be a summer activity for me. Yeah, it's one of those. I think it's one of our strategic goals is to increase that, right? So, as we're thinking about kind of that scorecard for next year and wanting to that would be uh data that the team has talked about gathering so that we can share that more regularly with the board. Yes, I do want to add in that for athletics, it's um this is between a club versus athletics, but our handbook, the kids have to be in school during the day
056in order to participate at night. And so that really it does really impact. I'll see there's certain sports more so than others where you see a lot more of the kids once the season kicks in and it really it does a great job keep them keeping them in school all day and y the more kids in the better. So other than cheerleading, do we have any other clubs in the high school level? The ecology club, the international club. Okay. Um we started a we the people club a couple years ago. That one has sort of fallen by the wayside as the ones who started it have graduated out. Sure. And so we haven't had the interest in that one. Um we don't have a ton of clubs in in that regard. A lot of it
057goes with the classroom stuff that they're doing. Sure. Um trying to figure out Am I missing one? Well, no. I just I think that's the only Well, there there's like yearbook club, but um cheer right now is the only one that's athletically based that I can think of. Yeah, thanks for the question. Yeah. Are there homeschool kids on some of the teams? Yes. Okay. Yep. and they're um actually I just had a phone call about a kid but they have to be registered in Homer in our district to participate. So, other questions? I don't I don't know how hard it would be. You know, I'm just looking at if we could get some of that data put down a little bit easier for us to see as far as how many kids are are involved
058that are homeschooled, how many, you know, are in the clubs, how many, you know, the for homeschool numbers, we're probably looking at um I think for middle school we had two and I think right now in high school we have two and they're doing trap and that's out of Ashlin, but um they're not huge numbers for slow. Okay. I think we have one or two maybe in your ice as well. Okay. One for sure. Maybe two. Interesting. Thanks. Thank you. Superintendent report. All right. So uh as you all know we are well into the thick of the state banial budget for funding of school districts and the joint finance committee will be is kind of doing a road show and going around the state. So I've shared this with the board. They will be in
059Hayward on Monday the 28th. So I will be traveling to Hayward to uh share my two minutes of testimony. I think you get three three minutes. Okay. agreements to test um regarding the importance of funding districts and equalizing the way in which uh school districts are funded and adjusting the revenue cap that's in place so that we can have equitable um funding for our students and our schools. I'm excited about that. I hope I'm not there till 5:00 pm waiting. Um but it sounds like the line might start at 7 a.m. and first come first serve. So you just get in line and wait. uh looking for that advocacy opportunity. Uh referendum update. So, lots of meetings continue with Myron and ISG with the core team at school. Uh they've shared a detailed budget which
060I shared with the board. Um it's it's a lot to look through but really uh great information and we've now begun to do some prioritizing with them which we will be finishing up in the next couple of weeks. and then they will be here to present to the board on May 8th. So you will get an update from the the team giving you those details and then next step kind of May and into June we'll be uh gathering input from staff for their spaces. So what are their needs in terms of classrooms that will be renovated and updated? What are they looking for needing like caseworkwise? That means cabinets and countertops, which we all laugh about because we had no idea what that meant a couple months ago. Uh, so we're really excited that by
061June we should have a pretty solid plan and then I believe Myron will be moving the kind of design work into the actual construction documents and then we'll be ready to go to bid um for request for proposals in the fall. Yeah. So, it's going to happen really quickly. Uh, athletics and activities. Uh, great report. Springfest coming up at the elementary school. So, lots of great activities, field trips, uh, students getting outdoors. Uh, today I saw this pair of snow pants hanging in the elementary that's like completely covered in mud. Did you see? And I thought those snow pants that have had a good life here. Um, they need to go home, get washed, but they've lived a good life. Um we also and something to celebrate at the high school um the ACT scores
062are in and we are above the state average at Washurn uh at a 19.9 and the state at an 18.4. So that's great news. Summer school registration coming up and uh looking forward to that and seeing the the students over summer. And then record numbers for our start college now programming. So, great numbers of students taking advantage of college courses and earning credit um before going onto their post-secary. Um, I'm sorry I didn't ask this uh earlier when I was reading the um things. Uh, but with the closure of Northland and now the only postsecary opportunities for students might be like online or if you wanted to have an inerson experience W Superior. Um, what do you have like can you just give us an idea of what might be coming down? Well, we're talking
063a lot about dual credit opportunities where like our teachers would be able to teach college courses inhouse. That's something that we're exploring more of so that students, you know, it's accredited through the university uh transferable and really great. And then we're also talking about some more of the hybrid so we can keep students here and that drive time is minimized because you know trip to Superior and back is a good two and a half hours, right? Uh and so just trying to make the most. So lots of initial conversations as we're recognizing North and Northwoods Tech. Yeah. Most of our kids this year going to classes at Northwood Tech in that uh transfer program that they have that two-year transfer program starting there and then figuring out how they want to move that forward. So
064this year's a lot of Northwood Tech. That's true. I think we have four kids looking at Superior and then as Denise was saying building our in inbuilding options for kids so we can keep them here. All right. Thank you. I appreciate that for the question. All right. That's all I have. Thank you. Yes. Um Cecil's facilitating the superintendent search for winter. Um the directors and Nick are currently holding meetings with each district to go over their shared service contracts. Have they done it here yet? On Monday. Okay. All right. Um, my term as a board member on CISA's board is up now. So, I think I've been on it twice. I think that's the limit. So, but I can still be a representative. Oh, you can? Yeah. Yeah. Um and then uh CISA held the
065youth apprenticeship day at um the tech school and I attended it. It was unbelievable. Um unbelievable good. Yes. Yes. Of course. Um there were so many businesses there. Um there were local representatives from the assembly. Um of course I sat at that table and didn't even know it. But and then there were it was it was really neat because there were a lot of parents there, grandparents um because the students got awards. They were nominated for awards. A lot of the businesses were there, they also got awards, some of them did. Um and then they also got many business world experience where they got to break out in different tables intermixed with different schools. So they weren't working with the same stu students they came with and they had to um invent some something to
066sell to the crowd. And it was they really at first they were like you know but um they were really cool ideas. one one table invented a tennis shoe that had a tracker system in it and it also had uh something that promoted movement and they actually made it out of duct tape and cardboard and it was really cool looking and where the little tracker went in and then a lot of us went around and talked to the students and asked gave their gave our input of ideas and and then they grew theirs even bigger and it just turned out really It was really fun and I made a lot of connections with um WITC's staff um with the fire departments, the police department. There was so many people there. I tried to hit up
067everybody to get some information. So, I thought it was really good. Fun. Thank you. Um approval of financial reports and bills. Okay. Um, first of all, uh, we just got, um, like just going through, it's not new anymore. We've been doing this for a couple months, but just like going through that like budget, uh, to annual. And, uh, just wondering if there's any questions. um still like loving that format and it just gives me an appreciation for how um amazing uh education funding is. And by amazing I mean like just convoluted and hard and segmented and um and in some cases lacking. But that's a that's another story. So, just um just really appreciated for Janet and all of that work to like put this together for us so that we can um more than
068any other year that I've been a board member um that we can kind of track like just the pulse of the um the organization and the service and the value of the service we're providing to children every day. So, um super pleased uh for that and uh and then the rest of the financials are in great shape. So, I would move to approve the financials. There second? I'll second. Any other discussion, questions for Tina? All in favor? Opposed? Motion carried. All right, we'll go on to the consent agenda. Um, I move to approve the consent agenda. Is there a second? I'll second. Any discussion? Yeah, I just wanted to just make a note and just like say this and it just bears I guess repeating is that just because it's on the consent agenda doesn't
069mean it's not deeply thought and considered. Oh, absolutely. Just wanted to just shed some light on that again. And and again, that's why we're doing the adjustment to the budget or the agenda at the very beginning. So, if there's something on the consent agenda that we want to switch, we can do that. So, okay. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carried. All right, we're going on to the um strategic planning and um one of the things that we need to talk about is how we're going to um get people on that strategic um planning committee and how we're going to go about it. And I know Denise and I have had some conversation and I explained to her a bit on how how we did it with the superintendent um where we looked at different
070categories um and then tried to fill those positions. categories, meaning community members, a parent, a business owner, someone who's retired, staff members from both elementary, middle school, high school, of course, administration, um, support staff, some of those areas is what we had for that superintendent search. Um, so you know, do you have some thoughts or do you have ideas on how you would like to do that strategic planning process? Can you refresh my memory? Was it completely open-ended and then of the people who got back to us then we were saying, "Oh, yes, we have a representative here, here, here, and here here." I don't think it was. I think it was just kind of like let's uh well, did we have did we ever have an open call? And I think what we did
071is we that was when we were doing all of the surveys for the referendum and those kind of things and we put that on one of the surveys. Yeah. If you would like to be on the selection committee for the superintendent. Yeah. Um to just, you know, Yes. sign up with the school or sign up with us and then we kind of went through and then we're able to make sure we're just this person would be a business person you know that you're a business in town. I just think that like as long as we have at least like some aspect of like open call um because I don't know if we're going to get um like like our own you know our own limitations can sometimes within the group and we want to make
072sure that everybody feels welcome. mentioned creating a Google form and then, you know, sharing it on our social media, which would reach a a strong school connected group of people. Um, but maybe it's something that could be emailed out to parents, parents and shared on our website and just word of mouth like if you're interested because it is true full daytime commitment you know for people who are um working and and those are long days when asked sorry when we've asked how people want to get their communications what's been their big answers oh yeah we have asked that I think email comes back often as a a strong vote like are in touch which yeah I think let's go to those top three and send something out. Yeah. Do we have anything I mean I
073know we've got emails for parents families but do we have any kind of email that we collect for community members. I want to make sure we catch our community members. We don't have like the other place I thought of was like the chamber because of the business component. Would there be anywhere else? It's more of a community education foundation. Um, we could do a poster post around poster around town with some QR codes on it so people can just scan it. They don't have to worry about bring a blooper with them. Do we have concerns for um people who maybe not so techsavvy, right? you know, having access to these to like to be a part of it. Yeah. To have a paper a paper copy. Yeah. Yeah. We could definitely we could leave city
074hall. We could be some visitors. Well, no, it's maybe a little more like visitors. Visitors. Chamber. Oh, yeah. What was that? Chamber. Yeah. Chamber. The bookstore. I mean, there'd be some great places. The coffee shop. Coffee shop would be Oh, yeah. They don't allow Oh, they Oh, that's right. But the grocery store does. Grocery store. Yeah, that's where we post our stuff. I wonder if city hall would let us. I know. I kind of wonder if they would, too. They may have a website for their employees, too, that they would maybe send it out. [Music] Then it would go out to them that they don't all live in the Washington School District, but Correct. Right. Yeah, if we can just spread the word and try to gather a great diverse stakeholder group, that'd be wonderful.
075And I believe, if I'm not mistaken, that you were saying he was okay with up to 40 people. Yeah, I believe said he said the number of the group, what he's found over the years of doing it, the process is strong enough that it will support, you know, a small group, 8 to 10 people up to 40. you said he can accommodate as long as the space can accommodate the number of people. Uh so I have been working a little bit with Rick Sepa on exploring the third floor of the cultural center um as a space. So I think we're going to go tour that next week and just take a look because I've not been there in a number of years and just to see table he said there's great space there and we
076be able to do some lunches and um so if that works that would be great. So, as we're doing that and what when when we did it for the superintendent search, you know, we had a much more limited number of like 12 or 14, something like that, but now we're like up to up to 40 whether we get that many or not. Um, are there, you know, I kind of threw out some categories. Is there anything any other people or any type of person that we're looking for to have on there? um you know, business owners, um parents, community members, which is kind of all-encompassing, but um it would be interesting to see that um go back to one of those presentations that we had um from school perceptions uh regarding our like our demographics
077and like who responded to surveys and who makes up those like when we were um getting referendum information out there for like, okay, these are the people who are responding to your survey. Those are really interesting demographics. I wonder if we could have me or something like that. How about students? Do do they ever have students on the Yes, we should. Yes, that would be wonderful. A couple students would be great. I was just looking to see I thought that I included I know I have it written down sort of like those stakeholder groups brainstormed. So, okay. Um, do you have enough ideas of where to try to get that out to then? I think so. I think Katie and I can work on creating the form. We can get it shared electronically, you know,
078via the sources that we use and then we'll work on printing maybe a more shorthand version to have available that people could drop off. Okay. Yeah. Thank you. I'll we'll do that early May, you know, have that available for a few weeks. I mean, maybe till the end of the month. Does that sound about right? And then in June at that board meeting um in close session, we could go through and just determine like what are the numbers, how are we repres represented based on those groups and then um and how people will be notified and that kind of thing. And then the next step, yeah, in the spring that he had asked was to then notify those individuals and kind of lay out sort of the timeline and those days. We'll have to put
079that on the forum as well. Great. All right. So, let's go on to the individual action items. Um, and the first is pertaining to the strategic planning committee and what their charge will be. And so, I will read that. Um this is what we're going to ask these eight to 40 people to do. Um the school district of Washurn of Education recognizes the importance of proactive and comprehensive planning to ensure our school's continued success and improvement. To that end, we are charging the strategic planning committee to develop a roadmap for the future of our district, which will include a refined mission and vision, long-term district pillars, and five-year strategic objectives. Once that is stated, a board member will make a motion to approve the charge to the I think I'm done. That wasn't a good
080end on that one. Um, okay. So, that is what the the charge we will be giving to that committee. Um, if that is okay with the board or if there's any changes you'd like to make to it. If if that's okay, then I need a motion to approve that directive that we will be giving to the strategic planning committee. I'll move to approve that charge charge. Okay. Is there a second? Second. Any other discussion? All in favor? Opposed? Motion carried. All right. Um, we're moving on to the graduation speaker. Um, approving Stephen Sandstöm as the graduation speaker. We need a motion. I move to approve uh Stephen Sandstrom as the graduation speaker. There second. I'll second. Any discussion? All in favor? I opposed. Motion carried. Approval of cheerleading as the WACPC sport. I make that
081motion. I'll second. Okay. Um discussion. Yes. Um, can you let me know like the costs for the coaches? Is that like equivalent to other sports? I don't but I comparable to other sports. Yes. Yes. It was sold directly from winter sports uh coaches. Okay. And targeted for that season. Yeah. And I also understand that like $5,000 is not, you know, $300,000, but the like the timing just feels kind of yucky. Yeah, I know. Like like green and healthy gone and I know it's not that black and white. Getting rid of green and healthy. No, green and healthy is not gone. I know that. And but it's just like it just did kind of pop up. So I think it's just worth to just I just wanted to say it. That's all. Well, and and I,
082you know, I have a concern. You know, we've been really hitting it hard as far as budgeting on, you know, every kind of um cut that we can make, not hurting, I mean, trying to not hurt as much as we can. Yeah. And um and I'm I'm just a touch uncomfortable with um adding something and cutting something and adding something and cutting something. And I guess what I would like to know if if you know this is is there a possibility? I mean, do we have to do this tonight? Can we make this decision on a at a later time when we have better information on the budget? We don't know what we're going to get yet from the state. Right. Right. Um when will we know? The hope is June, but it could be
083as late as the fall. Yeah. But typically by the end of June is is a more normal timeline. Just depends on how much battling happens. Is there money set aside for this? There is money in the athletics budget that's been set aside for it. Yes. Okay. So good question. That's why I think it's it's good to go. Um if you like what's the all current tip? What does because cheerleading is wonderful and I think it's done great things for in this year and a half or whatever we've we've been experiencing it. If you don't um pass this, what does it look like? Does it go away all together? Yes. So, okay. So, that's what's on the table. Yay. Or yes or no? Literally at all. So, I I have a follow-up question about where the
084money is coming from. So, if it's coming from the athletic department, and let's say this isn't passed, that money just sits there then, correct? Unless it's used for something else, but it has to be used within the athletic department. No, it could move in and out. It could move in and out. So, there's no Yep. I mean that budget sits within that big Font 10 budget which encompasses building and grounds technology. Yep. So that money could certainly flow to a variety of places. It's all interconnected. Cheerleading team is it um open to all. It's it's co anybody. Yeah. Um it's hard to increase participation in extracurriculars when you don't have extracurriculars to participate in. Great. when um looking at the coaches um when would be your final time to we are going to need at
085the very for to [Music] give to give these cheerleaders the best opportunity to succeed for the fall sport. We would like to start at the beginning of August and start tryyous, get word out there, see what kind of team we can put together to give the best team we can. We're not due for WAPC WAPCP due WACPC. Um, they're usually due in September, but we also just want to touch on a lot of our athletes are also dual sport athletes. So, we worked very hard to work around volleyball, basketball, gymnastics. Like, we work very hard. So, we would just need to get stuff scheduling. And then also, um, both Shay and I are business owners, so it's really hard to keep pushing something, pushing something when we have to schedule around our businesses as well.
086I am willing to say as a sibling of some coach, which is not anything like a head coach, that if cheer team were to be nominated as a club and not make it this round, I would step up and make a cheer association or cheer to motivator team, whatever you want to call it for next year. If we are going to use the cheer name, I am fine coming up with another word, Catholic art pride, whatever you want to call it, because I think it holds a irreplaceable spot in our school. And I think between the community members and other people I've interacted with that it would not go away on my end that I would somehow find a way to keep these girls and other students that have been interested and maybe either had
087a parent situation or just maybe this year wasn't their year to do it. I would find a way to continue to have something similar so that our students would be able to attend the events and ask things like this. So I understand that as a person in a separate sense. I know both those folks are very busy as well, but I would be able to step up and I I'm sure I could find that either parent volunteers or other volunteers to help busy. If we were to um hold hold this off for a few months till we get some better figures from the state as far as what our budget's going to be, would that be doable? Yep. Yes. Okay. Would you would would that be okay for the board or would you be interested
088in doing that? No, I'm not. You're not. I don't see first of all, it's not a huge amount of money in the aspect of things and it's something that's new that hasn't been here for a long time. I think that would really motivate people. Um, I think that we could vote on it tonight. I think it's worth it's a worthwhile All right. Any more discussion? All in favor? I opposed. What's the motion? Your motion is to have it, right? Yes. Okay. Motion carried. Congratulations. Thank you. Um approval of the Start College Now applications. Make a motion to approve the Stark College now applications. Any discussion? All in favor? I opposed. I sorry I was late. I do not oppose it at all. I clearly seconded it. Motion carried. I'm just I was very impressed with
089the list of students. So my comment got lost. That was very funny. Sorry. Thank you. That was good. It was good to have a little laugh on that one. Thank you. Um, okay. Approval of the summer school staff. I move to approve the summer school staff. I'll second. Any discussion? All in favor? Motion carry. All oppose. Motion carried. And then the second reading of the number of policies we did had the first reading last month. Um, need a motion. Um, I move to approve the second reading of policies as listed in the agenda. I'll second. Any discussion? All in favor? I opposed. Motion carried. I need a motion to convene into close session. I'll make a motion to convene into close session. Is there a second? I'll second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carried.
090Thank you everybody for coming. Thank the cheerleaders for their little exhibition. That was fun. Thank you, ladies.