001I call the Liberty Elementary School Governing Board regular meeting to order. It's 5:30 on Monday, January 12th, 2026. We are at the Jerry Roie district office. We have five board members present. Board member Todd, member Kenyon, member Zimmerman, Vice President Sarinion, and myself, Sarah Schmidt. Uh we can move on to item 1.2, the pledge of allegiance. Uh Miss Zimmerman, would you lead us in the pledge of allegiance, please? nation for all. Moving on to item 1.3, the approval of the regular agenda form. I make a motion to approve the regular agenda form consistent with board policy 1-302 and temporarily suspend governing board policy with which this agenda may be inconsistent. >> Have a motion. Do I have a second? >> I second. >> Okay, we have a motion and a second. We can take a
002vote. Um, member Todd >> I. >> Member Kenyon >> I. >> Miss Zimmerman I. >> Mr. Sarion >> I. I'm also an I. We will show that passed five to zero. Can move on to item 2.1 attendance enrollment reports and school newsletters. Are there any questions from the board about any of these items on the agenda? Uh I just had a couple comments, please. Um, if we could pull up the uh attendance monthly, pretty sure is the right one. Uh, no, I apologize. Um, attendance annual maybe. I apologize. First one. Yeah. Um, I just wanted to uh take this opportunity to kind of uh celebrate our schools and our principles because every single school's attendance average was up for the month of December compared to December last year. Um, and so it's just important to
003me that as board member I take the opportunity to celebrate uh when we can. Um, and I certainly think, you know, that uh a thank you to our principles and our assistant principles that really have made that concerted effort. um we know how important attendance is and you know students can't learn if they're not in school and so just thank you for uh continuing to make that a priority this year um I think is really showing. Um the other thing um or second thing I wanted to look at is the home room counts please. Um, you know, I just think it's really important that, uh, as a board and, you know, as staff begins to look at staffing for next year that we really look at, oh, sorry, really look at these um, numbers because
004um, they are going to be important. I definitely think you know the number of classes that we have in the red which is plus4 over the target is decreased from last year. Last year at this time we had five and this year we only have three. However, the classes in the blue which is target minus six which is great for teachers um great for uh really being able to target those students but certainly can affect um the budget um when we're not meeting those targets. And so um this year we are at 20 classes in the blue versus 12 last year. So, I just think it's important that we keep that in mind as we look begin to look at the budget and staffing for next year. Um, and then if we could pull up
005the enrollment report, please. Um, I had a question. Um, and I don't know if Mr. um, man will be able to answer this, but for December, it says 20 pending. Um, do you know how many of those like actually enrolled u board? U Miss Zimmerman, I don't have that uh information for you right now. I know that um there was at least I think 14 that enrolled but I don't know about the remaining six. So >> Okay. Okay. Um you know unfortunately the trend continues to go down. You know we're still uh you know we lost two from the previous month. Um you know 90 from this point last year and then uh 115 from last May. I just happened to look at the DAP today and notice that we were down again. So, I
006was just wondering if maybe those 20 didn't end up necessarily enrolling or we just lost some and gain like kind of just evened out. >> They were pending for December. So, some of them have enrolled. Those wouldn't be in those counts. So, that you will see them moving forward. >> Okay. But they would have been in the DAP today. Um historically the information that you're looking at in the DAP like this time last year we would have had those same students like in the queue waiting. So but you are looking at apples to apples. So when you're looking at the DAP you're looking at that same data. Yes. >> No I'm looking at current DAP like >> okay as of and so that runs uh uh maybe that that does run a little bit behind
007but it's done. Yeah. So, so I I will get I I know exactly what you're asking for. I will get that information to you shortly. >> Okay, perfect. Thank you so much. That's all I have for this agenda item. >> Any other excuse me, any other questions or comments from board members? Okay, then we can move on to item 2.2, two. The presentation by Westar Elementary students Megan Hamburgg, principal. >> Hello. Good evening, President Smith, uh, governing board members and guests as well. Thank you for the opportunity to provide it to present this evening. Um, I have some eighth grade students, um, and a staff member that are going to come join me in just a few moments. But I wanted to provide some background information about how this presentation came about before having them
008come up. Before I do that, I would really love to recognize Miss Bonus, who is our eighth grade social studies teacher here, where the presentation and the idea all came about. Her invaluable contributions to our students and our school community is beyond amazing. something that she is passionate about is providing our students with opportunities for real realworld experiences. So, I can't really think of anything more real world than the students being able to come here and present this evening. So, without further ado, I would love to or actually before I do that, um during the month of November, we had 8th grade students and Miss Bonita's class. They were studying the disability rights movement aligned to Arizona history and social science standards. Their focus transitioned from historical involvement to institutional practices, social awareness, civic participation,
009and finally acts of congress. As a culmination project to the unit, students investigated various acts that reformed public accessibility expectations and pivotal moments in advocacy. various topics presented. So, presentations done inside the classroom included the Fair Housing Act, Individuals with Disabilities and Education Act, and Disability Access to Transportation to name a few. Among these various acts, our students discovered one that hits very close to home and they decided to investigate further and I would love to bring them up right now to let you know what they discovered. So, I'd love to welcome up McKenzie, Emily, Matthew, and then AJ, who is our one-on-one support for Matthew. So, if they would like to come on up. Architectural Barriers Act of 1968. What is the Architectural Barriers Act or the ABA of 1968? The ABA is a
010federal law that's main purpose is to make sure that buildings using federal funds are accessible to people with disabilities. History of incidents that led to the ABA. Disabled veterans couldn't access public buildings, which led to the barrier-free movement. The barrier-free movement created more accessible environments, showing Congress how taking disabled people into consideration creates a positive impact. History of incidents that led to the ABA. Oh. Um, PVA states July 26, 1990, the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, ADA, was signed into law, opening up opportunity, participation, and economic self-suffic self-sufficiency for persons with disabilities and fulfilling a goal paralyzed veterans of America had fought tirelessly for since its inception in 1946. Hugo Deer, a man who had been nominated for Handicap Man of the Year, received a ceremony. This ceremony ended up showing a powerful example of
011what the disabled had faced when he had to be carried up steps since there was no ramp at the event. According to Boundary Stones, thanks to his efforts, his local YMCA, public library, public high school, and Methodist church were made wheelchair accessible. Hugo Duffner struggles changed the way that people saw the handicapped community. Investigations that led to the ABA. Federal employment reviews from 1950 through 1960 found federal buildings inaccessible for disabled people. 1965 National Commission on Architectural Barriers had a 2-year investigation nationwide to study how physical obstacles affected the disabled. This had led to the 1967 report to Congress recommending creating a new law for more accessibility. All of these investigations gave Congress a new perspective of how large this issue was throughout the nation and gave Congress enough data to finally go forward with
012the idea of the ABA. Locations that led to the ABA. Federal buildings in Washington DC served as the home of federal buildings. So the fact that they weren't accessible gained a lot of attention. Some examples include hospitals, rehab centers, post offices, courouses, etc. Colleges and schools demonstrated how inaccessibility could hold disabled people back from pursuing their goals. National Commission sites visits exposed lack of consideration throughout federal buildings, gaining people's attention. These locations had all shown perfect examples of inaccessibility for the disabled and gained attention throughout the nation. overall being a factor of the creation of the ABA because of the amount of negative impacts caused. History of political movements. History of political movements for the architectural barriers act is how disabled people persuaded the government through their actions to enforce the ABA. The US Access
013Board still worked hard to enforce the ABA laws even when the government tried to shut them down. history of political movements. Um, oh, even when they try to shut them down and clo and close ABA complaints. Activism. While there are protests regarding disabled people, the ABA's job was to make all buildings accessible, buildings especially. The capital crawl, as it is known, was a physical demonstration of how inaccessible architecture impacts people with disabilities. It also highlighted the urgency behind the need to pass the ADA, which President George HW Bush signed into law on July 26, 1990. The capital crawl was one pivotal moment that led to other important moments in the history regarding the disabled civic leaders. Because of this experience, Cynthia Keelin was careful to make sure Jennifer Keelin Chaffens and her sister Kaylee Keelin
014were safe the day of the Capitol rotunda. Cynthia Keelin, though not disabled, still protested for her daughter, her daughter, because she knew how important her rights were. While Cynthia was not directly protesting for the ADA, she was in influenced in pro she was included in protests that led to the signage of the ADA. Legislation summary. The US Access Board, which is an independent federal agency that advances accessibility through leaderships in through leadership in accessible design and the development of accessibility guidelines and standards reads, "The law requires that buildings or facilities that were designed, built, or altered with federal dollars or leased by federal agencies after August 12th, 1968 must be accessible." This is basically saying that it is a requirement by the state that all buildings must be accessible for any type of disabled person
015physical or mental. Political support and opposition. As stated in the other slides, Keelin Chaffins who participated in the capital crawl had to climb up the outstanding 83 steps without a wheelchair in use. This is a great example of the need for the passing of the ABA and ADA. An opposition though was that there was that the ABA could have been too harsh on the disabled people. Supreme Court cases. The ADA Americans with Disabilities Act includes a Supreme Court case that assisted the people with disabilities. In Olmstead versus LC, the Supreme Court established the right for people with disabilities to receive care appropriate for their needs and ruled that unjustified segregation in institutions is discrimination. My name is Matthew Shoemaker. I am 13 years old. I've been at Westar Elementary since I was in sixth grade.
016I first noticed the problems with the school in seventh grade when I first read a number in the 200 building. I've personally been learning Braille for 9 years and have learned all of UEIBB grade 2 for about two to three years ago. I've been blind ever since I was a year and a half, so about 11 years. My time at West Star has been wonderful. Honestly, one of, if not the best schools I've been at, and I've been at at least four other schools. Problems with Braille at Westar. Westar Elementary has incorrect Braille signs outside of multiple classrooms. The entrances to Westar does not contain any braille signs which is legally required in public/commercial buildings. The braille signs in the 200 building all contain 100s instead of the 200s. Many braille signs in Westar use
017poor spacing. Some braille signs contain incorrect spelling and or use old not currently in use braille code. Effects this has on people at Westar. Due to having all of these issues on the braille signs, people can be misled to incorrect classrooms and buildings. The exterior of most buildings in the campus do not contain any signage to give indication of where you are going. Students of Westar who are also trying to learn Braille which is very difficult when outdated Braille and poor spacing is used making it difficult for students who are learning especially those of younger ages. Exact ADA violations 703.3.1 Dimensions and capitalism capitalization capitalization markers should only be used for proper nouns names and beginning of sentences. Here at Westar, building 300 has most signs in all uppercase. It's not the only building either.
018216 4.1 Exit doors requires each exit to have an exit sign. Dependent on the type of exit, a tactile sign is required. Westar has one exit sign in the eighth grade building. 703.3. Braille states that braille needs to be written in UEIBB grade 2 for space efficiency, UEIBB grade 2 and standard for most Braille print and is most commonly known about Braille readers. Hello, my name is Arthur Torrance. I'm Matthew's one-on-one paraprofessional. We've been working together for about two years since late 2023. Um, and we thought it'd be smart to show a couple of examples. So, first, as you can see, we have our 425 storage uh room. This is located in the gym. Now, those two indicators that you see right there at the beginning of the braille, the two dots towards the bottom,
019those indicate capitalization, which goes against one of the codes that were mentioned in the previous slide, which is not up to code. Um, we also notice that it is spelling storch, which is a bit unfortunate at a school. Uh, you know, we're missing an A there. Uh, easy mistake though, but obviously that needs to be rectified. Next, we have the maximum occupancy sign. So, this one, as you can see too, has the capitalization indicators, uh, which is one issue, but it also spells the word auansancy. So, we seem to have found the A, but it is in the wrong word. Um, and as you can see too, uh, it uses EBA AE braille, which I can't remember the acronym for right now, but the current standard is UAB grade 2, which is, uh, which has
020contractions, which help with space efficiency, just so then you can fit as much, uh, information on the actual panel itself, uh, without going too overboard. And then lastly, we have the computer room. This one, as you can see, as well, has the capitalization indicators. Um, and it also uses EBA2, which is not UEIBB2. Um, as you can see, there's a pretty big difference. So, these are just three examples. Uh, as mentioned in one of the previous slides, the entirety of the 200 building, I mean, sorry, the entirety of the 100 building is mislabeled. I I mean, I can't really remember which building it is exactly because of how confusing it is for me and I can read the signs. So, I can only imagine what it's like as a blind person. Okay. Thank you again
021for listening to our presentation and after reviewing this act, we understand why it was created and we come to understand that our school does not follow the architectural barriers act guidelines and that is interfering with Matthew's rights and his ability to navigate our school. Thank you. I just want to say thank you again so much for allowing them the opportunity to do this this evening. >> Okay, thank you guys. Are there any questions or comments for the students? I know they all ran away and sat down right away. >> They come back up. >> Um I have a few. >> Yes, please go ahead. I am going to do my best to um keep it together. But um for those of you who don't know, I um have fought for my daughter to have an
022ADA compliant school for the last two years. And so I am just incredibly grateful to your teacher and to your principal and to you for taking this opportunity to show the inclusivity of your class that your teacher is not just teaching you the history, right? But that everybody is entitled to these rights and it's our job to ensure that everybody gets them. So thank you to all of you. Go ahead. >> Yeah, I just want to say thank you so much for bringing this to our attention. Um, >> it's very important for when you find something important, you know, to stand up for and and it seems like this is obviously important to you. It's important to Matthew, his family, make sure he's be able to get the education that he needs. Also, um, Mr.
023Young, what what actions are we taking this? I have a feeling that this isn't our only school that might be having this issue. >> Yeah, I actually, Madame President, members of the board, actually found out about this Thursday afternoon when we were reviewing the board agenda. This the first I have heard that we had a problem over there. And it's one of those things I think you don't know it's a problem until it's a problem. Uh but right away, uh Dr. Aaga contacted the school for the deaf and blind to get a representative. they're going to come out here and see if they can assist us with seeing what's wrong and what we need to do to recorrect it. So, we are we will be working on it. >> Thank you. >> Could I just
024add one thing? >> Yes, please. Um, you know, one of the things that I, um, you know, as I've advocated over the years, um, is that I appreciate that the problem is brought to us, but I also want us to be proactive, um, and look at our other schools so that when a student moves into a school that we are not backtracking. Um, and that has always been important to me. And so I've always advocated, as you know, Mr. young for a long time. Um that we try to be as proactive as we can and um so I'd love for us, you know, if those people are already out here if they could take a look at our other schools so that we at least know the concerns in this particular area. >> Yeah. And
025uh Madame President, members of the board, they actually responded and said, "How many schools do you have that you want us to look at?" And we said, "Eight." >> Thank you. And thank you again to the students for your great research and presentation and for advocating for your classmates. Um, great job. It's not easy to get up here and talk in front of everyone, but you guys did great. Thank you, >> Madam President. >> Yes. Oh, I'm sorry. Yep. Go ahead. >> Uh, along the lines we have eight schools, but we also I think along with board member Zimmerman, we need to have the transportation facility and the district office looked at as well. Both government buildings. And as we see, we do have uh folks who are sight impaired that uh come to these
026meetings as well. And so, please add that to the list with the for blind as well. >> We'll take care. Thanks. >> Thank you. >> Any other further comments? Okay. Thank you. Thanks again. >> Thank you. >> All right. Okay, with that we can move on to agenda item 2.3. Um, the board may call for an executive session pursuant to ARS 38-431.03 at 03 A3 and A4 for legal advice from the attorney for the district concerning a pending lawsuit Maricopa County Superior Court number CV2025-060383 and to discuss and instruct its attorney on the board's position in that litigation and or in settlement discussions conducted in order to resolve that litigation. Madam President, motion to call for executive session pursuance ARS 38-431.03 03 A3 and A4 for legal advice from the attorney for the district concerning
027a pending lawsuit Maricopa County Superior Court number CV 2025-060383 and to discuss and instruct its attorney on the board's position in litigation in that litigation andor in a settlement discussion conducted in order to resolve that litigation. A >> motion. Do we have a second? I'll second. >> All right. Thank you. We have a motion and a second. Call for the vote. Member Todd. >> I. >> Member Kenyon. >> I. >> Member Zimmerman. >> I abstain. And I'd like to explain my vote. >> Yep. And Vice President Sirion. >> I'm also an I. We'll show that. That's four to zero with one abstension. Um, Miss Zimmerman, go ahead. >> Um, I am abstaining and I will not be participating in the executive session as is a conflict of interest. All right, we will move into executive
028session at 5:57 p.m. or adjourn from regular meeting at 5:57. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Are you? I think Heat. Heat. N. Heat up here. Boo. Hey. Hey. Hey, what? Hey, hey. down. Hey Heat. Heat. I feel Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. Hey, Happy to be. Stick around. I want you. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, Ste. How do you feel? Happy. Hey. Heat. Heat. Hey, heat. Hey. Hey, hey, hey. down. Fire. Hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Baby Lou. Hey. Heat. Heat. A heat. Jack. Hey. You tell me. All right. Um, item 2.4, reconvene of the public meeting at 6:34 p.m. moving on to item 2.5, consider and possibly take action on board's instruction to the attorney for the district in executive session. Madam President, I make a motion to
029instruct attorney to proceed as directed in executive session. >> I'll second. >> All right. I have a motion and a second. We'll take a vote. Member Todd. >> Yes. Sorry. >> Just a moment, please. >> Sorry. You need him to repeat that? >> Yes. Okay. Can you please repeat that? >> Yep. Instruct. Sorry. Motion to instruct attorney to proceed as directed in executive session. Thank you. >> Okay, so we have a motion and a second and we can take the vote. Um, member Todd >> I. >> Member Kenyon >> I. >> Member Zimmerman >> abstain. >> Vice President Serion >> I. and I am also an I. We'll show that passed 40 with one abstension. We can move on to item 2.6, the monthly budget report for December 2025. Um, I don't know if we
030have a district representative, do we have any comments or questions that we can try and answer? >> Um, sorry, I do. Uh, you know, Mr. Young, do you know who prepared this document? Do you know if Miss Moer prepared it before she left or if Miss Williams prepared it? >> I believe Miss Williams worked on it with uh Crystal before she left. >> Left. Okay. Um, yeah. I guess just kind of my notes um is that the budget for like M is still showing the um budget from July and so since we did a revision I would think that that budget limit should change to that number. Um and um I also just kind of wanted to point out that when we look at just for example ML and there it says there's like you
031know a balance of 723 that hasn't been spent or encumbered that is saying we're that's how much is left for our total budget limit which is not accounting for any carry forward. So if we, you know, kept the plan of at least $500,000 of carry forward, that would mean we'd only have $200 and some thousand left for the next six months because this is only for December. So I just think that's an important point for us to consider. And obviously I think you know we will have to talk about what we're going to do about finance in general. But those um were just some things that um I noted and that you know all of us agreed in October um to start to work on creating a carry forward. And right now I'm not sure
032that we're set up to do that if if even if we only had 500,000 forward that would I just don't think we're going to make it the end of the till the end of the year with $200,000 in ML. So, any other comments or questions? Okay. Thank you, Mr. Young. Um, we can move on to 3.1, governing board updates. U, Mr. Todd, would you go first, please? Um well, welcome back everybody. I hope you had a great holiday season. Um you celebrate Christmas, Quanza, Hanukkah, whatever it might be. Um I hope you had a great time. Um I was able to attend a couple of the school's uh Christmas events and those are always fantastic to see. Unfortunately, they just do them one night and uh wish they did them more so you can see
033more of them. But uh I know it's a lot of work for the staff and the students and the parents during the holiday season. So, uh, with that just, uh, pass on to our next board member, >> Mr. Kenyon. >> Yeah, thank you. Yeah, I same. Welcome every back everybody, all the family, um, kids, staff. I hope everybody had a great holiday season. Um, and I was also able to get to a couple of the the different events going on throughout the district. And it was a lot of fun to see all those kids all singing and dancing and making making their parents proud and their teachers prouder. So, um it was a lot of fun. And then um you know there's there's it's going to be a fun 2026 and so we're looking forward
034to the things that are going to be happening in the district. Uh just a quick reminder across the district this week we have parent teacher conferences. So parents, make sure you're hitting those up, seeing what your kiddos are doing, good and bad, and all in between. So, thank you, >> Mr. President. If if I may, I had my note in the wrong section here, but um if I can proceed with one more comment. Sure, go ahead. >> I just uh we did have a teacher uh at Australia, Miss Shestley, become nationally board certified, and I wanted to recognize her for that and and congratulate her for job well done. If you've ever been in one of her classes, you know that she's been beyond nationally board certified much longer than the paper might say. She's
035uh a great resource to our district and has always been very pleasant to work with and I know the students love her and she does a ton of extra stuff for the science olympiad and and uh pretty much if the school's open or closed, you can pretty much count on Miss Shishley to be there. Um I think she's there 24 hours a day. We might need to remodel our classroom for a what do they call those? Murphy beds or something because she's always there and uh so just congratulations to her. >> Great, Miss Zimmerman. >> Thank you. Um I also wanted to recognize Miss Sheesley for um getting nationally uh board certified. That is a huge accomplishment that comes with an incredible amount of work. Um so she um is an incredible teacher, but as
036Mr. Todd said she also does an incredible amount outside of the classroom to really help students um with that well-rounded education. Um and so, you know, I just want to recognize her um and her accomplishments. Um I also um it's always important to me um to be able to um celebrate uh different things across the district. So over right before winter break, we had our Arcadians testing for the middle of the year. Um, and so I just want to take the opportunity to recognize one grade level at each school that had significant um, changes. And so at Blue Horizons, their kinder group um, had 38% more kids at or above benchmark at that middle point. So that's awesome. A lot of growing happened at Estraa and third grade. They have 88% of their third graders
037at or above benchmark, which is incredible because um if you don't know, third grade is the first year that they begin state testing. And so to have that number so high um as we begin that, you know, start to begin preparing for that is awesome. At Freedom, their kinder, they increased um 34% more kids at or above benchmark at that middle testing point. Lasprescus kinder 38% more kids at or above benchmark. Um Liberty increased in kinder 31% more kids at or above benchmark. Um Loretta Zumbro their kinder has 82% of their kids at or above benchmark. Um oh sorry that's their middle. Yeah they have 82%. um Rainbow Valley, their second grade, they have 64% of their students at or above benchmark, which is awesome. And at Westar in that critical third grade, they have
03874% of their students at or above benchmarks in the Acadians testing. So, I just want to thank, you know, all the teachers and principles and uh instructional coaches and reading interventionists that all work hard to um have these uh successes at our schools and help our students progress. So, thank you so much Mr. Sarini, >> no update that hasn't already been said. >> All right. And I will keep mine pretty short, too. I also would like to hope that tell everybody that I hope they had a restful and enjoyable holiday. Um, hope you got some quiet time and were able to spend time with your families or whatever makes you happy, but it was quiet. Um, I want to also give a shout out to Mrs. Sheley for her National Board certification. Um, as Miss
039Zimmerman said it, that is a huge amount of work and a really long process. Um, it is not easy and that is why there are very few teachers that actually have that certification. Um, so fantastic for her. Uh, and side note, she does a lot outside of school, too, cuz she was my son's, uh, Cub Scout leader back in the day. So, she's not only busy with her classroom, um, she was doing that that stuff, too. Um, and still is. Yeah. So, she I don't know where she finds the time. Um, and then last, I just wanted to say that uh, coming up, I'm looking forward to being one of the judges for the district spelling be next week. So, um, my first time as a spelling bee judge. I hope I can do it
040well, but I'm looking forward to that. And, uh, we'll have some more updates for you guys in February. I think that ends it. We'll move on to, um, 4.1. Um, public comment. Mr. Sarinone, how many do we have? >> We have seven. Good evening. My name is Ashley Wright. I reside within the district. Members of the board, I'm here tonight to urge you to reconsider your decision and bring Trevor McDonald back to LED as interim superintendent. Over the past several months, I've spoken with many teachers across the district. Teachers who are scared, exhausted, and deeply uncertain about their future here. Many of them believe Mr. McDonald could be the answer to several of our serious issues facing our district. Teachers are already looking for a way out. They feel they have no support, no clear
041leadership, and little understanding from the board. With contracts scheduled to be issued on March 15th, I ask you to consider how many qualified educators will choose not to stay if the district remains in its current state. If the board has the opportunity to restore stability, support, and leadership by bringing Mr. McDonald back, why wouldn't we do that? This is not a time for ego or pride. I understand that doing so may require revisiting a decision that has already been made, but we cannot do better until we know better. And many of us know clearly that this is what our community wants. I've spoken with hundreds, if not thousands of community members in recent months. They want leadership that prioritizes students and teachers first. They want accountability for the salary that's already been paid. And most
042importantly, teachers want Trevor McDonald back. Please take the voices of your community into serious consideration as you make this decision. Our teachers, our students, and the future of LED depend on it. Thank you. Good evening, members of the Liberty Elementary School District governing board. My name is Megan Cananan and I'm a parent and a resident of this district as well as a business service professional specializing in procurement. I'm here tonight because the decision I'm speaking about matters deeply. Not just for today, but for future for the future of our students, staff, and community. The appointment of an acting or interim superintendent is not simply a temporary decision. It sends a message about who we are as a district, what we value, and whether we are prioritizing stability, trust, and students first. I want to be
043clear, appointing an interim act or acting leader who does not demonstrate experience, confidence, and earn trust would be a mistake. Parents reach out to district leadership during moments of fear, frustration, and urgency because their ch children need advocacy. When those messages go unanswered, that silence is not neutral, it's damaging. Leadership begins with listening. And right now, many families feel unheard. These concerns are visibly visible publicly as well. During board meetings, when accountability matters most, there have often been a lack of clarity and readiness to answer questions or explain direction. That uncertainty does not inspire trust, and trust is exactly what this district needs right now. Staff climate surveys confirm what many already feel. Frustrated, exhaustion, and lack of faith in leadership. Our educators and support staff are tired. Appointing an interim superintendent who does not
044already have their confidence will only deepen that divide. There is, however, a clear and responsible option. Bringing back Trevor McDonald as interim superintendent is both fiscally responsible and emotionally right. He has already been compensated this year, meaning his return would not cost the district an additional dollar. At a time when every taxpayer dollar matters, this is sound stewardship. During his time here, Mr. McDonald was a breath of fresh air when this district desperately needed it. He led with a true student first student first mindset backed by action, not just words. He provided stability. He rebuilt morale and began restoring trust between staff, families, and this board. When staff feel supported, students benefit. As a procurement specialist, I want to address the circumstances surrounding his removal and place responsibility where it belongs, back on this governing
045board. District payment records show that the consultant in question was paid only three times before Mr. McDonald's termination. August 20th for $272.97, September 3rd for $8,31, and September 7th 17th for $582.40. That totals $9,156.37, which is below the $10,000 threshold that would have required additional written quotes. Additionally, the two September payments were not approved at a board meeting or publicly available until October 27th, nearly a full month after Mr. McDonald was accused of violating procurement rules. At a time that there was ample opportunity to pause, obtain quotes, and reprocure services properly. What is most concerning is that after Mr. McDonald was terminated, the district lacked proper leadership. the opportunity to reprocure was missed. As of December 3rd, the district exceeded the procurement threshold. That failure did not occur under McD Mr. McDonald's leadership. It occurred
046after his removal and lack of leadership available at the district. Members of the board, my name is Christina Gmo. I reside in district and my kids attend Westar. I'm here tonight to ask you plainly and urgently to do the right thing for the district. Reinstate Mr. Trevor McDonald as interimm superintendent. Trevor McDonald is a true leader. He leads with integrity, transparency, and courage. And that courage matters because when intimidation tactics were used to silence, disscent, and control outcomes, Trevor McDonald did not stay quiet. He called it out. He stood up. And for that, he was pushed aside. Let's be clear about what we are where we are today. We are still paying Mr. McDonald as interim superintendent. Yet our district currently does not have one actively serving. That is illogical, irresponsible, and harmful to students
047and staff. If we are paying for good leadership, then we should allow that leader to lead. Trevor McDonald has the support of teachers and parents because he listens to them. He shows up for them. And most importantly, he puts students first always. Not politics, not power, not ego, students. In contrast, this board has been forced to reckon with deeply troubling conduct. Michael Todd has been accused of using intimidation to get what he wants. He was heard making dismissive remarks about a fellow board member by reducing them to only having special needs children. He was also heard using racial slurs when referring to a staff member, Dr. Mahorn. That conduct alone should give every board member pause. And on Veterans Day of all days, Michael Todd took to social media to publicly bash a fellow board
048member who is a veteran. You cannot get any lower than attacking someone who served this country, especially on a day meant to honor that service. This district deserves better. Our students deserve better. Trevor McDonald represents stability, professionalism, and student first mindset. Reinstating him is not political. It is responsible governance. So tonight, I'm asking you to vote to reinstate Mr. Trevor McDonald's as interimm superintendent. And I will end with this. Michael Todd, I am a proud mom of a daughter with Down syndrome who is biracial. And she is already a better human being than you will ever be. Thank you. >> Good evening, members of the governing board. My name is Amanda Collins. I'm a parent at Los Brius Academy and I reside within the district. I'm here tonight because I'm deeply concerned about the lack
049of leadership and the ongoing instability within our district. Over the past several weeks, I've been out in the community speaking with teachers, staff, and parents. Um, several of the teachers, past and present, one theme continues to come up again and again. Fear. Teachers and staff are afraid of retaliation from one of our board members if they speak up or openly raise concerns. Because of this fear, serious issues within the district are not being addressed. Educators are staying because they love their schools, they love their principles, they love their communities, and they want what's best for the student, but not because they feel supported at the district level. That sense of stability is fragile. With teacher contracts coming up March 15th, and without strong, trusted leadership in the district office, I'm genuinely worried about how many
050more educators we will lose. This is unacceptable. Our district is at a breaking point and I'm asking you as our elected school board to give thoughtful consideration to who will take place of interim superintendent. In the short time Trevor McDonald was here, teachers and parents who interacted with him consistently shared positive experiences. Several teachers have stated they would renew their contracts for next year if he were leading our district. He's someone who can help alleviate that culture of intimidation. He has demonstrated integrity and the willingness to challenge decisions that are not in the best interest of the district. True leadership is not about control, force, and fear. True leaders listen, learn, and serve their community. It's okay to acknowledge that mistakes may have been made and to take the steps to correct them now. Our
051teachers, staff, students, and families deserve nothing less. Thank you. Good evening board members, staff and families. I reside out of district and I have two children attending EMEES proudly for four years as of now. I also serve on PTO and I am a weekly volunteer. These four years, you have yet to provide or allow for an appropriate superintendent. It is beyond concerning that there is no one in place overseeing the dayto-day of the business of the district. Even more concerning, there seems to be no actual sense of urgency or consideration for what your community, the parents and staff have been asking or wanting for. When when Monroe was here, there was at least two, maybe three of you who gave your full support to him. And how if we just trusted what you all wanted?
052Well, look where we're at. I don't see him. And yet I understand he was paid out. And then recently we have Trevor McDonald. Great job picking him out and making sure that we all felt like we could trust him. And for some clear as mud reason, you all let him go. We need support. We need it now for the kids, for the faculty, and for the staff. We need leadership we can trust and that our principles can trust because the superintendent should put children and teachers first. I believe that individual could be Trevor McDonald. I'm voicing my concerns and my suggestions to you once again board members asking you to bring him back. However, additionally, I am also very pleased to see change of leadership on this board. It is a picture of hope of
053what might good might come around this corner. I do look forward to seeing what listening ears we have from you all. Thank you to those board members who show up, who ask those hard questions, who volunteer, who are approachable, who listen. We appreciate you tremendously. And we do uh appreciate the fact that you seek the best for our children, what's best for the school, our community. For those of you that don't, do better. Good evening, members of the board. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Virginia Faren. Many of you do know me because you've seen me at this podium several times before, usually speaking about an issue I care deeply about and believe our district can do much better on. that is our athletic facilities, our fields, and how our
054athletic programs are run. I know again for years this year or this area has suffered from a lack of oversight and clear communication. I've spoken during public comment. I've emailed and I've tried to engage through proper channels because I truly believe that parent input matters, especially when it comes to things like scheduling and equitable access across the schools. When Trevor McDonald came into the district, I believed maybe for the first time that we finally had a superintendent who would listen and take action. So, I reached out to him directly. what happened next really struck me uh stuck with me. Trevor responded to my concerns with thoughtful, actionable steps. He didn't dismiss me. He didn't pass me off and he didn't leave my email sitting unanswered through a foyer request. I later learned that it took
055just two hours from the time I emailed Mr. McDonald for him to send the first email addressing my issue. two hours. I want to be very clear about why that matters. I've been waiting months, in some cases still waiting for responses from other district staff. Not you, Bob. Bob, you always answer on these same concerns. That contrast says a lot. If Trevor McDonald was willing to give that kind of time, respect, and urgency to me, one parent out of thousands in this district, imagine the care and leadership he could provide if he were given the time, stability, and collaboration he deserved. More broadly, Trevor McDonald was not given a fair opportunity to enact the change this district desperately needs. His time here was cut short by drama he did not create. From day one, his
056leadership pro uh philosophy was about working together. He trusted site administrators to lead their schools. He gave teachers the space to teach without fear or constant discomfort. He was actively working to fill long vacant district positions and bring stability to a system that clearly needs it. Since his departure, we have seen even more vacancies, some occurring over Christmas break. That alone should give us pause. Now more than ever, Liberty Elementary School District needs strong, steady, and trusted leadership at the superintendent level. In my experience, Trevor McDonald demonstrated that leadership. I urge this board to reflect honestly on what was lost when his tenure was cut short and to seriously consider bringing him back. Not just for the parents like me, to the members of the board. Good evening. My name is Deborah Sawyer and I
057live in the district. Quality school superintendent are essential for a school district to thrive. Superintendent are essential links between school boards, staff, and community. This district seems to have a revolving door for and costly buyouts of superintendent. Tonight, a true show of accountability by this board would be a vote to bring back Mr. McDonald as Liberty's interim superintendent. It is time to deliver honest fiscal responsibility by becoming true advocates for healthy, well-run public schools. Reinstating Mr. McDonald is a thoughtful, financially sound decision that prior prioritizes students, staff, and community over any wrongly based personal interest. Liberty Elementary School District deserves an interim superintendent until a permanent superintendent is hired by this board. Thank you. >> That was the end of the public comment. Thank you. We'll move on to agenda item 5.1, approval of consent
058agenda. Is there anything we need pulled from the consent agenda? >> Madame President, I make a motion to approve the consent agenda. >> All right. Do we have a second? >> Second. We have a motion and a second to approve the consent agenda. We'll take a vote. Member Todd >> I. >> Member Kenyon >> I. >> Member Zimmerman. >> Nay. >> Vice President Sirinion. >> Hi. >> I am also an I will show that it passed four to one. All right, my right page. All right, we can move on to item 6.1 in general business, the LED electric bus presentation. Um, Miss Dundee Gates from Transportation Supervisor. >> Good evening, um, Madame President and members of the board. Just want to give you a little update on what we're seeing as of now. Um, our
059first savings that we're seeing is with our fuel savings. Um, I did the analysis from last year from 71 of 24 to 1231 of 24 when we did not have the EV buses yet. Um, our cost was $60,283.76 spent on diesel fuel. Um, this year from 7125 to 1231 of 25, the same time frame, we have only spent 20, $38.72 spent on diesel fuel with the savings of $40,245. Um the cost of electricity that has went up um is 27,28546 which gives us of a total savings between the two of $12,95958. So we are seeing a savings with the EV buses. Um we have found with some of the electricity rates that we can improve by 10 to 20% with charging strategies. We did start charging on off peak hours. Now that the heat has
060broke, we can um start about 9:00 p.m. We have them set, so they're fully charged by the morning when we come in. So, we should start seeing a little bit more savings there as well. Um with our RWC bus parts, um the same time frame that I used last year was 16,293 spent on parts. Um this year we are only at 11,424 spent on parts. So, we do have a savings there of about $4,868 and some change. Um, bus maintenance and service, same time frame. Um, last year was 2239.36 cents. This year we are at 2314.80. We don't we're not seeing a savings there yet. Um, but we do also have um other buses that went down for service that were not EV buses. So, that is actually included in that price because they did
061not separate that out for us. Um, right now there is zero cost for in-house maintenance on the EV buses at this time as everything is under warranty. Um, after the warranties are up, that might change. Um, we may have an a maintenance cost because our mechanics are not certified to work on the um the high voltage unless we send them to classes to have that done, but as of right now, they will have to go down for service. The challenges that we found, really the only challenges we found is the charging stations with the direct heat. They are not compatible in um August, September, and beginning of October. It's this we found it's the stations itself, they're in the direct sunlight, they're not covered. Um so what that has done is it's overheated them. When
062we plug them in, it throws codes um for which then puts the buses into limp mode. We now have to send them down to the dealer to have them correct that. Um, a couple of our charging, three of our charging stations have already had to been replaced due to the heat damage. Um, those were under warranty. We are currently waiting for two more to arrive to have those changed. Um, now that the heat has broke, we have not had any charging issues. Questions? >> Thank you. Questions from board members? Yeah, Madam President, if you mind. >> Yes, please. >> Um, thank you for that, Donnie. I appreciate it. And, um, I wanted to ask about that with the heat and the charging stations. Has there been some talk about doing some kind of umbrellas or
063shade or anything just over the stations themselves? And is that something RWC would be? >> So, they've given us some suggestions. It is something that we need to look at. Some of the stuff can get costly. Um there is cheaper routes that we can go around that we need to work out and try to figure out if those will be compatible for us. >> Thank you, Madam President. >> Yes. Go ahead. >> A couple questions. If memory serves me right, when we talked about these buses, RWC said that they were going to provide high voltage training for one of our mechanics. Um I think we should probably go back and look at that, but that was the original plan. Also, there was great discussion about the chargers and the heat, and they said there would
064be no problems. Now, if they're coming back making recommendations after the fact, I think that belongs on RWC's dime to repair, and they need to have an extra one ready to go for us for the time being. We're going to be back into the heat here pretty quick. It seems strange. It's January and we're talking about heat, but it's Arizona. But there was great discussion um with their manager uh about the chargers and the in the high heat and there's no reason those chargers should be having a problem because there's many other EVs around the state uh particularly in Maricopa County that are not having those issues. So I think RWC needs to come to the plate on that pretty quickly with some solutions. But that should not be a cost of our district. We
065shouldn't be entertaining spending more money to keep the charges that they told us would work. They're familiar with Arizona. They know the heat. If they sold us a charger that's not working in the heat, that's on them. Any other questions? Are you Was that it, Mr. Todd? From you? >> That's it for now. >> Okay. Thank you. Anyone else? >> A couple. Go ahead, please. >> Uh, first I just want to say thank you so much for putting this together because I think it is very helpful for us to see and for the public to see in in transparency. Um, I know that we bought 13 electric buses. How many uh none electric buses are in our fleet that we use daily? >> We have about 28. >> Okay. Um, and how long is the
066warranty for? >> Three to five years. And then the batteries are for eight years. It goes by parts. The buses, some buses are three year or some parts are three years, some parts are five years and the batteries is the most and that's eight years. >> Okay. Do we know the charger ones if they're three or five? >> They are three. >> Okay. Um and um sorry I'm writing you know can you can you give a little bit more detail about what they think the solution could be because regardless I think you know we have to come up with a solution because obviously the heat's going to return um and so um have they you know have we priced it out at all or you know what are our you know can we just have
067an estimate I guess. Yeah. Um, madame president, members of the board, we have been in negotiations with RWC. They do have some uh individual rafts, they call them, to to wrap each uh charger. Uh, and we looked at that and then putting shade, but they are working with us and uh the warranties will continue until we get this straightened out. So, it's it's not going to be an issue like three years, one month down the road, four of them go down. They're going to take care of that for us. They told us they would uh also with the training they they wouldn't offer training to the mechanics but you know it's only a a certain level of training they they're they feel that they can give without putting theirelves in jeopardy for having them work
068on something that they shouldn't be working on. Sure. Sure. I, you know, I appreciate what you're saying that, you know, they're under warranty and, you know, therefore, but, you know, I would still love to see us work towards a solution because inevitably if the charger goes down and then you can't use the bus, you know, that puts you in a predicament in your team. And so, you know, let's, you know, that would be my hope. Um, so, um, could I ask what does a, uh, can you just give me a ballpark figure? What a, uh, nonelectric bus normally costs? >> Uh, I think the last diesels were around >> 240,000. >> 240. Yeah. >> Oh, really? That high? Okay. Interesting. Um, so you know, when I look at this and I kind of doubled the
069numbers like to equal a year, it looks about like $36,000 of savings. Um, and so, you know, when I'm looking at it, right, we've already made the decision like we can't go backwards, but you know, when I look at that from a fiscal perspective, you know, we spent 2.5 and you know, the return on investment doesn't seem like a whole lot. Um, but obviously the decision has made been made. I just think it's always important for us to be reflective, right? So that in the future we're really thinking long terms and try to calculate some of the savings ahead of time to decide if it's, you know, the best financial decision. But I really truly do appreciate this information because it is helpful. Thank you so much. >> Any other questions, >> Madam President? If
070I may, just for a second for a little point of uh clarity, um the electric buses were purchased mostly under a grant. Um that grant was actually applied for multiple times uh under Dr. Schuff's leadership. When the electric buses end up being bought, um Dr. Monroe had just come on board and we actually were having a showand tell of an electric bus when the salesman came around the corner and said, "Well, you guys got a grant. you're gonna buy some electric buses. Um, that was never passed down. That the grant had never been approved by any of the boards previously to apply for. Uh, if you know anything about federal grants, if you give the money back, you'll never see another grant. They they do not take kindly to returning returning funds. So, I think
071uh the board and the administration at the time's hands were a little bit tied because we did some checking and it was very clear from the feds that if we gave the money back, we would not see any more grants. Um it's it's very poorly looked upon. So, I would agree with Miss Zimmerman. I think uh the board should probably look in the future for some grants and have a threshold so that the board is aware of the grant being applied for so you don't get we don't get jammed into a situation as we did with these buses. Um what I will say is with the offset of the grant uh the district was in need of buses. Miss D you we were in critical need of buses and buying the electric buses at the
072time under the grant was cheaper than buying a new bus uh that was diesel. So, as we as we weighed those options out, it still seemed to be the best the best way to go. But, uh, I think it really needs to be clear that there's not a single person who sits on this board today. Um, nor anybody in leadership of the district who had anything to do with the application of of this grant. Um, so that's uh that was a interesting curveball that got tossed to us. >> Miss Schmidt, >> please go ahead. just like to provide a little clarification that Monroe was here for an entire year when the buses were purchased and the board has free will as to whether they vote for something or not. That that is correct. But the
073grant had been applied to prior to Dr. MO being here and the board was pushed because the grant had been awarded and if we had turned it down then we would not see any more federal grants from that from that area which had some great implications for future for the district. Any further comments? Right. Thank you for your presentation. We'll move on to agenda item 6.2 discussion approval of the governing board meeting schedule for SY 2627. Uh Miss Camarada, President Schmidt and fellow board members in front of you'll have two hard copies of the governing board meeting schedule for 2627 school year. You'll notice that in option one, the calendar remains as we have um scheduled the meetings this year. So you'll have for this school year, you'll have the first meeting as a regular
074governing board meeting. Second board meeting is a special meeting um with the option of counseling if uh no business needs to occur. Option number two is identical pretty much to the first option. However, the second special meeting has been removed um during this school year. We have cancelled a majority of the second board meetings. Um and then I'll just leave it up to you for discussion in which governing board schedule you guys select. Thank you. >> We'll open it up for comments or questions or discussion. Madame President, if for me, >> please. >> Um, I apologize, Miss Camarada. This schedule doesn't really line up with like any actual calendar, it looks like. Um, I get what you're saying. The second Tuesday of the month on the first one and then two, you know, the second
075and fourth Tuesday of the month on the other ones. But looking at dates, >> Mondays, not Tuesdays. >> Mondays, I'm sorry. But looking at the dates, um, >> I'm sorry, I don't understand your question. Line it up to what? >> Maybe it's actually Sorry, it looks like this side should be over here, but um I'm looking down the middle. It says Monday, July 13th. >> Oh, I think that Yes. So the left hand side of the the sheet, those are still 2026 dates and the right hand side is 2027. So July through December is 2026. January through June is 2027. >> This is for the next school year. >> Is it not right? >> January 2027. The 11th is the It is the second >> second Monday. >> Okay. My apologies. As for which one,
076um, to me, I think our district has a lot going on. I would recommend we do the two meetings a month. That way we have the optional one as a placeholder as I stated in previous meetings, but it's the will of the board. Madam President, >> please >> I would concur that two meetings a month is appropriate. This district has functioned on two meetings a month under Dr. Schuff under Dr. Monroe. Uh Mr. McDonald was the one who started cancing off the second meeting uh which kept a lot of communication and transparency from happening. Um I was I was always opposed to that. Um and I don't think it's a good precedent. Also, we lack a lot of time in that for long meetings become extremely long and by canceling off that second meeting, we
077really aren't uh able to recognize our staff and our students as we've done in previous years. uh and as our district gets bigger, I don't see that we can do that with with one day um a month. So, I would be in support of continuing with two meetings a month. >> Miss Schmidt, Miss Zimmerman, >> um as I have also stated before, I am not in agreement with meetings being on Mondays. If we say that we want parents and staff at meetings, we cannot hold them on days where regularly sports are on those days throughout the entire year, every Monday, every Wednesday. I think we are not being true to our words saying, "Yes, we want you here, but we're going to make it a conflict for you to choose between you and your children."
078Um, so I'm not in agreement that they're on Mondays to begin with and I am not in agreement, as I stated before, to calling the second meeting a special meeting. If we are approving it on the calendar, then as defined in policy 1-302, regular meetings means those meetings that are regularly held and scheduled by the board. If we pass this calendar and they are scheduled, they are a regular meeting and should be labeled as such. I would tend to agree about holding on Mondays. I think I've also stated that previously. Um I know why they were, you know, they have been unmadeed traditionally, but that doesn't mean they have to stay that way necessarily. Um, sports used to not be on Monday, so it wasn't the conflict that it currently is. So, I would tend
079I would lean on the same path that if we want parents here, we want support from our um our parents and our principles and our teachers. Making them choose between attending events at their school and coming to a board meeting on Mondays is is tough. And you know, as a parent, I wouldn't choose to be here if I was choosing this over my child's sporting event, most likely. So, I completely understand that, but I would love to hear from as many parents as we can and have as many people here as possible. Um, so I I tend to lean that way as well. As for one or two meetings a month, I believe Dr. Monroe actually brought up moving to one meeting um before he left. So I don't know that it was just Mr.
080McDonald. It it had been tossed around prior to that to my recollection. Um but again, if we're going to go to two, I think they should both be scheduled regular meetings because they are scheduled and regular. Um that's my thoughts on that. Anyone else, >> Madam President? >> Yes, go ahead. Um, I would I'm indifferent to the day. Um, but what I would say if we're changing them so people can attend and that's the goal, I would also say we probably need to push the start back time to about 7:30 because for anybody who's come west on I 10 who gets off work at 5:00, they will not be here by 5:30. So, I I think we probably need to look at pushing start times back so that people can't attend. >> Madam President, >>
081yes, please. Uh, I also I'm not too worried about the day. This being next year, then I can rearrange to make whatever day work. I wholeheartly disagree of starting a meeting at 7:30. I already think these meetings go too late. It's not fair to the staff. It's not fair to the the the families that can make it out. So, I am big disagreement with starting at 7:30. board member, I'm sorry, Vice President Sion, the the issue is having them here. And there are very few parents, if you were to pull the district, that can be at a meeting at 5:30. It is almost impossible for most people who live anywhere or work anywhere east of about uh Jack Rabbit Trail to get here by 5:30. So, if we're going to use an argument for one
082thing, we've got to use that argument all the way through. That's my only my only statement there. And really the staff is certainly important to us, but this is a board meeting. This is a board business meeting. Um, many districts do this and and honestly many districts have sessions that start at 9:00 in the morning. Poria just had one talking about closing schools. They started at 9:00 in the morning. Uh, I think that's also very tough for people to attend. But if you want people at meetings, 5:30 is a very tough time for um many people to attend. Miss Schmidt. >> Yes, please. Um, in regards to the meeting time, I would also disagree that we do not need to start that late. I think 5:30 is fine because again, if parents are coming to
083the school for sporting events that start at 4:30 and they are making it themselves available, then they have the opportunity. And so, we are starting a whole hour later. So, um I think it is uh too late for staff and we want to make sure that we are doing a good job and focused and um you know be respectful of their time as well. >> President Schmidt. >> Yes, Miss Camarada. >> Well, while we're talking about Dr. Monroe, while Dr. Monroe was here and um I scheduled last year's governing board schedule. There was many factors that he considered. One of them was um and we had brought this back to the board and changed it back to a meeting date. Buckeye Union has their meetings on Mondays. Um and then along with our sports on
084Monday also. So we did have Tuesday meetings. Um I can bring back a Tuesday calendar um if you would like. But yes, there was very many factors that went into that. So right now I'm looking at the Buckeye Union calendar and theirs is on Mondays for the 2526 school year 6 o'clock p.m. >> Thank you for that. Um yeah, so we have sports on Mondays and Wednesdays and obviously Thursday is the last day of the week um for the district. So that day wouldn't make sense. So Tuesday would be the real only option to not have conflict um with sports and not essentially make people work late on their Friday. Um I think I would like to see a Tuesday calendar Are there objections from other people from seeing a Tuesday calendar? >> I mean,
085it would basically just follow this. It would move over one >> just move over >> one day. So, if we like Tuesdays, I think we could just approve Tuesdays and you could plug it in as the second and fourth Tuesday of the month and we could approve it tonight. That would also be an option unless anyone has others or any other comments from anyone. And are we looking at one or two meetings a month? >> President Schmidt. >> Yes. Please >> make a comment on your two meetings a month. Yes. >> Back in the day when Dr. Monroe was here and um we had many conversations about having two meetings a month. One one of them was you know we finish one meeting and then the staff has to start preparing for the next meeting
086not giving us enough time in between. So, it's basically just giving us like half a week to schedule that and then having a agenda board setting meeting with the president and the superintendent. Um, he said we can do it or you know you as board members can schedule a board meeting anytime you want. Um, we've seen that this year that we love board meetings. So, I'm happy to bring back a Tuesday meeting once a month and then you calling meetings. You know, I I have to be here as much as you have to be here. So, thank you. >> Thank you. I do remember um Dr. Monroe and that conversation about having two meetings a month that the staff is just constantly working to update for the next meeting and how much um we know
087how much time and effort it takes to get ready for every meeting. So I think that is something that we should be taking into consideration how much time of this the staff is using preparing for board meetings, excuse me, outside of their everyday normal work that still has to get completed. President Schmidt, please don't think we're, you know, we're not willing to or absolutely are. >> Absolutely. >> I I do not believe that for a second. I'm in constant contact with you. I feel like um I'm just being aware of how much time and effort needs to be put in to be well prepared for board meetings and and then also complete the rest of the tasks that are required for having the school district run and function. um and that we should be aware
088of that for everybody here when we're making these decisions. >> I think also, you know, as Miss Camrada said, like if something comes up, you know, certainly we can call for a special meeting. Um but you know then the staff can focus on that one meeting and fully prepare you know >> but then we come to the discussion that Vice President Cion has about how long meetings are. How long do you think those meetings are going to be if you have one a month or if you have the option for two you can start splitting the agenda up. And madam president, I think you'll see that as you have more time in your seat where there's a time where you say mean's going on eight hours. I need an extra time. But what we've heard
089from the public in the past is that when we have special meetings, it's not prepared and and then they feel like we're trying to hide a meeting. So that's kind of where we got to the let's schedule a special meeting if we need it. If we don't, we'll certainly cancel. we don't need to have meetings to have meetings, but it's harder for people to look ahead, make plans, and then all of a sudden find out, oh well, they are going to have that meeting on the 24th after all. Um, if it's already scheduled, they know it could happen. If it gets cancelled, it's a bonus for them. But if it's not on the calendar as a placeholder and then we need that second meeting, now you're calling it. People have other plans and now they're
090trying to juggle. So, it's it's kind of easier. It's I guess it's like a sports schedule and you might get a rain out, might not be a time to play. You don't know that ahead of time, but the worst thing to do and we've all heard this is towards the end of a season when schedules start changing and you say, "Well, we've got a game tomorrow." Nobody was prepared for that. >> Um, Miss Camarada, out of curiosity, do you know how many of the second meetings we've canled? >> President Smith, thank you for asking and I knew you were going to ask me that. And I was going to try to be prepared. Um I know over half we did. >> Okay. Thank you. Sorry to throw that one at you. >> I make a
091motion to approve the governing uh board meeting schedule for 2627 school year. option two with the change to the day of the week being on a Tuesday. >> Right. We have a motion. Do we have a second? >> Second. >> Right. We have a motion and a second. Call for the vote. Board member Todd. >> Hey. >> Member Kenyon. I >> members Zimmerman >> I >> board members vice president Zirin Theion sorry >> I >> and I am also an I we will show that that passed 4 to one and moving on to agenda item 6.3 discussion approval regarding vacant superintendent position for the remainder of FY2520 26. Um, I asked for this to be put back on the agenda again after the last meeting where it was also on the agenda. Um, I heard
092one public comment say that they feel like there's not an urgency. Uh, I would like to publicly state that I feel an urgency. Um I may not outwardly show it but I I would like to share that I carry that weight and I feel it very heavily on my shoulders every day. So please do not take outward calmness at times as not feeling an internal urgency. So um I am in almost constant contact with people in the district at this point. I've spent my Christmas break and holidays and travel tournaments with my kid on phone calls and trying to do things. So, there is an urgency even if it's not necessarily outwardly shown. I just wanted to address that. Um, but in that respect, we really need to have this discussion again. So, we're here.
093Um I would like to open it for discussion uh from all all the other board members and and uh and yeah have an open discussion here. >> So who would like to begin? Oh yes, Mr. Kenyon, please. >> Sorry. >> No, go for it. >> Didn't mean to jump. >> No, you're good. >> Um I I understand there's there's a group of people who would like to see Trevor McDonald back. um due to the things that he did while he was here in his brief tenure, I am not in favor of that. Uh the way he treated his bosses, which would be us as a board, uh was completely unacceptable along with some other things and we just we don't need to get into it. We've already hashed all that out about Trevor. But I
094I'm not willing to bring him back personally. Um, I do see another option though, and we were emailed as a board um by our director of school improvement, Michelle May, with a willingness to support the Liberty District in this time. And um, I think she would be a fantastic choice. Um, and she's already working with administration, with the principles. She's known in the district. Um, as far as I can tell, she's stayed out of a lot of the the back political back and forth and that's been going on. Um, and I think that uh she's shown a willingness per her email that she would like um to support the district until we can find a permanent superintendent. And so I'm very grateful for her willingness to do that. Um, and I'll let the other board
095members speak and then I'm ready to make a motion. >> Uh, Miss Schmidt. >> Yes, please. I um when I uh I have carried this very heavily as well over the past um well really three months since um you know Trevor McDonald was let go. And I personally think that he is what this district needs and I think that we need to add a person. I think asking anybody in the district office to take on this additional position while we are already severely understaffed particularly at the district office is not fair. Um we need an additional person. We need an additional brain to help us process through all these different issues. And I don't think Mr. McDonald mistreated the board, his bosses. I think he acted in the best interest of children and the staff
096and we were not his number one priority and I'm okay with that. Um, and I think what um, you know, and the board did get an email from Mr. McDonald too, just for transparency that he is willing and that he's reflected on his time here. And I think what is so um what stands out to me so much is that despite everything that has been said about him in the public, he's still willing to come back to this district. And to me, that tells me everything I need to know about his character. And I also think he could sit her home and collect the money for free. And but he's he doesn't want to do that. He wants to work. He wants to serve the district. And I think that we need somebody who's very
097experienced in the superintendent role. We have glaring, you know, vacancies right now. The director of finance, um, director of HR, we need somebody who has the experience and is ready to step into the role day one, has the experience, has the confidence, and I believe that is Mr. McDonald. Um and so um you know I just um I just wonder um Miss Schmidt if you know since you know his name was thrown out before and I realize that it's unconventional for a board to change its decision. But it's okay to change your decision. It's okay to reflect on it just as he said he did in his email. We should be reflecting on our decision. And I just wonder if you um if legal had said if there's any reason why he couldn't come back.
098>> Um thank you for the question. Um I had a conversation with Miss Seagull, our legal counsel, uh last week and while I had her on the phone, I said, "I know this is going to come up, so let me ask you this now so I have an answer." So I do have an answer for you. Um we have no legal barrier to bring him back. She did say that it's unconventional. Um, but there is no legal reason that he could not return. >> Thank you, >> madame president. >> Yes. Go ahead. >> While you had her on the phone, did she give an opinion on whether she thought he should come back or not? >> She did. And I will I will give her opinion and then I will also say that this was
099not her legal opinion. It was her personal opinion. >> And her personal opinion the board can take for what it is. No different than the personal opinions of everybody sitting in the room or um every teacher in every school building, right? It's just a personal opinion. It was not a legal opinion. Her personal opinion was that she would not have him return. That was her personal opinion. The legal opinion is that there's no reason he could not. >> Yes. Thank you. And >> she's not the one hiring him. >> Miss Zimmerman, just for your comment, I have thought about the decision that we made as a 41 board. Um, and I have reflected on that and I still stand very firmly with the decision that was made. Again, you don't come you don't go to
100your bosses and treat them as he treated us. Not just that, but many other things that he did that were extremely questionable and possibly felonous. Um, that we don't need that back in this district. I know there's a group that support him and it seems like there's an axe to grind, but at this time I think that the better option would be to let him go do his thing. And we as a district need to focus on the future. Um, and I'll leave it at that for now, >> Madam President. >> Yes. >> Uh, a couple things. Um, first of all, throughout the entire process of the termination of Mr. McDonald, he was represented by legal. I think it is very important to know that legal his his lawyers at no time ever contested the
101reason he was being terminated. Had they thought it was wrong, they would have contested that, but they did not. Secondly, I think given the political climate in the state, in the district, um bringing him back would have some pretty significant political payback um to us as well. Um I question people, we we got the same form letter over and over. There's no It was full of buzzwords. There's no examples of anything um in there. I I think it's very hard for people to come out and stand here and say we support him. We support him. He was here for two months um and caused a lot of problems and we continue to learn about additional violations that he did that legal has made board members aware of. So I am absolutely not in favor of
102Mr. McDonald coming back. I think it's also important for the taxpayer and everybody else to know that based off of everything I can find out, he continued to hold his job in California while he worked here. Uh, and then at one point he came to this district and asked um he wanted to move Dr. Mahorn up into the number two role of uh education services and then take on human resources for additional dollars in our district. um that follows a trend of of what many people and and unfortunately the ASA uh who helped us with that search. I feel they did a horrible job as they've done several times recently in background checks. They've um they had three superintendents all who have been short time and and left because the backgrounds are bad. But if
103you do any checks out to California, you'll find out that uh there was a big going away party. He just wasn't invited to it. Um and uh and there's a lot of there's a lot of smoke and some fire that happened there. The trends seem to be the same here quickly. I am shocked at some of the things that he did coming in on day one that uh most good leaders know you come in and you listen for a long long time first and then you start making plans. But but that's not the case. And I think the legal liability on the district um from some pending lawsuits that could come forward uh as well as violations of law, it puts us into way too much trouble. And I'm thoroughly disappointed that he was supposed
104to be giving us his full-time attention and did not apparently do that because he was uh from from best I'm informed he was still working for the district in California as well as their business person. M >> please I I don't know what Trevor was doing in California. Um, when it comes down to me, I don't care how he treated us as the board. That didn't bug me at all. And I I told him I will support him until he did something that violated the law or was unethical. Everything legal told me was what he did was unethical and borderline a felony. And that is the only reason I can't support him coming back because no matter how I feel about him and I had high hopes for him and I really liked a lot
105of things he did but it doesn't change the fact of what legal who is way smarter on that stuff and almost all say all of us that's what they they they talked to us about and that's what they said was happening and I got to take their advice when it comes to legal issues. Madame President, if I may, >> go ahead. >> Um, so we talk all the time. We've been talking about superintendents for years here because we've had a few vacancies that we've need to work on and we're currently in the superintendent search. We talk very heavily about a good fit for the district. Um it's been stated tonight the fit and I think that we need to think about that fit. Uh the interim superintendent hopefully it's it lasts till say April and
106hopefully by then we have a we've already selected a permanent superintendent. Um Miss Zimmerman I want to bring up something you just stated a minute ago. You had stated you don't feel that we should pull somebody from the district office into this position because we're already understaffed. However, last meeting you were talking about putting Dr. Aila in that position. So I, you know, there's there's there's time we can go back and forth on this. I don't see that it's really necessary. Um, and so with that, unless there's any other comments. >> Yes, I'd like to make some other comments, please. So um you know I think if we are going to discuss different names then I also think that we need to look at other you know people that are in the district that one
107have their superintendent certificate and have assistant superintendent experience because we've all talked about how important superintendent experience is and how critical it is going to be to be able to step into that role. And there are two people in this district who have assistant superintendent experience and that is Dr. Ovula and that is Mr. Tesano at um Westar. And I do think that the district office in particular is very thin. And so I think again that there are different options in the district who have different experiences that could benefit us. Um and so I just think it's important that we look at all options. um not you know want but I still stand by that my preference is that we add an additional person. I think we're so thin that we need other people to
108help us. Um but I hear that that you know is unlikely to happen unfortunately. I'd also like to say that at the last meeting I was the one who put Dr. Abilo's name out um not Miss Zimmerman just just to clarify that and while I still stand by that would that she would make a great option for us. Um I do also agree with Miss Zimmerman that when I said that in that meeting we were not in the same position that we currently are in the district office. we have lost more people since then. Um we are down you know very important level highlevel positions that are now vacant as well. And so the the the thought of taking someone from the district office and spreading them even more thin than we already are is,
109you know, kind of terrifying to me. And I can't imagine how the person in in the office feels about it because it's it has to be overwhelming at this point with the the number of vacancies that we have. You know, Mr. Young is now our point person for the district and he's doing a great job, but I don't think he ever thought that he was going to be, you know, sort of at the level of a superintendent for the district and having to answer all kinds of questions that are not in his wheelhouse. Um, so thank you, Mr. Young for for all of the things that you have been doing because you've been very um easy to talk to and we've gotten things done and things have actually moved fairly well um and better than
110they had been. So, I appreciate that just from my perspective as the board president, but stretching someone else even more thin from the district office is kind of a scary thought to me. Um, so we have good options, but we have to consider again what are their regular day-to-day duties and then what more are we asking them to take on? Um, and with the number of people that were down right now in the district office, uh, is that even realistic to ask someone to do, >> Madam President? >> Yes. Go ahead. >> Would it not be appropriate to ask human resources to post a position? um quickly have a short window of maybe two weeks and uh literally at our next board meeting we could uh come in a little bit early, do some interviews
111and and look at this and see that would that would open this up. Um secondly, it would uh um it would give us an opportunity to see if there's anybody else out there that may not have been available previously uh that could that could jump in on this. Um, and then that would also give us the ability to add somebody to the district um, versus spreading somebody in the district a little more thin. >> President may. >> Yes, please. >> Um, interimm superintendent, acting superintendent, like whatever you want to call it. My concern is right now we have three or four groups at the district and they're not answering to anybody. So when there's an argument amongst them there's nobody to say yes. So if it is you know Miss May whatever length or just
112some we need somebody in there as soon as possible even just so they can say yes this is what we're doing. No, this is not what we're doing. Cuz not having a boss, everybody has a boss, but not having somewhere they can go to is the the ultimate authority in the district right now. No offense, Mr. Young. Um, but you know, your operations like you have information on academic side, but it's not your wheelhouse. And so, we need somebody because it's mainly academics. And so, we need somebody that has the authority to to squabble the disagreements and make sure everything's still going on. I just want to get somebody in there, even if it's for a short time just they're at the top that they're making the decisions, they're listening to everybody, and they're coming
113out with some kind of resolution because no resolution is worse than not the resolution you were looking for in my opinion. >> Madam President, >> yes. If you would entertain, I would like to make a motion that we uh designate Miss Michelle May as our acting superintendent and we instruct staff to post a position uh open for uh two weeks at which time we can interview and perhaps find somebody that can come in and be the assistant uh to her or we can we can work that out. But let's get let's get Miss May in there now to solve Vice President Cernion's concerns which I think are very valid and then uh we'll post a position and do some quick interviews in in two weeks. We have a motion. Do we have a second? President
114Schmidt. >> Yes. >> So, Michael Todd, what what is the motion? >> Motion is to name Michelle May as the acting superintendent for the district and post a position uh to open that up uh for the board to interview in two weeks. >> Okay. Excuse me. Motion to name Michelle May as the acting superintendent for the district. >> Okay. and we'll that's immediately and then we'll post we'll post the opening for the position uh for for that position and she can interview for it and maybe we will find somebody that will take that over for her. She could rein for it. Um or maybe we could hire that person to assist her in in the role as well. That that could work also. But we we'd hire somebody else within two to three weeks that
115could come on to the district so that we don't take away. But for the time being to solve the issue of having somebody in the seat immediately, we put Miss May there. >> So the motion will read to name Michelle May as the acting superintendent for the district and to post the interim superintendent position. >> Yes. >> Anything else you would like to add to that? Uh, I think we just need to do it quickly. So, we need to have the position open for about two weeks and then close it. >> Okay. For about two weeks. >> And And I recognize staff's short, so they might not get this posted tomorrow. It might take them a day or two to post it, but let's get it moving pretty quick. I know we don't have legal,
116but are we able to post internally or is that if we do a posting like this, is it open up to everybody and then we have to entertain every application we get? >> We we can sort through those and interview who we want out of whoever applies. It doesn't have to just be internal. And if we do internal, we're doing the same thing. We're definitely pulling from within, which is what you said, what I heard from your end that you guys didn't want to do. So, we hire a second person out of this process, most likely somebody externally or we hire somebody internally and we hire somebody externally to fill that role if they want to do it in an in an interim or temporary basis. I'm actually okay with just having Michelle May as
117their interimm superintendent for the time being. I I think that we have so much going on. Going back and forth and and doing interviews sounds good. There's not there's not time to do that. We can make time. >> Um but it's going to be a rush. It's going to be difficult. Uh >> I remember just a point of order. I think we need a second before we further discuss. So if you second it and then we can discuss it and then we could amend it if we need to. Okay, good. >> I'll I'll second it. >> Okay, we have um a motion and a second. >> Now, I'd like to make a comment. >> Go ahead. So again, going back to what I was saying, I think if Mr. Todd would like to amend it.
118Um, I would just like to see Miss May in that position for the reasons everybody's talking about. We need somebody there. Um, I think she'll do a fabulous job and we can always obviously we will as a board be in touch with her so we'll be able to evaluate how she's doing and we can change if need be. But I don't I don't see the need. I think this is somebody who's already got uh the expertise of of basically what the superintendent has done in the past is what the job she's doing. Um so I really do think that uh it would behoove us just to appoint and then focus on the permanent superintendent search instead of this being a distraction to that. Can I make a comment? >> Go ahead. >> You know, I
119appreciate that you, you know, are willing to step in. I just don't want you to put you in a difficult position. And you know I I think where the the gaps that we have in the district office are on the operational side. And so my concern there is is the experience and um you know I just um you already have so much on your plate because we don't have an assistant superintendent of educational services and so you're essentially already filling two roles for this district which we're super grateful for. Um and so that that is my concern. Madam President, I'd like to offer an amendment to Mr. Todd's motion. >> Go ahead. >> I would amend it to read Miss Camarado. You're ready for this? The motion to offer interimm superintendent position to Miss Michelle
120May and instruct district council to negotiate an agreement. I'll second the amendment. >> Of course. >> Go ahead. No, go ahead. >> Sorry. Are we talking about acting superintendent or interimm superintendent? Because those are two different things. >> If it was the interim superintendent, they would be the acting superintendent. Correct. It's the interim superintendent. Okay. So, we currently have the amended motion on the floor with a second for Mr. Todd. Correct? >> Yes. >> Okay. So, we can take a vote on that. Mr. Todd, >> I >> Mr. Kenyan >> I. >> Miss Zimmerman. >> Nay. >> Mr. Sinion. >> I'm also a nay. We'll show that it passed 3 to two. All right. And then this. Yeah. So that was for the amendment. The amendment passed 3 to two. So going back to the
121original I'm sorry now I'm you're I'm confusing myself. Um so we voted on the amended the amended motion and the amendment and now we need to vote on the amended motion. I'm sorry I'm reading and talking at the same time. Right. Okay. So, voting on the amended motion. Member Todd >> I. >> Mr. Kenyan. >> I. >> Miss Zimmerman. >> Nay. >> Mr. Serenion. >> Hi. >> I'm also a nay. We'll show that it passed three to two. >> Congratulations. >> Yes. Thank you. Um, moving on to agenda item 7.1, board comments or agenda topic requests. Anything from board members? Miss Schmidt? >> Yes, please go ahead. I think we need to have a study session or a meeting to discuss these big openings at the district office and how we plan to solve them
122going into a very important budget and hiring season. Are we going to um contract them or what is the plan? I think the board needs to be involved in that and then establishing a potential or um a temporary chain of command since we are missing uh so many key pieces. Um, and just uh a reminder that um I have asked for a liquidated damage policy and I really think we need to have that in place before we issue contracts again because we have been without one since we issued the new policies. And just also a reminder that I would still like the agenda item to self-report the OML violation for the land purchase. >> Anything else? >> Madam President, >> go ahead. >> I surfaced several requests over the last uh few meetings over the
123last couple of months. uh one being that um we have a precedent set that we pay um a stipen for people who are acting out of position and we are not currently doing that for Dr. Mahorn. I'm not sure if there's anybody else. Um, also I've requested that we have a presentation as we've had in the past where we look at um, school campuses and how they are com meeting their goals that they goals that they set last year, how they how they finished the year. Um, and last but not least, I think the board has been privy to several emails from the Department of Child Services, uh, DCS, is that what they keep changing their name. Um, about some very delayed responses from one campus, uh, and I'd like to ask that, uh, we
124get legal involved in that and probably refer that off to an internal investigation in our district to, uh, find out what's happening there. But when DCS is sending us emails saying that we're not responding, that that's a huge concern. Any other agenda items or topics? All right. Then moving on to 8.1, upcoming board meetings. Monday, January 26th is a special board meeting. Um, Monday, February 9th is a regular board meeting and a special board meeting if needed. Uh, Tuesday, February 17th is a special board meeting. I think that should be a regular board. No, special. Sorry, that is the special board meeting for the superintendent search. I forgot what that was for. And then Monday, February 23rd is a special board meeting that is optional if we need it. And we can move to agenda
1259.1. adjourn the meeting at 8:04 p.m. >> You have stuff assignment. >> Yep. There's a pile many Hey.