Governing Board Study Session and Regular Meeting - March 12th, 2026

001Is this on? Can you hear me? Oh, there we go. Good evening. Uh, welcome to our study session. If everyone will please stand for a moment of silence. Thank you. You may be seated. I call this study session to order at 5:01. Um tonight we're going to get an update on our project momentum schools um with Mrs. Amy Deatory and she'll get us started. Um, and I know you have a couple principles that are here to help and share with you. So, we'll have uh 20 minutes to present and Mr. Wing is going to help keep us on time. >> All right. So, good evening, Madame President. U members of the board and superintendency. Um, I think you all know me, but I am Amy Delator, director of federal programs and principal supervisor for our

002program, uh, project momentum principles. Um, and I will be presenting tonight on an update for Project Momentum Schools alongside some amazing principles that I am fortunate to supervise. Um, so let's I know this thing's always tricky. Let's see. All right. So, I'm just going to give a quick overview on project momentum. I know you're very familiar with this as you've seen it in status updates, but um, project momentum is AD school improvement model. Um this is a model that is required for any school that is in school improvement identified through federal accountability. Um the through this model it is required that schools implement what's called the gears framework which is linked here for your reference and I believe you've all received this ahead of time as well. Um through this process um we work with

003district the district and um so myself um being the project lead as well as each of our schools that are identified for project momentum work with coaches and principal partners to set goals and action steps for each quarter. It is very similar to the continuous improvement process that you have heard multiple times from principles that have presented in um previous sessions. Um there's really a lot of connection to that work which is exciting. Um through this as I mentioned there is a dis district coach that works alongside me. Um I meet with her on a regular basis. Um we check in regularly to see how the implementation of goals are going as well as set goals for each quarter and then each of our principles get a principal partner through the project momentum model. These

004part principal partners are often um either current or retired principles that have also gone through the project momentum model and have had success with that model. So have exited the project momentum or ATSI or federal accountability models. Um and going back to the district coach support um those are typically retired or current superintendent as well that support that work. Um with the principal partners that are assigned to each school. You can see up there that they have six in-person visits um with our personal p sorry their principal partners as well as bi-weekly virtual visits. Um and soon you'll hear our our principles talk about those and how that has been supporting of them. Also with project momentum, there is a grant um called the systemic school improvement grant that we apply for and each of

005these campuses receive um funds to be able to support their implementation of project momentum. Okay, so that's just a quick overview of the workshop. Okay, so I'm going to go just a little bit deeper. Uh this slide will focus a lot on um really as a district how we're supporting a lot of our schools that are in project m or all of our schools that are in project momentum. So I mentioned the grant funds through the systemic school improvement grant. That's a grant that uh my department through the federal um programs department writes. Um with that we has to align to the gears. So it is really revolved around instructional planning support for teachers. um it can be some professional learning that they may need that's identifi identified through their goals. So, we're really looking

006at if the expectation is around that instructional planning, how are we pro providing that time um for teachers to be able to do that through through the collaborative planning process. Um and then again, a lot of the schools have identified very similar goals, but also some some nuances to whatever their campus needs are. and so they can utilize the the funds for off-c contract pay for teachers to attend professional learning andor contract services as necessary. So, it's a pretty it's it's there's buckets that it can go into, but fairly broad yet aligned to what those schools need. Um, we also have um me as being their supervisor, I do regular visits um with these campuses. I try every other week, although I will tell you the next two months will be busy because we are

007in grant season. So I'll be writing a lot of grants for the next couple of months. Um but try to visit those campuses every other week. Um we typically walk campus. We talk about their goals, their implementation of those goals, how it's going, what supports they're getting, what supports they may need. Um and we are typically looking at what goals have they set and then look for those things when we're in the classroom. So for example, if they are focused around instructional design stage one of learning targets and success criteria that is aligned to the standard, we are then walking campus and really looking for those pieces within the um classroom and then working on if we aren't seeing those things or if we are seeing those things, what type of feedback and support are

008we providing to teachers along the way. Um, also, um, we also look at how are we aligning what we're we're doing with project momentum to their own professional learning plans. So, again, we don't want anything to be disconnected or disjointed. It all should work together um to really impact these goals. And it also, like I mentioned earlier, is exactly what we're doing with all schools through our continuous improvement work. It's just a little bit more fine-tuned and and um I guess uh high level support to these schools with me coming in there on a regular basis. Every eight weeks um we review where they're at with their goals. We look at data um and say where where you at? How is the work that you're doing improving? So in a little bit you're going to

009hear both these principles talk about their data. Maybe it's walkthrough data. It could be achievement data. um whatever those goals are set around as well as there's a reflection component where they're reflecting how did it go, how did it not, what went well, what didn't go well, and based off that it kind of guides what they're doing for the the next quarter. So, it's not you're planning a whole year. You're really looking at data and reflecting to determine what your next steps will be for each quarter. Um through this work um just as with all of our schools as I mentioned we've had a huge focus around instructional design and all of our schools have really been focusing on that. So there's been professional learning um from the teaching and learning department around instructional design.

010We've done that with all of our principles as well as our instructional coaches which then has fed to each of the schools for our teachers and getting that support. What project momentum schools get that's um a little more unique is they get additional funds to maybe be able to get subs for teachers and or off-contract planning for teachers to be able to focus on that and get paid for that time um for planning. Um there's also been some data review um components. So with federal accountability and identification of federal accountability, it's really it's kind of difficult to identify why are we in that federal accountability? what are the components that are getting us identified for accountab federal accountability around those subgroup populations? And so R& has um gone through the data with the schools to

011really identify, okay, is it your proficiency? Is it your growth? Is it maybe absenteeism? Is it all of those things? Is it EL? And if you have students with disability, what what are those components? And then we also have um regional team support. So, we meet once a quarter um just as all of our schools do and we go through and visit a campus. So, I'll give you an example. We just went to Kerr a couple weeks ago and Amy shared her goals with everybody. She shared her model for her system for um lesson plan, feedback for lesson planning, instructional design, and her walkthrough form. And we all used that walkthrough form. We went into classrooms, we we observed, we collected feedback, and then we gave feedback. And so we really calibrate around that as

012well, so we can make sure that we're on the same page with what we're looking for, as well as supporting our principal and teachers when we're on the campus and ensuring we're giving that feedback. And finally, um each of these schools have access to and and actually are required to utilize the Nav'i benchmarks, which is um something that AD has rolled out this year. Um they also have what's called chick uh quick checks and competency checks that they are able to utilize. Um from what I've I'm hearing the quick checks and competency checks they're loving. They get that opportunity to assess on individual standards or group of standards and that can drive their next steps in instruction. So it's been very positive feedback that we have heard from it. benchmarks have been a little bit

013they've been okay but I think for the most part those checks check quick checks and competency checks have been very positive. Um just a quick review of um identified schools. So this year we had 10 schools that were identified for project momentum. Eight of those were identified for comprehensive support and improvement um also known as T uh CSIT um targeted. They are schools that had a subgroup population that hasn't been performing um compared to like peers for four uh four or more years. And we had one that was additional targeted support and improvement. That is a subgroup population that is in performing for three consecutive years. And then we had one for a letter grade of a D. For this next coming year, we have two that are going to be in project momentum for

014additional targeted support and improvement. We have three for comprehensive support and improvement and then we have one for comprehensive support and improvement low achievement that is a new um identified school and then one for a letter grade of a D. I will tell you from that original 10 that you see at the top from the 2526 five of those schools have exited and they have the option and will be staying on as project momentum sustainability. So, they get one more year to work with a principal partner and get some additional funds. It's not as much as they currently get, but enough to be able to do some sustainability work with this um to then be able to hopefully stay out of that federal accountability. Um just some quick data. Uh these are just uh this

015is really focused around grow growth. Um obviously one measure in which we can look at how students and schools are achieving. Um growth obviously can be something um that really is a leading indicator of what we're doing. Is that working or is it not working? And so you're going to see at the top that six of the 10 schools are at or above the district average for typical or aggressive growth on a math which is our second through sixth grade student or second through 8th grade and in um because I have obviously elementary and junior high. I then broke down um our early math which is our K1 students and seven of the seven elementary schools are above the 50% typical or aggressive growth and we have one that reached 57.7% aggressive growth. Um and

016then for a reading which again is our second through 8th grade five of the 10 schools are at or above the district average for aggressive growth in the A- reading fastbridge um from fall to winter. And then for our elementary, again, those um K1 students, those early reading skills for FastBridge, six of the seven elementary schools are at or above the 50% typical or aggressive growth. So now I'm going to pass it over to Miss Brighton Baker, who's going to share a little bit more about how things are going at Kerr. Good evening, Madam President, governing board members, and members of superintendency. I'm really excited to come and talk a little bit more about what project momentum looked like at Ker Center for Agra Science and the system structures and supports we were really able

017to shore up as a result of project momentum. One of the moments that Miss Delator touched on is the instructional design process that we um experienced all year it through professional learning and within our school's PLC's. Um, as you know, administrators received this training in the summer of last year, and we decided at Ker we were going to start this process on day one with Maria James. She came out and was able to work with our staff and really go into the depth of what the instructional design pieces were. Once our staff had a gained a really good understanding of what the purpose of it was and how to do it, we were able to utilize the project momentum fund grants to pay teachers off contract. So they were able to actually work within their

018PLC's and even um vertically with their teams to create um the instructional design templates, fill them out and really work to improve outcomes. Um, as we went through this process, teachers were able to see the relevance and benefits of these instructional design plans. What that looks like for teachers is, you know, we have our weekly lesson plans, but the instructional design pieces, the big broad umbrella. And so teachers were able to start um really working within their unit plans to create a structure for their weekly and even daily lesson plans. So what does this look like at Kerr? Um, as a leadership team, we get together and we review lesson plans. Lesson plans are due every Monday. We have a lot of structures and systems, right? So, they're due on Monday morning prior to instruction

019starting. My instructional leadership team then goes through every single teacher's lesson plans and we review them. Um, and we put embedded feedback within their lesson plans. And what we want to do is ensure that um, the rigor of the standards being met. We want to ensure that the learning target success criteria is meeting the rigor of the standards. And so what this means for teachers is that they're able to look at those lesson plans with the feedback and make corrections or refinements prior to it being faced towards the students. This is a lot of work for teachers and so one of the pieces that I want to make sure that everybody um hears loud and clear is that teachers are very highly appreciative of this. Um one of the structures and systems I have at

020Kerr is something called pocket meetings. I meet with every team every quarter and what we do is we address various components of all things that occur. This could be teacher well-being um administrative support. How well am I supporting teachers? How well do teachers feel that they're understanding the curriculum and standards and how it relates to it? Um one thing I know Dr. Storm talks about is feedback loops. So I want to make sure that I know that we know that she knows that he knows that we all know how we're doing as a cur community. They rate themselves from 1 to 10 and we do this every quarter so we can kind of see the es and flows of how we're feeling. One of the pieces that I ask teachers to rate themselves is how

021well do they know the standards? How well do they know the curriculum? How it works together? And more importantly, how well is the instructional design piece working for them this year? And I just wanted to share a quote. I'm just finishing up my third quarter pocket meetings right now. Um, one of the quotes from a teacher, and this is a second grade teacher, who was pretty pretty like excited about the instructional design piece, but was a little bit nervous. She said, "The instructional design planning process has helped me dive more into the standards and how it relates to the curriculum. This has been a learning process, and it will be nice to have these plans in place moving forward. Again, with the mindset that these teachers are using these to inform their weekly lesson plans."

022Another teacher said, "The instructional design process has allowed us to refine our learning targets each week." So, a lot of teachers already had these learning targets and success criteria in place, but what this did is it allowed them to really look at the standards at a deeper level through the instructional design piece. Um, can you do the next slide? Um the next piece and there's a link here and you can you can take a look at my walkthrough form but we're always looking at the continuous improvement and data collection at KUR but we we found ourselves as an instructional team asking ourselves what data can we collect that gives us real time data that will improve student outcomes. A lot of times we have their fastbridge data we have even common formative assessment data. Um

023but what we wanted to really look at is what was happening in the classroom. So, we found that student assessment was one piece of the data that shapes our instructional practice. But what if we started collecting consistent, frequent, and purposeful instructional practice data? Specifically, how might this shift our support to teachers to improve the efficacy of lesson plans to strengthen student outcomes? So, what does this look like? Um, it started with the systems of the walkthroughs and the lesson plan feedback. This goes beyond a simple checked box. There's embedded questions in their lesson plans. There's comments, there is a dialogue going back and forth within the lesson plans. Why is this here? Why is this here? Is this with the scope of practice of within like ELA or within Savis math. Um we also do

024walkthroughs. That means every teacher gets formalized walkthrough every week they have and you can click on the I believe they can click on the walkthrough forms. You can click on our walkthrough forms and you can see each teacher gets one of these forms every week and it's from either my assistant principal, myself or my instructional coach. Um, this ensures that tiered instruction is consistent. It's delivered during their scheduled time. They're meeting the scope and sequence of Mesa Public Schools and that they are aligned to the pacing guide. So, you can look at our data. So, one of the pieces on the walkthrough forms is that the studentf facing learning target and success criteria is aligned to the rigor of the standard. Again, with that piece being it's at the rigor of the standard. Quarter one,

025we were at 47%. Good, not great. It's probably not even good. Quarter two, we're at 68% and we just finished our quarter three. I just tallied I have a big and Miss Delator can tell you I have a big stack of these and um these are quarter three and we're at 76. So, every Friday we meet, we go over this and we determine how to best support our teachers um with that process. >> Good evening, President Davis, fellow governing board members, uh Superintendent Dr. Strom, and fellow members of Superintendency. Um I know we're running a little short on time, so I'll try and move through this quickly. Um, you know, when we began this journey, it really begins with the end in mind. And as we look to provide a guaranteed viable curriculum for our

026students, that means all of our staff have to ensure that they have a a consistent understanding of what the rigor is required. Uh, the state is calling for with that standard. And so that work comes through with them unwrapping those standards. And huge shout out to Maria James that led the professional development. very comprehensive, involves learning progressions. Um I've asked staff to unpack their priority standards um utilize all of AD's um resources that they've provided. They've been a huge help, especially with the Bath and ELA Padlet. Um so once we could really unpack those standards and ensure that our teachers agree this is the level that we're going to assess it, this is the artifact that we would collect for learning. um they're going to go ahead and develop those common formative assessments and that's

027really that continuous learning process. Having the project momentum grant has been huge for us because this work takes time and so our teachers have been able to sit down come together as teams um during the day whether we get subs for them or offc contract planning time. Um and then there's also the just the artifacts of where how does this show up? And so um our unit plans. Um you'll see on the second slide um that's an example of a unit plan where as we onboard new staff um you get a new teacher. This is a great resource that um you can have some of those uh support systems for newer staff or you already have these unpacked standards, the assessments, um those learning progressions. And um this is as we look towards guaranteed viable

028curriculum. It's got to start with we all agree that this is how we're going to assess that uh standard. Um we are not lock step. I want to make sure teachers have autonomy. Um I was a big fan of that in lesson design myself. Um but the bar should be the same for our students regardless of who their teacher is. And so that common formative assessment data, it's also valuable um you know as they look at what instructional resources did you use? What were your feedback loops? Um and and that's where you know we can really have a true professional learning community and teachers lift each other up through their practice based on uh data not just I think it went well. Um and so that's been the big shift from assessment of learning to

029assessment for learning. um it can't be the autopsy report. So, what are what are those leading indicators that we're using? How are students doing? Do we have to slow down? Is this a small group intervention? Do I need to retach this lesson? Uh using formative data. Um the the work has been um a lot and I'm really proud of our staff. Um they've they've really answered the bell with the the asks that I've given them. Um there's been a lot of feedback, a lot of professional development that we've provided. uh time as well. We also um procured uh some PE professional learning from associates for educational success for math. You know, statewide I I can't remember if the proficiency rate is 38 or 42%. It's not great. And so we really have to um do

030some some different practices if we're going to really differentiate and triage um catching our kids up because if we're going to expose them to grade level standards and our kids are coming down pretty low. I mean teaching is really the hardest job when done well because you have to differentiate um but still make sure kids have exposure to grade level standards. And so um AES was um our our staff really appreciate it. Uh Troy would come in, they would create a lesson. Um there was a lot of uh good strategies that uh he taught them and then he would actually go teach the lesson with our kids and our teachers there. And um it's great when you see it manifest in lessons after that person's gone as opposed to I I did the professional learning

031work and then that's it. I can walk through math classes and I see it every day in their instruction. And so um it it's been a huge uh lift for us. Um and then also just clarity um for our journey. Project momentum has kept me honest. You know, have I met my goals or not? And if I haven't, what am I what do I need to change? What do I have to do differently? It's not this too shall pass. And so it's been really good just about, you know, keeping me accountable for my work. Yeah. And at the next slide you can see um it's essentially our our unit planning. Um and this is an iterative process as continuous improvement. You're never done. Um so as we look to build in you know how are

032we collecting and warehousing our data um our best instructional practices? How are we fusing in our portrait of the graduate work into those lessons? Um, and this is shared with all staff so that we can share that tier one, tier two, tier three academic vocabulary across disciplines. And the work that we'll continue uh to work on is really focusing on the skills of our kids, not always the content. And that comes through a lot of with our portrait of the graduate. They will be exposed to a lot of the content again. Um but how are we really teaching them to be inclusive, ethical, um critical thinkers and they if we have to make sure that if our staff can share the same strategies, the same vocabulary, um our collective efficacy as a staff, um you

033know, you can say what you want about Hadtie's research work, but it's a huge effect size. Um and so 1.4 that's it's a big one. So, if we can rally together and make sure that um instructionally we're sound um and tie it to these goals, I think uh we'll be in a good spot. >> Thank you so much to all of you. Um I appreciate the information and I love a good spreadsheet. That is fantastic. Um we're going to take some questions. I'm going to start to my left. We'll start with uh board member Chappie and go around if we'll go start with one question then we'll see where we're at time wise and there is a spreadsheet for follow-up. >> Thank you. Um, I just have I less of a question kind of more

034of a comment. First, I love that we're kind of hearing what happens when teachers get what Dr. Strom often reminds us they need time, tools, and training. And I'm hearing three S's also that they need structure, systems, and support. So, my comments kind of align with those things. Um, they're their asks for teaching and learning. If we could get the continuous improvement process shared on the website so that we have that transparency and accountability so that's findable for our parents. I think that that would be a great opportunity. I'd love to see us leverage the size of our district and this amazing work by our instructional leaders by sharing things like these work these walkthrough forms and these district plans and making sure that they are aligning these unit plans with the work that I

035know that teaching and learning has been doing. And then as as our teachers go through this process and find holes in our curriculum or maybe what's not working in our curriculum, if we could figure out a process that teachers can then share that information with our CCAP and with the board so that we can help kind of work together to solve those problems, I would love to see that happen. >> Thank you, board member Walden. >> Thank you. Yeah, lot lots and lots of good things. How are our teachers doing in this because this is a lot of work for them. So, can I can I hear a little bit more about how the how they're how they're doing with this workload? >> Um, again, I going back to my pocket meeting data and the

036and I and this is something that I've done for years where I meet with teachers regularly every quarter and I purposefully do it at the end of each quarter because that is when the stress does the highest. So, I'm comparing apples to apples. And what I will say is the data is showing that there was a dip when it came to understanding standards and instruction. So what happened before is we were all sitting at like a good solid eight or nine and everybody thought that we were doing great and then what happened is the instructional design piece came out and we saw this dip because all of a sudden teachers were understanding I don't know what I don't know and so they were very eager to begin that work and what they are seeing now

037is that um is that their planning with the instructional design is creating an easier workload in the future they are able to see the broader scope hope and then what ends up happening is they're planning for two weeks ahead and they're like, "Oh, I've already done the majority of this work and then we're able to archive those plans for future work as well." Um, our teachers with the Project Momentum grant are being paid off contract. So, what that means is they get to add some extra funds to their their pocket and then also complete the work that needs to be done, I think, for the the best outcomes for students. >> That's great. Thank you. Yeah, I would uh echo that the the money um to to be able to have them sit down and

038plan as a team is huge because time is the biggest factor um without having that grant um we wouldn't be able to move at the speed that we've moved um in this this process and um you know when when you think about how teachers are doing um I view my role as similar to a teacher in the classroom. I need to assess I need to inspect what I expect. um and have feedback loops and I need to move at the speed that they are ready and able to take on and that also when I think about artifacts and my goals um if we're not there then hey we need to retach reassess slow down I can only move at the speed um that they're able to move at but um I also have to make

039sure that I have systems clarity of expectations so that doesn't slow us down >> that's really good information thank Thank you so much and thanks to our teachers too that are on this project. >> Thank you, board member Benson. Um well, first I I want to congratulate you for uh going from 10 to five um that are uh that have to be on um in a project momentum. Uh that's phenomenal uh progress. the um I love um Mr. from Smith. Sorry. >> Sorry. >> Mr. >> Okay. So, Mr. Smith goes to Washington. I love that you uh I'm reading a book currently called uh Results Now 2.0 and they point out three things. We need quality curriculum uh a literacyrich environment and effective teaching strategies. And one of the things that they mention uh that

040you actually have here is um learning to assess not to assess the learning but to to assess the or to assess actually the learning that is happening. So could you are you doing the same thing um Miss B the uh and could you walk us through like the effective strategies that you're introducing um our teachers to uh UBL is the backwards design correct so starting where do I want to end up uh how do I actually progress there it it it's critical I think but um how does that look And um are you are your teachers having the ability to look at the resources that we're providing them and rather than viewing them as the curriculum, uh it's actually the resource to to teach the stand. Does that make sense? >> Yeah. Winner winner chicken

041dinner. We are right there with you. I feel like our our staff and our and our teachers are finally at this point where we're looking at Scholastic. We're looking at Sabbath. And I have teachers so excited to come to me and be like, "This isn't addressing it." And I'm like, "Really? Tell me more." And then we're having really good solid conversations about how we need to ensure that we are teaching to this standard and not simply going page one, page two, page three. And I think that's what instructional design did for my teachers is it created a dynamic where teachers were able to be laser focused on that standard and then determine what holes are missing and how we are going to address it. to address your UDL component of lesson um if of just

042everyday lesson delivery. Um what we had on our walkthrough forms was what kind of um specialed supports were given to students within the classroom. So whether that was being a pushed in um were they being pulled in small groups and what we noticed is we weren't able to really check those boxes off with special ed support. And so we dove a little deeper and said, "Well, let's talk about what UDL supports they're given. What barriers are we removing for all students regardless of their students with disabilities, whether if they're EL learners, what barriers are we able to remove for students?" So, you can see on my walkthrough form, it says, "What UDL practices are in place?" And then there's just a blank spot. So, a lot of times teachers will see that they have small

043groupoup instruction, which is great. Maybe they used proximity. Maybe they used visual supports. Maybe they're using manipulatives. Maybe they're using sentence stems for all students so that all learning is accessible so that they can meet the rigor of that standard. >> Great. Thank you. >> Thank you, board member Hutchinson. >> Thanks very much for being here tonight. Um uh I'm going to piggyback on board member Chaffy. I'm going to go over the three Rs. Um and I'm seeing I'm seeing some themes. um rigor um reflection and resources and I I represent the Westwood feeder pattern and as a result I've I've been in a lot of project momentum schools and principles have pulled me aside and said it's about the resources because with the resources our teachers have the time and the reward not only

044of teaching ing which we do as teachers the love of learning but we also make sure that they are compensated and and what I like my my question is it with the importance of resources to make sure that we are teaching to rigor to make sure that our time that our teachers have time to reflect not only as individuals but with each other and with their principles What happens when the funding is gone? And that's one of the things that the principles are talking to me about. Okay, we're going to be on sustainability for another year, but I'm hearing over and over and over again, the resources are making the difference. So, I think this is a question for Amy. >> It's a great question and actually when it was being talked about earlier, I

045was had some ideas. So um I think some of the big things is that's the purpose of the sustainability first off right is less funds so that they can start to think about those systems and those structures that they need to put in place in in so Wednesdays right that's a great time to start to think about what do you need to utilize those Wednesdays for that can be really really beneficial um so that's something I will support the schools with as well as their project momentum principal partner I think the other piece is um title one funds can really be utilized for that. They each have site budgets. And so when we think about we're going through a continuous improvement process to identify areas of need and then the areas of action and what

046our action steps are, our fund should be aligned to those things. And so if it is instructional design is an area of focus and we know that we need to give teachers time and we either want to compensate or give subs whatever that looks like that's how our fund should be utilized as well. So again that's part of that process that really needs to be there and that's not the only answer but those are some things floating around in my head that can be utilized and most a lot of these schools are going to be schools I'm going to supervise next year. Some will be Miss Baxters. we're going to be all over and we're going to work together as a team of six too to figure out what that looks like to help these

047schools through sustainability. >> Member Hutchson, I do want to say this. Amy just mentioned all the things that are in her control budgetarily, Title One budget, right? And and things like that. You know, if we get results out of Project Momentum and uh there's dollars in our budget available to pay teachers, like classroom instruction and what we spend in classrooms is really important. It's emphasized at the state level all the time. It's emphasized in the auditor general's report. It's emphasized by this governing board. Do you have a goal to spend over 70% of our M funds in the classroom? And so what I will also marry to that is I think the chief of schools and chief of academics would be very supportive working with Mr. Moore to figure out how to carve out budget

048for these professional learning experiences if we don't have the budget in the title one arena as well. I just want you to know how firmly committed we are. If these things work, if this backward design process work, if unpacking standards and the gears work, we'll be committed to making sure our budgets carved out that way. Ultimately, you're in control of the budget, but we'd support a budget that would carve out these things. >> Thank you. Um, I just want to thank all of our sites. I know it's a huge undertaking as I've talked to principles and teachers. It is a lot of work and just know how much we appreciate all the work that's going into this. I think my question was answered and it was how does project momentum schools look as we go

049into executive regions and will they fall under each executive director? Okay. So then then with then you'll kind of team up a little bit and so not each region will have a project momentum school. I believe there will be a couple in the Mountain View, Westwood, Mesa High has one or two, Dobson, and um one Skyline. So, Red Mountain is the only one, correct? That does not have um one of them. Um so, yes, we will be working together and we've already talked about that. How do we how can I catch them on them up on the work that's already occurred? um so that they're aware of that and how we utilize the funds, get them caught up on really the system of project momentum. And then Dr. Mesa will will be that project lead,

050the work that I've been doing to be able to ensure that there's those check-ins with that district support as well. Um so she'll really be leading that work alongside that and ensuring that that's all occurring. So >> great. Thank you, Dr. Strong. >> President Davis, uh one thing we learned in the first year roll out of project momentum is we had three people working with the AD. Uh this was two years ago and so this last year in working uh with the representative from the Arizona Department of Education myself and and her determined that we needed one point of contact and that was Amy. Now with these regions the point of contact and Amy mentioned it will shift to the chief of schools. Monica will be the AD contact and then the executive directors will

051be expected to execute uh what the AD and Dr. Mesa uh uh require. So I just want you know the central point of contact will be Dr. Mesa. Thank you. I appreciate it. Thank you again for being here and presenting. Um, we do have a spreadsheet, so if you think of other questions, please go ahead and feel free to put those in. Um, do I have a motion to adjourn? >> Can I can I ask one more thing? Yes. Really quick. Um, with the shift from from assessment of learning to the assessment for learning. Um, how does that look in a lesson delivery? So, is the teacher like historically teacher would be blah blah blah blah blah for 45 minutes. Now, let's get to work. Are are you noticing teachers doing uh their lessons in

052smaller chunks, assessing doing a formative assessment, reteing quickly, right? Then for any misconceptions, then continuing on. So, it's not Do you know what I'm saying? So, it's not one full lesson. And now I'm going to check to see whether or not you know what you're doing. Is are are you seeing a shift in that? Yes. Um and and it can show up in several ways. Um I've told teachers if you're just calling on the kid in the front row with their hand raised and that's your sample for are they with me? Do they understand it? You have a bad sample. So you can cold call on kids. Uh if you're doing a Socratic seminar, you're mapping responses. Um I there's you fist of five. Uh there's so many different quick formatives um that you can

053do. And a piece that I'm going to ask our department chairs to do next year when they do walkthroughs plus our instructional leadership team is what what are those frequent um formative check-ins? And then what's do you have a contingency plan? You don't want to get caught off guard and say, "Okay, they they don't understand it. Do I have something in my back pocket? So, if they're not getting it, this is what I'm going to pivot to. >> Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> Thank you so much. Thank you again. Do I have a motion to adjourn the meeting? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? Seeing none, Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? Mrs. Benson votes yay. >> I don't know where the vote went.

054>> With a vote of five years, the meeting is adjourned. We do have Highland Arts uh sixth grade orchestra performing for us starting at 5:50. Thank you. Hallelujah. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. Happy. Heat. Heat. Lou Heat. Heat. Y Hallelujah. Thank you. 3. Nah. Heat. Heat. Welcome this evening to our board meeting and thank you so much Highland Arts Sixth Grade Orchestra. Let's start them off with a big round of applause to start us off. They're going to also play for us the national anthem tonight in just a few minutes um after the pledge of allegiance. So, if they'll just hang tight for a minute up there. Um I call this meeting to order at 6:01. Just a quick reminder, any citizen who wishes to speak on an agenda item or a call to the

055public must complete the sign-in sheet in the lobby prior to the public comment time on the board agenda. This evening, our ple pledge of allegiance will be led by Dr. Monica Mesa. After the pledge, please remain standing for the national anthem performed by Highland Arts Sixth Grade Orchestra. Please stand. >> Please join me for the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America to the nation indivisible. Heat. Heat. Where are you? Thank you. You may be seated. And thank you so much sixth graders from Highland. Um and we appreciate all those that helped get them here and transport and make this possible. So, thank you so much for joining us this evening. We'll give them a couple minutes to clear out. We will begin tonight's meeting with a video on

056governing board procedures and then I will read this quick statement. >> Welcome to the Mesa Public Schools governing board meeting. We appreciate your interest in the district. The five elected governing board members serve without compensation and volunteer countless hours. The president and the clerk of the board are elected in January. Under state law, the governing board may only discuss and vote on matters that are on the agenda for tonight's meeting. Agendas are posted at minimum of 24 hours in advance on the Mesa Public Schools website and in the curriculum services center. Copies of tonight's agenda are located in the lobby. At every regular meeting, the public may speak on any item of business on the agenda that the board discusses or requires the board to take action. During the second regular meeting of each month,

057the agenda will include a call to the public. This is an opportunity to speak to the governing board about a school district matter that is not on the agenda. If you wish to comment on an agenda item or participate in the call to the public, please complete a request to address the board form before the designated time as public comment. The form is located in the lobby. The duration of public comment and call to the public is 15 minutes. Members of the public will be given a maximum of 3 minutes to speak once recognized by the governing board president. The president may set specific time limits for speakers and the duration to maximize the opportunity for individuals to offer their viewpoints. We ask that all speakers show respect and courtesy to others. Comments must pertain

058to the matter that is within the jurisdiction of the governing board. This is not an appropriate forum to complain about an employee, student, or others. State law prohibits board members from commenting on or discussing the matters presented at the end of the call to the public. The board may ask the superintendent to review the issue or place it in a future agenda. A board member may also briefly respond to criticism of a board member or the governing board. If you would like the board to consider adding an item to a future agenda, you may submit your request in writing and the governing board president and superintendent will consider your request. Thank you for your attendance and involvement in tonight's meeting and for allowing this meeting to be conducted in a peaceful and productive manner. >>

059This is an official governing board meeting. The board has important business to conduct that is essential to the operation of the district. Everyone is welcome to express ideas or concerns to the board in accordance with the agenda. The poster in the boardroom describes positive behaviors expected and behaviors that cannot be tolerated. Please speak and act respectfully and actively listen. Be kind. Verbal harassment, abuse of or foul language, intimidation, and disruption have no place in a classroom or the boardroom. Please no side conversations or reactive comments. They can be disruptive. It is a governing board president's responsibility to maintain proper order so the board can conduct its business in an orderly and efficient manner. If you're disruptive or interfere with the conduct of this meeting, you will be asked to leave so the board can conduct

060the business of the district. This now brings us to our uh governing board calendar. If Dr. Strong, if you'll go over that with us. President Davis, members of the board, uh March 16th through 20 of 2026, spring break, no school, limited district resources, no meeting March 26 due to the timing of spring break. So we hope our students get a restful uh spring break and return from spring break ready to learn and uh execute on showing their learning on the state standardized assessments we take in April. April 1st B uh is a governing board extended study session where we'll continue to talk about capital planning in the district. April 6, 2026 East Valley School Board Consortium meeting down at the Chandler Unified School District office. Uh for the board members, please let Cameo know if

061you're attending that. Uh April 9th, 2026, we have a 5:00 p.m. study session, 6 p.m. regular meeting. April 23rd, 2026, 5:00 p.m. study session, 6 p.m. regular meeting. That concludes the calendar. >> Thank you. Hard to believe that we are already at spring break and almost into April. A little crazy that we're here. Um I'm now going to turn the time over to Jen Snder, director of communications, and she will show us some of what's inside Mesa Public Schools. All right. Good evening, President Davis, members of the board, and Dr. Stum. I'm thrilled to be up here again showing you some of the great things that are going on around Mace Public Schools. All right. It is high school theater season. uh some of the theater productions that we've had so far and they're off

062to a full spring swing. Mesa High, which is as you see pictured, uh production of Foot Loose, was a hit. The cast and crew truly cut loose and delivered a fantastic show. Last week, Westwood took a trip over the rainbow with a fabulous production of The Wizard of Oz. And please check out the district's art page to pull full list of productions this spring, junior highs included. Speaking of performing arts, Emerson and Longfellow both performed the Jungle Book. uh as part of Disney's uh performances. The shows were a big hit and full of great student talent. Congratulations to Amy Anson on receiving the honors of association from the speech Arizona Speech and Language Hearing Association for her sustained and her sustained service to the organization. Congratulations to Franklin Accelerated Academy East Campus. They recently featured

063in a national story by the 74 highlighting schools across the country that are beating the odds in third grade reading achievement. The school is ranked number two in Arizona for reading success. A testament to the dedication of its teachers, staff, families, and principal for supporting students every day. Jefferson, Edison, Lindberg, and Patterson elementary schools had an epic day at the Arizona Cardinal STEM Combine at State Farm Stadium. From exploring interactive stations to hearing insights from Honeywell Aerospace experts and Cardinals players and staff, they they can they had a blast discovering the full power of STEM. Uh the harps in the courtyard uh annual event was a was wonderful. Guests enjoyed incredible performances from student musicians along with great food and it was a beautiful evening. Last week, Johnson Elementary hosted its 40th year celebration. The

064celebration included band and choir performances and a presentation of the history of the school. Verona e Johnson was honored as a as a pioneering educator and the first black woman in Arizona to her administrative credentials in education. Congratulations, Johnson. John Carson Junior Junior High 7th graders got a firstirhand look at college life during a field trip to Mesa Community College. A total of 160 students visited the campus where they selected two activities connected to potential major and career pathways. The experience helped students explore their interests and see how they can start preparing now to be college, career, and community ready. Congratulations to the counseling team at Dobson High School for once again earning the recognized ASCA model program, otherwise known as RAMP designation from the American School Counselor Association. The national recognition highlights their intentional

065datadriven work to ensure every student has access to academic and career support that they need to thrive. Their commitment continues to to strengthen student outcomes and expand opportunities for all Mustangs. 10 Mesa public school campuses have been awarded the 2026 Barbara Park Memorial Literacy Grant. Huge thank you to GBS Books and Libraries for supporting literacy with $500 grants for each schools. The following library staff won uh these grants. Uh Ginger Nelson at Falcon Hill Elementary. Uh Mrs. Boyoya at Hughes Elementary, Miss McGomery at Keller Elementary, Miss McKenzie at Kino Junior High, Miss Behringer at Lincoln Elementary, Miss Saluci at Madison Elementary, Miss Gillham at Roosevelt Elementary, Miss Lockwood at Souza Elementary, Miss Montana at Taft Elementary, and Miss Peterson at Whitman Elementary. Congratulations. And then this mo yesterday morning, students at Antsil Elementary had a

066visit from ABC15 as they searched for their next kid caster in the morning news. Third through sixth graders had the chance to audition and show off their weather skills with one and student set to be the selected for the opportunity. We can't wait to see which young meteorologist uh makes it on air. And March is Arizona procurement month and Mace Public Schools is proud to recognize the incredible work of our procurement team of our and purchasing team. Thank you for everything you do behind the scenes to ensure our schools have the resource and materials they need to keep our district running and support highquality education for every student. And I believe you'll learn more about procurement in uh later on in the meeting. And that is all I have for you tonight. Thank you so

067much, Mrs. Snder. There are so many great things going on and this is a time of the year where I wish I could clone myself so I could be at all the different um performances and there's great things going on among our district. Um, I'm going to excited tonight to celebrate three of our A+ schools along with some our other recognition. Dr. Stum, I'll turn the time over to you. >> President Davis, members of the board, uh, tonight we have the pleasure to recognize our three new A+ schools of excellence and an AIA state wrestling champion. We'll ask honores to stand from their seats when their names called. We're then going to take a brief break after we do our school spotlight. uh during which at that break time you'll be able to come up

068and take pictures with the governing board. This year we had three schools recognized as A+ schools of excellence. A+ schools go through a rigorous multi-page 30 to 40 page application process and then are evaluated with in-person visits uh to make sure that everything that's going on in the in the application is actually going on the application. They're evaluated in the areas of student focus and support, school culture, active teaching, and teaching and learning, curriculum, leadership, community and parent involvement, and assessment data. The final steps of the A+ selection is a multi-day site visit uh where a formerly awarded A+ judges come out and evaluate the school. Uh can I have the team from Dobson High School please stand to be recognized as an A+ school? During the study session, we got to hear from a

069very well- educated principal. She was phenomenal and we want to also honor her team now for earning the A+ at Kerr Center for Agra Science. Please stand to be recognized. And the people with the most humorous response to A+ videos I sent out would be Zah Harris Elementary School. Uh what I will tell you about this story is Zah Harris is often known as the Disneyland of Mesa Public Schools. And so I made three videos that we sent out to the staffs of these three wonderful schools. And they responded by having a Disney day at Zaharos in celebration of their A+ award with the staff and principal from Zaharris Elementary School, an A+ school. Please stand to be recognized. One of one of the harder awards to achieve in the state of Arizona. I think

070the numbers this year were like 45 out of the 2,000 schools in the state of Arizona were awarded with A+. Not all schools applied because they don't qualify. You have to qualify with your test scores as well, but there are only 45 schools awarded with A+ in the state of Arizona and Mesa Public Schools has three of them. Congratulations to Dobson High School, Kerr Agra Science, Kur Center for Aggracience, and Zah Harris Elementary on earning this distinguished honor. All these schools are receiving Flutter flags. They are available for you to pick up. Make sure you see Miss Castro out in front so you can get your Flutter flags and display them proudly at your school. Now, can Justin Boet please stand? Is Justin here? All right, we'll still honor Justin. Justin is a senior from

071Mountain View. He won the 140 lb weight class for his second year in a row. He went 28-1 this season and won his second state title by technical fall. We'd love to congratulate Justin uh in this feat. Congratulations, Justin. Thank you for representing Mesa Public Schools with excellence. We'll move on to our school spotlight. Our school spotlight of the month program is designed to provide our community with an inside look at our schools. In addition to a video showcasing the spotlight school, we'll honor a classified staff member, a certified staff member, and a student honored from that school. As a reminder, when I call the spotlight honores, please stand. Chad, can you roll the video? All right, we'll buy Chad some time. We're going to honor the people first. Let's see if we can get

072that We'll see if we can get that video up and rolling. Webster Elementary would like to recognize Adriana Katami. I think I did all right there. Adriana, can you please stand? Not here. Oh, that's the classified employee. That's another another employee. Okay. As the certified spotlight honore, Adriana uh it creates a classroom where students feel a true sense of belonging and safety and confidence. Her impact is especially profound with her English language learners. She ensures that each student feels seen, heard, and empowered as they develop their unique voice. Through meaningful relationships, family partnerships, and unwavering dedication, Adriana inspires every student she serves. A round of applause for Adriana. Next, Webster is recognizing Deborah Lou as their classified honore. Deb, can you please stand? Yeah, that's the one I knew was not going to be here.

073Deb is a steady, dependable presence whose professionalism and quiet determination strengthen our entire school community. In room three, she leads small groups with expertise, seamlessly manages the classroom when needed, and demonstrates exceptional behavior management skills, all while mentoring fellow instructional assistants. Through her consistency, humility, and strong relationships with families, Deb has been an anchor for the Rise Soore program during our demanding year. Congratulations, Deb. Finally, can Omar Munoz Goodiness Goodz please stand? All right. Omar is our student recogn uh Omar is dedicated, well-rounded, and is a student who consistently demonstrates strong academic effort, responsibility, and a genuine love of learning, respectful, and considerate. He treats classmates with kindness and leads by example through a positive attitude, with a strong work ethic. Omar's focus uh and thoughtful participation along with his commitment to doing what's best

074each day make him a true role model for all students at Webster and in our in that school community. Congratulations. Omar is being recognized as the Webster student spotlight. Are we good? All right. I think Chad roll the video. This school is really nice with awesome people, awesome teachers. I like spending time with my friends. This is like a very cool school and it has like a bunch of different places that you can hang out. There's also a lot of kids here, so you can make a lot of friends. Every teacher is great. Every teacher that I gone through, they're awesome. Pushed me to their limits and always helping me. Like helping students achieve their goals for the future. I like how I have my teacher. She's proud of me always. She's kind and she

075encourages me. like reward day. If we get like a certain amount of tickets, like we can get one or two prizes and then you can choose like different activities for reward day. >> If we get a ticket, we get a prize. >> So, how it works is you get a ticket if you're responsible, respectful, and safe. All the people that I met, they're kind, they're cool, they're funny. That's what makes life exciting. And there's also a lot of fun things. And there's a lot of people, so you can make a lot of friends to help you throughout the your new journey. >> Congratulations. Yeah. Yeah. Congratulations again to all tonight's recognitions. We're now going to take a brief break for photos with the board. Uh if you were honored tonight, including all the staff members

076that were honored with the A+ schools. Uh let's go ahead and do Omar first if we would in the Webster, and then we'll have all the uh staff members come up after that. Thank you. All right, Omar, come on up. Okay. All right, buddy. You're going to go I do with it the remote. The clicker. Oh, it's right here. Congratulations to all of our honores and we thank you for coming tonight and we understand if you want to go celebrate somewhere else. Eat some ice cream for us. Public comment. Right. Before we begin public comment, just a quick reminder that policy 1-302 says that call to the public is limited to issues within the jurisdiction of the board and is not an appropriate forum for persons to complain about a specific employee, student, or other

077person. Mrs. Chaffy, do we have anyone signed up to speak? >> We do not have anyone signed up to speak tonight. >> All right, we are going to move on then. We are now at a review of the agenda. Uh we we will now review the consent agenda. All items on the consent agenda approved with one vote with no discussion. If a board member would like to pull a consent agenda item, please do so now. >> Okay, seeing none. Thank you. Um, do I have a motion to approve personnel request including an addendum? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? I just have a quick comment, a point of information on item number F that it says reconfiguration personnel. >> Oh, personnel. Sorry. Oh, sorry. That'll come later.

078>> You're good. >> Sorry about that. >> This one on's on personnel. So, any other discussion on personnel? Okay. Seeing none, Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? with a vote of five years. We have approved personal request including an addendum. With the approval of the request personal request, we have some new principles to recognize and I see some new faces in our audience today. We're excited to have you. Um Dr. Dr. Mesa, I'll turn the time over to you. >> Thank you, Madam President. Um, members of the board, we do have five incoming principles to recognize tonight. A reminder, everyone will remain on the DAS as I introduce the principles and then at the end, we'll take another quick break for photos. Will John Skiillings please come to the podium. You can clap.

079It's my pleasure to introduce John as the incoming interim principal at Sharp. John started with MPS in 2019 at Sharp as a special education teacher where he is currently serving as a behavior specialist. John holds a bachelor of arts and science degree from the University of Cincinnati and a master's degree in educational leadership from Arizona State University. John, >> thank you. Well, good evening members of the board. I want to begin by expressing my sincere gratitude for your leadership and for the trust you place in each of us to do do this important work. Your commitment to our students, our staff, and our community creates the foundation that allows us to do this important work. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to continue to growing and serving under your guidance. I also want to

080extend my sincere gratitude to the cabinet, the district leadership, and our chiefs. I'm grateful for the example you set and the opportunity you create for leaders like me to learn, grow, and contribute meaningfully to our school district. Your dedication to students and staff inspires the work we do every day. I also want to uh share my heartfelt appreciation for the Sharp community and for Mesa Public Schools as a whole. I am truly looking forward to continuing my journey at Sharp in this new role. Having served as an admin intern over the last two school years, I have had the privilege of learning from Miss Jones, my mentor, and working together side by side. I'm eager to contribute in new ways, honor the work already happening, and help us move our shared vision forward. Sharp is

081a special community, and I'm grateful for the chance to continue serving our students and families with purpose and heart. How we're going to impact students. I plan to continue to strengthen our instructional excellence by supporting our teachers through coaching, uh, collaborative planning and consistent use of data to guide instruction and ensure every student gets what they need to learn and grow. And to continue to strengthen our behavior and support systems so students feel safe, supported, and ready to learn every day. and to expand targeted support and opportunities by refining intervention systems, increasing enrichment pathways, and partnering with families and community stakeholders to help our students success. Thank you so much. >> Thank you. If you're here to support John tonight, if you would um please stand. Thank you so much. Congratulations, John. All right. Right.

082Next, I'd like to invite Heather Jones to the podium. Heather is the incoming principal at Superstition High School. She is currently the principal at Sharp and started her career in education in 1995, teaching at Weightman Junior High in Pasco County, Florida. She has a bachelor of science degree in specific learning disabilities from the University of South Florida and a masterers of education and educational leadership from Argusy University. >> So, first of all, thank you so much. Um, I would like to begin by thanking the board for the opportunity to serve in this new role. I appreciate the trust and confidence you have placed in me and I'm honored to continue supporting our students and school community in this capacity. I would also like to thank thank Dr. Stum, Mr. Wing, Dr. Eastless, Dr. Mesa, and

083our district leadership team for their guidance and support. As I prepare for this transition, I would like to take a moment to recognize and express my appreciation for all the student, staff, and families of Sharp. Our teachers and staff demonstrate tremendous compassion for students and a shared commitment to helping every learner reach their highest potential. Together, we have worked tirelessly to have helped every learner reach their highest potential. It has been a privilege to be such a part of a dedicated team and they're so special including John. Um, sorry. Um, as I step into this new role in Superstition, I'm so happy. Um, I am excited about the opportunity to support students and staff in meaningful and impactful ways. I look forward to partnering with staff, families, and the community to to create an environment

084where students feel supported, valued, empowered to re-engage in their learning and work toward a successful future. As part of this work, I will focus on several key areas to positively impact students. Strengthening individualized supports so students can reconnect with learning and achieve academic success. continue to build a positive school culture where relationships, belonging, and encouragement help students thrive and to collaborate with staff to refine instructional practices and interventions that remove barriers and help students to reach their full potential. Thank you so much. Thank you. If you're here to support Heather, please stand and let's give her a round of applause. Round of applause. Thank you. All right. Next, I'd like to invite Heidi Codson Mocker to the podium. I was hoping I got it right. >> All right. Heidi is the incoming principal at Patterson

085Elementary, Patterson Elementary School. She is currently the assistant principal at Kyne Deos Ninños and started her career in education in 2005, teaching first grade for NPS. She has a master's degree in elementary education from NAU and a masterers of education in educational administration from Arizona State University. >> All right. Good evening everyone. Thank you governing board for this opportunity to be here with you guys tonight. I'm truly honored and grateful for your trust and support. Um I'd also like to thank the directors for believing in me and trusting that I'm the right leader to serve Patterson Elementary. Um I'm excited and humbled to step into this role. I want to recognize Patterson school community and share how much I look forward to building strong relationships with the students, parents, and staff. And I'm proud to

086become a part Coyote. Um my goal is to partner with all stakeholders, leverage your expertise within the community so we can make uh thoughtful decisions together that positively impact student learning. I look forward to working closely with our talented teachers, staff, and families to create inclusive and supportive environments where um all children can thrive. As I transition into this role, there are areas that I will focus on. First, building and sustaining a strong culture that I know Patterson has where I hold high expectations for ourselves as students and staff while providing the support needed to meet those expectations. Um, second, supporting strong student learning by working alongside teachers to ensure instruction is engaging, meaningful, and responsive to student needs. And third, creating a positive environment where students feel safe, valued, and supported so they can

087grow academically, socially, and emotionally. I'm excited for this opportunity to um serve the Patterson community and look forward to the work we'll all accomplish together. Thank you for this opportunity. >> Thank you, Heidi. Okay, you're here to support Heidi, you can please stand. Yay! Congratulations. You want Let's try it again. If you're here to support Heidi, please stand. >> Yay. Thank you. All right. Okay. Um, next, I'd like to invite Kathleen Hughes to the podium. Kathleen is the incoming principal at Webster Elementary School. She is currently the principal at Echo Canyon School, Arcadia Neighborhood Learning Center in the Scottsdale Unified School District. And she started her career in education in 1998, teaching for the CELI Union School District. She has a bachelor of science degree in elementary and kindergarten education from the Pennsylvania State University

088and a master's of education and educational leadership from San Diego State University. Kathleen. Well, good evening and thank you governing board for this fantastic opportunity. I'm truly honored and grateful for the uh trust that you have placed in me to serve in this role. I would also like to extend my sincere thank you to Dr. Strom, Mr. Wing, Dr. Eles, and Dr. Mesa um as well as the district leadership team for their confidence and support. I appreciate the time and effort uh that you have provided in the interview process, and I look forward to continuing the work together to support the success for our students and staff. I'd also like to recognize the incredible Webster School community that makes that campus such a special place. Our dedicated teachers and staff, supportive families, and hardworking students

089are the heart of that school. The culture of collaboration and commitment to students that already exist there is something I deeply respect and I'm excited to build upon. As I transition into the role of this principal ship, there are three key areas I will focus on. first will be to continue to strengthen the relationships and communication. Building trust with staff, students, and families is essential, and I look forward to listening, learning, and ensuring that all voices in our community feel heard and valued. Second, I will support highquality teaching and learning. By working alongside our teachers, using data to inform instruction, and providing meaningful support and professional learning, we can ensure that every student has the access to rigorous and engaging learning opportunities. And third, I will continue to build that positive and supportive culture that

090we heard all about tonight, where students feel safe, connected, and inspired to achieve their best, and where staff feel supported and empowered in their work. So, I'm incredibly excited about this opportunity to serve the Webster School community and to work alongside such talented and educators and families. I'm together I am confident we will continue to do great things for our students and thank you from the bottom of my heart for this opportunity. >> Thank you. All right. If you're here to support Kathleen, please stand and round of applause. Woo! Thank you. I'd also like to note that we have one more incoming principal approved tonight. Ashley Thomas is the incoming principal at Roosevelt Elementary. Miss Thomas is currently serving as an executive principal with the Metro Nashville Public Schools in Tennessee, and we look forward

091to welcoming her at a future board meeting. All right, we're ready for photos. So, to find a podium. Yeah. >> Oh, sorry. All right. Congratulations. Don't stop. All right. Good morning. No, I gotta go to that next. Congratulations once again and you're welcome to join us for the rest of our meeting, but we also understand if you want to go celebrate elsewhere. So, thank you. We'll continue on. Do I have a motion to approve the 202627 administrative and psychologist renewal non-renewal list? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Seconded. >> Board members, any discussion, >> Madame President? >> Yes. >> Um I just want to to um thank Dr. Strom uh and your leadership team for providing last year. I had um asked to have some background information before uh being able

092to vote on whether to renew or not renew. So, I truly appreciate the fact that you provided that uh to the board so that we could look at that and come in tonight with um a better informed decision. and it really shows me that you're really moving towards transparency and um being a being willing to um show support as to why you're recommending what you're recommending. So, I appreciate that. Thank you, >> Member Benson. Really quick, I just I'm you know, the the really great leaders, in my opinion, always take the blame when things go wrong and pass credit. So, I just want to make sure Mrs. Jenny gets credit. She's done an awful lot of work this year for us and and she's the one that put that stuff together. So, Miss Jenny gets

093credit and then Mr. Wing over the top for making sure it all gets dialed in. So, just uh want to make sure we model what we expect out of our great leaders is always passing credit and always taking blame when when we need to make things sure things get better. >> I appreciate that as well as does probably Mrs. Jenny. >> Thank you. Any other? Seeing none, Miss Kirby, will we please take our vote? With a vote of five years, we have approved the 2026 27 administrative and psychologist renewal non-renewal list. Moving to our consent. All items listed will be considered as a group and will be approved with one motion. If a board member would like to spotlight or comment on a consent agenda item, please do so after the vote. Do I have

094a motion to approve the consent agenda according to the recommended action for each item? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> I'll second it. >> Board member Walden, did you have a point of information you wanted to also point for this? >> I did. I I do. Thank you. I jumped in really early in that. So, uh, I just wanted to clarify the on item F. There's the the word reconfigure was used in a way that some members of the public thought that we were, uh, doing some kind of remodeling or putting money into this into the structure and that's not happening. These are just changes that will go to the the record uh, for for for names and and naming and nothing else. >> Thank you for clarifying that. Miss Kirby,

095will you please take our vote? With a vote of five yays, we have approved the consent agenda items according to the recommended action for each item. Moving into our action items. Do I have a motion to approve the reduction of square footage at Lincoln Elementary, Washington Elementary, Field Elementary, Pomeroy Elementary, Johnson Elementary, Keller Elementary, and Dobson High School. >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Madame President. >> Yes. >> I know that there was some um question regarding the cost effectiveness of us destroying uh portables versus selling them or auctioning them. And I know member Walden had brought up that last year uh Duke. So could you give us a little bit of um just a brief synopsis of how we approached getting rid of the portables

096and what and if we're destroying them um why that's the most cost-effective move for the district. >> Thank you. Yeah, President Davis, member Benson, our current uh budget that we're operating within allocated the board, you know, did approve our budget um allocated a large portion uh to continue our portable reduction plan, right? That has already taken place and established in 2025 and we're just continuing that plan. Um yeah, board member Walden and I think Miss Me, you did mention uh have we looked at alternative options uh to potentially save the district money and we have we've met with a auction company. We're evaluating that uh as it aligns to our rules and regulations that we have to follow when we destroy property um and our procure pro procurement rules. But as of right now, this

097is the most cost-effective solution um to continue progress on our reduction of square footage to start realizing those savings. Uh as you remember um and we presented it cost about $45,000 to remove a portable and we it's on average about $15,000 a year in savings. And so the longer we delay that payback, the longer we're sitting those costs. And so um again, we're continuing with our budgeted plan and we are um researching alternative methods um that would be cheaper than us paying for demolition. >> Perfect. Um how many um what square footage is this total reduction? I don't remember seeing that. And what does that equate to uh if it were a brick and mortar? a number of classrooms. Do you have that? >> Putting me on the spot. >> Sorry. >> Um I can

098tell you where we are with our plan. Um currently in place is uh by the end of uh this year uh we're going to have the equivalent of about six elementary schools uh reduced in square footage. So >> great. >> Um this is just part of that plan as we're as we're continuing through that. >> And I didn't mean to put you on the spot. I just Thank you. I think it's important for our community to know um versus this is one of the the uh approaches that we're using rather than closing a brick and mortar is to reduce our uh utilization of of our portables that cost us money. So I I think that they really like to know what what's happening. So I appreciate that. Thank you. >> Thank you. Seeing no other

099questions, uh Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? With a vote of five, sorry, with a vote of five, yes, we have approved the reduction of square footage at Lincoln Elementary, Washington Elementary, Field Elementary, Pomeroy Elementary, Johnson Elementary, Keller Elementary, and Dobson High School. Do I have a motion to approve a contract renew renewal of $7,500,000 for Return to Work Retiree Program Educational Services, Inc. So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Member Hutchinson, did you have something? Oh, okay. So, um, can you just briefly again, Mr. Wang, I've had a couple of questions as to uh why we do we contract with ESI, the cost of it, and um the district savings. Can you briefly give us a uh I know we asked this question last year

100as well, but there are continuing questions as to because it looks like we're paying a temporary um employment agency, but that is not actually what we're doing. Correct. Doesn't the 7.5 million cover salaries? >> Briefly answer it. Uh >> well, we are 20 minutes ahead of schedule, so you could take your time if you want. Every school district that I'm aware of has this transition type uh program. I know uh for some of you it may related to like Mesa uh police department having a drop program. uh our employees, school district employees uh contribute to the Arizona State Retirement System and then when they are able to reach normal retirement, they can start collecting a pension and this transition program allows them to work with uh through an ESI agency uh while continuing to pro

101provide their their services to Mesa Public Schools and then after a 12-month period, they return to Mesa Public Schools as our employee. uh the seven and a half million reference, we actually budget for the employees based on their current salaries and benefits as if they were not in uh in this transition program. And when they go on ESI, we leverage those dollars already budgeted for for their salary and benefits and uh we distribute that through ESI who then pays the employee. The reason why we have some savings is we don't have to do the matching retirement um as required by state law. Uh they do not receive health benefits from us. So we we have a savings in there too. So it depends on the savings is going to depend on the amount of people

102every year eligible for normal retirement to to obtain their pension. Uh but for this particular year it was about $10 million we would have spent on employee compensation salaries and benefits. rather we paid a little over $7 million to USI. So we're saving over $2 million with this program. So it's a win-win program, a win for the district for that one year while they're on it. We have a savings and a win for uh the individual because they reach normal retirement. They can collect their pension that they contributed to and they can transition and still provide those services to our Mesa public school kids. And when they return back from ESI, do do they go back to having matching ASRS payments as well or no? >> After that 12-month period, they return to Mesa Public

103Schools based on their c the salary that they left at. They do they are eligible for health insurance. Um, and we do not they do not they do not um contribute to the Arizona State Retirement System. We do not have to match. However, there's an alternative contribution rate which is about 2% less than the Arizona State Retirement System U rate uh that we do have to pay because they're occupying a job that would normally contribute to the retirement system. So, we do have a slight savings even after they return. >> So, after they return, we're we're not matching an ASRS. We're just we're we're kicking in 2% because it's >> it's really it's close to 10. It's a >> I don't know the exact amount, but it's pretty darn close. It's 10% versus 12%. >>

104Okay. Sorry. I >> So, we save 10%. >> Okay. I I misheard you. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Um Okay. And final question that I've been asked by uh constituents is um it is not that taxpayers are paying uh our ESI employees twice. Right. >> Absolutely. >> Does that make sense? you because they're ret they're drawing their retirement which is their annuity which they've paid into. So the year that they're on ESI um taxpayers are not are are not on the hook for the their annuity payment they get they're they're uh are and it is an actual savings to to our taxpayers because they cost us less the year that they're on ESI. Is that accurate? It's just a neutral for the taxpayers. For Mesa Public Schools, we save that roughly 20% that we normally would have

105paid as as if they were continuing to be employed through Mesa Public Schools. And then we just in return pay ESI the 80% in return they pay their employee for that one year, the ESI employee their salary. >> Thank you for that clarification, Dr. Strong. Real quick. Yeah, just for members that come from different states, there are states that have really low contribution rates and the state government kicks into the pension every year, right? That's not how Arizona's funded. The Arizona pension system is funded by the employee contributing a portion of their annual salary to the pension fund and then the employer matching it out of our funds. And so, you know, many of these employees contributed 20, 21, 22, 23 years ago. And so if you're coming from a different state, that's a little

106different than the structure, but this is a completely self-funded pension pool. And so it's not in the given year taxpayers paying twice because we self-funded the pension throughout the whole entire program. So >> thank you, board member Walden. >> Yeah. And I and I just want to add a quick comment question. I I do appreciate the the savings, too, but isn't this something that all the districts did? So if Mesa did not offer this, we'd be the outlier and probably put our top talent at risk of being poached. >> In my former district, I recall implementing this early 2000s. So and every district that I'm aware of has it. It is a great retention tool. Individuals are again they contribute and they earn their normal retirement, their pension, and they're still able to provide those

107services with us. So >> all right. Thank you. >> Thank you. I don't see any other questions. Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? With a vote of five days, we have approved this contract renew renewal of $7,500,000 for Return to Work Retiree Program Educational Services, Inc. Do I have a motion to approve a contract renewal of $3,500,000 for Architectural and Engineering Services? So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you. Any discussion? >> I have a real quick question. We um approved this last year as well. Did we actually use some of the some of that last year? And how how did we access that or what did we use it for? Did we >> the architecture and engineering services? >> Uh so in a district with 8.4 4

108million square feet of space. We have constant capital projects that are going on in the district. We have about $28 million of capital funds. Uh you know, to be frank with you, uh it costs about $10 a square foot to maintain public school space on average throughout the United States. You all can look up that that average. It's nationally known. And so we really need $84 million to maintain the public school space here on an annual basis. But we do take the $28 million of capital funds and we do redo HVAC systems. We do redo plumbing systems and anytime we're touching buildings, we call in these architecture and engineering services uh to make sure that we have everything up to code and appropriately constructed within our in our space. So, uh these do get get

109used these contracts get used every single year and we make sure that everything's compliant with city code and and state regulations. Mr. Moore, do you have anything beyond that to add? Now, we did spend 1.7 million uh last year. Uh again, alludes to Dr. Trump's point of just the constant need even without bond funds and um we we have code compliance. We have uh we we rely on these services to uh assist our um maintenance and construction teams um to ensure that we are being uh up to standard in code when we're making renovations. I'm not questioning the um need for it. I was just curious as to how much we actually asked accessed last year. Thank you. Thank you. I don't see any other questions. So, Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote?

110With a vote of 5 days, we've approved a contract renewal of 3,500,000 for architectural and engineering services. Do I have a motion to approve a contract increase of $3 million for asphalt, concrete, and related services? >> So moved. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Thank you. Any discussion? Sorry, Madam President, but I've had a couple of questions about this one as well. um with the use of the word district. There was some um this is not this is paired with our adjacent ways. Correct. And it's to improve the parking lots uh easements for any and all schools that need it. It's not just at the district office. Correct. >> Um yeah. So we're allowed by law to uh have adjacent waste funds garnered through the tax levy. This last year, uh, the governing

111board, uh, voted for a $5 million adjacent ways fund. Uh, that $5 million add-on to our adjacent ways fund. The fund started at $3 million. Uh, we probably have a bit more need than even that $8 million total, $3 million to start, $5 million of adjacent ways needs, but we're very cognizant of tax rate in this district. Very aware of tax rate. And as a result, uh, we have $8 million worth of work. And we originally, this contract originally went to the governing board prior to the adjacent ways being called for. And as a result, uh, you know, it was only priced out at $3 million. I believe the original contract was $3 million. And now we're going to need another additional $3 million to actually get those adjacent ways projects done that we had

112anticipated by asking the board for $5 million. And we want to get them done as quickly as possible because this inflation inflationary pressure, right, is is real. So, the quicker we get these projects done, the cheaper the projects get done for. And so, this this is a $3 million add-on. And you are correct in that we have ingress and egress and adjacent waste projects. Majority of our projects are at schools actually because of the fact that most of our space is school space, not district office space. So, the majority of this money will be used to uh help ingress and egress at schools. Include some parking lots, not not all parking lots in parking lot areas, but some parking lots can be included in this uh particularly bus lanes. So, >> well, Edison really needs

113a new parking lot. I'm just gonna >> just gonna throw that out there. >> I'm with you. And the good news on Edison is the operations team and Mr. Moore put that at the highest priorities because it was a tore up parking lot due to some work uh happening on the the the sewer lines, if I remember right, or the water lines underneath. And last I drove by the facility, it was all completely repaired. So, I want to compliment Mr. Moore and the operations team on getting that thing uh completely done. And so if you next time you drive by, make sure you drive in that parking lot. It's all paved up, ready to go. >> Thank you. Any other questions? >> Seeing none, Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? With a vote

114of 5 years, we've approved a contract increase of $3 million for asphalt, concrete, and related services. Thank you board members for making it through. Um, and we are here at information items. Our first information item tonight is an update on benefits from Mr. Moore and the Chyros team. And Mr. Moore, I'll turn the time over to you. We'll do 10 minutes to present and then 15 minutes for questions and Mr. Wing will try to keep us on time and u when we start questions I'll start with board member Hutchson and go that route. President Davis and members of the board um tonight we're putting a bow so to speak on this insurance transition over to Chyros. As you remember, the board approved an administrative agreement on January 8th uh for the district to um move

115from a u self kind of uh funded approach with just a direct carrier Sigma and over to a um poolled consortium approach with Chyros. At tonight's presentation, we hope to just highlight um some of the changes that will be coming um with this plan, but um look at to why some of these changes are taking place and allow uh Miss uh Rosio to uh give some uh u feedback on the open enrollment process as we go to this implementation. So, here's the agenda. We're going to look at the benefits history in NPS. uh look at existing industry challenges uh look at the impact to employees specifically looking at the rate sheets for fiscal year 27. I will note Wednesday night our employee benefits advisory committee also known as EBAC um also reviewed these rates and

116approved these rates that are you're seeing presented tonight. uh and then look how chyros uh will help us battle the insurance industry uh and look to uh reduce some of our claims and be a partner with MPS in this process. So I'm going to take some of the financial history uh because part of the uh obligation of MPS being a self-insured entity is uh we control or our our biggest cost driver is our claims. Uh but being self-insured, we are responsible for others claims and so our uh budget situation with regards to healthcare um healthcare continues healthare costs continue to rise. Um NPS to should not be a shock to you. We are facing ongoing budget constraints with declining enrollment and several factors affecting K12 education with current projections uh to the employee benefits trust.

117Um we were underfunded by approximately 30%. There's a couple reasons why um and I'll explain what underfed means in the next slide, but a couple factors on where we're at today. Medical and pharmacy costs have increased year-over-year. Healthcare premiums in MPS have not increased since 2018 with the exception of last year 20 uh 26. I believe the EBACK team did do a small district contribution. Uh but there was a seven-year gap between 2018 and 2025 in which uh healthcare premiums from the district both district and employee contributions did not increase. The district has uh has maintained ongoing contributions of approximately $3.2 million annually to HSA contributions. HSA means health savings account. Uh and those are for eligible employees in those high deductible plans. And so really in summary, this employee benefits trust, which is our

118in layman's terms our savings account, our reserves uh for our insurance uh claims uh net assets over this period of time have uh are projected to decline over $20 million. Um what that does is puts us in a predicament uh to really evaluate where we are financially and forecast uh proactively for the future of our healthcare plan. So I'm going to try my best to explain what underfunded means and where we at we were where we are at in position financially. So uh this illustration is not to the dollar amount but this is a a general um estimate of approximately what has occurred over the last uh seven to eight years. Um as I've alluded to since 2018 MPS as a district um both in district and employee contributions with the exception of last year

119have uh maintained contribution rates and have not increased rates whereas the blue line represents the rising cost of insurance every year. uh the cost of insurance um continues to go up. And so the underfunded position occurs when projected actual medical claims and administrative expenses exceed the dollars generated through both employee premiums and district contributions. What this is doing is resulting in a reduction of reserves as I've alluded to. I'm going to let Miss Edwards kind of explain uh and elaborate on some of the health care costs that are rising um and the future of healthcare costs as they continue to rise. Sure. Good evening, President Davis, fellow board members, uh, district leadership. Excuse me. As Tyler explained, uh, we are in a really sad state of affairs across this country as it relates to healthcare.

120Um, and some of the key drivers that we're seeing in the data is, uh, consistent high inflation, right? So, the cost of care is just continuing to climb. Uh we are also seeing a pretty tremendous impact from COVID deferred care uh not receiving preventative screenings things like that uh that occurred during that time frame when people couldn't seek care are now starting to catch up with the market uh as people seek out services. Uh we're also seeing some market dynamics around consolidation of uh health systems. So health systems are starting to buy primary care physicians, imaging providers, radiology providers, etc. And what that does is it starts to kind of monopolize and create you know re revenue streams for these large systems. And then I think that the fourth piece I would add quickly is

121around pharmacy costs. There are many more treatment options available to individuals out there. Uh but these new tomarket uh treatments and medications and things like that are very uh costly. And so those are all of the kind of key things that we're seeing uh as it relates to what's happening in the industry. So what what is that doing to our employee benefits or our reserves? Um so again over that last uh same time period and plus they added a few years um the reserves count has fluctuated drastically. Um, as Miss Cesar alluded to, there was a time in uh coming out of COVID where there was a lot of deferred uh medical um I think claims uh because people would um did not go to doctors um due to the times in which there was

122co um but coming uh back to the chart here looking at our ending cash balance from 2016 to 2019 or 2018 um claims in that in that period of time as we are self-funded were relatively flat. at and or below projected. And so we saw our reserves increase in that time. The district did then influx uh both in 2019 and 2020 6 in 2019 6.2 million and in 2020 7.2 2 million from the M balance as one-time contributions to the EBT trust to bolster those reserves uh to again provide some um cash and um contingency uh for anticipated high claims years. From that time uh claims have uh gone up. We've had uh some claims years above 100%. Um that is not abnormal. claims fluctuate. Being self-funded, we are 100% responsible for those claims. And

123so, again, without consistent contributions to this EBT trust or our reserves, uh you can see from 2023, uh that reserves has started to downfall drastically. Um again, it comes back to this underfunded mandate. So, we're experiencing not only flat contributions, but we're also experiencing high claims. And so that is going to exacerbate or accelerate that loss in our reserve account. So looking at next year, I want to re reiterate again we are self-insured and additionally self-insured is uh determines our healthcare rates and our plans. um these rates directly reflect again and we are also responsible if our EBT our reserve account goes below negative and if that goes below negative um where that where does that come from our M balance so these rates that we projected are presenting tonight um are a uh initial

124shot at starting the um redistrib redistrib distribution of claims both from the district and employee We um we realize this underfunded mandate and we realize we cannot continue in the fashion that we are in uh or else we will be uh shortly tapping into M as our EBT fund continues to decline. Um so when we looking at rates next year, we looked both uh internally at the district contribution and we looked at heavily contributing um and increasing our district contribution to honor um the rising costs that employees are feeling um but to make a conscious effort to pick up um a lot of these um increases from in rates from in 27. So looking at our insurance plans, um these plans are the same plans that we have um had for the last I believe

125eight years. So C-ay OAP um that is our um uh high plan that represents um an OAP for for those who don't know uh OAP is I'm drawing a blank now. >> Open access. >> Yeah, open access plan. >> Um we are increasing our district contribution up to $9,000. um that plan and other plans um we did not have equal distribution across our plans. We were funding plans at different levels. Um and so what that means is the district was contributing more money to one plan versus another. Uh we've taken the opportunity in this rate adjustment to adjust the district contribution to ensure it's equal across all plans. So the district is providing an equal contribution um to anybody who selects each one any one of those plans. Um so those um again starting at

126the co-pay the uh now the district contribution will be of $9,000 across all plans. The difference from 26 is about $792 in increased contributions from the district uh annually and you can kind of follow down the list. So the high deductible HDHP high deductible health plan uh choice 1700 1700 is the new IRS limit um that is now at 82.48 48. Um, and that is an increase on the district side of $639 annually. Um, how we get to the 9,000 contribution, if you add the HSA contribution that we make of 750, um, that gets that contribution up to 9,000. Um, HSA to explain is the health savings account. Again, um we do provide employees a flat supplemental um if they select that plan. Um we are to be conscious of our budget uh looking at

127reducing that contribution from,000 to 750 and that's where you see a reflection of $250. The high deductible value plan 2500 again is the current plan we offer. Um that is at $7,746 an increase of $936 over last year. that plan was underfunded in terms of the district contribution versus the other plans. So that's why you see a higher contribution increase on that. And again, that aims to get all of our contributions from the district to $9,000 regardless of what plan you protect or pick. >> We have about three minutes remaining. >> All right, I need to move. Um on the employee side um you'll see we tried uh our best to limit the contribution rates increase on the employee side. Um the annual employeeonly contribution of $960 on the OAP plan which is our riches

128plan was increased the highest. Uh that difference though on an annual basis is $137 to the employee. A high deductible choice plan increased annually $240. That's $102 increase from 26. And then the high deductible value 2500 plan increase of $180 over last year. And that's a $42.96 increase annually. Um again, the HSA contributions are being reduced as part of this plan to bridge the gap and a broader strategy to stabilize the employee benefits trust. The less um contributions that we're making, uh that means more uh reserves back into our account. I'm not going to go over each one of these line by line, but we did present and and put in this presentation each plan and um the impacted uh rate difference from 26 to 27 in each one of these plans. So for this

129one, you'll see the OEP co-play plan 26 to 27. And you can see the employee contribution differences on each one of those plan designs. Again, high deductible choice plan. You'll see across the board, we aim to keep employee impact low. The average impact across all these plans is less than 5%. Uh and you can see the majority of the increase um putting it on the employee only trying to keep family, spouse and children plans um low. And then the H high deductible value plan the 2500 plan similar concept. I'm going pass it back to Tanya to Mr. Mor. Can I just I know I'm taking a lot of time here. Sorry, Mr. Wing. Uh but I, you know, I need the comm community and our employees to understand we we we were given direction and

130individual meetings with these board members to try to keep as many of these costs defayed from the employees as we possibly could. And uh that was the effort. Healthc care is the second largest spend in Mesa public schools. Let me say that one more time. Salaries is number one. The second largest spend is health care at 50 to60 million dollars per year is what we spend. And so we take the business of health care really seriously because you should take the thing you're spending your second largest spend on very seriously. Um and so we did we did absorb a lot of the increase on the employer side but that was at the direction of this governing board. The governing board said try to make it so that the majority of this expense happens on the

131employer contribution side of things. I appreciate Mr. Moore. I appreciate Chyros going to work to try to level things out. That was another important thing that every employee gets the same $9,000 approximate contribution. But I just I I need everyone to understand this is a a different environment. We have other things on the healthcare side we're working on uh within our lobbyist group and our uh uh Guppy Mat group, which is the Greater Phoenix Educational Management Council, because we're trying to get our way around this problem over the next 5 years because there there's there's we want to stay hopeful. But in this industry, there's there's less hope uh than I would hope there would be. So uh you know I just want the community and employees to understand uh the reason we tried to

132absorb most of it on the employer side is because this governing board uh takes their commitment to these employees uh very seriously. >> Thank you. And I would add to that I think at this point the thought I would leave you with is now it's our job to do the the heavy lifting right and really start to uh focus on being your adviser and your advocate and navigating this very complicated system. And one of the things that we always say is generally claims themselves are about 90% or more of your overall spend. And so as we look at opportunities to improve those things, where are the areas of opportunity within your own data set? And I know we've I think on the next slide we've shared some information on some of the different strategies that

133we've deployed for other school districts. Uh where we saw in the data that there's a need and there's an opportunity to better manage cost and improve quality. And as we get our arms around your data as well, I think that will create opportunities to help us better understand where people are spending and what other types of programs or strategies that we can deploy to help employees navigate this. And Dr. Smi, you said this nicely. Uh employees are kind of facing this challenge with very little information or transparency about what things cost and how to navigate it. And so our commitment to you is to help your employees do that. I tried to wrap that up very quickly. Once again, uh just as a quick reminder, we do have our nurse navigator uh program that is

134very focused on helping to support employees. Uh I think Rosio is going to talk a little bit about open enrollment. We want to make sure that people are aware of these resources uh because again it can be very confusing, very complicated and very difficult to navigate and we're very proud of uh the opportunity to do that and help uh your employees and their families. Miss >> Sosa, do you want to explain our next steps? Sure. >> Good evening. Um, and I just want to go my name is Rosio. I'm the director of employee benefits. I don't think I've met all of you and thank you so much. I'm going to go over the implementation of how we're going to be doing open enrollment as an as Tyler stated earlier. Uh, the board did approve for

135us to join Kyros to be part of their pool and of course start looking at how we can go ahead and manage all the costs directly. In February, of course, once we got the approval, we started working with their team as well to uh examine all auxiliary benefits, which will be their dental, the life insurance, short-term disability that they offer versus of what we have to be able to see what are the best benefits for our employees cuz at the end of the day, that's what we're looking for to make sure. And then we also developed, of course, to check financials and developed a budget with Mr. Tyler of course in it more than us but he was the number guy so we let him do what he needed to do. At the same time

136we developed an eligibility file development. What that means is that we provided them a census of what is the people that are our employees based on date of birth um race and everything so that they can examine all of our data and make sure that we're providing right rates for our employees as far as for the district and as far as the employee as well. And March has been very busy because this is where we're going to go ahead and start finalizing uh our communication plan with the help with our communication department as far as finalizing what emails we're going to be sending out. Uh what text messages we're going to be using, posters, uh all communication that we can possibly think to that make sure that our employees are aware of these changes and

137also be aware of what they need to do next as an open enrollment comes in. We have uh put together a benefits guide so everybody will get a packet at home as well. But we're also targeting different areas as far as communication. So we know we have to target our big classified groups. We're going to operations bringing computers because we know they're not computer savvy. They don't have it. We're going to be there to go ahead and help them. We're going to be able to go ahead and go to the best yards as well to be able to give them all the information and be able to be there. We're having uh regional meetings at each high school as well so that it's available for them to come in as a walk-in. Also a virtual

138opportunity for anybody to do it from home if they like to join that meeting so that they can get all the information so that they can make the best decision they can for their families as well. as open enrollment starts, which will be April 7th through May 7th, we are going to go ahead and be available to emphasize because this is so important that everybody needs to go into the benefit system and enroll or decline their benefits because that is very important. So, my team and I will be looking at that to make sure everybody does go in because we don't want anyone to miss this opportunity and not have health insurance at the end of it as well. So we'll work closely directly with Kyros as well to be able to provide as much

139support as we can to for that as well. And then once that's over, we think we'll breathe. No, in May, we'll go ahead and clean up all of our data, make sure everything is good to go, goes files are good to go to to employees because we want them to get ID cards on a timely basis as well with this change. But also at the same time is Kyros will help us of course to do the transition of care cuz at this time I already probably have a scheduled surgery in August and it's already been a pre-approved. So we're going to go ahead and help to be able to uh how that is going to navigate for those employees. So we'll be able to do that. We probably will be able to breathe by July

140because everything will be effective by that time. And then we'll be able to of course just do an audit, make sure everybody's good, everything is in everybody's system, and be able to have um any annual planning that we need to go going forward with Kyros and making sure how we can continue to go ahead and educate our employees to use the best care. Thank you. Did anybody have questions or anything I can answer? >> Thank you so much. Um I will start with board member Hudson. Any questions? >> Thank you, Madam President. Um, so I I with with health care um it's uh it's be very stressful for employees um trying to figure out what what plan to to choose. But um I want to um piggyback on what Superintendent Stro said that it is

141the intention of this board to provide excellent care at the lowest cost possible to the employees. Um and so with active enrollment, active open enrollment, I know that there's probably some anxiety amongst the employees that they will have to change their health care providers. Is that going to have to happen for our employees? Not necessarily because we continue to be on our Sigma network. So keep that in mind. and we stressing and we we've been stressing as we go out to the to the schools and we're getting the calls cuz as soon as we said we're moving to Kyros the calls in my department have been high. So that has come into say we are con still in Sigma's network. So that's not going to change. Of course, we can't. The contracts between Sigma and

142the providers are not something on our control, but we are making sure yes, if there is a disruption, you know, we'll work with Kyros to make sure we find them the best location or other new providers that need it as well. I really appreciate the clarification that our employees and their families will still be in the Sigma network which which has a has a a incredible um provider list. Yes. And most likely the the the um providers that are serving their families and and themselves and providing care and things that are maybe scheduled in advance like as as you mentioned um those will be honored for the most part as long as they remain part of the Sigma network. Um, where Chyros comes in is managing that that aspect of that relationship for the district

143and for making sure that services that are provided are um are are excellent that that we that we measure the quality of those services, but also that we're watching the costs of those services and making sure that they are in line because we are trying to save money as many ways as we can. >> Absolutely. >> And Tanya, would you would you expand on that a little bit more just to just to reassure everyone as to what this open enrollment means? >> I don't think I could have said it better, but yes, that is accurate. So, uh, as Rosio indicated, the Sigma network of providers is not going to change. So, if people are currently using providers today, that is not changing. uh to your point where we come into to play is we are

144working with various school districts across the state of Arizona to do the same thing. So we are managing the contracts with Sigma. We are ensuring that if there are big pockets of providers that might be renegotiating their contract that we are, you know, doing our due diligence to communicate that in advance and then identify if there's opportunities um to find alternatives should a provider terminate their contract with the network. Um those are few and far between. they typically get resolved kind of at the last minute. Um, but to your point, we are looking for opportunities even within the traditional network system. There's so much variability in cost and quality for all kinds of procedures and services. Um, and I'll give you one quick example. We talk about this one a lot. An MRI, if you

145go to a hospital setting for an MRI, generally you're going to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $200 to $3,000. If you go to a freestanding facility to get an MRI, you can get it for $800. And so what that means to an employee, right, is if you have a deductible of $1,700 and you haven't met that and you haven't sought out services, right, would you rather pay $800 or would you rather pay 2100, right? And so not only does it benefit the employee in terms of what their out-of- pocket expenses, but it benefits the district and that translates to premiums that you're paying towards uh health care costs. Does that help? >> Thank you very much. >> Thank you, board member Benson. I actually don't think I have um many questions, but Chyros will

146be um the entity that assists with providing like perhaps suggestions. So when I worked in the district, we'd get like our wellness flyer. Hey, why don't you do this? And uh Kyros is going to take that role on. Is that correct? >> Yes. Correct. >> Along with Yes. many other things. >> Yes. Well, I mean, I think that's that's sometimes helpful. So, like, hey, did you take have your mammogram? Have you gone to your u your preventative care? Uh, and I remember when I was still working, um, you also through Sigma or through our plan, if I did, I don't know 10 of these wellness type things that I I don't remember what I got like the p potential of a visa card or I don't I don't know because I actually never managed to

147get that. But is Kyros also going to be doing is is that going to be continued within our services? >> So what we're going to do is you guys have an existing wellness program that's currently being managed by Sigma and that's going to stay in place. But what I will tell you is we're going to look for opportunities to even improve those things. So for example, we go into other school districts and we'll do biometric biometric screenings where people can learn about their numbers, blood pressure, cholesterol, and those types of things that give them awareness on how they're doing, you know, in the in terms of health. um mammograms, we'll do on-site mammogram screenings. Uh we we're exploring actual skin cancer screening uh opportunity as well. So, yes, there's a bunch of different things that

148we can bring to the table to add to what's already being provided and or maybe sunset things that aren't as effective. Um and and yes, so we'll take an active role in that, but not necessarily um replace or get rid of what's existing today. >> Okay, perfect. Uh, and I just want to commend the team um for honoring what this board did uh want to see, which was as uh small an impact on the pocketbooks of our employees as possible. Uh, that I'm sure was a challenge. So, I appreciate all the hard work of the entire team uh and and tackling that and doing it um pretty well. I think a $4 difference a month is not it's one latte. Thank you. Board member Walden. Any questions? >> No, I don't have any questions. I

149just want to thank everyone for their works. I know this process started a year ago and uh our cabinet, Dr. STM's cabinet was uh very instrumental to this to this process and and you know, I think if if we didn't go in this direction, we'd see a much larger employee increase and and what they'd have to pay. So, this was the way to keep keep cost down and uh work towards continuous improvement, too, because there's a lot of good things that are that you talked about that's going to continue. We have to continue to look at ways that we can keep keep those costs down for everybody. So, uh I'm I think this is all really good news and I'm really happy to know that we're still in the Sigma network because that is as

150Mrs. Hutchinson brought up something that's a primary concern to the employees. So, thank you. >> Thank you, Borman Chappie. >> I echo my fellow board members and I agree. I feel like we've been communicated with along the way and so it's helped us kind of wrap our heads around it and I appreciate that we've been able to provide feedback and that the district is taking a proactive approach to make sure that we are uh setting up the district for financial success moving into the future. Making sure that we're protecting our staff as we move forward. So, I really I feel confident about this. My only question was, is the April 7th to May 7th our usual open enrollment period? >> Yes, but not as long. So, usually we're about 17 days only because we would

151just roll our benefits every year. So, we would just tell employees to go in and check beneficiaries, double check, you know, if they wanted new benefits, but it usually would run from like May 7th through um April 7th through like the 15th of April kind of thing. So, >> okay. I appreciate that it's a little bit longer. It is nice when we have changes to be able to communicate and I appreciate all the strategies you shared for making sure we're really communicating with all the different groups of employees. >> Okay. Thank you. >> I too echo my board members and I also want to share that I appreciate the communication going out to our sites and to our employees. I think that along with of the board trying to make this as the least amount

152of impact on our employees, but also making sure that the communication is key and making sure that our employees are aware of what's going on and that the help will be there. So, I appreciate you sharing what all will be being done. So, thank you. Um, I want to thank Mr. Moore and Miss Edwards and Miss Sosa for being here tonight and for your information. And board members, if you think of any other questions or what one more just to clarify, because we're moving uh through Chyros, I I believe I heard you say you have to reup. So, in previous years, uh, if you didn't have any changes, you didn't have to do anything. you didn't have to go into. So, are we making sure that is the district making sure your department and your

153people um let's say I totally forget to go in by May 7th or whatever it is. Um are we contacting employees then are we are we going to keep our eye on that or not? >> We are. So, we're going to be running reports every week and making sure we communicate with the secretaries, the departments as well and say, "Hey, Miss Benson hasn't gone in and done her enrollment at this point, you know, so that we can go ahead and make sure that they are there." We'll make as calls as we can. Of course, it's 6,000 employees sometimes, right? But we'll make sure that, you know, we get as much communication to them to make sure that yes, you have the opportunity. You have our system is till midnight, you know, so they do have

154all the time. It's available during the weekend. So that's why we add also a couple of weekends available for employees to be able to do that. And do we provide education on the difference between what the um open access plan versus the high deductible 1700 versus 2500 is? >> Yes. So on our benefits guide has all the information and it also shows you know if I go to the doctor this is how much I'm going to pay how much the percentage I'm going to pay as well. So the guide gives them some access as well and of course we'll be available to answer any questions as far as well as kyros and which we do every open enrollment. Thank you again. And board members, if you do have any follow-up questions, there is a spreadsheet.

155Feel free to Oh, Dr. Stro, sorry. >> Yeah, President Davis, I just want to make one really clear point here. When we're contributing 660 extra dollars on behalf of the employer, uh to to the healthcare insurance plan, we would much rather have that be zero, have the employee side be zero, and give out a $660 raise. I mean I that that's that's the importance of this game in healthcare right now. And so I have a little challenge for Chyros. I've been at plenty of healthc care presentations and I'd love to be the first district in the state of Arizona that runs a program where we can help people identify miss billings on their bills. So because every miss billing that you catch, you know, they build you 3500, it should have been 2,200. That's $1,300

156back to the plan. And if it's $1,300 back to the plan, then that $660 number that we're adding on the employer side or that $132 number that we're adding on the employee side, those numbers start to come down because we're catching the missillings. And so, you know, we're all in this. I the employees understand we're all in this together. And when someone doesn't bill us correctly and we say, "Oh, our insurance plan will just take care of it." Well, someone's going to pay for that in the long run. And it's going to be the plan that pays for the long run. And that plan then affects the raise amount that we can give in the long run. And so this is all interconnect. I say this all the time. People get sick of it, but

157everything's so interconnected. And so I'd love to challenge you to go back to Chyros group and say, "Mace is interested in what type of program can they run for employees on catching billing statements that are incorrect? Is there a neat artful way of doing that in public school systems?" >> Which we're already doing. Um I actually had a another district who's one of their leaders actually got build over $100,000 for um a certain service and so that can't be the case, right? And so yes, that is happening, but I would be interested to see if there's maybe some teeth we can put into it uh to get employees aware and and paying attention to what that looks like when they receive their bills. >> Well, and that would be their explanation of benefits. Correct. >>

158Correct. and and perhaps educating on the codes that are put in there because for us lay people I'm like h I guess that's what they did. I don't know. >> Well and and and I'll be honest, we have time and time again many of the interactions that we have with employees at the nurse level is hey I got build for this and these services didn't actually occur. Um so we have some of those stories that are already happening. >> Thank you so much. Appreciate you being here. Thank you. >> We will now move on to our next and final information tonight on procurement process that our contracts go through before they ever get to us to vote on them. Mr. Moore, I'm going to turn it back to you again. Um if you'll introduce us

159to your team and then I'm going to go ahead and bump this probably to 15minute presentation and then uh 15 minutes for questions. Well, President Davis, I'm not presenting, so I think we'll be fine on some, but uh President Davis, members of the board, at a February board meeting, the the uh board member requested a presentation or a quick overview of our procurement processes. It's been a prevalent topic and it will continue to be in our board agenda. And so, uh I believe um prior to Miss Walden and Miss Benson getting on the board, Miss Hamilton did do a procurement presentation. Um and so um Miss Chaffy, excuse me. So um this is I think two years ago. So tonight um Miss Hamilton and a couple of her buyers are here to present a procurement

160overview at the request of the governing board. So Miss Hamilton, >> he already approved my Good evening, Madame President, governing board members, and superintendency. My name is Michelle Hamilton, and I am the director of purchasing. With me this evening is two of our amazing procurement specialists, Nicole Plane and Stacy Hobby. Had to remember who was with me. Um, procurement at Mesa Schools is fundamentally about stewardship. We are responsible for protecting taxpayer dollars while ensuring that the district operates efficiently and effectively. Our goal is grounded in state law, fair and open competition, and strong internal controls. These processes help reduce financial and legal risk to the district. This presentation provides a brief overview of the legal framework we work under, how contracts are issued and managed, and how we maintain accountability through the contract life cycle.

161Ultimately, our focus is on fiscal responsibility, compliance, and sound contracting p practices that support student success. Why now? A governing board member requested that we share a presentation about the procurement based on a community member's questions. This is a complex comp um process and we want to be as transparent as possible in how we navigate um our process in the district. The legal foundations of MPS's procurement. Mesa schools procurement operates within a clearly defined legal framework including the Arizona procurement code, the Arizona administrative code and the uniform system of financial records also known as USFR or you suffer and oversight from the Arizona Department of Education and the Auditor General. The structure ensures that our processes are fully compliant with state law and aligned with financial reporting requirements. While this why this matters is straightforward.

162It protects public funds. It promotes fair and open competition, ensures transparency in how contracts are awarded, and provides strong audit accountability. These safeguards help ensure we are responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars while supporting the district's operational needs and student success. Good evening, governing board. My name is Stacy Jav and I am the procurement specialist who oversees the contracts and purchasing of software, technology, and curriculum. Um, I'm going to be going over the Arizona procurement requirements. Our procurement rules require that we issue formal solicitations if we will be spending over $100,000 annually per vendor per like item. What does that mean? An example of like purchase would be Home Depot and Lowe's. They are similar businesses. So, we have to combine the total of POS to determine the cumulative spend. Types of formal solicitations. The most

163common solicitations we issue are invitations for bids, IFBs, which are awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible vendor or vendors, along with requests for proposals, RFPs, which are awarded based on evaluation criteria where price may or may not be the highest factor. There are other types of contracts and solicitations, but they relate more for construction and have some unique requirements that we won't be discussing tonight. The buyers either issue solicitations to meet the specific needs of Mesa Public Schools or utilize contracts issued by cooperatives such as Mojave or 1GPA. Cooperative contracts are issued by other public entities or by cooperative organizations whose sole purpose is to issue contracts for public entities to utilize. Cooperative contracts in education provide significant benefits, primarily cost savings through economies of scale. They streamline procurement by reducing administrative workload and

164eliminate the need for lengthing lengthy biddy pro bidding processes. Sorry. So, our current contract portfolio, we current, our district currently has 161 contracts we have issued for use by Mesa Public Schools only. We also have approximately 24 contracts we have issued for Mesa Public Schools use, but those contracts have the ability to be used by other public entities. MESA only issues contracts with cooperative language if MESA will be using the contract. The scope of work is to accommodate Mesa Public Schools needs first and foremost. We currently use approximately 103 cooperative contracts issued by cooperatives such as Mojave and 1GPA. >> Good evening, governing board. My name is Nicole Plane. I'm one of the procurement specialists at operations. I handle construction and operations projects. Um, we issue solicitations at the request of other departments for specific

165purchase purchases and also for reoccurring needs. Some examples of specific purchases would be software, professional development, and special education services. But examples of reoccurring solicitations could be for things like warehouse stock, propane fuel, charter bus services, and library books. As Stacy mentioned, with the large number of contracts we manage, it is necessary to spread them out throughout the year. This also results in renewals taking place at various times throughout the year. It's important for some contracts to follow the fiscal year and others the start and end date are not necessarily as important. For example, it's important for contracts for special education services to start on July 1st, but for a plumbing contract, it might not be that important. The scope of work is typically provided by the requesting department, but the purchasing department does help

166with the development if necessary. We often do preliminary research and review sample solicitations from what other entities have done. For example, at operations, we would meet with the HVAC shop to determine the needs of that shop and take into account the equipment that we own here at Mesa for a chiller maintenance and repair solicitation. Open Gov is our official vendor registration portal which is used to notify vendors of solicitations. OpenGV is a national company, so there are lots of entities throughout the state and country that use it as well. Open Gov is used to notify all the vendors who follow Mesa Public Schools, which can be upwards of 3500, or we can just select vendors based on their commodity code. We usually choose to send our solicitations to all vendors to encourage the most competition

167possible. Vendors also respond via OpenGV and evaluations are done within the system as well. Evaluation process for a request for proposal. Evaluation teams are determined before the issuance of the solicitation and include stakeholders and subject experts in the product or service that we're procuring. For example, a construction bid could include the principal of the school and operations representative, parents and teachers, and an architect. But a software bid would more appropriately include staff from IS and the teaching and learning team. I'm the short one of the crowd. Contracts cannot exceed a one-year term without board approval. However, we rarely come to the board for more than one year at a time to determine the need um for the dollar amount on each contract. We average the last five years usage and then any future needs that

168we may be aware of. Um there are always special initiatives that require spending um that is more than we typically do. For example, sometimes our users understand that or find out that there's a grant that's been awarded to the district and we will spend more than we typically do on that contract. Hopefully we know that ahead of time when we bring it to you and it's not 3 months after we've been here or the week after we've been here. And so we try to keep up with um with that information from them. We begin the renew the renewal process approximately 2 to 3 months before the contract expires. We confirm with the vendor their willingness to continue with the contract and verify pricing for the next term. If a vendor requests an increase, the buyer

169determines that the increase is fair and reasonable before submitting the um board tab to you for approval. Vendor performance management. It doesn't happen very often, but there are times when we find out a vendor is not performing per the terms and conditions of the solicitation. We have a process that explains the non-compliance, a recommended remedy, and a timeline for resolution. The vendor is required to then respond to our vendor performance report and acknowledge that there is an issue and submit a resolution. At the end of the timeline that we give the vendor, purchasing determines if the vendor has met the requirements of the vendor performance report. The buyer then decides if we will continue or cancel the contract. Historically vendors are very receptive to this process and we have repaired lots of re relationship with

170vendors through this because a lot of times the people who are doing the work for that vendor um are not the people who are making the decision, right? And so the person who owns the company may not even know that um there's a problem with the district. So, we try to give the person who has signed the original contract the opportunity to discuss um what's happening. The final year of the contract, we consult with the using department to determine if the need is ongoing. If so, we discuss that work, what worked, what didn't work, um make edits to the scope of work, and then reissue the solicitation, and the process starts all over again. I forgot to click So, so then we start all over again and so we try to stay on top of

171that and like I said it is a constant um calendar watch for us all year long with the number of contracts that we have. Um that is the end of our presentation as riveting as it is. Um I could spend here all day with you guys talking about procurement. Um, so this 10 minutes that Tyler gave me feels um, like just brushing the edge of it, but we're happy to answer any questions you guys may have. >> Thank you so much. Um, we appreciate you being here and we know what it takes to keep Mesa Public Schools running. So, thank you. We know there's lots and lots that goes on behind the scenes that we have no idea. So, thank you for all you do. Um, I'm going to start and go to my left

172this time with board member Chaffy. Any question? >> Yeah, thank you so much for being here. Thank you for that really thoughtful and detailed presentation. Thank you for not reading the slides to us but just providing such like robust information. You were just so well prepared. I think that it should be evident to our community that you are so knowledgeable and so capable and that our procurement is in such good hands. Thank you very very much. My question is kind of based on the sites. Um, if you had to like talk to the people at at our sites that are making purchases and working with your department, what do you see as the number one maybe piece of confusion that they have? And what's one thing that you wish they knew about procurement? >> I

173know only one. I know there's probably a lot than you tell them, but if you had to whittle it down >> that there has to be a purchase order for every purchase in this district. That is there's no after the facts. There are um there is no contract with a vendor without a purchase order. And so if we don't have that purchase order in place, I will typically tell a vendor, "Thank you for your donation to Mesa Public Schools. Next time, make sure you have a PO. And what was the other part of that question? >> I think you covered it in that answer. You covered both parts. Thank you. >> Thank you, board member Walden. Any questions? >> I don't have any questions. I really appreciate the work that you do and the presentation

174that you give tonight gave tonight. Thank you. >> Thank you, board member Benson. >> Of course. Um I want to um piggyback off my fellow board members and thank you for your information as well. I have two questions. one will I think be relatively quick and then another to educate. So in the two different types of solicitations the um IFP is that right >> IFB versus the RFP >> like when would you use one over the other? Typically an IFB is for things such as commodities where you have footballs, basketballs, you know, and that that specification is is pretty standard. We will do what we call a line item bid, which is a is the IFB and where the price is pretty much fixed throughout the year. And then RFPs are more service-based, >> okay?

175where you are evaluating on price of course, but sometimes what is more important than the price is the service that the vendor could provide to you because it's not always apples to apples. >> Correct. Especially in the contracting um world, right? My second question, which might be a little bit more detailed, but from an educational standpoint, um, public charter schools, it is my understanding, do not have the same procurement rules that we do. Uh, and could you des and I don't I I assume maybe I I think it's a really important for our community to know the what public district schools uh the rules that we have to follow in um in either having work done or purchasing things that perhaps our public charter schools don't actually have to follow. and how that might maybe

176not be so fair. So, could you describe that for us if you could or somebody? >> Our rules are defined by the Department of Ed and all those areas that I said, otter general, the Arizona administrative code follows the state uh procurement code. Charters typically can develop their own rules. So they may have rules that they follow and some charters may try to follow them the same way we do, but they're not bound to those um to those rules at the state level that that school districts are. So it makes it a little rougher to go through this process. Um there's no procurement thresholds for them. You know, for us it's the zero to $10,000 threshold, 10,000 to a h 100,000 and then anything over a h 100,000. There's different rules for each of those

177areas. Charters don't have that. And so it makes it tough for us um to stay compliant with our annual audits, which we are audited every year. um we should be getting a whole list of things that they'll pull from us soon, but um the charters just aren't held to the same standard that we are. Now, like I said, there's some charters that will attempt to do it, but they don't have to. So that would be a legislative thing that perhaps when we're discussing um our our uh goals with ASBA or uh how we want to lobby because all these charters if they're public charters are getting public taxpayer money. Correct. >> Yes, they are. >> Uh and it's they have different um capital funding for each one of their students than we do. Mhm. >>

178They have different rules as to uh how to who who can buy what what they can buy, the amount they can spend. Um they don't have to deal with competition and making sure that we are are fiscally responsible with the taxpayer money that they're getting is what I understand. Is would you would you say that that's >> they don't have the accurate? >> That is very accurate. And they don't have the conflict of interest that we have. Um, you know, I spend a lot of time chasing down conflict of interest forms, making sure that we are being fair. Um, one of our rules is we cannot do business with a school district employee. Um, so they either have to be an employee or they have to be a vendor. They can't be both. Um, we

179have to watch the relationship to relatives. Um, there's all kinds of different levels to that that I won't go into tonight, but it is very complicated and it is upsetting to employees and our constituents sometimes that I just can't use their husband or their brother or, you know, so we have to follow the competitiveness of being fair and reasonable. >> Well, and I I totally appreciate that as a taxpayer and I'm sure our our people do as well. I just really think legislatively our our public charters should have to play by the same rules that we do. So, thank you ladies for all your hard work. >> Yep. Thank you. >> Oh, and by the way, your youth effort that was hysterical. >> Oh, thanks. >> Thank you, board member Hutchinson. >> Well, good luck

180uh convincing legislators because legislators own charter schools. So, um anyway, um I really appreciate you telling us the various rules that we have to follow and the compliance challenges, but but as you started your presentation, you are a steward of the taxpayer dollars. >> Yes, ma'am. and and Miss Hamilton, you are an excellent steward of >> taxpayer dollars. >> Um, and what I would advise any of my fellow board members to do or any member of the public I know no scratch that board members because I went through a procurement with you. >> Yes. And I understood better the process having gone through the procurement of a service that we that the district needed and you involved me. You involved my clerk Dr. O'Reilly at the time. we understood better the process and I appreciate

181the process, but I really appreciate the expertise that you and your staff brought to the process. And so I think if any board member would want to understand it further um that that maybe they sit through a a an example of a procurement because I was the your level of expertise and the level of care in trying to provide at at a cost that is reasonable but that provides the best service and or the best product, the best resource. Um, to me that is the Michelle Hamilton way and and and I and I think it's a it's a great standard to have and that other public dollars don't have that Hamilton standard is is a shame. >> Thank you. You know, I don't do this alone and this is where I become emotional. I can

182stand up here and evaluate contracts and negotiate contracts till the day is done. But these people that stand behind me, I am retired. I came back the very next day. Um, and I do it because of the people that I work with because they have the same values, they have the same ethical standards, and they are here doing the same work for the same reasons that I do and that is to do the right thing. And um I welcome anybody who wants to come to my office. Um anybody that wants to be part of a solicitation, if you want to just be, you know, if you want to be part of the evaluation team, then you can't vote on it once it's up here. So be careful what you ask for. And um but you

183know, the thing with with uh Mrs. Hutchinson was regardless that she was the president of the board when I told her we couldn't do something she held that respect and what that comes from is a 121page document that dictates the work that we do in purchasing. So it just sounds like purchasing but it's there's more to it than that. And as a side note, last Friday um our open gov uh vendor that we use for our solicitations notified me that we are a finalist for the high performance government award and I will be going to Chicago the end of April to find out if we win or not. But Mesa Public Schools isn't. So so pretty proud of that. Um, this is a hard industry. Um, but like I said, I couldn't do it without

184these guys behind it. >> Thank you. We know it takes a village and uh trying to keep all the checks and balances across all of our schools and district and so thank you. Um, having dealt with some of these things uh and dealing with coaches, understanding POS and different things. Um, we know we appreciate you. So, thank you. Um, and I think it's just important like member Benson said about the regulations that we as a public schools are under. Um, sometimes you'll hear I'll hear people well the district this and the district that, it's not necessarily the district. A lot of times these are all governed because of state um, laws. So, the more education we can do and I appreciate you being here tonight to educate all of us on these. And so, thank

185you. Um, do I have any other questions? Thank you. if we do. Oh, go ahead. >> No, I I just do think it's um uh I I want to have I want to make sure that our our constituents know that and I am a huge school choice um advocate. I I believe parents need to have choice. However, when they say, "Well, wait a minute. Why can't they? We do play by a set of rules that charter schools, even though they're getting public tax money, the same as we are, that they're not playing by. And so, um, I don't necessarily have high hopes for changing that either, member Hutchinson. However, persistence is and we and and our our elected officials are supposed to do what we want them to do. So, I say we just hound

186them. >> Well, thank you. you know, it's it's a great profession and our biggest compliment is to be in the background and have you guys not even know that we're there. And so, you know, we're still working, we're still doing um but our job is to everybody else has their own job. Procurement is so specialized that our job is to make it easy for you guys to navigate that and that is what we try to do. Well, thank you is very much appreciated. So, thank you so much and thank you again for being here. Um, if you do think of other questions, there is a spreadsheet. Please feel free to put some questions in there. And this brings us to the end of our meeting. Do I have a motion to adjourn the meeting? >>

187So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? Seeing none, Miss Kirby, will you please take our vote? With a vote of five, yes, the meeting is adjourned at 8:07. Thank you again for being here this evening.