Board of Education Meeting 06/09/2025

001Welcome everyone. It is now 7 Hello. It is now 7:01 p.m. and I am reconvening to open session and calling to order the regular board of education meeting for Indian Prairie School District 204 on Monday, June 9th, 2025. Michelle, will you please call the role? Miss Donahghue, here. Miss Jane, here. Miss Fostic here. Miss Deming, present. Mr. Mr. Kurubis here, Miss Gent here, and Mr. Rising here. We have a quorum. Miss Jane, will you lead us in the pledge of allegiance? I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The next regular board meeting will be held on Monday, July 7th. We have several board salutes tonight. We'll start with Mr. Kurubis. Indian Prairie

002School District receives the 2025 NP Golden Achievement Award. The board salutes the district for earning a 2025 Golden Achievement Award from the National Association Public Relations for their referendum campaign, Safer Stronger 204. The award recognizes outstanding strategic work in all aspects of school public relations, communication, marketing, and engagement. We appreciate the collaboration between the communications, community relation, and business departments in educating our community and informing taxpayers of the bond referendum details which contributed to successful passing the referendum, thereby ensuring critical infrastructure upgrades and enhanced safety and security throughout the district. Congratulation to all involved in earning this prestigious recognition. Okay, we're going to go to Miss Jane. Matia Valley, excuse me. Matia Valley graduate wins National Writing Award. The board salutes Matia Valley graduate Ali Shiminus for winning first place in opinion writing in the

003National Federation Press Women's High School Media Contest. Ali's article published on Matia Media last May looked at the struggles transgender students face in school, including bullying, depression, and the use of names and pronouns. After winning the state contest in February, Ali's article moved on to the national level where it was named best in the country. Congratulations, Ali. Miss Dumming, college sponsored National Merit Scholarship Winners. The board salutes district 204 students who were recently awarded 2025 National Merit Scholarships financed by US colleges and universities. Scholarship recipients include Matia Valley seniors, Joanna Shu, Neil Mohan, Monicia God, Guchenta as well as Nqua Valley seniors Zacher Duce Hoffman, Farcia Naier, and Adicha Rakshit. Each sponsoring college selected its scholarship winners from among the finalists in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program who plan to attend that institution. These

004scholarships provide between 500 and 2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study. We congratulate all our national merit scholarship winners. Mr. Rising 2025 National SAM Labs Design Challenge. The board salutes students and teachers who were recognized in the 2025 National SAM Labs Design Challenge for their creativity and innovation. In the junior category, Christine Bacio's fourth grade students at Stuck Elementary created Super Seed Planter and Katherine Spiking third grade graders at Peterson Elementary created third earned a third place for their project Save the Ducks. Don Evans fourth graders at Spring Brook Elementary took second place with their automatic plant watering system. In the senior category, uh Janine Gerish's fifth grade students at Fry Elementary earned first place for their automatic bird feeder, second place for Project Rain, and third place for Save the Ocean.

005Congratulations on these remarkable achievements. Miss Guns, 2025 Microsoft Office Specialist US National Championship. The board salutes Nqua Valley senior Valyriia Ramirez for placing second in Illinois in the Microsoft 365 apps Excel exam during the fall qualifier of the 2025 Microsoft Office Specialist US National Championship. Valyria's hard work and skill along with the support of her teachers led to this amazing achievement. Congratulations Valyria on this stellar achievement. So I want to congrat let's join everyone to congratulate on these outstanding achievements across the district. So thank you for all these results. It is now time for public comment and 60 minutes is allowed. Each person is limited to three minutes. When addressing the board, we ask that you respect the confidentiality and safety of our students and school district personnel. We also ask that those addressing the

006board be cognizant that this is an open meeting and is available to all age groups and as such ask that you consider who the audience members are this evening and keep comments age appropriate. Public comment represents the voice and the opinion of the speaker. There will be no feedback from the board members during the meeting but followup will be provided by an administrator as appropriate. Although this is not required, it is helpful for the board to know whether the comments and concerns we hear are being raised by residents. So, we ask that you state if you live in the district and if you currently have children in our schools. We have three speakers tonight. The first speaker is Suwellyn Girtman. Welcome. Good evening, District 204 board members. Is it on? Thank you. Superintendent Tally and

007residents. My name is Suellen Gertman. I taught Project Aeroscience at Cone Middle School for 20 years. I have been retired for the past three years, during which time I have run a science club at Cone. Students complete individual research projects so they can compete at the Illinois Junior Academy of Sciences regional and state science fairs. When I was hired to teach at Cone, science projects were part of the PA science program at all three levels and also for eighth grade students. The last year that science projects were part of the middle school curriculum, 150 crone students competed at the district fair. 45 of them went on to a regional fair. And of those 45, over 30 went on to the state fair, most receiving the top gold award and several received special awards as well.

008When the new science curriculum was adopted, I continued to have my eighth grade students complete science research projects as part of their enrichment for PA science. Over 20 years of teaching, I found that the science research project had more impact on my students than any other parts of the curriculum. Letters from former students also support this. To begin with, the science project allows for student choice. Research has shown that when a student has choice over what they study, it increases their motivation, the quality of their work, and their work completion. Completing a science inquiry project also supports NGSS. The next generation science standards has three dimensions, one of them being science and engineering practices. The science project involves all of the practices. Students begin by asking questions or defining problems. They complete background research to

009better understand the basic science involved in their project. Next, they plan and carry out investigations. They analyze and interpret data. They write a conclusion based on their evidence. They communicate their findings by writing a research paper and preparing a presentation to use when they present to the judges at the fair. In conclusion, I would like to encourage the district to support students interested in doing science research projects by having all seven middle schools and the three high schools join JJS for next school year. The cost is only $100 per school. For the regional fair, the cost is $20 per project. I currently have 35 students signed up to complete a project next year. The students attend all three high schools, Cone, Gregory, and Skull and Middle Schools. It would be great if the district would

010support these students. Each school would need a teacher sponsor willing to check projects for compliance with IGS safety. I am happy to work with any teacher interested in learning more about supporting our students. Thank you very much for listening. Thank you. The next speaker is Anvea Tyre Anvea. I hope you all are having a good evening. I'm going to be a senior at NA in the fall. And reflecting on the past 17 years of my life, I realized that my entire schooling journey was shaped substantially by science fairs. Being able to look into what intrigues me, develop valuable research and presentation skills, and compete for awards is genuinely one of the best experiences that can be had for STEM passionate students. The state science fair this year handed out over $60,000 in scholarships and awards,

011and the international fair handed out over 9 million. At this point in time, science fairs and research experience are more valuable to colleges and employers than ever, and they're more desired by students than ever as well. The reason I am here today is to advocate for official district-wide support for students to participate in the Illinois Junior Academy of Science Fairs. This goal is not only extremely beneficial if achieved, but itself extremely achievable. Wabanzi and Cone already have science fair clubs, and they've been doing extremely well at regionals and state. Other school districts with similar resources to ours, have very high achieving programs, such as Stephvenson High School, making up almost 5% of the state fair alone. Many 204 students without official clubs at their schools, have also been finding other ways to participate, such as

012through my control group, where I mentor and sponsor students to participate in these fairs. However, without official institutional support for these clubs, many do not know of these opportunities. And more importantly, we're missing out on the incredible knowledge and connections that our district's world-class teachers have to offer. Some of whom have got me to where I am today. In the first year that all students in Illinois were eligible to qualify for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, I represented our entire region of the state. And to pin it all off, 22% of the adult board and 50% of the executive student board that run the whole organization of JS are from district 204. Without the support of Mrs. Gershman and Mrs. Hawkins, incredible retired teachers from our district, none of this would have happened.

013We have the resources, student and teacher brilliance, and historical expertise needed to not only participate in these fairs, but to thrive in them. The problem here is accessibility. Without official support, no one knows of the opportunity. That is why the district should firmly establish extracurricular science clubs for its schools. They're far from expensive, yet provide thousands of dollars in scholarships. They didn't took up valuable staff time without compensation. Yet, our students would greatly benefit from them. Uh, and for any extra support along the way, I would love to meet with and help any club, student, teacher, or school. When we have ample interest, expertise, and resources to thrive as a school district, it just makes sense to take some time and expand those successes to everyone accessibly and equitably. Thank you all so much. Thank

014you. Our last speaker is Jill Goen. Hi, I'm Jill Gosen. This is Bobby Murphy. We're the food service directors in Indian Prairie and we on behalf of Organic Life, we want to take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude for being a part of such an incredible district. Serving District 204 has been an absolute privilege and we are deeply thankful to be among the community with the superintendent, school board, and parents who are so deeply invested in the well-being and success of our children. This year we achieved a remarkable milestone by serving more meals than we ever did before. On behalf of the entire Organic Life team, we want to say thank you for your trust and support in us and we want to wish you a very very nice summer. Summer. Thank you very

015much. We're here just to say thank you for everything and your support. Thank you. Thank you. I miss the fancy presentation of the school. Okay. Okay. All right. We now move to our consent agenda and superintendent report. Miss Donahghue, members of the board and the Indian Prairie community, I must start my comments with sad news. Miss Bonnie Budson, principal secretary at Hill Middle School, passed away on Wednesday, May 28th. She had worked for Indian Prairie for six years. Before going to um Hill Middle School, she worked at Gregory. May her family know that she was a valued member of our Indian Prairie School District community and will be missed. And I ask that they take a moment of silence in honor of her. Thank you. On Memorial Sunday, we graduated more than 2100 students at

016our three high schools during their commencement ceremonies. From start to finish, each event was well orchestrated and provided each school the opportunity to celebrate its graduates. There are a lot of hours in planning these events and a lot happens behind the scenes leading to the actual graduation. I applaud the planners at the three high schools. Miss Montterine Johnson at Leonzi, Mr. Rodney Jones at Matia, and Mr. Michael Oul at Nikqua. Well done to all of you for a great job. We wish all of our graduates much success in their future. The end of the school year is always bittersweet as we say goodbye to our students and staff wishing them a wonderful summer. We are very proud of what we've been able to accomplish this school year with our schools working in collaboration with parent

017groups to support our students. A lot has happened this school year from the passage of our bond referendum to Mr. Jason Stip being named Illinois PTA principal of the year to our district being ranked as by niche as one of the top school districts in the nation. We we have accomplished great things. We now start working for the 2526 school year. August 19th will be here very soon. And before I turn the meeting to Miss Donnie who I would like to ask that the board of ed approve the appointment of Mr. James D. Ferguson as director of student services effective July one. Mr. Ferguson will be replacing Dr. Kim Wisinski who's moving to a different district. Mr. Mr. Ferguson is coming to us from the Maywood Melrose Park Broadview School District 89 where he's currently

018assistant director of student services. Mr. Ferguson has had other positions in his career to include being a principal, director of student services, and was a special education teacher team leader here at Niqua. So, yes, you can go home again. He is very excited about returning to Indian Prairie and he's here in our audience tonight. I will now turn the meeting back over to Miss Donah. So, I need a motion to approve James Ferguson as director for student services as presented. I move that the board of education approve James Ferguson as director of student services as presented. Second. Any discussion? Okay. Michelle, will you please call the role? Miss Gent, yes. Miss Deming, I. Mr. Kurubis. Yes. Miss Fazdik, yes. Mr. Rising, yes. Miss Donahghue, yes. And Miss Jane, yes. The motion passes. Congratulations. Welcome back

019home. [Applause] Madam President, board members, thank you so much for um empowering me to be able to work in district um 204. Again, um a lot of my career I have reflected on what I've learned as an educator, starting my career in 204, and I'm glad to be able to bring back my knowledge and education to support the families and students here in 204. I have with me joining me my beautiful wife Cara as well as my two children Summer and Skyler. So adorable. So cute. Congratulations. Welcome home. Okay. Next we move to our consent agenda item. I need a motion for the approval of consent agenda items E through S. I move that the board approve consent agenda items E through S as presented. I second. Any discussion? Michelle, will you please call the

020role? Miss Fazik, yes. Miss Jane, yes. Miss Donahghue, yes. Mr. Kurubis, yes. Miss Gint, yes. Mr. Rising, yes. And Miss Deming, I. Okay. I now need a motion and a second to approve the substitute teacher compensation for 2025 2026 as presented. I move to approve the substitute teacher compensation for 2025 2026. Second. Is there any discussion? I think myself and Miss Bazdik will be abstaining because we both uh substitute sometimes in the district. So Michelle, will you please call the role? Mr. Kurubis, yes. Mr. Rising, yes. Miss Deming, I. Miss Jane, yes. And Miss Gint, yes. The motion passes. I need a motion and a second to approve the superintendent search services agreement with Hazard, Young, and AIA, and Associates, HYA, as presented. I move that the board approve the superintendent search services agreement with

021Hazard Young Atia and Associates Associates HYA as presented. Second. Any discussion? There'll be an announcement put out tomorrow from myself um discussing uh the next steps and we um went through a thorough process and looking at different search firms and put out an RFP um and we are very pleased to have HYI supporting our board on this. So um Michelle, will you please call the role? Miss Deming I. Mr. Rising, yes. Miss Gint, yes. Miss Donahghue, yes. Mr. Kurubis, yes. Miss Jane, yes. And Miss Fastik, yes. The motion passes. We will now have a presentation regarding the master facility plan update. Um, this will be [Music] All right. Good evening, members of the board of education. Uh, tonight we are very excited. Uh, we do we do believe this is a uh uh, you know,

022pivotal uh, presentation or an important presentation in the history of the district as we update you on our master facility plan and the work we have um, highlighted here for the next several years specifically at Wabanzi, Niqua and the Burket campuses. Uh tonight's presentation is consistent with board policy 4.150 and 4.160 and uh covers strategic plan priorities number one, two, three, and four. Um so tonight's agenda uh uh will start with a summary of the master facility plan and current program. Um we're going to cover an update of the Wanzi Valley construction program and timeline. We'll cover the Niqua Valley construction program and timeline, the Berquette construction program and timeline, as well as some uh really exciting uh new programming we're proposing for the Briquette Center. And then we will be available to discuss the

023next steps and any questions. Um I'm excited because I usually present by myself, so I'm excited that I brought so many people tonight, we can't all fit at the table at the same time. So, we're going to be uh there's going to be a few shift changes tonight. Uh we do think that'll be kind of a natural break as as we cover some of these to hopefully give give the board and give everybody a little breather as we go through it. Uh but presenting on Wabanzi Valley this evening will be Amy Tyber. I believe this is the first time. Um Amy has been in front of our board, but she's been a a key member with White & Company as we've done this work over the last um six plus months and have transitioned from

024our master facility plan to really uh figuring out how how we're going to get all the work done. Uh, also with us tonight is is PTA principal of the year, Jason Stip, uh, from Wanzi cheering section. Yeah. Uh, he's he's he's a little distracted tonight because the baseball team's in in a in a super sectional game tonight, but I think he'll be he'll be able to to stay on on uh get any texts or anything throughout. That's Yeah. Uh and then uh uh covering NA Valley tonight will be uh Steve Sheer uh architect from Whiting & Company who's been working closely on that project and we'll have Dave Perry, assistant principal at Nqua Valley presenting with him uh to talk about Berquette this evening. Uh we'll have Amy along with um Dr. Nicole Howard and

025Brian Joanini from our district office and then myself, Amy, and Dr. Howard will be available for any questions. Uh we did want to bring the the whole team tonight because we thought it was important that the board and our community hear from uh representatives of all the stakeholders that have involved in this work because we have um worked closely at uh through the past several months a team not just of our of our architects and and district leaders but also our building leaders as well have been have involved in all this work. Um, but I just want to start uh really quickly kind of anchoring us in in in our master facility plan and maybe some of the work we've we've already discussed with the board. Um, here this evening shows really our our highest

026priorities that were identified in the master facility plan. So, this comes um directly from that document which the board adopted in December of 2023. And uh this slide we really used throughout the umformational campaign during our referendum to really um again try and share with our community some of the key findings that were present across most facilities in the district as we did that master facility plan. So I'll just highlight uh this evening that that tonight we're really checking a lot of the key boxes in this plan. Um we will touch briefly on safety and security uh as well as infrastructure at several of our key buildings. uh we'll start um or or or really uh really address the lack of parity we have specifically across our high school buildings this evening. Uh and then

027we're really really working at that operational inefficiency topic as well. So again, as we think about what bringing the freshmen back to the main campus at NUA enables with with some efficiencies and that that um re-energizing of the Berquette Center. Uh re again really believe we're starting to to check off some of the the major initiatives that were identified in the the master facility plan. Um, but with that said, I I don't want uh people to think that we've been um, you know, that we haven't done anything leading up to tonight. We've been very busy. Uh, and just wanted to show that this summarizes some of the high priority work we've done since 2022. Uh, again, we started even before we did the master facility plan, we knew we were coming in with some significant

028deferred uh, needs and so we initiated what we called our 50 for50 capital program. Um, so again, we we did about $50 million worth of capital reinvestment over the past three and a half years, and we've accomplished a lot. Uh, so tonight really kind of closes the the the the chapter on the 50 for50 uh program, if you will, and and really starts a new exciting chapter in in the capital program in our district. Uh, but again, shown here, you know, with with the local dollars that that came through that program, we were able to to really improve safety and security. uh security cameras at all buildings. We began our exterior door replacement program. Um really took a hard look at at paving and hardscape throughout the district, making improvements at 19 facilities. Um started

029a comprehensive flooring replacement program at our elementary schools, which will continue uh with with these bond funds. Um learning environments, no no more important learning environment than our playgrounds. And we've replaced 14 playgrounds at our elementary schools. um as well as uh fax classrooms and other classrooms throughout our district as well. And again, even though we um even though tonight will be the real focus of the work for Wubanzi um but we we we have made some incremental improvements at some of our high need buildings as well. Um and again, just wanted to summarize what's what's in progress as of uh really I as our as our students and teachers were moving out, our construction crews were moving in over the last week. Um, I happy to report we're we're on schedule already for for

030week one of the summer, but again, a a busy amount of summer work that's that's already started and again is is really uh was an initiative for us to get a lot of this high priority work started this summer um in relatively short time frame since the successful referendum in November. Um, so this summer's work does include um working at 11 elementary schools to install secure vestibules as well as do a full exterior door replacement at those buildings. Again, continuing that significant infrastructure work, improving the learning environments, and then really the work we're going to focus on this evening, which is to begin the the comprehensive improvements for Wubanzi, Burquette, and Niqua. Um just want to show here this is the this is the budget for the total program that we're that we're starting um

031this summer. Uh during the referendum we focused on the $420 million of referendum funds that was on the ballot. The total project budget for all the all the nine major projects we're looking to accomplish is is higher than that. It's $466 million. Um just want to cover um there are other sources of revenue. the capital sources of revenue that we're we're applying against these projects and the main source is really going to be investment earnings and premiums coming from the capital projects fund. Um so again it is is a little early in the in the the projects but those revenues are on budget to to meet that target and to cover that that delta if you will from the the bond funds. Um, and then we do have, as we we've covered during some of

032our budget presentations here in February and May, we do have local capital dollars and we do have some excess fund balance which we're holding back as contingency. So, we are um, you know, we anticipate and our expectation is that we we stay on budget, but we do have a contingency plan um, just in case. Um, I will point out these budgets now include escalation. So, we are uh, you know, we have an eight-year plan. We are budgeting a a conservative number for future costs related to to inflation. Um obviously the the environment we've been in the last couple months with uncertainty around around tariffs or around interest rate policy or or trade policies uh you know has you know makes that a little challenging but we we do believe we're in a good place as

033we project out cost escalations going forward. Um and then I'll I'll just uh you know again continue to highlight that as of today we are on time and on budget with delivering these nine programs. Uh and we continue to aggressively manage the cost associated with them. Uh we will start talking timeline a little bit tonight uh specifically uh with with Wubanzi uh specifically there there is some opportunities to potentially save costs if we can accelerate that timeline. So, what we're presenting tonight is a a conservative timeline, but we are continuing to to work with our team of of architects and engineers to really identify um how we can get work done uh quicker, how we can get it done more efficiently, and ultimately how we can do it in a way that saves money and

034and minimizes the impact to the to the school building. Uh already mentioned again the the the good work uh underway this summer in the safety and security areas. I just wanted to to highlight this for kind of a three-year roadmap of how we're going to um address the safety and security needs of our buildings. Um so you'll see uh here broken out by level uh a three-year plan for doing those secure vestibule and other security improvement work. Uh so this summer our focus is on 11 of our elementary schools. uh next summer we have another um 11 or 12 facilities uh planned for that work as well and we will we've already begun some of that planning work and we'll we'll continue to do so and then the summer of 27 will come back and

035and complete that work. So all schools will have the the benefit of that full safety and security upgrade by the start of the 2728 school year. And that is consistent with the commitment we made during the the referendum campaign. Uh just uh just wanted to to put this up there again. I I we've we've used that term secure vestibial a lot and and talked about some of the safety and security um needs or or improvements, but I just wanted to show that this is maybe puts a little bit more um you know more specifics to what what that secure vestibial looks like and and what the improvement is. And so um up top the top graphic is sort of our existing floor plan for an elementary school and then the second graphic is is the

036improvements that that are going to come with that secure vestibial work. So uh you know I'll first highlight that we now would have a we now have a double set after the the improvement a double set of doors that are that are able to be locked and are controlled through an electronic access control. So that allows a a building secretary or or a main office staff person to to both uh have a door locked at at arrival to a building, but then once that person is admitted to the building, they're still only able to access that secure vestible area before they receive their full clearance to to um to access other parts of the building. Uh, a couple additional features then and it's that highlighted kind of by that number two is kind of an

037increased area for for drop off and and display. So this is how we allow um the the the large number of drop offs we have each day, lunches, forgotten homework, handouts, books, um musical instruments at the middle and high school level. how we allow that to be handled again without without even needing to provide additional access to our main office or or our building. Uh, additionally, there there's an additional door that allows for only a path to the main office. So, if you have somebody, for example, who's who's coming to to a meeting in the main office, for example, we would only grant access to the main office. That person would still be limited before to to not have access to the remaining parts of the school building. So again, further providing further um additional

038security um measures and then I'll just point out uh you know one of the things that uh again I think think maybe we don't think about as as much as a little counterintuitive but by increasing visibility we also that also increases safety and security and so by relocating our our office staff and this is what's shown by sort of that number five um bullet is is by by relocating the reception and administ administrative workstations. By ensuring there's there's two workstations so that somebody's kind of always there if somebody has to step away. We now increase our ability to to monitor that whole front area of the building. Uh and so so again maybe maybe something that that space looks like a small improvement but it does go a long way to to improving the overall

039safety and security of the campus. Um by I'll just one one final thing. By completing that work, we're also allowing for a full refresh of that main office. So, so new waiting room furniture, um new fixtures, new upholstery. Again, just just trying to create a more welcoming environment when our guests enter the building as well. So, finally, before I turn it over to to the teams here to talk about the the three individual projects, I just want to emphasize that uh we we approach this work really with a lens of providing equity across all our campuses. And so you are going to hear um maybe some um some different challenges we we faced at different buildings, some different opportunities. Um maybe we accomplish things a little differently or or our building leadership u you know

040has has a specific way of of articulating something. But I but I want to ensure the team tonight and the community that e that equity has been the the number one priority for us as we we went through this work. Um, so again, just trying to to just trying to highlight what all three of our high schools gain as part of this capital program. safety and security enhancements, um infrastructure improvements where needed, um that increase of operational efficiency and the district-wide programming that's going to be available through the Briquette Center. And then um you know, the ever important turf field or um which uh again really really isn't really isn't just about one or two sport seasons, but really is about making those playing services available 365 days a year for a variety of programs.

041not just our athletics, but also our physical education classrooms, our bands, and and again other um other student activities. And so with that, I'm going to turn it over to the team to talk specifically about Wanzi Valley. Good evening. Thank you for having us tonight. Um so with Wanzi Valley and actually all the programs that we're going to talk about tonight, we have just wrapped up our conceptual planning and programming stage. So, some of the images that you're going to see tonight are still in black and white just uh conceptual three-dimensional imagery. Uh as we start getting further in, like when we start talking about the auditorium, you'll see more um elaborate renderings as we call them because we are further along in the process. So just note that it it's just a moment in

042time at this point and uh the design process is ever evolving and and changing and um I'd like to go forward and talk a little bit about some of the key issues specifically here at Wubanzi which have been um highlighted not only in the master planning process but continue to stay true to date. We've met with um a lot of the stakeholders not only at the district administration level but also at the school level uh to assure that um what's happening today in their buildings and then also for the future um of the proposed plan. So tonight you're going to see how a lot of these issues are going to um uh are going to translate into the final designs of the Wubanzi plan. So the top three are safety and security above all. Um

043at Wubanzi too circulation and efficiency of the building itself has always been um a challenge. So by creating clear uh flows and visibility throughout the building uh can not only improve that safety and security measure but also wayfinding um for anyone going through the building. And then daylight. Uh for those of you who have the walked through Wanzi Valley, a lot of the classroom spaces are actually interior classroom spaces that really you don't know what time of day it is outside. So we're going to show you some measures of how we can get daylight deeper into the spaces just from a few simple design elements. One of the first um processes that we went through was to start by confirming the number of teaching stations within the building and um looking at the utilization of

044the classroom spaces. So, Wubanzi is actually gaining an additional classroom space as part of this renovation process um and also increasing the utilization of of those teaching stations um which will benefit the entire school. The site plan that you see on the screen behind you um includes some of the major improvements include what we're calling a ring road and that's just a roadway connecting the the north and south parking lots which will help with vehicular circulation immensely and I know that sounds like a small feat but it's going to be huge for getting um traffic flow during those those big uh game nights or orpecially special events that are happening through the building. Um the other major improvement on the site that you're going to see is the the stadium improvements and the new turf

045field which are going to include modifications to the bleachers flopping the home and visitor bleacher side so that homes on the correct side. um as well as a new concessions building, uh lighting, and with the turf field, not only are you getting a turf field, but we are also sizing it appropriately to fit uh the soccer uh on there. So, you'll have a soccer within the stadium itself. So, major improvements that are are much needed for Wanzi. The plan behind you is includes a colored diagram which is color-coded by department. Um so on the we're not the main entrance which is at the bottom of the page identified by a red um triangular is the existing main entrance which would stay to date. We first look at the existing plans by and color code them

046by department to make sure that we account for every space that is currently um in the building before we start the next steps for proposing the plan. So that occurs on the second floor um as well as the third floor of Wubanzi. One thing that uh we unraveled rather quickly um in our investigation was on the first floor. Uh there are series of seven different level changes that um that range anywhere from uh a couple feet to to about three feet a difference. So, in order to get navigate around the building, um on the first floor alone, there's a series of ramps and stairs and then sometimes it's not a direct pathway to get to one side of the building versus the other. So, um as an architect, that's actually a nice opportunity to create

047um different design opportunities for for those transitions in a a meaningful way. We also took a look at the existing columns locations and um this building has been added on over with three different ail uh building additions since 1975. And our focus is the center of the building that's hatched with um a series of dots to to improve um visibility as well as wayfinding through the building. We're going to clean that up a little bit as part of our proposed plans. Um, and and this way as you walk through the building, not only will you know where you're going for wayfinding, but it's also going to be a nice supervision aspect from a safety standpoint because you'll be able to see what's happening at the other side of the building as well. As part of

048that circulation exercise, the left side of the images top and bottom are the existing circulation flows primary and secondary as well as shortcuts that are being created throughout um Wabanzi as it exists today. When we look at the proposed planning diagrams that we'll go through momentarily, um we're trying to make it efficient where the primary flows are really through the heart of the building and that learning common. So, a lot of the circulation is going to be taking place uh through a grand staircase that happens in the middle of the building that you can easily get up and then distribute out uh throughout the floor levels um rather quickly rather than ma uh making your way through the building and in what is now a little bit of a maze. With that, I'm going to

049turn it over to Jason. Thank you, Amy. Uh I want to also thank parents and students and alumni parent alumni here for coming on a uh Monday night. So thank you for showing support of our uh school board and our community uh schools uh with this referendum and this work that many of them have lived through, walked through and are excited about. So I appreciate uh their support here tonight. And I also appreciate White and Amy's um uh cooperation and um connection with us, the building leaders through this process. Um the emails and the notes and everything. Uh we've thrown a lot of little details out and they've been open and processed everything and um it just it has been a very very good process. So thank you. Um you can see the um slide

050here. I'm just going to talk a little bit of what Amy is trying to address, what White was trying to address in the first couple points with um circulation and visibility, natural light and safety. So safety, you know, with the main entrance there, the vestibule will be there. You'll see the main office now is right when you walk in. If you are aware, if you're familiar with our school, as I know you are, you can walk through the middle of the atrium before you even get to the main office. Uh the nurse's office is going to be right there off the front, too. So, we'll be able to um have parents go right to the nurse office instead of walk all the way to the back of the school and go through the student cafeteria

051to try to drop off medication. Um so, we've just really tried to bring some of those things up. You can see the hallways are clean shots all the way through the the uh atrium to where now if you're in the back of the hallway by the visual arts, and you'll see it uh when I click through the next slide too, you can now see the clear lines um which helps. And that's also going to bring natural light because as you're going to see pictures from the atrium and that commons area now, uh you're going to get natural light to kind of push back into the the space. They have moved the kitchen back so it's not blocking when you currently walk in the building. Um so these were some of the things that uh this

052definitely uh this team addressed. Uh here is um an example of our special education office. Uh we highlighted this one. and all the offices are are getting uh grouped together u so to maximize classroom space right now a lot of our teachers have their own rooms so now they'll be coming to collaborate more in department offices where we'll be able to service kids through uh reassessment and academic resource but this is a special ed office which is at the front of the school um our AIM classrooms are going to get much needed uh work in the front of the school and they're going to have um supports for those students that are on level with the other schools which is very very important. Uh you can see that um also the um uh when they

053talk about bringing everything together and the uh circulation efficiency all the specialists are right there within this that office area now as opposed to being all the way down the hallway. The nurs's office is near there too. Um so again just the detail of uh currently our special ed is scattered throughout the entire building. Um, and now it's more centralized and that is it kind of speaks to what they try to do with many of the different department offices as well. This is going to be the uh dining common space. Um, real excited for this. Again, you're going to be able to see the entire space uh as opposed to how we currently have it uh leveled off. And there's a wall where we have our upper classmen on one side and lowerassmen inside the

054bowl uh in that cafeteria. So, now it's going to be completely open. There's the competition gym uh off to the side there. Uh and and all that now will be when you walk in the door, you'll see that gathering staircase, which you can see at the bottom. um that will kind of block a little bit of the cafeteria from your eye as you're walking in, but for the most part, you'll be able that that whole area will now be open, which will be easier to supervise, easier for us to have some visibility on what's going on and just create um a lunch venue for our students that I think is uh something they're going to be very excited about um as compared to kind of how they currently access our cafeteria. Uh this goes over

055now our uh physical education space which is also being touched through this process. We uh are finally going to be able to move our weight room down to the first floor. Uh that has been a a very challenge for us from the start and as weights get dropped and deadlifts and all that and um it's just it's not smart. If anyone's building a school, don't put a weight room on the second floor. All right? Or two third floors that don't connect. That'd be my other advice, too. But uh the wait room is a no-brainer. So that that is coming down. Um you can see our P office is now going to be combined um with our male and female teachers as opposed to having two separate offices. That's another example of efficiency of the of

056the space we're using. Um the locker rooms, I feel we're doing some real cutting edge stuff there. We've worked with a couple other schools that have tried some of this, but we are um we are reducing the footprint of our locker rooms to how students are currently using them. A lot of our students um for lack of better ways to describe it, it's a little bit more like elementary P. And when I say that, not what they're doing, but how students are uh dressing for PE. Now, most students come in athletic gear and things like that. So, they're not necessarily not all students are changing unless they have like a presentation or a need for that. So, we're giving students lockers for like tennis shoes and maybe a t-shirt. But then what we're uh doing

057is also creating some cubbies and stuff in case you just want to drop your bag and put your stuff in a secure place. Uh and then we're having them share the shower areas with the athletic locker room so we don't have showers in four different spaces that are not being used at different times. So, um, we've really, uh, White and Company has really worked extensively with myself, athletic director, the department chairp, and we've really tried to kind of figure out like how are students using this space and how can we design space um to best support that. So, this gives uh an example of um how we're trying to do that. And then on the second floor, I think is important, which I appreciate them working with us. Uh, as you're familiar with our school,

058you can walk up to the bleachers and hide behind the bleachers and kids run around back there on basketball games and they are going to wall that off now. And that's actually going to be a fitness cardio room so that it's more secured, it's safe. Uh, I cannot believe what you know it's just if you go there, you see it back there. Um, we have a lot of open areas and it becomes just running around and we can't really even supervise it during large events. Same thing's going to happen on the other side. We'll have a nice We'll actually have a dance room. We're able to move the um uh wrestling room over now into the current weight room. And uh we're going to use that room during the school day for adaptive PE, which

059is a great space for them. Um uh because of the mats and stuff, those students enjoy working on those spaces. We're going to have the mats made for that area. So that's going to be something to where we've really made sure that how can we use things during the school day that are also being used after school as well. And that's a nod to that. Here is the second floor. There's some of the department workrooms you see. Uh and again just um want to point out you can see the clean lines. So now if you're all the way in the back where the orange is by maybe S9 back there, you could almost see all the way into the atrium which will help bring in some of that natural light and uh just a lot

060cleaner lines that if you know when you've been in our school, you get back there, you have no idea where you're at and um so you just you can't see anything. So this should really open up all of that um immensely for us. And then you can see the alpha houses. We did combine alpha houses. We're going to run two alpha houses. We've kept the uh current staircase there so that they can go up and down with each other, but we'll do more of like a a through M and in through Z stacked on each other. Um and that we think will be a great way to service our students um right off of the cafeteria and kind of the main part of the building. Here's our library. We're really excited uh for this space.

061No longer is it going to be a a hallway, which we our librarian is amazing. She's allowed us to turn that into a walkway um against her better judgment. Um and um we did lose a little space in the library, but um not really because part of it was a hallway, so we can't really do much with that space currently anyway. So, uh now it's going to be closed off. You see in the back there, we've uh created opportunities for natural light. there is some natural light there that we've never been able to use. Um, and now we'll be able to do that. And that will look over the uh cafeteria and then you see the the the stairway when you walk in the building from the I'll show you some pictures that will be

062kind of you'll walk in and you'll see that library space up there um overlooking the atrium. These are um the two third floors. We they were we were unable uh to connect the two third floors. So that will still continue to be uh something very special to Wanzi Valley. Um and that is fine. Yes, it's part of it's just like my mom's house. There's some things that just don't work well, you know. Um but in our our I love our kids and our school community and it'll that'll that's fine. I I I and I really mean that. So, uh, but it shows that two rooms being renovated on the math and it was just too impossible to do that and to to do that monetarily would have been a lot of money for a small

063amount of gain. Um, so here's some of the photos of our current school and the atrium. I mean, believe it or not, you're supposed to see through that atrium ceiling, which you really can't. Um, so just because of the plastic used at the time. And there's the two uh the balconies. We're trying to really limit those so that it looks more open. So this is if you walked in door one and you looked right now, this would be what it would is going to look like. Yeah. Ah, just amazing. So um there's some past graduates out here. They're not ooing, they're yelling probably like really. So um so you can see that. And then here's another one. So, this is kind of by the library, like where that American flag is is where the library

064um wall is. Okay. And um again, everything's closed off um drywalled up, closed in, dark um just because of how it was built. And whoops, this is now No, right. Yeah. Yeah. Right there. Yeah. Okay. See, thank you. Yeah. So, this is what it look like now. So, there those three windows is where that American flag is. That's the cafeteria. There's the staircase. Um there's a library up there as I said. Uh and then trying to bring in as much natural light as as we can. Here is the option area that our juniors and seniors currently uh use for lunch only because of the seating. We can only allow upper classmen there. Um this would be what that space would look like now just into the cafeteria right from the gym. So again, you can

065see how you can see all the way even to the front of the school from here. um the visibility has really opened up and um it just you can really get a sense of you're kind of supervising kids without supervising just because people are going to be around and and more visible in spaces. So that was the intent. Uh here is our current cafeteria. Um there's our retired maintenance man of 33 years, Mr. Gun, who just retired this year. He snuck in the photo. Um, and this is again what the uh cafeteria will look like um in that space. Now, you can see the different levels. That's what Amy was talking about. They leaned into that, which will really be nice in this cafeteria setting because you'll have some people that'll be a little bit

066higher up. Um, we have some spots, we have circle tables, we have longer tables, we have individual tables. And all this is important because some kids just like to eat by themselves, get some of their stuff done, kind of put their headphones on and just kind of zone out for a little bit. Other kids like to eat with a group of four or five. Some people like the longer tables. So, this will be important that we vary the tables um to create an atmosphere that fits the current students, how they all use that space. now. And this would be if I'm currently looking out to the front of the school up by the library where that elevator is that's going to be uh taken out. Um this is that view and that third floor is

067right above me. So again, you can see just building floors on top of each other, closing in that amazing atrium and making it feel more enclosed and now you're going to have it way more open. Um, so that would be the view uh from that spot. And you can see um they did have to leave the third floor still up there. Uh that's potential conversation depending on uh the project, but you can see they were very mindful of getting rid of that second one with just a couple sky bridges to bring in more as much natural light as possible. Um I this and then a couple photos of the auditorium um that they've added. But am I talking about these or Okay. So, this is some of the the work that the the projected photos

068that they've started on. All the seats are out. Uh they are currently um doing the concrete masonry work for these seats. Um they've already knocked out um the door for handicap accessibility. If you know you come into our school, you have to come in the door and walk all the way around the auditorium all the way to the other door to get into the handicap entrance. So, that will be now right off the front with the ticket booth with an area knocked out and a new sound booth um with the cheek walls there and very excited about what this space is uh going to turn out to be like. And again, these are just there's a picture of the sound booth and uh what it will look like from the back. So, when we see

069you all at Prism, um you'll have a great appreciation for this amazing space. And we only lost I think about 30 or 40 chair seats. So, we did a nice job of still maintaining our We have a great auditorium. We really do. And it's an amazing space. So, we were we're just happy for um a lot of this much needed upgrade. There's some of the construction work as I was saying. And and on that ladder there, we have a camera taking pictures every 20 minutes. So, I'll show you the time lapse when it's all uh when it's all done. Um all right. So, and I want to thank you um for your support uh for our building community. it's hard to put um this much money into a school that's getting ready to turn 50

070years. Um as a member of this community, I greatly appreciate that because I know passing those things are never easy. So, thank you and uh I appreciate your trust in us and making sure that this work gets done in the right way. And again, thank you to my parents and family members that came tonight. Thank you. As as um Mr. Ship Lee had mentioned earlier that we're going to be reviewing kind of preliminary construction phasing and timeline to implement some of this work. It's an ever uh fluid process and we'll be working with district administration as well as our construction CM uh construction manager partners um to make sure that the timelines um work with the school district. So underway currently this summer is the auditorium project so at Wanzi Valley. So, we are currently

071under construction. You saw a photo of that. Uh, every day is ever changing. Um, starting in the spring of 26, we're going to look at starting the stadium project um for that work. So, that would happen from spring through summer of 26. the summer of 26, we will also be starting the commons work as well as uh some academic um classroom wings that are highlighted in red and most importantly a secure vestibial. We'll be creating that secure vestibial in the front during the 2728 school year. Sorry, 2627 school year. Thank you. Uh the commons work will continue uh under construction and there will be temporary a temporary cafeteria and the commons would be closed. The summer of 27 then would be our what we're calling phase three work which is going to happen on the

072third floor. When the kids come back for the 2728 school year, then the commons work will be in cafeteria will be completed the summer of 28. We're proposing the areas highlighted in light blue, which is some of the the main office work, the some more academic spaces um and visual arts to happen over summer of 29. looking at the PE spaces um and the and more classrooms on the second floor and then the final phase of summer of 2030 to include kind of that second level academic area as well as the pool. Overall, as a summary, we're really only affecting one school year in this uh preliminary planning that's going to affect during the school year for construction. all the other uh construction phases are happening during the summer timelines. So the um I think

073uh there couple positives to the work like obviously uh our students are going to come back to a brand new auditorium this October, November. Our hope is to have Prism in the uh our winter holiday show in the auditorium. Um, and then we're already talking beginning talking about um like the cafeteria. What's that look like? Obviously, that's a a huge space that our students use. So, um we're talking about uh some of the things that we're kicking around are how do we bring in 2700 students in the morning? and when our general areas where students gather in the morning, the cafeteria, the atrium, the library are off off the grid. So that is one of the biggest challenges that we are beginning to talk about now is how do we do that in a way

074that we can uh safely have students in the building uh and start the day when they can't really gather and hang out the first 20 minutes before school because we just do not have that kind of space. And where can we get that kind of space to do that? And the other thing that we're really holding uh as a key point is just how we continue our academic support of students and our interventions. And um so like we have uh students through lunch periods and on Wednesdays they access academic resource centers, they access testing and reassessment. All that stuff is going to be blown up because of the library. So how do we do that? How do we how do we help students navigate the building and find teachers and get help during the school

075day so that they feel like um they can still get those things done as they used to be able to do. Uh and we're beginning to talk about that. I feel uh we're we're going to maximize room usage. As I said, a lot of our our teachers, some of them have their own room uh open um during their like prep. And I've already told teachers expect 100% room capacity uh during 2627 because it's we're going to need every room. We might be doing a fax room up on the third floor where social studies is, you know, um uh doing like a kind of instructional sewing class. So, um, we are also going to try to maximize how we do the ring road so that we can help, uh, get students in the building a little

076bit easier. Um, these are all conversations we're having. I feel really good about them. We're going to one meeting tomorrow and there'll be several more meetings, but I feel like, um, a lot of our conversations already about 26 27 are very doable. And um I'm hoping that um one of the big things that I'll focus on is like the the currents uh the rising juniors, how do we how do we make that senior year special for them? How can we possibly get that cafeteria done during their senior year? Um and those are things like we're kicking around like what things can we open up so when they come back from spring break or winter break they're like wow this is I got to be a part of this. So, um, those are things we're really,

077um, talking about as we do some of these construction considerations. [Music] Lori, maybe we should ask questions before they do a shift change. Yeah, I think that's probably a good idea. Excuse me. We'll go with that. All right. Since you brought it up, Mr. Kubis, you can start. Former Wanzi alumni, Mr. Kurubis. I think I do have some affinity for Wanzi. So, um, and that original Valley swagger I love. Um, a lot of this for me is just really going back to the future kind of thing because a lot of this is how I remember um the school the you know the bleachers were on the right side um back in the day and you know the wait room was on the first floor and you know the cafeteria was more open and so it's

078interesting how we in these you know 30 40 years subsequent we've kind of gone back to the future future and with our 50th anniversary coming up, I think that that dovetales well. Um, one of the, you know, equity points mentioned was, uh, the the soccer field going into the stadium. So, is is that some I don't know how we operate all the high schools. Is that something that we we do at all the high schools or planning on doing at all the high schools? I I think right right now at at both Niqua and Wanzi, our use of that of the field inside the stadium is very limited because it is natural grass. So I'm not sure um I I can't speak directly what what uh what NA does for example, but I think you

079the challenge with natural grass is just even hosting any event more than one or two times a week on it be becomes challenging. So, um I I think the uh the focus would be at at all three schools being able to offer um multiple multiple sports on on that um stadium field. Uh whether that's whether that's soccer, football, lacrosse, um um you know, ensuring it's it's available for track and field, ensuring it's available for band use. I think there there's really an opportunity I think to expand it at all three buildings as as all three get get turf or in Matia's case get um um get a turf replacement here in 26. What what limits us is that we have our track our field events inside the field. So NA doesn't um so that will

080be that we'll gain some like we have our long jump our um all that stuff that's inside most people don't put that in their stadium anymore. Sure. Um so um that uh that will help g gain some room. We're IHSA compliant. I think in a perfect world some soccer people would love long, you know, large sidelines, but it's not necessary um uh for the play. Looking at most of the improvements done, I think the the greatest one from my perspective on the board is that ring road. I think improving traffic, letting the buses go around potentially um is is immense. So, I think uh I think that's you look at at the uh the graph and it's just a little line and you got all of these uh you know windows and pillars, but this

081this little dash I think has such an impact. Um so that's it. Thanks. Okay, Miss Gunce. I don't have any questions, just a couple comments and obviously as a Wanzi parent along with your fan club over there. Um, I was going to also mention Ringro. So, I'm glad you brought that up, Mr. Kurubis, because I know you were saying, Amy, it's not a big deal. You know, it doesn't feel like it is to a lot of people and it's not exciting. No, I mean it's not the most exciting part, but it is for and all these parents would agree where it is actually extremely exciting. I wanted to say I really love the thought that was put in from what students realistically actually use, how much space they use, how much locker room space they

082use, you know, and making it efficient and getting natural light anywhere in Wubanzi will be a huge improvement because yes, students do comment on that often that yeah, you don't know what it's doing outside. So all of that is really exciting. I appreciate the fact that we are looking at this as an equity project as well to make all three high schools, you know, as much as we can um similar in what they offer and absolutely cannot wait for the auditorium. So that was all super excited. Miss Bazdc. Um, these plans are very exciting. Um, my favorite parts of the natural light because it's good for our health. It's good for everyone's health with our district focus on mental health and physical well-being. Natural daylight is going to do it. I also love that by

083opening up the building, it allows students to feel like they're all part of that together. So, great work. Thank you, Miss Dumming. [Music] As a parent of two alum from Wanzi, this is this is absolutely thrilling. Um the it's so important for the community to know that um across the entire district as we were thinking about plans and and listening to the presentations that it was really important for us to see our elementary schools all have that safe and security element, you know, done uh equitably. our three high schools because we have wonderful, you know, we are um award-winning district and making sure that um all of our students have that same opportunity for that equitable academic um success is is really important. So, just seeing what we're doing here is uh is absolutely thrilling.

084And not only will parents appreciate Ring but just the community because it is it's crazy at that you know during those times. So it will be so much appreciated and I love the fact that you mentioned how can we bring and it that's it's so you Mr. up. Um, but to think about the seniors because I was literally sitting here and thinking, "Oh my gosh, those students who are seniors, you know, what how do they feel that year?" Um, so I really really hope that you're able to look at something for them to get that get that feel before they leave. So, thank you for thinking of that and great work. I'm so looking forward to the next two presentations. But uh this is fantastic and I agree with Miss Fosdic. The light is wonderful

085and I think the students will just have a such a different feel when they walk into that school and um you know hopefully we'll will help create just a wonderful bonding increased bonding opportunity among students. Thanks Miss Jane. Thank you. Um, we just saw black and white images of what it could be. So, and there was so much oo and awe with that that uh we are so excited to see how this comes about. I was just reflecting and thinking about our boundary design discussions not too long ago and how at that time I came to learn that we had the greatest square footage in Wabanzi and how we were all shocked by that fact and simply because of the way this building has been designed and what you have proposed today particularly in addition

086to the natural light. What really struck me is uh the security aspect of it, the flow of of movement and mobilization in the buildings, the ability for faculty and administrators to see more students at one time. Um it it's not only good from a safety standpoint, but from a community building standpoint to see each other and for faculty to be close together. I think those designs look I mean if I was teaching I would be very excited to be with my my team in one space where there's spaces to collaborate and then I also want to just commend you guys on your thoughtfulness regarding how can I use a space in different ways with the example of the wrestling room and of course the lockers and the gyms and just being so thoughtful about it.

087Designing is hard. I mean, I know just remodeling one of my rooms in my home, it could go multiple different ways. And how do you remain thoughtful um and stay to your purpose? That's not always easy, but you guys seem to have uh had some great discussions and this proposal looks very exciting. So, thank you, Mr. Rising. Uh just echoing some of the things. Um, I'm really excited. It It's just so much more of a welcoming environment just looking at it when you walk in and you kind of see the I mean, it's it's always been kind of grand in the central area of Wanzi, but now it's just going to be so much more welcoming, so much more light. The commons right there. Super excited about that. In some ways, you are going to

088be unique because the flexible seating that you're going to have there is really cool. um which you guys deserve it if anybody does. uh you know the library totally excited and about the PE area principal stip and I have had many discussions about the field so finally glad that that is going to uh get the need of improvement it it's so thanks to you know the district team the the school administrative team white and company all the thoughts and uh plans you put into this so thanks so I'll just echo what everybody was saying I think this is a very thoughtful plan and remind what uh year the ring road will be put in. Well, we're we're working through that with our construction management team what makes the most sense, but I think right now

089we're targeting 27. Okay. Yeah, I'm very thoughtful and I agree with the whole all the light comments that that's extremely important. I honestly I will say I live in dread when I have to go over to Aanzi and I have to go to the second floor and heaven forbid the third floor. I would never like can't find my way up there for anything. But it's it is a confusing layout that is just incredible. Like I kudos to all the students that know where they're going in that place. But even sometimes I'll ask someone and they're like I don't know. It's like we people ask me I'm like I who's a teacher? I don't know. But we love it. We know we know kind of where the the hiding it'll be interesting uh study when it's

090all said and done if people are like, "Oh, I kind of missed the, you know, the quirkiness of it." Yeah. Yeah. No, it's um so it's very exciting. It's exciting to see all of the work that went into the referendum and everything turn into reality. So, I think we're all like super excited. and my husband will be extra excited because every year I try and go to all the holiday concerts and every year I get tons of complaints from my husband about the seats at Wabanzi like I don't want to go cuz my butt gets sore you know so so we're looking forward to that new experience this year so president have one additional question Oh yeah go ahead I have two I do have one additional question third floor uh any as you continue

091to to walk through this and take a look. Um I I was really surprised that there's just nothing that looks like it's feasible. Um let it go. It's part of its charm. The dead end on the third floor. Unfortunately, the architecture that's there right now, the existing roof structure and where that aligns where the kind of middle section of the roof doesn't allow for us to create a a floor level that connects the two. So, we did explore that to try to connect them. I did have one additional comment. I think we all kind of glossed over it because we're so excited by these beautiful Banzi renderings. Um, but I think I feel pretty secure in saying that I'm super excited about those secure vestibules. It's going to help me sleep better at night as

092a parent. It's going to help our district students feel safer, our staff feel safer, our families feel safer. Um and hopefully it'll just increase the flow in the schools, make things a little bit more organized that way. And um that is really exciting that we're able to get that work started too. Yeah, thank you for sharing that because that certainly is like a fundamental importance for us and uh I also know how challenging it was at Wabanzi, how far you had to go into the building to actually get to the main office or whatever. So I think moving that forward and closer is major improvement for the parents too that have to drop off things or whatever. So but great thank you so much and it was very nice to have you you here Jason

093to also present with them. So it shows that you know you are a big part of making the decisions here and providing input on what what's needed. So thank you invested the community support. Yeah, I pay well, so I paid them all. Yeah, thank you. It's only too bad we can't snap our fingers and it all happens tomorrow. I know. All right, so let's move. Stay just questions if we're going to do questions. Sure each one. So otherwise Okay. Well, uh, good evening members of the board. Once again, I'm Steve Sheer with White Company. Um, me and Mr. David Perry from Burquette Center. I have the pleasure of updating you on the programming work at Nqua Valley High School. Um, like Wabanzi and really any high school project. Um, this involved a lot of working

094closely not only with the administration but with the building leadership and even key staff and stakeholders at the building. So, we really appreciate their time that they gave to give feedback on the design and there's a lot of ownership in the design and what you're about to see. Um, there were a lot of sort of issues that were identified in the master plan for Niqua. Um, and these are all things that are considered in the work that you're about to see. But if we were to summarize it to sort of the three main drivers um for the work at NQUA first and foremost we just talked about it safety and security that was a throughine of the master plan. It was a throughine of safer stronger 204 and it's a throughine of the work that

095um you'll see today. Um for example, you'll see security vestibule at Nika Valley High School too as part of the addition. Um but also one of the main drivers is accommodating all the classes with in one building. So a lot of the renovation work and expansion work um is really centered around accommodating additional class of freshmen from the Berquette Center. And later tonight, you'll see all the efficiencies and opportunities that the district gains by repurposing the Verquette Center. An offshoot of that is this idea of consolidating and improving staff resources. Um, and that's really sort of a means to accommodate sort of an additional student population. You'll see in the design that the more there are certain ways that we could consolidate department offices and staff resources and student resources. um that allowed opportunities to

096free up space in the existing building to create more classrooms for the additional class. Um so um like Wabanzi, we spent a lot of time looking at the classroom counts at Berquette Center and the classroom counts at um Nqua Valley High School and really accommodating the additional freshman class is really twofold. One is we looked at ways how could we optimize the utilization of the existing building. How could we make sure that it's we're maximizing the efficiency of how classes are scheduled? Um and two, although that helps a lot, we need just additional space to accommodate um the additional classrooms and students. And where we're at today, we actually identified 10 more classrooms than where we were at at the um master plan. And that was just a result of going further into the design,

097better supporting programs, and also making sure that not only do we have the right classrooms, but that we had the the right amount of um spaces for things like intervention, academic resources, sort of those key um student resources that are um as important as scheduled classrooms, too. So, it was important during the design process that we just didn't accommodate an additional class um just by providing more classrooms, but we wanted to do it in a way that didn't sort of compromise the student experience. So this is um the overall campus. Again, we can't talk about the work at Niqua without addressing Perquette. So the main driver here is that those students would move over to um the main campus. And you'll see where we're proposing additions and renovations to accommodate that. Um also relative to

098the site plan is the new turf field um here at Niqua. Um and then a lot of the site work is really just remediating from the construction work. So around the additions, there'll just be some rem remediation of sidewalks and landscaping um after construction is all done. Um this is sort of in a large view where you could see the proposed expansion of the building. Um really kind of two significant additions. One in front of the building. Um we're going to maintain the main entrance, but um that addition in the front will um house some of those key student resources and staff resources. And then one addition in the back that will pro primarily be classrooms and science labs um that'll also sort of um be able to connect two of the academic wings of

099the building for better circulation and better wayf finding. Um this is a you know a simple diagram we did that both recognizes and sort of appreciates the the clarity and how the existing buildings laid out. Um there's sort of a clean organization to Nqua Valley High School where you have the main entrance front and center, the main curved hallway. Um and that hallway sort of connects students to all the major common spaces in the building from performing arts on one end to athletics and PE on the other end and in the middle is the library and then off that main hallway are the sort of the three academic spokes where the core classrooms are housed. Um we just acknowledge this because it was important in the planning that you know we didn't do anything that

100disrupted this clarity of organization but in many ways we wanted to maintain how cleanly organized the building was and in and in some ways sort of improve sort of the wayf finding and circulation through the building and this is that in in more detail. So this is sort of the existing plan of Nqua Valley sort of colorcoded to how classrooms are currently scheduled. And um throughout this diagram we just kind of highlighted examples of those types of spaces that are important to the student experience in addition to classrooms themselves. Things like um resource centers, credit recovery, different intervention spaces. Um that was key to that we maintain spaces like those. Um, in fact, you'll see ways throughout the renovation and the new work that we actually wanted to make those spaces more commonplace and more

101readily read readily accessible to students as well. Um, so with that, David, good evening. First, I just want to say thanks for the opportunity to be here. I'm here in the absence of Dr. Fear. He was unable to be here today. So, uh, thanks for allowing me to be in your presence and to share some good work. Uh, for those who don't know me, my name is David Perry. I'm assistant principal, lead administrator at the freshman center. I'll be entering my 28th year at NA Valley High School. So, highly invested, bleed, blue, and gold. Uh I'm excited about the project and a lot of the things um that we're going to talk about today. Uh my first year as a department chair in 2003, we opened the freshman center, was a part of that planning

102committee of digging in and trying to figure out how to create the best experience under the circumstances that we've had. Uh that building will have served us for 24 years when we transition and sunset our use of it. Um, and we look to serve the next generation of Wildcats under one roof in 2027. So, um, my task today is to walk you through a little bit more of the specifics, show you some of the diagrams. Uh, I also want to recognize we won't wow maybe as much as Wanzi did. Uh, that's a tough act to follow, but we have different problems and different issues to solve, and I'm really excited about what I saw from Wanzi. I'm excited for them. I'm excited for our entire 204 community. Just a lot of great work that's welld

103deserved. I look forward to seeing what uh what that building becomes. Um but let's jump into Niqua Valley and some of the things that we need to look at today. I think our number one problem is that we're going to have 7 to 800 plus students uh that annually come to us as freshmen that we're going to need to incorporate under one roof. Um so as you start to put together the plan that Steve had shared and taking a look at all the classroom spaces it takes to do that, we need more square footage to make that happen. Obviously, if you think back when we opened the freshman center, it was due to a lack of square footage and our need to expand. We did things even like the frontier program for seniors and we

104spread out as much as we could to try to create square footage. Uh so that's the problem that we're going to tackle today. I do want to say that uh White has white and company has been extremely collaborative with our team. I've really enjoyed working with them and I've been really impressed with a lot of the solutions uh that they've come up with. So I'm going to share those with you today. It really boils down to, I think, uh, two of the two major exterior additions, as Steve had mentioned, as well as what I kind of narrowed down to three major interior adjustments that I think will serve, uh, our building and our our community well. Uh, so we're going to review that here in the following slides. We're going to start in the back

105of the building and work our way forward tonight. And so, we're going to start with the first edition that's in the back of the building. Uh, this is a two-story edition. It connects our C and our D- wings together. Um, if you're familiar, if you've ever been in the back during bus drop off, that's right where the students would walk in to entrance from buses. That'll now be walled off with this addition and we'll have alternate entrances uh for buses moving forward. Um, this addition will ultimately between both levels provide three science labs. When we looked at our master schedule and the projection of what it would be to bring our freshmen over, one of the things we really needed is these specialized spaces of science labs. Uh not just an open space to put

106students, but we needed space that could serve uh our our science department. And so in this we gained three science labs. We gained five additional classrooms by doing this. And you'll see through some of the design there's the unique area that probably doesn't fit well for a classroom, but does do great for a collaborative space for students. I'm going to show you that. This is the only view that I'm going to have a chance to really do a great job of showing you. But in the red on the left hand side, that's the first floor. Um, you're going to find out, I'm going to share a little bit later how we gain some dining space. Um, and that's going to be by taking over some of our current special education classrooms. Um, so in doing

107so, we need to relocate them. They're going to be uh centrally located very much like Wanzi in one area in our D-wing. This is proximal to their transport uh drop off and pickup. Um and I think this is going to serve our special education department really well. So I just wanted to highlight that while it was on the map. Okay, if we jump to the next slide, this really illustrates our science labs. On the left illustration, there's uh a physical science lab and a prep room that's on the second floor. And on the first floor, we have two life and earth science labs and prep rooms there. Okay. On the next slide here, this is a kind of a first floor pull out. So, we just broaden the view. The last the last view I

108showed you were just the science rooms. This is going to show on the first floor the two science labs as well as two traditional classrooms. They're marked as math, but as we figure out our master schedule, we'll figure out what content area will be in those spaces. Uh, and this is a really good look at that collaborative space. So again, the way the the building will take a little turn there in an uh slightly L-shape, not a great space for a classroom, but this is going to allow a really great space for students for breakouts. This could be for official blended learning classes where some days students are are in class, some they are out. It also could be just great breakout spaces as small groups are working together on projects in the class of

109classrooms that are uh proximal to that area. Okay, this is the second floor and on this view uh you see that it we only have the one science lab and we gain three classrooms. The collaborative space is really uh a mirror image of what you'd seen uh on the prior slide, first and second floor. This is a nice rendering that just shows you a close-up view of what that collaborative space can look like. Obviously, furniture isn't officially picked out, but what you can see is there's some flexible uh seating, some different options for ways students can work together in different sized groups and in different ways to be able to accomplish some of the things that they're working on uh in their classroom. And this is a nice pullout view. This is what you'd see

110if you drove into the back of the building. Uh I'll say this with both additions. Uh, I'll echo this again later, but what I've appreciated about White is I feel like they've put together a design that this could have been here the entire time NA Valley has been open. And at the same time, a couple modern touches with the extra glass that allows some more sunlight to get in. We've talked about everything from mental health to just just a sheer appreciation to have some sunlight in your day. Um, and they've allowed that to happen. And so I appreciate that about this view and and what they've accomplished with that. We're going to move towards the front of the building. This is a snapshot of what would be our D-wing office. We have large staff offices

111in our B and Dwing. So, they're B and D 100 are the spaces that are there. And for this conversion, we're going to be moving our staff members out. When we get to the last two slides, you're going to see the addition that's in the front of the building that will house those staff members. That's where they'll be going. but their exit allows us to do some good work and create more classroom square footage in the heart of the building here. Um, this is a really nice space. You'll see that the English rooms in the upper right corner in that pink. Um, those are where the BND 100 currently is in addition taking a look at the space. We wanted to utilize it for uh just some various options. So, we have two breakout rooms

112where students could maybe more quietly go work in and work in small groups or a teacher may meet with some students in there to counsel them or to work with them on some projects as well as some collaborative seating that you'll see there. The term used tonight, wayfinding. I like that term. I'm going to pick that up and run with it. But, uh, for me, it just provides better access. If you've ever been to Na Valley in a passing period, it is nicely organized, but that main thoroughway in the main hallway is extremely crowded. and to add another 7 to 800 students total in that passing period is one where it's going to get even tighter, right? Um and so back in the special ed wing as well as here in this blended area, uh

113it creates two thoroughways that students can pass through and and I'm hopeful that that'll help eliminate some of the congestion um in the main uh main hallway um as well. This is a rendering of that collaborative space that we just saw in this blended learning area. Uh to the right are the breakout rooms. If you look through the glass of the breakout rooms, that's a classroom in the far back. And again, you have some nice flexible seating and options for students to be able to choose. Talked earlier about just the need for square footage that happens. It obviously carries over to dining in our lunch space as well. Um that circular area known as our commons is where we currently serve students. And if you've ever attended a lunch period, you know that it's crowded.

114We and we have students wanting to select their own spaces. Some just set on our elevated little brick uh pillar there and enjoy getting some work done. And I'm looking forward to some flexible seating where students can choose where they want to go set and have some more options. So, in addition to that main common, we need to provide some some more spaces for students to have lunch. We've accomplished that in two ways. uh one on the lower level of our normal commons, you'll see that is our currently our faculty um lunchroom and we're going to take that over for student seating. And then to the right of that as you enter into the main hallway, those are currently three special education classrooms. Those will all be opened up to allow additional seating as well.

115Uh and I'll just remind you that's really the rationale for our need to be able to put special ed in one location, which you saw in that red section uh to the prior. Let's take a look at some of the seating. This would be a view from the classrooms that we would take over and set up. And and again, like Wanzi, see the flexible seating. I think we all appreciate if you go into a Starbucks, sometimes you just want to sit on your own. Sometimes you want to get together with a group of friends. Our students are no different. Uh they operate different socially and and different on a daily basis. So, I'm excited about the opportunities that the furniture options bring. Uh and in this particular rendering, if you look to your left uh

116through there, that that shows you the traditional commons that that are currently there. Okay, this brings us to the second edition, which is in the front of the building. It's the one that will be most noticeable to our community because it's going to be facing 95th Street. Um one highlight for those that have been to Niqua, you see in the courtyard, the circular courtyard, the sidewalk that goes around in that semicircle. Um, next time you're there, take a look and you'll see the distance from the sidewalks to the current building. If you look at this illustration, this provides you a good pathway to understand how far the building will be expanded out. It'll come out just shy of where those current sidewalks are. On this first floor, I'll start with maybe one of the most

117important points that Miss Fostic pointed out earlier, and that's the secure vestibule. This allows us for better f uh better visibility in the front of the building and allows us to check in and vet our visitors and guests before they enter the building. So, two-step process to get into our school. Uh and that is a win for us. I also think it works really well with the extension out in the front for us to naturally be able to put that maybe a little bit easier architecturally than some other places. This is where probably the magic happens for us to be able to get more square footage for students and that is moving our class offices or our staff offices to the front of the building. On the left and the right wings there in that

118light blue, the baby blue, those are both staff offices. They will each house uh approximately 45 staff members as well as uh some department chair offices and a conference room there you see closest to 95th on the front end of there. Um so I like this solution. I'll pause here. Here, I'm going to point out a couple other things, but I'll pause to say I like this design element from White because they've solved a square footage need inside the building by moving staff out. And what that does is it disrupts students at I think the least possible way because we're really we're not putting in a lot of classroom space there. So, we can start working on the exterior without it taking away or our greater need for student space on the inside. Um, I

119think that was just a really smart uh use of design here. And there's some stairwells that you'll see uh on the right in those staff offices. Those will go up to the staff office that'll be mirrored on the second floor as well. There's some kitchenetses on here for staff to be able to sit and eat. You've probably heard you heard me mention in the dining area we're taking away the faculty uh uh kitchen area, but one will be gained in each staff office. So, some good staff uh time for our teachers to be able to sit together and have lunch and uh and enjoy their their company there. Lastly, I think the thing that I want to point out are some of what Steve mentioned. We have intervention programs that are scattered throughout the building

120and in kind of the darker blue in the towards the main hallway. Those intervention programs are going to be moved to the main hallway section. Uh the entrances will be right off of there. I think it increases our visibility, makes it more accessible, and it's more inviting for our students to be able to walk in. Uh it's much more clear where you go to get help. Uh which I think is important for our students to to understand. So that was a really nice uh touch we're looking forward to. That obviously creates more square footage back in the building where those intervention spaces were too. So, um this is a pull out dollhouse view of the second floor. Um very much a mirror image of the first floor with the staff offices and the department chair

121and the meeting room. Uh a couple of the unique changes on the second floor is we have four class houses. Our second floor will have all four of those classes, two on each side. Those classes are proximal to each other. I think it'll be nice for collaboration. Uh just as a reminder, our class houses our counselors, our social workers, our dean of students and and secretary uh in those spaces. Um in addition to that there, if you take a look at the form room right above the main entrance, um in 1997, this seemed like a tremendous idea is to have a tiered lecture hall style room. and it and it served its purpose perhaps in that time, but what we have found out for many years is that that space would better suit us if

122it was more flexible, if we didn't have the tiers. Everything from furniture that you can't purchase anymore as chairs break um to just sheer functionality. And so, uh what we'll be doing is just taking out the tiers, creating a flat space, changing the front of that room, um to the front so that no matter where you're seated, you'd be able to see a screen or a speaker. And you can see the setup now is for chairs. You might that might be a setup for a guest speaker who's in front and speaking to classes or or clubs or organizations. Um you also will be able to we're going to have some furniture on wheels. We can do out and do some roundts and do some collaborative sessions with students uh both during the school day as

123well as after school. So that creates a very nice uh functional space that we're excited about. Okay. And this is the exterior view. And you know, I would challenge you when you look at this, I think you would look at it and say that just fits. It fits within the way the building looks. And uh I think it'll be pretty seamless again with a nice modern touch of the extra glass up front. We're our staff members and a lot of students are going to receive a lot of extra daylight that we haven't seen before. And we obviously granted had more than Wanzi to start. Uh but now it'll be even more than we had. So which is great. Okay. Okay, now we wanted to give you an overview on the implementation, how all this work

124will sort of take place at at Niqua. Again, we're sort of fine-tuning logistics and working with our construction management partners. Um, but this will sort of paint sort of a general approach. Um, so phase one will start with the the two additions. Um, and typically those begin in the spring when the weather turns and the ground thaws. Um, that's work that could begin as school continues to um wrap up towards the summer. Um phase one will also include uh the turf field replacement. Um and then as we kind of hit that first summer and the kids are and the students are out of the building um the renovation work will be focused on sort of the end of the building you see in red which is primarily the PE and athletic spaces. Um and then

125all throughout um that first school year the additions would continue to be under construction. Um and then when we hit the the second summer, um that's when the renovation work will be focused on two of the academic wings and the main hallway. Um and then the additions will be wrapping up by the end of that summer. So by the start of the um 2728 school year, that's when the additions will be done. They could be occupied. um the freshman class can move over. Um and then there'll be an entire school year takes place and then that last summer um when again the building's been vacated will be the focus of the remainder of the renovation work um which primarily sort of the performing arts and the career tech space in that last academic wing. Um

126so big picture, three summers worth of work but really only one school year where there's ongoing construction work happening. want to just talk about some construction considerations. I think just thinking through the impact to our community, to our students, and to our families as they approach. I think the first thing you'll notice here um to your if you're if you're looking northwest, that is the entrance into our building. Uh you'll see the Circle Drive is going to be closed off obviously because they're going to be uh doing a lot of work there. Uh I think our community, just so you know, you'll see a lot of construction and contractor uh equipment and vehicles. And you'll see in blue, it's a little tough to see, but those are some areas that we have um kind of

127designated for our contractor parking. Uh we have before school entrances to our students will be over at door 46 and 53. Uh and then as we welcome guests and check them in, we'll be m moving uh to a a secure single entry at door three. So, as guests come in throughout the day, we'll have uh our security system set up there, our raptor system to check people in uh to that single entry point into the school. Uh there'll also be some uh bus changes in terms of where we drop students off and the doors in which uh they enter into the back of the building. Uh as we get a little bit closer to this project, Dr. Fear certainly will be, as he always does, uh strong communication out to our community about any changes

128that are going to happen. uh we'll have some different drop off patterns that will occur and uh we'll send out some maps and just some specific details on what that will look like as uh the time approaches and gets a little bit closer. That's all we have. Yeah. So I think if we want to take questions for NUA, we'll Okay. Thanks. Um Miss Jane, you can start. You thank you again. these designs look and proposals look very um thorough and thoughtful. Um makes a lot of sense. You know, just the whole design of bringing the staff up front but accessible to the students. It it just all seems to click and make sense to me. Um I appreciate uh the discussion around the lunchroom. That was one of my questions was how are we getting

129the additional freshman class in and then still having space um which you addressed. Uh so a couple questions I had one was regarding lockers. Um is that something students still use? Uh I know large part of Nqua High School there are good chunks where there's lockers. I I don't know how how often they're used. That was one question. And then the second question I had was around the collaborative spaces. Um, is that part of the class or is this students who may have like a study period or waiting area? Like I wasn't clear how that space would would be utilized. So, go I'll speak to the lockers. Uh, lockers are are vastly underutilized in this day and age. It's u students carry a lot with them and you know with less and less assigned uh

130textbooks you know a lot is done more digitally uh the Chromebook has replaced a lot not all uh but a lot and so most students find what they need they put in their backpack we went to lockers optional for the last few years so students uh elect and sign up if they want a locker we would continue to do that and would have enough lockers to continue to do that for students that want a locker uh but I will say even those that elect one early in in the year typically break away from it and don't end up utilizing it. Uh the freshman center especially uh they don't know so they just sign up for one. Uh and we probably find of all of those who signed up for a locker maybe 3 to 5%

131actually access it on uh a regular basis. So, um, yeah, we have actually, if you've been in our building, we have slowly but surely moved some locker banks out, um, in favor for some collaborative workspaces and areas where students can seat and have a little bit more flexibility in the school. Um, so, so that's to answer your first question. U, the second question was just the use of the collaborative spaces in between the classrooms. So, we have some classes that are blended classes and that means that some students are you're in class some days, other days you're rotated out and we need places for those students to be able to work on the days that they're not in the class working directly with the teacher. Uh, so some sections are blended, some sections are not

132blended. However, we always say there's like blended capital B blended and lowercase B blended. Just because you aren't a title blended class doesn't mean that you don't try some blended concepts within within your class. And that might be allowing two groups that are prepared and ready to start working in some small groups to exit out of the class to work in some of those areas and start start to chip away. Whereas maybe some of the students in the classrooms that need a little more support before they're ready to get there uh have some more questions with the teacher, they're able to do that. So the space I see it could be used before school as just a casual. anybody could sit down and use it. I think during class time primarily though what you'll see

133there are those classrooms in proximity to that area uh kind of mindfully using it for kind of academic purposes. Thank you. That makes a lot of sense to me. It's super exciting and I think students are really going to love all the options that you're providing and again the natural lighting is welcomed. So thank you so much. Thank you. is stunning. Love the presentation. Love the the um that light on both the back and the front and and and you're right, it looks like it could have been part, but it gives it um a nice new look. I did have a question. Um you mentioned, you know, with the additional um freshmen coming and and passing periods, are you guys and I know you talked about there being a couple of areas where you're going

134to have two pathways um available. any other thoughts um that you guys are thinking about to address the the numbers um at at one time? Just wondered if there's anything else that you're thinking of and I didn't know and I and I didn't know whether from a structural standpoint or whether you as staff are thinking of any um possible changes. Yeah. Well, just some architectural points. I think the removal of the lockers because of the lack of use of them is going to really open up that main hallway because right now they're kind of lined with the locker banks in there too. Um there are two areas in the existing academic wings where we're going to create a new hallway. Um because even though the building is clearly organized, if you go down one academic

135wing in one hallway, you actually can't connect to the hallway that's on the other side. So we're creating two moments that can do that. And the addition in the back was specifically designed to connect two academic wings, which I think is going to take a lot of traffic off the main hallway as students traverse. Okay. We're also going to be pulling together uh just a small committee to talk through all of the logistics of things we want to look at. Everything from increased traffic uh to programs like you know we have advisory at our freshman center and that would need to look vastly different at the main building. So, we'll have some committees together over the upcoming uh months that we're going to sit down and work through some of those issues and talk through

136some things as a staff. Um, and then the other one of the other questions I had with all of the staff moving staff spaces um, being upstairs, are there any concerns for as far as students just during different periods of the day or or will staff just still be assigned at um, you know, as the as students are passing in the hallway? I'm just talking about ensuring that um having that adult supervision or the the the staff supervision um during passing periods and and being present when the students are I think if anything it increases a presence of staff they'll be going to their office in the front which remember that is our main uh thorough way so a lot of students are there so I think it puts uh staff in proximity and we

137also have supervision assignments that won't change either uh both with dean's assistance and staff uh presence throughout the building. Thank you. Really, really nice job. Very excited to see what it looks like. Thank you, Miss Fazdik. Thank you. Before I start, I just want to clarify the staff areas are both are going to be both on first and second floor. Correct. That's correct. Will be for both of those. That's correct. Was that Thanks for that clarification. Absolutely. I wasn't sure if that's four staff offices, two on each level. Okay. So then the law passed those. Okay. Um, this is very exciting. I won't lie. I'm a little sad to see the freshman building separated because in my ideal world, each of the high schools would have a freshman building. I know it doesn't each each

138school enjoys how they do it, but um I know that you guys will have a great integration program to make it work so that there is excitement about having all of your students in one building. Um, and there's clearly a lot of thought going into how to make this work well. The design is beautiful. Um, this is just a very small question, but on slide 63, um, is there a door from that new math and science edition to the D-wing? Because it looks like in the rendering there's one on the C. I assume there was one on both sides to connect them, but I didn't see it in the drawing. So, I was just curious if there was one. Um, see on the top wall there's not a door there. Yes, for sure there'll be

139a door connecting into both academic wing. Um, just wanted to make sure. Yeah. That's an anomaly being these early concept renderings, but Okay. So, yeah. So, it will actually be a thorough fair for students to be okay. 100%. That sounds great. Yes. Right. Yeah. And there'll be some great southern exposure there, right? I think that's the southeast exposure from all that light coming into that area of the building, too. Um, I think it looks great. Um, I don't wish to be part of any driving to school when this is happening because I'm sure like at most of the high schools um during school drop off and pick up if you choose to bring your student as a I don't blame you. We'll do our best to make it as efficient as possible. I'm sure you

140will. Thank you. Mr. Rising. Yeah, love it all. Um my primary my only question is on the future secondary entrance back in the additional wing area. Um Dave, is that going to just primarily be for the special ed students since that new special ed area is right there or is that going to be for all students? because it it didn't seem like there was a good well I mean I suppose didn't seem like there was a good thorough fair into the school from that new secondary entrance because it kind of have to traverse I I was just wondering how that secondary entrance was going to essentially be used I think it I could um address some of the things we've talked about so far in design right now the the the the entrance for the

141special education students is actually off the end of that existing academic wing. Um I don't foresee that changing given that the special ed classrooms will be right there. Um this kind of entrance is really just to make up for the fact that the existing doors that are behind this where students are coming in during drop offs um will be now enclosed with the building. So this will just be another way of students enter the building during drop off arrival time. Okay. All right. Thanks. But that's an unmanned area, right? It's just doors, correct? There's no staff there or anything like that. In in the morning, we do have dean's assistants are in the back. They help welcome buses. They check in. Uh they check in all the buses to make sure as they come in

142and supervise students in the back of the building. Okay. All right. Thanks, sir. Miss Guns, I do want to say a couple years ago, Dr. Furer was nice enough to take me on a tour of Niqua. And as we were touring it, we were talking about how it would become possible to move the freshmen over there if that was something that was happening. We It wasn't positive back then, but um it's so neat to see how you guys are going to be doing it. And I think the additions with the use of the glass looks beautiful. And I agree, it does look like it could have just been built in that way. And I know we didn't oo and ah out loud, but we were all in our minds ooing and eyeing because the work

143that's being done at NIA is amazing, too. And you guys do have that very unique issue of combining all of your freshmen over into the school. So, I appreciate all the thought that has been put into it. I appreciate all the comments made by fellow board members. The one thing I did want to mention too though is I really love when you mentioned the intervention areas being moved up towards the front where it's so easily accessible and I think that's absolutely wonderful making it easy for every student to know where they can go. So thank you. I think this is all really exciting. Thank you Mr. Kurubus. Uh I don't I'm looking forward to the transition from uh the freshman center to the high school. Um as you may recall, Wanzi did have a freshman

144center. Um yeah, with with Fiser. Um it was the freshman center, which presented its own challenges with students crossing um those roads. Uh so I welcome the transition. Um, you know, my mom taught at Old Cone as we we call it. Um, so it's uh it's good to to see it progressing. Um, we you mentioned the lunch. Um, and I consider our capacity issues solely around lunch based on how early the first lunch is. And so, um, as as we build the space, um, you know, I and we throw in more students, um, I'd like to make sure that the consideration of the space, make sure we're not having lunch at like 9, 8, you know, so you don't have to answer the question. It's a comment. I'm not going to hold you to it.

145Um, but that's my first thought is that, uh, the capacity is based on when lunch starts. Um kind of my second point is uh go to slide 65 please. So you gave me 140 slide 65 please. Yep. You gave me 14 slide presentation and I appreciate it's from the 30,000 foot view level. Um, and I'm glad you didn't give me a presentation that showed where all the electric outlets are going to be. Um, but this slide jumped out at me in the fact that, um, we don't have any landscaping. Um, and so we're going in there, we're we've got trucks, we're doing stuff. Um, I'm kind of a big fan of trees as well. Um, you had a prior slide on 56 which detailed where all the existing trees are. And since we're adding to

146the school, we're going to be taking some out. So, I'd like to see uh administration um you know include some landscaping, some trees design because we talk about light being beneficial, but also um nature is. So, I'd like that included as uh as we go forward. It doesn't have to be, you know, the first step, but it could be part of the long-term plan. So, any comments on that? Uh yeah, I'll I'll just make a quick comment. Uh we we as administration are are fans of trees as well. Um uh I will I will say we've already had discussions with with um Niqua with the Niqua faculty. They may be ahead of you a little bit. Um, and they've actually really also talked about how to activate that courtyard area and what we need to

147see um um from a from a landscaping perspective there in a way that would really tie in with um some academic programming with with some science science classes um and everything like that too. So it's it it has been uh it has already um been brought up uh with our group too. So we will we will ensure that we we keep the the focus on that. Um I will also address the the lunch comment. Uh we also uh I think in in many ways see see capacity through the the lens of lunch. Uh what you s currently our our high schools offer five lunch periods. Um that period three is the period that uh is that that 9:00 lunch hour the the dreaded 9:00 lunch hour you referenced earlier. uh with both the designs you

148saw at Wubanzi and here from a capacity standpoint it would be possible to move to four period lunches. There is a another challenge however with that lunch from a programming standpoint and building a master schedule and that's the piece that is still sort of TBD if we're going to be able to figure that out. Uh and and again uh in talking with our building leaders uh that they still have some concerns about about the challenge that that going to four period lunch would would bring to to developing a master schedule. All right. And my last comment is slide and it it really deals with um two equity issues. 55. Next one. um two equity issues kind of among our schools and kind of among um our sex is the you know we're we're making some

149changes to the the turf field um and uh you know we're talking about moving the soccer the other ones on Wubanzi um I'm not sure how you know Mattea operates with their fields um and NA is a little unique in that we have the park district there where we have some partnerships with um so I'd like a you know consideration as we do things to the extent possible to make sure that kind of our sports programming from literally the 30,000 foot view in this slide um has uh similarities between the schools uh as we go through this and then among the the sexes there's also talk about you know the baseball fields being similar to the softball fields. Uh, and so I'd like to make sure that when we go through this, whether maybe it's

150not part of the referendum, but uh, you know, it's with with our dollars as we go through this that since we are breaking ground somewhere uh, that we consider some of the, you know, athletic fields. Um because we are going to because we are mo we're moving um you know there's an opportunity to use those two fields north of it differently um or make improvements to other fields to you know put them on similar footing. That's it. Thanks. So thank you for the um presentation and again a very thoughtful design. Um, my kids went to Niqua when it was at its heyday of size. Um, I think my daughter was the first class that went over to the frontier building, but my son was there when it was like thousands of kids in every class

151or every grade level. So, I um and I'm there often still to this day. And yeah, my concerns was the passing period, which I'm glad was in your thinking of how to kind of um help that because I can't imagine with 700 more kids in there what that would look like. And um also the lunchroom, you know, how how crowded it is and how I do see kids sitting on the um you know, side or on the areas just trying to find a spot where they can sit by themselves. So, I'm really do appreciate that. I also like again the incorporation of light into the building. But I do have one question now. Um from my working experience, my last building that I worked in was very much glass like everywhere. Even kind of the

152curved roof was glass and there was a lot of problem with um heating and cooling. So how is that going to impact these buildings with all this glass? I mean, do we see this as a big like expense increase or That's part of the ongoing work that's happening right now. So, right now we have um an energy modeler modeling the building from an energy perspective. We're also doing daylight studies for those glass areas and that'll inform like the types of glass we specify, what other kind of shading we might want to provide in the glass. But that's something we look at very close and we have dedicated people kind of looking at that right now as we go through. We had I worked at Bell Labs and we had just a terrible time trying to

153keep the front of those buildings at a temperature that you could, you know, stand. And so I I I'm looking forward to hearing more about how we're going to deal with that. So I really love the light though coming in is so important. So So thank you. Thank you very much. So thank you. Next up, we'll welcome Dr. Howard, Miss Tabiri, and Mr. Jovanini, I believe. Oh yeah. Yeah. Here. We're here. Yeah. All right. Hello. Moving on to the next one. Uh you have two district level administrators up here because with the freshman moving back to Maine, uh we have the opportunity to turn the Bquette Center into a hub for the district, right? That's going to benefit students, uh faculty, and families across the entire district. So during phase one, we're bringing our two

154signature programs under one roof. That's steps and Gail McKenzie. We'll talk a little bit about that in the next couple of slides. And during phase two, we had the opportunity to use these spaces in uh more diverse ways like including a welcome center for newcomers to our country and our district. Um increasing our pathways offerings, uh K8 STEM spaces, and then multi-purpose spaces. So with that, what you're seeing on the screen is a site plan specifically of the Burquette Center. Um, it was originally designed, I don't know if you know this, but for a middle school and in um back in 1995. There was an addition added in 2002 and it's housed freshmen now for for several years. Um, so what we're looking at is now with the freshman moving out and exploring the different

155possibilities that these uh that could be used for this center. As Dr. Howard mentioned not going to go through the existing plan in detail, but I do want to make a couple notes. Uh the main entrance that's off to the left of the screen, which is the north side of the building, is still going to be a primary entrance uh to the building, as well as that secondary entrance off to the right of the screen or the south side of the building. What you're looking at right now is a planning diagram. um in early planning uh phases as we know that this building is looking at more of a multi-purpose type of building. How are we going to separate the spaces and the key programs um so that that they were at times considered suites

156within themselves. So, uh, the as part of the phase one approach with the steps and Gail McKenzie moving over, we really looked at that west side of the building being that primary location to house those two programs. Um, steps could utilize the first floor and um, we could create a new main entrance off of that north side of the site. That would be a primary entrance for steps, but also at after the school day started, it could be that visitor entrance that would serve both steps and Gail McKenzie. The morning entrance for Gail McKenzie would be off to the south side of the site where Gail Mackenzie could get dropped off. Students could get dropped off in the morning and then they can um go up to the second floor which would house their programs.

157And then east of the um the center of the building and then the far east side of the site would be used for more of those multi- uh purpose programs such as pathways, the K8 program as well as the uh different multi-use programs for the district. So then we after going through kind of the highlevel planning diagram stage. This is an ex existing proposed plan of kind of color coding each of the the uses. We're going to focus today on really that phase one um planning process as the district administration is still working through some of those phase 2 programming elements um in more detail. So if we dive into the first floor plan and it's in a large first floor plan of the steps program, we've worked with the administrators and uh staff over

158at at the steps to kind of understand the needs of the spaces for these students. Creating a secure entry way on that east side is important as we've heard all night long and that will continue to be important at this building. Um, and then moving through kind of addressing not only their classroom needs, but STEPS has a unique program element to it. And one of the highlights of the program is going to include um that we'll dive into a little bit is their life skills apartment, which really teaches the students kind of basic needs and living on their own. Um that would be something new to the district that that to create a dedicated space to to allow for for the those teaching components as well as while they currently have a vocational programming where

159they have micro businesses that get run out of here but creating that as their jewel. They really after talking to the uh the people over there that's kind of one of their prime programs um that is really communitybased. So putting that on in the center of the building to really showcase all the activity and collaboration that's happening with the students in order to create those those bro those businesses. So this is a so this is a rendering of the main entrance. You know we were going for a professional look and feel but that's something that's also warm and welcoming. You know, that's really important for the young adults in this program as they transition from school. We want it to look less like school and more like the businesses they're going to be working in.

160So, in this slide in the upper left, you can see the waterfall that's at the current step's location. And while we're not going to recreate the waterfall, we will create the calming atmosphere through the careful selection of materials and furniture like the ones on this slide. Because the calming features reduce stress, they increase focus and they help the students feel less overwhelmed. Okay, so these are the proposed vocational spaces and again you see the use of glass here. We want um this to be sort of a showcase of all the activities and work that's going on on the inside. This is the dining space. And just like the other buildings, there's kind of a mixture of furniture here to give students options and to look more like sort of a workplace dining area. This is

161the life skill space that Amy just spoke about. It is a full apartment, so students will be able to develop all of those skills and work toward living independently. So this is now what Gail McKenzie looks like. So the Gail McKenzie piece we really like because it allows us room to sort of grow and develop into some of the programs that we had spoken about. I think was that last week. Um you can see that in the red we have the special education program. That's our achieve program. And then on the opposite side we have our credit recovery and a couple of additional spaces that will allow us to kind of grow our program and meet the needs of more of our general education students. So when we get into phase two, we'll start developing

162those other spaces. You can see in purple kind of the flexible use spaces that we're labeling as multi-purpose right now. And in there we could do anything from um special programs, guest speakers, professional learning for adults. And then moving on to some of the gold spaces which represent the STEM lab spaces and that's going to be for our K8 students. um in the light blue that's where we're going to expand our career technical education and our pathways work and Bria Gian Vinnie is going to be here and tell us a little more about that. Thank you for allowing me to talk to about some of our capstone courses that we're looking to add over at the Bquette Center. Uh when we talk about each one of these kind of define what we mean by capstone.

163Uh the first is some type of cul culminating experience for our students within one of those pathways where there's some type of course leading up to this before they actually enroll into this at the beret center. In addition, one of the goals being for all of our CT courses, but specifically some of these advanced capstone courses would be trying to embed at least one of these in there, if not multiple, whether having dual credit with College of DuPage, embedded internships andor um industry credentials of some sort with each one of these. The three that we've highlighted are really of high interest to us uh that we're really excited about. The first one being a health science pathway capstone course. As we all know, healthc care courses are of high demand for our students. It's a

164degrees that our students are interested in and this is something that we've been talking a lot about and how can we provide the student or experience for our students. We're really excited about that. Our science, family, consumer science and PE departments have some courses that are kind of connected to healthcare in some way, but this will be really intentional about offering some of those skills that can springboard them to any type of career within healthcare, whether it's in the therapies, doctor, medicine, nursing, anything related to that. Uh the second one is our culinary capstone course. Uh the really benefit of this one is really looking at the ind industrial side of the culinary. Some of the things they would see after high school is what we're trying to do within this class. If you go

165into our family consumer science kitchens now, they're amazing. They're great, but it's different than what they would go to in kind of the next level. And that's what this could do. Provide that experience what they would see at College of DuPage or other some postsecary high school um experience. And our last one is construction. Uh last year the board of education approved a construction 2 class which uh allowed us to expand our trades offerings in our high schools. The biggest benefit of offering this at the briquette center is truly space. If you look at our construction classes now they're trying to build construction designs in a really tight space. As we expand that, it really limits what we can do. And so having a larger space allows us to offer more authentic experiences for our

166students. expand what we can do. Then as we as we go into the interior side of those trades and when we start looking at electricity, HVAC, plumbing, we have more space to do that. And so we're not limited on what we're allowing our students to do. And the benefit of all three of these is allowing more space and time for our for us to connect with our local professionals so they can um connect with our students on a more consistent basis. So this is where we want to talk a little about about what that student experience would look like. That graphic on the right is kind of our guiding light for CTE. This is the framework that the state outlines for endorsement work for students. I'll give you a quick highlight. Um to award a

167student endorsement in any career pathway area, we have to have a plan for them. We have to offer internship experience hours for them. And the easiest way to do that is when it's embedded into a course. We need to offer six hours of college credit, whether that's AP or dual credit. And then we have to have two touch points with mentorships, team-based challenges within these. And through these courses, we're able to do more of that and be more intentional within the actual classes instead of trying to rely on outside of experiences. And the other great part about this uh experience for our students is they still are connected to our high school courses. Uh Mr. Perry referenced the frontier cabinets uh that we had over a decade ago. Students are still able to take uh

168part of their schedule at their home building and then come over for this extended experience at the Briquette Center which is a great um opportunity for us. And then we'll continue to dive into more of the specifics uh as we launch this for 2028. So with that, we really can't start any work until the freshmen move out. So the phase one work which includes the the steps program uh would happen the summer of 27 and all of that work for for the steps suite could be completed for the summer of 27. Um, however, there's a small piece to the entry component that is isolated in this. Um, that would have to be the the elevator to get access to Gail McKenzie that might bleed in to the school year, but it would be separated where

169it wouldn't affect the the teaching suite. So steps moves in then summer or school year for 2728 and then the potential winner of 28 could start the east side of the building which again is completely isolated from the steps program. Um so there would not be any interference between construction and and the students and then the summer of 28 the second floor of Gail McKenzie could be completed. That really concludes target completion date right now at center would be after 28 29 school year. I open it up now. Okay. Well just next steps. Um, we're going to continue um board of education updates um continue board of education approvals as work is contracted and regular updates to the community through board actions and our safer stronger site. So, questions. Okay. Um we'll start with Miss

170Dumming. Thank you. First, um I want to say um Matt, thank you for the overall um presentation. And I think this really helps provide um a wonderful opportunity to provide an update to the community on what the plans are. And um so I know it's something that has been um certainly uh you've had conversations from um one of my peer board members quite a bit on this, but but this was a this really really helpful. So thank you. Um on the let's see um from path on the pathways um plan would we provide how would that work for students um to get over from would we provide transportation or what's the how would that work? Yes, we would provide transportation. We provide transportation now for students who are going over to TCD. So we're looking

171at a similar model where the students would come and spend half their day. So we were sort of transport on a schedule. And does our staff would our staff have to take any or are there any requirements for certification from COOD or Wanzi that the staff that's teaching or would it be COOD on the career pathways who would be helping to do the providing the instruction? That is a great question. Um we will definitely have a partnership with TCD regarding the health sciences is what we're thinking about right now. Um we currently have um staff who are capable of the construction courses that are working but with any CTE course there are specific certifications that our staff members need that they would get whether they were at the Burket Center or at the home school.

172Okay. any do we see those with I I I think it's great with the entrances the separate entrances for Gail McKenzie and separate entrance for steps and really keeping that delineation really strong. Um I think that's really important because I know that they like to I mean they are they're they're not in high school or anything. So um that's so important to have that have them very very separated and to provide those updated type of opportunities mirroring professional type of levels and and settings versus um versus the school setting. So thank you. I think that was excellent from that viewpoint um and that planning. I did have a question. There was we mentioned um two things um on the Gail McKenzie. Are there any concerns regarding PE um on the second floor or do we

173see that working fine? Uh yeah, we we probably didn't clarify that that we would save the the there is I think you could see it there. Gail McKenzie gym up on the top right. So there would be um they would have access to that that gym and and uh and that would be used for for PE and they would the Gail Mackenzie program uh also would maintain access to the cafeteria as well. Okay. So they would come down to to have Okay. All right. Thank you. Um K through eight students. Can you help clarify? I just probably don't. Everybody else may get I just I needed clarification. Kelly wants to take this off. So it's their SAM lab. Oh, okay. And so will that be and will they come over there? Will that be accessible

174when consider? Yeah. Yes. Just answering fast. Yeah. Yep. The intention is for that to be like a field trip type experience. Thank you, Mr. Shipley. That helps me a lot. I appreciate that explanation. Say it in five and you can say it in one. 9 9:30 we're all getting snappy. All right. Is that it? Okay. Um, Miss Gent, I don't have any questions. Luckily, uh, Miss Deming actually did address the the one that I had. Um, so, but I do want to say I'm so excited. Obviously, the Pathways program, I think, is amazing. And I know I say this at a lot of presentations, but any way that we can have students doing what they love specifically, I'm all for, you know, engaging them. And I understand this is all still in the works. You

175know, how all of that is going to work, but I'm personally very excited about everything you guys are doing over at Perquette. Mr. Kurubus. Um, slide 104 kind of the end um on the communication with the board of uh with the board of education on updates. Uh I would like to provide you administration with some direction and we can see what the other board members want on consensus. But I would like to see updates on um how much we've spent on a regular basis. Um we're spending large amounts of money. Uh and I know we approved the bill list on a regular basis, but that's uh uh doesn't put it all together. Um so you see that we've put we've paid for, you know, a chiller or something, but or concrete work, but that doesn't

176tie it to a project or the referendum. So, I'd like to see a a report as part of the updates include how much we've spent on a regular basis. Um, maybe that could be a percentage where we have, you know, the total that we have, uh, you know, issued in bonds and what percentage we've spent of that bond. Um, I'd like to see um, you know, how we're progressing on each of these projects and however administration, you know, wants to determine that. I don't know what is the appropriate way. Um, because it's hard to say, are you 20% through a project? Um, but, you know, I I've completed the the buildout of X, Y, and Z. Um, so it' be nice to see um, you know, regular updates on some of these projects. Um, and

177then I think we do need to break it down a little bit on some of these different projects. We had the master list, um, which broke it down by certain projects. Uh, and then earlier in the slide presentation, you broke it down by schools. Uh, so there, uh, might be a way to say, well, we budgeted X amount of dollars for Wanzi or X amount of dollars for the the lighting across the district. um and we have spent x amount to date. Um I think that would be a high level report that would inform the board on you know how we're progressing. Um you know do we need that in a board agenda item? Probably not. Uh it could be part of our regular updates or just a general report. So that's something I'd like

178to see. Um, and then I would also like to see us uh get more aggressive with the communication. We did such a great job with the referendum and we were communicating on multiple fronts, news media, Twitter, you know, flyers, mailers, uh, and there's a lot of work here that the community is not going to see. Um, you know, this not all's done on, you know, 95th Street or Eola. Uh so I think we need to figure out a way to get more aggressive with the communication. I think our our website can use a lot more uh dynamic updating that I I think um would better inform we could uh we could do it with um you know press releases or or whatnot. So, I don't think it's uh something you can overcommunicate on, especially when

179you're ask the community to to spend this money um for certain projects. And I I would like to see uh us in going back and informing the community about what we're doing. We have the information. Uh uh so I'd like to see more communication and I welcome any other board members opinion on providing direction with those two items. I think Mr. Kubis if you have some specific suggestions that we can hand that out to the board members to see if we are in agreement that we would like to see that. I you know I think you have a lot of ideas and so let's share some of them and see. I mean, I um also don't I I realize that some of this is a very dynamic process. So it's like I don't want to

180say like we spent this much on lighting and it was our budget was this because now maybe it moved on to something else that was over or under and so it's um there is some fluctuation that has to be understood here and but maybe a you know bimonthly quarterly type of report is something that would be helpful. I I think from administration's perspective, we share the goal of um communicating and and being transparent with our community. Uh I think uh over the last uh six months since since the referendum passed, I think there, you know, we were conscious about not um starting any work until we knew we had the funds secured. And so we have been um sort of kind of kind of working non-stop but but doing a lot of work that that's

181not uh doesn't generate a lot of photo ops, right? So so it's been a little uh challenging to find opportunities to to you know snap a photo when you know it's it's a bunch of uh architects and engineers in a conference room. Uh we're we're uh I think the fun stuff's coming up over the next 12 to 18 months and I think there'll be no shortage of opportunities to to celebrate with our community. Uh I think to tomorrow morning as now that we've sort of um put this out public, we will be um up uploading all this information to that safer stronger 204 website. Um included with that will be um highle project narratives and descriptions and budgets. Um as well as some of the photos we we've taken so far and some of the

182renderings of of some of the before and after shots. And we do expect by the end of the month to have um like an interactive dashboard feature as part of that too that will update uh the community on on again how we're progressing from a timeline and budget perspective with the with the goals we laid out this evening. Uh but but overall I think we we share the goal. I do think uh that the point about uh uh comparing some of our work pre-referendum with with Twitter and and uh other media sources I think is something we maybe haven't talked about that we should should re um reinvestigate because uh I I do think there's a reality that we didn't exactly draw the biggest crowd tonight especially after Jason's fan club left. So uh there

183is a need to maybe explore other avenues than just uh through the district website and through through board action. So that is uh that piece is definitely taken as well. Uh and then I think the final piece I think it would be reasonable to add a um to add something that's construction specific to the the regular um cadence of financial updates whether that be the monthly uh uh treasure and budget reports or or something along those lines too. So we'll look into that. Okay, Miss Jane. Um, thank you. I I appreciate um the response to the communication. I uh I know you it's there's so much work. I I we're looking at a 104 slide deck which is a summary and synthesis at the highest level of the kind of work you guys are doing.

184So, we really I I really appreciate the work you're doing um and what you were able to present today. I had a few questions regarding this last section. Um I really again once again want I guess if there's a theme that I could take away from today's presentation is on a macro level and a micro level the the thoughtfulness of how we're using our space and our resources to to meet the needs of our students um our staff um while also staying within our budget. and and that seems to be consistent and very creative and collaborative process which again is very much um reflected in what was presented here. Just uh first of all, I'm so excited to see what this building I I really wasn't sure how we were what we were going to

185do with this building. I know there were a lot of ideas, but I I really like how we've compartmentalized the use of the space in a way that serves our district needs, right? like this building I I feel like can't be replicated anywhere else, right? This is specific to 204 and what we need at this moment, right? And so I really appreciate that. I love the idea of a welcome center and that and that it's not necessarily in this building, right? That it's it's housed somewhere else. I'm curious, would we have full-time staff there or what do we have any ideas on what what that space would be? I mean, aside from what the title is, like what it what would what would we do there? Well, right now the plan is to house Dr.

186Sagara's team there. Oh, okay. So, the EL staff would be there and um able to meet with families as a unit. Um right now when families come into our district especially spam uh families with uh learning needs not learning needs but language needs right they go to each individual school which means each individual school is kind of giving them that orientation to the district and then there are language barriers. So this way that family gets to come as a unit there and they can do the assessments at that time get a folder started with them at time and give them get them acclimated to the the district and then assign them to their buildings is the idea. Great idea. Love it. I love that so much. Um, and I and I also love the utilization

187of the rest of the space for our pathway programs. I'm just curious and I and I should have asked this question before, but how many of our students are enrolled in these in the in the pathways and from our three schools? I'm going to bring Brian up for that one estimate. Just curious. Um 120 students go to TCD on an annual basis and then for each one of those top okay and do we see that increasing because of perhaps the options we might be able to offer Okay, great. Um, and then the last question I had I I don't remember. Is there a vestibule for near the welcome center entrance? Yes, there is. Um, and you probably don't remember because we didn't specify, but there will be a secure vestibial piece over by the welcome

188center. That's your the existing berette entrance right now for the freshman. That would be that secure piece that would be created over there. Okay, that's it. Thank you so much, Miss Fazdik. All right. I like that there are so many opportunities with this space. Um, and it seems like we're making good use of it. I do have a question. Um, is there consideration or plans on the table to um either redesign or repurpose that parking or drop off area in the front of the Briquette Center? I'm thinking about the fact that STEP students are in and out of the building throughout the day for community trips and such. And if we have people coming to the welcome center beyond or buses for field trips beyond, they're driving past that entrance with buses or cars to

189go around to the parking lot rather than where stu step students are coming in and out. So I'm just curious if there's been thought given to how that use um may need may or may not need to be modified to make sure that that's easy and that step students come in a variety of different vehicles to school. um and is there space for them to do what they need to do in that space? Whereas, you know, right now at obviously at um the corporate space where they're currently renting space, there's a big area almost like what would be in the back of Burquhead with with um a wide, you know, pavement area for for buses and unloading and making sure students are where they need to be. Um and right now in the front of

190Briquette, there's just those two lanes. So I was curious what kind of thought was given to that or if there is not if there's been thought yet or if there are plans for that. So we've had high level discussions you know part of the the work to get the city on board with our plans is to is to meet with them and and talk through it and uh uh you know one thing I've learned being being in those meetings on the other side is that the city is very concerned with parking uh for any type of development. So, uh, at a high level, we've we've done the analysis and are are, uh, comfortable that we have the appropriate, um, number of spots and and, um, uh, and that the revised use of both the Berquette

191and the main campus are are supported with the current, uh, parking parking lot um, configurations. As far as um, specific um, you know, specifics after that, I think uh, I I think we're that's still a little bit of a work in progress. Okay. Yeah. Thanks. That was my only real question. Mr. Rising, on slide 85, you had identified the square footage. Um, I'm assuming you did that for a reason. Is that pretty comparable to the square footage that Gil McKenzie and steps have currently or is a little underneath? But I'm assuming you put that for there for a reason. Yeah, that was in comparison to the to make sure that we accounted for enough square footage and right sizing the space for their current needs. Okay, there not only current but future needs. So there's

192actually space to grow in both programs as far as square footage is concerned. Um yeah, my only concern and these are just comments um to ensure we keep the step students and Mackenzie students separated as best as possible. Um, I'd also like them to have some pride in in their programs. So, any way we can make that happen would be great as well. Um, because they have two unique spaces now, right? So, giving them still that pride of their own space um in naming, right? Steps could be on the front, Gail Mackenzie on the side, I don't know, however it looks. Um, I noticed on slide 94 when you had kind of more of the details of um the Gail McKenzie space. I'm assuming that X is means that it won't look down below or

193it will still look down below because down below now in steps is going to be the vocational area, the yoga and PE and the dining. So, I'm assuming that's going to be blocked off. So, you cannot see down that space. All that represents is architecturally saying that's a twotory volumes of space over there, but you won't have visual access down there. Okay, perfect. Um and then my only other comment, question concern is to ensure that you know because I know the Gil McKenzie students do use the PE area that it's coordinated well that there's not other programs going on and whether it's you know vocational or STEM or what have you that that's coordinated well and then I know in the past Gail McKenzie has had sports programs so I'm sure you will figure that

194out at some point of how that's going to look as well. So, just two things I wanted to put on your radar. Um, going back to Mr. Kurubis' comments, actually, I had talked to Whit and Company and JR before the meeting tonight. I kind of went over there and talked to him briefly. I would like to see updates as well. Um, listen, we've got some very smart people in this room that are monitoring these things and it has nothing to do with trust. Um, but it does have to do with oversight that the board should have. um you know and so I would like to see updates on projects. Um I would like to see when any adjustments are made, change orders that are major. Um, you know, the the again, I trust White, I

195trust the project managers, but I would like an update as a board member to have oversight of that information because and I don't need to to President Donny's point, I don't need to I don't care if we have if there's a change in lightning. That's not what I'm concerned about. I'm concerned about we said a vestibule is going to cost this much. We're doing 11 of them this summer. I want to know where we came in like how what was the variance plus or minus you know I mean just to give us an idea or purview because if it comes way in over or way in under I want to understand why um and again it's not me micromanaging but it's just transparency and it has nothing to do with a trust issue as a

196board member as well but we just need oversight as a board so I I I would equally as appreciate that and I'm sure Mr. Krubis will get back to us with some ideas. So, thanks. Thank you for another thoughtful um presentation. I have a question on uh 95. So, you have the Gail McKenzie gym and then there's another main gym. What is that for? Right now, it's just an open gym space. Okay. We wanted to designate the Gail McKenzie gym specifically because we wanted it on that side of the building. Yeah. Yeah, because those students will also have access to the CTE spaces. So, we see some sharing going on there. Just so that you could see that they weren't using the gym on the other side, but we don't have um a dedicated program

197to that gym as of yet. Okay. Um there will still be some afterchool use of that gym by some of the NIA students. Um but outside of that, unless Yeah, I'd still expect uh then the Burquette campus to get a get significant afterchool activity. Uh again, not just supporting the Niqua campus, but really supporting some other district-wide programs. And so, um and even even with the park district being on that campus as as well, I think there's really some good opportunities there. Um again, for for really both those gyms and and even the cafeteria space to to see increased use for for districtwide or communitywide programmings. And then um the lineup with the steps lease when when is that lease um expire? So this this does line up this this timeline is does line up

198with that steps lease um expiring. So that lease uh does expire in July of 2027. So the move for the 2728 year is um kind of a hard deadline based on the current lease. And that did play um you know really that that was a main consideration in a lot of the timelines you saw this evening really for um not just Bquette but also for the main campus at NQUA and really in some ways even some of the other projects we um we structured around the district as well u because that you know that this this lease and that this piece is obviously a priority. Okay. Thank you. Um Mr. Krubis, if you give us your thoughts or whatever and we'll we'll discuss it or everybody can evaluate it. And I think that there's a

199general feeling that we would like more information and I know this has come up a couple times. So, it's like we need to be more specific about ideas of what we want. So, I I think uh let's let administration have an opportunity to to see what they want to provide. I I think I've given my direction if I don't think um I think they have an better idea on what the information is. So I I'm going to wait and see what administration can propose. So I heard great things from what Matt was thinking. Okay. Okay. I just want to make sure that because it seems like we've been talking past each other a couple times. So it's like I want to get this settled and make sure the whole board is aligned with Yeah. this

200is what I need and this is sufficient to you know I yeah I I personally I feel comfortable with the the the direction and and we have from the board at this time. Uh I I just ask over the next couple days if you get a chance to check out what we do um put out there uh through the safer stronger website and you know maybe give some initial feedback if we're on the right path and then I would think by the end of the month as we we have an opportunity to digest some of the other comments um I think we can um uh address any of the concerns. All right. Well, thank you. This has been an exciting night and the fulfillment so far of the next understanding of where where all that

201$420 million referendum that um so many of our um community supported. So, thank you so much for all the hard work and boy, we look forward to seeing these actions take place. So, thank you. Thank you. Okay, any legislative ad advocacy and board of education update? No. Okay. Okay, I need a motion to adjurnn. Motion to adjurnn. Second. All in favor? I. Okay. Any oppose? Okay. We're adjourn.