001So, we will start off um with public comment. And it looks like we do have uh public comment uh today. Um uh but before we start, I would like to read um the board uh welcomes and encourages community engagement at all board meetings. Therefore, time is allocated at the beginning and end of each meeting for audience members to address the board. We kindly ask that you limit your comments to five minutes. Please note, this is a board meeting in a public and not in a public and not a public forum or town hall. The board does not directly respond to questions or comments during the meeting, but may ask the superintendent to follow up with you as necessary. Uh, and yes, we have uh a public comment. Uh Jill Novak. >> Okay. Well, hello to
002all the members of the board. Thank you for having us. My name is Jill Novak and some of you may recognize me from the recent strategic planning meetings. I'm here with my husband Mickey Novak tonight. Um, and I was honored to be on the planning committee and we feel lucky to be part of a school district that wants to listen to its members and create a vision for its future. We're here today because we have three children in district 96, a second grader at Ames and 5-year-old twins in the Ladsy communication development program. We know some of you are far more familiar with the logistics of Ladsy than we are, but we wanted to share our family's experience and perspective. In fe in February, the D96 planning meetings began. At the same time, my husband
003and I attended meetings to discuss our boys kindergarten transition. It's been an eyeopening process for me, switching between meetings about what kind of school district we want to be and then living the reality of a parent with children with disabilities. In our district planning meetings, people consistently said they wanted D96 to be an inclusive community, foster a sense of belonging, and provide equitable opportunities for all learners. At the same time, our family is being told that none of the elementary schools in our district can accommodate our twins. The two options we are being given for our sons include Edison Elementary in Stikney, a community we have no ties to, or a self-contained lazy building in Westchester. The facility has zero opport opportunities for inclusive learning and lacks many amenities of traditional school buildings. While these
004settings may provide an adequate education, we think it's harmful to our twins sense of belonging and personal growth to to not be welcomed into their home schools. It also teaches the non-disabled neurotypical children in our district that it is okay. Sorry. >> Oh, hello. Sorry. So it also teaches the non-disabled neurotypical children in our district that it is okay to segregate their peers beca based on learning differences. If we want to raise our children to be respectful, empathetic individuals, we need to set a better example. The need for special ed is growing and LSI has been meeting that need by rapidly expanding their self-contained building in Westchester. It currently has six classrooms and they're planning to add at least two more next year. We're very grateful that Ladsy is making the space for the kids
005that need it. But we believe it is a responsibility of the school districts, including ours, to prioritize making this space for their disabled students. Our children need to be in the same buildings for inclusive learning opportunities to exist. And right now, some D96 students with disabilities aren't just in another classroom, but in entirely separate communities. We're aware our historic buildings have limited space and there is not an easy solution to this problem, but we're asking the board to start having those discussions and be open to problem solving. Maybe we find the space with some creative restructuring of existing classrooms. Maybe the early learners program can get a new location where it can also expand and that creates available space at Ames. Maybe a future addition or annexing a neighborhood non-school building creates the space we
006need. I do not know what the solution is, but we need to start looking for one as soon as possible. Families like ours raising children with disabilities make up a small portion of our district. There are louder voices and more voices wanting to see other changes because those are the issues they're aware of. Hower needs a new gym and Central needs more outdoor space, but those things don't directly oppose the values of our district. We say we want to be an inclusive community while we exclude children with higher support needs. We say we want to nurture a sense of belonging while we tell some children they don't belong in their neighborhood schools. We say we want equitable experiences and then we bust disabled children to a separate building that has no music room, no art
007room, and no outdoor playground for recess. History has taught us that se segregating a particular group is never beneficial for communities. According to the National Inclusion Project, when inclusion is prioritized, they see improvements in communication, empathy, and collaboration across the board, not just in children with disabilities. We truly believe that opportunities for inclusive learning benefit all students regardless of whether they are on a general education or special education path. During our strategic planning meetings, I was happy to hear that many other members of our district district want to see more inclusion as well. So, as you move forward with an updated plan, we ask you this. Please do everything you can to ensure that every district 96 student has the option to attend a District 96 school. Thank you. Thank you for your time. >>
008So we will now move on >> superintendent. >> Yeah. So we'll move on to the superintendent report. Yeah. Um and we have Erin Dwire here from Hollywood School with a group of students from the Hollywood newspaper. Right. So >> we're going to turn it over to you. >> Good evening, Dr. Brian Toy and members of the school board. Thank you so much for the opportunity for Hollywood to showcase one of many meaningful resources and experience that we have available to our students at Hollywood. At Riverside School District 96, we are not only proud of the strong academic programs that we have, but also the wide range of extracurricular opportunities that help students to grow, to explore their interests, and to discover their strengths. One of those opportunities at Hollywood is our student newspaper, the Husky
009News. I'd like to thank Mrs. Thomasac and Mrs. Kulie for leading their work and providing students with an authentic publishing experience. Through this club, students build literacy, critical thinking, and confidence with writing for a real audience. This year, we're proud to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Husky News. And we're excited to have some of our student journalists, photographers, and artists here tonight who dedicate their time both before school and sometimes giving up some of their lunchtime to create a publication that connects our school community together. At this time, I'll turn it over to Mrs. Kulie to get us started. Good evening. Every year 30 to 45 third, fourth, and fifth graders join the Husky News staff. They work hard publishing three times a year, but they also have fun and they take a lot of
010uh pride in their accomplishment, as a few of you might already know, as your children were on Husky News before. Um, as you can see from uh this slide, Husky News students are actively involved in all aspects of the newspaper production. They interview people. They write articles, take photos, conduct polls, draw illustrations and comics. They report on all school events and enjoy writing for a number of recurring columns like Guess the Photo. And recently, one student even created his own animal quiz column with unusual animal facts. Now, on to Miss Thomasac. It was 2016 when the first edition of Husky News came out, which was before many of these students were even born. For the first issue, students interviewed our new superintendent, Dr. Ryan Toy conducted a poll about students favorite Pokemon as well as
011wrote articles about the school's brand new Gaga ball pit and the Cubs winning the World Series. Throughout the years, Husky News students have shown their great curiosity, pursuing questions they have like, "What's in the Hollywood attic? What was going on in 1929 when Hollywood was built? Who is anime Sika whose name is on the Hollywood Library? Students also interviewed a 1947 Hollywood School graduate about life at Hollywood School in the 1940s. And one student showed her whimsy by writing Day in the Life of Mrs. Fish with Mr. House, the music teacher, translating for the fish puppet. A lot has happened during the last 10 years. Whether it was the pandemic when Husky News met and wrote their articles on Zoom, the arrival of the 17-year cicas, the solar eclipse, the creation of the school's mosaic
012butterflies, or the installation of the new playground, you can bet the Hollywood press was there to record it all. And speaking of the Hollywood press, we have several exceptional Hollywood School students here to tell you all about their Husky news experiences. >> Hi, my name is Meredith, which some of you may know already. The reason I like Husky News is because I get to write and interview people. Why I joined is because I did not know how a newspaper worked and I wanted to try it. It was a huge success. During the five issues of Husky News I have worked on, I have helped with the layout and I have written nine articles, including one about our school mock election, 100th and 10,000th day, the fall funland adventure, Huskys in the news, and the 10th
013anniversary of Husky News. For one article, I got to interview our new principal, Dr. Dwire. The biggest article I worked on was the one that just came out about the district 96 school board. Writing an article is a huge process. First, we all brainstorm ideas. I picked the school board article because I wanted to learn more about what a school board does. Next, I thought of my questions, the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the school board. I interviewed Mrs. Kick and Mrs. gun in person at school and Mr. and Mr. Mirhead and Mrs. Claps answered my question by email. Then there was a lot of writing, editing, and proofreading. I was so excited when it was published in March. Hi, my name is Sammy and I like Husky News because you can
014write about out things around the school. I have written and and about a new teacher, pulled students on their favorite streaming service and created a space crossword puzzle and photographed and interviewed students about their favorite books for photo opinion. Hello, I am John. I like Husky News because when I was in second grade, I always loved riding and being with my family and f not family, being with my friends. When I had the opportunity to do both of those things, I knew it would be a good option to join and that is the reason I like Android Husky News. So far, I've wrote an article about how to draw a cat, and I also wrote Day in the Life of Miss Palmer. >> Hi, my name is Luca. The reason I like Hus Husky News
015is it teaches me skills I can use later in my life. I have taken photos and done drawings. I conducted a pool. I interviewed a new teacher, wrote about the Husky Hop, Veterans Day, and the Steuart Little One Book, one Hollywood celebration. Hi, my name is Tyler. The reason I like Husky News is because I like writing and photography, and it's just so fun to work with everyone. I've written articles about our new science program, the Veterans Day celebration, I'm also in the Husky app. I've created a word search and yoga puzzle for the front page. I even got to do the layout for the welcome back Husky page, which was one of my favorite things to do. Hi, I'm Amanda. The reason I like Husky News is because I am a great writer and
016I like making stories and want to discover more about the topic or idea. When I create articles, I like working by myself or with a partner. Either way, it's awesome. I like taking photographs, writing, and drawing. I wrote about the talent show, one book one Hollywood, the new librarian, and I also did a poll asking students what their favorite subject was. My name is Grace. The reason I like Husky News is because I get to create articles, take photos, and draw. Plus, it is fun. I have taken photos at many events like Little Symphony. I also wrote articles about Halloween, the spring fling, and Buddy Time. I also wrote two how to make craft articles. One was an octopus made out of a pair of gloves and another craft was a ringling game. I also
017wrote a logic puzzle for the fun page. As you can see, we all really like being on Husky News. Thank you all. Thank you all for listening to our presentation. We also do have some additional students who are joining us this evening from Husky News. We have two photographers over there. We have Ava and >> Annaise and Harvey. And Harvey actually was passing out our latest article of the Husky News that does have the schoolboard article written by Meredith. So again, thank you to our families for your support and getting the kids to school early so they can be part of Husky News. And thank you to our board of education for supporting programs like the Husky News so that we can bring all of the love of writing and journalism to our students. So
018if you have any questions for our kids, any questions? Kayla, I am impressed by everything you guys do, but the sheer number of articles and things that you all have done is amazing. I want to know what your favorite one was. Go ahead. Go down the line. Go ahead, Maria. >> School board. >> Oh, >> I liked talking with you that part. That was very fun. I loved it. >> Um, my pool. >> I'm sorry. >> My pool. >> Oh, holl. >> The pool. I think the polls are so cool. It helps you get to know all the kids in your school. >> Um, I'd probably say a day in the life of Miss Palmer just because it's the longest one I've made. >> Yeah, that's a really cool I like that concept, too. Uh,
019I like the one where we interviewed a new teacher, Miss Straer, for third grade. >> I think I really like the science program one I did. >> Oh, cool. >> Um, I really have a lot of them, but my favorite two would be I did um the new librarian and I probably did the poll of the same favorite subject. Okay. Uh, my favorite probably my probably favorite one is the one that I did about the ring of wingcraft that I made. >> Oh, yeah. That's really cool. >> Me I never made an article, but I made a lot of com I made two comics so far inside like it's probably the one about an alien. >> I love that. >> You guys are so creative and you really like take all the parts that are
020really in a cool newspaper. >> Yes. put them all in there. I love it. I've been a subscriber for years. >> I was going to have to say that the the latest edition of the Husky News is actually probably thicker than a lot of newspapers today. So, >> um so I'm most impressed. But I I guess I see those photographers over there. I mean, what is your favorite part of this? My favorite part. >> You all are such an impressive bunch. >> I was just blown away by how articulate, which means well spoken you are, and just the curiosity that you all have was really inspiring. It's really fun to see my children go to Central. Um, but I've always just been so uh it's so wonderful to get a glimpse of Hollywood because you
021all have such a great school that has such an important culture and it's fun that you guys get to be a part of that culture, right? Because you bring the school together by publishing this to let everyone know what's going on in the school and that really does add to your community and it gives sense people a sense of belonging when they know a lot about the school. So, thanks for highlighting us. It was really fun to be able to answer your questions, Meredith, but also just thanks for helping bring your school together and being important part of your community and your culture. >> Thank you. >> And we appreciate all the students who showed up tonight and parents who showed up tonight. You are welcome to leave. You're welcome to stay also. Um but
022we know it's always a busy evening. So, thank you so much. I've been a subscriber since the beginning as well. So >> yeah, >> thank you. >> Hey, I kudos to the editor for timing in terms of uh getting the board article. >> Yeah, exactly. >> Can we get the dancing color for every ones? Oh, no. They're I mean >> it's always printed and the kids bring them home but black and white so you can always see the photos as clear later. >> I feel like when Henry was on it if it if he had an article then that was then they would give you that copy and color. >> Okay. >> There's a method to that. >> Yeah. >> Um I have just a couple quick announcements and then I have a little bit
023of information about our morale survey and strategic planning. Some other I don't mean to make light of those. Um we did have our parent information session with Doug Bolton. on Monday night this week. We had about 30 parents come which is a pretty good turnout for us. Um you know obviously wish there were more. We also did um record it and it's available on our website and so for people that um didn't have a chance to hear them in person, it really was good and I it is worth listening to. So I encourage people to do that. Um other true like truly announcements, we have our WSCA student art fair coming up on Saturday, April 25th. I can't believe it. That's next week. Wow. Um and um that's always a really lovely show at the
024Cheney mansion in Oak Park and our our selections are shared by all the different 15 districts that are part of WSCA but district 96 students obviously featured and and a lovely day and a lovely event. So um wanted to share that. Um how's your graduation? I know Chris Harvales just reached out to Wesley and I to make sure we had the date on our calendar but for all of our board to have the date on their calendar. This is a exciting evening and um some of you have some eighth graders, right? Wow. So um you'll want to be there I'm sure to uh hand out hand out diplomas. So make sure your calendars have that date. And then I I do I want to thank um Matt I know Matt is running late tonight. Matt
025Ole but Marlo and Dan for joining us for the strategic plan conversations. We have finished our three key sessions. We actually did a kind of we've had two informal sessions. I say kind of putting the bow on top but just having a separate group to do a little extra editing and word smmithing um in a way that represents all the table groups. There have been about 45 people participating in that and that has been parents, administrators, teachers, community members that aren't necessarily parents and students as well. So it's been a great process. It is it's very um enlightening. It's very inspiring. It's also challenging as we think about sort of that preferred future and where where we really want to go. So more information will come. Um what I'm anticipating right now is bringing it
026to all of you at the May board meeting. So then it would be a review or presentation about the details of it, but also a formal approval is what we would anticipate. But I was wondering if like Marlo and Dan just wanted to share some about the process and kind of where it's headed and anything you feel like the board should know here at the sort of somewhat somewhat final but yet interim stage because we're still not we're not quite ready to bring you the the finished proposed project product. Um I think it was I I think we in the last um meeting in particular when we talked more about our um goals and kind of our >> vision our I'm sorry our value statements. I think that was kind of that came together a
027lot faster than I thought it would because I feel like our tables had really jived by that point. We all kind of knew where we all stood and um and that was actually really impressive I think once we looked at all of our values together. Um, and I assisted kind of in those other sessions to just kind of get everything tied together really nicely and that worked out really well. Um, I mean, I I think it was just nice to see so many people in our community, you know, our our greater community of the school and and the area and everything, you know, kind of come together and and have these, you know, visions for what we want for our kids and what we want for the kids in the area. And um, yeah, it
028was it was a great experience. It was so much better than Zoom. >> Yeah. >> In 2020. So, I really enjoyed it. >> I I definitely agree. It was great being in the uh in a place with so many interested members of the community, so many people who had the education of the kids at their heart and, you know, willing to advocate for it, willing to invest their time for it. So, that was really great to be a part of. Uh it was it was definitely what the the last session seemed like we were trying to cram a lot into the last session. So I I like the goal session a lot. It would have been great if we would have had more time to discuss it a little further. I think that was yeah
029>> good to get community input on that and we made the best of our time that was available. It was I think I I remember the Zoom session as well. Um >> but I'll say I think we had a little bit more time to discuss goals with uh during that time. I think we I mean we we might have had more sessions in general. I'm trying to remember how many >> we did. We I think they were shorter but more free. >> Yeah. >> But it was it was definitely great to uh to be a part of it. It was a worthwhile endeavor and and uh and definitely looking forward to seeing the final results. >> Yeah. Yeah. And just so people understand like the goals that were developed are um what they call the
030big hairy audacious goals, right? which is uh not my phrase, it's somebody else's but this very aspirational and then we will take time um board feedback leadership team retreat board self assessment I'm sure a lot of opportunities to really break that down and what that will then get divided into more measurable likely smarter smarty goals um to carry us into through the next five years. So um so yeah, thanks for being part of it and I agree it was it was a lot. It was a lot to digest. It was you know we squeezed a lot into what was essentially nine hours. So I don't know, Selena, any other comments? You had a you had a child participating who was, you know, >> he was great. >> Thank you. Um, >> no, he was he
031was uh >> Yeah, >> he was excited by it. It was a great opportunity for him to sort of see how decisions get made and how adults handle themselves in a room and have influence. And so it was he he really enjoyed it. I think he was after the nine hours, I think he was happy it was done. So he didn't think he he thought that there was plenty of time. >> Um but you know it was it was I was happy that he was included. >> Yeah, it was great. The student voices were great and we had really debated last time around we had high school students join us. High school students have busier lives I think and we were on Zoom. It was a pandemic. All those things they they kind of fell
032off a little bit in their participation. The students from Hower, sixth and seventh graders really stuck with us. Really shared a lot. Spoke up a lot. It was it was great. >> Yeah. Yeah. Um I wanted just one other thing that I um added to the superintendent report because sometimes this has been on the committee the whole agenda sometimes on the board agenda trying to make it as timely as possible. I did just want to share an update on our midyear administration of our morale survey. Um just kind of some key highlights. There's a report attached for all of you and it is um publicly available for anybody who's interested in in reading more. So, uh, one of the things we talk about is the actual data, but also our process for reviewing the data,
033making meaning out of the data, um, how to really, um, work together as teams to create more action around the data. And that's really been a focus of ours for a while. But I just kind of want to point out a couple things about the, um, October to February administration of the EAB morale survey. And then a couple other points to to be considered. Um, one of the things we noticed, our participation went down a little bit um, a bit. We're not always sure why. We try to carve out time to take the survey at a time when staff are working together like at an institute day or a professional development day u because we think that certainly builds the most participation. reduce participation is always an interesting question like are people not participating because
034they feel like we're not making best use of our results or did we not have our pair of professionals in the same room as our certified staff and so um again just wanting to better understand that it's something I talked about with our um goal three our high quality staff action team who met just yesterday um really from October to February very little change in scores um one of the things we did talk about yesterday also with the high quality staff team was this idea of like do we need to be doing three times a year, right? Because there's not necessarily an expectation that that midyear data point is a lot different than the fall. So, kind of wonder if fall and spring makes more sense to us. Um, and something we want to talk
035about more and talk have the building leadership teams and our district leadership team talk about as well. Um, we did see a little bit of increase in the recognition and value area, but we also know there was less participation. So, were the fewer participants, you know, um, in less lesser disagreement? Um, again, hard to know. So I would say that these are not necessarily significant statistically significant changes but something worth noting because it is something that we really are working on. Um the other thing that I really wanted to point out to the board is on page five of of this report that we as you all know we are required by the state board of um Illinois um Illinois State Board of Education to administer the five essentials survey. It's done most recently it's
036been done in February. Um it goes out to parents. It goes out to staff and it goes out to students in grades three and up. Um, and it's a survey that's been in place since 2012. And we continue, we've done this supplemental EAB staff morale survey because we've sort of felt like maybe that's a more user friendly. We're getting more participation. We feel like the questions that are asked have more opportunities for action around them. Um just recently, just last year, the Illinois State Board of Ed um also acknowledged that there were several other surveys that districts could consider as what they call an allowable alternative. Um so Panorama is a company that offers uh staff, student, and parent surveys. Actually, we use their open source opensource survey materials during the pandemic. They had a
037survey about uh how parents and staff felt about reopening of schools during a global pandemic. Um really useful. So, they've been a an organization that I've known of. They kind of specialize in social emotional learning, climate, and culture in general. They're a national organization. Um, they have um again, they are now on the states list as an allowable alternative. Um, this gets into a little bit of the weeds here, but we have a partnership with a company called EAB, and they provide us with our staff morale survey. They require a three-year membership. our membership is up and to be sort of upped again for three years starting in the fall. Um my suggestion, my recommendation would be that we consider Panorama in place of the EAB survey. It's actually a little bit less expensive or
038about $8,000 less expensive. Um we need to we've already agreed to have a clear staff morale survey really built in and baked into our system and baked into our organization in addition to five essentials. Um, an interesting question that this would present if we were to move forward with Panorama is do we do it in addition to five essentials like we've been doing the EAB survey or would we consider the opportunity to move forward with panorama only um instead of did I am I saying this clear instead of five essentials um I think there's an interesting opportunity the committee our committee talked about this quite a bit yesterday and there's sort of I would say sort of shared views uh or differing views one is we should keep doing five essentials because five essentials gives
039us some comparative data to other school districts. Um and there's a lot of longitudinal data around it. There's sort of the exactly opposing viewpoint that like there's a lot of longitudinal data. We don't necessarily look into our longitudinal data. It's a survey that we've had for about 16 years and it starts to feel a little bit old and tired. Um we hear from parents, from staff, and from our students real honestly that it's a cumbersome survey, right? that it's complex in terms of the questions and the use of double negatives. Teachers often feel like they're interpreting for kids like what does that question even really mean? Um so it's it's probably been a and not just in district 96 kind of a somewhat long criticized survey. It's I appreciate the opportunity that all schools in
040Illinois are trying to measure climate and culture and then have some points of comparison. So I think it's been you know a really great effort. I'm encouraged by the possibility of allowable alternatives that might just be more user friendly that other districts are using. I'm right now in the process of talking to other districts that have opted to use it as their alternative. We also I also know of a number of districts that are using it like we've been doing with EAB in addition to the five essentials survey. So presenting it tonight, one wanted to present it sort of in the in the overview of our morale survey in general, but also I think there are some key questions emerging and and real honestly curious if you have sort of views. It's more of a
041discussion than an than a specific action. It's not set up to be an action item tonight, but um no, I'm kind of presenting it to all of you for the for the first time, but I believe you all have taken five essentials as parents certainly. So thought to me >> I say like my the initial thoughts that come to mind on this is like our surveys should be easy to understand the questions right >> um we should have continuity from year to year so that way these we can measure results in a better way. Um, and like if some of these surveys are um providing us like are are really providing us the same look at our community and culture, then we shouldn't be taking like duplicate surveys. Like if we can just have one
042partner that we use for our surveys that asks clear and concise questions that we can count on them that they're going to be in business for the next so many years and it's approved by um ISB like that seems like the best approach. Um because too many surveys I think people really do get survey fatigue and >> maybe that's why we're we're seeing with some of the drop off and the number of people who participated too. >> But the continuity for me is key because I feel like we just need to be able to, you know, understand what thing how things have looked like three years ago compared to last year compared to this year. >> Yeah. >> If we can. Thank you for that. >> I mean, I I guess I I completely agree
043with that that the continuity is the big piece. Um because I know we've switched it recently. >> If we switch it again, the continu we'll lose that continuity. I guess my question would be is if we've switched, can they pretty much mirror the same results that we're trying to get? I mean, and I don't know if they can or they can't, but we'd have to we have to look at it. What I might suggest and it sort of go out to the board here is maybe if we could maybe have a presentation maybe like a one of our committee of the whole meetings sort of pros cons and like what um the benefits are of doing that. >> Yeah. >> Say I've always thought the five essential survey is never it seems like I'm always
044trying to hit the space in between the choices and it's never really afforded to us. So, I I would be in favor of of uh moving on to another. Just a point of clarification, you said the one vendor requires a three-year membership with the Panorama, I think you said, was the other one. >> Yeah, they're willing to do one year, single year. Um, >> so the only reason I could conceive of continuing with Five Essentials would be some kind of continuity or andor a correlation to whatever new survey we would run. But again, I do I share Selena's concerns about over over surveying and getting survey fatigue. Yeah, and they do have essentially kind of a crosswalk of how five essentials questions relate to their questions. Having now looked at a number of surveys, I
045think there's a lot of similarities, right? I mean, we're all trying to understand, is this a great place to work? Is this a great place where kids feel that there's trust and support and all those things and families too to, you know, trying to measure that sense of family engagement. So, it's those are challenging things to measure. there's, you know, more and more tools out there, which is part of why I think we've been trying to be um very selective and thoughtful about are we getting the re not not getting the results we want necessarily, but are we getting the kind of feedback people feel it's meaningful? Like I will say in our strategic plan survey, we had almost 500 people take the survey. So, um we we did a lot to push that out
046there. We do a lot to push five essentials out there, too. we get a 20% which is our minimum participation level and and rarely more than that. So happy to organize a cow presentation with more detail. Um appreciate and it was just yesterday. I appreciate the conversation with a representative group of teachers and psychologists and special area teachers etc to dig in and it was you know there there's a lot a lot to think about um in potentially making a shift. So but thank you. I want to Oh, sorry. You're going to say similar exact kind of sentiments um that everybody else has expressed. I'm just going to say it. I mean, obviously there there's a reason why ISB is allowing for alternative surveys to replace the five essentials. I'm sure many districts feel the
047same sort of struggle with the five essential survey. But outside of the panorama one that's recommended, is there um a additional ones or I guess how did we land on the panorama of the list of allowed alternatives? Is it just because that one included staff parents and students? >> So they all the allowable alternatives have to allow staff student parents because that's the group that gets surveyed. >> Um interesting. We were looking at Panorama at the same time we were looking at EAB and then it happened to be like, oh, they're they're now on the allowable alternative list. So, it wasn't that we went looking for an allowable alternative. It's actually we were looking at the panorama. So, it was kind of came in reverse, but >> and isn't because they're just the morale. >>
048Yeah. They're a they're like a professional organization that supports school districts and like they ran a workshop on chronic absenteeism. They've run some workshops on early reading and Matt. So, they're like a professional development and support organization. Um, and the survey is sort of one of their tools they offer. I would tell you that their survey, in my opinion, is the most valuable tool they offer. And so I don't know that it's worth the ongoing professional membership for the other things that have been good, I'll say maybe not great. And you know, but really like if EAB would let us just purchase just the survey for a lesser cost. you know, it's it's not so much wanting to move away from EAB, but it's like you start to sort of add the dollars and cents
049and and the possibility of an allowable alternative and panorama starts to look more attractive. >> So, yeah, I'm happy to organize that for and you you and I have been sort of sharing the morale survey as a personnel item. So, we'll talk about that more. Thanks. >> I I have one more comment. Yeah, >> this may be a little bit out of place, but like um you know, last time you presented these results, I I I was encouraging more um effort towards showing recognition and and showing teachers that they're valued. And so I just did want to acknowledge that like I really think that it's great what you're doing with like your office hours in the schools now and like showing teachers that their opinions are valued. And so, um, you know, I think that
050you're you took that feedback and you're really running with it to really help teachers feel like their voices are being heard and that they're valued. So, thank you for doing that. >> Thank you. And and we office team, I know we we've uh formulated a different communication plan at the end of the week, you know, so there's things we keep and it's again, we've talked a lot here that things are only valuable and around recognition and value if staff do value them. So, we're we're working through some things. So, yeah. Thank you. Right. Thank you. >> Guess uh we now move on to the consent agenda. Could I ask I guess first is there anything on the consent agenda that we want to remove for further discussion? Can I ask the board secretary to read
051tonight's consent agenda? >> Sure. Tonight's consent agenda consists of a lot of minutes of some of the previous meetings. So, we have the March 4th committee of the whole meeting minutes along with the March 4th close session meeting minutes. The March 11th strategic planning meeting minutes, March 18th regular business meeting minutes along with the March 18th close session meeting minutes from session one and session two. And then the March 26 special board meeting minutes, the personnel report as presented and the payables pre-list as of March 31st along with the payables pre-list as of April 15th. That's the consent agenda. >> Guess is there any discussion or the consent agenda? >> All right. Uh is it do I have a motion to approve tonight's consent agenda as presented? >> So moved. Second. Give it to >>
052Kathy, can you please call the role? >> Okay. Mr. Hunt, >> I. >> Miss Kaylor, >> I. >> Miss Gun, >> I. >> Miss Claps. >> Hi. >> And Mr. Barcati. >> Hi. >> Okay. Motion passes. >> So, the next item we have on the agenda is the approval of the interim uh part-time contract for Steve Wilder. Uh we remember we discussed this uh last meeting part-time coming in to work with Mark. Um I guess Mars I don't know if you have anything you want to add to this or >> No. So I I mean the board fully knows and just so other people understand we're we're we've lived sort of a transition year with our director of finance position. It's been really great to have Mark Kaznooki join us as a retired superintendent from
053neighboring district. He was limited to 120 days. Um actually his 2020 120 days are going to be up probably, you know, he's going to have some days in May. Um but um Steve Wilder has been approved with a full-time contract starting on July 1. Also based on his current role, he has some flexibility. So um recommendation that Steve would work two days a week essentially. Mark would work two days a week. Perfect time to sort of transition and u move the district forward. So I think this is a this is a good plan and um thank you for the the flexibility and thoughts around considering it. >> So is there any discussion or any question? >> So is there can I have a motion to uh approve uh the the uh uh approve the part-time
054contract for the interimm director of finance for the period beginning March 26, 2026 through and including June 30th, 2026. Second. >> Kathy, can you please call the role? >> Okay. Miss Gun, >> I. >> Miss Gayler, >> I. >> Miss Claps, >> hi. >> Mr. Hunt, >> I. >> And Mr. Barati, >> I. >> Motion passes. >> Uh, >> just a quick note. I'm sorry. Uh, it's not going to affect anything because we haven't had any discussion, but I think the proper way to do it is you move you make the motion and then you open discussion. >> Oh, >> sorry about that. I hate to call you out on that, but >> I know you're you're pitching pitching your pinch hitting tonight. So, >> just want to make sure it's clear. >> Um, so
055then, uh, can I have, uh, motion then I guess to, uh, approve the next item agenda is, uh, the interim principles contract, uh, for Mora Zeni, uh, as presenting. Do So, can I have a motion to uh, approve that uh, contract? >> So, moved. Second. Okay. Is there any I guess to just sort of bring this up. This is for the interimm contract. I Martha if you want to add anything here. >> Sure. So we're um the proposal is to hire more Zinny who's done some interim principal work for us actually at Hollywood School in years past at Ames school years past and now at Ble this spring um to help us approximately two days a week um as Kesmir Gorman has been helping us with some of the director of teaching and learning duties.
056So making sure that Ble is adequately covered with a principal. Um Mora knows the district well. lives nearby and this, you know, has been sort of a welcome support person within our schools. >> Any questions or discussion? >> All right, Kathy, can you please call the role? >> Okay, Miss Kaylor, >> I. >> Miss Claps, >> I. >> Mr. Hunt, >> I. >> Miss Gun, >> I. >> And Mr. Barcati, >> I motion passes. All right. The next item up is uh this is the Riverside Hedge Council Council here. Does he would like to make any comments? Okay. >> Uh next item is board member comments. >> So I was at a science fair today and I think it's what my third science fair so far in the couple months. So it's but I love
057them. It's great attending them. I I know what this was at Ble Park. I don't know if any of the other schools have had their science fairs yet or if they possibly had them today. I don't know. Was this a joint science fair day? Maybe not. Maybe not. >> Central. >> No. And Central had theirs. Um I know you're Yeah. You've been at the there's the fifth six or the fifth middle school combined run that then competes in the Brookfield Zoo Science Fair. So >> yes, we are rich in science fairs right now. >> And that's a good thing to have. It's a good thing to be rich in. Yes. >> Yeah. But yeah, it's it's great seeing the kids. Uh, and it's it's so impressive how much they've learned about the scientific method, how
058much they really get into their subjects, and they're just all bubbling over with with being so eager to present to the judges and to anyone passing by. It's just great to see. >> Well, I guess I know this is brought up in the superintendent's report. Uh, I wasn't able to make it, but I do did hear that Doug Bolton was exceptional this past. Um, and I would strongly recommend if you haven't to try to take a take a look at it. >> Is it on YouTube? >> Uh, >> it's it's on a recording. Charles, we recorded Doug Bolton and we just have the recording like on our website, right? So, yeah. >> Yeah. And he talks for about an hour, hour plus and he does some Q. Yeah. Video recording. Yeah. Video, right? Charles was
059there recording it for us. So yeah. >> Yeah. >> You'll have to watch it. I had an opportunity to hear him speak at the annual conference last year, perhaps a year before about belonging, community. Um trying to think last night I attended uh here the Hower band um concert. It was nice to see the ongoing use of the backdrop from Sound of Music. It added an extra touch of, you know, my in-laws were so impressed like what is that? I'm like, oh, that was from Sound of Music. Um, but yeah, just continues to reiterate what a great uh program we have here in District 96 with music. And this was the one where fifth graders and sixth graders perform. So, it's always, I think, so nice for the fifth graders to get to watch the
060sixth graders from the balcony. And you really can hear the improvement just having like the daily 40minute music class should your you know kiddo choose to continue their instrument um at Hower. So um and I especially liked my my son got to play you know even an opportunity to play new and different instruments. Um so there was a bassoon a bassoonist. I've never even seen a bassoon. Um and my son played the bass clarinet. was the only bass clarinet player last night and then some trumpets and saxopones. So yeah, just a nice event. >> Any other comment? >> Okay, so that moves us into old business and I guess the first item on the old business is superintendent search uh recommendations. So, can I have a motion that the board of education approve uh the
061BWP and associates uh to facilitate the district superintendent search as presented? >> So, move. >> Okay. So, as many of you probably recall, this was we had this uh presentations from uh there's a couple of search firms and uh after sort of discussions and review, we decided to go with BWP. This is the contract. So, this is now official. The search is officially going to begin once we approve tonight. Um, so is there any questions or on this? >> This was the first presenters, correct? >> Correct. Yes. Right. >> When I I assume was it a unanimous decision to move forward with them across the board talking with everyone? I guess it was an uni unanimous decision to move forward with that. >> I'm just glad that we're in a really good position timelinewise and
062getting, you know, moving along um under like the ideal timeline that even both firms were recommending. So, >> yeah, exactly. >> Feels good. >> All right, Kathy, can you uh call the role, please? Okay, >> Mr. Hunt. I >> Miss Kick >> I >> Miss Claps >> I >> Miss Gun >> I >> and Mr. Bari >> I >> motion passes. >> So the next item on the agenda is the uh boiler the boiler uh project at uh Central Houser. And so can I have a motion to uh for the board to approve the sorry boat? >> It's called the project development agreement which is a little bit different than actually approving the okay installation. It's really to prepare. Yeah. >> Okay. So can the can I have the board of education to approve the
063executive summary agreement as presented? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Is there any discussion on this? We've discussed this like the last meeting. I know there was some discussion about timing sort of Mark was here presented sort of the reasons behind this but I guess is there any other discussion on this >> and Zach's here tonight questions. Yeah. >> Sorry. >> Wonder if this is the last boiler I'll discuss on my time on the board. I sure hope so. >> Your last couple >> we might have to bring it up again because again this isn't to approve the full contract. This is just like this is to approve the design phase in greater detail. Um and then you know if we commit to this uh action item uh and ultimately back away from doing this
064project I think the cost of the district is something like 20 mid20s thousands um and then obviously we're going to have to talk and approve a much larger contract at some point. Yeah. >> So, it's unfortunately not. >> That's right. Boiler. >> This is actually the replacement of three boilers. Correct. >> And they're going from a steam to a high efficiency boiler. Boilers as well. So, you're definitely saving a lot more money, not just big cost. You're not going to be using electric or utilities or gas. If there's no more discussion, Kathy, can you please call the role? >> Okay. Miss Claps, >> I. >> Miss Gun, >> I. >> Miss Kick, >> I. >> Mr. Hunt, >> I. >> And Mr. Barcati, >> I. >> Motion passes. >> Right. That moves us into uh
065new business. And uh what the only topic that we have under new business is a technology update. Um, >> we debated about putting this one on a cow versus a board meeting and we felt it was timely to bring it forward now. So, thanks to Molly for presenting tonight on this. >> I'm going to move this. I don't think that I short, but I don't know that I'm that short. Um, okay. So, this is kind of just it's very quick. Um it's the things that we went over in uh like that October range to kind of talk about the work that we were looking to get going on for this year. Um and then kind of moving forward. Um so one of the big overarching topics was AI in uh district 96. Um and then
066the other thing that we are going to just kind of go over as like a refresher is going to be the student device roadmap that we have created for our our students devices moving forward. Um so the first thing we're going to talk about is AI. Um according to our policies which were the things that we discussed last time. Um a committee was put together of uh 13 individuals. Some are admins, some are teachers. Um we have some uh tech team on there. We have some people from our administrative office on there. Um, and over the last three months, the team has worked incredibly hard to create uh our draft of our AI guidelines that we will be uh using for our staff members at Riverside moving forward. Um, if you can see up there,
067it says that there are four sections that it's broken down to. Um, and I know that you also have access to it. So, if you want to, you can take a look at it. You can read through it. It is there and available to all of you. We are currently uh it actually just happened yesterday. We met with a bunch of different vendors for different programs that are AI platforms that are safe for staff and students. We had meetings with three of them to figure out if they would work in our environment, if they wouldn't work in our environment, if they would be good for students, if they would be good for staff, and if there would be consistency among them in our classrooms and outside of our classrooms that would benefit our students. We
068are working on building a pilot program based off of what we like and dislike over discussing it in the next couple months here before school gets out. Um, and then we are going to start working on our student use of AI guidelines as well as creating training opportunities whether it be uh in-house PD or it be PD that is uh directed by the platforms that we do go with here in Riverside. I know that's a big topic, so I was going to wait till questions, but does anybody have any questions about it now? I feel like this one will be a >> Sure. I I guess one of the questions I have is uh the student use guideline. What about staff use guidelines? Is that >> So that that is So that's what you have
069as your draft is strictly for staff. Okay. >> Um so those are already created and ready to go to our staff members. Um, we're having PD for our staff um, a little bit here and there and that is when they will start getting introduced to these and seeing them for the first time, providing their feedback on it to us. We're going to give them an opportunity to be able to to look at it, see what it says, make sure that it's understood, um, and then make sure that the final draft is done for the start of our new school year for staff members. Are these platforms names that like not being in tech, not being in education termed professionally, like are these name platforms that I would have I would have heard of or are
070they like um education specific LLM platforms? >> Most of them are education specific but they are on a broader scale as well. Um, a a really popular one that a lot of schools use um is called School AI, which is um like a a teacher and staff tool to guide your lessons and classwork, which on the back end for a teacher, it will provide them the opportunity to review student work. It'll be able to give them live views of what they're doing. So, they'll be able to see what they're working on. They can pause them. They can provide any type of feedback. They can see when they're doing pretty much anything. Um the other one that we looked at is called Magic School, which is um just kind of starting to get into like the
071real education space. Um I was at a conference uh this week speaking on AI actually and um I met with Magic School in person to see kind of like what they've built, how they're planning to to move it into more of a robust platform for students. Um, right now it's mainly a staff tool, which is why it's someone that we talked to because I want our staff to be able to utilize something first so that they're comfortable, they see it, they know what they're doing before it kind of opens up. Um, and then we met with Brisk briefly, which is um like a Chrome extension that our staff can have access to and that will like live annotate student documents. It'll show copy paste directly from AI. It'll show like the types of the typing
072that a kid did. It it shows it in real time allows it to provide feedback, all sorts of things like that. Um, so summer school, summer kind of school. And so like I think I read in here that like one of the AI guidelines is like right you wouldn't want the any information any personal information about a student to go onto these platforms but like you know even within like a enterprise um claude account like you um like in the private sector you are moving more towards uploading um documents that you would want to keep internal. So like eventually is that the road map is like you would be allowed to upload um uh student specific information or student specific to these these platforms. >> Yes. Okay. So, um, AI platforms, like the most popular
073ones that people know, right? Um, Claude, Chat, GBT, all of those ones that are out there. Um, they're they're just this generative AI platform that you can just type back and forth into. Um, and what these platforms will do is we're we're actually taking that away. So, like we're not opening it up for staff and students to just be able to have the access to freely use AI in any way, shape, or form. this platform or platform that we would be that we're looking into between the different ones that we go with um would be state and federal law compliant. They would sign DPAs with us, which we kind of touched on a little bit last time with our platforms and things like that. Um and they're built for schools by administrators, old teachers that
074work for the the companies. So, if in going with platforms like this and not just kind of opening it to to have like anybody use whatever they would like. Yeah, >> it does allow us to input our students into it. The teachers can input their data into it. They can input all of that information into it because it's not a generative platform. It's a school platform. >> Got it. Okay. So, the these guidelines are primarily for these open systems. Once you have these this more closed platform that we're utilizing, the guidelines will potentially open up a bit. >> Yes. Yes, they would open up a bit. and it is in there um the way it is because I um can't I mean I you know I hate to say it right I can't control what
075someone does outside of like the environment or the resources I provide them right um so the guidelines with those being in there are really just reminders and parameters for them of if it's not the tool that we are providing you and we know is safe for our student records to be in then you shouldn't be putting it into anything else. So I guess sorry go ahead. >> I'm done. Oh, so I guess one question I have is what about a auditing because because these are this this what we're looking at here is will be like encapsulated it'll be an enclosed network but what about um outside like resource are we doing any sort of auditing of people teachers uh students using artificial intelligence like chat GPT um 365 or something outside of our network >>
076like on their current issued like Riverside devices or just in general No, in I mean obviously if they're home they're doing no we can't be tr but no like on our on the student issued devices on our students is use >> on so on student devices here in the district right now they cannot access okay the the so I I wouldn't have any data for you because I we don't have it available for students to use right now >> and the reason that I don't have it available for students is I can't ensure their safety online no >> and staff I could I could but I mean it would be very broad in what people use and don't use. But >> so does staff have access? So if I went to like chat GPT right
077now, I could get access. >> Staff can. Yes. >> Do we audit that though? >> No, because most of them use it as like a free platform. It's not something that's provided like I don't provide them the a premium chat GBT account. >> No, but we I guess the traffic though that of them going to that site do >> No, it hasn't been audited. >> Okay. I I I might suggest that we that's something we might want to start considering doing. >> Okay. >> Just to see how it's see what type of utilization is being used today. >> Okay. >> All right. Um so then the next thing that we talked about was the devices and the student device movements. Um the images that you are seeing right now are the same ones you saw
078the last time we talked. Um kind of creating the road map for when a student will get a device, how it will move with them. Um so just as a refresher, what we're what we're moving towards is that our kindergarten students would get the new iPads that we purchase every summer and that iPad would stay assigned to that student through the end of their second grade year. And in third grade, the students will get a Chromebook that they will use until the end of their fifth grade year. And then in sixth grade, the students will get a Chromebook that they will use until the end of their eighth grade year. Um, on the left is uh the three-year plan that you were all shown um about probably about a year ago prior to me joining
079Riverside. Um, and this lays out kind of like what you guys were familiar with with what was going to happen in the next three years for devices, how many were going to be purchased and things like that. Um, so I wanted to put it in there as kind of like a here's what we're working with this year based on what was what was discussed. Um, and then I kind of broke it down for you based on the device. So our Chromebooks, the ones that we'll be purchasing this summer are going to go to our third graders and our sixth graders. Our iPads that we're going to be purchasing will go to our kindergarten students and then we will start the cycle that we were just talking about. And then we are purchasing this uh set
080of staff devices that will replace the ones for our staff members that are on the end of their five-year cycle with their devices. >> And so fiscal year 28 will be an expensive year for our technology budget. >> Yes. >> Okay. And then is that going to sustain at that level or will it be cyclical? >> It won't sustain it. It won't be at that high of it. Like that the year you're looking at is going to be one of the highest ones because it was everything kind of got pushed into like these this three-year span of they're all starting to fall out of their warranties and their life cycles. Um, but once we start doing it the way that we're actually probably going to be doing it this time would be a good like
081this summer and this replacement is a good um like level for what it will look like moving forward because we're doing it for the third and sixth graders this this year this summer. And we're doing it for the kindergarteners which is our which is what we would be purchasing. And then every year once we get it filled and we're on the cycle after next year's purchase, it'll be this cycle. So it'll be the 600 Chromebooks every summer and the set amount of iPads for kindergarters every summer and that will be all that we purchase and that will be consistent every year. >> Okay. Is what I'm trying to is what I'm trying to move it to. >> So basically fiscal year 27 is more of a normalized year. Fiscal 28 will bump up but that
082one will fall back to 27 up roughly. Okay. >> So, I know it's not necessarily the point of this presentation, but I had a a parent ask me this week about the overall use of our Chromebooks and screens, you know, iPads and the like, and wondering about, you know, how how we're deciding that in the classroom, how we're justifying that because I know when we first started talking about these many years ago, it was all about screen time and it was about, you know, eyes and and brain development. And now it's uh it's it's still about eyes and brain development, but there's more to it than that. And there's definitely concern about are we introducing these devices too much into the classroom. And I just wonder do we have something is that some a presentation
083that could be made in the in uh at a certain point when after we've had some time to discuss it and research it in terms of what how are we using it and these are our reasons for we're using it and are we using it too much or is there potential for it to be scaled back or are we not using it enough? Like I guess I'm wondering have there been any thoughts or discussions along those lines? I think it's definitely something that um it could it could be put together. Um I know that there are discussions that I have been a part of of course um and I know that there are going to be more and more discussions around it. Um I don't think that at the immediate time that it'll be like
084a definitive answer, right? Um, but being able to put something together in the future to show and kind of walk through and how it works and why it works that way and why we have them and why we use them the way that we do, um, is definitely something that I can I can take note on and take back and discuss to do. >> Okay. >> I think it's a really good point, Dan. like and you know in addition to just like doing a more internal study of it like I think that there's a lot of academic research and I assume in the coming years there's going to even be more academic research that we can be pretty highly relly on here so we're not trying to recreate you know >> academic research that's already
085out there for us to really learn from. Um but yeah, I I agree that there's sort of increasing concern around this and it's something that we need to be uh considerate of. So, thank you for that. >> Yeah, Molly and I have talked like I was at with the Doug Bolton presentation on Monday and there was some parent conversation afterwards. He didn't talk so much about technology and screen time, but there was some parent conversation afterwards. I had attended a central PTO meeting. Um lot of conversation. It was not a tech meeting. It was really it was that kind of just parent concerns and that really came up front and center and I think it's really clearly represented in our strategic plan survey also that there's just I think kind of this growing question of
086what is thoughtful and responsible use and um so as we talked about like just making sure we're we have a clear inventory of what's going on in our different classrooms, different grade levels, how the different curriculum tools demand use and don't demand use and then being able to share more of that with all of you but also with our community at large. And um certainly hearing that this is kind of a a growing question not just in district 96 but but in in general. So you know I think you're right Dan it was about screens and eyes and all that and then there was a lot of talk about social media and smartphones and was social media good for kids. Well I think it's really shifted more to like the instructional use of our technology
087um needs to be carefully examined too. So I I see that as likely emerging in our strategic plan as like perhaps a course study year. I think David and Dan both came on the kind of got involved with district 96 at the board level because of a tech steering committee at the time, right? So I I even wonder if something that was kind of build infrastructure, but I wonder if you know kind of the more thoughtful use and bringing more of the community into the conversation would be valuable in this next iteration of the plan. I would say too, I think I mean in the time that my seventh grader has been in school, um there was maybe one year where we were concerned about how much screen time was being utilized in the classroom
088that could have potentially that was probably more playtime than anything. And I would encourage parents if they have concerns to probably go straight to the teacher and ask about like how our devices being used in the classroom because you got to think I I was having this conversation with my seventh grader the other night and I like when we were in school when I was in school we use textbooks, right? I teach now and our my farm students all of their textbooks are online. Like I spent $1,200 on books my P2 year and they have everything online. The it's a different world that we live in. And I would also add that I think all of us stare at screens all day long. And we've all turned out sort of okay. Not kidding. But I
089I think I could see I I feel like in my kids's education, being a second grader and a seventh grader, I feel except for maybe the one year that there have been really thoughtful use of different apps for learning that are adaptive to my child that it's, you know, not a global classroom thing. It's like my kid using or my kid using I Ready. Um, and I appreciate that and I but I also get the feeling and I and from talking to both of them that they're getting much more other interaction and like so I I don't if a parent really feels like their kid is literally just on a screen all day, I they probably should talk to the teacher because I don't feel like that's how our curriculum is built. Um, and and
090I think we're I think we should use technology because we all we're not going to get away from it. Um, so I think using it in the classroom is such a great advantage and it does some great things that a teacher couldn't necessarily do individually like that you know the way the likel learns what you know and and does all that. So anyway, >> yeah, >> I would encourage >> but I I think that's a great point about like your your child's teachers can have the best sense of it because there is some discretion and we talk about responsible use but right now there is some discretion at different grade levels um and and how people use the different curriculum tools even uh two quick questions. Thank you um for presenting on this. I recall
091you you started out saying because you know the policy um so I believe that should be like 6235 but right no board AI policies required by by law but I know this board was interested in um you know kind of the steps that we could take to develop right something like this a plan responsible use guidelines for staff and students etc. Um at the time when this press policy came out, I know that um IASB was still waiting on some there wasn't a lot of like guidance out there. There was something from uh you know, Department of Ed before, you know, somebody was able to take something down from the Department of Ed website before it went away. Um but they were waiting on guidance from Isby. I don't know if anything's since come out
092and there was also so that's kind one thing. do is there more guidance now that's helped craft some of this um from ISBY and then they also talked about um trainings like trainings are are in very early stages and just to help like address teachers anxiety I think they were saying something like some percent 48% of districts had offered some type of teacher training um which was up from like 23% the year prior so I guess yeah are we thinking in addition to this incorporating some type of trainings in our institute days um etc. those two. >> So, yes, we are. So, I'm going to I'm going to work backwards. Um, so the the training we are um and we're we're actually starting with it now. Um, we're providing our staff with these uh guidelines
093kind of like we talked about. Um, but then it is also going to go into um kind of like the understanding AI and the basics of it. Um, and start kind of working our way into the I mean our little reporter said it, right? the how, what, where, when, and why of AI. Um because a lot of people don't know about it at all. So, it's important to start at the bottom and kind of work our way up. Um the com the AI committee that I have is also very a part of training for our staff and just not making sure that this is something that we have open and give to them that is available and say here you go. It's something that we say here's what we have found. here's the training that
094we want to provide you and here's what we think is going to be best for you um with guidance from us myself or if we're using a platform and we decide to go that route with our staff the platform would need to provide structured and guided professional development as well so that the resources and the tool of AI are are working together and that there's an understanding of what it is how it is and why it is that way. That's actually with the April 24th our half day coming up next week. We're going to do an AI Molly's gonna do >> we're doing a whole district. >> You didn't miss the the I know you typically share the agenda and I'm sorry if I missed it. >> Yeah. So when we have our half day
095there's there's going to be two sessions for our staff and the second one that we are doing throughout the for the whole district >> um is going to be a presentation on understanding and utilizing AI and what it >> I don't know if this was something staff sorry >> did we come out with guidance yet or maybe >> so they haven't come out with what I'm going to I'm not I'm not going to say it's guidance but they have come out with since that time um like foundational pieces that school districts have incorporated into their guidelines. Um, in creating the guidelines that we have for our staff here, they were also built in partnership with school districts that either our committee has talked to or we have we have seen theirs off of um, and
096are already utilizing. So, we kind of we compared other school districts that are of our size, whether they're in West 40 or or outside that have the same type of like foundation that we have. um and if they had an AI platform or tool or guidelines, we also worked in in tandem with their guidelines by figuring out how they got there, why they got there, what were the reasons behind it, um and comparing it to what is given to us. What is like I know that this is a rapidly evolving space but like eventually our students need to be able to have access to AI and utilize it right like that is just the world that they are living in today so like are there platforms for student use similar to some of the ones
097that you've explored for the teachers and like what's sort of the roadmap for us getting students educated on AI and you know teaching them all the things that we're going to be teaching the teachers during these upcoming sessions. >> Yeah. So, whatever we would land on for staff is what we would also land on for students. >> Um, and each place that we have talked to has has great professional development guidelines for staff and students. Um, whether it's online tutorials, whether it's in-person opportunities. Um, and I I feel the same way about it with students as I do with staff is I I if I'm going to give them something to use and it's something that we say that we are we are interested them in using I would want to make sure that there
098was some type of training that they could attend um that gave them the same knowledge that we gave staff not in the sense of here's the ins and outs of your staff your teachers side right but in the sense of how to use it how to use it correctly and why and why to use it and when to use it. um so that they're not kind of just like you said given something and said here you go you can use it. Um these platforms and tools will have AI pieces like that it most of them have like a chatbot so it'll they'll get the experience of using AI in a controlled environment that's safe. So they're they're not going to lose any resources or the need of using AI. It's just going to be in
099an environment where our teachers can make sure that they're utilizing it in in the proper way. I think this is I think this is great. I mean that we're coming up with these policies and I I'm really uh happy about that. I guess one question I do have is do any of these policies because I know in the private sector and I know a lot of these companies especially if they buy the paid versions there's like audit trails and auditing is I'm assuming is it correct to assume that these would provide that type of auditing because I >> they do provide the type of auditing that yes they do they have um >> util I'm sorry in utilization reports and what have you. >> Yes they they all they all do that on staff for
100staff and students. >> Okay. So we would be able to see breakdowns of use, what was being used, the times it was being used. We could audit what they're what they're putting into it. We could audit what's coming out of it. They do have they do have that piece to it. >> So I also wanted to comment like about this the screen time and I know when it first came out it was it was published like it was we talked about it. It was called like securely what's on our laptops. I'm just letting you know it there is a tool out there for the parents. So when the that Chromebook comes home, you can lock it down. I've done that. My kids hated that. >> Um but I have utilized it. So if you have
101problems with it at home, there is a tool that the district has. It's it's part I mean it's uh they manage it here, but once it leaves the BA building, you can manage it. And so I've managed my kids to my their disappointment because it's pretty granular. You can get it down. So on what you can do. So >> I think you can also get reports emailed to you. >> And you do. Yeah. >> Yeah. >> And you can get on demand reports too if you want. >> You can you can have them email too. And it it is a resource that we have and that we utilize. >> Um >> we uh we started fully utilizing it this year. kind of getting it integrated into younger, older, so that our parents could have the
102ability um from home to be able to see what is occurring on their students device while they're at home as well as lock down the device more um while the student is at home. And the great thing about this platform and and service that we have is that kind of like David was talking about is if you know your kid is on your Chromebook late at night or whatever it may be, you can set, you know, lock times on it. you as a parent can make the web filter stronger at home if you see something that you don't want them to access. Um there's a lot of features that our parents have access to. And when your student leaves home to come to school is when my policies for school set in place and your
103parent ones kind of just linger until the Chromebook comes back home. Um it is something that is on iPads and Chromebooks. Um but securely and I have been working through the the our K2 kids and the and the iPad aspect of it. We've been having some hiccups here and there. Um, but we are working through it so that all of our students for the new school year or sooner is my goal. Um, will have securely home available to all of their parents and it would be something that would be communicated to all of our parents at the beginning of the year so that we could kind of just start fresh and get that into the homes as well. >> And M I know Molly's been working with a couple parents directly. So, um, been copying
104on some of those emails. I know you're available to do that. So, thank you. Yes. Um but or like email you email tech support because I think there are some families like we're trying to this is another one of those like kind of parent education pieces. I don't know that we've made it real clear how to do it. >> Yeah. I think if there are parents or or there are people that have questions, they can definitely be directed to myself. Um our teachers were provided a great resource. Um, I made kind of like a one-pager that if a parent reached out and to a teacher and asking about it, like it's a PDF that the teacher can just send to the parent that has the instructions of how to log in, where to go to
105get support and things along those lines. Um, so I would say that either either way would be good to either contact me or to start with your classroom teacher because they do have the ability to give it to you as well. >> The next one just says thank you. So, any questions? Thank >> All right. Thank you. Thank you, >> Molly. >> All right. Uh I guess moving on. Uh is there any more public comment? >> All right. Uh so the next uh future meeting dates uh is May 6 uh committee of the whole meeting uh in the multi-purpose purpose room at uh Central Elementary. Uh May May 20th, the regular business meeting in the Hower Auditorium. June 3rd, committee of the whole meeting, 7 p.m. uh multi-purpose room at Hollywood Elementary. And June 17th,
106regular business meeting in the Hower Learning Center. And with that, uh this meeting is adjourned. Thank