FCPS School Board Action Meeting - March 26, 2026

001Good evening, Fyet County. Thank you for joining us for our first ever board talk. I'm Miranda Scully with Faget County Public Schools Office of Public Engagement, and we are excited to launch what we're calling the digital bridge between our community and board of education. During our 15-minute segment, we want to have honest, casual conversations about how to navigate and understand board meetings right before we actually walk into our board action meeting. Joining me tonight is Faget County Board of Education Board Chair Tyler Murphy. Tyler, thank you for joining us. >> Thanks for having me. I'm very excited about this new initiative. >> So, with board talk, I just described it as the digital bridge between the board of education and our community. In your own words, why is an initiative like this so important for

002our district right now? >> Well, as you said, it's a it's a bridge between board meeting and the community. The board meeting can look very formal. Um, there's a lot of uh legal requirements, procedures that we follow as we do the business of the district. Um, so the intent of this is to kind of show kind of the meaning and the substance behind some of that work and how it translates to the results that are happening on the ground here in Py County Public Schools. >> Right. and we definitely want to unveil what's behind the curtain during board meetings and we also want to get to know our board members a little better. So, let's start off by learning a little bit more about who you are. Um, tell us specifically about your role on

003the board as well as how long you've been serving our students. >> Well, I have uh been on the board for now going on eight years. I serve district 2 uh in Faget County. Uh, but really all of us board members uh serve for the needs of the entire community even though we're elected by a district. and then I've been the chair of the board for the past uh six years now. >> Thank you for your service. >> Thank you. Thank you. It is an honor uh because it's very important work because our public schools are the foundation of our community. They're the backbone of Fyet County. And uh they explain one of the reasons why Faget County has been as successful as we have been and a leader in the state and in the

004country. Uh but being on the board is is not a full-time job for any of us board members. And in my day job, I'm actually a public school educator in Bole County. um just southwest of here. So, it gives me another opportunity to serve students in a different community and in a different way. >> It's definitely beneficial for us as a school district to have an educator serving on our board. So, thank you for double duty service. So, um you don't serve alone. >> No. >> Uh there are additional board members that serve Faget County Public Schools. So, we'll do a quick little pop quiz to see if you can name off all five board members. >> Oh, yes. Um, so as serving district one, we have uh Monica Mundy. Uh, serve I've served district

005two. Uh, district three is uh board member uh Amy Green. And we have in district four Amanda Ferguson and then district five. District three is Penny Christian. District four is uh is Amanda Ferguson and then district five is Amy Green. >> All right. Pretty good under pressure. And um Amy Green is also serves as our vice chair. >> Amy Green serves as our vice chair. Yes. >> Okay. And so if um I want to know which board chair represents which board member represents myself in my area, how do I find that out? >> Well, if you go to fcps.net and click on uh board of education, uh you'll be able to see board districts. It lists all of the board members and then at the very bottom of that page um there's a link to

006type in your address and it'll give you uh the zones the school zones that you live in and it'll also give you your board district. >> Okay. >> So, I found who my board member my board member is. >> Um a common question that we often get is how do I know when to contact a board member? When is it appropriate to contact a board member versus uh contacting my school? Well, typically if there's a an issue that's specific to your child or uh a teacher or uh an initiative at the school level, you should always start with the educator in the classroom or your building leader, your campus leader, your principal or an administrator in the school. Now, if it's an issue that involves uh the governance of the district um and initiative of

007the board of education, a matter that's being considered uh by the board, um then it would be appropriate to contact a board member. And those matters are always posted on our website. So, every month um when we have a board meeting, the agenda is posted publicly uh for the community to view and see what's coming up on the board meeting. And then we also send out a uh newsletter after every meeting to let folks know what issues the board is discussing. So uh the board buzz and the board brief are another means to connect with the board so folks can can track that information. >> Right? And you can find all those things on our website. Um the other thing that is available on our website are our transparency dashboards. And so before the board

008meeting, we have a couple of screens um and a few staff members that are here prior to the action meeting. What are they showcasing on the screens? >> Those dashboards are very important because we get a lot of questions about the budget and about our monthly financial reports and and sometimes just listening to a board meeting presentation. Uh a lot of things can get lost in the frayer and the weeds. So those dashboards provide an opportunity to for folks to log in to look at information, see where the money is going, how it's being spent. You know, just a few weeks ago, I actually got a question uh from someone in the community about diesel fuel and how much we spent on that. Well, I was able to log into the dashboard and type in

009diesel fuel and boom, it popped up right there. And so that's a a a convenient way so folks in the community aren't sorting through hundreds of pages of PDF files. um it it makes the information accessible and available and then also allows an opportunity for followup. Uh but beyond just the budget, if you if you're curious about the organizational structure, um there's a list of staff salaries on there where you a database where you can search by staff members. So, we're trying to make as much of that information available and accessible and at folks fingertips as we can. >> Well, thank you for that. And we want to encourage anyone that is interested in accessing those dashboards, you can go to our website or you can join in here. um at the board meeting, prior

010to the board meeting, and come in and talk to a couple of our staff members about how to best navigate uh those those sites. >> So, we are about under 10 minutes before the actual board action meeting takes place. If this is my first time coming to a board meeting or watching online, what should I expect during the action meeting? >> The action meeting uh is a spot for us to do two things. One, to showcase the incredible work happening in our district. there's some type of a a spotlight, a showcase of our students, our schools, our staff doing incredible things. An opportunity for us to review some data and and track how we're doing in the context of our strategic plan, which really helps drive and guide our work. And then for us to

011do the governance of the district to consider uh anything from construction matters to um tonight we're we're talking about naming the new elementary on Greenell uh road which we're really excited to open. Uh as I said uh you know construction matters tonight the uh roof repairs on Paul Lawrence Dumbar will be on the agenda for approval. Um and then of course those those finance reports that I mentioned as well. And we one of the things folks will see on the website is there's a a governance calendar um where there are typical things that come up at the board meeting on a regular cadence. So um in May we'll consider a tenative budget and so those conversations are ongoing. Last February we did a budget workshop which was the preliminary process of the budget. So, uh,

012that's it really depends on the time of year on the particular topics that will be on the board agenda, but as a general matter, you're going to see that cadence of show celebrating and showcasing the work that's happening, reviewing the data in the context of our strategic plan, and then taking action for the governance and the forward movement of the district. >> Okay. And you mentioned the strategic plan. I'm going to come back to that in a second, but the action meeting is not the only time that the board convenes, correct? There's also a planning meeting. Can you talk a little bit about that? >> Yeah, the planning work session is really a chance for us to roll up our sleeves and do a deep dive. Usually two weeks before the action meeting, we review

013all of the action items uh that are coming up for the action meeting. Uh the superintendent and his team present the information. Uh we ask questions. It also gives us a chance to ask follow-up questions and then we have time to prepare ahead of the action meeting. Um, so think of the work session as a preview, a a first draft of the action meeting. And then it also allows us a chance to uh to figure out if there's more information or clarity that we need before moving forward. And then at both meetings, um, there's the opportunity for public comment uh, and so that we can hear uh, the voice of the public rather be it on an agenda item or on any topic of general concern. And if you miss a board meeting, there's opportunity

014to still recap and get the information. You mentioned the board buzz, but our meetings are recorded. Um, you can go back and watch those and the recaps as well. >> Yes. >> So, we are um just talked about board meetings um what happens twice a month, >> but let's talk bigger picture. Um going back to the strategic plan, what would you say is maybe the one or two top one or two priorities uh for the board right now? >> Number one is student success. I mean, that is why we're here. Um, it's it's why I walk into the classroom every day as a teacher. Uh, but it's also why I ran for the school board, right? And and I think all of our board members share that passion in the success of our students and

015how can we as a board um let that work happen and not get in the way of it? How can we support that work? And we've seen incredible growth in our students in the past few years. And and that's a direct result of being intentional about that work. and those investments. Uh and then the other piece is, you know, relates to what we were just talking about and that is uh being accessible, being transparent, being clear in the way we communicate how that governance happens, um what's happening and then how it translates to the work on the ground. So, so I would say those are the probably the two biggest commitments that student success intentional focus on student success and that in engagement piece and making sure we're clearly communicating uh the work that we're

016doing at the board level and how that's translating to um a change on the ground. >> And I like how board talk, this new initiative is going to help us showcase the student achievement even more, but also work on that communication and engagement piece with our community. >> Absolutely. So, we've got to the business of board meetings. Um, let's go back to being a little bit more personal. So, to help us get to know who's the person behind the chair being board chair title, um, share with us, what is your most memorable moment um, since joining the board? >> Oh gosh, there's so many. Um, but all of our graduations stand out to me to to me. The graduations in and of themselves make everything else worth it. uh because that is the culmination of

017the work that we're doing. When we see kids walk across the stage from all backgrounds, all experiences, all wearing their different sashes and cords that represent all of the things that they've been doing and the opportunities they've been taking advantage of in the district, and then knowing that all of them are walking out into a future that we can't even imagine as we sit here. uh but we know that they're going to have uh the the skills to be successful. And some of these students are walking off the stage on a Friday and going to work on a Monday. Some of them are walking off the stage and getting ready to go into uh the military or going to college or or whatever the case might be, but they have forged their own path. And

018that that the graduation fills me with energy and excitement. The other experience I really enjoy about board service is the opportunity to uh see our student performances. Uh, you know, I love getting the emails inviting me to a student performance and if I can make it, I try to be there. Uh, because the work uh and effort that our our our staff and the students put into those productions, it's incredible. And there it's a family, too. These uh there's so much time is poured into that. Um, but I I'm now I know I didn't answer just one moment, but even and for my school, I coach academic team and so we just had our state finals this weekend, but I ran into some of our Faget County students there and uh, you know, or when

019I'm at KY or Kuna, I see our Faget County schools represented. So, it reminds me of just how connected the work of education is in the Commonwealth and it energizes me. Yeah, I love hearing you talk about the graduations and student performance. As a mom with two little ones that will soon be Fed County Public School graduates, it makes me very proud to have leadership that's excited about graduation and be able to see them showcase their skills and talents. >> Thank you. >> All right. Well, Tyler, thank you for taking a moment to chat with us. Um before we head out of here, want to make sure that everyone's aware of the best way to get us your questions. uh we'll be back next month and so if you want to submit your question you

020can do that through our board buzz that um QR code and where you can find that on the website is listed and again the board buzz is also a great way to understand what took place during the board meeting so you have a quick recap of of what took place and then you can submit the questions that you want us to take into consideration for the next month. So I'm Miranda Scully and I'm joined with by Tyler Murphy and we'll see you guys next month. Thank you. >> Thank you. Heat. Heat. everything. Everything. Hey, hey. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. N. up. Oh, up. Wo! Woah! Up the wall. Pap up wall. of the world. Up the wall, of the world. Okay. Hey. I just told Are we good in the back? >> Okay. Good

021evening everybody. I will now call this regular meeting of the FA County Board of Education to order. Miss Jackson, good evening to you. Will you please take role? >> Good evening. >> Amanda Ferguson, >> present. >> Amy Green, >> present. >> Tyler Murphy, >> present. Penny Christian >> present. >> Monica Mundy >> present. >> Thank you Miss Jackson. I'd like to welcome everyone joining us for tonight's meeting both in person and on our broadcast. First on our agenda board vice chair Amy Green will lead us through our observation of a moment of silence followed by the pledge of allegiance and reading of the district mission statement. Vice Chair Green. >> Thank you Chair Murphy. Good evening everyone. Please join me for a moment of silence. Thank you. If you are able, please stand for the

022pledge of allegiance. >> I pledge allegiance 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. >> Thank you. The mission of Fyet County Public Schools is to create a collaborative community that ensures all students achieve at high levels and graduate prepared to excel in a global society. >> Thank you, Vice Green. Our first order of business is adoption of the agenda presented to entertain a motion to adopt tonight's agenda. >> I move we adopt tonight's agenda as presented. >> Motion by board me. Is there a second? >> Second War Mundy. Questions on adoption of the agenda? Any discussion? All in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Any opposed? Motion carries. 5-0. Uh, we

023like to open our schoolboard meetings by celebrating our talented students. And tonight, of course, is no exception. So, we invite FCPS Fine Arts in director Katherine Lther to come forward to introduce our spotlight for the month of March. Good evening, board chair Murphy, Dr. Ligins, and members of the board and our guests. I'm very excited to share with you tonight and introduce you to the Windburn Jazz Warriors. They're going to uh showcase a beloved piece that I had the opportunity to see by the original band um on Sunday night. Um and you're going to be very impressed and you're not going to be able to stop yourself from singing and tapping along. I'm going to introduce you to um Dr. Sher Baker who serves the district as a itinerary band director. She has been with

024Fay County Public Schools for 14 years and has taught uh director band at Windburn for eight years. She also serves Ashland Elementary School. Uh with her is Michael Monaou who is an eighth grade trombone player. You'll see him featured in the band as well. He has been in band since fifth grade at Ashland with Dr. Baker and looks forward to joining the Henry Clay band starting next year. So, I'm going to turn it over to Dr. Baker and Michael. Thank you, Dr. Lther. The Windburn Middle School band has 140 students in it, and that comprises about 70% of our school's 1800. 37 students are in jazz band. And this is students from both band and orchestra. As you'll see, courses offered at Winburn are sixth grade band, seventh grade band, and eighth grade band. Jazz

025band is currently an extracurricular that meets on Friday mornings before school. The Wimburn Concert Bands consistently earned distinguished ratings at KMEA large ensemble assessment. The jazz band has earned distinguished ratings in all of their KMA jazz assessments and won the Grand Champion Award at the 2025 Acclaim Music Festival in Lexington. The performance in this video was captured right before our March concert in the Winburn Gym. >> My name is Michael Buenoupe. I play the French horn in concert band and trombone and jazz band. What I like most about jazz band is the opportunity to learn new instruments, play harder music, and improve as a musician in many ways. The Wimberg Middle School Jazz Warriors are performing Journey Smash Hit, Don't Stop Believing, arranged by John Barry. Henry Clay High School's band director, Bill Kite, gave

026us a workshop in February. And students in jazz bands get opportunities to perform solos with us, both composed and improvised. The jazz band performs in various styles including swing, Latin, pop, funk, and rock. Wimburn band students have represented the new catchphrase of Watch Wimburn work well. This year we have had five allstate band musicians, multiple distinguished ratings at solo and ensemble festival and 22 all county band musicians. Wimber band students are well-rounded scholars and a treat and achieve high levels throughout the school. There are band members in nearly every sports team and club at our school. Please enjoy Don't Stop Believing performed by the award-winning Middle School Jazz Warriors. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. N. Down. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. Thank you very much. We appreciate that. And it's an important message

027we all need uh in this day and age is not to stop believing. So, thank you for sharing that with us. Uh so, between French horn and trombone, which do you prefer or does it just depend on if you're doing jazz or doing concert? >> Well, if I'm doing jazz, I prefer trombone. And in concert band, I prefer French horn. >> Okay. Have you have you done trombone in concert band before? No. >> Okay. >> Excellent. Well, we appreciate you sharing with us. We really do. And keep up the great work. And you're going to do be a great contribution to Henry Clay's band. >> Thank you. >> Excellent. Thank you. One more round of applause. >> At this time, I'll turn the agenda over to Superintendent Lincoln for the superintendent report. >> Thank you

028all so much. And that's a sharp suit, Michael. I like it. Um thank you um to all of you all. Um and cheer Murphy. Uh before we begin with our superintendence report, I'd like to add my own welcome to everyone joining us here this evening and watching online for tonight's meeting. First under the superintendence uh report this evening, I would like the kids champion recognition for March to go forward with uh the presenter um Bruno Tracy Bruno. Almost said Bruno Mars. Sorry. I wish. It's a far cry between the two of us. All right. We're excited to continue our partnership with Fort Bank, the proud sponsor of the FCPS Kids Champion Awards. Thanks to their generous support, each monthly honore will receive a monetary prize for the outstanding contributions to our students and schools. We're

029equally excited for the donation from 16 Ways Foundation. This month, we are thrilled to celebrate Mr. Joshua Wilson, a dedicated guidance specialist and social worker at the learning center. as the March Kids Champion. Mr. Wilson's unwavering commitment, compassion, and willingness to go above and beyond make him an invaluable member of the SCPS family. The nominator shared the following. Mr. Wilson is the heart and soul of the learning center. He has been with us since 2010 and has continuously improved the program every year since. He is innovative because he is one of the founders and creators of the statewide EOS system used to measure student PBIS data. This system allows for students to request one-on-one help, receive recognition referrals, allow parents to track behavior, saves con saves contacts to PLP, and so much more. He also

030designed our application system and process to TLC. His system allows for student voice and self- advocacy. This helps us ensure we serve the students who need TLC the most. His he champions student advocacy by leading our student government association and our TLC leadership class. He seeks student input on most decisions that directly impact them and lets the students handle problem solving, event planning, and fundraising with some guidance. He continuously looks for feedback and make sure that a variety of diverse opinions are heard and implemented throughout the school. This is why our fall festival and prom are two of our most successful school events. Mr. Wilson uses his position as guidance specialist to show empathy in all areas. He meets with students for a wide range of reasons and makes sure to give the amount same

031amount of dedication and concern to every individual. Even goes above and beyond to make sure that our families are engaged and and understand our school's resources and opportunities. He has literally saved many students lives and helped them get back on their feet in after times of crisis. Many of our student success stories are because of Mr. Wilson and his willingness to go above and beyond for every student who walks into his office. and he's incredibly knowledgeable. He created our SEAL, social emotional learning curriculum for for our advisory classes. He understands the development of students with trauma and we incorporate traumainformed practices in everything that we do with his guidance and and example. Different sol different students, excuse me, need different lessons and he accounts for all types of learners in his lessons. Students are responsive

032and engaging in self-growth because of his morning advisory lessons. The data we collect speaks to his accomplishments. Mr. Wilson is the embodiment of fun. He adds, he lights up the room with his goofy mannerisms and funny jokes. He's not afraid to embarrass himself or go out of his way to make sure everyone has a smile on their face. He chooses music in the morning to create a welcoming and exciting atmosphere. He creates fun activities like advisory scavenger hunts, candygrams, and fun shoutouts on the announcement announcements. He makes students feel like they belong, and he allows his staff to be themselves around him. His positive attitude even makes the toughest days a little bit brighter. Please join us in celebrating Mr. Wilson's incredible impact. We invite you to watch the special video created by FCPS Creative

033Media highlighting his story and the difference he makes each and every day. >> Good morning TLC. I know you're so happy to hear my voice. >> Good morning. To >> my knowledge, he's not ever received an award like this, so he's going to be very surprised. All right, I'm going to let you back. This isn't about me. It's about someone much cooler than me. One of the most prestigious awards that an educator wait for Mr. Wilson. I feel like I gave Mr. Wilson the wrong thing to read. Wilson, you are the champion. >> Good morning, Mr. Congratulations. That's your championship belt and this is your plat. Good morning everyone. >> All right guys, we have over 8,000 teachers and staff in our district and every single month we do something special for one of them.

034So there are only nine throughout the entire year and this month's for March is your Mr. Wilson. So give it up again guys. Were you surprised? >> Oh, yeah. >> I knew that we were going to have an assembly this morning. I got through the door. My principal said, "Hey, I need you to do your thing and and you need to announce this award." And I was like, "Okay, all right. Let's do this." I had no idea. I had no idea what was going on. >> He's the heartbeat of TLC. I felt like he needed just a shout out, a big award to say, "Hey, we see you and we value you and the work that you do matters." >> I try to come from a genuine space. I want kids to know that this

035energy is not fake. I genuinely am happy to be here with them. >> He does like nice stuff for people funny stuff and says funny stuff. >> He's a really good counselor and I'm super proud of him. >> He's not just a counselor to kids, but he's a counselor to staff as well. >> Mr. Wilson has been that guy that has been there that just really exemplifies what TLC is about. It is about that heart, about being there, about that support and that serving leadership. He just has this way of being honest with you. >> He almost never gets mad. >> Mr. Wilson is like our mascot. TLC would not be TLC without Mr. Wilson. The fun gives opportunity for kids to build camaraderie for staff to build camaraderie. We have to do things shoulder-to-shoulder

036before we can see things eye to eye. My name is Joshua Wilson and I am the kids champion. >> All right, Mr. Joshua Wilson, please come forward. Let's give him another round of applause for his dedication and service to our students and community. Congratulations. Thank you, board, and congratulations again, champ. Uh, next up this evening, it's my pleasure to welcome Toyota's North America's external affairs corporate communications senior analyst Kimzy and Fiad County Public School STR um, strategic partnership manager Carrie Rogers to provide an update to the work that has been happening as part of our driving possibilities grant. Good. Okay. Um I think Miss Whezzy has a handout for you guys. Is that okay if we bring that up? Um good evening board members. Thank you for having us tonight. My name is Carrie Rogers.

037Um I'm the strategic partnership manager for Fyet County Public Schools. And with me tonight I have Kimzy, corporate communications senior analyst at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky in Georgetown. Um we are here tonight to share an update with you about driving possibilities. Um that is an investment from the Toyota USA Foundation that we believe is one of the most meaningful partnerships that Faget County Public Schools has had in many many years. So we're excited to give you a little update on um where things are going, where they came from, and how we got here. So um if you have any questions, feel free to stop us or we can address those at the very end. So, a little bit of an overview um about Driving Possibilities. Um it's a Toyota USA Foundation initiative that partners with

038schools, nonprofits, community organizations to help students succeed both in school and the careers of tomorrow. Um we're really focused with this initiative on preparing youth for the careers while also addressing the root causes that impact learning. So, we provide innovative programs that increase STEM awareness and excitement, but we're also addressing the basic needs of students and families along the way. Um, I want to pass it over to Kimzy so she can tell you a little bit about Toyota's why behind this and how we got where we are. Thanks, Carrie. Um, as Carrie said, my name is Kimzy. um with Toyota Motor Manufacturing in Kentucky, but I also serve as the Kentucky driving possibilities site lead for both Fyet and Scott counties and um I also work as the liaison for our other manufacturing sites across

039the US who also have driving possibility initiatives. So, one of the things, and I do have to say this because I would be remiss if I you all know I do this. Um, anytime I address this group, I always like to start by saying I am a proud graduate of Brian Station High School. I'm a defender for life. I am a Wimburn Warrior for life and a Mary Todd Bulldog. So, I always like to get that in the record. So, um, but what I'd like to go ahead and talk about is a little bit about why Toyota moved forward in this initiative because there was a point a few years ago where we realized that over the next decade nearly 3.8 million manufacturing and STEM related jobs will be unavailable I mean sorry will be

040available and 1.9 million are expected to go unfulfilled. uh due to the skills gap. So this is one of the reasons that we wanted to move forward in this. Um our investment is deeply strategic on this. We wanted to make sure that our not only our students but our teachers as well as parents understood what types of jobs were going to be coming up in the future. Um these things are changing year by year by year and keeping up with this is incredibly important. Um, we w also wanted to try to make sure that if students were able to see what types of jobs were out there, be able to talk to people, be able to read about them, and really make this a part of their daily curriculum. It would help them understand and

041help plan and know what is available to them as they get older. Um, you always we always say it's a see it be it type of of situation here. We want these students to be as involved as possible. And the thing that I also want everyone to understand is we don't call this Toyota driving possibilities. This is something that we don't want to walk this path alone. We want other businesses to join in with us. We have had such a great experience with Faget County, with Scott County, and we want other businesses, other community partners to join alongside us as we discover the things that truly work in the classroom. And we want to we want to have this sustainable. So, we're going to encourage people who hear this and anyone who's out there to

042join this with us and make sure that this is not just a flash in the pan. It doesn't just last a few years. We want this to continue on because as we move forward and we increase workforce and we educate the workforce, everybody in this community wins. So, I will turn it back over to Carrie. >> Thanks, Kim. So, um, in let's see, September 2022, um, Toyota USA Foundation in Toyota Kentucky approached district leaders with an idea. They said, "Hey, we've got this thing called driving possibilities. We don't know where exactly it's going, but we want to improve our talent pipeline. We want to increase students interest in STEM. We want to make sure that they have access and that barriers are removed." Are you guys interested? Our leaders said, "Absolutely. We love a little

043innovation in public education especially if we are going to create graduates that are ready to excel in a global society. Um so together we sort of said okay let's do this thing. Um the thing that's really different about this driving possibilities initiative they have sites all over North America but they look different in each community and that is because Toyota uses what is called a community co-design approach. Um with co-design it just means when you design a program you design it with people not for people. So we make sure they have a seat and a voice at the table to tell us what we need to know before we start building things from the ground up. So we embarked on a community co-design process with the help of the National Center for Families Learning. They

044are Toyota's um sort of national convening partner on this initiative. Um they helped Fyet County come up with focus groups of students, educators, parents. Um, we had community organizations, business leaders, and they asked everybody sort of the same question, right? What do you believe the barriers to STEM education are in this community? And when I say this community, I should have specified. We mean the north side of Lexington, Brian Station feeder pattern, the six schools that are covered in the grant are Arlington, Mary Todd, Northern, Russell Cave, Windburn, and Brian Station. And yes, I have to say them in that order or I forget someone every time. Um so we talked to that community and we said you tell us what are the barriers what do you need? Um what you see in front of

045you is the driving possibilities framework. So Toyota believes this is sort of their northstar with driving possibilities. These are the core tenants. All of the programming that we create works within these four parameters. Um so the co-design team, a team of individuals who participated in the focus groups came together and distilled down all of the feedback they got from participants and they said okay what problems do we think we can solve here? What programs can we create to remove barriers and created logic models from that feedback and then the logic models were submitted to the Toyota USA Foundation um in the form of a grant proposal. So, in our first round of funding, um, which was awarded in sort of early spring summer, I know some of you were there for that announcement, um, of

0462023, we were awarded $2.7 million over the course of five years. Um, part of that, you'll see it's broken out into two pieces. Part was awarded to the Fyet Education Foundation as the district's fiscal sponsor on this grant. So, that just means they hold our money for us. And then 1.2 2 million was actually given to community organizations that support students and families in Fyet County public schools. And I'll go through those in just a second. Um so one piece of this was career connections. They funded my position as strategic partnership manager to help build meaningful and lasting industry connections. um the the purchase of Salesforce as a CRM to help us catalog those connections and make sure we're sharing them appropriately across schools and that partnerships don't live and die in an individual school

047building. Um language access was identified as a major barrier in this community. Um we hired two language ambassador positions. One functions strictly as an interpreter, the other fun functions as a multilingual family ambassador. So he's out building relationships with families, um, administering programming for families, different things like that. Those are the two pieces that were really awarded within Faget County Public Schools. The other two pieces, transportation was identified as a major barrier um, in this community and we were awarded the purchase of five Toyota Sienna minivans. Those reside at the schools. The purpose of those is really to provide some microtransit options. Microtransit just means smaller scale than right a giant school bus. And so when we've got kids who would love to participate in a STEM club or an afterchool program or maybe a

048career and technical ed student organization competition somewhere and a bus isn't feasible or available, we have that smallcale transportation option that the schools can sort of leverage whenever they need it. So that's been great. Um and then the other piece was heavy on family engagement. So the National Center for Families Learning is doing some family literacy programming with our families in this community and then um the Pritchard Committee for Academic Excellence is administering the simple program with this group of families as well. So um the one thing I always like to say about this, you'll notice um STEM isn't anywhere up there necessarily and this is a big STEM grant, right? Um, as you heard in the beginning, Toyota really wants to make sure that we are removing barriers for the whole child, the whole

049community, and so they're not just interested in STEM programming. And so when our co-design groups came together and had these initial conversations, what kept coming up over and over again is we felt like we needed to take some small bites around the outside of the apple before we dug into some heavy instructional stuff. And so that's why you'll notice with this first round of funding, we really approached some sort of mobility and basic needs and family supports before we dove into anything bigger. Um so the next iteration, phase two, was actually announced on Monday. We have another $2.3 million um over the next five years coming from the Toyota USA Foundation. Um that will all go to the Faget Education Foundation again as our fiscal agent. Um, and we have sort of four key areas

050that we're really excited to work within. Um, so we have a STEM teacher leader network. Um, we're going to make sure that our teachers are the experts in teaching science and math. And we have a group of teachers who jumped at this opportunity so fast. So, we are thrilled and honored for them to participate in that. Um, an administrator leadership network. So one of the things we heard consistently when doing this feedback especially with principles is they really appreciate that Fyet County gives them the opportunity to collaborate within what we call their cadre, right? So high schools with other high schools, middle school leaders with other middle school leaders. Um but what they wanted was time to come together as a a north side group of leaders and address the challenges in their specific area

051of town. And so they wanted to talk about how do we get kids who are in eighth grade at Winburn excited about what's happening at the academy model? How do we get fifth graders brave and excited to go see what Windburn has to hold for them as big sixth graders. So um we've built that time in and some leadership development for them. So I hope they're excited about that piece. Um we have new teacher support built in. We have support for teachers who are both new to teaching profession and new to Fyet County Public Schools. And then we're going to work with our teachers to design some STEM camps to extend that out of learning time. And all of that is going to be in partnership with Pimser. Um for those that aren't familiar, partnership

052institute for math science education reform. Um I think they wrote the book on all things science and math education in Kentucky. So we are thrilled to partner with them on this work and I think our schools are very excited as well. So before we get into questions, I want to share two stories with you all quickly. Um, I think we've talked about data and that's sort of the facts, but the stories is is where the interesting bit is, at least for me. Um, and two sort of programming pieces we're really proud of from the last year. One is a partnership with Junior Achievement of the Bluegrass. Um, Junior Achievement has a program called High School Heroes. They train high school students in facilitating financial literacy training. Um and so our teaching and learning students from

053Brian Station High School um have been trained in the um high school heroes program with Junior Achievement and they have been going to Northern Elementary to train those fifth grade students in financial literacy. So that's been really exciting for them to sort of again do that cross collaboration from our high schools all the way down to our elementary schools. Um and then the other partnership we're excited about is um in all of these co-designes sessions, one of the things that came up again this idea that we get our elementary kids in the middle in the middle and the high and so on and we really bring the pride into this feeder pattern and our high school teachers and administrators said we want to do a camp. We want to bring these guys in. So let's

054host a STEM camp for them and show them what it looks like to be a student at Brian Station High Schoolmies. And so the teachers and administrators created the academy explorers camp and it is more or less a academy model in a week. These kids get to bounce around to the various program areas and work with robots and family and consumer science and they made us wonderful pizzas and desserts um and learn all kinds of things and get excited about their time at Brian Station. And that was all led by the student ambassadors over there um and then our amazing teachers who who volunteered for that so quickly. So, um, that one gained enough momentum that we're planning to do it again in the summer of 2026. Um, so that's where we are. Questions? >>

055Any questions? Board members, >> former Green, >> I would just like to say I am so appreciative for the partnership that you all have with us with this project in the past and I know going forward. I think you also a gold standard um for partnering with Fyet County and the core of everything you do is that's what best for students to increase their access and opportunity. So thank you. I know you represent both of you represent a huge conglomerate of investment and time and dedication to our students. But I think it's important that we say thank you to you because it makes a difference in the lives of our students, in the lives of our educators and our families. I've heard so much feed positive feedback about what you've implemented the past few years.

056the language access. Um, hearing about the the printers that you got that can translate in a moment. Um, the additional ambassadors, language ambassadors, how families have been able to sit down and have conversations and, you know, um, conferences with their with their families, their their students families. Um, and so and I've seen the vans in action and I know what as a parent I know how important it is to provide that extra step to make it to something to be able to participate because students want to do that and sometimes those are the things that really make their heart sing about why they're excited about school and so being able to create that pathway so they can participate is so important. I'm also very excited about what you have coming forward. Um the next step,

057the four things that you mentioned and I absolutely love this idea of a camp to really um bring the whole feeder pattern and be excited about that high school selfishly. I hope that all of our feeder patterns copy that example um so that through all of our feeder patterns in Fyet County um we can be excited about where they're headed and because every um neighborhood is special and unique and I want everyone to celebrate that. But thank you for what you do. Please continue to share with us if there's additional needs and partnerships from the board. I'd be I'd be excited to hear that. So, thank >> we'd love for you all to come out to some of our camps and some things. So, we'd love to have you visit. So, >> thank you. Anything

058else Monday? Um, just quickly I want to say thank you um, for sharing your model and your model made me pretty darn excited. Um, because you started exactly where a lot of family engagement and community engagement needs to start with like asking the question even if you are from the community, what does this community need? Um, and I think you really drilled down on a lot of areas that families really struggle with um, and that transportation being one of them. I mean, it's one of the biggest barriers um that we see and it's just going to make your camps and all your forward endeavors even more stronger um higher participation, right? Because you you've starting to crack the code on some of the you know the the things that keep families away um from these

059types of opportunities. And I just wanted to say thank you and I'm going to look into your model. It is exciting. >> Please do. And one thing I I do want to go ahead and say too is that one of the reasons that um Faget County was selected as well as Scott County was these are these are places that are right in our backyard. And not only do we want um to be able to invest financially, but also, you know, the things that we know, the things that we have been able to learn as well, but our team members, and I speak for the nearly 10,000 team members that are on the Georgetown campus that have uh really wanted to get involved, and we've brought them out as volunteers. they've connected us with other people

060and taking those uh those folks in so the students can meet them and they can meet the students they have absolutely loved being part of this so it's it's been a great opportunity for them as well and I again another reason to encourage other businesses to do this um we don't want people to just be citizens we want them to be participants in their community >> thank you and I will say um echoing what the others have said. I will also add that while I know that you don't put the label Toyota driving possibilities on it, um I we do appreciate your partnership um because um you all are a community partner um that doesn't just talk the talk, you walk the walk. And uh we've seen you not just here at board meetings but

061in multiple settings um advocating for our students, partnering with our educators and again pardon the pun, driving helping us drive the district forward. Um driving possibilities isn't just a name and um so we appreciate that and that that does not go unnoticed. and I have learned a lot and as I've told many of you that I now consider myself ESL I am an education as a second language I am still learning so I continue to want to learn so thank you all >> well and as I tell my students learning is a lifelong process that doesn't stop when you get that diploma so we're all continuing to learn so thank you so much >> thank you Kim and Carrie very much >> for collaborating for our students that makes a huge difference uh the final

062item Under this evening superintendent's report is our community partnership spotlight. Here to introduce that presentation is um our executive director of public engagement, Miranda Scully. Good evening, members of the board and superintendent Ligins and those joining us tonight. It is my honor to introduce one of our 2025 Golden Apple Award recipients, Miss Don Webb of Grace United Lutheran Episcopal Church. What began as a desire to serve at Mil Creek Elementary School has blossomed into a sweeping partnership that directly supports our students, our schools, and our families throughout the Tates Creek High School feeder pattern. Whether she and her church members are standing in the snow handing out gloves uh in pizza or organizing a spooky night for neighborhood safety, Miss Webb embodies the belief that every child deserves a village. It is my pleasure to

063welcome Miss Webb along with Brianna Romo from Mil Creek Elementary School and Skyler Reid from Tates Creek Elementary School. >> Thank you and thank you for having us here this evening. Um there's some really exciting things happening on the southside and the Tates Creek High School feeder patterns um things and I brought slides with me because pictures have a say a thou a a lot more than I can ever say but I just wanted to talk about a few things that are exciting that's happening. First of I want to thank you all for having us here this evening and I also want to take a moment and thank these wonderful women that are pictured here. They are the people that are in your school that are really doing they're really doing a great job. Um

064Joani Louie is the first person at Mil Creek Elementary. Work very close with her. I'm probably there every week with her at one point or another. Um Carissa Lip is a face leazison here um at the office of public engagement. Again, see her at least every week um doing some of the stuff we're doing. Sierra Spalding is another face leaison um from the office of public engagement. And I cannot say enough for these women and how much they serve your students and they really have a passion for engaging the family and the community. So I really I I'm very honored to work with these women. So I wanted to talk about when we first started um our I'm the community engagement coordinator at our church and about 8 to 10 years ago um we wanted

065to start doing something in the community. So we did we got in contact with Mil Creek Elementary and they had some things we could help with and we kind of helped with those things and a couple of years ago I met Cararissa Lip and she is a driver for doing community and family engagement and I also met Joani Louie and Sierra Spalding and we decided there's a lot of stuff going on that maybe there's some things we can do about that affect the students here in Faget County. And so, um, I'm a very, very part-time person at our church. And so, a lot of this, and that's how I got to the volunteer portion of this. And so, one of the first things is at Mil Creek Elementary, the their survey results showed that families

066wanted a way to connect with each other. They didn't have that opportunity. And so, the three of us sat down and we came up with Tuesday Talks. And the goal of Tuesday talks is to provide regular event where families could connect with each each other. These are actually pictures from some of the ones that we've had. We we keep it very simple. We have a monthly get together on the second Tuesday of the month. We have it starting at 7 o'clock in the morning. During warm months, we set up outside with a tent right where everybody can see us. During the colder months, we go into the music room because that's the room that we can use during that time period that's not being used by somebody else. We provide coffee and donuts. The big

067key to this is we do not have an agenda. We allow the parents and the family members just to have that time and that space. Now, there's those of us who are there to facilitate discussions if somebody's sitting off by themselves to make those connections. And the the thing this was Joannie Louie's um idea and it's brilliant. She incentivizes the students to bring their parents. So the students if they bring a parent they can get lunch bunch tickets which means they and two friends get to come eat lunch with her in her office and it's very popular. That's usually what she does a lot of the time during her lunch hour. I'm just going to tell you that. And they love that. And then we dismiss the kids to the school and then the parents

068have their time. The other thing is um we have now have several parent volunteers. In fact, um Briana's mom is one of our key parent volunteers at this point. When we had this the first time, we had six families. We had over 50 people show up in March and that's having to come inside, which is a big deal. And the other thing is I just want everybody to know because I don't know if you all know this, but it won the family engagement award at the state furniture committee conference this past June. The other thing is um we also another sur part of the survey showed that families did not feel connected to the school. There was problems families didn't feel comfortable coming in and it's not the school. I know this is across the

069schools across schools a lot of places. Um families just there was just not that connection and so we thought well let's just go to them. So we did we developed um what was called community popups and it's the goals are to build community between residents school staff and we do have community partners that come as well. The big thing that we wanted to do is we wanted to be able to bring resources to the people where they live especially those that transportation is an issue and that has been something that's worked really well. And we also wanted to have a place where people the residents could build community amongst themselves because we know a village really supports kids and that's very important. So the other thing so we kept this very simple. We did not

070have any money. We did not have anything. We just had a bunch of stuff. So we did it and we we worked with um different apartment complexes. Um we have a very close relationship now with um Renee Christian who's the head of the South Lexington Housing Authority and um we did pick one apartment complex last year to do it in because they had had recent violence right within the complex and we felt like that was really important to go back in there and reclaim that space for good for the students and the people living there. So what we do is we go set up a couple pop-up tents. We bring some tables. We have food. We have food. Um the food we have donated by community partners. We've written some grants now to hopefully get

071that. Um we have music activities, book giveaways. And then the big thing is we have community resource people there and we just have a little mini festival in the middle of the apartment complex. And um we also try to do door prizes which kind of encourage it people. So the revol results is it's really funny. We had the first one at a Mill Creek apartment complex and it's really funny. The next day the kids were like, "So, Miss Joannie, when were you have when you coming back? When are you coming back?" So, they really like it. Um, we getting we at first we had mostly children attend, but now we're getting a lot of the adults to come, which is what we really the core was to get that um family engagement. And the the

072needed resources have been very helpful. And um what they have noticed at Mil Creek is the more engagement they're getting more engagement with this the school, the parents coming into the family coming into school as these trusting relationships are built on what we call their turf. And the one where we did the community where the community violence happened was a beautiful night of reclaiming that space for good. It was it was very powerful. And the other thing is it was so good we did two at Tates Creek Elementary and one at Landtown Elementary. This is the one that Tates, the two that Tates Creek did. Um Joshley is down here with um holding with his arm around the student. He absolutely aced knocked it out of the the park with the first one he did.

073It was incredible. It was at Fington and um I just wanted to shout a shout out to him because he was just great. He did a fantastic job. The last thing I want to talk to you about is we do State Creek Community Student Student Outreach. This was developed by one Lexington in response to Falcon Crest Apartments which is a housing authority complex. They were concerned about they were having some after school problems with students there and so they started this partners this partnership with them the student outreach. It worked really well. They only could do it a couple months. So they needed a partner to turn it over and so we stepped to the plate and did it. And um it has turned into a phenomenal thing. And the biggest thing we're here we

074want to do is develop those mentoring relationships with students and also this is an area that has a high food insecurity and everybody eats so everybody has dignity. We nobody is singled out. Uh the logistics is on Mondays we set up at the age edge of Tates Creek Elementary School which is next to the walkthrough frath for Falcon Crest Apartments. Um, this past week we had 139 students which we ended up with a little bit less pizza than we needed. So, we're fixing that next week. On Wednesdays we set up in Gainesway Park right by Takes Creek Community Center. This past week we had um yesterday we had 176 students. And um food is furnished through grants, community partners, local businesses and community members. And um the logistics is we just have pizza or snacks

075and as the students walk home from school, we just say, "Hi, how you doing? You want some food?" And we make sure every student is greeted with a smile. And then we asked them how their day was at school. And we make sure we have volunteers serving food, but also we have people walking around as students are ming mingling and stuff and just asking them how their day was. And and we've made some really good relationships. But the biggest thing is we've seen some really nice changes in students over time. It's been really really neat to see. And we also want to make sure that this is a place where students have a voice in what happens. And so we we asked them, so what would make student outreach better? We asked that a couple

076weeks ago and most of them said they want chicken tenders. So Cararissa has has secured us chicken tenders in the next couple of weeks. They'll be so excited. Um and Civic Lex is working with us now. They have a grant to make Gainesway Park um more accessible and better. And so they are helping us fund the student outreach because it makes that park safer and they have been asking the kids directly what they want to see in the park and how they feel in the park. And we've had incredible results. The biggest thing is we wanted community in the the name of this because we wanted to make sure we had plenty of community people. We now have local neighborhood people that come. We have people that come from the community. We have all kind

077of community partners. We have some faith communities that come. And the nice um the nice thing about this is um we were told by one Lexington that they saw a significant decrease in fights once we started this outreach in Gainesway Park which very definitely benefits your students. And we are because we developed these relationships. Kids tend to tell us more than they tell everybody else. And so if we need to, we can make referrals and um and to to the schools and to other organizations. The biggest thing is they love to tell us their accomplishments. Last spring when they did the MAP testing, every single one of them that met their goal or exceeded their goal, they could not wait to come to student outreach to tell us that they had done that, which was

078really neat. And the other thing is they can tell us. I had one kid that come came to me today and he goes, "I spazzed out at school today." And I said, "Why did you spazed out at school today?" and he told me it was some beef. And I said, "So, how'd you handle it?" And he said, "Well, I didn't handle it well." I said, "Well, maybe maybe you know." So, we can have those conversations in in a way that's not like we're the authority figure. It's more of a an adult type thing. And we, like I said, we've seen many indices schools. And then, um, the one thing that's very exciting, we're expanding to Aian Way Apartments as the kids are getting off the bus. Um, we're start April. If that works, we have

079written a grant. We're trying to do that at Walnut Hill Apartments and Center Meadows as well. And um and so um let me go on to the next thing. I just want to talk real quick. Takes Creek Coalition. We grew we started a Tates Creek Church coalition and invited partners and it turned out to everybody liked it so much. We're all working together. Had a wonderful meeting this morning talking about how are we going to engage kids in Gainesway Park so we don't end up with all the fighting again. What can we do? How can we engage families more? And um that's all I have. And I brought my two students with me. My unfortunately the third one could not come tonight at the last minute, but um uh Skyler since we talked about student

080outreach last. Um Skyler is um comes to student outreach on a regular basis. It's it's not on. So, and I asked her to just talk about what does student outreach mean to you and um what do you like about it? You got it. So, ask the question first. What's your favorite thing about SC student outreach? My favorite thing about my favorite thing about student outreach is that they give like every time we come to them and everything, they always greet us and they smile and they're nice to us whenever we come. >> And what is there been things that have been that have been good that um what does it what does it kind of mean to you when we're there? To me, it kind of means that like it shows me I'm in like

081a safe community and everything and I can trust you guys and I enjoy coming to the what they whatever. I haven't really been to any of the popups, but also I' since I've seen all the pictures today, seems like everybody's happy during them. Um, I've seen a lot of smile on people's faces once they come to the student outreach. >> Um, the student pop out. She just found out that there's going to be one in her neighborhood in May. >> Any anything else you want to say? You did a great job. Anything else? >> I enjoy seeing their faces and it brings joy to my day. >> Thank you. All right. And this is Briana and she's from Mil Creek Elementary and she wants to talk about the community popup. She has been to several

082because we started these on the Mil Creek side. Um, I like um when they do fun stuff and when they usually like have um snacks and all that because then we get all our energy, then we have all then we're all over the place. >> They do. What what's your favorite fun thing to do there? What's your favorite activity that they have? >> Um, >> I like to uh >> too many to choose from. >> What's your favorite? I like the crafts that they have. >> Anything else you want to >> Let's give him Thank you. We appreciate we appreciate your partnership um and for showcasing that. >> All righty. Thank you all again so much for this partnership. Um finally this evening I'm excited to able to share the graduation dates for the class

083of 2026 with you tonight. Uh, students from Frederick Douglas High School will graduate on Thursday, June 4th. 2026 at 10:00 a.m. Students from Henry Clay High School will graduate on Thursday, June 4th at 2:00 p.m. Students from Lafayette High School will graduate on Thursday, June 4th at 6:00 p.m. And for Friday, June 5th, we have Tates Creek High School at 10:00 a.m. Students from Brian Station High School will graduate Thursday. Uh, I mean, yes. No, Friday, June 5th, um, at 2 PM and Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School will graduate that Thursday at that Friday, I'm sorry, again, June 5th at 6:00 p.m. Um, also pending board approval, the last day of school for students will be scheduled as Wednesday, June 3rd. That concludes the superintendent report for this evening, and I will now turn the

084meeting back over to you, Chairman Murphy. Thank you, Superintendent Ligins. Uh that graduation will be here quicker than we realize, as I keep trying to remind my seniors each day. Uh our next on our agenda is a time for public comment. Fay County Board of Education policy 01.45 states, "Members of the public may address the board during the period set aside by the board without submitting an item for the agenda. No action shall be taken during this portion of the meeting on issues raised by the employees or the public unless deemed an emergency. um at the beginning of the meeting. Now, members of the public who have signed up prior to the meeting are invited to speak on items that are on the agenda. Um and we just want to remind speakers that props will

085not be permitted on the dis and uh there have been some documents left in the uh container at the speaker signup and those are going to be distributed to board members um during that portion of the meeting. Speakers will not be allowed to make any disparaging or critical remarks about individuals or employees of the district. Those issues are processed through the district's complaint procedures, which afford the individuals to whom comments or complaints are directed the opportunity for response and due process. Furthermore, members of the public are encouraged to model civil and respectful discourse and conduct. It's not intended to be a time for debate or direct engagement. However, the board will take the public's input into consideration when making final decisions this evening. So at this point uh I'd also a couple of other reminders.

086Uh the time allotted to individuals uh is at the discretion of the chair depending on the total number of speakers and lateness of the hour. However, in consideration of others opportunities to speak, individual speakers will be limited to a total of 9 minutes at each meeting including any time yielded to them by other speakers. Uh and speakers addressing the board may receive yielded time from no more than two individuals who have signed up to speak in accordance with established procedures. Individuals yielding time must be present when their time is yielded and time may only be yielded to individuals who have signed up to speak in accordance with the procedures. We have I believe six individuals and that incl individuals who have been yielded time or who have signed up to speak this evening and our

087first speaker and we'll just ask them to come to the podium and the timer will appear on the screen behind me. Um our first speaker will be Adriel Camule and she has had time yielded by Nema Brewer. Is Miss Brewer here? Okay. So um you will have a total of six minutes. >> Well, thank you all. I appreciate it. Um so I'm Adriel Camuel. I'm a Faget County hourly employee. Um also have a dual role as a state representative in the general assembly. Um I was trying to craft what I wanted my my remarks while I was sitting here because I well I came here straight from from session. So, I just have a couple of things that I that I wanted to make sure that I shared um with um members of the board

088and um and also members of the audience, those watching at home and here. Um there were there were some comments made when we we know that we have a shortfall. We're looking at ways to solve that budget shortfall. Um, as I understand, as I as I watched a previous video, um, an opportunity to potentially save $2 million, um, has been one one option proposed was to cut, um, classified hourly employees, specifically 12-month employees, by 5 days. I just want to make sure that everybody is aware of historically what has happened with 12 month classified hourly employees. Um, and by the way, the only reason I'm here today is because I did get so many emails and texts from individuals who are concerned about the potential cut. Um, so I'm here advocating for my colleagues, my

089constituents, um, as well as the librarians. Um, the love of books is a gift. Reading is the key to knowledge, and they are the ones that help our kids put down screens, put down their phones, pick up books, and explore. They learn, and they use their imagination. So, I I tip my hat and thank the librarians that are here. So, a little bit of background. In 2015, the district found itself in a little bit of a financial pickle. Um, we were $20 million uh short in what we thought was in our coffers, so to speak. The auditor of public accounts completed his audit. Um, and district leaders, that was Adam Edel at the time, he came up with some suggestions. district leaders and some who are with us today uh found that one way to

090address part of this budget shortfall at the time was to cut the work calendars of some categories of employees. Some groups after a couple of years did get some days reinstated but classified 12-month classified hourly employees never got our days back. Um, this dropped some of the lowest paid employees in the district to an annual contract of not 20080 hours, which is the the regular um full-time employee for an hour employment for an hourly employee, but dropped us to 240 hours. We lost a week of pay. This cut in days impacts hourly employees year over year. and the dollars lost are compounded yearover-year and reflected in perhaps um our most important benefit um and that is our pension. Let me explain how this benefit is impacted. Classified hourly employees are part of a county employees

091retirement system that's CERS. Um it is different from KTRS which is um what members or what individuals who are certified teachers or um classified I'm sorry certified salary or salaried individuals in the district. KTRS is a vastly different uh pension system and the payout is is much more generous. Um so classified hourly employees I'm in tier 2. There's multiple tiers. um in tier 2 um the for me I don't get paid on my highest five years I get paid out my pension on my um last five years so if there's another cut to our hours that will directly impact my benefit that is my pension benefit um and just to do a little bit of math with you all I had one employee reach out to me today um who's actually topped out at the

092classified hourly pay schedule for her grade meaning although she needs to work for a few more years before she can retire, she will not earn any more per hour unless the the uh district increases the salary schedule um by whatever percent. So, let's just say that um at 280 hours, she earns $29.17 uh an hour. Um multiply that by 2080, that's $60,673.60. But because of that initial fiveday cut, that drops it down to 20 $29.17 an hour times 240 hours, which is 5950680. But now if you take us down to 2,000 hours, that's 29 that's 2917* 2000 is 58,340. And I know for some people this does not sound like a large cut, but when you make and and this is a generous this is a generous hourly rate, but when you make an hourly

093rate and then you or when you're an hourly employee and then your your contract is cut, those cuts impact us in a much greater way than if we are high earners in the district. Just because we're hourly employees does not make our less or our work less impactful or less important to the district. we are the ones who actually help keep this engine running. Um so overall with another cut for an average employee um that means that the loss will be a total of $2,33360. That is a direct impact on their pension. That will that will cause people to have to work more multiple jobs or seasonal work like so many of Faget County employees are doing right now. Um, I think that whatever has whatever whatever has gone out, whatever information has been shared

094or whatever the concern is, the fears are real because these cuts are coming at a time when affordability is the issue. Housing prices are through the roof. Grocery prices are are astronomical. We've got health care and higher uh uh higher uh deductibles and out-of- pocket maxes, car repairs, everything. Everything in life is taking more, but to cut to cut these these employees is a mistake and a travesty. Thank you all. >> Thank you for your time. >> Chair Murphy, just a point of clarification um that we don't have any final recommendations or decisions that we made on next year's budget. Um >> information rumor, >> correct? We just want to make sure people know there's no there's no been no final on on work calendars or any related matters. >> Yeah. >> Our next speaker

095is uh Katherine Blair. Miss Blair, you will have three minutes. >> Good evening. Pardon? Okay. Um, I'm here talking about the budget as well. I'm very concerned about it. I am a special education teacher in a very poor school. Um, we are all concerned. It's not just me. It's teachers. It is par educators. It's custodians. All these people that we were just a month ago saying, "Yay, thank you for getting our parking lots empty uh cleared off for us." is one of the ones that potentially would be impacted. As much as we appreciate Dr. Ligins emailing us this afternoon to try and ease our fears, it does not ease our fears. It only adds to it. I did get a survey asking about the $150 or $200 a year stipen that you were given to

096the teachers. Um I can't remember exactly what it was this year. It's varied a little bit. Um but I did appreciate that. Um, one of the problems that happened with this was we had to pay for this upfront. So, we have to pay for the for whatever we get the $200. Then we need to wait till December to get reimbured for it and then we don't get reimbursed for the taxes because Faget County can't pay for the taxes, you know, for the legalities. So, that's, you know, that was a nice offer. I was able to really get a special education crash pad for the kids that needed it that I had been denied several times in the past trying to get it. So, it's not that we want luxury things. It's that we want things

097the kids need. We want para educators to be able to come into the school building and work one job. They have they work 35 hours a week. That's what they get paid. They're not getting paid 40 hours a week. that would help but there's no money for that. Um the parah educators especially the sped paras that that I work with are the most hardworking people you will ever be with and they work hard and the fact that we are saying there's too many pareducators means that you guys need to come into the schools and see what exactly they're doing because I do not know one that is not working their behinds off. So, I think it was last year or so, we were talking about disability insurance and they were like, "Oh, we can't pay

098for it anymore. It's only $20 a month." Well, that $20 a month, if you do the math, is $480 a year for people who don't make a lot of money. I mean, teachers make more than parents, but we're still not all rich here. So, these staff members are critical for us to run our schools. We are going to have trouble retaining staff when their pay continues to be reduced. And I will ask not to cut hours of staff to make ends meet. Custodians, we I mean we need these people. You guys can't run the school without us. >> We could run it without you. >> Thank you for your time. Our next speaker this evening is uh Sheresa Bentley Krovo with time yielded from Amber Ferris. Is Miss Ferris here? Very good. So you will

099have six minutes. >> I've provided you all a QR code so that you can have access to a larger document and save paper and not print all that for you. But um were you able to open it? Yeah. Okay. Um, so actually thank you for coming to visit yesterday. Sorry I didn't get to see you, but um I guess you all didn't have enough time because you were seeing all the building issues. Um, and that's what I'm here to speak about is item J. Uh, I have taught at Dumbar for 18 years. Um, the only time that my room has ever been painted was when I did it. The only new furniture is when I buy it and reupholster it or fix it. My blinds that are in my room I hung myself. Um that

100is not even scratching the surface of the condition of our building. Uh it is rapidly deteriorated over uh you know the last I would say 5 to 10 years. Um which you all know has been happening because it's in the document. In 2014, Miss Reigns met uh with uh who was formerly in charge of building a grounds um before who's here now, but there was problems identified and they said they were going to be fixed or rectified. They It's been the bare minimum for so long that things are just falling apart. I don't remember over the last few years where we've consistently had our floors covered, creating tripping hazards. Uh the plumbing is at a critical state where like we don't have a dishwasher that we can use in the cafeteria. The bathrooms don't work

101down there because of the plumbing. There is a constant smell that is, you know, we don't know if we walk in one day it's gonna be the it it literally has a name, the Dumbar Funk. Like it has a name. You smelled it. Okay. Um, so, um, like we had buckets in the cafeteria at one point to try to clean stuff because we didn't have water or a dishwasher to do that. Like I feel like it's a health code violation waiting to happen. Um, there's not enough bathrooms for us to actually use. Teachers have barely enough time between classes to run to the bathroom, but the line is so long that we don't even get to go. And that's the same thing that's happening to the kids all day long. Um, sorry, I'm trying to

102speak fast. Uh, I collected some information for you all to just show you. In the last, well, since October 2023, we've had 1,35 building maintenance requests. 248 are plumbing, and the only thing we're getting is a new roof and some tiles to put back down that are just going to come right back up. Um, I know that the quote was $250,000 to fix the floor, but I mean, they're coming back up anyway. Every time they come in and they put them down, they come back up. The guy that came and did the quote and was measuring was like nothing act I was there while I was measuring and I he was like that doesn't match up with that and that doesn't match up with that. There's huge cracks up and down the walls that are

103in an actual cement block all the way down that go all the way up to the joist that holds two wings of the of the building together. And I'm not an engineer, but I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to look like that. There are huge cracks between the wall and the floor that you can stick your fingers in where the wall is separating from the floor. I walked in, I don't know, two, three weeks ago, Mr. Adams was out front. We're setting up metal detectors and a mouse fell from the ceiling in the front lobby of our school three weeks ago. I've killed Well, I I got some noise things now that seem to help, but I killed 32 mice just in my classroom in one year. like it is it's reaching a point that

104is not we're not able to function as a school and our school guys we are number one on niche we're number two on US News for Faget County we are a 60% minority school 90% plus graduation rate we have one of the top five STEM programs in the state we are the number three best college prep high school in the state and the same Everything's happening at Lafayette and they're they're a top performing school. Like is this the best we have to offer our kids? Like this is not okay. And it's it's not just that like stuff isn't getting fixed. It's the ceiling is falling in. Like we when I walk in every day, I don't know if there's going to be a waterfall in the room next to me and I'm going to have

105to turn around and relocate my entire department into different areas of the building and hang up signs and relocate kids. And it's it's just constant chaos with our building and it's all over the building. We on on uh February 23rd had so much smoke that it was rolling out the doors and no fire alarms went off. Not a single fire alarm went off in our building. That's not safe for these kids. And I know I speak up when stuff is not going well and I'm known for that and I have no problem with that. But like people are scared to say anything because they they don't want our enrollment numbers to go down. But we are still performing. We're still like trying to do the best we can with what we have. But we don't

106have much left. We barely have bathrooms. We don't have a floor. We don't have a fire alarm that went off when the auditorium was full of smoke. Like none of these things are okay. The amount of mice, like the air quality, the the mold. There's pictures over 80 pictures of our building and those are just from this year. like the over 80 pictures just from this year. Um the floor drains in the cafeteria, we had sewage backing up through. That's clearly not healthy. Um we have um I'm so sorry. I'm trying to go through all these numbers really quick. Um but hold on one second. I'm so sorry. Uh we've got 114 requests for electronic stuff. Uh 143 general maintenance request. 107 heating, vent, and HVAC. Um, our roof. >> Thank you. >> You can

107finish your sentence and then you >> Yes. Um, I was just going to say we were ranked as the worst energy efficient building and we had the highest biomarker of um, dead mice. So, you're welcome. Okay. >> Thank you. Thank you for your time. >> Yep. Thank you. Our next our next speaker this evening is uh Lindsay Devon Brock. Um Miss Deen Brock, you will have excuse me nine minutes with yielded time. I you have three yelers but we can only take two. So are either any two of Emily Morris, uh Janine Jones or Jenny Ward here. Okay, very good. So that would be nine minutes. >> Hello. How are you? Or you can't answer I guess. I'm sorry. I'm used to asking that question. Um, I'm gonna start things a little bit differently because

108I know some potential staffing decisions have come to our attention and we want to bring them to yours, especially since it will have a direct impact on student instruction. Um, to explain their impact, this is where I'm going to go a little different. Um, I'm a Survivor fan and I love playing games on a beautiful beach, but when it comes to the drama, please sit me on the couch. I am not getting into that. Every what every survivor fan knows is the person with the sufficient amount of correct information is the person who wins the game. It's a game with only one survivor. So let's travel back in time for a few information examples. In the 7th century BC, there's the library of Usher Banipal in modern-day Iraq, housing archival, religious, and scholarly texts. It

109was only accessible to the Assyrian ruler or royalty. In 323 BC, the Library of Alexandria opened in modernday Egypt, containing texts about history, law, math, science. This library was accessible to scholars with government stipens, scientists, royals, government officials, and select female scholars. But these are people with money, social standing, and those who could read and write. In the 4th century AD, we have the imperial library of Constantinople in modernday Turkey. How this one housed scrolls and cotices available to scribes and scholars. Again, those who could read and write. So you see there's a pattern here in the ancient history. We the halves have access to the information. The have nots do not. So let's jump ahead to modern US history. 1731, Ben Franklin invented the subscription library with a group of Philadelphiaian men, more or

110less a book club, and it there was a fee to pay for the cost of the books. And I'm going to draw a conclusion here about the time period. I was fifth grade teacher, so these are these club members were very likely white landowning men. In the 1820s and 30s, these subscription libraries did really well with northern black communities, but most were run by men, and only a few were run by women. A hundred years later, public libraries started emerging via the encouragement of white middleclass women. Be careful though, the word public is relevant. These groups mostly supported the climate of segregation. Another hundred years today, we are facing potential cuts again with our libraries, our staffing, and our resources. Valid and relevant information is a currency we can use to create success. As a

111public school system, we should be setting up all of our students for success by funding our libraries and their staff properly. Each of uses our extended days fully and beyond to ensure a well functioning library program. We need to um we need to weed through books that are irrelevant and damaged beyond repair to keep the collection appealing and looking fresh. We repair the damaged books that we can to save money. We read voraciously to make sure we're offering the best and age appropriate recommendations for our students. And this saves you all time to not deal with book challenges. We research non-stop to make sure our lessons inform and prepare our students for a democratic world. We are teachers. We plan grade level and schoolwide events with teachers and principles. We are collaborators and we are

112instructional leaders, too. We build we ex we create resources for classroom use and we extend classroom instruction in the library. We build a love for reading in our students so they keep coming back for more to discover themselves as lifelong learners. Cutting the libraries librarians extended work days stifles quality collections and programs and this move would exclude our students from the best most valid and relevant information and instruction. We cannot perpetuate a pattern we see throughout history that elevates one group while withholding information from other groups. So, we're asking for you to please help us advocate for uh the libraries and advocate for the example that breaks the pattern and supports all of our students so we no longer have that sole survivor. I want to thank you all for your time tonight. Thank you,

113Miss Devin Brock. Our next speaker is Amanda Hurley. And again, Miss Hurley, you do have uh more than two yielders, but um it'll be a total of nine minutes. Uh is Carla O'Brien here and Laura Hartkey, Meredith Reed. you you may proceed. >> Hi, I'm Amanda Hurley. I'm the high school librarian at Henry Clay and I'm also a national board certified librarian. The March uh the minutes from the March 11th budget workshop, which you are about to approve, indicate district staff presented possible reductions for your consideration and discussion. As a current member and past president of the Kentucky Association of School Librarians, I want to bring awareness to and explain our board's opposition to reducing the 206 workday calendar for Fyet Fyet County Librarians should that recommendation come to you past or future. At that

114meeting, you the board were told, quote, there's no recommendation to make changes to our work calendar for our teachers, our parent educators, our counselors and roles such as that. End quote. for that. I am so thankful. Um, and I just wanted to remind the board and the crossf functional team making the recommendations that school librarians are teachers. We're statecertified educators who hold graduate degrees in library science. Many of us served in classrooms before specializing in library services. And by proposing a salary and day reduction for librarians while protecting the calendars of other types of teaching staff, the district would be ignoring our instructional roles in schools. The elimination of our extended days for librarians, they're not extra time. They're actually critical days when we spend time preparing for the upcoming school year and making sure

115that we close out the current one. These days are utilized for intensive resource curation, collection management, and admin tasks that are to ensure that the library is ready for student and teacher use from their first days. Without this time, these essential library management duties will inevitably bleed into the instructional school year. Last year, I documented and submitted to my principal 27.68 68 days of extended time. The least amount of days I've ever recorded during my 20 years as a school librarian was during the COVID lockdown where I still register 22.2 days. When librarians are not given adequate time to perform administrative upkeep, library services to students and teachers suffer and the capacity for high level co-eing and inquirydriven instruction is significantly diminished. Research consistently shows that school libraries and certified librarians are indispensable in supporting

116academic achievement with test scores being significantly higher in schools with full-time certified professionals. We serve as instructional partners who co-plan and co-e units for lots of things, but especially to help our students develop the critical skills needed to distinguish between credible resources and misinformation. These collaborative relationships are vital to the success of inquiry and require full-time, fully contracted professional presence. The school librarian is indeed an instructional position. So, when deciding budget cuts, please understand that cutting library services is a counterproductive measure. Numerous research studies confirm that reading scores follow the staff or the library spending. and it's been found that having a certified school librarian can increase reading proficiency for up to 35%. For our students, please, I ask that you reject any reduction to the current 206 school day uh work calendar for school

117librarians and that has already come or may come your way. Thank you for your time. >> Thank you, Miss Hurley. Our next speaker is uh Sarah Fightmaster Barely. You'll have 3 minutes. Good evening. As president of Kentucky 120 120 United AFT, I'm here to raise concerns about the proposed reduction to contract days for our lowest paid employees. These proposed reductions were presented at the March 11th budget meeting. I acknowledge that these recommendations are not final, but they have been made and should be discussed before they are finalized. At a time when staff who work in public education are already living paycheck to paycheck and sometimes not even making it to the next paycheck, the proposal to further reduce their paycheck while keeping the same workload is unfathomable. One particular group, the librarians, work with students

118every single day. They collaborate with classroom teachers, co-e in classrooms, and teach information literacy lessons in the library. to cut their days will negatively impact our students learning in ways I don't have time to fully express here tonight. Other groups such as our food service workers, custodians, maintenance, and technology with proposed reduction in work days are some of the lowest paid employees in the district already. These people work incredibly hard and our schools cannot properly function without them. Many of them are already working second and sometimes third jobs to put food on their tables and keep roofs over their heads. A reduction in workday should not even be on the table currently. There are many other places where a reduction in cost could be achieved, like the rebranding each school is being asked to do

119currently. Our employees deserve a living wage and deserve to continue to receive their current salaries and even more. I'd like to finish with a quote I heard recently. Advocating for changes that will improve education is not the same thing as being negative. We will continue to show up and advocate for what's best for our staff and our students. Thank you. >> Thank you. Our next speaker this evening, our our last speaker during this portion of the meeting is Matthew Vid. Uh you'll have nine minutes with if is Heather Cherry here? Okay. Time yielded from Heather Cherry. Don Perkins. >> Is Don Perkins here? Yes. Okay. Uh you'll have nine minutes. Okay. Um, so first of all, it it it legitimately makes my heart glad whenever teachers are willing to come up and speak because a

120lot of them are afraid to. I hear this all the time that teachers are afraid to speak out, afraid to speak up, afraid that they're going to get in trouble by whoever. I mean, I hear this. I hear this all the time. And so now they're showing up, which is bad news because what they're finding out, well, they've already it's not they didn't know this, but thing things are getting bad enough where you're going to have people from the schools coming in here and speaking and it and it's uh it's only going to get worse from here because what what's you guys the pro the problem that you guys have created for yourself is that you know the meme with a dog at the table drinking his cup of coffee and there's fire around him

121and it's I'm fine, everything's fine. We all know this meme that that's what you guys have been doing for the past year and you you continue to put on this this show that the budget is okay, that the finances are under control. Here's a I mean a direct direct quote um from Dr. Ligins after one of the many investigations came out from either LA Latho or from uh the Missouri firm. He says um FCPS is now operating under a balanced budget with a contingency fund well above state requirements. What this does is it communicates this sense of okayess that doesn't exist. The budget is not okay. you you are on track to overspend your budget by tens of millions of dollars. You you don't have tens of millions of dollars, but you continue to put

122on this this false I mean, it's just it's a farce of what what you guys are presenting to the community here. Here's here's direct quotes from the February 26 action meeting from uh Mr. Jackson, who's uh not here anymore, which is well, not at the the meeting tonight, which is a good thing. Um here here's what he said when he presented the numbers on February 26th. There are no there's no financial signal of overspending. Completely false. That is completely false. There is no financial signal of overspending. The district's cash position is materially stronger than last year. False. It's just false. He says the actual financial evidence shows spending is flat year-over-year related to the budget. Not true. Um revenue revenues are higher, cash balances are stronger, incumbrances are lower, budget execution is ahead of schedule.

123That was a key anal those were his key analysis points. And for his uh checkpoint summary he says um let's see taken together the financial data shows that financial fet county public schools is not overspending revenues are higher expenses are stable fund balance is stronger budget ex execution is ahead of schedule the district's actual financial condition which remains aligned with the board approved financial plan and is and and is focused on long-term fiscal stability. There is no indication of a structural or operational overrun at this junction of the checkpoint in time analysis. Guys, guys, none of that is true. What what what we are bar what we are barreling towards is are are painful painful cuts. And and you you've got people coming in here on here today talking about the librarians and maintenance staff

124and classified staff getting cut five days. There there are there are a bunch of sacred cows that are going to have to get cut. A bunch because you you you simply can't afford all of it. You can't afford all of it. But the leadership problem you guys have created is is is this is this idea that you've been presenting to the public that everything's okay and then the hammer is going to come down. The hammer's got to come down. It has to. And everyone's going to be like, "What? What? What do you mean? What are you talking about? I thought everything was okay." every month. Every month I come in here and I say everything's not okay and then Mr. Jackson comes back and he says everything's okay. It's every every month. It just happens

125month after month after month. It's not true. And the and what you're doing is you're setting the community up for major disappointment. And so what I'm hoping is that somebody is going to be able to put on their leadership pants and to be able to lead the community through what's about to happen. Because what's about to happen are there's going to be lots more cuts than librarians and maintenance staff and classified staff. It just it has to there's no way around it. But you guys have been putting on this phase of everything is okay for months and months and months. And it's it it is irresponsible. It it has been irresponsible and it continues to be irresponsible. And what's going to happen is you're you're g this the the the the veil is going to

126be is is going to go away. And what what so who's going to step up? I mean is this is the board going to step up and and demand answers and demand h what are we going to do moving forward? How are we going to solve this? because this is going to be what what the task ahead of us is a multi-year task, a multi-year path forward to get out of this mess. And and and the majority voting members of this board have exhibited zero ability to demand a plan from from Dr. Ligins. We still have no plan to get back to a 6% contingency fund, which is required by board policy. No plan. It's never even talked about. It's never even asked for. There's no plan. We're we're in period eight of the first

127fiscal year that we went below 6%. You're supposed to get it within one year and you got and you but you can get it in three according board policy. Well, what what what are we going to do? I mean, you what what I you're you're going to you're probably going to have streams of people coming in here. I mean, you think you get tired of talking to me, listening to me, listening to me, you're going to have streams of people because every every one of those sacred cows that has to get cut, oh boy, it's going to be tough. And so, somebody's going to put on their leadership pants and lead this community through what's going to happen. And I I hope I hope that you guys are up for the task. I hope you

128are because it's going to be painful. And I hope the community understands that it's going to be painful. But we we what what they have done the last two or three years is drive us to a position where we have to make painful cuts because because you just said yes to everything. You said yes to everything for years and you over spent and you overspent and you over spent. You said yes to everything and here we are. So I I what what what I am imploring you guys to do is to is to at least finally start preparing the community for what is coming. It is a it is it is at its core a leadership task and you guys are going to need to lead us through what is coming and and you haven't

129you haven't done much leadership up to this point. So, but it's it's things are going to start getting real messy. Real messy. >> Thank you for your time. That concludes this portion of uh public comment. Uh next on our agenda is approval of routine matters. I I'll entertain a motion to approve the minutes of the March 9th, 2026 planning meeting and the March 11th, 2026 special meeting. Is there a motion to that effect? >> So moved. >> Motion by Bormer Green. Is there a second? >> Second by Bora Monday. All in favor of the approval of those minutes say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries. 5-0. Um, at this time I'm going to ask leave of the board to make a quick amendment to the agenda because we do have a special guest

130in the audience. Um, I will make a motion to pull from the consent agenda item J8 and treat that as a separate action item. Um, is there a motion or is there a second for that motion? Second. >> Yeah. Yes, it's it's still an item on the agenda, so it'll count. Um second by board member Christian. So the question is on um amending the agenda to move consent item JA as a separate action item. Uh all in favor say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 5-0. So I will now entertain a motion to approve our consent items. with that amendment. All in favor say I. >> I. I. >> Oh, I'm sorry. I'll entertain a motion to approve our consent items. Is there a motion? >> So moved. >> Motion by Bor M.

131Is there a second? Second by Bormer Christian. Question is now on those consent items as amended minus JA. Any discussion? All in favor please say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? >> Motion carries 5. And now the reason I asked to pull J8 that >> before we move on did we Andrea did we approve both minutes the 9th and the 11th? >> We did. Oh yes. >> You're fine. Um the reason why I asked to pull that uh item J8 and we discussed this at the planning work session uh was the naming of the new elementary school on Greenell Road uh consistent with the recommendation submitted by the appointed committee reflective of the local community. And as we announced at the planning meeting, uh that recommendation was to rename the elementary the Helen Casease Wade

132Elementary School. And I am very delighted to see in the audience that we do have a special guest here tonight and that is Helen Case Wade herself. Miss Wade, we appreciate you being here. Uh this is uh indeed an historic moment uh for our district as we prepare to make this motion and take this vote. Um, and it's hardly compares to uh the the legacy uh that you have built and continue to build here in our community. And uh with that, it is my honor to have you here to witness. Um I'll entertain a motion to accept the recommendation of our committee to name the Greenell Elementary School the Helen Case Wade Elementary. Is there a motion? >> So moved. >> A motion by Bormer Green. Is there a second? >> Second. >> A second

133by board member Mundy. Question is on naming the Green Del Road Elementary, the Helen Case Wade Elementary. Any discussion? >> All in favor, please say I. >> I. Any. >> Any opposed? >> Motion carries. 5-0. You are fine. I mean, you are fine. And if here we we'll call in reinforcements here. >> I I would just like to say with that vote, the board has chosen to name the next elementary school in honor of Helen K. S Wade. >> Her up. No idea. by me. I'm not going to tell you a whole story, but I >> you you have all the time you need. That's Steve get trying to get me to shut up. But you know, not only is it honoring me, but it's honoring two people that made my life worthwhile. And that

134was my mother and father. I There were times when I only saw my dad. This is my sister. She was around too. Uh but there were times that we only saw dad see daddy once a month because he he because of what I did. He couldn't get a job working here in Lexington, Kentucky. We survived because my dad went to I know some of you've heard of this Erlanga, Kentucky. Erlanganger, Kentucky gave us our livelihood. Dad couldn't get a job sweeping the streets here in Lexington because of me. But he was a strong man and I loved him to death. Didn't we Stephen? Yeah. This is my baby sister. >> We have our aunt here as well. >> Yes. Our dad's our dad's sister. Baby sister. But thank you so much. I never dreamed anything

135like this would happen to me. And all I can say to you is thank you. God bless all of you. And work to e educate our children. I don't care if they're black, white, people, or red. Take care of them. Mrs. Case Wayade, thank you. That was touching. Thank you. Thank you for sharing that bit of history with us. And we we it is it's an honor to to have this school named in your honor. So, um uh this is a portion of the meeting where we would typically receive our monthly financial report. However, due to the reorganization and the hiring of an interim chief financial officer, we will not have that report tonight. Instead, we will review both our February and March finance reports at the April 27th, 2026 regular school board meeting. Underformational

136items this evening. The agenda includes five written reports for your review, including the running list of board approved contracts, the personnel changes for March, the monthly construction report, the school activity funds report, the inter transfer fund transfer report, and the budget transfer report. Um, at this time, I will turn the meeting back over to you, Chairman Murphy. We do have a need to go into close session. >> Thank you, Superintendent Ligins. Bless you. Uh the next portion of our agenda is where members of the public may address the board on any topic of district related concern that is not on the official agenda. Again, this is not intended to be a time for debate or direct engagement, but members of the public are encouraged to model civil and respectful discourse and conduct. We have two

137members of the public who have signed up for this portion of the meeting. Um and we'll ask them to come forward and step to the podium and keep their remarks to three minutes or less. Our first speaker this evening is Matthew V. Thank you. Our next speaker is Larry Moore. If he didn't Matthew, >> we'll see if he needs it. >> Okay. As elected trustees, you have governance, leadership, and financial oversight. Some recent major events. Fiscal 26 budget shortfall issues. BSWG reduction of the contingency reserve percent. The OOLT option hiring of a PR firm to manage it. Special revenue fund ended in a for fiscal 25 an unprecedented $12 million deficit. State legislators involved. State auditors conducting an audit. PR firm canled their contract due to lack of transparency from from management. Moody's issued a

138two notch downgrade and attached a negative outlook. LBMC completed a physical 25 audit identified material weakness and a sign significant deficiency which requires a corrective action plan. Taxpayers are now paying for four separate investigations because district leadership kept trying to manage the optics instead of fixing problems. Two outside legal reviews, a consulting contract, a state auditor special examination, all funded by public. None of these duplicate expenses produce a restatement, correct the internal control procedures or address mclassified revenues. This is not oversight. This is just waste. LBMC classified the nickel issue as a significant deficiency because it is technically a fund coding error under KDE's chart of accounts. But the broader implications are more serious. KD confirms that FCPS never consulted them and the prior auditor auditors never identified the mclassification even though it persisted for

139years. That pattern, a longstanding statutory error with no regulatory consultation or no board level discussion is exactly the type of governance failure that Moody's flags as a credit risk indicator. This kind of repeated control weakness the state auditor's office treats as a red flag for deeper oversight problems. While LBMC labeled it a significant deficiency, the external oversight bodies may view it as something much more serious. The potential for immediate financial impact if Moody's issues another downgrade. There's no discussion at the board of the corrective action plan either. You might want to look at the CFR balance sheet from May, I mean August, September, October, and you'll notice the AR appears to be recorded for the $12 million deficit, but the cash is not there. Where is it? So, you know, leadership is is important and

140Moody's I think that they have analysts who review the the financial statements on a periodic basis. KD's posted your financial statements. It's in on KD's website irregardless of you released them or not. It's serious. you you better take action because if Moody's reduc reduces your the bond rating again downgrades it you will have major investor holders sell their bonds immediately because they can't hold grade B or lower bonds and your interest costs will go up big time. Thank you very much. >> Thank you Mr. Moore. That concludes this portion of the meeting. Next, I'll entertain a motion to make the agenda dated March 26, 2026, on which action has been taken at this meeting a part of the minutes as if copied in the minutes verbatim. Do I have a motion to that effect? >>

141So move. >> Motion by Bormer Green. Is there a second? >> Second by Bormer. Any questions on making the agenda part of the minutes? All in favor say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 5-0. As Dr. Ligans indicated, we do have a need to go into close session pursuant to Cara 61.878 878 section 1 paragraph M uh to discuss incident response and KRS61.810 section 1 paragraph K meetings required to be conducted in privacy by law and KRS61.810 section 1 paragraph C for the discussion of proposed or pending litigation. The board will reconvene in open session and if necessary take any action required pursuant discussions conducted in close session. I'll now entertain a motion to enter close session for the stated reasons. Is there a motion? Some moved. >> Motion by Bor Mundy. Is

142there a second? >> Second by Bormer Green. All in favor of entering close session say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 5. It's 7:50 p.m. We're in close session. for me. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. up. What the world? world. Papa of the world. Number 12. Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. feel. Hey Hey, up. Go. Wo. the world. world. Papa Oh, the world. Oh, hey. Yeah. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. We good? Okay, everybody. Thank you for your patience. The board left close session on a motion by Bormer Green and a second by Bormer Monday, a vote of 50 at 8:28 p.m. Our business having been concluded. At this time, I'll entertain a motion to approve the recommended incident response services. Is there a motion to

143that effect? >> So moved. >> Motion by Bormer Green. Is there a second? >> Second by board member Mundy. All in favor of approving the recommended incident response services, please say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? >> Motion carries. 5-0. And I'll also entertain a motion at this time to authorize the chief legal officer to participate in mediation as discussed in close session. Is there a motion to that effect? >> So moved. >> Motion by Bormer Green. Is there a second? >> Second. Second by board member Christian. All in favor of authorizing the chief legal officer to participate in mediation as discussed in close session say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 5-0. >> I now entertain a motion to adjourn this uh action meeting of the County Board of Education. >> So

144move. >> Motion by Bor Money is second by Bormer Christian. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 5-0. We stand adjourned. Everyone have a great spring break.